Mated to the Beast (An Ironhaven Pack Romance Book 4) Read online

  Mated to the Beast

  An Ironhaven Pack Romance

  Piper Fox

  Contents

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  Investigation Gone Awry

  A Witch’s Charms

  A Wolf in Love

  Shifting for Her

  Epilogue

  Also by Piper Fox

  About the Author

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  Investigation Gone Awry

  Working for the mayor’s office wasn’t Hailey’s dream job.

  It did have its perks, though. Like having access to Mayor Zain Michaels’s office when he was out on wolf business. The first thing she did was tap the spacebar and let out a woosh of breath. He’d left his computer unlocked.

  She knew she shouldn’t snoop, shouldn’t go through the private information on the mayor’s computer. Her curiosity had gotten her into more trouble than the proverbial cat who died from it.

  But when Zain made it so easy, she fully intended to take advantage.

  There was no reason for the mayor to keep a file labeled Ironhaven Wolves. There were files on individuals from Ironhaven, she couldn’t go into all of them, but she was drawn to one name. Roark Barnes. Jenna’s brother. Next to his file was Jenna’s.

  She doubled clicked on Jenna’s. She glanced over the medical file, stating Jenna had been in a car accident. The pictures attached said anything but a car accident.

  Her stomach turned at the photos filling the screen.

  It wouldn’t have surprised her if it were signs of wolf attacks. Most people in the area knew about the packs, or at least suspected, raised on stories of men who could shift into animals. And less than a year ago, a woman had been nearly mauled to death outside the farmer’s market.

  Wolf attacks got swept under the rug all the time. Almost to the point where if no one walked into town naked and covered in blood in a month, they threw a party.

  These pictures were so much worse.

  The women almost looked mummified they were so far gone. Skin barely stretched over bone, sunken in eye sockets and stomachs. Thin to no hair covering their scalps.

  It was something she would’ve expected to see on the history channel, or maybe in the poorest of countries, where people literally starved to death.

  The urge to gag, to throw up into Zain’s trash can, rose up in her throat, filling her chest with bile. The date-stamp on the files was six years ago.

  The woman currently on the screen was wearing the second half of a Best Friends Forever necklace. Hailey played with the first half dangling around her own neck.

  With trembling hands, Hailey grabbed the mouse again and closed out of the files. Backed out of the path she opened to get there. By the time she returned the screen to the bright blue background littered with icons, her eyes were clouded over with tears barely contained by her lashes.

  There was no way Jenna had died like that. There had to be some sort of mistake.

  Hailey ran from the office, still fighting the urge to throw up, and wove through the parking lot, barely making it to her car before she bent over and retched, her stomach roiling with bile as the tears streamed from her eyes.

  She wanted to quit. It would’ve been so easy to put in her two weeks, let the lease run out on her apartment, and leave New York altogether. She didn’t have much connection to Bellemare anymore, and the only reason she’d settled here in the first place was because Jenna lived in Ironhaven.

  They were supposed to find a place together, put their English degrees to use writing novels that would make them a living in doing something they really cared about. At least, that was the plan.

  Hailey still tried to write, but it wasn’t the same without Jenna. Her heart ached for her friend and the life they were supposed to share.

  Every time she thought she could leave it all behind and start over, she couldn’t seem to budge her feet. Almost like Bellemare was made of quicksand, slowly sucking her in, making her as much of a fixture as the coffee shop on the corner of Main Street, or the former newspaper office that had been converted into the loft she now lived in.

  She couldn’t shake the feeling that she was meant to be here. That she was supposed to learn something from the town, from the area.

  Instead of calling her boss and quitting, Hailey made excuses that she didn’t feel well, and she needed the afternoon off.

  Zain barely acknowledged her request; he just grunted that he expected to see her back in the office bright and early on Monday. His easy dismissal didn’t bother her. The wolf, the Alpha of the Bellemare pack, didn’t care much about humans, as long as they didn’t get in his way or try to mate with his wolves.

  She’d never understood that rule, but it seemed to be universal among packs. Jenna had told her once that her whole pack was brought up with the same idea. At least it sounded like the Ironhaven wolves didn’t have any qualms with befriending humans. They just didn’t marry them.

  Hailey picked up a coffee and headed to the border. Even though her loft was in Bellemare, she didn’t feel fully at home there. Not like Ironhaven. She assumed it had to do with the long nights in college where Jenna would regale her with stories of the pack, with the town, until it felt like Hailey had grown up there just as much as Jenna had. If rent had been less expensive in Ironhaven, she would never have put Bellemare on her address line.

  Pulling into a spot down the street from Hailey’s favorite bookshop, the one Jenna always talked about, she drained the last of her coffee and looked around. Ironhaven was quiet, quaint, and hardly changed year after year. Sure, a new restaurant had popped up recently, and the hotel had been renovated to make room for a bakery storefront, but otherwise, it looked like the photos Jenna always shared.

  It felt like home.

