Light the Fire (Jackson's Hollow #1)

Chapter 50

Ryker was filled with blinding white hot fury, and the only thing keeping him from ripping the Duncan pack werewolf into unrecognizable shreds was Jo. She was latched onto his neck, holding him in place with her weight, but the scent of her blood so close to him was driving him into a deeper rage even as her presence kept him where he was. He was too furious to curse, too mindlessly full of wrath to even direct anything into a coherent thought.

"Ryker, no," Jo said, curtly, calmly, her hold around him tightening. He recognized that she followed it up with something to Lexi, but he stopped listening after she wasn't focused on him.

He knew the other wolf's name, but he was too far gone to think of him as anything except an enemy. The werewolf was still unconscious, sprawled on the ground while Lincoln and AJ stalked closer, coming at him from either side.

A snarl ripped out of Ryker, and he pushed against Jo's grip, his own claws digging into the dirt.

"Don't," Jo said, right into his ear. "Please."

He wanted to ignore her. A continuous growl rolled through him, and her grip around his neck tightened. She twisted around so that she was pressed against his front, completely in his way if he wanted to get to the other werewolf. But Charlie, Lincoln, and AJ were free.

"Ryker?" Charlie asked through their link, worried and unsure, "What do you want us to do?"

"I think it's pretty obvious," Lincoln said, an audible smirk in his voice. He never had been a fan of the Duncan pack, not since Jake had tried hitting on his girlfriend and mate.

As Lincoln stepped forward, Jo caught his movement. "Stop that, I see you!" she snapped, every inch of her radiating Alpha even though she wasn't one--but that's why she was the perfect mate for him, Ryker thought, a flash of pride cutting through his anger for a moment as he watched Lincoln stop cold. But as she turned to eye Lincoln, the smell of blood hit him again.

"Ryker, please shift so we can talk about it," Jo said, burying her face against his fur again, fingers running lightly down his neck. "Him hurting me was an accident."

So it was him. Ryker pushed against Jo, the urge to tear the wolf apart so, so strong, but Jo pushed right back.

"Ryker!" She half-growled.

Lexi interrupted, speaking through their mental link instead of out loud. "C'mon Ryker, you can always tear him apart later when Jo's not around, right?"

Everything in him wanted to resist being told what to do, wanted to take his anger out on this reckless wolf, but he knew being an Alpha wasn't about being the most reactive or temperamental. It was about always thinking on behalf of the pack, and killing someone in Duncan's pack could ignite some terrible consequences.

And there was always later.

"Fine, but tell Jo to come with me."

Lexi conveyed his message, and a second later the two of them moved behind the truck; he was surprised Jo hadn't fussed about being perfectly safe 10 feet away from him, but he guessed she knew he was still very much on edge right now and needed her nearby. Jo turned around while he shifted, and as soon as he had a spare set of pants on, he stepped closer, hand tentative as he touched her arm, trying to turn her so he could see her shoulder.

"It'll be fine," Jo said, twisting her head to look up at him.

"Hmm," Ryker said in a low voice. "Still needs cleaning and bandaging." He straightened up, eyes drifting back to the injury until Jo caught his cheek gently and forced him to look at her.

"Okay, let me clarify. It will be fine with proper wound treatment. Which I definitely promise to let you do since I can't properly deal with my own shoulder." She arched an eyebrow, continuing before he could interrupt. "And we can kill two birds with one stone by taking this guy in to get treated as well. How's that?"