What This Wolf Wants by Jennifer Dellerman Read Free Book Online Page B

shortly after.” He reached for another potato, organizing his thoughts away from what he’d thought horrible nightmares and not reality. Though the memories were no longer confusing, the terror and blood he’d witnessed at such a young age had left him with many agonizing nights, until he’d finally been told the truth and been able to understand and separate his past family with his current one. Truth, to him, was big on his list. He couldn’t stand liars, which was in itself a double standard considering some of the lies he’d effortlessly spewed out during his missions.
    “Zan?”
    He looked up to see Jackie watching him, the concern in her expression making him want to cuddle her close. Which was odd because while he was instinctively a protector and enjoyed, even craved, touch like any other shifter, he wasn’t a cuddler. Just ask any of his past lovers.
    Flashing a wry smile he said, “Sorry. Where was I? Oh, yes.
    Luckily for me, a special man found us. I call him special because, though not one himself, he knew about shifters and placed me with a loving shifter family. So there I was, thinking I was the middle child until my sister drops the bomb on me. To this day she remains mortified at her outburst. But I forgave her long ago.”
    Intrigued, Jackie asked, “Was that when you found out your brother was still alive?”
    “No, not then. My mom—my adopted mom—showed me this necklace that my birth mother had. It was made of wood and had two names carved into it, one on each side. Deanato and Alexander. That’s when I was told that my family was killed when I was six.”
    “That must have been horrible to hear.”
    Jackie reached out and touched his forearm, stilling his hand. He’d been chopping faster as he spoke, remembering how angry and betrayed he’d felt at the time. But with Jackie’s casual touch, the tension simply melted away.
    This must be why Mom touched Dad when he’d get so upset with us kids.
    Zan allowed himself a moment to marvel at this bit of information before he continued with his story. “It was. I’d lost what I barely remembered, but it still hurt. Then something happened when I was twenty-six that gave me hope. I was coming back from a mis…trip when this woman ran up to me, laughing, at the airport. I was exhausted and wasn’t really paying attention, until she called me Dean.” He pointed the knife at Jackie. “Now that stopped me in my tracks. When I turned, she apologized, said I wasn’t who she thought but that I looked so much like him we could be brothers. Before I could even comprehend what was happening, she disappeared into the crowd.”
    Zan focused his gaze directly on Jackie, his next words unmistakable in their double meaning. “I lost my chance at finding my brother then. That experience taught me to never again hesitate when what I want is within my grasp.”
    Jackie cautiously eased back into her chair, her expression not unlike prey caught in a trap.
    “So now you know your bro’s alive.” Ben broke the invisible connection by stepping into his line of sight and picking up the chopped potatoes. “Why’d it take so many years to locate him— since I guess you’re older than twenty-six?”
    Unconsciously, Zan twirled the knife in his right hand. “All I had was a first name and the fact he looked like me. I don’t remember a last name, though now I know that Kinigos was the pack name. Using what little I knew, I began searching various photo IDs, filtering for first name Dean and green eyes.” His eyes were hot and frustrated. “You want to know how many men named Dean who have green eyes live in the United States alone?”
    Ben pressed his lips together. “Not really. But I would like to know how you got access to that kind of information.” Oops .
    He didn’t lie when he said, ”I have military access to all kinds of data.”
    “So you’re in the military? What branch?” Ben casually asked as he placed the potatoes in a pan to fry