Page 18 of Anders
Anders spent the next forty-eight hours checking his perimeter sensors and reviewing security footage but found no sign of anyone new in town who could have placed the device.
He did, however, discover three more similar devices in strategic locations around town—all with clear sight lines to areas frequented by pack members.
His wolf growled, angry at the thought of someone watching their territory.
Watching his mate.
Not my mate, he reminded himself sharply.Potential security threat.
Especially if she had placed the devices herself.
Yet he couldn’t bring himself to believe she was the threat his logical mind told him she had to be.
No, his inner wolf insisted.There is someone else involved here.
It was getting harder to maintain his focus.Every time he reviewed his own surveillance feeds, he found himself drawn to the way sunlight caught in her hair, how her face lit up when she smiled at interview subjects, the graceful efficiency of her movements.
His wolf yearned to go to her, to claim her, to protect her from whoever had marked her neck and was now watching her.The tactical part of his brain argued that she might be working with them, might be part of whatever organization had placed the surveillance devices.
The conflict was tearing him apart.
Finally, after a week of remote observation and mounting frustration, Anders made a decision.
He would confront her directly about the surveillance equipment.If she was involved, her reaction might tell him something useful.If she wasn’t…
He shut down that line of thinking.Hope was dangerous in security work.
The walk to her office felt longer than usual.Anders cataloged every detail of his surroundings—the position of the morning sun, the direction of the wind, the locations of potential witnesses.All normal preconfrontation protocols, but something about this felt different.
More personal.
Her scent hit him before he reached the door, making his wolf stir restlessly.Sweet and spicy with that underlying note of wild wolf that called to his most primal instincts.
He forced himself to concentrate on his breathing, on maintaining control.
Now that he was here, though, Anders found himself hesitating outside her office.Through the door, he could hear her heartbeat, steady and strong.The soft tap of computer keys.An occasional rustle of paper.
How should he approach this?Direct confrontation might trigger defensive reactions.Too subtle, and he might miss important tells.And there was the mate bond to consider—his wolf’s instincts could interfere with his ability to read her responses accurately.
Analysis paralysis, he thought grimly.Tactical overthinking driven by emotional compromise.
And yet knowing what it was didn’t eliminate its existence.
Anders still didn’t know what to do.
CHAPTER 5
ETTA SAT AT HERdesk in the newspaper office, staring at her laptop screen without really seeing it.
For what felt like the hundredth time that morning, her mind drifted back to Anders Hamilton and that electric moment when he’d been so close she could practically taste his unique scent—earthy and wild, with hints of pine and something dangerous she couldn’t quite identify.
Stop it, she chided herself.You’re not some lovesick teenager.
But her body apparently hadn’t gotten that memo.
Every time she thought about how he’d leaned toward her, how his eyes had darkened to that impossible shade of gold…
Her fingers moved across the keyboard of their own accord, typing:Displays exceptional situational awareness.Maintains constant visual contact with entrances/exits.Moves with predatory grace suggesting extensive combat training, though military background doesn’t fully account for motion patterns.
