Nathaniel took a step closer, and I stiffened. He seemed to catch himself and stood eerily still, his attention on Evie’s face.
“Look at me,” he demanded, and his dominance spread through the room.
Evie had listened to my instructions on the drive here, and her gaze was glued to the floor. She didn’t have a hope against the demand in Nathaniel’s voice though, and her gaze jumped to his. My hand wandered toward my lanyard, but I forced myself to relax as Evie stared at the alpha.
He wasn’t hurting her. But something was going on.
“It’s nice to meet you,” he purred, and a faint blush hit Evie’s cheekbones. She shivered, and Nathaniel took a step closer to her.
I was distantly aware of another werewolf entering the room, but when Nathaniel decided to tamp into whatever power made him dominant enough to hold a pack of werewolves, I didn’t have a hope of pulling my attention away unless I reached for my own power.
I managed to clear my throat. Nathaniel continued to gaze at Evie in apparent fascination for one more moment before he turned his attention to me.
“Ms. Amana,” he started, and the werewolf next to him let out a strangled sound. We all looked at him, but he was focused on Evie.
“Evelyn?”
Her mouth dropped open. “Liam?”
They stared at each other, and then the werewolf moved toward her, wrapping her in a hug. He was obviously dominant enough to be able to move while Nathaniel’s displeasure radiated throughout the room.
Liam was taller than my sister and lanky for a werewolf. He had green eyes which were currently lit with joy, and a sprinkle of freckles across his face. From the look of his wide shoulders, he was still growing, and when he filled out, he’d be a force to be reckoned with.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Liam asked.
Evie grinned. “Um, shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?”
Nathaniel turned and sat back down, closing his eyes. I’d seen him do this before, and I was unsure whether he was counting to a hundred or attempting some kind of werewolf meditation.
Evie turned to me. “Liam went to my high school,” she said. “We were close for a few years, and then he moved away.” Her face shuttered and my heart ached for her. Story of Evie’s life. People loved her, but they always left.
Nathaniel let out a low growl. He kept his eyes closed and my eyes met Liam’s.
“We can smell emotions,” he said, with a quick glance at his alpha. Then he turned back to Evie. “I’m sorry I left.”
She attempted a smile. “Don’t be silly. Your parents moved away. But how did you end up back here?”
Liam swallowed. “A feral wolf broke into our house and killed my parents. I survived. I guess I had the right DNA or gene or whatever, because a few days later, I woke up furry. A neighbor came to visit and peered in the window. They called the local pack.”
Evie choked out a gasp. “I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks. It’s been a rough ride, but Nathaniel has helped. I was too dominant to join the pack in Florida— where my parents had moved. Their alpha had been killed and there was too much infighting. Someone told me to come here, and Nathaniel helped me control my wolf. The first few years were… hard.”
I shifted on my feet. Werewolf dominance didn’t always go the way human dominance did. I’d seen guys who blushed if you looked at them turn into powerhouses who became alphas once they were turned. Liam seemed cute and a little nerdy. But for him to be too dominant to join the Florida pack, he was likely high up in the hierarchy.
I watched Nathaniel. His eyes were open, and they’d darkened to his usual color. His face was blank.
“Take a seat,” he murmured, and Evie automatically moved toward the sofa.
Liam let out a low growl, and Evie jumped. Strangely, she didn’t jump toward me. She skittered toward Nathaniel, who had his eyes on Liam.
“Control your wolf or leave,” he said. Liam closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Apologies. My wolf doesn’t like it when you tell Evie what to do.”
“Your wolf forgets who is in charge here,” Nathaniel said silkily.
Last time I was here, I’d thought Nathaniel was a giant dick on a power trip. After witnessing one of his wolves teeter on the edge of control… and seeing the look in his eyes when he regarded me as a snack— and not thecutekind of snack, I understood the werewolf alpha much better.
