5. Kirsten

"Ugh." I smacked my hand on the steering wheel.

What a dick. As I sped down my driveway, I glanced in the rearview mirror. Jace was still standing at the edge of my property. I couldn't believe the sheer audacity of the man to not only sneak on my property without approval, but also to tell me I was basically a prisoner in my own house? Who the fuck was he to tell me I couldn't go shopping? Ridiculous.

On the main road, I turned right toward Scottsdale rather than left toward Crestwood. The farther I got from the cabin, the more my anger dissipated, leaving only frustration in its wake. Now I would have to deal with a whole new pack of shifters. I didn't know if what Waylan and Jace had said was true about needing to meet an alpha to get permission to shop, but I didn't want to run into issues. The last thing I wanted was to get there and piss off another alpha, so I'd need to meet the guy to make sure I was good to go.

Why in the name of God had my great-grandmother chosen to settle on a little sliver of land tucked between two shifter packs? It made no sense when she could have simply lived near other humans. Although, I guess if you really wanted your privacy, it made sense, but still, it was making my life a living hell right now.

A few miles down the road, I pulled into the shoulder and yanked my phone from my purse. I had no clue who the alpha of Scottsdale was. The night before, Jace had mentioned a guy who was worse than himself, but that was all I had to go off. I had a hard time thinking anyone could be as much of a shithead as Jace Stone, so I'd take my chances and see. Thankfully, all shifters were registered, and within two minutes, I'd pulled up the info for the Scottsdale, Missouri pack.

There was no picture, just the name Eren Miller and an address. I punched the address into my phone and pulled back on the road, on my way again. I was less than excited about this next meet-and-greet, but what other option did I have? Scottsdale was only half an hour away. The next closest human town was almost a five-hour round trip there and back. Zero percent chance I was making that drive two or three times a week the whole summer. I wouldn't even be able to buy a carton of ice cream before it all melted on the return trip.

During the drive, I allowed myself to enjoy the scenery. The Ozark Mountains in the distance wrapped around the land, almost cradling it. It was peak summer now, and everywhere I looked, all I could see were lush green trees. This part of the state hadn't been overly developed, and for a while, I could imagine I'd gone back in time. I smirked, thinking of myself cruising through the woods in a Honda two hundred years ago, passing people on horseback, mouths hanging open as they thought they were witnessing a miracle.

Thirty minutes later, I arrived in Scottsdale, another quaint town similar to Crestwood. The GPS told me to turn down the main street to get to the alpha's house. I didn't know a lot about shifters, but turning up wholly unannounced was probably not a good idea. If I didn't want to make an ass of myself, I'd need to find someone who could introduce me to him. Or at the very least, give me a phone number or something.

Downtown Scottsdale was one long drag with businesses on either side. As it was a shifter town, someone here had to know the alpha. I parked and hopped out, heading toward a cute little bookstore. The streets were pretty quiet, but that wasn't surprising since it was still early in the morning.

Inside, the bookstore was almost as quiet as the street outside. A young woman stood behind the counter, flipping through a paperback.

"Good morning," I said as I approached. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."

The woman smiled before looking up. She slipped a bookmark between the pages of her book, then turned to me. "Good morning. How can I, uh…" She faltered and frowned as she laid eyes on me. Her nose wrinkled as though she was sniffing the air and found something she either didn't like or didn't understand. "Well, um, can I help you?" she finally said.

These wolves were so damn weird. Were they all like this? Maybe I'd forgotten deodorant this morning before leaving. Was their sense of smell that good?

"Yes," I continued. "I'm staying in a nearby cabin for the summer, and I wanted to find out who I should talk to about getting an audience with the alpha here. I wanted to introduce myself and make sure it was okay to shop in your town."

As I spoke, the girl's eyes widened even more, and by the time I was done, I thought she was even frightened. Had I said something wrong?

She took a hesitant step back, yet again sniffing the air. "Um, can you…" She frowned, obviously thinking. "Wait here. I'll get the person you need. Hang on."

Before I could say anything else, she vanished into the back room, leaving me alone.

"What is wrong with these people?" I muttered to myself.

I'd assumed she'd gone to a back office somewhere to call whoever she needed to, but after fifteen minutes, she still hadn't returned. Frustrated but unwilling to go to another business and try the same thing, I passed the time by perusing the book selection. Ten more minutes went by before she reappeared. A huge, hulking man with a shaved head followed behind her.

