Say My Name Read online

  In the end, she ended up telling him the truth about being 18, and the boy just nodded, face falling for a moment until he replaced it with another hearty smile.

  "No mate then I take it," he said a little stiffly.

  No. You?

  "Not yet," Jason said. "It's still early though. I would like to meet her, but not everyone does find a mate anymore. Or if they do, it doesn't always work out, ya know?"

  Elle smiled sadly. She knew that all too well, though she thought Jason was exaggerating. While it was true that not everyone found their perfect match, 99.9% of the time the coupling worked out for the better, and not like Elle and her Alpha mate.

  Jason and Elle talked for a while, and Elle started to ask so many questions her hand started to cramp up.

  "What's wrong?" Jason asked, watching as Elle flexed her wrist and fingers.

  Not used to writing so much. I can't wait until I get my voice back.

  Jason laughed and reached out for Elle's hand, starting to massage the wrist and muscles surrounding it. Elle sighed, a little uncomfortable with the familiar gesture, but it felt too good to make the young man stop.

  "That's my fault," Jason said with a grin. "I've sort of talked your ear off. This should help."

  He continued to talk to her about life in the pack, well-known stories as well as stories of his own youth. He didn't ask questions, to which Elle was grateful for. Her hand was sore, and Jason was able to pick up on some of her hand gestures and facial expressions. It helped a lot since she did have questions, but her hand was practically humming with fatigue.

  "What's going on here?" asked a curious, deep voice that was all too familiar to Elle.

  Jason and Elle looked toward the sound and found the Alpha, two drinks in his hand and his eyes locked onto where Jason was massaging and kneading.

  ∞∞∞

  "No big announcement. I was very clear with that," Liam said to Blake and Trace, who were in the Alpha's office and standing across the desk from where he stood. "We'll let her meet people at her own pace. Colleen's sociable and talkative enough to take away most of any awkwardness Elle may feel at meeting the pack as a whole."

  It was past 8:30 PM, and they were running late to the function. The warriors had come by with news of another group of wolves searching the edges of their territory, and Liam was afraid that they might be shifters from Blackriver. He had increased patrols immediately and sent out a group of wolves with the head enforcer as a liaison in case they tried to encroach on their land. They had waited as long as they could before the head enforcer had mindlinked him to say that no one could be found.

  Perfect. Maybe they had given up. Liam was almost positive that since they did not smell rogue, they were most likely looking for Elle. He didn't want to think that at first, but he could find no other reason why unknown wolves would search the areas just beyond his territory. He hoped they gave up soon.

  The three spoke and made up an enhanced patrol schedule for the next few days, Trace eventually running off to meet with the head warrior who would be back at any time now.

  "I've got to change and then I'll head to the bonfire," Liam said, placing his leather jacket over his forearm and moving toward the door.

  "Colleen says Elle is doing fine," Blake said as the two of them left the office and headed out the front door. "Making friends and such."

  "Friends? What friends?" Liam asked, his voice quick and tight.

  "I didn't ask specifics," Blake said blandly. "I'm not the party police, Liam. Go see for yourself if you want to know so badly."

  He would. His jaw ticked in irritation at his second in command, and his pace increased slightly. He told himself that he needed to make sure that Elle was surrounding herself with the right people and not some of the wolves – like the plastics – that would take advantage of her kind and giving nature.

  After a quick shower, Liam dressed, ran a comb quickly through his straight, black hair, and walked out his front door. The noises from the bonfire were getting louder, so he knew that almost everyone was there.

  As he made his way through the crowd, many of the wolves nodded at him with respect or greeted him, calling out to their Alpha and wishing him a good evening. Liam nodded back, smiling down on occasion at some of the braver toddlers who came up to him to hug his legs. Those brave little souls were quickly pulled away by embarrassed mothers and apologetic fathers who greeted Liam before pulling their children into their arms to let the Alpha go about his business.

  "Colleen's outdone herself this time," Trace mused from behind Liam's left shoulder. "We've got enough food here to last a week."

