An Alpha's Choice (Talon Pack #2)(27)

He frowned. “I know what you mean. There’s something in the air, something coming.”

She shivered, and he held back the need to do the same. “I don’t like this feeling.”

“I’m with you there.”

She let out a breath then stood up, setting her coffee cup down on the table. “I need to use the restroom. Keep an eye out because I know we’re not safe. And if both of us are on edge because we have a feeling about something? I’d rather be careful that not.”

He nodded, running a hand along his chin. He needed a shave but had been too out of it to deal with grooming that morning. “Be alert. Someone tried to come at us yesterday.” He could still hear the mother’s scream, and wasn’t sure he’d be getting that out of his head any time soon.

She met his gaze, an emotion he couldn’t place flashing over her eyes in a bare instant. “I know.” Her voice lowered. “I remember, Finn. I remember what you did to save that little girl yesterday. And I’m pretty sure the humans looking as us right now remember, as well. That’s not something you forget.” She rolled her shoulders back. “Try not to get hit by a car while I’m gone.”

He raised a brow at her tone. “I’ll do my best,” he said dryly.

He watched her walk away because how could he not? She filled out a pair of jeans nicely, the denim clinging to her curves much like he wanted to. He might be on alert and his senses on their surroundings, but he was still a man, still a wolf.

He wanted Brynn Brentwood, and still had no idea what to do about it.

A little girl looked at him from the table across the way, her eyes wide. Her father tugged on her pigtail, his eyes glaring at Finn, and the little girl turned her attention back to her meal.

At least they didn’t get up and walk away because they realized they were eating next to wolves. That had to be some progress.

But it wasn’t enough. They were only a small cog in the process of what it would take to be free and out in the open.

His phone buzzed and he pulled it out, answering when he saw his cousin Parker’s name light up on the screen. Parker was North and Lexi’s son, though not a Jamenson by birth as he’d been adopted in years ago. His older cousin was the Voice of the Redwoods, the wolf that could easily move from Pack to Pack and try to broker treaties. When the former Talon Alpha had shown the world that the wolves existed, it wasn’t merely the Talons or the Redwoods that had been shoved out into the open. The entire world had been cracked to the point that long-held secrets were just now slithering out.

The government had known about many of the Packs before the Unveiling. There was no way around that, not in the technological age they lived in. But the right people had known for a time, and wolves had been secretly in some power positions. Those wolves were still hidden from the humans, their other halves buried deep.

But not everyone had a choice when it came to being out in public with what they truly were.

And Parker’s job for over a decade now had been to work with the Redwood and Talon council and go to other Packs in person to ensure that every wolf was on the same page. It was an impossible task with so many dominant wolves and personalities, but Parker had a way about him that made it somewhat work.

Treaties and plans for the future could be done by phone and screen, but with many of the Alpha wolves far older than the world they lived in, face to face meetings were the only way to accomplish that. Parker had a duty to his Pack and to all the Packs, and Finn thought his cousin was damn good at it.

“Parker,” he said when he answered, his attention mostly on his surroundings. His wolf was at the surface, on edge, but it was nothing new these days.

“Hey, Finn,” Parker said, his deep voice holding a hint of a laugh. Parker had been through shit during the early years of his life, but he always held a smile and a laugh for those close to him.

“What are you up to? Calling just to shoot the shit?” He hoped so. He hoped that Parker’s duty was on the right path and he had the time to just talk to his family. Because Finn honestly didn’t want to deal with any new issues right then. He had enough on his plate with the Pack, the humans, and, of course, Brynn. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t drop everything to help Parker. Because he would. The man was family, maybe not blood, but family.

“I’m just checking in,” Parker answered. “It’s been awhile since I’ve called, and I wanted to know how things were going. Brynn slice your balls off yet?”

Finn didn’t want to think about Brynn and his balls, not when he had to act normal and still talk with Parker. His wolf remained silent through it all, making Finn want to scream. Why couldn’t his wolf want her? Why couldn’t his wolf act like a normal shifter and push him when it mattered?

“My balls are just fine, thanks for your concern,” he said dryly. He put thoughts of his wolf and what it wouldn’t do out of his mind.

“Good to know.” Parker sighed. “I heard about the car coming after you. I’m glad you saved the girl, by the way. Jesus, what are these humans thinking? They almost killed one of their own in their blind hatred of us.”

“You said it yourself right then, Park. They aren’t thinking. They’re blind when it comes to anything other than their purpose. What that purpose exactly is? I don’t know. Were they coming after Brynn and me because of who we are in terms of being shifters? Was it random that they found us? Or is it because Brynn and I are out in public more than others, and it would have been a better symbol to hurt us?” He held back a growl at the thought of Brynn being hurt. She might be f*cking strong as hell and fully capable of handling herself, but damn it, he couldn’t see her hurt.