Chapter One
MATT
Matt turned his truck onto the long, rutted track that led to the house. The tires jolted over uneven ground, scents of sun-warmed pine and dry earth drifted through the open window, and something in him eased the way it always did when he entered pack territory. It was as close as he got to peace these days.
His headlights caught the reflection of amber eyes among the trees, and a compact, muscular wolf slipped out of sight. Christian was keeping watch. There was no immediate threat—no rival packs close by—but Matt insisted on the patrols. Territory was only safe so long as it was defended. He’d learned that the hard way. No one got to be complacent in his pack, even with empty land stretching out in every direction.
The house came into view, the porch light casting a yellow glow into the night. He pulled up, but instead of climbing out, he let his hands rest on the wheel and took a moment for himself. A final instant of quiet before he stepped inside and becamealphaagain, responsible for everything. And he knew too well what that meant, what happened when an alpha fucked up.
The front door flew open and Tristan bounded out, long limbs moving fast and loose. He was always in motion, but right now there was an extra jolt of energy to him, like he was barely holding something in.
He reached Matt as he was climbing out of the truck, and with him came a scent Matt didn’t recognize, drifting through the open front door.
“Matt! You’re not gonna believe—”
“Quiet.” The word came out low, edged with warning.
Tristan snapped his mouth shut, and Matt drew in another breath, filtering through the information that gave him. The scent was wrong. It wasn’tpack.
His hackles rose, and he cut a hand toward the ground—stay. Tristan was amped enough to complicate whatever situation Matt was about to walk into.
He stepped inside, muscles coiled, his wolf close to the surface and snarling. The mouth-watering aroma of steak and onions drifted from the kitchen, but it barely registered. He followed the other scent instead, tracking it through the hallway.Shifter.Intruder.Wrong.
The spare bedroom door was ajar, and Matt shoved it open. A stranger lay in the bed, his face pale, eyes closed. Beside him, Bryce sprawled in a chair, socked feet up on the bed, utterly relaxed, as if there were nothing wrong with bringing a strange shifter into Matt’s territory.
The air felt too still, wrongness pressing in around him. He stepped into the room, floorboards creaking under his weight. Bryce jerked upright, tension pulling his muscles tight as he stood.
“Explain.” Matt’s voice was edged with something deeper than anger.
Bryce’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. Then, with a deliberate motion, he tilted his head back, baring his throat, allowing his body to slacken again. Heknewhe’d screwed up.
“Christian and Dave found him wandering the woods in wolf form.” Bryce’s voice was uncharacteristically clipped in the face of Matt’s wrath. “They went to chase him off, but then Dave noticed he was hurt, and you know Dave—peace, love, and harmony.”
Matt grunted in agreement, because that was understating Dave just a bit.
“Dave went in for a closer look in case he needed help, but the second he got close, that went out the window. He took a swipe at Dave and left a hell of a cut.” Bryce’s eyes flicked from the stranger back to Matt, gauging his reaction. “Christian tackled him, and the next thing they knew, he was out cold. I’ve no idea why he shifted before he passed out, but they came to get me. I brought him here, figuring you’d want to know who he is and what he’s doing here.” He glanced back at the guy in the bed. “Only thing is, he hasn’t woken up since.”
Matt breathed out slowly, his shoulders relaxing. Bryce had always had his back, starting with the day they were six years old and facing down a wannabe alpha in the schoolyard. He shouldn’t have doubted Bryce had good reasons for bringing the stranger in, but trust still didn’t come easy to him.
Matt stepped closer. The man’s hair was a tangled fall of dark blond, brushing his shoulders. He was early twenties, maybe—it was hard to tell under all that stubble.
“What’s wrong with him?”
Bryce shrugged. “He’s got a nasty wolf bite on his left flank, a few days old, but it’s healing cleanly. Other than that, and being thin as a rail, nothing obvious. Maybe Christian hit him harder than he’s telling—you know what he’s like.”
Matt didn’t need to ask if Bryce had checked him over thoroughly. They both had emergency medical training, and if Bryce said the guy wasn’t in immediate danger, he wasn’t.
“I thought about calling a medic,” Bryce continued, “but it didn’t seem that bad. And I didn’t want to involve non-shifters if we didn’t have to.”
Matt shared that concern. If the wrong person got their hands on an injured shifter… No one understoodhowthey healed as fast as they did, or why their senses were enhanced even in human form, let alone the wholeshifting into a wolfthing.
He raked his hand through his hair. This outsider’s presence in the midst of his pack felt wrong in too many ways, but one thing was certain—he’d been on their territory, and Matt needed to knowwhy.
“Is he from the Denver pack?”
“Definitely not.” Bryce shook his head, amused. “With an ass like his? Believe me, I’d have noticed him, even if he is scrawny.”
Matt rolled his eyes. “I swear to God, Bryce, one day that dick of yours is going to get this pack in real trouble.”
