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snuggled as far into the corner as she could get. His wolf had to be content with the heat that rolled off of her body as she slowly relaxed into the chair.
    Eventually, she laid her head against the headrest and laughed at the actors. Drake felt the mating bond lock into place as she turned her head to laugh with him. Curls framed her face, softened by her full-on smile. He had to hold back his wolf as he tried to lunge forward to take what was his.
    He smiled back at Ria and looked away, afraid she'd see the need that had him clenching the long-neck bottle in desperation. He was thankful that he'd already drained it dry when he heard the glass crack and felt the give of the bottle. He immediately rested the cracked bottle on the floor and feigned absorption in the movie, while he listened to her breath as it became slow and even.

Chapter Four
     
    Drake watched Ria sleep as the early morning light seeped through the window blinds. She was snuggled into the corner of the sofa. It was obvious she hadn't had much sleep the night before. He'd seen the evidence of dark circles under her eyes. Drake had intended to take her out, but he'd changed plans when he'd seen how tired she looked. Wouldn't she love to know that? When he'd decided on a movie at the last minute, he hadn't banked on this many people being at the house.
    Ria shifted and moved closer to his warmth. Drake gave in to the need to feel her in his arms. He brought his half of the recliner into a sitting position, reached over and lifted her into his arms. His wolf, restless all night with her so close by but not able to touch, settled down as she snuggled in. He hit the button again on his chair and laid back against the leather with his mate stretched out on top of him. Her head on his shoulder. Her nose tucked against his neck. Her small hand resting against his chest. The scent of her tugged at him and surrounded him. Inhaling, he rubbed his cheek against the top of her head and closed his eyes.
    An insistent beeping brought his eyes open. Ria was still snuggled up to him, one hand on his chest, a leg thrown over his. He liked it, though he would have preferred to be naked in his bed. The beeping was coming from his phone, which he could locate by sound. He was grateful Ria kept sleeping. She probably couldn't hear the faint beep, because her hearing wasn't on the same level as his. Reluctantly, he disengaged himself from her. Without thinking, he lifted her, blanket and all, and deposited her on the bed.
    Sure that she was comfortable and undisturbed, he closed the door to the bedroom behind him and checked his phone. "James?"
    "Sorry to interrupt your date, but we've got a problem."
    "What kind of a problem?" He began putting the loveseat back in order.
    "More than one lone wolf was sighted within our territory, and one of our younger males was involved a fight with at least one of them."
    "Who? Is he okay?" Drake paused the DVD, in case Ria wanted to finish the movie. It didn't look like he'd have the time to today, after all.
    "Yeah, Tim's okay, just young and stupid. Doc is looking at him right now."
    "Where are you?"
    "Over at Doc's warehouse. You coming?"
    Drake heard the commotion in the background and silently cursed under his breath. "Yeah, I'll be there." He ran a hand through his hair and looked for a pad to leave a note.
    ***
     
    James met him at the warehouse door with an apologetic smile. "Sorry to interrupt, but this needs an Alpha's touch."
    Drake clapped him on the back as they moved together down the hallway. There were warehouses like this all over the city. When wolves hid in plain sight, it was necessary. "Not a problem. Ria's asleep, anyway." They were moving toward the main holding area when he felt the weight of James' gaze on his face. "She was tired, and scared."
    "Scared?" A note of warning crept into James' voice. "Scared how, Drake?"
    "She doesn't believe me when I say that she's my mate." A howl from inside the warehouse filled the