Chapter 18

Tak strode into his motel room and tossed his keys on the table. Even though it had been a couple of days since he'd last spoken to Hope, he'd taken on the role of her protector. He cared for the woman, and something innate compelled him to look after her—especially after discovering the death threat. Simply walking by her window and knowing he could be there at a moment's notice filled him with immeasurable satisfaction.

There was a decent breakfast bar that offered a bird's-eye view of Moonglow. He'd spent yesterday in there stuffing his face with bagels and watching all the foot traffic outside. Now he barely had two pennies to rub together, so he needed to put a lock on his spending before he wound up trapped in Austin with no gas to get home.

City people were always in a hurry. All they wanted to do was spend money and flaunt it. It showed in the flashy cars parked along the street. Tak was accustomed to a simpler life. People weren't glued to their phones and in search of constant entertainment. Though one thing he did like was how they didn't segregate Natives in Shifter bars like they did in his Podunk town. City people were more accepting of one another. For the most part. He still bumped into a few dickhead Vampires who wanted to start shit because of his tattoos. He didn't trust Vamps. He'd heard stories about how they were secret stealers, so he kept his eyes low and avoided them.

Shifters occupied most of Tak's neck of the woods, and they were highly territorial. A Vampire owned the closest gas station, but he kept to himself. Outside of a Mage or Relic wandering into the stores, Tak rarely interacted with other immortals. Not that he preferred it that way, but he certainly felt like a fish out of water in Austin.

For the past two days, Hope had arrived at the store early, cleaned the windows, and kept herself busy. At noon, she'd turn the sign on the door to closed and disappear into a back room. Today was different. A dark-haired woman in a tight dress showed up to run the store while Hope took off in her car. When Tak followed and realized she was heading out to where they first met, he backed off. Protecting her was one thing, stalking her every move was another.

What a remarkable woman. Tak had never seen anyone more dedicated to the success of their business, and she made him think about things he hadn't pondered in a long time… like forming his own pack. Her ambition inspired him to consider taking risks of his own. He'd thought about breaking away from the tribe, but who would join his pack? No good man or woman would leave the tribe to follow him. And forming a new pack with strangers was just as uncertain. Could he trust someone he hadn't known his whole life, and would they trust a Packmaster who had shamed his family? Tak could easily keep his past a secret, but the truth always comes out. A leader who lied to his pack was not worth following. Aside from all that, would his father see his departure as betrayal to his people?

Tak pulled open the heavy drapes and glared down at the unmade bed. His cock stirred just from his thinking about Hope's soft moans and the way she'd dominated him. Tak had always been gentle with women, but during sex, he was the aggressor. Period. Feeling the heat between her legs as she sat astride him was one of the most powerful experiences of his life. Her consuming gaze, her full breasts, the tantric way she approached sex by taking her time and savoring him. It was what he needed—what his wolf needed. And more importantly, it was what Hope needed.

Tak hadn't changed the sheets in two days.

Two fucking days.

They still carried her sweet scent, and whenever he buried his face in his pillow, it reminded him of her long hair, spirited laugh, and the way she filled his embrace like no woman ever had.

And that was a hell of a realization.

Tak fell backward and hit the mattress, a loud snap sounding from beneath the box spring. He gazed up at a crack in the ceiling and experienced an overwhelming sense of solitude. He missed the comradery with his packmates—the banter and good company. A hunting partner, someone to play games with or laugh over a joke. Kids riding his shoulders. Horseback riding at dawn. Why would anyone choose to be a lone wolf, even for a short time? Lakota's job as a bounty hunter both intrigued and mystified him.

Though he missed country life, Tak could appreciate the city's allure. He'd seen his first coffee shop, and there was so much to see and do. He mostly stayed near Moonglow, the motel, and Hope's apartment, which were all located in the Breed district. He was a stranger in this territory—an alpha without packmates. People didn't trust rogues where he came from, and he suspected it was no different here.

Tak could see himself getting used to city life. Packs here had the best of both worlds—a homestead in the country and plenty of distractions in town. Everything appealed to him but the eateries. Tak grew up hunting and farming, so eating out wasn't something he ever did. He liked knowing where his food came from, which was the only reason he'd eaten the bagels at the café. Bread was a safe bet, and he had watched the man make them from scratch.

