Two Minutes (Seven Series Book 6) (23 page)

“I…” Nausea tickled my stomach. Then fear again. I reactively curled my arms against my chest.

“Maizy, what’s wrong?” He brushed his thumb across my forehead. “Are you cold? We’ll go back inside and I’ll run you a hot bath.”

All I could do was shake my head, and I began moving into the fetal position.

“Maizy, you’re scaring me. Did I hurt you? Is it your head?” He jumped up and pulled on his jeans. “This was a mistake. I should have never brought you here,” he said to himself.

A sharp cry poured out of my mouth, and I looked at him with stunned eyes. It felt as if a hot knife had speared my womb from the inside.
Oh God
, something was happening to me. I began writhing, and Denver struggled to hold me still as I growled and grunted beneath him like an animal.

“Hold on; I got you,” he said, pulling me into his arms.

We were running. My body jostled in his iron grip as the grass below us broke beneath the tread of his feet. He struggled for breath while powering up a hill.

I stretched my body and almost fell from his arms.
God, the pain is immense!

“Austin!” he shouted at the top of his lungs. “Level red!”

Denver charged up the porch steps, exploding into action from a burst of adrenaline.
He opened the door with a forceful kick, Maizy’s screams ringing in his ears.

He’d glanced at his watch before bringing her back, just in case time was of the essence. It had all happened so quickly.

“What the hell?” Wheeler boomed, noticing Maizy’s eyes rolling in the back of her head. “Austin!”

Denver held her, uncertain of what to do—where to put her. Lynn wasn’t home, and he wondered if maybe she’d know what was wrong.

Wheeler leaned in real tight and spoke, his voice low and dangerous. “You want to tell me why she’s naked? Maybe you should put her down so I can hit you in the face.”

“What’s happening?” Lexi shouted while running down the stairs.

He was shaking, and not because he was cold or tired from carrying her.

“Oh my God. Maizy!” Lexi rushed to her and Denver instinctively curved away. “What’s wrong with her?”

“If I knew that, I wouldn’t be here screaming for help,” he said.

“What was she doing? Did she fall? Is it her head? Should we call a Relic or a doctor?”

Reno took hold of Lexi. “Calm down. Let’s keep our heads clear.”

Wheeler folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. “So, what happened?”

“Where are her clothes?” Lexi blurted out. Understanding touched her face and her eyes widened. “Did you— Oh, no!
Austin
!
”

Austin ran down the stairs in a pair of sweats that were soaked with water from the shower he must have jumped out of. “Let me see her.” Austin pulled Maizy’s eyelids back and she screamed. It sent a shiver of alarm straight down Denver’s spine.

Suddenly, she went limp in his arms. “Maizy, wake up!” He knelt down, placing her on the floor.

Reno shook out a blanket and covered her up. “We need an ambulance.”

Austin centered his eyes on Denver. “Did you two have sex?”

Denver nodded. No sense in lying about the obvious.

Austin shifted his gaze toward Lexi. “It’s happening.”

What the hell kind of statement was that? Denver shoved at Austin’s shoulder. “
What’s
happening?”

“I don’t know, but I think we’re about to find out.”

“She was fine,” Denver protested. “I would never hurt her.”

“What do we do?” Lexi asked in a hurried breath.

Denver’s voice rose to a shout. “Will someone tell me what the hell you’re talking about?”

Maizy released a whimper and it stripped his attention away from the pack.

“Hey, I’m here. It’s okay.” He soothed her, brushing a stubborn strand of hair away from her cheek.

“Maizy isn’t a human,” Austin announced.

The packmates stepped back in unison. William flashed his eyes at Denver and then back at Maizy. William was the one who’d helped Denver set up the picnic, although Denver hadn’t planned for it to go that far.

“What do you mean she’s not human? If this is some kind of elaborate joke for all the shit I’ve pulled, then fuck you.”

Austin shook his head. “We kept it a secret; it was to protect her. What I’m about to tell you needs to stay between us. She’s what some call a Potential—born a human, but marked. The first Breed she lies with is what she will become. Permanently. Looks like you get the honors,” Austin said with disdain.

William covered his mouth. “I’ve heard of them. I thought they were a myth.”

“How long has it been?” Austin asked.

Denver looked at his watch. “Two minutes.”

Maizy’s eyes snapped open and she flew up. Just as soon as the blanket fell away, a transformation took shape, one they were all too familiar with. Right before their eyes, Maizy shifted into a magnificent wolf.

