He forced himself outside, letting the door bang decisively behind him. He needed to be out here. Karl would be on top of everything, but Matt still needed to check for himself. A stranger coming into his territory was disturbing. A stranger with a wolf bite? That could mean trouble, and Matt needed his pack primed and ready.
He would never be caught off-guard again.
* **
Hours later, Matt lay awake in bed. His territory was secure, he was weary, yet his brain wouldn’t let him sleep.
Bryce had been right that there was no threat out there. He’d met Matt’s gaze on his return to the house, and the expression in his dark blue eyes had been a little too knowing. He understood what drove Matt, why Matt always had to be in control of any given situation. It was clear he thought Matt was overreacting, but he didn’t say so. Bryce knew when it was safe to push Matt and when to leave him be.
Why he was still so restless, he couldn’t tell. He’d left his door open a crack so he’d hear if Jesse made a break for it during the night. He’d also warned Karl that might happen—he didn’t want Jesse to end up with his throat torn out simply because he didn’t know any better.
Could Matt trust him? There’d been no hint of a lie in those clear eyes, but somethingitched at the edge of his awareness. Quiet, but persistent. It had started the moment Jesse showed up.
And it wouldn’t leave him alone.
* * *
Matt woke disoriented and unsettled, a shiver of unease running down his spine. The disturbance Jesse stirred in him had followed him into his dreams.Jessehad followed him into his dreams, running beside him under the full moon.
It had felt nothing like the pack bond. Running with his pack always felt right deep inside, but even then, he was apart because he was leading them. With Jesse, he hadn’t been leading or following. They’d just been running, together. And the worst of it was, in his dream, it had felt right.
Only when he woke had his brain caught up, reminding him it was too intimate. Too close. He didn’t let anyone see him like that.
He rolled his shoulders, trying to shake the feeling. It was just a dream—Jesse Turner had simply been on his mind when he fell asleep, still stressed from dealing with bureaucrats the previous day.
The gray light of predawn was leaking around the drapes, and he knew he wouldn’t sleep again. As he sat on the edge of his bed, running his fingers through his hair and fighting down that odd, unsettling feeling, he heard something. A door opening, farther down the hallway.
Not particularly noticeable in itself, but what had all of Matt’s senses on alert was the quietness with which it had been opened. Not Tristan or Bryce heading out on patrol or going to the kitchen for a drink. No, this was someone trying very hard not to be heard.
Matt moved silently to his door, which he’d left open a crack. In the dim light, he could make out a slight figure stealing toward the kitchen.
For an instant, he wondered if he was being overly suspicious. Jesse might just want a glass of water—if he were making a run for it, he’d head for the front door. And then he remembered Jesse’s clothes in the mudroom. He was going to retrieve them before he left.
Fighting back a sigh, because he was too old for this shit at this time in the morning, Matt yanked open his door.
“Something I can help you with?” he asked.
Chapter Six
JESSE
Against his expectations, Jesse had slept soundly, once he’d jammed a chair under the door handle and checked that the window latch was secure. The alarm on his phone had brought him out of a deep sleep, mid-dream, though it dissolved when he tried to grasp it on waking.
He’d have liked another shower while he had access to plentiful hot water but didn’t dare risk it in case anyone heard. Instead, he pulled on his clothes, checked he had his phone and wallet, then opened the bedroom door just enough to put his ear to the crack and listen.
Nothing. No one was stirring. So long as there was light in the sky, he had no worries about his ability to evade any wolf out there, no matter what Urban had said. He’d be on his way to another state before Urban had even woken.
Thinking of Urban made him pause for an instant—regret, weirdly, at the thought of never seeing him again. That madeabsolutelynosense, and it sure as hell didn’t change his plans. He needed to get out of here and back out on his own, where no one could trap him.
He’d almost made it to the kitchen when that commanding voice made him spin around, heart almost bursting out of his chest. Even in the half-light, there was no mistaking Urban’s figure. Goddamn alpha was leaning against a doorframe, arms folded, justlookingat him.
Fuck.
Jesse stared at him, heart hammering, gaze flicking to the front door, then toward the mudroom. Which was faster? Which had fewer bolts? Before he’d decided which way to run, Urban was walking down the corridor toward him. Notwalking—that goddamn bastard wasstrolling.Like he owned the place.
Which, actually, he did, now Jesse thought about it.
“Just checking my clothes are dried,” Jesse said, and it might have been convincing if only he hadn’t licked his lips.
