Lachlan

I knew Magnus was excited to have me here, but I didn't quite realize just how excited he was until he started almost skipping on the way to the colossal pack house. He would take a couple of steps, then do a funny little hop, then pause so I could catch up. He exuded happiness.

It was humbling, to be honest. Here was a man with a lot going for him – a pack he loved, a loyal family he was close with, a beautiful house, and a gift for happiness. Yet he was this excited about bringing me even a little bit into his life. If I ever doubted how much he cared for me, this would have put my doubts to rest.

We reached the house and Magnus grasped the handle of the door but didn't pull it open. He looked back at me and said, "Ready?"

"Of course," I said, though it was daunting to walk into a house I knew was full of countless werewolves. Magnus opened the door and revealed a big entryway with rows of hooks on the walls to my left and right. Dozens of coats hung from them, though many were still open. At the base of the walls were long rows of two-level shoe racks. There were more shoes than coats out, but even more shoes were on the floor near the hooks. Magnus kept his shoes on, though, so I did the same.

As he led me toward a stairwell, I turned back to look at the large foyer again and saw that there were several umbrella stands near the door with all different colors, patterns, and length of umbrella jammed in them. You could definitely tell that this place was used by lots of people.

"My office is on the third floor," Magnus said. "I thought we could head up there now and I'll show you around later? We have a picnic in the afternoon, so there will be plenty of opportunity."

"Sounds good," I said. In fact, I really liked the idea of getting used to being in this place in relative privacy before trying out the more populated parts of the house. Had Magnus planned it this way? I wouldn't put it past him.

I was in decent shape, but by the time we made it up to the third floor, I was a little out of breath. Magnus was completely fine, of course. He had werewolf stamina going for him. How would that translate into the bedroom? It took some effort, but I quickly shoved those thoughts down. This was not the time or place. Later, maybe, when I was back home and completely alone.

The stairs let out into a pretty sitting area with huge windows letting in lots of light and an abundance of house plants. The furniture was light-colored and inviting, and there was a refrigerator with a clear door showing a wide selection of drinks available.

"This is beautiful," I said.

Magnus grinned. "Isn't it? I wish I could claim credit, but it was like this when I moved here."

I smiled back at him and followed him down the hallway. Most of the doors here were open, but Magnus stopped in front of a closed one and pulled out his keyring. Once again, he let me proceed him once the door was open. I took in the room, once again looking for Magnus. Unlike in his bedroom, I found him immediately in the details.

The desk was huge, made of dark wood, and it was lined with photo frames whose pictures I couldn't see from this angle. There was a long couch along one wall with a big red knitted blanket folded over the back, and two chairs faced his desk. There was a lot of light in here, too, and the shelves on the wall were full of binders, books, and knick-knacks.

I moved in closer so I could examine them. There was a Rubik's cube that was only one turn away from being solved. I picked it up and held it out to Magnus, wincing. "Please let me fix this," I said. "I'm begging."

Magnus laughed and rolled his eyes. "That's pretty much every single person's reaction the first time they come in here. Go ahead. I'll just twist it back later."

I slid the final row into place and smiled down at the solved cube. Much better. I set it down and continued my perusal. There was a little stuffed bear tucked between two massive binders, a figurine of a gargoyle with a set of headband antlers perched on it, a prism, a Lego Hogwarts castle... everywhere I looked, there was more to take in.

Why was it his office was so welcoming and his bedroom so impersonal? Did he spend so little time at home? I didn't think that could be true unless he preferred being out – Magnus had certainly never seemed to have trouble making time for me, so he couldn't be that busy. Or maybe I was reading too much into things.

"I like it here," I said, knowing Magnus was waiting for my verdict.

"Me too," he said. "Do you think you'll be okay for half an hour or so? I have to go through my e-mails. It shouldn't take much longer than that and there are lots of books you can read."

I slid my eyes over the books, then continued my examination of his knick-knacks. "I'll be fine," I told him. Half an hour might not be enough time to take in everything here. I hadn't even looked at the pictures on his desk yet.

Magnus settled behind his desk, but I felt his eyes on me so often it seemed unlikely he was getting much done.

Maybe fifteen minutes later, someone knocked on the doorframe. "Is this a bad time?" he asked.

