If he’d wanted to turn Jesse’s smile into something resembling a spitting cobra, he’d found the right way to do it.
“I don’t needanyone. And definitely not some damnpack.”Fuck youwas unspoken, but both of them heard it.
“That’s what I used to think, after—” After what had happened in Cheyenne. After being stripped of his role, his pride, his confidence and everything he was. Matt forced out the words. “It may have taken me a few years to understand, but we’re not made to be alone.”
He hadn’t even been alone the way Jesse was. Bryce had given up everything to follow him, and he’d stayed with Matt through the darkness that had followed. It had been Bryce who’d found this fixer-upper and persuaded Matt into pooling their money to buy it, swearing it was only temporary and nothing more than a project. That had been eight years ago, and now Matt couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. He didn’twantto live anywhere else.
Jesse’s shoulders were still squared pugnaciously. Matt withheld a sigh and made another attempt to get through to the stubborn asshole. Even though he held out little hope Jesse would listen to himnow,maybe in time, he’d reflect on Matt’s words and act more in accordance with his nature.
“Even if you think you don’t need other shifters—okay, if youknowyou don’t,” Matt swiftly corrected himself at the flash of indignation in Jesse’s eyes. “The thing is, your wolf needs other wolves.”
“What the hell are you talking about, my wolf? Don’t matter which form I’m in—I’mstill me.”
The depths of Jesse’s ignorance were astounding. Matt found himself grappling with how to explain something that never needed explaining to anyone who grew up surrounded by shifters. Everyone talked about their wolf, and everyone knew what that meant. Evidently, it wasn’t as obvious as he’d always thought.
“Yeah, but you can feel it,” Matt said. “That sensation just before you shift, or when the moon’s full. Like a pressure building in your chest. A kind of excitement.”
Jesse nodded slowly, his eyes suspicious.
“That’s your wolf,” Matt said. “It’s the part of you that warns you before your brain can catch up. There’s something inside you that’s different to everything else. It doesn’t take notice of what youthink—it’s all about instinct.” A half-laugh escaped him. “Oh, God. I don’t think I’ve used this many words in years, and I’m still not explaining it right.”
He ran a hand through his hair, frustration prickling under his skin. Jesse was still watching him, sharp-eyed and closed off again. The brief ease between them was long gone.
“Where d’you come from, Jesse?” he asked quietly. “How’s it possible you’ve never known any other shifters?”
Jesse’s jaw set mulishly. “If it don’t affect you, it’s none of your business.”
Maybe Matt should have been pissed at the level of disrespect, but he had a grudging admiration for Jesse’s attitude. Not many shifters out there would be able to refuse an alpha’s questioning. And more annoyingly, Jesse was right. Matt was being nosy. He didn’tneedto know Jesse Turner’s life story.
“I’ll teach you how to identify scent markings before you leave,” Matt said, and Jesse’s head shot up. Hope blazed in his eyes, and Matt understood for the first time just how deep Jesse’s suspicion had run.
“Later,” Matt added firmly. It was early enough that even his early-rising pack weren’t out of bed, he wasn’t dressed, and the caffeine hadn’t yet hit.
Jesse looked down at the table, something flashing across his face. A kind of uncertainty. Matt wondered what Jesse made ofhim—if Jesse’s wolf was objecting as strenuously as Matt’s was to the prospect of Jesse leaving.
He didn’t like the answer his instincts gave him.
Chapter Eight
JESSE
His head was spinning at the idea those feelings inside him were hiswolf.The squirrely feelings that made no sense because they didn’t always line up with what he was thinking.
He should probably come up with a better word than squirrely. A wolf probably wouldn’t appreciate being compared to a tree rat.
But Urban had said his wolf nature was somehow separate. Jesse didn’t like that. He was his wolf, and his wolf was him. Still… the part Urban said was his wolf had been more insistent than usual since they met. That pull toward Urban—wanting to touch, wanting to be close. Or maybe that had been Jesse’s own brain. God only knew how he’d resisted all that skin.
And then Urban had said he’d show Jesse scent markings before he left, such a casual confirmation that Jesse was allowed to leave. He wondered if he’d gotten all this wrong. Maybe he hadn’t needed to be on high alert from the start.
But something about Urban still disturbed him. And not just his dick, although that had been pretty disturbed by the sight of Urban in sleep pants.
He realized he was zoning out, staring at Urban’s bare chest across the table. With an effort, he dragged his gaze back up. Urban’s breathing had gone shallow, his gaze fixed on Jesse’s lips.
But before Jesse could say anything, Urban pulled his focus away and locked it down. The way he held himself—all that command, thatself-control—sent a shiver down Jesse’s spine.
A very good shiver. And his dick agreed.
“Do you have any questions?” Urban asked.
