Taking the infant from Nick, Shaya cuddled her. “Feeling any better, angel?”

That was when Ally noticed how pale and tired the little girl looked as she chewed hard on a toy. “What’s wrong with her?”

“She’s just teething, but it’s not a pleasant time for babies.”

“Let me help.” Ally gently cradled Willow’s face, pushing some healing energy into the infant. Through the same link Ally had just opened, Willow’s pain traveled to her. “There.” Drawing back, Ally smiled at the baby, who tugged on her hair with a chuckle.

“What did you do?” There was no tension in Shaya . . . unlike the others, who had turned stiff as boards the moment Ally had touched Willow. Like she’d ever hurt a child.

“Took the pain away.” Ally cupped her own jaw then, wincing. “It really does hurt.”

Derren spoke then. “So, whenever you heal someone, their pain becomes yours?” His wolf didn’t like the idea of her in pain.

“Yes, but it eases off pretty quickly. There. It’s already gone.”

Bracken put down his fork. “Okay, I gotta ask . . . what’s it like having a sociopath for a mate?”

“And now we’re done.” Shaya rose to her feet. “How about a tour, Ally?” The Alpha female shot Bracken a withering look.

The enforcer raised his hands. “It was just a question.”

Derren asked Shaya, “Can the tour wait till after lunch? I have some things to do this morning.”

“You don’t need to come with us.” Shaya gently handed Willow back to Nick.

“Ally’s under my protection while she’s here.”

“She’s not going to come to any harm with me. And I’m pretty sure she can take care of herself anyway.”

Pushing to her feet, Ally smiled at Shaya, thankful for the vote of confidence. “I’m ready when you are.” Derren looked as though he might object again, so Ally rolled her eyes—earning herself a growl. How grand.

“Wait,” said Derren. “Give me your cell.”

Ally frowned. “Why?”

“Because I need to put my number in it.” She was under his protection now, and that meant he’d have to be there if she needed him. With a shrug, she handed him her phone. He keyed in his number, then used her cell to call his phone, which effectively gave him her number. “Done.” She was careful not to touch him as she took the phone from his hand, and that had his wolf baring his teeth in annoyance. “If there’s a problem, call me.”

If there were a problem, Ally would take care of it herself. Dominant females always dealt with their own shit. Rather than argue, she said, “Sure.”

First, Shaya gave Ally a tour of the main lodge, showing her the bedrooms, the game room, the luxurious bathroom, and finally the basement—which had an indoor swimming pool and bar.

“No one’s used it since Roni almost drowned,” said Shaya. “It’s a long story. To sum it up, we had some trouble with a jackal pack; they invaded our territory, and Roni battled with the Alpha. He tried to drown her. Marcus still hasn’t quite gotten over it.”

“And I’ll meet them in a few days?”

“Yes, they split their time between here and my best friend’s pack, since that’s where Marcus is from. We share him and Roni with the Phoenix Pack. You heard of it?”

“I’ve heard of the Alphas. The Alpha female was latent for most of her life, wasn’t she?” It was unheard of.

“That’s right. Taryn’s wolf surfaced later.” It was said with utter pride. “Do you think the Collingwood Betas will give you any more problems?”

“No.” Unfortunately, she didn’t sound totally convinced, and Shaya picked up on it.

“But?”

“But Derren does.”

“Let’s hope he’s wrong. Though Derren rarely ever is. It’s kind of annoying. Come on, there’s more to see.”

Shaya guided Ally around Mercury Pack territory, showing her the land, the borders, where each of the lodges were, and the gorgeous waterfall. As they walked, Shaya told her all about the roots of the pack, where each of the members came from, and how Nick had come to blood with the Phoenix Alpha male.

Just before lunch, they came upon Derren training the enforcers—all five of the males were wearing only their jeans, revealing sets of very impressive abs.

“They sure are easy on the eyes,” commented Ally with a sigh.

Shaya smiled. “Yeah. Don’t get me wrong, I would never be attracted to another guy now that I’m mated. But that doesn’t mean I’m blind.”

Her wolf watched, curious and impressed, as Derren dueled with Zander. Although Zander was incredibly fast, he couldn’t evade Derren’s reach. Still, it wasn’t an easy win for Derren, who then took a quick break to take a drink from one of the water bottles on the ground. At that moment, his gaze—dark, heated, and brooding—landed on Ally. Her skin burned under the weight of that gaze, her insides twisted with need, and her mouth dried up.

Oh, help. It simply wasn’t fair.

“Ah, shit!” cursed someone, his voice nasal. It was Bracken, Ally quickly realized—she was glad for the distraction.

Laughing, Shaya said to Eli, “You broke his nose again?”

Eli didn’t look the least bit repentant. “He was irritating me.”

With a sigh, Ally approached. “Let me help.” Bracken regarded her like she was a ticking bomb. She arched a challenging brow, poking at his pride, daring him to back away.