“Merry Christmas,” Owen said in greeting as Cameron and his triplets crowded around their father at the door. “This is Strom Hart and his assistant, Jim Winchester. They’ve come bringing presents.”
“Oh heavens,” Faith said, wiping her hands on a dish towel and joining them. “The kids will be spoiled.”
Everyone was thrilled to see them, and the kids were excited about seeing Strom, telling him all about how Demetria was a black jaguar too. “How can you be Candice’s uncle if you’re a jaguar?” Corey asked.
“No, Corey, he was turned like Candice was. Except he was turned by a jaguar.” Owen didn’t bother to explain she had been adopted. To her, Strom was her flesh-and-blood uncle, more now that they were both shifters.
“A little jaguar like I met at the day care?” Corey asked.
“No, he was a little older.” Owen smiled, unable to tell the pup what had really happened.
“I should have bitten him so he would be an Arctic wolf too,” Corey said, eyeing all the shiny new presents.
They all laughed.
But then Faith said, “No biting to change people, Corey.”
“I was just kidding,” Corey said, as if he was afraid he was going to be in trouble again for the last time he changed someone.
Smiling down at him, Faith ruffled his hair.
“Can we open them now?” Nick asked, bouncing up and down on his toes.
“It’s up to everyone else,” Faith said in her strict momma-knows-best voice.
Strom and Candice shook the snow from their coats and came inside. Candice woofed her approval, and Owen said, “Candice votes for opening them.”
“Kids should never have to wait,” Jim agreed.
Everyone else said it worked for them, so the kids tore off the wrapping paper to see their new gifts. Everyone opened the presents Strom had brought for them before dinner, and Candice tore into several of her packages with her teeth, though if she thought the items might be breakable, she waited for Owen to unwrap them.
The kids gave everyone gingerbread cookies they’d helped make and decorate.
Everyone in the pack had gifts for Strom and whoever might accompany him in case he and someone else showed up for the celebration. They were more generic than anything, since the pack had not been sure what to give a billionaire who had everything. But he seemed thrilled they’d thought of him. Owen wondered if Strom never received gifts.
An hour later, Candice had the urge to shift back into her human form and headed to the guest bedroom where Owen had left her clothes. She was thrilled to be able to join the group like this. When she came out of the room dressed and ready to eat, Strom rubbed up against her and then loped back to the room to shift and dress.
Then she and Strom could eat with the rest of the adults. She hadn’t wanted them to wait, but she was thankful they had. The kids had eaten earlier, and now they were playing with their new toys.
“We’re going to South Dakota to sell my place as soon as it’s safe to do so,” Candice said as she dug into her turkey. “We should be fine then.”
“If you want to go sooner, my jet can fly you there,” Strom said. “Or I can have Jim handle everything for you so you don’t even have to return there.”
Candice smiled at her uncle. “Thanks, Uncle Strom. But I need to sort things out myself.”
Owen couldn’t believe how much Candice’s uncle wanted to help them and was glad about it, but he didn’t think they needed his help in this.
“We’re going during the waning crescent moon.”
“Okay. Well, if you run into any trouble at all, let me know.”
“Thanks, Uncle Strom. We will.”
Strom turned to Faith and said, “My chef could learn a thing or two from you.”
Faith blushed and thanked him.
Though they tried to convince him to stay with them until they left for South Dakota, Strom had important business to take care of. Moreover, Jim was overseeing the sale of her estate near Houston, and they’d already had a couple of nibbles. But Candice and Owen promised to return to Houston next month and really spend some quality time visiting Strom.
“No telling where you might end up when you come to visit,” Jim warned them, smiling. “One time, Mr. Hart said he wanted to go to this really great French restaurant. I was flabbergasted when we ended up in Paris.”
Strom laughed. “It is my favorite French restaurant.”
* * *
Several days later when they could safely leave Minnesota, Candice and Owen drove to South Dakota. The day after they arrived, they met with a Realtor and began packing up Candice’s personal items and any food they could take with them. When she had left there to go to Minnesota with Owen initially, she had no real notion of moving, so she hadn’t even considered the food she had in the fridge. She was glad she had Owen to help her move this time.
Because of weather conditions, it had taken them longer to arrive in South Dakota, and once they were there, it was going to take some time to pack everything and be ready to move. Candice had already scheduled a mover. That meant they were running into the next moon phase.
It was amazing how much she had to clear out, then remove everything from the walls, spackle and paint, and just plain…clean.
They’d spent another long day of it, but she really felt like she needed a wolf run before they crashed in bed and ravished each other. Sometimes they didn’t wait until nighttime. It was sexy making a meal, her wearing her Naughty Christmas List apron, and him wearing his Extremely Hot apron—naked.
That usually meant meals were started and forgotten for a little bit. But they needed fodder for their romance novels too.
“Let’s run before we go to bed, okay?” she asked.
“Sounds like a great idea. We’ve been so busy that we haven’t had a chance. And it would be fun to have some runs before we leave here for good.”
“Absolutely.” She tossed her clothes in the bedroom, and he hurried to join her.
