21. Ranger

TWENTY-ONE

RANGER

Matt was asleep, his head on my chest. I wished we could fondle and caress one another, and when the sun came up, we'd eat a leisurely breakfast and plan the rest of our lives.

And we could do all that, but we had a problem that needed solving first.

According to my watch, it was the middle of the night. There was no sound from upstairs, and I checked the phone.

Flint had messaged. Can't believe you chose this night when who knows what the dawn might bring. Irresponsible .

Not now, Bro. I sighed . For a guy who'd kept his mate-to-be in a basement, he sure was giving me a hard time about having sex. How's the house holding up?

We're okay for now. We've been scouting around. He added that sinkholes had formed near the property perimeter. Water is creeping toward the boat shed, but the forecast is for the wind and rain to ease after sunrise.

Once again, I thanked our grandfather for anticipating what would happen in extreme weather and taking the proper precautions when he had the cabin built.

My brother and I texted back and forth when I should have been nibbling Matt's ear, stroking his ass, and inhaling his intoxicating scent.

Banishing thoughts of lovemaking from my head, I concentrated on Dane. He tried to destroy our business, and even if Flint had decided to dispense a lesser punishment than death, Dane intending to kill my mate sealed his destiny. Not that Matt viewed it that way. He kept insisting Dane go to jail, but it wasn't happening.

The plan was to draw Dane here, with the Alpha thinking he was outsmarting us. Despite having a wolf inside him, he was a city guy, whereas we'd spent our summers and holidays here since we were born.

But we needed bait, and using Matt was the last thing I wanted, but Dane craved revenge.

He would come because he'd have discovered where we were. It was what I'd do if I were him. And we'd be ready for him. He could bring the whole pack—an invasion—but he wouldn't. Tactically, that wasn't a smart move, and his pack was small, whereas ours numbered in the hundreds.

Matt was an easy target here, and in some ways, it would be more sensible to leave. But him being human combined with the weather guaranteed we wouldn't get far and would have to huddle in an abandoned hut or cave, and we'd leave ourselves open to an ambush. I'd considered using our boat, the one we'd spent lazy days in during the summers, but the river was a torrent and we'd all drown.

In hindsight, perhaps it wasn't the smartest idea to bring Matt to the cabin. But I'd had to get him away from Dane, and I hadn't anticipated the damage from the storm. And well, I'd only just mated him. Probably not the best time to be making life-or-death decisions.

I couldn't count on Dane not knowing we were mated. I had to give the Alpha shifter credit; he'd created a mafia pack, thumbed his nose at the traditional shifter mafia whose business activities and lifestyle were more measured, and he'd not only survived but thrived. He was brash, canny, and conniving, and I'd be a fool to take him for granted.

Besides, Hawk from the Nightfall pack had been at the speed-dating event. He might have picked up that Matt was my mate and spread the word. One of the SSC members could have blabbed. Doubtful, but I had to consider all possibilities.

Matt arched his back and grunted. I kissed his mating mark. His eyes opened and they darted round the darkened room before resting on my face. I waited for him to speak and begged the universe that he didn't regret us having sex.

"That was some ride."

"In your dream? Or us coming here from the city?"

"No, us, you and me, cock-in-hole ride."

"Ahhh, hold that thought." I slid my hand over the covers and squeezed his butt. Gods, how I wanted him again, but Flint was right, I needed to alpha up or perhaps Beta up was a better description.

"Okay. I figured out a solution so the authorities will arrest Dane and you don't have to kill him."

Damn, we were back to discussing Dane and his future, however short that would be.And here I'd assumed my mate had been sleeping.

"Matt—"

He put a finger to my lips and said Dane was a drug manufacturer. "Some of the chemicals needed in recycling are the same as used in making drugs."

We didn't touch that stuff and certainly didn't cook it up.Unknowingly, Matt had given us yet another legitimate reason to end Dane's life.

"Also, I have video footage of the chemicals being delivered that I got from his assistant's phone."

My mate argued we could call the police. But they were in the middle of a state-wide emergency, and besides, guys like Dane rarely paid a price.

"He's a bad dude," I agreed.

"In my world, those people go to jail. We don't off them."

"I know enough about Dane." Maybe part of me was similar to him, though I hated to admit it. If someone hurt me, my family, or tried to destroy my business, I would never let up, always waiting until the right moment for payback.

"He will kill you, Matt. Maybe not today. Or next week. He'll bide his time, and you will never know peace."

"I'll send the information to the authorities and they'll lock him up. You have the necessary contacts."

