Derek raised an eyebrow, then grabbed the coffee and an extra mug and led the way over to the far side of the terrace. His brother poured him a cup and handed it to him, studying his face. “You ran into her.” It wasn’t a question.
“What makes you think that?”
“I can smell her on you. Why is that?” The question was reasonable enough but there was a protective note in Derek’s voice that made Adrian’s wolf bristle. He knew his brother was completely devoted to his mate and that his protectiveness was for his employee rather than for personal reasons, but he still didn’t like it.
Derek’s wolf was also an alpha. He would almost certainly have been the Alpha of the Moonstone pack if he hadn’t left at eighteen, leaving a twelve year old Adrian behind with his father and his treacherous stepmother. Their relationship had healed since Derek had returned but it could be difficult having two such dominant wolves in close proximity. He forced himself to take a deep breath.
“Like you said, I ran into her. Or more accurately, she ran into me. Why the hell is she alone in the building at this hour?”
“This building is completely secure, in part due to her. She’s brilliant, absolutely brilliant. She rebuilt our entire threat detection system in two weeks. The previous team couldn’t manage it in six months.”
“That doesn’t mean she isn’t fragile,” he snapped, stalking to the railing that overlooked the city. “She needs to be protected.”
“Are you volunteering?” Derek asked mildly.
Yes,his wolf growled, every instinct he possessed confirming it.Ours to protect. Ours to cherish. Ours.
“She’s human,” he managed to grind out. “And she’s my brother’s employee. What the hell do you think?”
“I think I know exactly what that feels like.” His brother came to stand next to him, not challenging him but simply being there.
“That was different. You don’t have the same… responsibilities.” Or the same memories of what Vivienne, his stepmother, had done to his father and to his pack. “The Elders are still fighting our investment tooth and nail. They’d never accept a human ma?—”
He couldn’t quite catch the word before it escaped.
“Mate?” Derek finished for him.
“No,” he growled, despite his wolf’s immediate protest. “I have no intention of taking a mate.”
“Ever? As you said, you have responsibilities.”
His brother was right. The Pack expected him to take a mate. The Elders were already pushing him to do so, but he’d shut down the discussion every time it came up. They wanted an alliance, a political match that would strengthen their position on the island.
Harper wouldn’t be a political match. She wasn’t even a wolf. He couldn’t think about how small she’d felt in his hands, how her scent had burrowed into his brain like a burr, how his wolf wasstill whining softly in the back of his mind, urging him to turn around, go back, find her?—
“We should discuss the investment,” he said flatly, changing the subject.
A little to his surprise, Derek accepted it. “Yes. We should.”
Thanks to Derek, the Moonstone Pack had a ten percent stake in TalkToMe. Shares. Dividends. A permanent income stream that would provide financial security for generations. In exchange, the pack would participate in an internship program—sending their young wolves to work at the company, learn human business practices, and integrate with the broader Monster Island community.
On paper, it was a good deal. A great deal, even. The pack’s traditional industries—logging, hunting, the seasonal tourist trade—were declining. The young wolves were restless, chafing against traditions that no longer served them. Something had to change.
But knowing something needed to change and accepting that change were two very different things.
“The Elders aren’t happy,” he said.
“The Elders are never happy.” Derek took a sip of his coffee. “What specifically are they unhappy about this time?”
“The internship program. They’re calling it ‘corruption.’ Saying we’re ‘selling our young to the city.’ Elder Howard gave a two-hour speech about ‘evil pleasures’ and ‘the seduction of human technology.’ I had to physically stop Coleman from walking out.”
Derek frowned. “Howard’s still on the council? I thought he would have retired by now.”
“He thinks retirement is a human weakness.”
“Of course he does.”
Elder Howard was a problem, and had been a problem for years. The old wolf had been one of Vivienne’s staunchest supporters before her fall, and while he’d never been directly implicated in her schemes, Adrian had always suspected there was more to his loyalty than mere traditionalism.
