Psy & Changelings 11 - Tangle of Need

very happy one day.”
    It took effort to keep the smile on his face, to not let his mother see what her words did to him. Wrapping an arm around her, he tucked her against his side and tempted her into a cookie, determined to enjoy his time in San Diego … but he couldn’t escape the jaw-clenching realization that all thoughts of Lisette were now linked to Adria and the desire that had scorched them both.
    ADRIA ran into Hawke on her way to a meeting that afternoon. When he mentioned that Riaz was in San Diego, shock turned her breathless. Not because Riaz had left the den for what appeared to be a short visit to his family, but because of her own response to the knowledge.
    A tremor of relief rippled over her skin, her spine no longer tight with a fine ever-present tension. She wasn’t so naive as to believe the attraction had run its course—nothing that gut-wrenchingly deep could be so easily conquered. Even now, embers of darkest need flickered in her blood. No, the only reason for her relief was because with him gone, there was no longer any chance she’d forget her vow to keep her distancefrom a man who had made it crystal clear he’d rather sleep on a bed of nails than with her.
    “How are you going with the territorial exploration?”
    Hawke’s question snapped her head back into the game—she knew her alpha had to be evaluating her performance as a transfer. “I’m doing a new section each day. I discuss it with Eli or Riley before and after to make sure I don’t miss anything.”
    The light caught on the distinctive silver-gold of Hawke’s hair as he cocked his head a fraction to the right—the wolf, listening to her. “Good,” he said, his easy expression doing nothing to tone down the sense of naked power that clung to him like a second skin. “Another thing, Adria”—a moment of searing eye contact—“if there are any issues I need to be aware of, you let me know.”
    “Of course.” Leaving the alpha, her senses prickling with the knowledge that Hawke saw far more than either part of her wanted him to see, she made her way to the weekly senior soldiers meeting. Elias, the man in charge of the group, ribbed her gently for being late, before calling the meeting to order from his leaning stance against a scarred wooden desk so sturdy it would take four men to shift.
    It was a perfect fit for a break room that was happily shabby with its worn-in furniture and massive notice board hung with party invites, take-out menus, printouts of the roster, and an eclectic collection of photos. Word was, the maternal females had been politely but implacably rebuffed when they’d made noises about refurbishing it to match the bright new community areas in the den.
    Adria was glad—this room had its own identity, its steady, comfortable look reflecting the pragmatic men and women who most often used it. Unlike the lieutenants, who had to deal not only with political issues but also with matters that crossed sectors, senior soldiers had charge of the day-to-day security and running of their particular sector of the territory. Riley took care of overall assignments, making certain the dominants in the den functioned as a smooth unit, but Elias was the one who handled issues specific to the senior soldiers. And it was his advice Riley asked when the lieutenant wanted to know how best to utilize those men and women.
    “Right,” Elias now said, “first thing we have to do is hash out assignments during the mating ceremony.”
    Adria knew everyone would want a chance to attend the celebration, but the pack’s territory couldn’t be left undefended. “One-hour rotating shifts?” she suggested from her seat on a sofa beside dark-eyed Simran. “We have enough people even without the lieutenants.” Indigo, Riaz, Judd, and Riley would need to remain at the Pack Circle.
    Kieran linked his hands behind his head and leaned back, balancing his chair precariously on two legs. “Works for me.” The smooth brown of his skin gleamed with health. “But anyone on the inner perimeter will have to do a two-hour block—have to allow travel time. Outer perimeter’s going to be a problem. It’s too far.”
    “Cats have agreed to cover it.” Elias shook his head. “Don’t know when we stopped trying to skin them for their pelts and started to trust them.”
    “Shame, I could’ve used a new rug,” some wit commented from the back.
    Adria grinned. Like the others, her own wolf was still getting used to