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1351 Words
She nodded silently, so he ticked her off on the list. “I’ll make a note that your preferred nickname is Shay, so there won’t be any confusion. Now, Brielle, you’ll be in room two-oh-nine, directly across the hall, and bunking with Cherry from the Omaha pack. I believe her pack came in yesterday morning, so she may already be asleep, but she knows to expect you.”
“Okay, thank you.” I gave him a polite smile, but he was still looking at me strangely.
“Which way is our dorm?” Leigh cut in, and the man pulled his gaze from mine slowly, like it took effort.
“I’ll have one of our wolves escort you.” He peered over his shoulder and scanned the crowd, looking for someone specific. “Gael!” His shout wasn’t louder than necessary, but it was laced with power and a hint of an alpha bark, which made my wolf whine and shake her head. This man was too dominant to be holding a clipboard, whoever he was. I’d wager he could give our Alpha a run for his money, easy. Was he one of the high alpha’s men? Either that or our pack was even weaker than I thought.
A tall, broadly muscled man with intense green eyes jogged over from where he’d been talking to an even taller—good gravy, what was he, six-five?—brooding alpha wolf. The brooding alpha scowled at Reed, and then his eyes flicked dismissively over the three of us. But when they landed on me, they locked on like a missile. He was utterly, undeniably gorgeous, and everything I never knew I’d wanted in a man. Dark hair trimmed close to his head but a little longer on top, sharp cheekbones, and a straight nose. Tan skin from a life spent outdoors was paired with muscles that looked like they came from hard physical labor. His dominance was so thick in the air, I could taste the sharp tang of it from here. I got a faint impression of citrus and something spicy, though that was absurd even for a shifter nose at this distance.
Strangely enough, my wolf wasn’t whining as she had at Reed. The dark haired wolf and I stared at each other across the dark field, and she rose shakily to her feet, pacing forward, agitated for some reason. There was energy, pure and brilliant, blazing across the field between us, even though it was dark except for the half-moon. My wolf howled and pressed forward against my control, shocking me into stillness. I was barely breathing as I stared at the handsome stranger. As I watched, his eyes began to glow bright green, his own wolf peeking through in response to mine.
Gael skidded to a stop next to us, on high alert, and I hurriedly dropped my gaze from the handsome, intimidating alpha across the field. I glanced up quickly and took in Gael’s thick eyebrows, the scar on his cheek that bisected his stubble and ended abruptly on his throat. His tight, black T-shirt and black cargo pants made me guess security, or maybe even someone’s enforcer. Though why they’d need security to escort us to our dorms was beyond me. Surely the area was safe, if they’d brought us all here?
“How can I help, Reed?”
The two shared a long, lingering look before Reed bobbed his head in our direction. Mental communication? Maybe they were pack mates. “Can you please escort these three to rooms two-oh-eight and two-oh-nine?”
“Absolutely. Ladies, this way.”
He turned and marched off through the milling wolves, not taking the time to make sure we followed. Reed gave us a finger wave in dismissal, then turned his attention to the group of wolves behind us. I snuck a quick glance toward the alpha, but was nearly rolled over by a wave of disappointment when I found him gone. It’s for the best, Brielle. Get your head out of your tail.
“Was that weird, or was it just me?” I whispered to Leigh and Shay as we half trotted behind Gael to keep up. Luckily, he was tall and easy to spot, or else we’d have lost him in the bustle.
“Definitely weird. Hottie McHotterson had total eyes for you, babe.”
“Uh, no way. Did you feel how dominant he was? My wolf didn’t like it.”
Leigh snorted, shaking her head. “Your wolf? She barely comes out to play. Don’t blame intimidation on her. That’s hardly fair to the poor girl.”
“I’m serious, Leigh! She’s been alert ever since we stepped off the bus.”
“Huh, well, that’s probably a good thing. So many wolves might be able to pull her out of her shell. Maybe she needs a stronger alpha?”
Our conversation came to an abrupt end as Gael opened the door to a massive, log-cabin-style lodge. The place towered at least two stories up, with beautiful dormers cut into a green tin roof. The double front doors were painted a matching green, making the place feel natural and like it blended into the forest. If it wasn’t a country mansion, anyway.
We trailed up the front steps one by one, and Gael dropped the door to help with our bags.
“Sorry, I should have thought to carry those for you. Geez, what have you got in this one, rocks?”
“No, not rocks,” I said, indignant.
Leigh laughed, not bothering to cover her smirk. “Did you pack a whole bag of lab equipment? Why am I not surprised.”
“Hey, I’m ninety-percent sure that your entire second bag is shoes. Lay off.” I leveled her with a pointed glare.
“Shoes are necessary. Lab equipment—”
“Is also necessary,” I argued.
“Uh-huh. Because we’ll have so much free time for you to work while we’re here courting hot wolves.” She leaned her forearm up onto Gael’s bicep and gave him a wink. “Like this fella here. What’s your story, hot stuff?”
My cheeks burned at her blatant flirtation, and I wasn’t even the one making a show of things.
The man’s eyebrows nearly flew off his face as he gently removed her arm from his shoulder with two long fingers. “No story worth telling, princess. Now, if we’ve got everything together, I’ll show you to your rooms. I’ll find somebody to help bring the extra bags upstairs, you can leave them here.” He gestured to the base of the staircase, which gracefully curved up and up into the giant lodge.
The interior was every bit as beautiful as the exterior when we stepped inside. Furnishings were a little sparse – there were only a few chairs here and there along the front wall, tucked beside the windows out to the porch. But the craftsmanship was impeccable. Exposed beams, burnished floors, and a soft off-white paint on the walls, provided the perfect backdrop for a gorgeous mural of two howling wolves. They were side by side, the smaller wolf tucked against the larger one’s shoulder, as if they were mates.
Gael grabbed Leigh’s shoe suitcase and one of mine from Shay, then jogged up the stairs like it was nothing. I was torn for a moment, but ultimately decided to leave my suitcase full of clothes at the bottom of the stairs. I could get more clothes, but it would be very hard to procure the test vials and lab notes in an area as remote as this. Somehow, I doubted my usual two-day shipping back home would apply here.
As quickly as I could, I hurried after the three of them, pushing thoughts of the beautiful stranger out of my mind. I would never be strong enough to mate a wolf like him, even if I knew I’d dream of those eyes, brilliantly glowing and calling to my wolf, as soon as my head hit the pillow.
- Writer
