Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

N ow

Bayden took a deep breath, ran a hand down the front of his T-shirt to make sure it was neatly tucked into his jeans, and then knocked on his alpha’s office door.

After a brief pause, he heard Arek Varg’s deep voice bidding him to come inside. Bay jerked his head toward his right shoulder, and the crick in his neck loosened with a small pop. After one more deep breath, he opened the door and stepped inside.

Time to see the boss.

Arek sat behind a large chrome-and-glass desk in front of tall windows displaying a splendid view of Bonita Cove and Black Sands Beach. The Pack House stood on the edge of the Marin Headlands in the same place where the first alpha had built a home before the Spanish and, later, American settlers arrived. That wolf had negotiated with the Coast Miwok, the first human stewards of the land, to build a humble cabin. Each time the wolves had protected or helped the Miwok, they’d granted the pack leader more land that generations of wolf shifters had then inherited. As the packs grew and technology improved, alphas built more modern and larger dwellings.

The pack now had acres and acres of coastal wilderness on which members could freely run as wolves. The land grant agreement required that they respect the natural flora and fauna and not build beyond a certain boundary around the current location of the Pack House. This was not a problem. The wolves were as protective of the wilderness as the Miwok. They needed to run in their natural shape regularly, and their animal spirit thrived better in untainted nature. A wolf stuck in human shape for too long would become restless and aggressive in ways that caused problems in modern society. As a pack enforcer, one of Bay’s jobs was to deal with rogue wolves who threatened humans. Civilian casualties were never accepted and the risks to the rest of the shifter population and their secrets were too great to allow a feral wolf to run amok.

Arek looked up from his laptop screen. His solemn azure eyes studied Bayden as he approached the desk. The alpha’s short blond hair and ramrod-straight posture hinted at a military background. Bay knew Arek’s security company often ran off-the-books operations for the government, but he’d never asked if Arek had served in the armed forces. The leader of Bay’s pack wasn’t exactly the chatty type. And it wasn’t important where he’d gotten his leadership skills. As the alpha of the San Francisco Bay Area pack and the commanding alpha of the Western Packs Coalition, Arek functioned very much as a military leader. A good one. He demanded unflinching loyalty but encouraged his pack members to speak up when they disagreed with him and ask for the things they needed. His wolves were loyal because they respected him, not because Arek demanded it.

“Have a seat,” Arek said, nodding toward one of the two empty chairs opposite his desk.

Bay did as ordered. Or had Arek asked? Bay hadn’t interacted with the alpha often enough to discern nuances in his tone of voice. Justice Varg, one of Arek’s lieutenants, oversaw the enforcers. Then again, Arek’s voice might sound the same whether he was asking questions or delivering orders. Bay tried to relax in the chair, or at least appear relaxed. This was the first time Arek had called him to this office. Despite Bay’s efforts, his muscles tightened with fear over why the alpha might have summoned him. Was it to receive a reprimand? Or would he get a chance to prove that his mistake was a one-off? No way would he ever again put himself in a position where he blew someone elses undercover job to smitherins.

Arek closed his laptop and pushed it to the side. “Bayden, how are you settling in after your…adventure? Bay tried to hide his cringe at the slight pause before the last word. Calling the incident an “adventure” was a colossal understatement. As much as Bay would like to forget the whole thing, he’d fucked up majorly.

After he’d limped away, shifted to wolf, and caught a lift with the flat-bed truck, he’d been dehydrated and delirious because of blood-loss. The pack members he’d scented were working another undercover operation and Bayden had bumbled right into it in wolf form. Almost blowing the whole thing up. He’d also tried to protect Bolt, the other of Arek’s two principal lieutenants, from the woman who was now his true mate because she’d smelled like witchcraft.

“I’m good.” He cleared his throat when the words came out hoarse. Arek’s use of Bay’s full first name made him feel like he’d been called to the principal’s office. Even when Bay had been fully human, before he’d had been changed into a shifter, he’d been a scrapper, always in trouble for picking fights. Usually because someone had questioned his intelligence. Then, like now, he’d never been good with words. Using his fists had been an easier way to solve conflicts.

“I’m glad,” Arek said. “You had us quite worried there. I’ve never seen Justice as worried as when he thought we’d lost you. He considers you a valuable member of his team.” The alpha put his elbows on the desk and leaned forward. “As do I. You are important to this pack.” Thankfully, the alpha didn’t touch on the loud lecture Justice had given Bay once he’d recovered enough to receive it.

Warmth grew in Bay’s belly and spread through his limbs. The pack was his family. The only one he had. “Thank you,” he said. “I appreciate everything you and Justice have done for me.”

“Pack protects pack.” Arek leaned back in his chair. “We take care of all our wolves.”

Bay nodded, but inwardly he cringed again. He didn’t want to be the kind of wolf that the pack took care of. He wanted to run with the wolf leaders. Until that fuckup, he’d been able to act as if he belonged at the front of the pack. His faked confidence and cockiness had seemed to fool the pack into thinking he knew what he was doing.

