Liam

Leyburn pack and his mate, Patrick Holland, the pack Alpha's brother, came to stay for a while. Their visit had been interesting to say the least, and Liam really couldn't be more pleased Jake and Rick had finally sorted out all their problems and settled down into mated bliss. Liam wanted what they had so badly he could almost taste it. He wished he could be so lucky. Liam had been searching a long time for his mate. Being one of the Betas required a great deal of travel, visiting other packs on behalf of the Alpha. He enjoyed the travel as it made it easier for him to continue his search for his mate. Liam had also been born with a gift. Not many wolves that he knew of had additional abilities to the ones they all had of super strength, enhanced sight and hearing, immunity to disease, and a longer life span.
Liam could see mate threads. Every shifter he'd ever met had a distinctive strand that searched for its other half.
As soon as Liam met the second half of a pair, a connection formed in his mind, letting him know who they were matched with. He would then let the person know where they could find their mate. He hadn't yet encountered anyone who hadn't been overjoyed at the prospect of finding their soul-mate.
But throughout all the travelling and visiting of different packs, and all the couples he had helped join together, he still hadn't met his own mate. Liam longed to have a soul deep connection with a man. He wanted to love, to wake up and see the same pair of emerald green eyes every day for the rest of his life. He had no idea how he knew what colour eyes his mate had, but something deep down inside told him he would be looking into deep green eyes.
Pushing his morose thoughts to the back of his mind, Liam removed the keys from the ignition, got out of his truck and headed for the mailbox out front by the curb.
He had forgotten to check it on Friday. After he removed what looked like two bills, he turned towards his front door, feeling the hair on the back of his arms stand up. Liam looked around, but even with his enhanced sight, couldn't see anything in the gathering darkness. Lifting his head, Liam sniffed. He caught a slight, sweet scent on the air but before anything could register in his brain, the scent drifted away.
Not noticing anything else out of the ordinary, Liam unlocked his house and went inside. He dumped his wallet, keys, and mail on the small hallway table he had situated by the front door, kicked his work boots off, and flicked a light switch on. Liam flexed his toes. He didn't know if his wolf or his human half detested shoes more, but he always felt better when he could be barefoot.
Liam headed into the kitchen. Had a quick look in the fridge and not seeing anything that took his fancy, he opened the freezer. When in doubt, a nice juicy steak always did the trick. Pulling a pack of thick T-bones out of the freezer, Liam put them in the microwave to help the defrosting along.
Satisfied he had dinner under control for the time being, Liam grabbed a beer from the fridge. Bottle in hand, he headed down the hallway towards his bedroom, stripping his shirt as he went. The cool evening air hit his sweat-covered chest and caused his nipples to harden. He thought about lighting a fire to warm the place but decided to leave it until after he had checked his e-mails.
Even with the weather being cool during the day they were still doing hot sweaty work. Feeling better when the dirty material had been removed from his skin Liam threw the dirty clothes in his washing basket. He walked over to the small desk he'd set up in the corner of his room with his laptop.
Booting up the computer, Liam settled back and took a long swig of his ice cold beer. A wolf shifter's body always ran a little hotter than a human's and the cold beverage felt wonderful going down after a hard day at work. So much so that he didn't mind waiting for the computer to load all the start-up programs.

Declan felt confident he had managed to out-run the two Betas chasing him, so hopefully no one from his old pack knew of his whereabouts. He needed to contact his brother and let him know he was okay and it might be a while before he could return. Honestly, he had to admit to being a little worried about Tommy. Declan really hoped Alpha Wallis would leave his brother alone. Surely the man had to realise Declan couldn't have told his brother about what he had witnessed.
Once he'd finally made it to the town of Atherton, Declan had no idea what he should do next. Breathing deeply, the most amazing scent he'd ever smelled filled his nose and lungs, even better than fresh-baked bread or cinnamon rolls just out of the oven. His stomach rumbled violently at the thought of food. The faint smell drifted on the breeze, barely there at all, but something about it registered deep down inside Declan.
Deciding to follow his nose and see where it would lead him, Declan took off in the direction the scent originated. By the time he reached the house the aroma seemed strongest at, the waning sun had set and the temperature that had been cool to begin with dropped even lower.
Looking around to make sure no one was watching the trees behind the houses, Declan shifted, shivering as the cold night air hit the sweat currently beading on his body.
Not wanting anyone to see a naked man walk across the cleared area between the houses and the tree line, Declan sprinted towards the high fence. Once safely ensconced