“Holy shit!” Trevor exclaimed.

Wheeler stared down at the wolf, nonplussed. “And the plot thickens.”

Denver didn’t know if Maizy was still alert in there, but he looked her straight in the eyes. “Maizy, stay calm and let your wolf take over. I know it feels weird, but don’t fight her. I got you. I’m not going to let anything happen. I need you to trust me.”

Meanwhile, he was facing the reality that her newly born wolf hadn’t met him yet and could tear off his face if she wanted. But like all Shifters’ animals, she sensed Denver was someone important to Maizy. She showed off a few of her sharp fangs and did a little growling, but Denver faced her, unafraid.

“Damn if she isn’t a blonde,” Reno said in astonishment.

Maizy’s fur was the palest shade of honey he’d ever seen, and each strand of fur changed to pure white at the root. She whined, ears low and looking around with uncertain eyes.

The pack knew how to behave around an unfamiliar wolf, and they slowly backed up. Except for Austin.

He sighed and approached her, energy rolling off him. “Looks like we have another packmate.” Austin held out his hand for her to smell and she took a cautious sniff, still growling deep in her chest. He squatted and held her head in his hands. Denver shuddered when he felt Austin throwing off his alpha power—so immense that the surge of it made the pack instinctively submit with their eyes and body language.

Including Maizy. She bowed down on the floor and crawled toward him. He patted her head before looking back at Lexi. “
You’re
going to be the one to tell your mom. I’m not explaining this one.”

Lexi shook her head, still in shock. “I just… I can’t believe it’s really true.” A smile briefly touched her lips and she bent down, letting Maizy smell her.

Denver scooted back and leaned against the wall, mud crusting on his arm. He rubbed at it, noticing how ashen his skin coloring seemed. One minute he was in the arms of the most amazing woman, and the next he was rushing to save her life.

“She’s a wolf,” he said under his breath. Denver swallowed thickly. “Did she know?”

“Yeah,” Austin said, standing up. “Lexi told her last year. I don’t know how she felt about it; we haven’t had a chance to talk with everything going on these last few weeks.”

Maizy’s wolf especially liked Lexi. Her tail was wagging like crazy as she turned in circles excitedly.

“She knew,” Denver breathed.

Jericho knelt beside him and patted his shoulder. “I should kick your ass, but this is some wild shit. Isabelle is going to flip out. I mean this is abso-fucking-epic!” Jericho stood up excitedly and clapped his hands once, letting out a sharp howl. “Looks like we have another wolf in the pack!”

“How is this possible?” Denver stood up and pulled Austin to the side. “Is this a joke?”

“No, the real joke is you sneaking off like a couple of love-struck puppies and having sex without declaring your intentions to the pack.”

“Don’t even try to pull that sanctimonious bullshit. This isn’t
Little House on the Prairie
. I don’t owe anyone an explanation, and I sure as hell don’t need to ask your permission to sleep with a woman.”

“Maizy’s human, and she doesn’t follow the same rules as the rest of us.”

“Human?” Denver laughed. “You knew this whole time she was different—that she could become one of us.”

“But until she made that choice, she was only human. She’s like a daughter to me,” Austin ground out through clenched teeth. “Maybe I feel entitled to know who she’s running off naked with.”

“I already told you what’s what between us. You had plenty of time to fill me in on this.”

Austin stepped forward. “And that conversation would have happened if you’d been clearer on those intentions after she left the hospital. You’ve been acting aloof these past weeks, so I thought you changed your mind.”

“Whoa, whoa,” Reno said, defusing the situation. “One crisis at a time. If you don’t let her wolf outside, she’s going to mark the house. How ’bout that?”

They both turned to see Maizy’s wolf sniffing the floor and moving into a squatting position.

“No!” Lexi shrieked. “Austin, we can’t let her outside alone, but if she stays in this house, she’s going to piss all over everything!”

The men chuckled, and Jericho collapsed into a chair. He tugged at the bear-claw necklace around his neck. “You said she was marked?”

Austin turned around to address him. “A birthmark we’ve kept covered.”

The spade
, Denver thought.

“It’s too dangerous for the wrong person to notice it,” Austin continued. “She still needs to keep it covered. There’s a lot of false information floating around, and Maizy will need our protection. We’ll break the news as everyone comes home. I don’t want this leaking out until I figure out the best way to handle it. I’ll be outside showing her the territory.” Austin patted his leg. “Come on, girl. Let’s check out the property.”