Fuck. His high success rate had made him believe it himself. It had been a long fall and a hard landing when he toppled over the edge of the tall pedestal his ego had built up in his mind.

Oblivious to his underling’s internal turmoil, Arek continued. “Justice thinks you’re ready for another job, but I wanted to ask you myself before we sent you out again.”

Bay straightened in the chair. “I’m ready. Definitely ready.” He might not be smart enough to serve his wolf brothers and sisters as anything but muscle, but he’d do anything to prove his worth to the pack.

With a quiet snick, the office door behind him opened. He turned around to see Laney, Arek’s wife and true mate, stride into the room. She shot Bay a quick smile as she passed his chair, but she quickly refocused on the wolf behind the desk. Arek’s eyes turned light blue as he gazed at the woman approaching him. “Hi,” he said, his voice husky.

And Bay had his answer about whether the alpha’s tone ever changed. Undercurrents of warmth infused that single-word greeting, and the sizzle of the couple’s shared looks crackled in the air between them.

Laney perched on the arm of Arek’s chair, placing an elbow on her husband’s shoulder for support. The alpha snaked an arm around her waist, and she leaned into his embrace. “I saw Justice in the computer room, and he said Bay’s going out on another mission.” Laney’s brows furrowed as she looked at Bay. “Are you sure you’re ready for another solo job?”

“Absolutely,” he answered. He’d have said the same whether it was true or not. But he was ready. He needed to be ready. He had to prove to the pack—and to himself—that he could be of use again. Before he lost his confidence, or worse, before the pack lost confidence in him.

Laney’s brows didn’t relax, but before she could say anything more, Justice entered the room through the door she’d left open. He wore a white dress shirt with a dark gray buttoned vest that matched his trousers. Not a wrinkle dared to assault his outfit, and his short brown hair lay perfectly styled against his head. He sat down in the second chair across from Arek’s desk, silver eyes glinting as he looked at Bay. “You all right, mate?” The syllables of his British accent were as crisp as the creases on his pants.

Bay nodded.

“What, no tie today?” Laney chirped, tilting her head.

Justice threw her a quick smile. “Heard it was casual Friday.” Arek hid a chuckle behind a fake cough, and Justice quirked an eyebrow at the alpha as he handed Bay a bundle of printouts. “Boarding passes and rental car reservation. I’ve emailed them to you as well.” Bay folded the papers and put them in his pocket. Later, he’d use the text-to-speech function on his phone to read him the flight times from the email.

Justice quirked an eyebrow. “Not curious to see where you’re going?”

Shit , he should have at least glanced at them. “I figured you’d tell me when you give me the details of the job.”

“This is both a job and a personal favor,” Arek said. Bay straightened in the chair as he turned toward his alpha. “A close friend recently passed away. I just now learned that he had a kid, and that the mom died years ago.” He cleared his throat. “I hadn’t been in touch with my friend as much as I should have.” Laney squeezed his arm, and Arek glanced at her, smiling slightly. He covered her hand with his, stroking it with his thumb. “We had a falling-out, but he was a loyal friend for a long time before that.” Arek’s blue eyes looked sad. “I need you to bring the kid here.”

Fuck. Bay struggled to keep from growling. Relegated to babysitter. So much for proving his worth to the pack.

“This kid.” Justice leaned forward. “He was born to two wolf shifters. Do you understand? Even if Arek didn’t have a personal connection, we need to protect him.”

Bay slowly nodded. Every shifter he knew had been born human and then made into a wolf. “I understand.” Pregnancies among shifters were rare and usually ended in miscarriage or stillbirths. There hadn’t been a naturally born wolf cub in centuries.

This kid was a miracle.

“This has to be managed delicately,” Arek said. “I can’t use my role as the Western Pack Coalition’s commanding alpha in personal business.”

“He could, but we want to keep politics out of this situation,” Laney interjected. “Arek’s known for ruling with diplomacy rather than force, and we want to keep it that way. Especially since we’re about to start negotiations with the Vikings.”

“Understood,” Bay said. “No reason to give our political adversaries reasons to stir up shit.” There were several alphas in the Western Coalition Packs who wanted nothing to do with the immortal Vikings that the Bay Area pack had partnered with. Rumblings had surfaced of some packs thinking about leaving the coalition if the Vikings joined.

“Exactly. Especially this close to the holidays. I knew you’d grasp the importance of this mission,” Justice said. “The pack this kid belongs to, they keep to themselves and rarely take part in coalition business. We know little about them and need to manage this with diplomacy and finesse. You’re the right man to get this done.”

Bay kept the surprise off his face. Nobody would put finesse or diplomacy on a list of his skills. They’d be more likely to mention things like “hard right hook” and “efficient interrogation techniques.”

But how difficult could it be to pick up one small pup and bring him back to the pack house? He’d get this job done quickly and be back in time for the Yule fest. There would be plenty of opportunity to prove his worth on the next proper mission.