Patient Mates: (Book 7 Grey Wolf Pack Romance Novellas) (7 page)

Chapter Ten

Kira buzzed with happiness the whole drive home.  Gabe held her hand squeezing it and rubbing his thumb over the back.

As they were pulling up to Jolene’s house Gabe flicked her a hungry glance. 
“When can I see you again?”

“Is tomorrow too soon?”

Gabe groaned.  “Ten minutes from now isn’t too soon.”

Kira chuckled pleased at his response. 
“I’m on the day time shift at work tomorrow so maybe we could have dinner together.”

Gabe’s eyes lit up at the prospect. 
“Why don’t you come round to mine and I’ll cook for you?  Unless you don’t want to…” 
He wasn’t trying to rush her into seeing where he lived.

Kira looked at him, a cheeky expression on her face. 
“Why wouldn’t I want to?  Should I be concerned that you’re actually an axe murder?”

“Nah, tomorrow’s my day off.”

Kira’s good mood dipped.  She could dimly sense feelings of distress.

“What’s wrong?”  Asked Gabe immediately, sensitive to her changes.

“I’m not sure…”

Gabe parked and they got out. 
Kira set off round the back of the house with Gabe keeping pace.  They found Jolene and Lilah clearly upset.

Kira rushed over.  “What’s wrong?”

Jolene hesitated.  “It’s probably nothing…”

Gabe scented the blood.
  “Something dead?”

Lilah wrapped her arms round her.  “It’s a rabbit.”

The four wolves stood crowded round the bunny corpse.  It had been ripped apart by large claws.

Jolene put her hands on her hips.  “Maybe it was a wild wolf?  Or a fox?  It doesn’t necessarily have to be a shifter.”

“Yeah maybe…”  Agreed Gabe absently.

Kira snorted. 
“I doubt it.  Wild wolves have very different scents from shifters.  They freaking reek.”

Lilah chewed on her lip.  “Can’t it be one of your pack?  Or our pack should I say?”

“But you guys would recognize the scent if it was one of us right?”  Kira looked between Jolene and Gabe.

Gabe shook his head.  “Maybe not. 
I can’t say for sure that I know all the pack member’s scents.  And it could be a newly turned shifter.  Their scents take a few years to establish themselves.”

Jolene knelt down.  “The
scent isn’t very strong either.  No offence to anyone present but I doubt any one of us would be able to do anything anyway.”

“What about the pack tracker?”  Asked Kira.

“He’s away training others to hunt and track.  I’ll call Adam.”  Gabe excused himself to call the Alpha.

The three women stood staring at the rabbit.  It might be nothing, nothing at all. 
Just some random kill by a shifter
.  But then again it could be a threat.

Gabe returned a few minutes later.
  “Adam said to go ahead and bury the rabbit.  But that he’s going to call Alec and get a Deputy to be with you at all times.”

Kira tried to protest but Gabe held up a hand.  “He’s the Alpha, there’s really no point in arguing.  His mind’s made up.  No let’s have a rabbit funeral.”

*

Gabe waited until his fellow wolf Deputy
Jake Foreman turned up to watch over the she-wolves before leaving.  He drove home thinking of the bunny before his mind drifted the rusty Cadillac.  Nothing really overtly strange was happening but Gabe just had a bad feeling.

He had run the license plate for the Cadillac and found it did indeed belong to a Darlington resident.
  His name was Albert Peterson.  He worked as a security guard at a Stop ‘N’ Go and yes he did have a brother who lived about an hour to the south in a town called Weyburn.  However to go through Rose to get to Weyburn the guy would have to go twenty minutes out of his way. 
There was something a little off about him
.  And it didn’t explain what the car was doing back in Rose the second time.

But then again mayb
e he was overreacting.  Maybe Albert Peterson just liked driving the scenic route.  Maybe he loved eating at the Honeypot Diner.  Maybe he had friends in Rose.  There could be any amount of reasons.  But just in case Gabe had reached out and spoken to a friendly Deputy in Weyburn, just to see if the brother was in hospital.  And hopefully to find out if anyone in Weyburn might just have a connection to Charming.

