2. Miles

TWO

MILES

The last few weeks of hunting the hunters had exhausted me. But it was in my blood. I was a wolf, for God's sake. I relished the hunt. It was probably a subconscious part of why I became a private investigator. There was more to relish about this hunt, too. I was hunting the people who were trying to kill me and mine—something neither I nor my wolf could let go.

After the explosion of the warehouse and the discovery of Ryland's body inside the wreckage, news coverage had blown up. There'd even been a blurb about it on CNN. Nothing about the blast and ensuing fire had sent the authorities in our direction, but I kept an eye on it. A small part of me felt like our luck was running out. We had to be vigilant, not just regarding the hunters but the cops too.

I'd been out on the hunt for nearly a month. First, I did some research, then I spent two weeks running down the leads I'd found. So far, nothing had panned out. The leader of the Hunter organization was still shrouded in mystery. So, when every lead ended up being a dead end, it was clear it was time to come home. Tate had told me as much the day before. So, I was doing exactly that.

Exhausted and depleted, I crossed the border into Colorado. I'd made the drive up north in one straight shot. I'd spent years doing stuff like that—disappearing into the void in search of people and things that needed to be found. Usually, it was all business, but I was more driven this time round. Not only were my friends being targeted, but the hunters had almost killed me.

Getting attacked outside Harley's house had been one of the scariest moments of my life. Even now, over a year later, I still remember the bullets slamming into me, and the terror on Tate and Harley's faces as I stumbled into their kitchen, covered in blood and on death's doorstep. For some, the experience would have been enough to send them into hiding. That wasn't how I was programmed, though. I was going after them. We were going after them. Nothing would stop us––not even this lack of information.

I pulled into the parking lot of the security firm I owned a fourth of, and slumped back against my seat, happy to be home but almost too tired to get up. After allowing myself five minutes to veg and recover from the drive, I finally opened the door and hauled myself out into the crisp fall air. It was a far cry from southern Oklahoma, my last stop right on the border of Texas. It was colder here, but it was exactly where I was supposed to be. I closed my car door and glanced around. It was strange to feel so good about being home.

Shrugging, I went inside. Kennedy's head jerked up from the magazine she was reading. "Oh," she said, eyes wide in surprise. "Hey, Mr. Kelly. Haven't seen you in a while."

"Kennedy, seriously," I said with a sigh. "It's Miles. Why am I the only one you won't call by their first name?"

Blushing, she shrugged. "Uh…because you're the boss, I guess."

"All four of us have a controlling interest. We're all the boss."

Kennedy rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah. But you're…like…the boss boss."

I shook my head, chuckling even though I didn't really understand what she meant. I gave her a smile and walked down the hallway. The office often felt more like home than my apartment did. By the time I reached the conference room, my shoulders were more relaxed, and I was more at ease than I'd been in nearly a month.

Tate leaned out into the hallway and smiled at me. "There he is. The wolf has returned from the hunt."

I glanced around, making sure none of the employees heard what he'd said. Tate laughed. "Calm down, man. Everyone but Kennedy is on lunch or on assignment. Get in here."

Steff and Blayne were also seated inside. They both looked happy to see me, and I nodded at them before falling into one of the chairs.

"Butt sore from all that driving?" Steff asked.

"Very funny," I mumbled, but I grinned.

Being a lone wolf was rare in shifter circles. Wolves were pack animals by nature, unlike dragons, bears, or panthers. Those creatures were solitary, but even then, they still went feral when they spent too much time outside a pack or clan. For wolves, that happened easier and quicker. These guys had been my pack for years. Wolf packs were small and tight familial units. My friends had been that for me for a decade. I reminded myself that when things finally settled down a bit, I had to tell them how grateful I was.

Blayne walked over and slapped me on the back. "Welcome home, big dog. How was the road? You better not disappoint me and say you ate fast food the whole time you were gone because I need some restaurant recommendations."

"Oh, there was plenty of fast food, but I had some freaking awesome barbecue in Texas and Oklahoma. I'll text you the places later." Wanting to get some info on what had been going on while I was gone, I got serious. "Anything I miss? News? Hunter activity? My tracking hit a wall, and I apologize for that. I really thought I was going to find him."

"Easy, bro," Tate said, "You've been gone over two weeks. I know it's important, but let's not dwell on what we failed to do, okay?"

"Right," Steff said, "There's more than hunters to deal with, right?"

Tate and Steff looked at me and Blayne, a knowing smile on both their faces. "Yeah, yeah. We know," Blayne said. "The curse."

I winced. I'd spent so many hours chasing down the leader of the hunter cult that I hadn't even spared a thought for the curse. Of the four of us, Tate and Steff had already found their mates. Blayne and I were next. Though, I had a hidden feeling that I was safe. I was almost a hundred percent sure I had no mate. Anywhere. Not just that, I didn't want a mate. I kept that a secret, knowing what the guys would say. I'd pushed Steff so hard to get with April that I'd look like a hypocrite if I voiced my thoughts.

