“I don’t, especially when I’m starving. Now, run upstairs and get dressed. I’m taking you to one of my favorite restaurants.” I stood there, staring at her like she’d lost her mind. “Why do you look like that?” she asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. The way you all do things is so much different than what I’m accustomed to. My parents let me go away to college and I loved the freedom, but when I was back with the pack, I was never able to leave the compound. I guess I just figured it’d be like that here.”

“Hell no,” she exclaimed, bursting out in laughter. “We have our own homes, jobs, everything. Don’t get me wrong, we hunt and do a lot of stuff together, but we live like normal human beings. Ryker would never keep you on a leash.”

It was nice to hear that, but I knew I couldn’t stay long. The Yukon Pack would kill them all to get to me. Plastering on a fake smile, I started for the stairs. “Thank you for the clothes. I’ll be right down.” I took a quick shower and put on some jeans and a pink blouse from the bag, along with the pair of boots. It felt good to take a shower. It’d been over a week since my last.

Tyla waited by the door when I got downstairs. “Ready to experience true freedom?”

“You have no idea.” We hopped in her car and she sped us out of the driveway. I was mesmerized by the mountains, by the snow; it was breathtaking. “It’s so beautiful here,” I said.

“Yes, it is. I’m assuming you didn’t see much of this where you came from?”

I shook my head, wishing like hell I could forget everything that happened. “No, and I definitely don’t want to talk about it.”

“Okay, we won’t talk about it then. How about when you went away to school? What did you major in?”

I glanced out the window and smiled. “Teaching.”

“What subject?”

“Chemistry,” I answered, turning to face her. “I loved working with high school kids.”

She pulled into a steak house parking lot and turned off the car. My stomach growled even louder than before. “You could get a job at one of the local high schools! The school year is basically over, but I’m sure you could find one for next fall.”

We got out of the car and headed for the door. “Are you serious?” Excitement fluttered in my belly.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be? If getting a job makes you happy, Ryker will be all for it. Not to mention, you could keep an eye on some of our rowdy teenagers. They’d behave knowing one of our alphas was watching over them.”

The thought was so tempting, I actually considered it. But I couldn’t do anything until I knew I was safe from the Yukon pack. “I’ll have to think on it. Again, I don’t know if I’m staying.”

Inside, the hostess sat us at a table and got our drinks. I was so hungry, I ordered two appetizers, an entrée, and dessert. One good thing about being a wolf was, I didn’t have to worry about calorie consumption. Eating every single bite, I garnered curious glares from our waitress every time she walked by. I guess I’d be like that too if I saw someone scarfing down a meal for two.

Sitting back in my chair, I focused on Tyla. “So what exactly do you do around here? Do you work?”

She nodded. “At a ranch down the road from Ryker’s.” Her phone rang, so she grabbed it out of her back pocket and looked at it. “Speak of the devil. It’s Blake, the guy I work for.” They talked for a few minutes, but I chose not to listen into their conversation. Tyla was watching me to see if I was.

After the call, she paid for our food and then we headed on our way.

“What exactly do you do on the ranch?”

“You’re about to find out. Blake needs help with a horse he just bought.”

“Is he human?”

“Yep. He moved out here about eight months ago, a city boy from Charlotte, North Carolina. Anyway, he inherited the ranch from his grandfather which is who I originally worked for. Blake had no clue how to manage it when he came. So I helped him, along with most of the pack. He’s good friends with Ryker.”

“Does he know what we are?”

She shook her head. “Ryker doesn’t want him to know. I wanted to change him, but my request was denied. My parents say to give the old magic a chance.”

“Old magic?”

We drove past the entrance to Ryker’s ranch until we came to another one with a sign that read Three Bar Ranch at the top. She turned down the gravel path and drove slow. “You really don’t know what old magic is?” When I shook my head, she looked nonplussed. “I’m sorry, that’s just . . . so strange. I thought it was basic knowledge for every wolf. What the hell did your parents teach you?”

I clenched my teeth. “Obviously, not a lot. They never even told me about true mates.”

“I see that. I’m sure Ryker will tell you all about it. Anyway, the old magic is the way things used to be in the past. My parents are true mates, the way you and Ryker are . . . or will be, eventually. Many of us wait our whole lives to find that one person. It used to not be like that. Before, you could find your mate easily.”

“What if you don’t?”

She parked the car and looked out the window. “Then we either, find someone else and never be truly happy, or we turn someone. The latter is frowned upon, but some have done it. That’s why having you in our pack and mated to our alpha would give us hope—that one day it could happen for us.”

I grabbed her hand. “It will happen. I have faith.”

“Good, because everyone believes in you. They think you are the beginning to it all.” Opening the car door, she got out and waved for me to follow.

I didn’t know anything about the old magic, but I was sure as hell going to find out.

Bailey

“Do you want to go with me again tomorrow?” Tyla offered.

I stopped at the first step to Ryker’s house and turned around, a huge smile on my face. “You don’t think Blake will mind?”

She snorted. “Of course not. He enjoys watching me prance around in my short shorts while training the horses. I’ll bring you a pair tomorrow.” Then her gaze met something over my shoulder and I could feel Ryker approaching. “Or I’ll just bring you a pair of baggy sweatpants. See ya tomorrow, B.” As fast as she could, she sped out of the driveway, laughing the entire time.

“Did you have fun?” he asked.

I turned around and my heart thudded at the sight of him, dressed in a pair of ripped jeans and no shirt. “I did,” I answered truthfully.

“What all did you do?”

Narrowing my gaze, I stalked up the steps. “Can’t you just listen to my thoughts?”

He smirked. “I can, but I’d rather hear it from your mouth.”

“Okay, let’s see . . . she took me to eat lunch, and then we went to Blake’s, where I got to ride the horses and watch Tyla train one.” I walked inside and the smell from the kitchen was so heavenly, I moaned.

Ryker chuckled. “I’m glad you had a good day. You hungry?”

“I’m always hungry.” I followed him into the kitchen and sat down at the table. There was food everywhere. “Did you cook this?”

He gestured for me to take the open chair across from him and sat down, cutting a bite of steak. “Yes.”

“It looks amazing.” I dug in and swallowed a bite of my own steak, savoring every minute of it. “Tastes good too.”

“I’ve been on my own for many years, so I had to learn.”

“Where’s your family? Are they not a part of the pack?”

His jaw tensed. “They’re dead.”

“I’m sorry,” I murmured, hating the guarded look in his eyes.

“Me too. I was just a child. It happened shortly after I met you.”

I choked on my food and coughed. “How is that possible? Why don’t I remember ever meeting you?”

He stared at me as he chewed, like he didn’t know how to answer. “I tell you what . . . let’s finish dinner, and then we’ll talk all about it. You’re going to need a drink, or ten.”