Cael sighed. "Never, daughter. I gave you the opportunity when I had HG hire you, but your work spoke for itself. I was never more proud of you. I grew suspicious when Terithen insisted on remaining close to you, so I sent Ninianne to investigate further. She is my Shadow Guard. A dark Elf who fights for me, but always remains in the shadows and hovers on the line between darkness and evil."

Cael looked at Ninianne. "Have you cleansed the earth yet?"

Ninianne knelt by the darkened circle. She removed her sword and plunged it into the soil and softly chanted in a lyrical, strange language. But these words were dark. Sam's heart dropped to her stomach as blackness covered the sword, the Elf's hands, crept up her arms in long, twisting streaks, then raced up her neck and covered her face and long blonde hair until only Ninianne's green eyes showed amid the blackness. She stopped singing and fell back onto her haunches, panting hard. The blackness gradually retreated, then vanished altogether.

When she staggered to her feet, Sam rushed over.

"Do not touch her," Cael warned. "She carries inside her the evil of my son. He is forever gone now."

Torment flickered in Ninianne's eyes. She looked utterly lost. Sam knew what it felt like to be all alone. The hell with it. She went to her sister Elf and hugged her tight. Cael made a disapproving sound, but Sam ignored it.

Ninianne put a hand on her shoulder, squeezed lightly. "Thank you," she whispered. "Please, I don't want you to become contaminated."

Not wanting to distress her further, Sam stepped back. Cael's expression shuttered. "Ninianne, you know what to do. Go now."

The Elf sheathed her now-blackened sword. She gave a sad glance to Sam, then smiled. "I know what it is to love another and face banishment from your people for such a love. Choose for a lifetime and do not regret your choice, as I have done in the past."

Then Ninianne's mouth quirked into a small, knowing smile. "It is not a bad thing, to lie with the beast shifters. In fact, it can feel quite good."

"Ninianne! Go now!" Cael roared.

The Elf looked stricken, then she dissolved into mist.

Cael went to Sam, resting his long, pale fingers on her shoulders. "You are of my blood, but you straddle two worlds. Ellen knew of your inheritance and wished you to remain oblivious of your true parentage until you were old enough to understand the ramifications. If you choose your Elven heritage..." He glanced at Darius. "You must leave behind the Lupine world forever. You cannot be in both worlds. It would prove too dangerous. But hear me, my beloved daughter. I will give you riches beyond compare. You will inherit lands and forests to rule over, and millions of dollars when you leave our world to live in Skin for short bursts of time. You will never know want. Come with me, my beloved daughter."

Torn, Sam stared at her father, whose love shone on his face. She thought of the grief he must feel at dispatching his son and heir after discovering Terithen had turned to evil.

And then she faced Darius. His expression blanked, but his eyes filled with sorrow. He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. "It's your choice, Sam. I love you. I always will. But I will not force your hand and compel you to live among my people. I want what's best for you. I want..." Moisture shimmered in his eyes. "Damn," he said hoarsely. "Losing you will rip my heart out all over. But I'll survive. Did it before. I can do it again, as long as I know you're alive and well and happy with your life."

Her breath hitched as he stroked a thumb tenderly down her cheek. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Sam. And when someone special like you comes along, it's a once in a lifetime shot. But I'd be a damn selfish bastard to hold onto you if you want to leave with him."

He glanced at her father. "As much of an SOB as my dad was, at least I knew him. You never grew up with your dad, and I know how much you felt that absence."

Leaning forward, he kissed her mouth, his lips soft and warm. Sam closed her eyes and flung her arms around him, needing his closeness, his warmth. But he was Lupine and if she walked away with him, she turned her back on her Eleven heritage. She couldn't bring herself to reject her father, not when she'd just found him. Her father was essential to learning about her Elven side, a life she'd never known before.

Nor could she turn her back on Darius.

Tension knotted her stomach. Sam pushed a little at Darius' chest and stepped back. She looked at her father, the Fae King, who studied her with quiet expectation.

"What is it, Sam?" Aiden hooked his thumbs into his jeans pockets. "You know if you choose Darius, you'll have to endure a mating rite; bond with him to be protected in my pack. You'll have to be exclusive to him, and us. What's your decision?"

Sam looked helplessly around her, and everything inside shattered like glass. "I can't decide now! Please, I need to be alone. I can't be exclusive right now to Darius or you!" She pointed at Cael.

Heart hammering, she walked away. At the entrance of the glade, she spoke over her shoulder, not daring to look at Darius because if she saw his face, she'd break down and run sobbing into his arms.

