4. Leander

Chapter 4

The trip to the mountain lake haunts me.

I can't stop thinking about it. The way her body wrapped around mine in that ice-cold water leaves me hot and bothered every damn time. I've dreamed about it for days, and every time, I wake up hard and panting and with one thought in my mind.

I want Ember.

It's so fucked up, honestly. She's being nice. Kind. She saved my fucking life. And here I am, absolutely desperate to fuck her.

I want more than that, though. The little life we've built together in the last few weeks is deeply satisfying to me. I like being around her. I like showing her tai chi and having her show me what she knows about hand-to-hand, which she is terrifyingly good at. I've been trained as an enforcer since childhood, since that's my family's role in our pack, but I like having her show me the moves, anyway.

I like when we wake up together and when we eat dinner together. I like all of this, and I don't know how to tell her.

Do I want to be able to be a little more than friends? Hell yes.

But she has a point. If I had started seeing someone in the last few weeks, then this feeling that's simmering between Ember and me is a non-starter. I know I'm not the type of guy to go for another woman when I'm with one. I know that I hate guys like that, actually.

But deep down inside myself, I really don't think that's the situation. I think that Ember and I have something. And I really want to act on it.

This morning, I come back from my now typical morning run and find Ember sitting on the porch. The smile she gives me is every bit as bright as the morning sun, and it makes my heart clench with joy.

Yeah. She and I have something.

If I am with someone else, I need to figure that shit out. Fast.

"How was it?" she asks.

I nod. "Good. Nothing to see out there." I've been doing these morning runs as a human, just in case I come across another one of her pack members in the woods. I could at least plausibly argue that I'm some kind of tourist, at least until they smell me and all hell breaks loose.

"Well. Let's see how you're healing up, yeah?"

I smile at that, too. Ember checking over my body to see if I'm getting better has become part of our routine as well. We both pretend we're not turned on by it, and I guess that's also part of the routine.

Slowly, she walks over to me, checking the injuries that have long since faded. Everywhere that her eyes travel, my skin prickles like she's touching me.

When she does touch me, I shiver and watch her eyes glow slightly at my reaction.

Yeah. I need to figure out how to call someone to ask if I'm taken. And pray that I'm not.

Finally, she straightens, giving me a quick nod that I know is meant to be clinical but comes across as barely restrained.

"You're good," she says softly, her voice deeper than I think she wants it to be. "Still can't remember anything from the last few weeks?"

I shake my head. "No."

Honestly, I'm not trying very hard. I'd much rather pretend that wherever I came from doesn't matter, and all that matters is being here with Ember.

However, there are some questions that currently demand answers. Namely, I have to know whether I'm fucking taken or not.

"Well. Do you want to go back, or…" Her voice trails off.

"No. I mean, I'm here for a reason, right? Maybe I just need some more time to work out all the fucking stuff in my head before I go."

Ember nods. "Sure."

"But," I blurt, the word taking me by surprise a little, "I think that I want to call my parents." I haven't reached out to them yet because I don't think I have to. They know that I'm a high-ranking enforcer, and I'm often sent out to do stuff for the pack. They wouldn't worry, necessarily, but I didn't feel like I needed to call them, either.

Now, however, I do. Because I need to know if this is something I can pursue.

"Oh," she says in a little squeak of surprise that's highly unusual for Ember. I caught her off guard.

"Um. I want to know… if I'm seeing anyone. Or if I started seeing anyone before I left," I say.

"Oh," she repeats again. But this time, color creeps into her cheeks, and she bites her perfect lips, and the sight makes me groan.

"Yeah," I reply. My voice sounds hoarse, and I wish that it wasn't quite so obvious. "You know. Just in case."

"Do you think they'll tell you about, like… why you're here?"

No. Because I won't ask. About a week ago, when I remembered what pack I was from, I knew that I should get a hold of my alpha. But… I'm not ready to do that in case I have responsibilities that will force me to leave Oakwood.

"I don't think they'll know," I answer her question. "It's not like my parents hear about all of my job responsibilities as an enforcer."

She nods. Most enforcers are kind of in a loop that the average pack member isn't in when it comes to their jobs, so it's not unreasonable for either of us to assume. I have no doubt that my family loves me, and I love them, but there's no way I told them what the hell I'm doing in Colorado.

"Do you remember how to contact them?"

I snort. "My mom's had the same phone number since I was five. I definitely know that."

"Okay." Ember looks away, making a slight humming sound. It's so cute. I want to hold her in my arms and kiss her until whatever she's worried about just disappears.

You have to find out if you have anyone you're dating first, dumbass.

"Well. I don't have a cell signal out here. But if we go into town, we'll be able to get a call out."

The reason for her apprehension hangs between us. Town is where the pack is. And the pack…

"It's okay, Ember," I say quietly. "We'll just stick to the story. We're cousins."

"That's really weird to think about right now," she laughs.

