I opened my mouth, ready to make some wiseass remark. But considering I dragged my tail into danger and took Celia along for the ride, I knew the bastard had a point. I’d needed them, and had waited too damn long to call in our location.

Aric watched me, his expression stern. “I hate to admit it, but you did a hell of a job tracking Dan. I don’t know if another were could have fixed on such a weak trail.”

“So?”

A smirk cut through his serious demeanor. “So I think I found the perfect forum for your skills.”

I rolled my eyes. “You want me to teach the little pukes at the Den how to track, don’t you?”

Aric grinned. “Damn, Bren. It’s like you can read my mind—just no sex talk. Stick to the subject and you won’t piss me off.”

“Okay, if I must. But what if one of the little bastards has a question about getting laid?”

“Then you can direct him to me.”

“Shouldn’t I direct him to someone who’s actually getting some?”

Aric pinched the bridge of his nose and growled something about me being a monstrous pain in the ass. He pushed off the door frame to leave, but I stopped him.

“Can I ask you something?”

At first I thought I pissed him off enough to say no. But then he crossed his arms again and gave me a stiff nod. “Go ahead.”

“My dad failed to turn my mother wolf. How the hell did I manage to turn Dan?”

Aric abandoned the doorway and lowered himself into the old beat-up leather chair by my bed. He leaned forward, resting his arms on his thighs. “Bren, the turning process is complex; it’s not just about piercing another’s heart and transferring your wolf’s essence. If it were, we’d have more weres. The Elders believe the donors and recipients have to be spiritually and physically tough to endure one soul’s invasion of another’s.” He shook his head. “Even then, if their love for each other is weak, they’ll fail.”

I growled defensively. “You sayin’ my parents’ love wasn’t strong? You don’t know shit. They were mates, goddamn you!”

I should have known better than to challenge an Alpha, especially one who’d already whooped my ass. And yet for some reason, Aric didn’t respond with aggression.

His shoulders remained relaxed and he continued, dismissing the growls that continued to burn a hole in my gut. “I told you what the Elders believe. What I didn’t explain was that a lot can go wrong. Your father could have released your mother too soon, or his fangs may not have punctured her heart deep enough. I didn’t know your father. But I know it killed him to cause his mate pain.” He lowered his head and stared at his palms. “If he didn’t commit to the task out of fear of hurting her, he failed her even before he began.”

I took in the sadness creasing the edges of his eyes. “Are we still talking about my folks?” I asked like a dumb-ass.

Aric paused, then slowly leaned back. He ignored my question and glanced between me and Dan. “I think it helped that Dan was dying. Your desperation to save him committed you to turning him. Under other circumstances, I can’t be sure you would’ve survived.”

I paused to think about what Aric said. “I guess that makes sense. Here’s the thing, though, most successful turns occur between mated couples—or those who love each other deeply.”

Aric nodded. “That’s right. Otherwise the human’s soul would reject the were’s.”

“Well, boss, Dan and me aren’t a couple. Does this mean he’s been secretly in love with me this whole time? I mean, I can’t blame him if he is, I’m pretty damn awesome—”

Dan actually growled at me. Aric rolled with laughter and it took him a moment to collect himself. “The turning process is typically done between mated couples because their love is believed strong enough to survive the experience. But you’re forgetting there are other kinds of love—like that between brothers, which you and Dan appear to share.”

Dan wagged his tail when I turned to acknowledge him. I grinned and patted his back. “Okay. Thanks, Aric.”

He stood to leave. “I’ll expect you at the Den tomorrow, on time and ready to work.”

“Yeah, yeah, I read the note, remember?”

Aric huffed. “Yes, and not only did you read it, but you passed it around like a damn hors d’oeuvre.”

I chuckled. “I guess I shouldn’t have shown it to Celia . . . or your fiancée.”

Aric shrugged. “I don’t care who saw it, everything in it is true.”

My spine stiffened. “Even the part about Celia being your mate?”

“Yes, that, and the part where I call you a loser.”

I barked out a laugh. “So you don’t care that what’s-her-face got mad?”

His expression hardened, losing its humor. “No. I only care what Celia thinks.”

“Well, she thought enough to ask to keep it.”

My comment seemed to surprise him. “She did?”

“Yup, she’ll probably sleep with it under her pillow.”

Aric laughed and headed for the door. He stopped before walking out and glanced over his shoulder. “Thank you for keeping her safe.”

I nodded but didn’t respond. Celia was part of my pack—the real one. And packmates would take a cursed gold bullet for one of their own. My stomach growled as Aric disappeared, furious I’d gone so long without feeding it. I slapped Dan’s skinny rump and nudged him out of bed. “Woman, you better put on that French maid outfit and fix me some grub. Daddy’s hungry.”