Page 23 of Fierce Protector
Hunter curled his fingers around a bottled water in front of him. The plastic crinkled under his strong grip. “First we’re guarding against trespassers and attacks from assholes sent here by the loan shark—or the investor. Now it’s wolves? We’re spread too thin.”
Wolfe, opposite Hunter, stared at the map. “That’s too damn close to ignore. What do you suggest, Nox?”
Colton glanced at his watch. “Our answer should be arriving any second.”
As if on cue, female voices projected from the front of the house. Even before Ledger saw her, he knew Demi was joining them.
His muscles hardened. He could almost feel her stretched across his lap and his hand on her sweet ass.
When she entered, his gaze was fixed on the doorway.
Meadow entered first with Demi right behind.
Her stare flew directly to him. His body moved to rise without him willing it to. He gripped the edge of the table.
She shot him one of those warning looks he’d seen too many times from her.
He preferred the way she looked at him that night together when she begged him to take her.
“Welcome, Demi. Thanks for joining us.” Colton gestured toward the free seats around the table.
Meadow took the chair at the foot, opposite from her man. That left one option for Demi—across from Ledger.
He raked his stare down her body as she slipped into the seat.
“We were just discussing that we have to watch out for two kinds of predators,” Colton filled in the ladies.
Meadow made a quiet noise of worry, but Demi showed no outward distress.
Christ, the woman hid behind the steel bars of a fortress. She gave nothing away through either expression or body language. And she sure as hell wasn’t talking.
But she would.
He caught her gaze and held it until she fidgeted in her seat and glanced away.
She drew a deep breath. “It seems you must be on your guard twice as much now.”
Before anyone could respond, Ivy entered with a woman Ledger didn’t know. Her ranger uniform gave away her reason for joining them.
Since the six chairs were taken, Ivy went to the side of the room where two extra wooden chairs were placed for such an occasion. Hunter got up and grabbed one in each hand, carrying them back. They all shifted down to make space around the table.
Ivy waved a hand at the newcomer. “Guys, this is Opal Vale. Forest ranger. The doc called her in to help us form a plan.”
Opal nodded at each of them and then offered Demi a small smile.
Ledger studied them both. That exchange seemed charged with something more than simple courtesy.
“Being newcomers to the area, I’m sure you guys don’t know much about the pack of wolves that the forest service monitors on the mountain.” Opal had a breezy way of speaking and a carefree manner. She was poised. In charge.
Once she had their attention, she continued. “Those wolves all have trackers. I checked the system for their positions. The pack is still on the mountain. They didn’t leave their usual habitat.”
The heavy boot thuds in the doorway announced another visitor. Zach Webb, the ranch manager, stepped into the room and stood back, observing, his arms folded.
He lifted his jaw toward Opal. “You’re certain that you have every wolf in that pack tracked?”
Raising her head with a queenly air, she fixed him in her gaze. “I’m sure of it. My colleagues and I have a very good head count. Every time a new pup is born, we implant a tracker on them. And we have trail cams in the area where the pack is known to stay.”
She drew out her phone and after a few swipes, held up her device. “See? This is a live shot of the pack’s location right now.”