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Grainger is looking into it. On the police end, Adam and Tori, who are both red wolves—

I met them. They came by to see me because they re part of the wolf pack and knew I was taking over your job. They said they were thrilled another wolf was going to be working with them. Noah sounded pleased that he d made some friends already.

Ethan was glad that he had. A new wolf was welcome if he or she contributed to the pack. That s great. They re good folks.

Adam and his mate, Sierra, and Tori had me over for dinner last night, Noah continued.

That s great. So the two of them are looking into who might be a mole in their bureau.

They are homicide detectives, so they don t go on the drug raids with me normally.

Though when we have an issue having to do with wolves, we all stick together.

And if I m working on a case that has to do with a murder, we all work on it together.

Adam and Tori have access to information about who s working what jobs and who s off on vacation, that sort of thing, at the bureau.

So they ll be looking into it. Covington, their boss, is great to work for.

He s aware of the fact one or both of the departments might have a mole, but we re keeping it just between us for now until we can find the culprit.

Okay, good. I m at a bit of a disadvantage coming into the job from out of state and not knowing anyone, Noah said.

Yeah, but that s what makes it perfect. You haven t been involved in any of the shenanigans in the department, not to mention you re a wolf and we trust you for that reason alone, Ethan said. I m sure that also helped you to secure your job.

Renault put in a good word for me too. I m glad I can be here to help you out.

Ethan thought Noah was having a real change of heart about him and Charlene.

He was glad about it. He could use a good partner on this last mission.

He noticed that Noah was glancing surreptitiously at Charlene, but she was ignoring him completely, appearing not to want to give him the idea that she felt anything for him any longer.

Grainger said that you ll take the lead on this mission because you re from here and know the players. He also told me not to tell anyone in the department that I m out here with you working on the case since you re supposed to be retired, Noah said.

Not even Renault, Ethan said, knowing the two of them were good buddies. Not that Renault is anything but one of the good guys, but if he accidentally let it slip up that we re doing this together, whoever the mole is might get the word.

Yeah, not even Renault, Noah said. Everyone believes I m not starting the job for a few weeks to get moved and settled in.

I had lunch with Renault yesterday afternoon.

I told him I had found a house and purchased it in Portland, but that I had to return to Destin to sell my house and get my household goods ready to move.

Which is why it worked out well that I m living in Oyster Bay with you so that I don t run into anyone that I ll be working with in Portland.

I didn t even tell Adam and Tori what I was doing, not realizing that they knew just what you were doing out here.

Okay, good. Adam, Sierra, Tori, our pack leaders and a few other wolves know, just in case we need some additional support, Ethan said.

Oh, that s good to know.

They finished eating breakfast and Charlene and Ethan cleared the dishes from the table. He started soaking the pan that Charlene had used to make the pancakes. I ll take care of that after it soaks.

Ethan noticed Noah watching their interactions, the way Charlene was smiling at him, helping him put things away, touching him in little intimate caresses.

Nothing passionate, but just enough to show she really cared about him and that Noah didn t stand a chance to date her.

Maybe they could be friends, but not in an intimate way.

Ethan wondered if Noah had ever helped her with cleaning up after meals, or if he left it to her to manage if she made meals for them.

He shouldn t have cared about their past relationship, but he wasn t used to dating a woman whose boyfriend still wanted to be with her, and he certainly wasn t used to befriending a girlfriend s ex and working with him.

Not only that, but Ethan really wanted to measure up in Charlene s eyes and prove to her, and to Noah, that he had what it took to make her happy.

Did you ever date Tori? Noah suddenly asked Ethan.

If he was trying to create dissension between Ethan and Charlene, it wasn t going to happen.

Yes. When she first arrived, she dated quite a few bachelor males, including me.

We ve worked together, socialized at the wolf pack gatherings, and she s a great woman, but we just don t have that spark that wolves have when they know they re with the one they really want to be with for a lifetime.

Noah nodded. She seems really nice. Maybe I ll ask her out on a date when I get back to the Portland area after this mission.

It wouldn t hurt to try, Ethan said. Though if Noah did start dating Tori, he hoped he wouldn t treat her the same way as he d treated Charlene.

Then again, Ethan could not imagine Tori putting up with it either.

But maybe Noah would change and realize that, when he had some competition, he might just have to work harder at keeping the she-wolf.

So Sunday is our first real attempt at taking these guys down, Noah said, sounding eager to get it done.

Yeah. Charlene and I checked out his great-aunt s place.

Ethan showed him pictures of the house and surrounding area, and of the church where Oakley took her on occasion.

Now, we don t know for sure if he ll be taking her to church that day.

I m sure it will be hit or miss, but hopefully we ll get a break and it ll go smoothly.

What about Shelby Bay?

We drove by the home Oakley s been seen at, but we didn t see any sign of him. There was a car parked there that belonged to a Clara Snyder though. Ethan explained what they had learned about her.

Okay, that sounds like we re getting somewhere with this. What about putting some surveillance on the house in Shelby Bay? Noah asked.

We could do that. What about tonight? About two in the morning? What about using your vehicle this time? I have one that s a loaner that no one knows. My own car is at Adam and Sierra s home.

Yeah, no one knows mine either. I bought it when I got here so I didn t have to drive my rust bucket all the way across country.

Okay, good. If you re ready now, we can go to the house. I ll pack my clothes and you can get settled in, Ethan said.

That sounds good to me. Noah said to Charlene, Good to see you again, and glad you found what you re looking for, but I still want us to be friends.

Of course, Charlene said and smiled at him, the first time she had done so since he had arrived.

Then he left the house and Ethan gave her a hug and a kiss. I ll be back in a little while.

I ll make some room for your clothes. I never envisioned having to share space with a wolf so I m hogging everything.

He smiled. Well, I can use one of the guest bedroom closets, if you have room for clothes in there. Anything will work for me as long as I get to stay with you. He hoped he didn t sound too desperate to stay with her or she might think he wasn t alpha enough.

She smiled at him. We ll work it out. It will be no problem at all. Then she kissed him back and whispered, probably worried Noah might be just outside and could hear them, It looks like Noah has come around.

Ethan kept his voice low too. Yeah, I think so. I ll see you in about an hour or sooner. He sure hoped she didn t change her mind about him staying with her. Both of them had lived alone, so living with each other might take some getting used to.

Okay. That sounds good.

Then Ethan left to get this done, thrilled with the way things were working out between Noah and him and with Charlene even more so. He had thought they might invite Noah over for some meals as a means of wolf camaraderie, but Ethan really needed this time to get to know Charlene better too.