He couldn’t have been any more surprised or delighted. Due to his wolf’s nature, he would normally give it his all, and that meant he’d tackle her and take her down. Would she see that as too aggressive? If he didn’t take her down, would he look weak? He hated overthinking this.

Their mouths clashed. He touched his tongue to hers as she growled at him, purely in play, but he was taking this a human step further. In a pinning effort, she rested her chest and forearms on his chest as she continued to bite at him in play, her tail wagging vigorously, her whole butt wagging at the same time. He was on his back, his tail wagging also, and loving every bit of their interaction. He realized he didn’t need to show how aggressive he could be. Just taking his time with her like this was a perfect wolf way to get to know her. He bit back in a gentler way, getting in the licks he wanted that were as much a human’s interaction as a wolf’s. He let her have her way with him.

Not that he was acting like a beta wolf in the least, or he would have tucked his tail against his belly, flattened his ears, and let her completely dominate him. When she looked like she wasn’t getting enough of a reaction from him, maybe that he wasn’t challenging her enough and acting too submissive, he changed his posture subtly. He got ready to take charge, trying to keep from revealing his intent. She was wary enough to recognize he was going to make her pay—in a fun way.

To avoid payback, she jumped back from him. He leaped from his prone position and with a quick, strategically placed lunge, he pinned her this time against the soft snow. She was even more aggressive when he brought her down. He could tell she liked it when he wasn’t letting her win the confrontation too easily. They were both growling, and if any humans heard them, they would think the wolves were having an angry fight.

She was beginning to wear down as he rested on her chest, and they began to kiss, wolf style, licking and nuzzling each other. He was absolutely in heaven. He was so glad he had suggested going on a run with her and that she was having just as much fun with him. Then he heard an unfamiliar “woof” in the woods south of them. He quickly got off Laurel, and she rose to her feet. Both smelled the breeze, but the wolf was downwind of them, which meant he or she could eventually smell CJ and Laurel.

He imagined it had to be one of the wolves in their pack, but he hadn’t heard enough of the woof to recognize it. He waited and watched. A black wolf, then a gray, and finally a third wolf, also gray in color, came out of the woods. All three headed for the river, then stood at the water’s edge. CJ tried to recognize them. He sniffed the air again. But he couldn’t smell them, and they didn’t look familiar.

They were a long ways off, looking out across the river, and weren’t aware that CJ and Laurel were watching them.

Laurel stuck close to him as she observed the wolves too. Her ears were perked, her tail straight, her posture as wary as his.

As soon as the wolves caught CJ’s and Laurel’s scents and looked their way, CJ only hesitated a second before doing what any of his wolf pack members would do. He lifted his head and howled for the pack. He could have run with Laurel back to the truck, but that might trigger the three gray wolves’ natural inclination to take chase and hunt them down, particularly if they were all wolf and were trying to establish a wolf pack here. If they were lupus garous and were trouble, no telling what they might do. So his only option was to call for the pack and to stay there with Laurel.

A few of his pack members living in the vicinity would hear him howl—Darien and his family, Darien’s brother Jake and his wife, and a few others scattered about in the wilderness.

The three wolves stood their ground for a moment, as if they were trying to decide whether they wanted to challenge the local wolf pack’s authority. Then the lead wolf turned and ran off into the woods, vanishing from sight, and the others quickly followed.

CJ didn’t chase after them. He was sticking close to Laurel. He doubted she or her sisters had been involved in much wolf-to-wolf combat, so he wasn’t about to leave her on her own. He wouldn’t be foolhardy enough to chase three male wolves down on his own anyway.

A few minutes later, Jake and Darien howled, letting him know they were coming. They would also have alerted several pack members about the unknown trouble. It hadn’t been a false alarm, particularly if the three male wolves had decided to attack them. But it was also a way of showing pack unity and reinforcing that this was their territory as far as other wolves or lupus garous were concerned.

Jake and Darien soon reached them, and CJ shifted to speak with them. “Three large, gray male wolves were standing next to the river down that way. One was black, the others gray. As soon as I howled for you, they hesitated, then took off.”

Darien shifted then. “Reinforcements are coming. We’ll check it out. Why don’t you and Laurel head back in?”

“Will do.” CJ was disappointed that they couldn’t run farther, just the two of them. He liked exploring the wilderness and giving her a taste of what it was like living here.

He shifted and so did Darien. Then Darien and Jake loped off in their wolf forms, ready to tear into the intruders if they had to. CJ was torn between helping them or leaving with Laurel. The three male wolves outnumbered them. But he reminded himself he needed to get Laurel home safely. He’d never expected to run into any difficulties with other wolves.

When they returned to his truck, he shifted and unlocked the back door for her. This time, he climbed in with her and shut the door.

“Sorry about that.” He began pulling on his briefs in the chilly truck. He tried to give her some privacy as she shifted, then began pulling on her panties. He couldn’t help but notice that she was watching him too. “We usually don’t have any trouble out here.”

“It’s not your fault. I find it refreshing to see a wolf pack come to its members’ aid. If they weren’t from your wolf pack, were they real wolves? Or who else might they have been?”

“Taking a wild guess? The Wernicke brothers. If they’re related to the previous owners and Warren and his sister were wolves, then these men have to be. But if they are wolves, they’ve been hiding the fact that they’re lupus garous, and Darien won’t allow them to run here. Not until he knows what’s going on. Still, I’m sorry our run was cut short.”

“Maybe after my sisters return and are able to manage things without me for a while, we can do it again.”

“I’d love that.” He lifted her head and waited only a heartbeat for her to pull away. When she didn’t, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers, their berry-and-orange-champagne-flavored breaths mingling. His body throbbed with need, just like when they’d kissed earlier on the ski slope, making his blood burn. He felt her heart thundering against his chest. He kissed her again, feeling compelled, his hands raking through her silky, red hair, her fingers gripping his shoulders and keeping him close.

He was surprised but grateful that she seemed to have changed her mind about him and the pack. He absorbed her heat and softness, smelled her sexy pheromones. Too wrapped up in the feel and smell of her, he was powerless to stop this madness. He wanted this and her, wanted to convince her to stay as long as it would take to truly court her.

Until someone pounded on the window. Laurel jumped a little in his arms, and he turned to see the windows all fogged up. He wiped the nearest one with his arm and saw Darien, dressed now, frowning at him.

CJ opened the door. “Did you find them?”

“Yes, and I lectured them. I thought you were taking Laurel home.”