"If I decide on your pack, Darius, I'll know where to find you."

Muscles in her legs cramped as she crashed through the forest. By the time she'd reached the bridge, she could barely breathe for the anxiety crushing her chest. Sam raced over the bridge, heading for the townhouse to pack.

She did not look back.

Chapter 19.

Darius stood at the window of his office, staring at the sweep of wide, open plains, the horse corrals and the jagged mountains of Montana. The Mitchell Ranch was nestled in a valley boasting the most beautiful land in the country. Everyone who lived and worked here agreed.

Sam would have loved living here, learning to ride a horse, strolling along the banks of the wild, rushing river, and exploring the thick woods covering Mitchell Mountain.

But she wasn't here.

He'd been home with his pack for two weeks. No word from Sam. At the townhouse in Oregon, she'd packed up, and left without a word. Ryder had driven her to Portland. It had taken all of Darius' willpower not to go to Sam's apartment, pound on her door, pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless, begging her to go home with him.

He missed her so much it hurt to breathe. A huge void had settled into his life and nothing could fill it. She had left when he needed her most, but he understood her reasons. It didn't help with the pain, though.

Was it the pressure of the mating rite? He wasn't certain. Didn't matter. He'd already made up his mind.

A loud knock came at his door. "Come in," he said absently.

Kyle joined him at the window. "Nice view."

Darius said nothing.

"You going to keep moping around here or are you ready to return to the land of the living?"

Irritation filled Darius. "Don't criticize me. You have Arianna. Your mate sleeps in your arms every night and greets you each morning. I've lost mine."

Again. The knowledge he'd lost her, this time for good, though she was still alive, within reach, killed him.

"Then go get her. Storm the castle, get her back. But don't keep staring out the window hoping she'll come driving down the road, back into your life."

"I gave her a choice. I'm not pressuring her."

"Maybe she needs to be pressured. Like me. Aiden had to convince me to stay. It's harder with us half-bloods."

He glanced at his friend. Kyle was a helluva hunter, a quiet Lupine with Satyr blood running through his veins.

Kyle pushed back the black Stetson on his head. "You need me, Darius, I'm here for you. We all are. No matter what."

Darius lifted his mouth in a ghost of a smile. "Thanks." Then he considered. "I do need you. You're the best hunter the pack has. You can find anything, or anyone."

He went to this desk, scribbled on a notepad, tore it off and handed it to Kyle. "Bring him back here."

His friend's eyes widened when he glanced at the note. "Shit. You serious?"

"Never more. He's one loose end I need to tie up."

When Kyle left, shutting the door behind him, Darius went to his desk. He typed into the computer, pushed the print button and then snatched the sheet from the printer. For a minute he stared at the words, feeling suffocated already, the walls marching in around him.

It wasn't the best decision.

But it was the right one.

He couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't live without Sam. He might as well be laid out in a coffin.

He knew what sacrifices were required for this. But her needs came first. He would leave his pack and move to Portland, to be close to Cael's glen in Oregon, and close to Sam. He'd take his chances and find her.

Seeing her even for one day was better than never again having her in his life.

Darius pushed back from his desk, stared at his worn Western boots, his favorite jeans with the tear in the right knee. He'd ripped the denim while riding on horseback through the forest, racing Aiden.

Memories swarmed in his mind like a thick cloud of buzzing insects. He swallowed hard, gripped the paper and stood, looking around for the last time.

A pickup truck rattled down the gravel drive. Darius glanced out the window at the dust kicked up beneath the truck's tires and recognized his alpha's pickup. Good timing.

Swallowing hard, he started for the door and stopped, immobilized by ragged pain. Going away felt like gouging out his heart and leaving it behind. But living another minute without Sam? No. It was to live as the corpse of his own spirit.

Darius returned to his desk, sitting in the big leather chair Aiden had purchased as a birthday gift years ago. The alpha had been good to him, believing in Darius' abilities and encouraging him, despite his struggles with reading. He loved him like a brother.

He only hoped Aiden would understand.

Footsteps sounded in the hallway. He stiffened, recognizing Aiden's tread. The door swung open and his alpha stepped inside. Dark hair mussed, his beard scruffy, Aiden looked as exhausted as Darius felt.

It hadn't been easy on him, either. Darius felt a surge of guilt. But there was no going back now. He held up the piece of paper. "I've been waiting for you to come back. We need to talk."

Aiden pushed a hand through his mussed hair. "If that's your resignation, I'm not accepting it."

"You have no choice." Darius folded it up into a paper airplane and sailed it straight at the alpha. It hit his chest and fell to the floor. "I have no choice. I don't care anymore about anything, except Sam."

