"I guess I'll play nurse," Meara said. "Not my favorite role, but I can muddle through." She followed Hunter into the master bedroom.
"I'm fine, Meara. Go take care of Cara," Tessa said.
"I'm sure Ashton will want to look after her," Meara said.
Hunter lay Tessa on the bed, and then pulled off her gloves. "I need Ashton to play guard, and I'll take Leidolf with me to cut up that tree so we can return with the SUV."
"What if they come after you?" Tessa asked, not liking this one bit.
"They won't mess with two alpha lupus garou males, guaranteed."
"Can you trust Ashton to stay put this time?" Meara asked.
"To protect his injured mate? I think so. Besides, I don't trust Leidolf to stay here with Tessa."
Meara laughed. "You know what, dear brother? I don't either." She headed down the hall and spoke in Michael's bedroom. "Here, Ashton, let me take care of Cara. Can you talk with Rourke for a minute? Make sure he's lying down in the guest bedroom? I'll see him after I bandage Cara's head."
"Did we really leave the back door unlocked?" Tessa asked Hunter. "I know for sure I locked the front door, but we were all busy getting stuff for the trip, I just don't know about the back door."
"Either we did, or we didn't. Don't worry about it, Tessa. They won't try to get in with as many of us as there are here now." He got her a glass of water and some medicine. "I'll be right back."
She leaned against the pillow and unbuttoned her parka, trying to ignore her throbbing ankle or the fact the house was frigid.
Hunter soon returned with an ice pack from the freezer. "Good thing you had this handy." He pulled the boot off her uninjured foot, and then carefully slipped the other off as she gritted her teeth in silent suffering.
"Broken or sprained?" she asked.
"Bruised and swollen. We won't know whether it's broken or sprained without an x-ray."
He placed the ice pack on her ankle, and then helped her out of her coat. Pulling the comforter off the bed, he moved it over her so that it didn't cover her foot. "Your socks are wet and cold. Let me get some dry ones for you."
As soon as he pulled open the top drawer, she opened her mouth to tell him where he should have gone. He held up a handful of colorful silk panties and smiled. "Wrong drawer."
She cleared her throat. "Try the one below that."
He pulled out a couple of pairs of pastel fuzzy socks and closed the drawer with his hip.
"They don't match."
He chuckled and pulled off her wet socks and then slipped on the dry ones. "The way to avoid spending hours looking for matching socks is to have all the same color."
"How dull."
"Works for me. It's either that or wear nothing at all."
She smiled. Yeah, she could see Hunter like that--in nothing at all.
"How's that feel?"
"Much better." Awful, really, but maybe the medicine would kick in soon.
"You're a terrible liar. Don't ever play poker."
"I play poker very well, thank you."
"Not with me. I'd insist on strip poker and I'd have you naked in record time."
She laughed.
"I'll be back after a little while."
She saluted him.
"Wrong hand. You'd never make it in the Navy SEALs."
"They don't salute when they're undercover. Remember?" She raised a brow.
"I'll take care of her," Meara said, walking into the room. "Cara's sleeping. Rourke is lying in bed. Ashton's working on a fire. Go talk to Leidolf."
"I'll be back." Hunter kissed Tessa on the lips, hot and wanting, pressing for more, until he pulled his mouth away with reservation, and she wanted to drag him back and devour him whole.
"Don't allow her to move from the bed, Meara."
"The one guy had a walking cast on," Tessa said, as Hunter was about to leave the room.
"Yeah, I saw. He had a broken leg."
"I thought you healed up quickly."
"Instead of six to eight weeks, it would be more like a week. Rest. I'll return soon." He winked and left.
Meara pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down. Tessa opened her mouth to speak, but Meara raised her finger to her own lips and raised her brows.
In the living room, Hunter said, "Come on, Leidolf. Let's get a workout on that downed tree. Watch the others, Ashton."
"Yeah, you can count on me."
The front door slammed closed.
Meara took a breath. "I hope Hunter doesn't get into a fight with Leidolf over you."
"You can't be serious." Unable to quit shivering, Tessa pulled the covers to her chin.
"Two alpha males interested in the same woman? Hell, you saw what happens when one beta wants you. You better believe now that you have to be turned; Leidolf's interested, and there will be trouble between him and my brother. Not only that, but this business with Devlyn Greystoke is bound to cause problems. Hunter told me Devlyn lost all his family in a fire. Any family connection, no matter how slight, would most likely interest him. Which leads to the real problem."
Tessa tensed, not liking the warning in Meara's voice.
"Because of the shortage of females in a given pack, a leader who can entice a female to join his pack-- particularly if it's his relation--can offer her to another member, strengthening his bonds with his pack."
Finally finding her voice, Tessa said, "That sounds like some medieval barbaric ruling. The king decides which of his wards weds and whom. Why didn't Hunter already tell me this?"
Meara shrugged, but Tessa could tell she wasn't saying all there was about the subject. "All right, so what about Leidolf? He doesn't know anything about me."
"Right. But for lupus garou, pheromones have a lot to do with the selection process. We're attracted to someone's looks, but also to the sexual scent each of us gives off. It's subtle, not noticeable to the human population. Since the lupus garou males outnumber the females, males are always on the lookout for a female. But what entices one male might not another. It's like having a craving for chocolate and entering a shop full of spicy pickles. Kills the desire. Walk into the store next door where a pot of hot chocolate is brewing, the male is in love."
"Pickles and hot chocolate?"
Meara chuckled. "Okay, maybe peppermint and hot chocolate?"
Ashton poked his head in. "Interesting discussion. Fire's going good. Did you want to move in there? This room is awfully cold."
"Sparks will fly if she's moved in there by the fire and Leidolf gets close to her when he and Hunter return," Meara warned.
Ashton gave her a devious smile. "No television, radio, nothing else better for entertainment. Besides, it's freezing in here and Tessa's shivering."
"Tessa?"
"It is awfully chilly in here. With the ice pack on my ankle, it's making me even colder."
Although she intended to walk with Ashton's help, he lifted her from the bed. "Can you bring the comforter, Meara?" Ashton asked. "Unfortunately, all the blankets are either in my truck or your SUV."
"Oh, well, hell, I never thought of it," Meara said. "At least when the guys come back, we'll have some of the blankets. Is Cara warm enough?"
"After we get Tessa situated on the couch, I'll check on Cara."
"You can stay with her. I'll be the guard for a while."
Ashton lay Tessa on the couch. "Hunter will be pissed if I'm not guarding."
"I'll take care of him." Meara waved her hand and then covered Tessa with the cover. "Go. Keep Cara warm."
When Ashton retired from the room, Tessa asked, "He really won't be mad at him, will he?"
"Probably. But, we can come up with a good story."
Right. As if Tessa could bluff her way through anything where Hunter was concerned.