  Hailey dropped her cup back in the cupholder and shut off the car, wondering where to start. She needed information, needed proof of what she’d seen.

  She needed to know what caused her best friend to die like that, not in the car crash the newspapers reported. Hailey had always questioned that cause of death, since she knew wolves were more indestructible than humans, and were rarely killed in any sort of accident.

  Starting in the bookstore seemed like as good a place as any, and she pushed the door open, listening to the tinkle of real brass bells before she fully stepped inside.

  “Ah, Hailey. Come to check out the latest suspense books?” Mr. Sage smiled from behind the counter. “It’s been a few months, I thought you might’ve found a new favorite shop. Or started buying online.” He clutched at his chest, as if the very idea gave him heart palpitations.

  “I just haven’t been reading much lately. Too much on my mind.” She took a slow, calming breath, enjoying the scent of all the books filling the over-laden shelves before she rest her hands on the wooden counter in front of him. “Actually, I’ve been thinking about Jenna.”

  “You’ve got to put that to bed. A terrible accident, for sure, but Jenna’s gone. You can’t stop living your life just because hers ended.” He reached out and covered her hand with his. “Life’s too short for that, dear.”

  “That’s just it, Mr. Sage. I don’t know if I believe it was an accident. Jenna was such a careful driver. Almost like she could sense things
other drivers would do before they did them. It doesn’t seem real.” She leaned forward, conspiratorially, hoping he trusted her enough to tell her if he knew anything more. “And weren’t there a lot of unexplainable accidents around that time? It just seems strange.”

  He nodded slightly. “It was a hard time for the town. But I wouldn’t go around digging too much, Hailey. Some things are better off left in the past.”

  “Does it have to do with the pack?”

  The corners of his mouth drew into a deeper frown. “You’re too curious for your own good.”

  “That’s what every guy I’ve ever dated said.” She smiled, trying to keep him talking. “I know Jenna was a wolf.”

  “Look, Hailey, I doubt it’ll help, but I have to try to steer you away from this. You don’t want to get involved with the rivalry between the packs. If the wolves in Bellemare hear you’re snooping around, they won’t be as kind about it as the Ironhaven pack might be. Don’t forget about your humanity in this. Wolves can do terrible things when they think their way of life is threatened.” He let go of her hand and said, “Now, let’s go look at those new suspense arrivals. I’m sure I can find something to keep that curious head of yours busy.”

  Hailey let Mr. Sage talk her into several new paperbacks, but she wouldn’t stop.

  What was everyone covering up?

  As she left the store, loaded down with a cloth bag full of books, she looked up and down the street, trying to decide who else she knew in Ironhaven well enough to question. Trying to decide who would actually talk to her.

  She couldn’t have braced for the solid wall of man that slammed into her and shoved her into an alley.

  Pressed against the wall of the bookstore, the coarse brick façade digging into the backs of her arms, she struggled, squirming and wriggling, trying to break his grip, trying to push him away.

  The low, rumbling growl chilled her to the core.

  “Who are you?”

  She stopped her futile fight against his hold and looked up. Up. UP. He had to be nearly seven feet tall, broad chested, and he had a jagged scar that ran from his close-buzzed sandy colored hairline down his right cheek. His arms were bigger around than her thighs, and she caught sight of the dog-tags under his skin-tight t-shirt.

  “Just let me go. I’m nobody. I don’t have anything. Please, you don’t want to do this.”

  “Like hell you’re nobody.” He hoisted her up so quickly, her head spun as he threw her over his shoulder, one huge hand on her lower back, the other arm like a vise around her knees, keeping her in place.

  She balled one hand into a fist, punching everywhere she could reach, as she swung her books as hard as she could into his ass, his legs.

  She might as well have been hitting him with feathers, for as much effect as it had on her captor. Even her shouts to stop, to put her down, didn’t seem to deter him. Could no one really hear her?

  He carried her through the alley, around backs of buildings, until he descended a set of concrete stairs and dropped her on her ass on a sagging bed in the dank basement.

  God, did he have a torture chamber? A dungeon?

  Was he what happened to Jenna?

  “Who. Are. You?” Each word was gritted out through clenched teeth, as he paced in front of the door, blocking her exit, her only chance at freedom.

  “No one. I swear. I’m a mayor’s aide from Bellemare. That’s all.”

  He snarled, moving in closer, his nose twitching as his lip curled up, baring teeth too sharp to be human.

  If he wasn’t a wolf, he had to be something. Vampire? Demon? Something else monstrous?

  “A fucking witch. You have to be.” His eyes flashed yellow in the dim basement light.

  Hailey would’ve had to be blind to miss the razor-sharp claws capping each of his fingers.

  Her voice came out a shaky whisper as she said frantically, “I’m not a witch. I swear. I’m nobody. I’m just trying to find out what happened to my friend. I didn’t do anything. I don’t know anything. Please. I just need to know what really happened.” She could barely keep up with her own tongue as the words, the pleas, tumbled from her lips.