I grin back. "Now you know how I've felt about it ever since you suggested it."

The smile slips from her face, and her eyes get wide. "You thought it was weird because… Um…"

"Because the first time I opened my eyes and saw you, all I could think about was how beautiful you were."

The blush that creeps up Ember's face is worth every bit of nerves that the honesty brought on in me.

"Well," she whispers, fidgeting. "I guess we should get going then."

"Lead the way, Ember," I say with a smile.

When she turns, something clicks inside me. I'd follow her anywhere. This is just the first step. No matter who I am, or what I'm doing here, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that for me, this is what I want.

Ember leading. Me keeping tabs on her, having her back.

Always.

We don't see any other pack members. About a hundred feet from where the gravel road opens up to the first few buildings in Oakwood, Ember stops and steps to the side. She moves out of the way off of the main road, into the trees, and gets out her phone. Nodding, she looks up at me. "This should be good."

She holds the phone out to me, and I grab it. I dial my mom's number quickly, hoping that she'll answer.

It rings. And rings.

Finally, it gets to her voicemail. Disappointment soars through me, but I quickly leave one, letting her know that I'm okay, and this is a good number to call back, then turn to Ember and shrug. "I guess she was out…"

My sentence is cut off. Both Ember and I notice at the same time that something is wrong.

There are other wolves here.

I move to stand in front of Ember, watching as other men file in to the little spot in the woods where we're standing. One of them, a tall guy with dark hair, steps forward.

"Ember," he rumbles.

"Evander."

"Care to introduce us to your… guest?" This comes from the wolf next to him, a brown-haired guy stacked with muscle.

"I don't need to introduce anyone to you, Orion," Ember barks.

Orion, the second wolf, growls back. "I outrank you by a long shot, Ember."

He makes her name sound like a threat. I swallow the growl that's clawing at my throat. I want to beat the shit out of these guys, but logically, I know that's probably not the right move.

I've always been better at waiting than most other wolves. I don't know why. I just have the kind of patience that they lack.

One deep breath later, and I'm doing my best to remember that. Because in this moment, I don't want to be good at waiting. I want to fucking take them down.

Ember steps out from behind me and raises her chin at them. "This is Leander. He's my cousin."

"Cousin?" Evander's eyebrows raise. "I didn't know you had a cousin."

"Luckily, Evander, it's none of your fucking business if I have a whole fucking litter of cousins," she spits at him.

The other wolves rumble at Evander's side. They're probably all pack enforcers as well, and my body tenses. I'm ready for a fight.

"I don't know your life or your business or whoever the fuck you call yours, Ember, you're right. But it's one of the pack rules to have all strange wolves check in with Thorne or me within two days of bringing them in, and that's only in an emergency. The pack laws state that you need to tell us ahead of time if it's a scheduled visit."

"It was an emergency, and he got here yesterday," she snaps at Evander.

Evander's eyes gleam. "You'd talk to your beta like this?"

"I'll talk to you however the fuck I want," she barks.

That makes me blink. Normally, betas don't elicit the same type of respect that alphas do, but people in a pack still feel their authority slightly. I can tell that he's rippling with it, at the very least. If he's not, the bigger man, Orion, definitely is.

But if she can tell, Ember clearly doesn't give a fuck.

"Where are you staying?" Evander growls, looking at me.

I blink. "With Ember."

He stares at the two of us, his eyes bouncing between us. "Bring him to the pack headquarters tomorrow. Thorne is out right now, but he'll be back tomorrow. And I'll assign an enforcer to follow you home…"

"If you do, they have to fight me," Ember says in a low voice.

Power ripples through her words. Ember's tough as hell, which I find insanely attractive, but this is more than just toughness. It's that same confidence that she radiates like the sun. It's the kind of confidence that alphas have, and the realization catches me off guard for a second.

She expects to be obeyed. She knows that she'll fight and win, and I think she probably will, too. I move protectively behind her, folding my arms and looking as stern as I can.

If they want to come for Ember, they have to come for me, too.

Ember and Evander lock eyes, both staring at each other. Finally, he gives a sharp nod. "If something bad happens because of him, Ember, it's going to be on you. You're strong, and we all know what you've done to save the pack, but our grace only goes so far. You can fight us one by one, but you can't win against all of us," he says softly.

Her eyes glint, and given Evander's little frown, I wonder if he doubts that statement as much as she does.

He leaves. One by one, the enforcers turn to go, with Orion being the last one to leave, and when they make it out of the clearing, I take one deep breath.

When Ember's phone rings, we both jump.

She hands it to me after looking at the number, and I nod. I need to get myself under control. Adrenaline is pumping through me, but more than that, I need to make sure I don't jump Ember right now. She's so hot, it's unreal.

I shut my eyes and take one more deep, shuddering breath. I hit answer and hold the phone up to my ear. "Hey, Mom."