Chapter 22

I watched him interact with his pack members and I was always amazed by how kind he was, but remained firm and commanding. I’d never seen it done with such grace and ease. Even though I knew he was a good man—I had, after all, recognized it on that trip here years ago—it was amazing to see.

And he always made a point to ask me about my day and check in on how I was doing before he took me upstairs and put me on my knees.

If I wasn’t careful, I was going to fall in love with him.

When Trey found out I had some background in coding and web design, he asked me to revamp the restaurant’s website. I tried to insist that it had been only a couple of classes in college, and that I was by no means an expert. But he asked me to take a look anyway.

“Just try and see what you can do,” he said in that way that was both question and command. I wanted to please him, so of course I agreed.

I’d been at it for two days. Fortunately I had a good base to start with. Whoever had created this site had done an exceptional job. Now I just had to tweak with the parameters and freshen things up, fix broken links, and update the menu. It took me a while to get my brain working in the right direction, and I’d finished all the easy fixes. Now I was working on updating the look, and I was in the zone, wholly focused. So when the front door slammed open, I jumped clean off the couch and almost set the laptop I was working on crashing to the ground.

Duncan stood there, panic all over his face, and clutching Charlie to his chest. Nora was crying and all but clinging to her daddy’s leg.

“Where’s Trey?” Fear made Duncan’s voice high.

“In Mariot,” I answered quickly. “What’s wrong?”

“Charlie! He’s trying to shift. His wolf is trying to come out!

My first thought was Charlie must be older than I’d first thought. First shift usually happened around twelve or thirteen, and it was traumatic to be sure, but it didn’t account for the abject terror I saw on Duncan’s face.

“He’s only ten!” Duncan screamed as Charlie convulsed in his arms. It lasted only a second or two, but his limbs went rigid and his head snapped back over Duncan’s arm.

“Shit, I muttered, striding forward. My heart pounded hard.

“That’s a bad word,” Nora said between hiccupping sobs.

“I know honey,” I said, hoping to soothe her, but my gaze was focused on the sweaty, pale boy who needed help. I yanked off my T-shirt and tossed it aside. Then held out my arms. “Give him to me.”

I’d have to remember to thank Duncan later for the absolute trust he showed in me by not hesitating to hand me his son. He was heavier than he looked, but I was strong. I cradled him against my bare chest, giving him skin-to-skin contact. Ten was young for a first shift, though it wasn’t unheard of. But that meant this wouldn’t be easy on either the boy or his wolf.

I wasn’t sure this would work. I wasn’t Charlie’s alpha. I wasn’t even a wolf. But I was an alpha and I could hopefully at least keep him comfortable and mitigate the worst of the effect until Trey got there.

“Call Trey,” I barked, but I heard Duncan’s frantic voice a second later and knew he was already on the phone.

I shifted my hold on Charlie so I could pull off the long-sleeved T-shirt he was wearing. Then I held him tight against me, willing my bear to the surface. I still couldn’t feel him on a regular basis, but I’d started having flashes here and there. And I’d been able to alpha-command this boy a few weeks ago. I was hoping that had already forged some sort of connection between us, tenuous though it might be.

“You will not shift,” I muttered close to Charlie’s ear, and I pushed my power into him. I tried to make my voice as commanding as I could, but it was the intent that mattered, not the tone. I had to keep his wolf suppressed. At least for the moment.

All at once, I felt Charlie’s body relax. He was still breathing hard, and his eyes were still closed, but he was no longer fighting against his wolf. Or, more accurately, his wolf was no longer pushing to get out. I held him to me as I lowered myself to the ground, leaned back against the couch, and kept up a steady stream of power and intent. As the minutes passed, Charlie’s breathing eased, but he still wasn’t exactly conscious. But that was fine, we had to hang on only until Trey arrived.