Wolfe's Den (Wolfe Creek #1) (2 page)

“Yes, how may I help you?” I responded suspiciously as I looked back and forth between the two. He was even bigger than the guy standing by the limo.

“Hello, I’m Chloe Grey and this is my brother Gage. We’re here because you left a voicemail regarding a position at the Wolfe’s Den,” she said as she stuck out her hand to shake. The strength in her hand was intense. I felt like she had the grip of a man. I was going to need to hit the gym.

“Yes, I did, but I maybe expected a call back or something. I didn’t expect a visit. I didn’t even fill out an application or anything,” I accused. Their presence wasn’t the norm. Maybe that’s the way they did things from where they’re from, but it’s not what’s expected for any job.

“We did a background check on you after your call. The main concern for the boss was the sound of your voice. He believes it would be perfect for the position he has in mind. Please gather your things for the next several days so that we may depart to the Den. The boss doesn’t like to be kept waiting,” the stunning blonde with green eyes informed me as a matter-of-factly.

It was strange, but the big beast of a man refused to look at me, and he didn’t say a word. I looked at him from head to toe. He was handsome, but I wasn’t attracted to him. He had green eyes that matched the blonde, but he had brownish black hair. Now that I looked at them better it was obvious they were related. I was starting to feel very uncomfortable, until she hurried me along.

“Come now, you must ignore Gage. He can be the silent type,” she murmured, leaving Gage outside as she came in and closed the door behind her.

“So what’s the position he thinks I would be suited for?” I asked, referring to their earlier reference to the boss liking my voice. I was thinking he wanted me as a receptionist or some customer service person.

“I don’t know. It could be many positions,” she replied nonchalantly, but I could have sworn I heard a deep manly chuckle come from the other side of the door. So Gage wasn’t a mute.

As classy as these people looked I was glad I had some expensive luggage my parents gave me for my last birthday. I wasn’t afraid of them, but that didn’t mean I had no common sense. Taking my safety in consideration, I decided to call my parents and let them know where I was going to be.

“Hi, Catherine. Did you change your mind?” she asked with her shitty attitude.

“No, I didn’t. Actually, I was going to tell you I have a job interview in Washington at a vacation resort,” I cheerfully replied, loving to rub it in that I didn’t need her.

“What’s the name?” she asked, as though she thought I was making it up.

“Wolfe’s Den,” I answered reluctantly.

“Oh, I’ll look it up and call you later. Maybe your father and I could go visit and see you working there. Please tell me you’re not going to be someone servant or maid or something. Don’t embarrass us like that!” she bitched.

“Calm down, I wouldn’t embarrass you like that,” I responded.

“That’s hard to believe,” she remarked in disbelief.

“I haven’t interviewed yet. I’m on my way there right now,” I sighed; she never listened to me.

“Fine, call me once you get the job,” she said before hanging up again. Chloe just stood there with her mouth hanging open.

“Does she always talk to you so insolently,” she asked completely offended, like I shouldn’t be disrespected by my mom. She shook her head and looked back down at her phone.

“Yeah, well they weren’t always loving parents,” I said with a bit resentment.

“Mr. Grey wouldn’t approve of them,” she admitted.

“Well it doesn’t matter, does it?” I was starting to not like this Mr. Grey. He was sounding like a tyrant. They all did his bidding, his photo was hidden from sight, and he wouldn’t care for my shitty parents. I wanted to give him a piece of my mind, but I haven’t even seen him yet.

“It will to him. We take family very seriously since we lost our parents ten years ago.”  After that little detail my anger subsided. It seemed he had a heart after all.

Miss Grey waited impatiently for me to finish, tapping her high heel while she went back to working on her phone. It took about twenty minutes for me to get everything I needed before we left my apartment. I opened the door, and Gage immediately took the luggage from me. It had to weigh almost a hundred pounds, but he picked it up as though it was as light as a feather. Damn, I felt like a weakling next to these two specimens of perfection.

He escorted both of us into the limo before loading my stuff into the trunk. The driver who was almost as large as this Gage character didn’t greet me either, both of them were acting as if they were not allowed to talk to me, which I found really weird. I hoped they weren’t a culture that refused to acknowledge women that weren’t related to them.