"And then what?"

Matt tugged his hair. "Dane will leave the city and never return?"

He was grasping at possible solutions, none of which were feasible.

"You're putting my family, which is now your family, at risk too." I hated laying a guilt trip on him and explained that as we were involved, the decision wasn't totally up to him.

My mate got up and paced. "I have to try. Give me the email of some higher-up person in the police department."

That I could do. The police superintendent had been a friend of my late father. Not a shifter but a good guy. Matt might not think the same, as he was on our payroll.

My mate sent off the information that could put Dane away, if not for life, for a good chunk of his remaining years if the guy was human. It would amount to nothing, but I admired Matt's tenacity in standing up for his principles.

"I've done all I can." He sounded as though he was trying to convince himself he did the right thing.

"And now we set up an alternate plan. We have to lure him." I allowed Matt to fathom what I was saying.

"What? You want him to come here?" He grabbed the quilt and slung it over his head so only his eyes were visible.

"We do." We had to finish this.

Flint had to be part of the conversation, but I wouldn't allow him in the room. So again we texted back and forth, with my mate making suggestions. We agreed Matt would send a snippet of the factory footage to Dane. But it wasn't enough.

Matt sighed and got the laptop. "Dane's a greedy SOB. Money is his motivation, his reason for living."

That I knew. "And?"

"My hacker… or I prefer IT guy…" He gulped.

"Go on."

"Did a thing. Something bad that I had nothing to do with."

"Keep going." He was getting my hopes up that we had a real carrot to dangle in front of Dane.

Turned out the guy had accessed one of Dane's bank accounts by bypassing 2FA and updated all the contact details, effectively locking Dane out.

"I didn't ask him to do it. I was horrified," Matt told me. "I didn't get a chance to tell him he'd fucked up and possibly implicated me."

I had to meet this IT guy when all this was over with and have him work for us, not to steal money but to ensure ours was safe from people like him.

I conferred with Flint before using Matt's burner phone and sent a text.

We need to talk .

Too late for talking was Dane's response. Not a surprise.

I have something you want , I typed.

Doubtful, unless you're talking about yourself.

Matt took the phone and typed furiously, telling Dane he no longer had access to one bank account.

Dane replied. You're bluffing . No way am I going to fall for that . I could almost hear the snarl behind those words.

Nah. Tick-tock . Matt sent some footage taken from Dane's drug lab and told him to check his bank account

WHAT DO YOU WANT? was Dane's response after five minutes. Though I wasn't looking forward to a confrontation, I enjoyed the fury behind the all-caps reply.

I'll hand over the account deets in person before noon, and I'll be taking a small commission. Plus, I'll give you the rest of the footage. In return, you leave me alone.

He texted, Why in person?

Matt and I shared a glance before he wrote , I want to see the defeat in your eyes and know that I got the better of you.

Ten minutes later, Dane agreed and said he'd come with three bodyguards. I multiplied that number by two or three. He didn't ask where Matt was, which I noted.

Matt raked his clawed fingers over his skin. "If there were any other way…"

I pulled him against me, neither of us speaking, just swaying back and forth, each of us alone with our thoughts.

Dane wasn't a fool. Telling him to come here on a flimsy excuse screamed, "We're going to mess with you." He'd expect an ambush, so he'd have a back-up plan and that was to isolate and kill Matt. Much as he loved money, if he could do away with the human who double-crossed him, that would satisfy his inflated ego. Other than the loss of a child, killing my fated mate would be the greatest pain I could endure.

"It's me he's coming for." Matt's voice was muffled against my chest.

I couldn't lie. Not to the man who bore my mating mark. "He wants to hurt both of us, along with my family."

In the hour before dawn, Arnie made more food, and I took the gun from my bedroom. "Keep this."

Dad and Uncle Arnie would be in the house, along with three of our men. The rest would be outside with me and Flint.

As the sky lightened and the rain slowed to a drizzle, Matt clung to me. His mind grasped one irrelevant detail. That Dane and his bodyguards would be naked after shifting. His life was in danger, he was dealing with a guy who'd kill his own father if his dinner was late, but he was fixated on them being nude.

"Naked? Weird. What if?—?"

I silenced him with a finger to his lips. "No, we will succeed, and after that we can start our life together.

"Then why the gun?" He held the gun's grip and leaned back, screwing up his face as if he smelled something bad.

"An extra precaution. Mate."

He hesitated before repeating, "Mate."

I asked him for his mating hand.

"Mating what? Oh, I get it."

"This is for all eternity." I kissed his mark.