  There was no doubt in her mind that this guy could’ve ripped her to pieces and not blinked twice about it.

  “How do you know her name? How do you know about her wolf?” He crowded her, until she’d scooted backwards on the bed, her back pressed against the wall, her heart in her throat, pounding so hard she was sure he’d be able to see it moving her whole body.

  “Who?” She shook her head. “Jenna?”

  His claws ripped into the bedding on either side of her hips as he snarled, “My sister.”

  A Witch’s Charms

  Roark was barely holding back the urge to tear into the little witch.

  He wouldn’t be fooled by her feigned fear, or the exquisite form she wore, taunting his wolf in all the right ways. For all he knew, the witch could read his thoughts, and knew that he preferred raven-haired women with green eyes. Or that any wolf would howl at those full, heavy breasts barely contained in her tank top, and the wide-set, curvy hips that tapered out from her smaller waist, giving her what Jenna always called the perfect hour-glass figure.

  She could make her scent as delectable as she wanted, like warm spices and coffee. Make his wolf salivate for days. Make the beast whimper for a taste of those berry-colored lips.

  But Roark wouldn’t fall for the trickery. This witch knew about his sister. Was asking questions in broad daylight. Probably wanted to check up on the handiwork of her spells.

  “Jenna was my best friend. I swear, I just want to know what happened to her.” She pulled her knees in even tighter to her chest, protecting her heart as she trembled.

  Good. Roark liked it when the enemy was scared. No one else in his unit could get the answers they needed on the battlefield like he could, because no one else could use the tactics a wolf could.

  It didn’t matter that this witch wasn’t an enemy combatant in a war zone.

  Although, wasn’t she? Their alliance with the Bellemare wolves was what killed his sister. And what destroyed his best friend’s brother. Just because there weren’t bombs and gunfire didn’t make this any less of a war zone.

  “Why did you kill my sister?”

  “Wait… Roark?” The temptress’s lips parted in a wide “o” as she sat up a little straighter, looking at him a little closer. “Oh my God. You’re Jenna’s brother. What happened to you?”

  Roark’s growl had her shrinking back again. “How do you know my name, witch?”

  “I was Jenna’s roommate in college. She showed me so many pictures. Although you weren’t as terrifying then.” She licked her lips, her chest heaving as she breathed heavily, trying to calm down. “Hailey. Surely she told you about me?”

  Hailey. Gods, Jenna always sounded so excited when she’d talk about Hailey. Like the woman was as close as a sister. She used to talk about writing books with Hailey, living in a little cottage until they both found wolf mates and made adorable wolf babies.

  But… Roark’s nose twitched again. This woman wasn’t a wolf. “Who are you?”

  “I’m telling you, I’m Hailey. I was Jenna’s roommate.” She slowly, cautiously pulled a necklace out from between her ample cleavage, holding out a silver pendant.

  An inverted shape to the one Jenna always wore.

  “How did you get that?” Roark’s resolve was crumbling, as he backed off a few inches, staring at the necklace like it was a ghost.

  “Jenna gave it to me.” She ran her thumb over it. “Please, Roark, whatever you think is going on, it’s not.”

  “Why are you asking about her? Why are you questioning the damn bookseller, like he knows anything about pack business? If you really were Hailey, you’d know he’s not a wolf. You’d smell it on him.” He shoved off the bed and went back to pacing, mimicking the motions of the beast in his head.

  The beast who hadn’t stretched its legs since the IED kille
d half his unit and nearly took Roark’s eye.

  “What? I don’t know what Jenna told you, but I’m not like her. Like you.” She slowly backed off the wall, moving to the edge of the bed.

  She smelled almost like a scared rabbit, ready to dart into the nearest hole at her first chance. Almost. That damn warm spice and coffee smell was still so strong, it was screwing with Roark’s head.

  “You can’t be Hailey then. So, who are you, witch?” He assessed her carefully, debating what she could possibly want with Jenna’s death now. After so many years.

  “I swear, I am. I don’t know how else to prove it to you.” She’d found her voice again, getting more forceful, more sure with every word. “I never believed that she died in a car accident. I know something else is going on here. I just have to figure out what.”

  Roark took a breath, letting his claws retract. Scaring her clearly wasn’t the answer. But it didn’t mean he had to trust her either. “What do you think you know?”

  “I saw pictures. No car accident did that to her.” She stood, pacing on the opposite side of the room, still fiddling with that necklace as if it were a talisman. “Are witches real? Are you telling me that’s what did that to her?” She shook her head. “To all of those women?”

  Roark snarled, his wolf even edgier now. “You tell me, witch.”

  Hailey stopped moving and crossed her arms over her chest. Pushing those tempting breasts higher. “Look, Roark. Look at me. Why would I come here, asking these questions, if it was my fault? She was my best friend. She was like a sister. She used to call me an honorary wolf. That’s why the pendants were a wolf and the outline of a wolf in the full moon.” She took off the jewelry and balled it up before tossing it toward him. “She said we fit together like a wolf and the moon.”