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Nick is a delta wolf, which places him outside the pack hierarchy altogether. Where dominant wolves can use alpha command to force individual wolves to do their bidding, a delta wolf can manipulate emotions and influence the entire pack at once.

I’ve known the guy for five years, and I still find it creepy as hell.

“You gonna come out with us tonight?” Maddox asks. “We’re pregaming in Damon’s room, then we’re gonna head to Cascade for —”

Maddox breaks off, and a whirl of movement catches my eye. A woman with honey-blond hair is sprinting toward the water. She shrieks and pulls her legs up into a cannonball position as three human males gawk and whistle from the sidelines.

A low growl rumbles beside me, and I see Maddox shift his weight forward, preparing to stand. The blond is Maddox’s mate, Paige, and those human dudes have no idea what they just stepped in.

Before he met Paige, Maddox was the mad dog who did the pack’s dirty work. He’s settled down quite a bit since he mated, but any new level of zen he’s achieved goes out the window where Paige is concerned.

While Maddox watches Paige swim across the pool, my gaze drifts over to Elena. The water laps at her perfect breasts, and one of her bikini ties floats behind her.

I have a sudden graphic fantasy of the two of us alone in the pool. I swim up behind her and give that string a little tug, cupping her warm breasts as I plant a trail of kisses down that perfect golden neck.

Elena has a dancer’s body — lithe and petite. I bet I could get her in some truly spectacular positions and make her come so hard that she —

“You gonna go for it?” Maddox asks, ripping me out of fantasy land.

I whip my head around to look at him, panic squeezing my guts. He’s followed my gaze across the pool to where Elena is lounging, and the look in his eyes says he knows where my head was.

“What?” I ask, trying to play it off.

Nick might be picking up on my lust and angst, but Maddox isn’t a fucking mind reader.

“The water,” he clarifies. “You gonna get in?”

“Oh . . . I don’t know. Maybe.” Relief ebbs through me, though I know I can’t get in the water — not when it would put me so close to Elena in her yellow bikini.

Besides that, watching her has given me a . . .situationdown south. Sitting with my legs spread wide, it’s hard to tell, but if I were to stand, everyone would knowexactlyhow I feel about Raf’s little sister.

That knowledge is enough to make me sweat, and it takes me back to the last time I saw Elena before I left town for good.

I was twenty-two, and I was in Denver visiting Raf. There wasn’t a lot going on that night, so we decided to crash our old high-school team’s basketball game before the planned hunt with Raf’s pack.

I hadn’t known Lena was on the pom squad. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come.

I’d made every effort to avoid the Garcia house since the night of her sweet sixteen — since the night she kissed me.

That night, I’d sworn off temptation. Lena thought I didn’t want her, and she was right.

I didn’t want her. Ineededher — needed her like I needed water or air. But I couldn’t cross that line. Lena was five years younger and Raf’s baby sister. Raf was the closest thing I had to a brother, and he would’ve disowned me if he knew the thoughts I had about her.

But this . . .thiswas some special form of torture.

There she was, dancing and smiling in her red-and-black uniform — short skirt, sleeveless top, bright-white tennis shoes that set off her smooth, golden skin.

Seeing her out there moving to the music, I couldn’t help but smile. I’d meant what I’d said when I gave her that bracelet. Lena was my sunshine.

The squad finished their number and headed for the bleachers, where a pale, muscular guy in a baggy white T-shirt was waiting. A giant rhinestone glinted from one ear. He said something to Elena, and her lips pinched together.

Inside, my wolf snarled.

“Who is that guy?” I asked Raf.

Raf shook his head and scowled. “Mikey. Some shithead Elena dated once or twice. I caught him feeling her up in his car.” The alpha’s voice trembled with fury. “I told her he was bad news, but she wouldn’t listen to me. They broke up when she caught him screwing some sophomore under the bleachers.”

At those words, the growl rumbled from my chest to my throat.