I know that it was foolish to get in the limo with them, but they knew about my call and my personal information so they must be legit. Or maybe I let all that sodium get to my head. Even though Gage made me uncomfortable, I wasn’t afraid of him. In fact, he made me feel secure in his presence. He reminded me of my parent’s iron gates at the front of their mansion, strong, protective, and silent.

“Are you hungry? The drive will be about five hours, and we woke you up. We can stop somewhere for you,” she asked. I blushed because I didn’t have any money, and it didn’t take long for her to figure out my discomfort.

“The Grey Company will be handling all of your expenses for now on,” she said, patting my knee.

“I can’t believe this is how you treat your future employees?!” I said aloud.

“Are we doing something wrong?” she asked looking at me with a tilted
head
and scrunched brow like she was afraid she offended me. I was starting to think I was living in a dream; then again, I hadn’t dreamed of anything but my imaginary lover in a very long time.

“No, it’s just too much,” I sighed, resigning myself to their ways.

“We do what Mr. Grey asks. He listened to your voicemail and told us to bring you to the Den.” She sounded as though she had nefarious designs on me. It was silly, considering I called my parents in front of her for safety sake.

“Will I be meeting Mr. Grey?” I was very intrigued to meet him even though he was sounding like a bossy tyrant. Generally, I would be intimidated by a man like him, but I couldn’t wait to see what he looked like.

“Yes, but he will not be back until tomorrow. He’s out of town at the moment. We’ll get everything set up for you.”

“I’m kind of hungry,” I lied. I was starving. We stopped off at Wendy’s, and I got a salad. It was so fresh, and I totally needed it. It was awkward eating in front of her while she just sat there, but she informed me that she already ate before they picked me up.

She was constantly on her phone, texting and looking at emails. Suddenly she huffed, then said, “The boss would like to talk to you.” She handed me the phone which I shakily took from her.

“Hello, Mr. Grey,” I murmured nervously. I waited for a response, but there was nothing on the other end, so I said, “Sir?”

He didn’t say anything, so I thought I lost him and asked again, “Sir, are you there?”

“Catherine, I’m here,” he whispered. His voice sent shivers down my spine as my ears heard his rough timber. His voice was beautiful, but strangely familiar.

“Mr. Grey, I can’t thank you enough for this opportunity. I’ll do whatever you ask. I really need this,” I gratefully admitted.

I heard a low growl, then I heard the word that had been ringing through my ears for the past six months. “Mine.” Then the call ended. It was him, my dream lover. I looked up at the woman in front of me, eyes opened wide. That was why their eyes seemed familiar. They were like his except they were green compared to his gorgeous blue.

Turning to Chloe, I asked suspiciously, “What’s going on?”

“Any news on the woman fitting my description?” I asked my sister as she sat in my office. We had other matters to discuss, but all my being was focused on the other half of my existence. The last six months had been unbearable torture. I hungered for my mate and had no idea who she was or how I would find her. Her sexy curves and curly brown hair tormented me every waking hour.

Chloe fidgeted in her seat, and I knew there had been no progress. It was hard on her to watch me slowly lose my mind. I shifted every night, running for hours, trying to fight sleep because dreaming of her was too much, but staying away from her was just as hard.

“Sorry, Hunter. We can’t seem to locate her in any of the packs in the Northwest. Gage is about to go down to the southwest territories and see if any female meets your description.”

“I need to find her. These dreams are slowly killing me. She’s my mate. I need to find her,” I snarled. Every day I struggled to contain my wolf. He wanted to leave the area in search of her, but being the Alpha I had to remain strong and do what I had to do for the rest of the pack. My emotions were coming to a head. I had to shave twice a day because my wolf laid at the surface. No matter how much I tried to calm the beast he came to life after he claimed her. I was a shaggy mess every morning and this morning was no different. I needed to focus on the resort, but I wanted answers on my mysterious mate.

Chloe’s green eyes dilated as she nervously asked, “Hunter…what if she’s not in a pack? What if she’s a human?”

“There’s never been a female human in our pack. Have you ever heard any tales about it?” We weren’t as informed about our past as we would have liked to have been. After a massive brush fire ripped through our lands in the late 1740’s, all records were lost. The packs moved further north settle along the Cascade Mountains. The only records were kept secure. Rumors were the great fire was set intentionally by one of our own in an attempt to end the lives of the Alpha’s family, my family, and destroy our pack history.

“No, but we can call the elder in Redding to see if he has any ideas if it’s even possible,” Chloe suggested. She did have a point. Creed and his family had some old books, none of which were very detailed or if they were, they had been singed too severely to even be interpreted.