  Liam's lips twitched. The spits were crackling with deer, pig, and other meats, while there were coolers filled with beverages and tables stuffed with side dishes.

  "Colleen thought this was a proper way to greet the new wolf," Liam explained.

  "Has she taken the oath yet?" Trace asked.

  "Not yet," Liam replied. "I was going to wait a little bit until she got more of her voice back."

  "Ah."

  Trace remained quiet, looking on in amusement as Liam scoured the crowd, searching. He could only surmise who he was looking for, but if he was a betting man, he would have guessed it would be Elle. The man seemed overly protective of the mute wolf, having taken her so easily under his wing and offering her pack protection like she had been born and bred at Plumbrook.

  Trace's eyes met with Blake's, and the latter raised a brow, looking at Liam pointedly and then jerking his head over his shoulder to his right. Trace figured Elle was that way, and cleared his throat before speaking.

  "I think I see Colleen that way," Trace said. "Elle must be with her." Trace was better at subtle than Blake was.

  Liam moved toward where Trace was pointing without saying anything, though his steps were more assured, making Trace think he was right on the money when he thought the man was looking for his newest almost-pack member.

  Colleen was talking with a group while tossing out commands to others that were preparing more food. How she held a conversation and ordered people about was something Liam found hard to fathom, but she did it with aplomb and easy grace.

  "Oh, there's Elle," Trace said, looking past Colleen and her group mingling.

  Liam's eyes flickered over to Colleen's left shoulder and saw that Elle was there, nodding at someone, her face a little strained and shoulders tense. He couldn't see much more than her head, but it was enough to know that she was chatting with someone, and Liam's feet moved forward to the coolers where he grabbed two drinks at random and walked toward Colleen, Elle, and whomever she was speaking with.

  Liam looked around, noticing that many people were watching the new wolf as well while she chatted with...well, someone. Liam still couldn't see who it was, but he didn't like the looks that many of the unmated males gave her as they talked and watched the newcomer with interest. A few looked merely curious, but most of the men watched her with a little too much curiosity for Liam’s liking.

  And no wonder. What the fuck was she wearing? This had to be Colleen's doing. Only Colleen would dress Elle in something that would be more welcome on a dance club floor than a barbecue/bonfire.

  Liam could immediately tell that Elle had gained a little weight. Her arms were no longer bone thin, and her breasts had filled out a bit more. He was sure the bras that Colleen had purchased for her would probably fit now, but that didn't matter at the moment. There was no way in hell what she was wearing would need a bra underneath it.

  The dark burgundy dress was simple, hugging her soft curves and accentuating her small waist. It was only a few notches above putting her in spandex and calling it a day.

  Jeremiah was a fucking fool to have let this one slip away. It appeased Liam somewhat, that Elle had given him the slip and was now looking healthy on his own territory instead of twig-thin and terrified.

  Liam also could finally see over the crowd to who Elle was chatting with. It was an Omega named...Johnson?
Josh? He couldn't remember off the top of his head, but one thing he did know – he didn't appreciate the familiarity between the two and how close they stood.

  And the fact that the young man seemed to be holding her hand in both of his.

  Eyes narrowing minutely, he walked over to the two, nodding to a smirking Colleen who had caught sight of him, and went up to Elle and her friend.

  "What's going on here?" Liam asked, his eyes fixed pointedly at their connected hands.

  "Alpha, I was just rubbing some of the soreness from her wrist," the young man said, dropping Elle's hand like it was a hot potato. "We were talking quite a bit and she nearly filled the entire notepad with her writing."

  Liam saw that Elle had a pen and paper in her left hand, clutching it like a security blanket.

  Hmm...

  "Are you hurt?" Liam asked, ignoring the fact that Jason stepped another foot away from Elle and was watching the Alpha with interested eyes.

  Elle shook her head and mimicked writing before holding her sore wrist and feigning a pained expression.

