Wild Invitation

packmates as strong as Cooper.” Desire altered the rules on a fundamental level, changed the effect her wolf had on his, his on hers, until she could no longer predict how either one of them might react in any given situation.
    Vivienne’s next words were solemn. “He makes you uncomfortable, doesn’t he?”
    On the most basic female level. “He’s just so overwhelming.” So masculine, so primal, so harshly beautiful. Just…
so
.
    “I get that. Coop’s not a man who’d ever be an easy kind of lover.”
    Grace’s throat went dry again at the thought of calling Cooper her lover. “It’s not only that,” she rasped, having to take a sip of water before she could continue. “You remember what I told you? About how part of the reason I accepted the promotion and moved here was because of how overprotective my family was being?” Until wolf and woman both knew it wasn’t good for her.
    Though she loved her adoptive parents and siblings with all her heart, and knew she was cherished in turn, at times such as this she missed her long-gone “Papa” and “Mama” so much it hurt. Her father had been a submissive, had understood her on a fundamental level, her mother a dominant soldier who’d mated and loved a submissive long enough to have gained an inherent understanding of what her daughter needed to flourish. They’d both recognized that Grace’s need to feel safe and secure didn’t equal a rigid wall of protection.
    “I see your point.” Vivienne’s voice penetrated the bittersweet memories of the happy, content child she’d been before the pack was drenched bloodred. “As a lieutenant, Coop’s pretty much built to protect.” Twisting her body, she faced Grace. “Ifyou tell him to back off, he will. I guess everything else aside, the question is—is that what you want?”
    “No.” An instant and categorical repudiation. Grace couldn’t bear the thought of never again feeling the abrasive warmth of Cooper’s touch, hearing that caressing note of promise in his voice.
    Vivienne’s lips curved in a wicked smile. “Then you’d better find a way to deal with the big, bad wolf who wants to have you for his own
very
personal snack.”
    A thousand butterflies took flight in Grace’s stomach.
    •   •   •
    HE’D scared her.
    The soldier in front of Cooper paled under the tanned gold of his skin. “Sir?”
    And now he was scaring everyone else. Rubbing a hand over his face in an attempt to dislodge his scowl, his thumb brushing over the jagged scar along his left cheek, he said, “The perimeter incursion, you’re certain it was just a couple of human kids necking?” Wolf territory was clearly marked, but juveniles the world over had a mysterious ability to see only what they wanted to see.
    Daniel nodded, his sandy hair sliding over his forehead. “I caught them myself. Made sure they knew they were trespassing on SnowDancer land, and told them it was the single warning they’d get before we took action.” A flash of teeth. “They couldn’t get out fast enough.”
    “Good.” Cooper didn’t enjoy putting fear in the eyes of teenagers with more hormones than brains, but it had to be done.
    SnowDancer’s vicious reputation was its first line of defense.
    The pack hadn’t always been so outwardly aggressive. Their discipline and focus on family, however, had made their enemies believe SnowDancer weak; the ensuing bloodshed had devastated the pack. So many had been lost in the carnage—including Grace’s parents.
    Never
again
, thought Cooper.
    “Keep an eye out for them,” he said to Daniel. “Sometimes kids like to play chicken.” Youthful stupidity knew no boundaries, regardless of whether the young were changeling or human.
    “I’ll alert the other sentries. What should we do if one of us catches them again?”
    “Disable their vehicle and call me.” SnowDancer had sole jurisdiction on its land. Maybe Enforcement would’ve challenged that claim once upon a time, but not anymore—not with the world shuddering under the violent weight of a change that was redefining power itself. “I’ll walk them out personally.”
    If the human pups were old enough to neck, they were old enough to know better than to dare a predatory changeling pack. Cooper intended to give the two misbehaving teens the same dressing-down he’d give one of the juveniles under his command should they pull a stupid stunt. “No one’s ever come back a third time.”
    Daniel