"It all keeps coming back to Emily," Tate said. "She said the curse wouldn't be broken until we were all mated or dead. So far, everything she said has come true." He started raising fingers as he listed off each thing. "Our mates are drawn to us. They change species when we claim them. If we ignore the mating bond, we experience excruciating pain and may even die from it." He put his hand down and shrugged. "No reason to think the rest is a lie at this point."

Deep down, I hoped my aversion to a mate would make the curse backfire. If I were lucky, I would be next. That might be the way to spare Blayne all the difficulties that Steff and Tate had gone through. I'd never been a ladies' man like the other three. Women always gave me attention, but once they got to know me, they thought I was cold and distant. Once they realized that, they headed for the door pretty quickly.

Tate glanced at me, almost like he'd heard my thoughts. "I think you're next, old buddy."

"Oh, fuck off," I grumbled.

Steff laughed and pointed at me. "No, he's right. I was thinking the exact same thing."

I gritted my teeth, and a few of the walls I'd built inside crumbled. "Fine. If I am, it'll end quick. No matter what happens, she'll reject me, and it'll be over. I'll die, or go crazy, or my dick will fall off, or whatever the hell Emily planned."

My three friends went silent and stared at me. They all knew why I didn't want a mate, but they didn't know how worthless that story made me feel. That I didn't believe I was worthy of being with. It was one thing I'd never let them know. Sometimes things were too deep and painful for even the best of friends to know.

"This isn't like any other relationship, Miles," Steff said, "A fated mate is unlike anything I ever experienced. We all know where you're coming from. It sucks what happened back then, but just because she didn't?—"

I stood and waved a hand at him. "Don't say her name. Please. I get it, okay?"

Steff held his hands up, "Got it. I only wanted to say that, after everything we went through, I wouldn't change anything about what happened with April."

I ran a hand through my hair in exasperation. "Exactly, Steff. April? Your childhood sweetheart? You ended up with her. And I…" I trailed off and shook my head. "Well, you know what I'm talking about."

Tate nodded and leaned forward. "We do. We know the story. Look at me, though. Never in a million years did I think I'd have a family. Now I do, and I'd never go back. Is the curse a pain in the ass? Yes. But I think Emily and the hunters screwed up. Not only is it throwing us and our mates together, but it's also making our pack stronger. They become shifters, too. It's making us more powerful."

As irritated as I was, I truly was happy for them. My heart was jaded, though. Even though the past was behind me, it still weighed on me. I didn't foresee a happy outcome for me. I'd been in love one time, and it hadn't had a happy ending. My heart had been ripped out, and nothing the guys said or did would ever get me to believe I deserved anything more than that.

Blayne sat back down and shrugged, turning his palms to the ceiling. "I'd be fine if it was me. I've always been a family man."

The smile on Blayne's face faltered a bit, and he fumbled his phone out of his pocket to check an email or something. I glanced at Steff and Tate. They wore the same awkward expression. Blayne had lost his brother years ago. He'd been the only family Blayne had. Of all shifters, panthers were some of the rarest. The packs were really small, with no more than five or six shiftings. Blayne and his brother had been on their own from a young age when some hunters killed their parents. He didn't talk about it much, but the idea of being alone like that and then losing the one person you had made me feel awful for him. All four of us had baggage and heartbreak in our pasts, which had pulled us together into the makeshift family we were now.

Blayne craved a family. If I had to guess, deep down, when he'd heard about the curse, a small part of him had been excited. As far as we knew, there hadn't been a female panther shifter in the US in over a decade. His mom very well may have been the last one. One night after way too many beers, Blayne had confided in me that he'd resigned himself to seeing his kind go extinct.

I huffed a breath out and reached over, yanking the phone from his hand. He protested and tried to grab it back. "Nope," I said, pulling it out of reach. "If I'm next, it'll be over quick. Then, hopefully, you can find your person. It shouldn't take more than a day or two for the curse to figure out that I'm not mate material. For anyone."

Blayne sank into his chair and rolled his eyes. "Bro? Way to be melodramatic." He put the back of his hand to his forehead. "Woe is me, how will I ever survive being so unlovable?"

Steff snorted, and Tate put a hand over his mouth to cover a grin.

Blayne looked me dead in the eye. "I can't wait to watch this curse bring you a mate. It's going to knock you flat on your ass, and it'll be glorious."

"Yeah, right." As the guys burst out in laughter, I stood. "I need to get home. I'm tired, and it's almost noon. Plus, I haven't had any real good sleep in days."

Tate nodded. "Sounds like a plan. It's good to have you back, man."

I smiled as I headed to my car. Usually being home was a chore. The only enjoyment I really got was hanging out with my guys. This time? Home felt right. For the first time in a long time, I was truly happy to be home.