The man was dressed like a tailor, I thought, or maybe like a British professor. His pants had neat fold lines on them and he wore a button-down shirt with a waistcoat. There wasn't a wrinkle in sight.

"No, not at all," Magnus said. "This is my good friend, Lachlan. Lachlan, this is Roy. He's my assistant. I'd be useless without him."

I didn't like being introduced as Magnus' "good friend" – in fact, anger spread through me with alarming speed and I knew I was wincing. Magnus was just trying to give me space to make my own decisions, I reminded myself. It didn't help. The simple fact was, it felt deeply wrong to hide what we were.

I looked at Roy, who was giving me a polite smile with his hand held out. Magnus stood up and said, "Did you need something?"

Roy looked confused, but he put his hand down and looked to Magnus. I sagged in relief – it was going to be hard to avoid contact today if everyone's first impulse was to shake my hand. I should have worn gloves. It might have looked stupid, but it would have been safer.

"I have an update on the Summit situation," Roy said, glancing at me before looking back to Magnus.

Were they going to ask me to step out of the room? No. No, Magnus had promised not to leave my side today. I never would have come otherwise. He understood.

"You can speak freely in front of Lachlan," Magnus said.

Roy hesitated.

"Should I get the door?" Magnus asked.

That seemed to kick Roy into gear. "No, that's fine."

Magnus sat back down and Roy followed suit, sitting in the chair across from him. I felt awkward lingering behind them, so I sat on the couch and tried to disappear.

"I'm assuming you haven't read your e-mails yet?" Roy asked. He sounded a little amused, and I wondered if Magnus had an ongoing issue with procrastinating getting through his inbox.

"Not yet," Magnus said, looking pained. Looked like my guess was right.

Roy cleared his throat and sat up straighter. I couldn't really see his expression from my angle, but the change in posture seemed foreboding.

"So you know the Summit is meeting in two weeks. I did a little digging in how exactly their proceedings work, and it looks like they'll take the first three days to sort through any new cases put before them and check in on any open ones. Then they put together plans of action and timetables. We should know on the eighteenth whether they're throwing out the case or investigating it."

Magnus paled, his lips pressed into a thin line while he nodded slowly. "Okay. Is there anything we can be doing to prepare?"

"No, but if they decide to investigate, you'll need to be nearby to speak for yourself. That means flying to Albuquerque on the seventeenth at the latest," Roy said apologetically.

Magnus stared at Roy and I could see the surprise in his eyes, though he did a good job of not reacting. "How long do you think I'll be away?" he asked.

Roy shrugged. "That really depends on how deep the investigation goes. Since you're an alpha, they'll send you home as soon as they can. I'd expect no more than a week. If they decide to investigate, the likeliest outcome is that they'll send you back in a few days along with a couple of the Summit's representatives to do interviews here."

Magnus nodded and bit at his lip while he thought. His eyes flashed to mine and I saw the conflict there before he looked back to Roy. "Okay. I'll leave on the seventeenth. Book me a hotel for a week to be safe. Felix will cover for me while I'm gone and Rita will cover for you. I'm going to need you with me, I think."

Roy stood up. "Yes, sir."

Dang.

I had been wondering since we met how people could possibly take Magnus seriously as a leader – not that he wasn't an intelligent, personable guy. He was both of those things. He was also lighthearted and easily amused and didn't like having serious conversations for more than five minutes.

Roy's reaction to Magnus just now and the ease with which he made plans for himself and others... Well, I had seen a glimmer of the leader in him.

Roy nodded at me and left the room. Magnus stood as soon as he was gone and closed the door. "We've been here for twenty minutes and already I need a break from walk-in visitors," he said.

Magnus sat next to me on the couch and rested his head against my shoulder. I looped my arms around him and hoped it helped.

"What if Opal wins?" Magnus whispered. His voice broke and I squeezed him tighter as though that could piece him back together.

I had no idea what the ramifications would be, but Magnus wasn't expecting an answer from me. "What about that worries you?"

He laughed, but it wasn't a happy sound. "A lot. I'm not supposed to be alpha, Lach. I never claimed I was the best for the job. I'm doing the best I can here, but if someone more qualified came along and the pack was happy with them, I would pass over leadership. Opal, though... I don't trust her. I don't think she would take care of them."

