Thirty minutes later, they reached Bella’s house without incident, thank the stars. But until they’d hidden the rental SUV, she still didn’t feel safe. And if her neighbor saw her coming home in a different vehicle than the one she’d left in, the questioning would begin in earnest.
Good-natured Chrissie was truly a friend, but she was also too curious for her own good.
At four in the morning, the area remained blanketed in black, except for two security lights highlighting the entryway of the peach stone two-bedroom house.
“Your outside lights are on,” Devlyn said, his voice worried.
“Security. They automatically come on when it grows dark. Park around back. We can hide the SUV in the garage, but we’ll have to open it from inside. I don’t have my garage door controller with me.”
“Your vehicle is still in the Cascades?”
“Yeah. Next to the cabin I own there.”
They shut the vehicle’s doors as quietly as they could, and then he hurried with her to the front door. “Let me go inside first.”
Slipping a key from a vine-covered trellis, she handed it to him, appreciating his concern. “Be my guest.”
As soon as he opened the door, he took a step inside, lifted his chin, and sniffed the air.
“Smell anything?” she whispered.
A slow smile crept across his face. “Yeah, you, Bella honey.”
She pushed him into the house and locked the door. “You’re supposed to be keeping your mind on business. Let’s move the SUV into the garage; then we can plan our next — “
“Sleep. We haven’t had enough sleep to keep us going.”
She noticed then the darkened skin beneath his eyes. “All right.” She motioned to the kitchen. “Door to the garage is that way.”
“Be right back. Undress and I’ll meet you in bed.” He waited for her to agree.
“Still worried I might bolt?” She folded her arms and lifted a brow.
“No. Not now that you want to catch the killer.” He sounded annoyed.
“Then you can sleep on the couch.”
“In your dreams.”
She chuckled and intended to go to the bedroom when she noticed how wilted her houseplants were and made a detour to the kitchen. She swore that as soon as she gave water to the ficus trees and the winding ivy, they perked up right away. Then she entered her bedroom and glanced out the window at her greenhouse. Chrissie would have made sure everything was well watered, she was certain. It seemed like eons since she’d been here last, not just a few days.
Sighing deeply, Bella felt safe for the moment and overjoyed to be in her own home again. She yanked off her sneakers, determined to climb into bed and fall asleep before the big gray wolf returned and gave her other notions. Then she formulated a plan.
After crossing the room, she dug in her linen closet and pulled out a spare set of sheets and a pillow. Dashing back down the hall, she hurried to the floral sofa. She laid the sheets and pillow on one end and strode back to her bedroom.
Once she removed the rest of her clothes, she heard the garage door grumble shut, and then the kitchen door leading to the garage opened and closed. She climbed into bed, pulled the green velvet spread under her chin, and closed her eyes.
For several minutes, she lay still, listening for Devlyn, but when he didn’t come to the bedroom, her heart sank. Playing games with him when they were young inspired her interest in him. Didn’t he realize she was teasing him about sleeping on the couch?
She was too tired to care.
After another couple of minutes, she tossed onto her side and growled.
The shattering of gla.s.s on the tile kitchen floor sent a spike of adrenaline racing through her veins. She bolted from the bed, tugged on the sweatshirt, and ran down the hall. All she could think of was protecting Devlyn, yet when she approached the kitchen, she realized she had forgotten the gun, even though the silver bullets were meant for Volan, should he ever find her.
She peered around the cabinets to see into the kitchen.
Standing in front of the refrigerator, Devlyn stared at the collage of pictures hanging from the door. Broken gla.s.s rested at his feet.
“Devlyn,” she said under her breath, her heartbeat thundering.
He looked at her. “Who sent the pictures of us to you?”
Holding her breath, she rubbed her arms as a chill fluttered across her skin. She didn’t like the accusation in the tone of his voice or the anger in his eyes.
“Who, Bella?”
Without answering him, she turned to a cupboard, but before she could grab the broom and dustpan, he crossed the floor and seized her arm. Pulling her to face him, he asked again, “Who, Bella? Who in the pack knew where you were and for how long?”
“Let go of me,” she growled and tried to free herself from his iron hold.
He pressed her back against the cupboard and gripped her shoulders. “You didn’t really leave the pack permanently, did you? You kept in touch. Someone sent you our photos. The colored pictures more recently, black and white for some years earlier, sepia before this. Who’s been corresponding with you about us?”
