Then he thought back to the wary stillness in Karl when he’d passed on his message and remembered the savagery in those wolves that he’d escaped. If they were out there, watching, they’d see him leave. They’d be on his trail, and there was no way he’d be lucky enough to get away a second time.
He huffed a sigh, so deep that his hair gusted up from his forehead. “Reckon I can stay a mite longer,” he said reluctantly. Letting Matt know he wasn’t in control of Jesse. “But that’s all.”
“That’s all I’m asking.”
Well, Jesse hadn’t noticed muchasking.But he supposed he should be grateful that Matt was willing to protect him, ratherthan let him wander off unknowingly to be torn apart by wolves for no reason he could understand.
“They may not know for sure you’re here, so for now, you’re not to go farther than the barn, understood?” Matt was standing up, a powerful uncoiling that was impossible not to watch.
Jesse plunked back down in his chair, sketching a salute. “Yes,sir!”
It seemed his mockery might have been a little too much, because there was a flicker of annoyance in Matt’s face. “This is serious.”
“And that’s the only reason I’m doing what yousuggest,” Jesse pointed out.
He could practically see Matt battle the urge to roll his eyes. “I’m going to check things out for myself. Help yourself to food if you want any, and the TV’s in the living room, along with some books.”
He paused at the back door, glancing back and looking at Jesse as if he were going to say something. But then he turned away, leaving Jesse alone.
* * *
The living room door was standing open, and Jesse ventured in, curious. It was a sunny room, filled with comfy-looking furniture and bookshelves stuffed with a variety of books, DVDs and even a stack of old CDs. Jesse dropped onto the brown leather sofa and ran a finger over claw marks. Some of the pack clearly liked their comforts, even in wolf form.
The remote was on the seat beside him, but his head was too full right now to think of watching anything. He wanted to be out there with Matt,doingsomething. But the sensible part of his brain, the bit that didn’t often get much of a say, told him thatgoing out there where the unknown threat wouldseehim would undo everything Matt was trying to do by protecting him.
He’d never had anyone protect him before. The thought made something warm settle inside him—something he didn’t trust. Maybe it was some bullshit wolf thing, an instinctive response to an alpha.
He didn’t even know what was real when it came to shifters. Some of it sounded like total fantasy, like the Argents—wolves that glowed under moonlight? Sure. And as far as the mate thing was concerned, that was just a way to prop up someone too weak to make it on their own.
Matt had said shifters could be with anyone, not just their so-called mates. Which was a damn good thing, because going without sex forever? Yeah, no thanks.
His nostrils flared, and he realized why his mind had gone there—the faint scent of Matt lingered on the sofa. Jesse imagined Matt sitting next to him, thighs touching, close enough to pull him in for a kiss. And then Matt would press him back on the sofa, weight holding him down, his cock pressing against Jesse’s—oh, God, he was sitting in a common room in the house and getting hard.
He fled to his bedroom, where he locked the door and took himself into the shower. That way, there’d be no scent for anyone to detect. As he wrapped his hand around himself, thoughts of Matt surged back, hotter than ever.
If he had to stay here, he was damn well going to make it worth his while. All that power and golden skin, and the way Matt looked when he smiled? Jesse wasn’t about to let that go to waste.
Chapter Twelve
JESSE
An hour later, there was still no sign of Matt. Or of anyone, for that matter. Jesse paced through the house. He wondered again about going outside, and the part of him Matt said was his wolf was excited at the prospect, but Jesse wasn’tthatreckless. He also had the feeling that, while Matt would be pissed at him for disobeying, he’d also be disappointed. He didn’t like how that made him feel.
No, he’d stay here, just as long as Matt wasn’tmuchlonger. He sighed and slid down the hallway wall, landing in a dusting of wolf hair and dirty paw prints. Classy.
The front door opened, letting in afternoon heat. It took him a moment to put a name to the dark-haired shifter who stood there, looking surprised to see Jesse sitting on the floor.
“Hi,” Jason said uncertainly. “Is everything okay?”
Jesse scrambled to his feet. He didn’t want to get involved in pack business, but he thought Matt would probably want to warn his pack that something was wrong.
“Matt thinks there might be trouble out there,” he said.
Jason’s eyes searched his face intently. “What does he want us to do?”
How the hell was Jesse supposed to know that? “Nothin’ just yet, I guess. I thought you should know.”
“Okay.” Jason finally closed the door behind him, obviously not inclined to do anything without Matt’s orders. It was just like Jesse had thought—a wolf that was part of a pack had forgotten how to think for themself.