His wolf was constantly on alert where Kira and her sister were concerned.
  He didn’t take for granted the fact that some wolves could be very vengeful, and from the tidbits he had got from Kira he doubted Joseph would just let his wife go.

Knowing that the twins would be given
a Deputy to watch over them at all times was comforting and Gabe would make damn sure that he was given the duty as much as possible. 
He wanted to be near his mate at much as possible.

*

1
st
December

In the morning Deputy Jake drove Kira to work whilst Deputy Mac came over and watched over Lilah.
  Given that they were taking extra precautions it also meant that their meetings with Carly would be put on hold, just until things had settled.  Kira was half sad and half relieved.

Lilah was a little rattled about the rabbit but Kira wasn’t sure how she felt
.  She hoped the rabbit meant nothing.  She thought about it all day at work and decided it did mean nothing.  It was just a random critter attack.

When her shift ended she was excited for an entirely different reason. 
Her date with Gabe
.  She freshened up a little in the bathroom at work and impatiently waited for Gabe to pick her up.

Through
out the drive to his house and during dinner Gabe was a little subdued.  Kira asked him if anything was wrong but he kept telling her it was nothing.  He didn’t want to be drawn but Kira was determined to make him talk.

After dinner they sat together in his
family room and Kira put a hand on his arm and sent soothing thoughts through him.

“Something’s wrong.  I can tell.”

Gabe put a hand on her knee and rubbed absently.  He relaxed into her soothing powers and sighed.  “It’s my aunt…”

Kira said nothing and waited for him to continue
.

“She keeps writing to me, she wants me to visit my dad.”

He looked at her awkwardly and she made encouraging noises.  “Whatever it is you can tell me.  You can tell me anything… mate.”

Buoyed by her declaration Gabe told her in a rush about his history.
  His human mother Claudia had come to America from Spain when she was a child with her baby sister Ana.  Their parents had died and the only family they had lived in Washington.  When Claudia was 19 she had met and fallen in love with a wolf shifter just a year older than her called Daniel.  The wolf was convinced Claudia was his true mate.  She apparently was less certain but at his pushing she went along with him.  Within a matter of weeks they were mated, bonded and Claudia was pregnant with Gabe. 
But things didn’t work out very well…

Ten
years later when his aunt Ana turned 19 Daniel realized his attraction to her.  Daniel tried to ignore it at first but he couldn’t control himself and the overwhelming urge to be with her was too much.  Daniel realized that he had made a mistake and that he had taken the wrong sister for his mate.  He had felt love for Claudia as he would for any family members and foolishly mistaken that as the love for a mate.

Daniel and Ana started an affair.  Ana wanted to be with Daniel but refused to break up his family and insisted he stay with her sister and nephew.  At this point Daniel was bitter at being bonded to someone other than his true mate and started drinking heavily.
  Inevitably Claudia found out about the affair and confronted Daniel.  They had a heated argument and Daniel influenced by the alcohol lost his temper.  He lashed out with his claws and killed Claudia.

Daniel was arrested and imprisoned for murder, leaving Gabe to be raised by his aunt.
  Gabe left his home pack as soon as he could, to get as far away from his father as he could, and found a pack that would take him in. 

Over all the years Daniel was in prison his aunt stood by him and when he was released a month ago they finally mated and bonded.
 

“Apparently my aunt is pregnant and now she expects us to just be on big happy family.  What a fucking joke.”

Kira ran her fingers through his dark hair trying to comfort him, trying to temper the rage he felt.  Her wolf whimpered for their mate, for all the pain he carried within.

“That man, that fucking monster murdered my mother.  You know he never once said he regretted it, never once said he was sorry.
  And my aunt?  It’s like she doesn’t even fucking care that she’s gone.  They’re probably glad because at least now they get what they want, they get to be together.  It’s like my mother never even fucking existed.”  His wolf whined at the loss of her, even when he was young he had never been close to his father. 
His mother had been his whole world
.

