The silence seemed to hum with something unsaid, and Leon stood still for a second, unsettled. Then he stripped off, stuck his clothes in the stash box, and took his jaguar form. The world sharpened. Sound and scent were richer, clearer. He padded to the river’s edge and tested the breeze, scanning for unfamiliar wolf-scent.
Behind him, he heard Karl speaking softly to the pup. Heard his low, deep laugh.
And maybe—maybe—he didn’t hate that sound.
* * *
They moved slowly, though not aimlessly. Karl’s stride was uneven, nothing like the confident, ground-eating pace he normally had, but he kept going. The stick Leon had brought him dug into the damp earth with every other step, and the pup nestled in the crook of one arm, its head lolling slightly as it dozed.
Leon padded ahead in jaguar form, then looped back, unable to settle on a single position. Every few minutes, he returned to Karl’s side. He told himself it was for safety. To make sure the pup hadn’t wriggled free and launched itself into a second attempt at drowning.
It definitely wasn’t so he could keep glancing up and confirming—yeah. Karl was stillridiculouslyhot. Maybe even more so now he was a bit battered, a bit unshaven. That stubborn tilt to his jaw reflecting his absolute refusal to be anything less than in control, even when his body clearly hadn’t gotten the memo.
Leon hated that he found it attractive.
No. That was a lie. He just hated what it mightmean, that when he left the ranch, there’d be some part of him regretting the fact. And that wasn’t Leon. He didn’t do regrets. There was no point, they didn’t change anything. And he didn’t do involvement. Clubs were his usual hunting ground, where most people wanted nothing more than to get off and move on. He was less likely to run into shifters there, no chance of facing the questions and judgment about being different from the rest of his pride.
He ranged ahead again, letting the sunshine warm him through after that long cold,wetnight, where he’d sometimes lain against Karl and the pup, sharing warmth, and sometimes been out searching for threats, guarding them. The river beside themwas still high and turbulent, the banks beginning to narrow, trees closing in along the edge.
He circled back again to find Karl looked tired. A sick, shivery kind of tired Leon recognized from missions where it was impossible to stop, however exhausted or hurt.
Karl didn’t ask for help. Of course he didn’t. He paused, scanning the landscape ahead, and finally eased himself onto a flattish boulder, careful and deliberate. Even the motion of sitting made his face go tight with pain. Leon wanted to hiss at him. Or rub up against him and press warmth into him.
Instead, he sat beside the boulder, tail curling neatly around his paws.
The pup was wriggling in Karl’s arms, and then it scrambled upright and began yipping softly, nose twitching.
It was the first time it’d shown any interest in their surroundings, so Leon shifted to talk to Karl.
“You think it knows this place?” he asked, as the pup turned in frantic circles on Karl’s lap.
Karl nodded. “Could’ve caught a scent he knows.”
In that case, this could get far more complicated than Karl expected. If the pup’s pack thought they’d gotten rid of it, and here they were, delivering it back to their door…
“I’ll check ahead,” he said. “Just to see.”
He didn’t wait for a reply but slipped back into cat form and loped into the trees, his heart uneasy in his chest.
Chapter Seventeen
KARL
Karl’s leg was throbbing, deep and insistent. He wasn’t done, but he was closer to it than he should be, needing the stick Leon had found more than he wanted to admit.
Their exploration had been far slower than he’d have liked, but it had been progress, up until a few moments ago. And now… now he had to face reality. They hadn’t found anything, and he was beginning to worry how long it might take him to get back to the ranch. Once Leon returned from his scouting ahead, he’d suggest they head home. Leon wouldn’t have gone far—he was always circling back to check on Karl and the pup, always watching.
Karl had started to count on that. It wasn’t like him to depend on someone else, but it was easier than he’d expected, to trust that Leon would be there. Karl believed he’d sense any threat and would act without needing to be asked.
That was the surprise, really. Not the competence, because Karl had known Leon was good, but thesteadiness. The way Leonhad stepped up when needed, taking care of what needed taking care of without fuss or drama. Even now, he was watching their backs while Karl tried to pretend he wasn’t falling apart.
And underneath that steady presence, the memory of what had happened between them still pulsed quietly. He hadn’t let himself think about it much—couldn’t, not with the pain and the pup and the damn river—but now, with Leon’s brief absence making him feel like something important was missing, it came back.
It wasn’t about the sex, though that had been—hell, that had beensomething. But the way it had felt afterward, how damn comfortable it’d felt. Karl wasn’t sure he’d ever had that before. Not in a way that lingered like this.
The pup was still restless in his hold, whining and squirming, like he couldn’t get comfortable. Yet again, he puzzled over where this pup had come from. Leon had told Karl of his suspicions that maybe someone had tried to get rid of him, and Karl wondered what Leon’s experiences must be that he went so fast to the worst possible scenario.
Well, it looked as if he’d be returning to the pack with a new member, though he hoped not. None of them were equipped to deal with a pup. As for dealing with a child… His brain practically shut down at the thought of the mayhem a small child would cause amid the personalities of the pack. No. Theyneededto find the pup’s parents.