"All this fuss over a female. You've lost your head. It's time to stop thinking with your dick. You can have any woman you want as a mate."

Fury spiraled through him. Darius pushed back from his desk, feeling his inner wolf rise.

Aiden raised a brow. "What? Did I annoy the big bad Lupine with the plain truth? Poor Darius, so insulted that I diss a woman you've screwed."

"That's it," Darius snarled. He leapt over the desk and body slammed Aiden against the floor. "Don't you dare disrespect her. She's beautiful, she's courageous and fun, sweet and sexy and-and-damn it, I miss her so much I want to die! "

He went to smash his fist into the alpha's chin and realized Aiden wasn't fighting back. "Aw hell." Darius pushed off Aiden and rolled to the side, sitting on his haunches. "It isn't worth it."

Aiden sat up. "Isn't it? After all this hard work and you're saying you're changing your mind about it? A little late."

Darius cocked his head. "You been smoking the funny weed? You're not making sense."

The big alpha stretched out his long legs. "Had a talk with the entire pack. Told them how much you and Sam need each other. So we voted to move to Oregon. There's a ranch for sale there in the mountains, close enough to Cael's glen. If you can't bring the Elf out of the woodlands, then you bring the wolf there instead. You're family, Darius. The pack wouldn't be the pack without you. Where you go, we go."

Aiden paused, his expression solemn. "You're not alone, Darius. You never have been."

His pulse skittered as he stared at his best friend. "You'd do this for me? The whole damn pack?"

"Decision that big means a vote. And every single Lupine here, all of them, said yes. They're willing to leave, sell the ranch and start over so you can have Sam in your life."

Darius felt a thick lump in his throat. He scrubbed at his eyes, emotion overwhelming him at the pack's loyalty.

"Aw, man, don't go all girly on me and start crying now." Aiden grinned and then sighed. "But as it turns out, our decision had a big flaw in it. Sam had already decided not to stay in Oregon. She called the ranch and told me she was at the train station. I just returned from picking her up."

Darius could not think nor breathe.

And then he scented the most wonderful fragrance in the world, sweet freesia and cold snow and a hint of wood-smoke. Darius scrambled to his feet, clenching his fists, not daring to hope.

Aiden went to the door. "Yo, Sam, you still out there, listening? Come on in, honey, before this big lug faints on me."

Sam stepped through the doorway, her eyes glittering with tears. She wore jeans and a white button-down shirt. And brand new Western boots.

"This is where I belong. With you. My heart knew it, but my head was just too stubborn to admit it." She glanced at Aiden, who stood against the doorframe, grinning his fool head off. "And when Aiden told me what the pack was willing to do, for you, I realized that's the kind of home I want. All this time, I've worried that being in pack meant the needs of the one were always outweighed by the needs of the many. And I was wrong. They love you so much they're willing to give up everything for you, Darius. And if they can do it, so can I. Because I love you more."

"Well, not everything," Aiden drawled. "Jackson said we'd have to find a place with a DQ within thirty minutes driving time because there was no way in hell he'd give up ice cream."

"His favorite treat with his mate, Lexie," Darius murmured, still dazed that Sam stood before him.

"His favorite treat on Lexie," Aiden explained.

Aiden laughed at Sam's startled expression. He clapped Darius on the shoulder. "I'll leave you two alone." He bent over and picked up the paper airplane. "I take it you won't be needing this anymore?"

Darius shook his head, still staring at Sam.

The door closed softly behind Aiden. Sam shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, looking uncertain. "Darius, are you okay? You're acting as if you aren't happy about this?"

He swallowed hard. "Sam, I'm standing here, afraid to breathe, afraid to move because I'm terrified this is a dream and I'll wake up. I lost you ten years ago, and found you, and two weeks ago I thought I'd lost you again and all I'd have of you for the rest of my life were dreams. Tell me it's no dream."

A soft smile touched her mouth. She went to him and cupped his face. "It's no dream."

Her mouth felt warm and soft against his as she kissed him. Darius kept his eyes open, his body stiff.

And then she drew back, mischief glinting her gaze. "If that's your idea of a welcome home kiss, we're going to need lessons, wolf."

This time, he kissed her with all the passion pent up inside him. When they broke apart, she smiled, her expression tender.

"That's more like my wolf."

Darius went to the small leather sofa and sat, pulling her onto his lap. For a minute, he rested there, stroking her hair, not wanting to break the joy of the moment as she cuddled against his chest.

This is cuddling? his wolf asked.

Yes.