Tears sprang to Kira’s eyes as she shared in his grief, as she felt the love he still carried for his mother.
  “I’m so sorry Gabe.  So sorry.”

He laughed hollowly.  “You sure you want to mate into my family?  We’re like a really bad soap opera.”

“I love you Gabe.”

He stared at her in shock for a few seconds before pressing a kiss to her lips
as his wolf yipped ecstatically.  “I love you too.”

She beamed as her own wolf gleefully pranced around like a puppy.

Gabe curled his fingers into her hair.  “This is why I’ve been a little slow to admit it to you.”

Kira pouted.  “I’d hardly say we were moving very slow.”

Gabe gave her a half smile.  “Slow by shifter standards then.  The norm is usually to find your mate pounce her and have her bonded and preferably pregnant within a few days.”

Kira raised an eyebrow.  “
Okay if you say so caveman.  How many wolves do you know where that was actually true?”

Gabe blushed a little.  “Well I’m just going by
my Alpha and my Beta…” 
Not to mention his own wolf had been more than a little pushy in that department.

“Ah.”
 
So yeah cavemen thought Kira
.

Gabe took her hand
s in his.  “I want to be with you so badly and I’m sure you’re my mate, my wolf is sure of it too but then so was my dad… I don’t want to ruin your life the way my father ruined my mother’s.”

“
You won’t, I’m sure you’re my mate too, but I agree I’m not overly keen on rushing to bond either.  My sister met and married a man within two weeks and he turned out to be a complete asshole so it can’t hurt to wait just a little.”

“Thank you.”

Kira smiled.  “For what?”

“Being perfect.”

“You couldn’t be more welcome Bambi.”  She giggled as his face dropped.

He rubbed his thumb over her cheek. 
“You’re not going to let that drop are you?  I’m stuck with Bambi forever now aren’t I?”

“Yes, yes you are.”

Chapter Eleven

2
nd
December

“No Alec I’m fine!”
  Liv’s irate voice echoed through the Sheriff’s station.

Alec t
he Sheriff responded in a dangerously low tone.  “You shouldn’t be working angel. It’s not good for the baby.” 

Liv tutted loudly. 
“The baby’s fine.  All I do is sit and answer the phone all day.  It’s not hard!  Do you think I’m an idiot?  Do you think I can’t handle just answering a phone?”

Gabe and Jake were on duty.  They looked between each other
with knowing expressions.  The Sheriff and his mate didn’t fight particularly often but when they did inevitably Liv won. 
She was a dead cert every time
.  It was a particular source of contention that Liv wanted to work and Alec wanted her at home,
preferably locked in and wrapped in cotton wool
.

Alec spluttered.  “I’m not saying that at all…”

“Or do you actually think that I would do anything to put our baby at risk?”

That’s it she had him.  No way could he win this argument now. 
He was sunk
. 

Alec’s voice was soft and apologetic, Jake and Gabe had to strain to listen.  “No angel I would never think that I…”

A sharp ring interrupted him and Liv snatched the station phone up.  “Hello!  Oh right, yes of course one moment.”

The next moment
Liv came out from the front desk.  “Gabe it’s for you, it’s a Deputy from Weyburn.  I’ll put her through.”

As she went back to the desk Alec walked passed her huffily and she gave him the evil eye.

A few seconds later Gabe’s extension rang.  “Thanks Liv.”  He called.

“Hello Deputy North here.”

“Hi Gabe it’s Deputy Sharpe from Weyburn.”

“Hi Susie.  Thanks for calling back.”

“Hmmm maybe you should wait to thank me.  I checked on the guy you talked about his name is Stephen Peterson and yes he is currently a patient at Weyburn hospital in the cancer ward.”

“Huh.” 
Okay so maybe he had been making a big deal out of nothing
.