Tears rolled down her cheeks. If she hadn’t been so tired, if one of her own kind hadn’t killed a woman, if she hadn’t been incarcerated in the zoo, she could have handled Devlyn’s harsh accusations better. She missed them terribly, nearly every one of the pack... her family. But she wouldn’t be Volan’s. And if she returned, she’d have no choice.
“Bella,” Devlyn said, his voice gentler as he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bedroom, “you cared about us, didn’t you? Even though you have more pictures of me than any of the others in the pack.”
She wiped her eyes, attempting to avoid the implication. “He sent more of them to me.”
“Who?” He laid her down in the bed and then unb.u.t.toned his shirt. “You have mine more prominently displayed.”
“There were more of them. I already said so.” Her voice was sterner than she meant it to be.
His penetrating gaze clouded with l.u.s.t and he yanked off his shirt.
She tugged her sweatshirt off and tossed it on the floor and then pulled the covers up.
A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. He unfastened his belt and pulled his zipper down. His gaze took in her furnishings, but before he could look at her night-stand, she grabbed the picture off it and shoved it under her pillow. No sense in giving him the wrong idea.
But he caught her in the act and his eyes turned black. “A secret admirer? A human male?” His voice was couched in anger. He sat down next to her on the edge of the bed. After pulling off his boots, he stood and removed his trousers, dropping them on the floor.
Her gaze shifted to the dark curly hair between his legs and his prominent erection. He was ready to mate if she were willing, and the overwhelming animal urge instantly prepped her for his penetration.
“Who sent the photos to you?” His tone turned lighter, more conversational rather than demanding.
She glared at him, still annoyed with his earlier bullying. “It’s none of your business.”
He hit the bed with his fist, shocking her at seeing his temper flare so quickly. She jumped, irritated with herself for reacting instead of remaining calm, unflinching.
“d.a.m.n it, Bella. I’ve searched on and off for you for years.”
Her eyes grew big as her heart leapt. Then she realized he’d followed pack orders — Volan’s command to have her returned to him. She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. “Yeah, so you could return me to Volan.”
His brows knit tightly, but he didn’t say anything; then he jammed his hand underneath her pillow and yanked out the cherry wood picture frame. A smile simmered on his lips.
Her cheeks burned with embarra.s.sment, and she tried to think of a reason for having his photo next to her bed. Unable to come up with a plausible explanation, she turned her back to him and closed her eyes. “Good night, Devlyn. Pleasant dreams.”
He jerked the covers aside. She turned and glowered at him.
Smiling appreciably as he gazed at her naked body, he took in a deep breath. “Feral like the redwoods, sweet as wild roses.”
She recovered herself.
He wiggled his dark brows. “It’s a picture of me.” He glanced back at the photo he’d set upright on her night-stand. “Great image, too. One of my better pictures.”
“What of it? It was too big to fit on the fridge. I told him not to send any more that size because they’re too big.”
Devlyn pulled the back of the frame open, and she knew he’d discover the truth.
“You’ve had this one enlarged. Gives a photo ID on the back, a local Oregon printer. You had a smaller version of the same photo on the fridge, probably the one he sent you.” He cast her an elusive smile.
She pursed her lips.
Pulling the covers back down, he exposed her b.r.e.a.s.t.s to the cool air in the bedroom. Instantly, the nipples turned into pert red peaks. He leaned over and kissed one and then the other, making them throb with need.
But she couldn’t mate with him, as much as her body readied itself to accept his virile strength. She’d endanger him too much if she gave into her primal instincts, her deep-seated cravings for the gray. She touched his whiskery cheek. “You were supposed to sleep on the couch.”
“You’ve been keeping my image close to your bed. Now you can keep the flesh and blood me in your bed.” He climbed into bed next to her and touched her cheek. “Tell me how much you love me, Bella. Tell me how many times you wrote to whoever it was, asking about me.”
“He didn’t tell me you searched for me.”
“Who didn’t tell you?”
She sensed the tightness in his voice, the way he barely curbed his anger. “It’s late. We need to sleep.”
He ran his tongue down her belly, forcing a quiver of antic.i.p.ation. “I won’t quit asking until you tell me. Who was it?”
Giving up the guarded secret, she sighed heavily and admitted, “Argos.”