  "Here, I got you a drink," Liam told her, handing it to her and taking the pad of paper and pen from her. He placed them into his back pocket where they stuck out a bit. "Let me see your wrist."

  Maybe he should get her an iPad or something if her thin little wrist was going to be a problem. She could type on it and – let's face it, now – it was probably a bit more environmentally friendly. Save the trees and all that.

  "This okay?" he asked, catching Elle's eyes as she looked up and nodded. He was massaging her wrist, his warm hands pressing and manipulating the joint to get to all the sore spots.

  They stood there in companionable silence, Liam tending to her wrist as Jason got up the nerve to tell them he was taking his leave.

  "Well, it was good meeting you, Elle." Liam could tell just how good it was for him to meet her and he frowned. The boy that seemed to be smitten with her was shifting a little awkwardly from foot to foot, looking hesitant to depart.

  Elle smiled brightly at him and nodded her head, confirming that she felt the same.

  Liam and Elle both watched as Jason disappeared into the crowd, the amount of people there easily swallowing him up.

  "Having fun? You look very lovely this evening, by the way," Liam told her, that last sentence coming out before he could stop it.

  Her hands occupied, Elle nodded and mouthed thank you to the Alpha. His hands were still working her wrist, so she couldn't really jot her thanks down.

  Watching her lips round out to form the words, Liam knew he was in trouble. Big fucking trouble.

  Chapter 11

  "Elle, watch this!" piped up a small voice. It belonged to a little girl in a lavender baby doll dress with white leggings underneath. The knees of them were stained with grass, and Elle hoped they weren't permanently ruined.

  The little girl couldn't have been more than five, but she ran for a bit and then did a perfectly executed cartwheel.

  Elle smiled brightly, clapping her hands together and watching as the little girl ran over to her for a congratulatory hug.

  Casey – who was four and a half years old, thank you very much – giggled and squealed a bit as Elle caught the girl as she tried to jump into the air for her hug.

  Another small voice piped up, a close friend of Casey’s, and pleaded with Elle to watch her as she tried to best her friend in the apparent cartwheel competition.

  Liam watched from afar, amused, while sipping a soda. He had seen the little grouping of children grow from two, to six, to ten little ones. When the first two children had come over to ask to play with her, Liam had almost been certain Elle would say no. To his surprise, she had gone off with the tykes to the edges of the party where there was space, and they had been playing together until the children had decided it was time for an all-out acrobatic war. Round-offs, tumbling, and cartwheels for the past half hour, Elle reacting like each tumbling pass was an Olympic-worthy floor routine.

  "Fuck, you have it bad," a deep voice said, coming up from Liam's right and startling him.

  "What? What do I have?" Liam asked Trace, who was smirking at him from a few feet away.

  "You've got the hots for your mute little she-wolf," Trace said, raising his brows. "You know, the one you've been shacking up with since she got here."

  "Bullshit," Liam growled, his voice sounding less assertive than he had intended.

  "If you say so," Trace said, his voice making it all too clear that he didn't believe his Alpha one bit.

  "I'm just making sure-"

  "Making sure that she doesn't speak to any other males?" Trace interjected. "Like that Jason guy? He's watching her, too."

  Liam's eyes quickly darted around the crowd, searching for Jason. He was on the opposite side of the fire, watching Elle interact with the toddlers, and smiling.

  Prick.

  "Elle already has a mate and it's not Jason," Liam said, low enough for only the two of them to hear. "He'd be wise to steer clear and wait for his."

  "But he's a male wolf," Trace said. "Hormonal and single, ready to mingle and all that."

  Liam could feel the irritation skittering across his skin like hives, and found himself wanting to rip the eyes from the sockets of any of the men who were gazing on her with anything more than friendship on their mind.

  "You, on the other hand, are mateless and free to choose a Luna from any of the unmated she-wolves," Trace reminded him, as if he needed it. Trace was getting to be as bad as Blake. Acting like a bunch of amped up matchmakers, the pair of them. And don't get Liam started on Colleen. That girl could take first prize in a meddling competition.