“
I don’t know what you’re looking for so I did a bit of checking and found out that he works as a delivery man.  He lives in Weyburn but he travels all over the state.  The delivery company is called ‘Wolf Mail’ and is owned by a wolf pack further south of here in a town called Charming.”

Alarm bells rang in Gabe’s head.

“Does that help you?”

Gabe forced himself to remain calm.  “Yes Susie it does.  Thank you for this.”

“No problem, glad I could help.”

They hung up and Gabe pondered what it meant.  If Stephen Peterson works for the pack then most likely he knows the Alpha.  The Alpha could have asked Stephen to have his brother scope out their pack.  It was fairly tenuous but there was nothing about Albert’s presence in Rose that Gabe liked.

Jake sauntered over.  “Hey you know that license plate you were running?”

“You mean the Cadillac?”

“Yeah, it’s parked outside the Diner.  While you were on the phone Mrs Martin came in to complain that someone has been stealing the eggs from her chickens.  She’s convinced it’s the Tanner boys.”  Mrs Martin was the town busybody.  Ever since an incident involving Mal Tanner, a fallen apple tree and a crushed car she had hated the Tanner boys and was convinced that everything bad that happened in the town was down to them.

“Anyway when I was walking her out I noticed it.  Rusty, old blue Caddy right?”

“Yeah that’s the one.  Come with me.”

*

Kira hummed happily as she worked.  A smile played on her lips every time she thought of Gabe.  Her heart ached to be with him.  He had bared his soul to her and they had admitted they loved each other.  They were already so close to one another that bonding was just a formality in her eyes. 

Kira waved at Carly as she came in and joined some other female pack members and a blonde she didn’t recognize.  She noticed that Carly looked a little pale and her eyes were red rimmed.  She made a note to ask her about it the next time they were alone.
  She considered probing Carly’s emotions but doubted she would be able to, Carly was pretty powerful.  Besides which Carly might not be too pleased about someone trying to sense her.
Omegas could be hypocritical that way; they sensed others but got pissed if people did it to them. 

Kira served Carly’s table, which included Terri and Melanie who she had met at the Diner earlier in the week.  Melanie was a witch
mated to a wolf shifter called Hans; together they ran the local pizza parlor Pizza Moon. 

Carly introduced her to Kayleigh the pretty blonde.
  Kira gingerly sniffed and noted Kayleigh was also a witch.  She felt a small twinge of jealousy from Kayleigh and wondered at it.  There were two men alone in the Diner who were lusting after Kayleigh, Kira had no idea why the woman would feel jealous of her!

Still Kira was too happy to really care. 
She was on could nine!

Later the pack table was joined by a large blonde young
wolf Kira knew to be Terri’s mate Mal Tanner as well as Don Cross the tracker.  Don had been the one who originally discovered her living in Rose back when she was a rogue and had been kind to her.

Don sat next to Kayleigh and Kira was shocked to feel the lust emanating between the two of them
. 
It was pretty darn strong!
  Kira snatched up a menu and rapidly fanned herself.  It’s a wonder the two of them hadn’t burst into flames!  She guessed by their body language that nothing was going on between the two of them…
yet
.

The Diner was pretty quiet that day.  Other than the pack table there were just a few stragglers.  There was one guy who had been there practically all day.  He kept ordering cup after cup of coffee. 
It’s a wonder he wasn’t shaking because of all the caffeine!

Kira turned her attention to refilling the salt shakers and thought nothing of him.  She stilled as every nerve ending tingled and a sweet citrus scent invaded her senses. 
Gabe
.  Her wolf crooned for him.

She spun round to see her honey walking into the Diner with the serious looking Deputy Jake.  Gabe smiled at her.  God he could outshine the sun!  And damn if he didn’t look edible in his uniform.

Maybe she was a little bias but Gabe sure did fill out that uniform better than anyone else could.  The tight fit accentuated his lean frame and taut muscles, not to mention how it accentuated a certain bulge in his trousers…

Kira shuddered as mischievous thoughts flitted through her mind.
  It occurred to her she’d never really desired a man in the way she desired Gabe. 
Maybe for the best
.