Gossip floated through our village just like any other. There were claims that there was a human mate, but it was just a myth to give some of the pack hope when a member took too long to find their mate. But with all the searching for my mate and no luck, I was starting to believe in that tale.

“I need to find her. She’s mine. I’m thirty-two already. I should have found my mate many years ago,” I growled, the pain of never finding her ripped through my chest. My dreams weren’t a thing for our species. Once our mate was found, they smelled each other and mated within the day. I’d been dreaming of her for six months, reliving night after night of overwhelming, heart pounding passion that defied belief. Maybe it was no different than other shifters in that area, not that I would know, but I felt her soul as we mated in my sleep.

“We’ll find her,” she promised. The determination and conviction in her voice made me believe her. Brushing off her skirt and laying her tablet on my desk, she said, “Let’s try to take your mind off the mating hunger and talk shop.”

I sighed, “That’s probably for the best.” She was right as always. I wished I could have made her my Beta, but unfortunately it was passed down from generation to generation from another family. It was our own way of checks and balances. One family couldn’t possess total control.

“We only have a month before we open, and we haven’t even started the hiring process. I know there are several locals that need a job, but we need more than them,” she remarked. I knew where she was going with this, but I was too riled up with mating hunger that I ignored it.

“I’d say in the next two weeks we can start hiring the local community to run the resort,” I added.

Immediately her eyes opened wide and she snapped her fingers, a little quirk she had when she had a brilliant idea or remembered something. “Oh, yes, we’ve already received a call about a job from a woman in Oregon named Catherine. She sounded desperate. I feel terrible that we can’t hire her.” Chloe was soft at heart unless you fucked with her family. It was in her personality to care about a kitten, something laughable to our kind.

“Is she a shifter?” I asked. What was the big deal? A shifter we could hire unless there was something really wrong with her.

“No, she’s a human, but she sounds like she’s about to break if we don’t hire her. Gage thinks we should. It would help if we hired a few humans.” I gave her the warning glare. We talked about this before, and I wasn’t totally against it, but I wanted to be super selective if we did hire one of them. It’s one thing to see them in passing as guests, but daily contact could risk everything. “Don’t look at me like that. I know the danger of daily interaction with the same people, but just…well, just listen to her message.” Chloe got up and leaned over my desk, then dialed the number and voicemail access code and put it on speaker.

“Um. Hello, this is Catherine Kinney…I know you didn’t have an application for employment up, but I really need a job…” she sighed. I hit the replay button, not letting her message finish. Chloe looked at me in disbelief. I didn’t answer her stare. I listened to the same part again.

A growl ripped through my chest, and I demanded, “Bring her to me.”

I continued to listen to the plea from the warm voice I’d come to worship. I knew every inch of her body, the beat of her heart, the taste of her flesh, and the scent that drove the beast in me insane with hunger. Most of all, I knew what it was like to hear her sighs of ecstasy as I claimed her every night. It was
her
. My mate.

“Hunter, are you well?” Chloe asked as she sat straight up. I was feeling a range of emotions and it was noticeable in my eyes and my sudden release of my fangs, rattling my sister who was concerned for me. She was real, she was mine, and I wasn’t going to let anything stop me from claiming her.

“It’s her. Get her to take the job,” I snarled. I stood up and paced the room, my blood pumping through my body, forcing the other me to come to the surface. I could feel the shift coming, but I fought it back.

“Wait, her? As in your mate?” she asked as she turned in her seat to look at me with a confused expression. I could only snarl at the stupid question.

“Find a picture of her. Now!” I roared, as I continued to pace with building tension.

My sister was playing on her tablet doing what she did to make things happen. It took her only a moment to locate an image, but it felt like forever. I knew from the gasp that involuntary escaped her lungs that I was right.

“Show me,” I demanded as I rushed to her chair. I knew it was her, but confirming it seemed to make it real.

She handed me her tablet, or more like I tore it from her hands, and there on the screen was the woman I’d marked every night. My beautiful Catherine. A human?  How? I was going to need answers and was going to pay Creed a visit.

“Take Gage and bring her to me. I’m out of town starting tonight, but I’ll be back the following day. Keep her safe. I need to go get some answers,” I commanded as I grabbed my things to leave. I turned back to my sister, and added, “And Chloe, thank you for finding my mate.”