"Morning," the man said to me. "My name's Poli. Brooke here says you need to speak to the alpha. If you'll come with me, I can take you there. His name's Eren, by the way."

Replacing the book I was reading, I smiled at him. "That would be great, thank you. I don't want to be any trouble. Though, can I ask what took so long?"

The girl, Brooke, spoke up then. "I had to call Poli, and then he came down to meet you in person. Sorry." She shrugged, but still appeared uncomfortable about something.

"Follow me, ma'am," Poli said.

Doing as the man said, I exited the store, and he walked toward a huge pickup truck parked across the street from mine.

"I'll be in this," he said, gesturing to his truck as he climbed into the cab. "Follow me, and I'll lead you up to the house."

"Déjà vu," I whispered as I got back into my car.

For the second day in a row, I found myself following a pack alpha's minion up to the alpha's house. The truck, obviously a diesel, billowed a cloud of black smoke out as it pulled away from the curb. The trip was fairly short, leading down a few streets until we arrived at a small neighborhood on the outskirts of the downtown area.

Poli's truck turned onto a driveway that led to what must have been the alpha's house. The first thing I thought upon seeing it was that it was much bigger and more extravagant than Jace's. Even thinking about Jace Stone made me hiss in annoyance. Why the hell was I even thinking about that guy right now? It was pointless, and I needed to concentrate on making a good impression on this Eren person.

Poli led me into the house, which was also decorated in an overly impressive sort of way. I had the sense that whoever had designed the interior had done it with the express intention of trying to dazzle anyone who visited.

"Well, well, well," a voice said from behind me.

Flinching, I spun on the spot and found a man—roughly Jace's age, maybe a bit younger—stepping through an archway. The moment I set eyes on the guy, an itchy tingle ignited across my body, like my skin wanted to crawl off on its own to get away from his gaze. He had a creepy vibe about him.

"All this time, we thought your kind was gone, yet here you are," he continued as he walked closer. Poli stepped out of the way.

"My kind?" I asked, brow furrowing in confusion. "What do you mean by my kind?"

He put a hand to his forehead and smiled apologetically. "My apologies, where are my manners? My name is Eren Miller, alpha of the Scottsdale Pack." He put his hand out to shake, and even though I didn't want to touch him, I decided discretion was the better part of valor.

"Kirsten Holly," I said, shaking his hand. "What were you saying about—"

He leaned close, and I stopped talking. For a terrifying second, I thought he might try to kiss me, but he only took a deep breath and grinned wider.

I was not here to make a friend or even like this person. I just wanted to buy some damn toilet paper and eggs. Whatever it took, I'd make nice, but so far, this was even weirder than what had happened at Jace's house. A tiny voice at the back of my head was screaming like an alarm bell, warning me that things here were not normal.

"Come over here," Eren said. "Have a seat."

He escorted me to what looked like a den, and I sat on a plush leather couch. He took a seat on the coffee table directly in front of me, uncomfortably close.

"So what do you do for a living?" he asked.

"Uh, I'm a teacher."

"That's amazing. A really honorable profession. What grade?"

What the fuck was happening right now?

I sighed and leaned back, putting some distance between us. "Fifth grade. Listen, can I ask about shopping in town?"

"How often do you use your power? It can't be often, the scent is"—he waved a hand through the air—"very subdued, somewhat strange. Kind of earthy."

"Power?" I asked dumbly. "I'm not sure what you mean by that."

"Magic," Eren said. "How often do you use it?"

That sealed it. All these shifter alphas were definitely crazy.

"I'm not Houdini or anything," I said. "I'm just here to visit and shop. Can we get back on track here? I've got a lot of stuff to do today."

Eren frowned, eyeing me strangely. I could almost hear the wheels turning in his head as he looked me over.

After a while, he smiled hesitantly. "Of course, I'm sorry. Again, my manners aren't the best."

He stood and moved to a chair farther away. It was almost like a switch had been flipped. He'd gone from being strangely curious and interested to more of a cool businessman.

"What can I help you with?" he asked once he was settled.

I smoothed my hands across my pants, taking a breath, happy to have some space. "I came here to have an audience with you to ask your permission to shop in town."