“Hey Kira.”

“Hey Gabe.”  She cooed in response.

Her wolf was all for leaping on him and kissing the life out of him but perhaps he may not appreciate that while he was on duty.

“How’s your day been?”

Kira
beamed.  “Hmmm quiet mostly.  The highlight has been when an elderly human lady came in and started yelling at some pups, something about stealing eggs.”

Gabe groaned exaggeratedly.  “Let me guess the woman had a blue rinse and all the pups were about six foot
or more and had blonde hair.”

“Wow!  You should be a cop you’re good!”  Kira snickered.

“Nah, I’m just used to living in this mad town.  So no problems today?”

Kira shook her head.
  Today the bobcat Deputy Hardison was staying with Lilah.  Kira had managed to get Gabe to reluctantly agree that she didn’t need babysitting at work, so other than a ride to and from her temporary home she was on her own all day. 
The Sheriff’s station was right next door after all.

Jake stood by fidgeting, waiting impatiently for Gabe who was taking no notice of him.
  Gabe carefully scanned the quiet Diner.  He nodded to a table full of pack members.  He was surprised to note that the pack tracker Don was back, he was supposed to be gone a lot longer.

He flicked his eyes round nonchalantly forcing himself not to linger on the person he was looking for. 
Albert Peterson
.

On seeing Gabe Peterson hunched over a little and
looked away so the wolf would not see his face.  After a few seconds the man threw down some bills on his table and made a circuitous route out of the Diner, as far away from Gabe as possible.

On seeing the fidgety little man leaving Jake cleared his throat.

Gabe winked at Kira.  “I’ll see you later.”

“Bye.”

Kira practically drooled watching his firm butt as he strode away.  What she wouldn’t give just to touch him…
okay down puppy
.

It wasn’t her fault, it had been a long time since she last had sex.  And that had been disappointing to say the least.  Kira was surprised to realize how horny she was!

As a wolf she still had the urges to mate, breed and fight but they were duller than other wolves, because she was more attuned to her other feelings. 
She was less of an animal than other she-wolves
.  Not that it mattered…
okay yes it did make her feel a little superior that she could control her baser impulses better than the stuck up she-wolves who tortured her in high school. 
But before she’d never had a delectable wolf to contend with…

“Earth to Kira!”

Kira almost darted up the wall on finding Carly standing next to her. 
Oh god had she actually been drooling over Gabe’s butt?!

“Oh… ummm… I was just…”

“Ummm hmmm.”  Carly gave her a maddening smile and waggled her eyebrows.

Kira searched her mind for a good response.  In the absence of one she gave
Carly a raspberry and stomped away. 
The guffaws of the other Omega floating behind her
.

*

Albert Peterson hurried to his car fumbling with the keys.  He yelped and dropped his keys as an enormous hand gripped his shoulder.  He turned to find a very tall, very broad black Deputy clamped to his shoulder.

Gabe bent down and scooped up the keys, jangling them in his hand.  “Hello again.  No more car trouble I see.”

“Uhh… no.”

Gabe grinned at him.  “I’m sorry I didn’t introduce myself the other night.  I’m Deputy Gabe North and this is my fellow Deputy and pack mate Jake Foreman.”

The larger and sterner Jake gave Albert a brief nod whilst squeezing his shoulder.  Albert winced.

“You on your way to visit your brother?”

Albert looked between the two wolves with some trepidation.  “Ummm… no.”

“How is your brother?”  Asked Gabe concernedly.

“Oh… he… he’s doing much better thank you.”

Gabe fiddled with the keys.  “Glad to hear it.  Hey is he still working as a delivery guy for that company
‘Wolf Mail’?  He works for the Charming pack right?”

Albert turned beet red and started stammering.
 
But that was nothing
.  When he saw the burly Alpha and Beta approaching he almost had a fit.

Adam gave him a glacial smile.  “Why don’t we go into the Sheriff’s station and have a chat.”