William glared at Reno. “I guess this means our trip to the dealership has been postponed.”

Reno straightened his shirt, tucking it in tighter. “Deal with it.”

“Say, can I borrow your car, Denver?”

Denver waved his hand for Will to take the keys and get out. He was too stunned to know how to react. Maizy, a wolf? All this time she wasn’t even human? A poisonous idea nestled in a dark place in his mind—maybe she’d used him as a free ticket. Becoming Breed was a tempting offer for a mortal, and maybe that’s why she kept trying to push their relationship to a new level. She needed him in order to change; she needed someone gullible.

Reno put his arm around Denver and coaxed him toward the study. “Let’s me and you have a talk.”

When the door closed, Denver realized he hadn’t even buttoned his jeans. He took a seat in the chair, staring at his bare feet.

Reno sat across from him and pulled at the stretchy fabric of his long sleeve. “I’m not gonna ask about what’s personal between you two, but I can’t say it comes as a surprise. I noticed the way you clocked her every move whenever she walked into the room, and you’ve taken real good care of her these last weeks, little brother. I couldn’t be prouder you’ve finally pulled out of whatever funk you were in since the day she moved out. But I ain’t gonna church it up for you. If you fuck with her head, then we’re having words.”

“I put my claim on her with Austin weeks ago, but I didn’t want to spook her after the accident. She needed to get better. That’s what today was about. I was going to tell her how I felt, but…” Denver wrung his hands, his eyes downcast. “Now I don’t know.”

Reno’s voice lowered. “What do you mean, you don’t know?”

Denver snapped his gaze up, his voice layered with anger. “I don’t know what I’m dealing with now. I don’t know if she feels the same or if I was just the vehicle to semi-immortality. Now that she’s a Shifter, she has other options. Better options. One of those options being Prince, who’s already made her an offer. Before it was creepy because she was a human and the best he could get away with is making her his pet. But now? Now that’s a viable option. How many women do you know who would turn an alpha like
him
down? Maybe that’s what she deserves, and I’m being selfish.
I don’t know
.”

Reno pinched his stubbly chin, deep in thought. “Maizy wouldn’t do something like that, would she?”

Denver snorted. “She’s a bright girl. Probably smarter than all of us dumbasses put together. I bet she was afraid to pick just anyone to sleep with, because he might want to control her—like having a sense of entitlement. I’m a safe bet because she can’t mate with someone in her own pack.”

“There was never a chance in hell any of us would have considered mating with her. She might be a Shifter now, but we’ve always seen her as a human. Hell, half of us are already mated. You don’t have any competition. I don’t see why it would be a problem for her to stay.”

Denver slid his bare foot underneath him as he sat forward. “Because she’ll want more. She’s seen the world, bro. She’s also going to figure out she can’t live in the human world anymore and will have to choose a pack. Think about it,” he said, holding his hands wide. “If you were a young, intelligent woman, would you choose to live here? Or would you make a clean break for one of the most powerful Packmasters in the territory? One I know for a fact she feels something for because she’s
always
had that look in her eyes whenever he came around.”

Jealousy locked its jaws on Denver like a steel trap.

“Maybe you gotta win her over. Maybe you gotta be the better man. It ain’t about money.”

“I want her, Reno. I’d fucking
die
to protect her. But that’s not what I’m talking about. The choice is hers.”

“It’s always been hers, even when she was human. You got a lot to learn about women, brother. I’m guessing you thought you had a better chance with her then. Am I right?”

Denver slunk down in his chair. Reno had a point. A guy like Denver was a pretty good catch for a human. But now she was a wolf, and a girl like Maizy had the world in the palm of her hand. His thoughts shifted to Prince. Somehow that asshole had known about her mark and what she had the potential to become.

“Don’t give up so fast,” Reno suggested. “Let’s just deal with it one day at a time. Austin has enough on his mind with Bromus. Because of Maizy’s accident, he delayed their meeting. I don’t think the phone conversation went so well, and I’m willing to bet Bromus is going to tattle to the Council and make Austin look bad. The little bastard is trying to see if he can blackmail us first—holding the Council over our head so we’ll repeatedly give him what he wants. Well, I’m not a milking cow, and he’s not squeezing
my
titties.”