Tak squeezed his eyes shut. He hadn't brought enough cash to afford a motel for a week, and his wolf had already chewed a knob off the dresser. None of his people dealt with bankers, so everyone who worked under Shikoba was paid in cash. Tak made a decent salary for helping his father out with the business, but the money always went back to the tribe for building materials, tools, clothes, and anything else they needed. No one cared about personal accounts since they all had a roof over their head and food to eat. Even in his current predicament, he couldn't bring himself to call his father and ask for money. Then questions would arise, like what the hell was keeping him here?

Hope was keeping him here.

She was the only woman who looked at him as if the marks on his face didn't matter. There was neither scorn nor pity in her eyes. Hope hadn't used him for pleasures of the flesh the way other women had. In her arms, he'd found salvation. In her gaze, Tak felt like an alpha again.

Hope was the first woman who'd made him forget Jenowa. Thirty years had passed since the tragedy, and every woman he'd lain with only reminded him of her absence. Time and loneliness had taught him how to be a good lover—how to worship a woman the way he might have worshipped Jenowa. And with each of them, he always asked himself the same questions. Would she have liked it that way? Would his wolf ever howl for another woman?

None of those questions lingered now.

Tak rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands, frustrated by his foolishness. He wasn't supposed to love again. That was a vow he'd made a long time ago—one that had always been easy to keep. Tak wasn't fit to love a woman. Jen's death proved that, and he wasn't even worthy enough to say her name out loud.

Why the hell was he even debating the issue—as if he stood a chance with Hope. No woman in her right mind would look at him as a worthy mate, and here he was, fantasizing about the idea of…

Of what exactly?

He rubbed his chest when he felt a fire burning deep inside.

"Must be the bagels," he muttered.

Tak kicked off his shoes and stripped out of his clothes. Earlier, the motel manager had caught up with him in the parking lot and warned him that if he didn't pay for that day, he had to be out of the room by three.

Might as well enjoy a hot shower before I have to live in my truck.

Tak moseyed to the bathroom and stepped into the narrow tub. After turning the faucet, he stood beneath the stream of water and unraveled his braid. Large freestanding bathtubs were better, but city folks sure liked their showers. Curious, he looked down at the shampoo bottles that came with the room. It seemed like such a trivial thing, but he'd never used store-bought shampoo before. His tribe made almost everything: soaps, candles, furniture, toys, clothes. They were virtually self-sustainable. Their healers relied on plants like aloe and herbs for treating cuts and burns among the children. They didn't like waste, and all these plastic bottles and packaging were disrespectful to nature.

When he turned a bottle upside down, a dollop appeared in his hand. The pearl-white substance didn't seem like nearly enough for his long hair, so he shook it all out and tossed the empty bottle over the curtain rod. After rubbing the shampoo into his scalp, he held his sudsy hands in front of him. A sonorous laugh escaped.

"What is this shit?" He hadn't seen this much lather since the time he'd driven his truck through a car wash.

After he emptied a bottle of soap to slick up his chest and underarms, some of the shampoo slid into his eyes and burned like liquid fire.

Tak growled and squeezed his eyes shut. When water sprayed him in the face, more shampoo got in his eyes and made him back up a step. As he pulled the curtain open, his foot slipped. Tak felt the rod give way before the metal clanked against the tile.

Someone pounded on his motel room door.

"Hold on!" he snarled.

They knocked again, but it sounded more like someone kicking the door.

"Dammit." Still blind, he stepped out of the narrow stall and rubbed his eyes.

Big mistake. He'd forgotten about the soap on his hands, and now his eyeballs felt like someone had torched them with gasoline.

Cursing under his breath, he strode blindly toward the insistent banging, thumping his head on the top of the bathroom doorframe. It was lower than most, and Tak usually dipped his head when walking through doorways. The air conditioner instantly chilled his wet body.

"It's not three yet!" he yelled. What kind of bullshit was this that a man couldn't even take a shower before checking out?

He smacked into the door and then felt around for the knob. Tak was about to get uncivilized if the manager so much as uttered a single complaint about him not leaving fast enough.

He yanked open the door, eyes still squeezed shut. "I'll be out of your hair in a minute!" Tak slammed the door, turned around, and tripped over something on his way back to the bathroom. He was a big man, so when he crashed to the floor, it was like timber falling. As he lay there on his back like a twisted root, he felt the comforter within his grasp and used it to wipe his face.

Unfortunately, it didn't alleviate the searing pain in his eyes.

The knocking sounded again, only this time it was so light that it was like butterfly wings flapping against the door.

Tak lifted his head and pried open his lids just as the door opened… and Hope walked in.