  Another few cartwheels, and the parents of the kids came over to wrangle up their children. More than a few of the toddlers wanted to stay and hang out with Elle, but she gave them hugs and promised them she would play with them again, and soon.

  As Elle walked back over to where Liam was standing with an irritatingly amused Trace, Liam found himself immediately standing taller, rather than being in his usual slouch he had when forced to attend Colleen's shindigs.

  "Tired?" Liam asked as a yawning Elle walked over, attempting to stifle it with the back of one slender hand.

  She waved her hand in a so-so type motion and glanced at Liam's hand, eyeing up his soda.

  He immediately walked over to the coolers and grabbed a Mountain Dew, popping the tab and handing it over to Elle. She smiled gratefully and mouthed her thanks again.

  Fuck, that mouth.

  He shouldn't have been looking at it, but he couldn't seem to help himself. A now familiar twitch behind the zipper of his pants made him sigh with irritation at himself. Trace was right, though Liam wouldn't admit it. He didn't know what it was, but he was just as smitten with her – if not more so – as Jason was.

  Fucker better stay away from her, he thought before he could stop himself.

  Trying to divert himself from the situation in his pants, he mindlinked with his enforcers, trying to find out if anything had occurred since he had last checked in. It had only been half an hour, but he kept his link open so he would be first to know if the situation changed.

  The head enforcer allowed that there was nothing new to report, and the scent of foreign wolves was almost gone with the slight breeze. He would send more out to search in the morning, but until then he was calling it a night, except for the recently amped up security patrols around the perimeters of the territory.

  "The kids seemed to have taken a liking to you," Trace told Elle, a wickedly flirty grin on his face. He could afford it as he was single, and he wanted to goad his Alpha a bit. A push in the right direction, as he saw it. Just like Colleen was wont to do lately in regards to Liam’s fascination with Elle.

  Elle shrugged, took a sip of her soda, and looked off toward the woods. It reminded Liam again that there was possibly a search party looking out for her, a fact that he would have to let her know. ASAP.

  Liam shot a look over to Tra
ce, one that would have sent any other wolf cowering away. But this was Trace. He lived on the conflict he started. It was his meat and potatoes. The fucker.

  "Well, when you're ready to go, I'd like to have a chat with you before bed," Liam told her, causing Elle to raise a worried brow in his direction.

  "It's nothing, I'm sure," he told her, though he wouldn't lie if she asked. She deserved the truth.

  Elle looked to be deep in thought for a moment before she nodded to herself. Her chin lifted in the direction of the Alpha's home and she looked at him, signaling she was ready to go. It was like ESP, the way the two could communicate, and it left even Trace a little awed at their silent understanding of each other.

  Perhaps there was more than just a sexually frustrated Alpha male under Liam's leather jacket and full-sleeve tattoos. Something more...well, just more.

  Saying goodbye to the others as they passed, many of the wolves watched as the Alpha followed the diminutive female towards his home, Trace shaking his head in confusion and amusement.

  The party would continue on for several more hours, fueled mainly by alcohol and hormone-driven wolves. Babies would probably be conceived that night, and the thought of that made Liam both elated and morose. He wanted his pack to thrive and grow, and newborns were a way to do that. But knowing he may never have that for himself sent a twinge of pain into his heart. He didn't look like Dad-material to the naked eye, but he had so many qualities of one inside. At least he hoped he did.

  Once they entered the house, Liam escorted Elle into his study on the first floor. She had never been in there before, and as soon as the light was turned on, she looked around.

  The room wasn't dirty, merely untidy. She never went in there to clean since he always had it locked. It wasn't that Liam didn't trust her, he simply locked it out of habit. And since Elle respected his privacy, she hadn't thought to bring it up with him.

  Papers littered his desk everywhere but on his trusty laptop, a newer model MacBook Pro that he kept shut down unless he needed it. Powering it on, he spoke as he typed his password onto the screen with lightning quick stabs at the keyboard.