It was a stereotype to find a man in power attractive... but even hotter was a man who didn't cling to power. "Even if they decided to take away your position, that wouldn't mean that Opal automatically gets it, right?" I asked. Magnus had told me she had no connection to this pack, but then again, what did I know about werewolf politics?

"Opal has alpha blood. No one connected to the pack is half as qualified as she is, and she has powerful friends backing her. If they rule against me, I'll be shocked if she's not the next alpha."

Magnus' voice was hollow, drained. Clearly talking about this wasn't making him feel any better. I opened my mouth to change the subject – though to what, I had no idea – but Magnus spoke again. "You know, I was a high school science teacher before this. Physics. I was barely into my second school year when I became alpha. Four years of college for Eleven months of teaching."

I hadn't known that about him. It was easy to picture Magnus in a classroom, though. He would have been that teacher all the kids adored. The cool one. I bet there were students with crushes on him, and who could blame them? "Maybe you'll go back to teaching one day."

"Maybe." Magnus sat up and blew out a breath. "Enough of this. I really do need to get through my e-mails. Would you mind opening the door?"

--

After a few hours spent in Magnus' office – along with a couple more walk-ins – he finally stood and stretched. Magnus lifted his arms high above his head and squeezed his eyes shut while he arched his back into the stretch, his shirt rising up enough to expose his lower abdomen. I knew I was staring, but I couldn't pull my eyes away. Magnus was toned. He had a desk job, didn't he? So where did all that muscle come from?

Magnus lowered his arms and opened his eyes, smiling brightly when he caught me staring.

"Do you work out?" I asked moronically. He must, or he wouldn't look like that.

Or... could having a ripped body be a werewolf perk I didn't know about?

Magnus shrugged. "I attend combat practice a couple times per week and Felix does individual training sessions with me and Mel. I try to run in the mornings, too. Werewolves need stamina."

I tried to focus on his words, but I really only picked up on "stamina." My eyes refused to leave the outline of his chest – you could see the toned definition of it even through his t-shirt. My fingers twitched with the effort it took not to launch myself at him.

Magnus crossed the room to stand before me, snapping me out of the trance I was in. That predatory glint appeared in his eyes again, the one that made my stomach muscles tighten and had me aching with want. I decided not to examine what in me responded so sexually to a look like that – a look that made it clear that I was the prey here, that I could be overpowered. Hunted.

Magnus' hands found my waist and his fingers teased the hem of my shirt. He slid it up a little and the anticipation of feeling his fingers on the sensitive skin there raised goosebumps on my skin. He didn't touch me, though. Magnus, curse and bless him, was better at following the rules I had set than I was.

I shifted a little bit, trying to angle myself so that the next teasing tweak of my shirt would graze his fingers against my skin, but it didn't work. Magnus smiled wickedly and snatched his hand back before he could make contact. Stupid werewolf reflexes.

"You shouldn't tease me," Magnus said. His voice was low, lower than I'd ever heard it. It sent chills racing up my spine.

God, I wanted him.

I didn't realize I was leaning in closer until Magnus braced his hands on my shoulders and gently eased me back. "I feel it too," he said, his voice almost back to normal now – though I could hear the strain in it. "The pull to be close to you, I feel it."

A pull. Yes, that was exactly the right word for that tugging sensation in my chest that grew more insistent the longer I spent with Magnus. I think I felt it even in the beginning, before I understood what we were: that need to be near him. And it was growing stronger, day by day.

I didn't know Magnus well enough yet to make permanent decisions, I reminded myself. It was way too soon. I met him a month ago and even though we had gotten really close, really fast, that was not a lot of time.

But my body wasn't feeling nearly as practical as my mind was.

Magnus sighed and stepped back. "We should probably head down to the picnic," he said. "It should be starting any time now."

I didn't want to go out in public – I wanted to keep Magnus to myself. I especially didn't want to go out and be surrounded by a pack of unfamiliar werewolves. I didn't have much of a choice, though. I couldn't stay here without Magnus and I couldn't ask him to skip the picnic.

Still, I couldn't resist pressing my lips against Magnus' cheek. He tucked his hands into my back pockets to keep me from moving away from him. "You're teasing again," he said.

"I'd apologize, but I'm not sorry," I said. "Let's go."

Magnus' eyes lit up and a bright, uncomplicated smile spread his lips. "Okay."