He pulled her into his arms and smiled down at her. “How did I ever get so lucky?”
“It all started with one little wolf pup—”
“I’ll have to remember to thank him. But not in front of his mom and dad.”
She smiled and kissed Owen. Then before they ended up in bed again, she said, “Last one out the door has to do the dishes.”
She shifted and raced out of the bedroom and down the hall, across the living room, and bolted through the wolf door.
He was right next to her, running like the wind, nuzzling her, and she was nipping at him. They chased each other, tackling, biting, barking, and having a ball. Then they heard snowmobilers coming around the mountain, the telltale sound of them trying to best each other as they dove for the peak, and the rumble of an avalanche.
There were two of them this time, and she hoped the snowmobilers got away in time, but nothing could outrun an avalanche if they were too close to it. The snowmobiles were now silent, not a good sign.
She looked at Owen, and he barked at her. She licked his cheek. And then the decision was made, though she didn’t think they would have done anything differently. Hopefully, they weren’t two of the same men who’d thought they could cheat death. She hoped someone was in the clear so he could call for help, and no one had access to a camera this time.
When they reached the site of the avalanche, they heard men shouting to each other as they started their engines. “Holy shit! Did you see that?”
“Hell yeah. Didn’t think you’d make it out of there alive. Let’s try on the other side.”
“Okay.” They tore off, away from the avalanche and where Candice and Owen were listening.
She woofed at him, and he agreed. It was time to enjoy each other in the privacy of her home, and let the risk-takers take care of themselves. She was glad that where they w
ere going wasn’t avalanche country. Yet, that incident was what had made her leave South Dakota in the first place, and she’d be forever grateful that the men had survived and she and Owen had found a new life together.
Owen would never let Candice know that if he’d been one of the snowmobilers, he probably would have done the same thing as them. He loved his mate and couldn’t wait to make love to her again. He looked forward to being home with her, but he was having fun with her here too.
As soon as they were in the house, had reached the bedroom, and shifted, he tackled her on the bed, with packing boxes stacked everywhere. “Have I told you just how wild I am about you?”
“Every day. As much as I am about you.”
Tomorrow was another busy packing and cleaning day—they were running out of time before her shifting problem returned. But for now, they were in wolf heaven. And every day brought a new adventure. Some would even be in their books, but who got which ones to write about was another story.
All that mattered to them was that they got to live their happily ever after.
Order Terry Spear’s next book
in the White Wolf series
Flight of the White Wolf
On sale March 2018
Read on for a sneak peek at book 2
in Terry Spear’s White Wolf series
Flight of the White Wolf
Coming March 2018
Prologue
En Route to Big Lake, Alaska
The case just had to involve flying.
On his first day as a private investigator in Seattle, Gavin Summerfield had gotten a case that made him want to string the thieves up. Stolen pets had become a lucrative market for criminals. In this case, two male, champion-sired Samoyed pups, worth nearly three thousand apiece, had been stolen from their owner’s fenced-in backyard. The woman and her two teen daughters were in tears.
“I vow I’ll find Kodi and Shiloh and bring them home safe,” Gavin told the trio. He hoped he wouldn’t fail them. Sometimes, pets ended up in lab experiments, or were sold to breeders or puppy mills. Sometimes, the criminals who stole them were looking to return them for a reward.
Soon after he left the family’s home with pictures of the pups and their favorite fetch toys, he had discovered that a white van had been sighted at the owner’s house and also in the vicinity of four other dognappings. One of the neighbors had captured a photograph of the Alaska license plate on the same van parked in a friend’s driveway when the friend wasn’t home.
Then Gavin had gotten a lead that the dogs had been flown to Alaska.
Now, he was trying to settle his stomach and pretend he wasn’t flying high above the world on his way to see London Lanier, a retired police detective in Big Lake. Gavin’s fear of crashing wasn’t just a figment of his imagination. Six months earlier, while he was still a Seattle cop, he’d survived a plane crash after jewelry-store robbers had taken him hostage.
The Alaska-bound plane hit more turbulence, and his stomach dropped. He closed his eyes, telling himself he wasn’t going to crash. Not this time. That wasn’t the only reason he hated to fly. He liked to be in control, and flying left him with no control over anything.
At least he had a lead on the pups. He wanted more than anything to return them to the family, safe and sound. The Samoyeds’ pictures reminded him of the dogs his family had raised when he was growing up. Their German shepherds had been as much family to him as his human family had been.
As soon as Gavin’s plane landed, he picked up a rental car and drove to the town where his contact was located.
London Lanier was an animal rights activist, primarily concerned with the illegal hunting of wildlife in Alaska. Gavin had called to tell him the pups had been flown to his neck of the woods, and London had begun to check into it.
When Gavin met London at his Big Lake home, he thought the retiree looked like Santa Claus, with the white beard and hair, though he was a trim version of jolly, old Saint Nick. He was tall, fit, and eager to take on hunters with his bare hands.
“You look like a cop,” London said, shaking Gavin’s hand.