He lifted an eyebrow. "You want my permission to shop?"

I swallowed, my mouth dry as sand. "Yes."

"Sure," he said with a shrug.

"Oh, good," I said, smiling and letting out a breath. "Thank you so much. I really appreciate it."

Eren leaned forward and smiled. "You know you didn't have to ask my permission, right? You were fine to spend your money in town however and whenever you like."

"Wha… what?" I frowned. "I thought, uh, I thought you had to ask for access or something. Isn't it a rule?" I remembered what Waylan and Jace had said the night before. "Like a shifter law?"

Eren shook his head, laughing. "Pack alphas are free to make whatever rules they want, but I've never heard of anyone saying a human couldn't frequent their stores. We shifters have a lot of antiquated processes. It's part of why humans typically stay away from our towns."

"You're telling me there was no reason for me to come here?" I said. And make a fool of myself, I thought. "I'm staying near Crestwood, and I was told it's expected that I ask permission from the alpha to use the town."

"Very rare for a human to ever meet an alpha to begin with," Eren said. "The only time anyone would need to ask for an audience with me would be if they planned on moving into our area permanently. And the only time you would be summoned to my house would be if you were causing trouble in my territory."

The information left me reeling—and fucking furious. I grit my teeth, doing my best to keep my composure. So Jace and his buddy had been lying when they said it was a rule in all shifter towns. Jace only wanted me to stay out of his town. He didn't give a damn about any other humans. Just me.

What the hell did he have against me?

"I'll let everyone know you're free to come and go as you please, if you like," Eren said. "If anyone—and I mean, anyone—gives you a hard time, they'll answer to me. I'll fuck them over fast, and you can believe that."

His threat toward his own pack members rubbed me the wrong way. As much as I disliked Jace, something in me told me that if I spent any more time with this man, I'd end up really detesting him. Though, now I had a place to shop, so I couldn't be too upset.

Shoving my embarrassment and annoyance down as deep as I could, I rose from the couch. "Thank you for your time and kindness, Mr. Miller. I appreciate everything, and I'll get out of your hair."

"Have you met Jace Stone yet, Ms. Holly?"

I didn't speak immediately, but whatever Eren saw on my face must have been answer enough. He threw his head back and laughed heartily.

"Yup," Eren said, pointing at me and chuckling to himself. "I get that same look when I think about him. Jace is, to put it lightly, not my favorite person." Eren glanced up and down my body and nodded. "Looks like you're a good judge of character."

The way he eyed me like a succulent steak made me uncomfortable. All I wanted to do was get out of there. Between these two alphas, Jace was a jerk, yes, but didn't seem to be a creep. This guy? Definitely a creep.

"Thanks," I mumbled as I made my way to the door.

"I hope to see you soon," Eren called after me. "Real soon."

Once I was out the door and down the steps, I allowed myself a little shudder before getting back in my car. By the time I got back in town, word must have spread that a human was there. More people were out and about, and I couldn't help but notice a lot of eyes were on me as I made my way through the hardware store, grocery store, and then back into the bookstore to grab a few paperbacks to pass the time. I kept noticing whispered conversations behind my back, but when I'd turn, people quickly dispersed.

Shifter towns were known as sort of backward and difficult. I'd seen that firsthand in the last twelve hours, but did humans so rarely come through them that I was that big of a spectacle? Many of the townsfolk were acting like they'd never seen someone like me before.

The ride home was mostly uneventful and relaxing. I even put on an audiobook to kill the time. If I was going to make an hour-long round trip to shop, I figured I could get some book time in.

By the time I was almost back at the cabin, my mood had lifted. I didn't have to be around that skeezy Eren guy; I had a backseat and trunk full of groceries, cleaning supplies, and repair items; and the day was shaping up to be gorgeous.

My mood soured the moment my driveway came into view. "Son of a bitch," I hissed at the sight of Jace standing by my mailbox.

The last thing I really wanted to do was talk to him, but of course, like the asshat he was, he was blocking my driveway. If I wanted to get to the cabin, I'd have to run him over.

"Tempting," I murmured at the thought, but sighed and slammed my car into park.

Jace was walking toward my car, but I shoved the door open and was out in a second, already preparing myself for a fight.

"Are you okay?" he asked, and the look of concern and worry on his face stopped me in my tracks.

