Mason’s problem and not mine.”
Goodbye, knowing smirk . Disconnecting the call, she motioned to the doors. “Shall we?”
“After you,” he said. “You know the way and, I promise, I will guard your back.”
Fantastic . A foreign Alpha with an agenda behind her, four foreign wolves waiting on the other side of the border, and she was on her way to see another Alpha who hated her.
The trip just kept getting better and better.
Chapter Two
The city gave way to open road, interspersed by fueling stations, fast food restaurants, and odd shops full of tchotchkes. Boring as vistas went. Salvatore, however, focused on the woman driving. She provided a far more attractive view. Entertaining, as well, considering her steadfast determination to ignore him.
“Tell me about Willow Bend.” He needed some point of discussion; something else to focus on, else all he would think about was Luciana. And Rayne, the bastard rogue who abused Salvatore’s hospitality, kidnapped his sister, and fled across an ocean to escape him. His sister’s safety mattered—for her, he would risk the wrath of foreign Alphas, irking their Enforcers, and wrest control, if need be, in the effort to locate and bring his sister home.
“I’m not a tour guide.” The bite in Margo’s response amused him further. Even her name—powerful and provocative—appealed to him. “We’ll be there in four hours, you can find out for yourself.”
Why had he been directed to Chicago if it was so many hours from the pack’s central location? Prudence, he supposed, yet it was a waste of time to address politics when he should be hunting his sister. The last report he had put the rogue somewhere in central New York and heading west. It was why he broached the subject with Hudson River. He’d wanted to simply land there and begin his pursuit, but the Alpha refused to speak to him directly and his lieutenant refused Salvatore access.
Giuseppe advised against the act of aggression ignoring the denial would have constituted. Still, the wolves didn’t have to know he was there. He didn’t give a damn about their lands or their claims. He wanted Luciana safe, the rogue Rayne dead, and to return home to Seven Hills. Giuseppe was strong enough to keep the pack together in Salvatore’s absence, but only a fool would leave his Centurion in power for overlong. The wolves might get used to him, then Salvatore would have to kill his Centurion to take his pack once more.
Closing his eyes briefly, he took a deep breath. Within the confines of the vehicle, he was surrounded by the richness of her scent. The provocative tease filled his nostrils and tempted him. Rose was the primary note, darker, deeper, and far richer than the roses in the gardens of his home. Margo’s scent had more texture, and left him entertaining thoughts of velvet petals, seduction, and captivating the fierce warrior within the distinctly feminine form. Beyond the initial notes, he caught deep woods, a hint of cedar smoke and—this one truly delighted him—chocolate.
Full-bodied and capable, she reminded him of the most exquisite of wines. Over the years, his family had discovered some grapes grown under the harshest of conditions had the most powerful of flavors. Would she taste similarly exquisite? His wolf wanted to roll around in the scent until they were coated in it—coated in her . Snapping his teeth at the alluring direction of his thoughts, he settled for glaring at the landscape racing past. “Then tell me about Mason Clayborne.”
“No.” A single syllable, yet it echoed with defiance and dared him to take offense. From the moment his gaze landed on her in the airport terminal, she’d met his gaze and refused to back down. The impersonal challenge frustrated him. At home, a wolf who wouldn’t drop their gaze wanted to challenge his authority, wanted the fight, and yet he didn’t sense that in the woman driving the vehicle.
She possessed command, for he’d