Chapter 4

A rustle startles me from my revelry. I gasp when a very naked man stumbles through the brush just in front of me. He doesn’t notice me and downs the rest of the alcohol from the bottle in his hand. I slip behind the rocks, praying to Goddess that he doesn’t find me. I sniff the air; even through the alcohol, I can smell that he’s a wolf. Is he a rogue? The gorgeous, muscled, and tattooed man hiccups then tosses the bottle toward the boulder I was just sitting on. He’s clearly drunk, which is impressive for a werewolf. It takes a lot of alcohol.

I move from my spot to try to sneak away. I break a stick, and the man spins in my direction. He’s too drunk to notice a high branch, and he hits his head. He stumbles backward then loses his footing and falls into the river below. Shit!

I quickly crawl to the river bank. It’s only about a three-foot drop, but he hasn’t surfaced. I can see a dark shadow in the water. I know it’s stupid to help a rogue, but I can’t just let him drown. I dive into the water and swim down. The river is deeper than it looked from above, and I struggle to reach him. I get a grip around his waist and kick as hard as I can toward the surface.

I barely get a breath before we sink back under the water. Damn, this guy is heavy. I kick with all my might and get to the bank of the river. I drag naked guy out of the water and plop on my butt to catch my breath. I hold my ribs and get as much air as possible. I look over to naked guy’s face. He’s not breathing, and his lips are purple. I push him onto his side and smack at his face.

“Come on, dude. Wake up.” Nothing. I lay him back and give him a few rescue breaths. They’re not very strong since I can barely breathe, but after the fifth breath, he begins to cough. I help him get to his side. He spits out water then lays back.

We’re both catching our breath when he turns his head to look at me. “Who are you?”

I take a few breaths then answer, “Gypsy.”

He closes his eyes. “Ashton.”

He sits up and rubs the knot on his head. It’s then that I notice one of his many tattoos. It’s the mark of the Canyon Ridge Pack. Oh shit! I look around me, and I’m scared for my life. He’s not a rogue at all, and I’m in their territory.

I get to my feet and rush back to the caves. They’re so close, but I’m not moving fast enough. I suck up the pain and push myself harder.

Strong arms wrap around me from behind, and we stumble to the ground. I let out a scream and try desperately to wrestle away. His hand covers my mouth. “Gypsy. I’m not going to hurt you. You have to be quiet, or they’ll find you.” Ashton’s eyes drift down to my abdomen, to my purple bruise. “What happened to you?” He looks up to my eyes and slowly releases me holding up his hands as if he surrenders.

I sit up and scoot back into a tree. “I have to get out of here, or I’m dead.”

Ashton stands and reaches a hand out to help me to my feet. “You’re from the Pine Ridge pack, and you’re trespassing.”

I step back even closer to the tree, if that’s possible. Dying on my birthday seems almost poetic; however, I really don’t want to die. My body is shaking, and I can’t get my legs to move. Ashton takes a step closer to me, pinning me against the tree. He towers over me. He’s even larger than Hunter. “I’m not going to hurt you. If anything, I owe you my life. You rescued me from drowning.”

Howls sound around us, and I’m freaking out. He grabs my waist and hurls me up into the tree. “Get as high as you can and stay quiet and out of sight.”

I grip the limbs and climb higher. The branches are large, and I’m able to hide between them. Ashton gives me a nod just before two wolves step out in front of Ashton then shift into their human forms. Ashton hiccups and sways into the man closest to him. “Sup, fellas. Did ’ja comes for some drunk wif me?” He hiccups again and breathes into the face of the guard he’s leaning on.

The guy leans away. “No, sir. We heard a scream, so we came to check it out.”

Ashton lets out a deep belch and scratches at his belly. He looks around him slowly. “That sucks. Mm out. Got any more?” He staggers the two steps to the other guard and gets uncomfortably close to his face. “Mm not drunk enough. You’re not pretty yet. Let’s do it, guys. Let’s get fucked up and go swimming. Mm not done yet. Don’t know where my bottle went.” He chuckles. “It’s got legs and ran away.”

The guards buy his little act. “Sir, you’re drunk. We need to get you home.”

Ashton growls at the guards. “Fucking pussy whipped assholes. Your mates have you by the balls.” He lets out a haunting laugh. “Mm not going anywhere. Except ta find my magic disdapeerin bottle. Leave me alone you party poopers or I’ll rip your fucking throats out. That’s an order.”

The guards both straighten up. “Yes, sir.” I hear one of them mumble something along the lines of “lousy drunk" before they disappear from sight. I start to climb down, but Ashton gives me a subtle shake of the head. I stop moving and wait for the all clear.

I watch as Ashton sniffs the air then turns toward me. He waves me down, and I begin the descent. Once he can reach me, his strong hands grip my hips, and he helps me to the ground. “That was quite a show you put on.”

He shrugs. “It’s not uncommon for someone to find me drunk off my ass. Are you okay?”

I nod. “Yeah, but I still need to get out of here.”

Ashton steps back. I hadn’t noticed that his hands never left my hips until he dropped them. “I’ll walk you out of here.”