“I didn’t find her, she found us,” she admitted with a supine grin.

“Yes, but whose idea was it to promote the resort?” I smiled. It was my first genuine smile since I became the Alpha. My mate finally was calling me, literally.

I had to calm down, so I called my Beta Rocky Lake and told him to meet me at my house. My need for answers and to get back to her as soon as possible made me race through the town. I got to my house faster than I ever had before. All thoughts were on Catherine and making that dream a reality.

Rocky got to my house five minutes after I did. I packed a bag to go over to Redding and was already placing it in my truck. “I need you to watch over the Creek while I head over to Redding.”

“Why? What’s up?” he asked in surprise. Anytime I left for a day or so, I let them know and usually it was with at least a week’s notice.

“I’ll tell you when I get back,” I said. I wanted to shout it out to everyone that I’d finally found my mate, but something inside me held back. I didn’t know what it was, but I think it had something to do with the fact that she was human. I didn’t know what challenges would arise from this. There was someone always ready to test an Alpha. I had seen it in several packs before. No one had tried me yet, but I often felt that a couple including my Beta had an interest in being in charge.

“And this couldn’t be said in a call?” he grouched.

I snarled menacingly at him, angry that he dared to question my decision as though he had the right. Being already on the edge, I wasn’t in the right frame to tolerate his insolence.

“Sorry, Hunter. It’s just I was about to eat when you called,” he admitted sheepishly.

“I don’t give a shit what you were doing. It’s a part of who you are as a Beta,” I thundered. My wolf was ready to rip through my skin and he was on verge of feeling my teeth. “Now, I’ll be back on Wednesday morning. Keep an eye on the surrounding areas. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, Alpha,” he murmured with a bowed head.

I could sense that he hated being the Beta, but that was his lot in life. If he didn’t like that shit, he could go find another pack. I didn’t select him; it was passed down from his father, just like I took my father’s place.

I dismissed him and jumped into my truck. Going to Redding was going to take about six hours, and I wasted most of the daylight already. I wanted to come back by morning, but I needed answers and I wanted to be fresh when I saw her, so I wasn’t going to see her until the following morning.

Creed Holt was the elder of the Redding pack, but not the Alpha. His great-nephew Kane was the Alpha and a great guy; he was still waiting for his mate, too. All our history has been passed along each generation through the historians. Our two packs shared strong ties and our histories were intertwined, so Creed was our personal historian. I barely gave him a heads up that I was coming to see him because I didn’t want anyone to know that I wanted to go see him for something important.

The pack was starting to think I was losing it. My temper stayed so high that I was barking at everyone at any given time. None of them understood what I was going through. No one ever complained of dreaming of a mate they couldn’t find or see. Mating normally was straight forward, they scented each other and mated within a short span of time. Hell, Mary and Eddie mated in minutes a few weeks ago. It was so fast that they almost didn’t have time to get out of public. That was one of my concerns with inviting humans into our world. We could shift at any moment and it was harder to control when you were ready to breed.

I’d been ready to breed her for a very long time. Six months of unquenchable longing. Every night I took my cock in my hand and eased my urge to breed her. It was tolerable most of the early days, but as the weeks progressed the pain to fill her grew. I didn’t know if it was because I was the oldest virgin or because my mate was human. What did it mean for us? I had a list of questions running through my head, ready to toss at Creed.

I arrived late at his house; it was almost midnight. “Welcome Alpha Grey. Come in,” Creed gleamed as I walked up his front steps. He wasn’t frail for a man near a hundred and fifteen. We lived longer than humans, but we weren’t immortal. Most of us didn’t make it to one-fifty.

“Elder Holt, thank you for seeing me on such short notice,” I said as I bowed to the elder.

“It’s Creed, Hunter. Enough with the formalities, and you know you can come to see me anytime,” he said with a friendly smile. He and my father had been close before my father’s untimely death. He helped me make the transition I wasn’t ready to make to the role of Alpha at the age of twenty-four.

I walked in and saw Kane standing around the room almost pacing. “Hey, Kane. What’s up?”

“Nothing much Hunter. I was visiting when Creed said you were stopping by. I thought it was something that might need my attention since it was so unexpected.”

Kane looked uncomfortable, like something was bothering him big time. “It’s not really, but seeing I need answers and you’re almost as old as me without a mate you might want to be here.”