“Kaillen!”

I swirled around to see a woman sprinting right for us. Given the direction she was coming from, I guessed that she’d emerged from his cabin.

She flew across the meadow, her dark hair whipping behind her. She was dressed simply in jeans and a chunky knit sweater, but even from the distance, I could see that she was beautiful.

A grin split across the hunter’s face, and he held his arms open wide. When she reached us, she didn’t even slow. She barreled right into him, wrapping her arms around his neck, as he swept her off her feet.

“Oh my gods, I’ve missed you!” she squealed.

He laughed. “Me too.”

He swung her around, her feet flying through the air, and I backed up, shock rippling through me. What in the actual fuck? Does this dude think I’m joining his harem or something?

Rage sliced through me, as sharp as a knife, but the two of them just carried on, laughing and hugging.

When he finally set the woman down, joy radiated from his face. Pure, unadulterated joy. I’d never seen him look like that.

I bit the inside of my cheek, anything to stop the pain that was cleaving me open. I don’t care. I don’t care. I don’t care. I kept telling myself that, over and over. Because he obviously loved this woman. Really loved her.

And for some reason, that made me want to claw her eyes out.

“Tala?” The Fire Wolf finally turned my way, his stupid grin still in place. But the second he got a look at me, his smile vanished. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I replied automatically.

The woman continued to gaze lovingly up at my hunter. Yes. My hunter. I’d really just thought that.

She finally faced me, and shards of emerald shone from her gaze, her eyes as lovely and beautiful as the precious gem.

“You must be Tala.” Her smile didn’t slip, not once, even though I was pretty sure I was scowling.

I nodded curtly, hating myself for despising this woman so intensely. It was an asinine way to feel. I didn’t even know her. She could be lovely, or kind, or generous, or funny. She could have a million traits that would make her somebody I should like.

But my stupid head was still caressing images of me ripping her face off.

Gods, this was fucked up.

The Fire Wolf cocked his head, then a knowing glint lit his eyes. His smirk came next. “She’s not my woman,” he said simply.

My head whipped to his just as the woman gasped.

“You think—” Her hand flew to her mouth, then she laughed. “Oh gods, no!” she shrieked. “He and I aren’t together. Eww.” She made a face.

The corner of the Fire Wolf’s mouth kicked up. “Tala, this is Ocean, my sister.”

His sister. The Fire Wolf had a sister. In his non-pack. In Canada.

Fuck a duck. What else don’t I know?

Humiliation burned inside me as hot as the sun. Because I’d just gotten jealous over his sister. Never mind that I’d gotten jealous. That was irrelevant. What was relevant was that, once again, I realized this hunter and I knew nothing about each other. I hadn’t even known he had siblings.

“I thought you didn’t associate with your family?”

His grin disappeared. “I don’t. Not with the others. My sister’s the exception.”

“I suppose I have you to thank then,” Ocean said, clasping her hands behind her back.

Somehow, I managed to sound halfway intelligent when I replied, “Thank me for what?”

“For bringing my brother home. It’s been nearly ten years since he’s been here.”

“Oh?” With a startling realization, it hit me that I didn’t even know the hunter’s age.

She nodded. “He left when he was eighteen. He hasn’t been back here since then, and the only times I’ve seen him are when I’ve visited him in the States or somewhere off pack territory. Until now, he’s refused to step foot on this land.”

“He has?” I snuck a glance at the hunter.

His face was devoid of emotion, but a heavy energy strummed around him despite his stoic mask. Something must have happened here to make him run away.

Brushing that thought off, I concentrated on what else his sister had said. Eighteen. If the hunter hadn’t been here since then, and it had been ten years, that meant he was twenty-eight now, just a few years older than my twenty-five.

I side-eyed him. He was still watching me, except now a slow smile was spreading across his face, an infuriating smug smirk that only grew as his nostrils flared. Yep, he was once again scenting my jealousy even though that emotion had worn off. Apparently, it’d been potent, though, ’cause he seemed to be enjoying its lingering traces.

Seeing that self-satisfied expression on his face and knowing that he knew how much I’d been affected by the thought of him with another woman, well, I just couldn’t help myself.

I whacked him in the stomach.

He stumbled back, his smug smile turning into an all-out grin as he coughed from my vicious jab. And it had been vicious. I’d thrown a bit of telekinetic magic into it, but of course, the hunter stayed on his feet, easily recovering from my impulsive display of violence.

“You’ll have to excuse her,” the hunter remarked to his sister. Ocean’s eyes widened as she glanced between the two of us. He coughed again while laughing at the same time. “She enjoys hurting people.”

“Not people, just you,” I corrected.

But instead of that comment disturbing him—as it would to any sane individual—his grin only broadened.

Stupid, insane demon wolf.

I reminded myself that he’d tricked me into coming here. And I wasn’t accepting his wolf’s desire to make me his mate. As long as I held my ground, his wolf would have to eventually accept that. Then, the bond would wear off—or whatever happened when a female said no—and things would go back to as they had been. The Fire Wolf would brush me off as he had at the Underbelly, probably laughing as my vagina continued pining for him, and I would move on with my life, never once looking back.

Yes. Best to remember that.

Ocean glanced between the two of us, a small smile curving her lips, but she smoothed it when I planted my hands on my hips. “Well, if you’re not needing to get settled in,” she said, “would you care to join me?”

I cocked my head. “Join you where?”

“In town. The entire pack is dying to meet you.”

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter 11

The Fire Wolf’s non-pack wanted to meet me? My eyes bugged out. What did they think this was, the next alpha returning to his lair with his mate in tow? News flash. I was not birthing any pups to rule the Lord Underbelly’s kingdom.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to decline Ocean’s invitation since the hunter beat me to it.

“Not right now.” The Fire Wolf placed a hand on his sister’s shoulder. “Tala and I have to work a few things out. As you know, she’s here for her own safety, so I want to show her the property first.”

“Oh, of course.” Ocean shook her head. “Tomorrow then?”

The hunter gave a pacifying smile. “We’ll see.”

My ears pricked up. We’ll see? What did that mean? Was he hiding me from his non-pack or his non-pack from me? And how did that make any sense? If I was here for his pack’s protection, shouldn’t I be, you know, with his pack?

But before I could voice those questions, the hunter clamped his hand around my arm and scooped my bags up with the other before hauling me toward the cabin.

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” he called to his sister. “Promise.”

She sighed before nodding, then jogged down the meadow and around a bend.

“Wait, what?” I said, digging my heels in. “Aren’t you going to at least get her home or whatever if she doesn’t live here?”