"Uh, yeah," I said, brow wrinkling. "Why?"

Jace clenched his right hand into a fist. "Did Eren try anything with you? I swear to God, he better not have."

"Eren Miller?" I asked. "The other alpha?" Jace was being weirder than he had been so far. "No. He's a creepy little shit, but he didn't do anything to me. I'm not sure why it's any of your concern, though."

Jace sighed, shoulders sagging with relief. "Okay, that's good. I was just worried–"

"No need to worry about me or concern yourself with me anymore," I cut in. "He's given me permission to shop in Scottsdale. Speaking of…" I stepped forward and jammed my finger into Jace's chest. "Thanks for lying to me."

His face fell, shame creeping into the corners of his eyes, but he stayed silent.

"Humans don't have to ask an alpha for permission to shop in their towns," I barked.

"Your little rule made me look like a fucking idiot in front of that other alpha. It's not a shifter thing, it's a you thing."

"Kirsten, I, uh…" he trailed off and shook his head. "It's not exactly what you think, I'm just… God, I don't know what I'm trying to say here."

The guy was stumbling over his words like a kid who'd gotten caught stealing, and rightly so. He was playing king in his little kingdom, and from what I'd seen so far, he wanted to keep me as one of his underlings. If that's what he thought would happen this summer, he had another think coming.

"Stop," I said, huffing out a breath. "I don't want to hear whatever lame excuses you've come up with."

"Okay," Jace said, holding his hands up. "I get it. I just wanted to say that maybe you shouldn't go to Scottsdale too much. Eren is not a great guy, and you wouldn't want to get on his radar. That's all I wanted to say."

"Are you fucking serious right now?" I asked. "You've already told me you don't want me in your town, and now you're trying to order me to not go to the only other town nearby? What is your deal? Is there something about me that just inherently irritates you? Why don't you want me around? Or do you just hate all humans?"

"This isn't about me," Jace blurted. "I'm trying to keep you safe, and hanging around Eren is not a good way to do that."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, eyeing him warily. I'd gotten bad vibes from the guy, but it sounded like Jace knew even more.

"Eren is dangerous. That's all I'll say, and that's why you shouldn't go to Scottsdale anymore."

This was getting us nowhere. It wasn't even noon, and I was already desperate for a nap.

"Are you always so cryptic? What makes this guy so big and bad? Because from what I could tell, he's as greasy as a car salesman—fake and full of himself—but I didn't notice anything inherently bad or dangerous. Plus, let's please not forget, he told me I could come buy cheese and shit, unlike the psycho standing in my driveway."

Jace chewed his bottom lip and nodded slightly. "Okay. I deserve that. All I can say is that some shifters are just born evil, plain and simple. Eren is one of those people. He is not the sort of person you want to tangle with." He put his hands together, interlacing his fingers like he was praying. "Please promise you won't go back there."

The look on his face and the plea in his voice had my anger seeping out of me. He was being honest; I could see it in his eyes. He was truly scared for me, and from his outward appearance, was desperate for me to believe him. What exactly did he know about Eren?

Crossing my arms, I said, "What makes him so dangerous? If you want me to promise that, then you need to give me an actual reason. I mean, is this some horseshit, like he stole your girlfriend back in high school or something?"

"He's not afraid to do terrible things to get what he wants," Jace said, taking a step toward me. "All I can say is, you don't want to be something he wants, either. Please?"

The way he said that last word did something to me. Something unexpected. He whispered it, leaning forward, eyes locked on mine. A strange warmth spread through my chest, my skin buzzing like some strangely pleasant static electricity was zipping through me. Something deep inside me told me to trust this man.

"All right," I said, giving in. "Fine, I won't visit Scottsdale anymore. Does that make you happy?"

Jace's posture eased, and he flashed me a heart-stopping smile. "It does, actually. Listen, anything you need, you call Waylan." He pulled a slip of paper from the pocket of his jeans and handed it to me. "That's his number. Mine's on there as well. Call or text us, and we'll bring whatever you want. And since, uh, since I made this so difficult, I'll cover the cost of anything you need. How does that sound?"

My instincts were still pushing me to trust him. As annoying as it was not to have the freedom of going into town, I nodded, accepting his fragile olive branch.

"You don't need to pay," I said. "I've got my own money, but thanks for the gesture. I'll call you if I need anything."