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cursed as the bottom stair buckled under her weight.  “Damn it!”  She caught herself at the last second and turned to eye the broken step, making her hundredth mental note to find time to fix the damn thing before someone broke their neck.
    Turning, her cheeks flushed to find Barron standing outside the guesthouse.  Arms crossed over his broad chest he leaned nonchalantly against the small building, but there was nothing casual about his stance.  Every line of him screamed predator, and she knew he could be off that wall and tearing into her in a second if he wanted.  She’d need to get rid of him diplomatically.
    Keryn and Cortez watched him from under the shade of the nearby trees.  Cortez hugged Keryn to him tightly, the gesture declaring boldly that she was his.  Arden paced halfway between where Keryn and Cortez were huddled and where Barron stood staring at her.  The young boy’s eyes never left Barron, and Willa felt pride surge to the fore.  He was going to make a phenomenal Alpha one day.  She hoped she lived to see it.
    She lifted her head high as she approached Barron, ignoring the heat that suffused her cheeks when his eyes took a leisurely stroll down her body and then back up.  His lips cocked in a half smile and she couldn’t help but wonder if he liked what he saw.
    Get a fucking grip! She self-admonished.  Her eyes hardened and she flicked her hand toward her three pack-mates, indicating they should go into the house.
    Cortez seemed all too happy to comply, pulling Keryn with him as he hurried away.  Arden ignored her gesture and continued to pace, scowling at Barron.
    Barron shoved off the wall.  “The kid’s cute.”  He tipped his head toward Arden, then smiled when the boy growled.
    “Arden!” She turned to glare at him.  “Inside.  Now!”
    He was more difficult to control then the rest because his Alpha instincts were growing with his age, but also because he was extremely protective of Willa.
    Arden growled again, but stopped pacing and took a step toward the house before he stopped.  “You sure?”
    Willa couldn’t stop her smile as pride swelled within her.  One curt nod, and then Arden stalked sullenly toward the house.
    “He’s protective of you,” Barron noted aloud.
    “Yes,” she confirmed.  “And I of him.”  She motioned with her head toward the house.  “All of them, which is why I have to ask you to leave.”
    Barron only smiled, as if he’d expected her words.
    “I appreciate Evander sending you,” she forged on.  “But we’ll figure this out on our own.”
    Shoving off the wall, Barron stepped toward her.  The predatory grace with which he moved was fluid yet lethal, and all male.  It had Willa itching to back down.  She didn’t.
    “So, let me get this straight.” He started circling her.  “Your Alpha is dead.  You’re in charge.  You aren’t mated.  There are no men in your pack.”  He stopped behind her, and when he leaned in his breath whispered over the nape of her neck.  “And the wolves are at your door.”
    Whether the shiver that coursed through her was the result of his nearness or his words, she didn’t know, but she didn’t dare step away from him.  It’d be a show of fear… submission.
    “There are men in this pack,” she declared gruffly, ignoring his snort and eye roll at her words.  “And the wolves aren’t at the door.  I have two weeks.”
    “And what’s your plan?”
    She turned to face him.  “To protect my pack and my territory.”
    “How?” He demanded, stepping up to tower over her.  She had to tilt her head far back to keep her eyes on his.  “You’re not mated, and smelling the way you do…”  He let his words die to a low rumble.
    ***
    Holy shit!   Barron almost spoke the words aloud when Willa’s nostrils flared slightly and she gave the smallest turn of her head.  She was scenting herself.  She had no idea what he was talking about.
    “You’re fertile,” he supplied,