Gavin took the remark as a compliment. Now that he was a PI, his hair wasn’t as short as when he was on the force. Today, he looked more like a SWAT team member, with a black T-shirt, black cargo pants, and heavy-duty black boots. He was in a no-nonsense mood and ready to take the bastards down.
London served them both cups of coffee, and then he got down to business. “From what I’ve learned, a home near here has lots of dogs barking all day long, and then a few days later most of them are gone. Shortly after that, they have a new batch of dogs. Some of their neighbors are suspicious. Since I don’t work on the police force anymore, you’ll need to do some canvassing. If you learn anything that proves they really are involved in trafficking pets, let me know, and I’ll call the police. I’m still friends with several on the force.”
London handed Gavin a hand-drawn map, saying, “I talked to the locals, but everyone knows who I am. Maybe a new guy, just looking for his pups, could convince someone to share something they didn’t tell me. Or maybe they’ve seen something new, or remembered something they hadn’t thought of before. Good luck.”
“Thanks, London. I’ll let you know what happens. And I owe you.”
London smiled. “Never know when I might need a PI. Besides, if you can help us take these bastards down, you’ve done me a favor.”
Afterward, Gavin headed over to the Big Lake housing area with its high-income homes, lakefront property, trees all around, and large yards for hiding a slew of runs for stolen pets.
He pulled into the driveway of the home three doors down from the suspect’s house, parked, and went to the door. When he knocked, a gray-haired woman with bright-blue eyes greeted him with a smile.
“Ma’am, I’m a private investigator, searching for these two missing pups. They were stolen from the backyard while they were outside playing. Have you seen them? Or know anyone who might have them?”
“Oh yes, of course.” Her eyes were rounded, and she licked her lips. “She’s my next-door neighbor.”
He frowned and glanced at his map. That wasn’t the correct house. At least, not according to London. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. She has dogs all the time. Not the same ones though. I see her out walking them along the road in the late spring, summer, early fall. Even in the winter when we’re buried in snow. Always different dogs. I figured she fostered them or something. I saw her with two of the cutest little Samoyed pups earlier, maybe six months old? Not sure. They look exactly like yours.”
“Do you know her name?”
“Amelia White. She lives alone. Well, except for the revolving door of dogs. I never considered that any of the dogs could have been stolen.”
“What about the people at this place?” Gavin pointed to the house on the map that London had targeted.
“Oh yeah, sure. Did London send you? He already asked me.”
“You didn’t mention Amelia to him?”
“No. She’s so sweet. I really didn’t think she could be involved in anything so nefarious. But she does have two Samoyed puppies. And that’s what you’re looking for, right? I hadn’t seen them with her before yesterday morning.”
“And the other people?”
“Oh, the Michaelses? Asher and Mindy? Yes, I wouldn’t be surprised at all about them. Not sure what he does. They don’t seem to have a regular occupation, just… money and lots of dogs. They don’t walk them. The dogs just bark most of the time, and I’ve seen all of them rushing to the chain-link fence when I’ve taken strolls past the place. Different dogs all the time.”
“What does Miss White do?”
“She’s a seaplane pilot. Her family owns the business.”
“Thanks.” It would be easy to move stolen pets around as a pilot, wouldn’t it? No paperwork
hassle. Just fly them where they needed to go. What were the chances that both people were involved in the illegal trade of pets? Maybe Amelia took care of the overflow and the transportation. It would be convenient, with her living so close to the Michaelses.
Gavin drove to Amelia’s house first, since she apparently had dogs like the ones he was looking for. He’d start surveillance on the Michaelses after that.
He parked and headed for the large, blue-vinyl-sided home, where he climbed the porch stairs. No dogs barked as he approached, and the front door was slightly ajar. That’s when two curious little Samoyed pups poked their noses out, probably hearing his footsteps.
Before Gavin could stop them, they nudged the door open, and one raced down the steps. Hell!
The second pup ran to join the first, and Gavin was led on a merry chase. He managed to scoop up the one closest to him, and finally reached the other, grabbing him up in his left arm. The puppies licked him as if this was just part of their playtime.
The problem was that Samoyed puppies all looked the same to him. These two were both white, identical to each other. And they looked just like the photos he had of Kodi and Shiloh.
One pup secure in each arm, he hurried back to the house, ran up the steps, and hollered through the open door, “Miss White? Your front door was open, and your pups ran off.” If they weren’t the right pups, he wasn’t about to confiscate them and be accused of stealing her pets! On the other hand, he worried about foul play because the door was slightly ajar and no one was answering. What if something had happened to her?
Suddenly, a wet, naked woman streaked across the living room, glancing at him for a second as she ran, and disappeared down a hall. “Put them down, get out, and close the door,” she called out.
Shocked, he just stood there, his mouth hanging agape, the image of the gorgeous blond in the raw still imprinted on his brain. She was in great shape, her hands covering her bouncing breasts as she’d dashed down the hall. He closed the front door so the puppies wouldn’t run out of the house again, and set them down on the hardwood floor. “I’m leaving,” he called. “Sorry… Your door was open, and I was worried something might be wrong.”