pack and bloodlines. Mating was business, pure business, a way to strengthen ties between two allied packs. Had Roric even asked about Rae, who’d been a member of Westend pack before coming to Twin Moon Ranch? He doubted it.
Roric and old Tyrone had tried their callused hands at matchmaking once upon a time, intending Rae as a mate for Ty. The fact that they hadn’t consulted either member of the prospective couple never seemed to bother them. Were the old dogs doing it again now?
Cody ground his teeth and glanced at his father. When their eyes met, he nearly reeled from the force of his old man’s glare. The fire in those eyes could kill a man, and from the looks of it, his father was more than ready to go that far. There would be no compromising on this.
He hung his head then whipped it up when a thin arm slithered over his. Sabrina tucked herself good and close, leading him out the door and toward his doom.
The wildest ideas ricocheted through his mind as they walked. He could run away with Heather and make a new life. Somewhere away from his father. Away from the pack.
His wolf growled in disapproval.
We need both! Heather and the pack!
Maybe he could start a new pack in unclaimed territory. Maybe he could try the relatives on his mother’s side. Out in California, where his sister Carly lived. They all hated his father; surely they would grant asylum to him.
He was so wrapped up in desperate escape plans that he didn’t notice when they crested the hill overlooking the ranch. Didn’t notice Sabrina closing in on him until her mouth was glued to his. If he hadn’t squeezed his lips tight, she’d have tongued him right down to his spleen. Jesus! What was she doing?
He jumped back, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand then scrubbing it on his jeans. “Don’t you think we ought to get to know each other a little?”
“Sure, I’d like to get to know you better, Cody,” she purred, shooting a hand toward his crotch. He caught it a hair away from his zipper. “In fact, I feel like I already know you.”
I doubt it.
Though he kept the words inside, his face must have given him away, because Sabrina’s face went from puppy-dog perky to pit-bull malice in one cold-blooded blink.
That’s when he realized it. This was not just about him. Offending the daughter of the Westend alpha meant jeopardizing his entire pack. She’d go crying to Daddy, who’d come screaming for revenge. Cody’s father had toiled over a lifetime to forge alliances, making bitter sacrifices of his own. One wrong word and he’d set off a new feud. And judging by the little he knew of Sabrina, the only right words were
I do
.
Classical music floated up from the schoolhouse below: that yearning song, the one with the violin, striving to break free. Never had the notes sounded as bleak as they did today.
Damn his father! Couldn’t he at least have asked?
Vaguely, Cody felt Sabrina—persistent little leech— thread her arm through his again and snuggle into his shoulder. It took everything he had not to recoil. She pointed down the hill with an exaggerated sigh, right to the spot where the old smokehouse used to stand. “Your dad said he’d build us a big house, right over there.”
His stomach did a 360. That spot? That was Heather’s—his and Heather’s! It was the exact spot he’d secretly tagged for their future house. His imagination had already filled it with green-eyed, champagne-haired kids and a big, goofy dog. And Heather, always Heather. Only Heather.
Jesus, how the hell was he going to get out of this? One by one, his vital organs started shutting down. There was no out. His gut told him as much, even as it heaved. His eyes darted over the view of the ranch. What had always seemed an endless landscape now squeezed in like the walls of a cell. That hill right over there, that’s where the rogues had come in a few years ago. To the east was the spot where Ty and Zack had fought off outsiders looking to
Roric and old Tyrone had tried their callused hands at matchmaking once upon a time, intending Rae as a mate for Ty. The fact that they hadn’t consulted either member of the prospective couple never seemed to bother them. Were the old dogs doing it again now?
Cody ground his teeth and glanced at his father. When their eyes met, he nearly reeled from the force of his old man’s glare. The fire in those eyes could kill a man, and from the looks of it, his father was more than ready to go that far. There would be no compromising on this.
He hung his head then whipped it up when a thin arm slithered over his. Sabrina tucked herself good and close, leading him out the door and toward his doom.
The wildest ideas ricocheted through his mind as they walked. He could run away with Heather and make a new life. Somewhere away from his father. Away from the pack.
His wolf growled in disapproval.
We need both! Heather and the pack!
Maybe he could start a new pack in unclaimed territory. Maybe he could try the relatives on his mother’s side. Out in California, where his sister Carly lived. They all hated his father; surely they would grant asylum to him.
He was so wrapped up in desperate escape plans that he didn’t notice when they crested the hill overlooking the ranch. Didn’t notice Sabrina closing in on him until her mouth was glued to his. If he hadn’t squeezed his lips tight, she’d have tongued him right down to his spleen. Jesus! What was she doing?
He jumped back, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand then scrubbing it on his jeans. “Don’t you think we ought to get to know each other a little?”
“Sure, I’d like to get to know you better, Cody,” she purred, shooting a hand toward his crotch. He caught it a hair away from his zipper. “In fact, I feel like I already know you.”
I doubt it.
Though he kept the words inside, his face must have given him away, because Sabrina’s face went from puppy-dog perky to pit-bull malice in one cold-blooded blink.
That’s when he realized it. This was not just about him. Offending the daughter of the Westend alpha meant jeopardizing his entire pack. She’d go crying to Daddy, who’d come screaming for revenge. Cody’s father had toiled over a lifetime to forge alliances, making bitter sacrifices of his own. One wrong word and he’d set off a new feud. And judging by the little he knew of Sabrina, the only right words were
I do
.
Classical music floated up from the schoolhouse below: that yearning song, the one with the violin, striving to break free. Never had the notes sounded as bleak as they did today.
Damn his father! Couldn’t he at least have asked?
Vaguely, Cody felt Sabrina—persistent little leech— thread her arm through his again and snuggle into his shoulder. It took everything he had not to recoil. She pointed down the hill with an exaggerated sigh, right to the spot where the old smokehouse used to stand. “Your dad said he’d build us a big house, right over there.”
His stomach did a 360. That spot? That was Heather’s—his and Heather’s! It was the exact spot he’d secretly tagged for their future house. His imagination had already filled it with green-eyed, champagne-haired kids and a big, goofy dog. And Heather, always Heather. Only Heather.
Jesus, how the hell was he going to get out of this? One by one, his vital organs started shutting down. There was no out. His gut told him as much, even as it heaved. His eyes darted over the view of the ranch. What had always seemed an endless landscape now squeezed in like the walls of a cell. That hill right over there, that’s where the rogues had come in a few years ago. To the east was the spot where Ty and Zack had fought off outsiders looking to
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