by Bru Baker
She had. Anne Marie took her job as director seriously. She was their de facto Alpha, and she made their business her business. It was irritating at times, but it really did make the staff feel like a family. A Pack.
Jackson wrapped Harris in a hug from behind, resting his chin against Harris’s shoulder. “I guess we’d better book those tickets to New York, then, huh?”
Chapter Sixteen
JACKSON left Harris happily geeking out over Tate’s offices. Well, they were about to be their offices. He could tell from the excitement on his mate’s face that Harris wanted to say yes to the offer. Jackson wasn’t going to stand in the way of that, especially since New York City would have a lot of opportunities for him.
There were a few supernatural protection agencies he could work for, or he could stay in law enforcement. Either way, he’d be doing something he loved, and he’d be with Harris. Win-win.
A Were about his age named Stephen picked him up from Tate’s offices to give him a tour of the city. It was a nice gesture from the local Alpha. Jackson was anxious to meet with the Pack, since if they moved here they’d be joining it. Harris had already met the Alpha, since his children had attended Camp H.O.W.L. for their Turns.
“The Pack compound in the city is actually an apartment building,” Stephen said, easing the car into an alley that led to a parking garage. He opened the grate with a fob and drove in. “Alpha Connoll has the penthouse, and a good number of the Pack live here. We have a few empty apartments, so if you and your mate join us, you’d be invited to rent here.”
An entire apartment building full of Weres? “There aren’t any humans here?”
“No. The Pack owns the building and operates it as a private co-op. Apartments never go on the open market. Pack allies are also welcome to live here, so you’ll see other shifters and a few nymphs. We have alliances with all of the local supernatural groups.”
It was so different from St. Louis. The Pack there was large, but they all had their own homes spread out across the city. The Pack compound was on the outskirts of the city, where there was room to have acres of land the Pack could run.
“How do you handle full moons?”
Stephen parked the car and led Jackson to an elevator. “We have land outside the city. It’s about an hour’s drive. There’s a Pack house there, but most of us camp unless it’s really cold. We don’t get much nature, so the time we do spend out there we tend to go all wolf and stay outside.”
It made sense. Jackson had lived in Lexington long enough to appreciate the freedom he’d grown up with living in the Pack house in St. Louis. He couldn’t imagine spending the year after his Turn worrying about exposing the werewolf secret if he wolfed out at home in the yard.
“We’ve converted the basement to a place we can shift and play,” Stephen explained. He hit the penthouse button. “There are obstacles to climb and a lot of greenery. Alpha Connoll installed growing lights down there so we can have real plants, and everyone jokes that the Pack is going to get busted for growing pot because of them.” He looked at Jackson nervously. “We don’t, of course. Alpha Connoll told me you’re a police officer.”
“A drug enforcement officer, actually,” he said, chuckling when Stephen paled. “But don’t worry. We’d need a lot more red flags than ordering growing lights before you merited a raid. You’re safe.”
Stephen nodded, blowing out a breath. “We have a few Pack members in law enforcement. They keep an ear to the ground.”
“And help cover up things too,” Jackson said, nodding in approval. “A Pack your size should have people integrated at every level of city government.”
“One of the Alpha’s sons works in the mayor’s office,” Stephen said, his pride in his Pack showing in his tone. “And Adrian—you know him, I think? He’s in the city planner’s office now. We also have a Pack member who’s a social worker. He keeps an eye out for supernatural kids who might have been funneled into the foster system.”
It was impressive. The Pack took its role seriously in the city, protecting the supernatural residents as well as its own members. And if a few of the Pack were already in law enforcement, maybe they could help him get a job.
“Alpha Connoll wanted to meet with you. When you two are done, I can show you around the building.”
Jackson swallowed his surprise, trying to look nonchalant.
“That would be great,” Jackson said.
When it became clear Stephen wasn’t going to step off the elevator with him, Jackson reached out to shake his hand. Stephen tilted his head and cast his eyes down, a traditional sign of deference for a higher-ranking Pack member. It was strange, but it felt right. Jackson thought about all the times he’d seen someone do this for his father. He reached out and lightly scented Stephen, his wrist grazing Stephen’s neck. He wondered if all the Pack members were so deferential, or if it was specific to Stephen. Stephen shouldn’t be averting his eyes to a visitor—he had to have a decent place in the Pack if the Alpha trusted him to speak on its behalf.
Jackson stepped out into an opulent hallway. Between the marble floor and the deep cherry wainscoting, it looked like an expensive hotel, not someone’s personal apartment. He crossed the small lobby in three steps and rang the bell next to the only door he could see.
Jackson stepped back when the Alpha himself opened it. He was a big man with silvering hair and laugh lines. Jackson liked him immediately. He radiated authority but also kindness.
Jackson tilted his head, averting his eyes in the traditional greeting for someone of higher rank. The Alpha rumbled out a laugh and ran a wrist across the skin, then clapped him on the back.
“You were raised right, kiddo,” he said, stepping back and inviting Jackson in. “Your dad is the Second for the Garrison Pack, right? I’ve met him a few times. Nice guy. Brutally efficient when he needs to be.”
It was a high compliment coming from an Alpha. As the Pack Second, all the dirty work fell to his dad. He was in charge of solving problems—no questions asked. Jackson had wanted to be exactly like him for as long as he could remember.
“Thank you, Alpha Connoll. I am honored to be here. Thank you for your kind invitation. Stephen has been quite the tour guide.”
Alpha Connoll laughed. “Laid it on thick, did he? This is his first time as a Pack liaison, and he’s itching to show me he’s big enough for the britches.”
“He’s done you proud, sir.”
“I’m sure he has. He’s been in training for over a year. Our current liaison is retiring in the spring, and Stephen is being groomed as her replacement. He’s her son, so there’s a lot of pressure on him to do well.”
Alpha Connoll led Jackson over to a small bar and offered him a drink, which Jackson declined. It was just the two of them, and he couldn’t let the Alpha serve him. It was basic Were etiquette, and he couldn’t afford any missteps if he hoped to have a place in the Pack.
The Alpha nodded approvingly, moving them over to the couch. Jackson waited until the Alpha settled in a recliner before he took his seat. It earned him another smile, and he couldn’t help but think this meeting was a series of tests to feel out Jackson’s worthiness. He was determined to pass them.
“I don’t usually meet with prospective Pack members this early,” Alpha Connoll said, giving Jackson an assessing look. “But you knew that.”
It was extremely rare for an Alpha to meet with a Were bidding to join their Pack this early in the process. Jackson had expected to meet with the Pack liaison, and if that went well, the Second, before meeting with Alpha Connoll.
“My Second’s daughter is marrying into a Pack in Pennsylvania,” Alpha Connoll said. “He petitioned to go with her. She’s all the family he has, and he wants to be close to her and her pups. I don’t have anyone internally that’s a good choice for his replacement.”
Normally in a Pack this size, the Second would have a Second of his own, someone who was being trained to take over. It was odd that the Connoll Pack didn’
t.
“My daughter had been training for the position, but she and the Alpha-in-Training aren’t a good fit. I love my kids, but they are enough to try the patience of Job. I thought they’d grow out of this antagonism, but they haven’t.” He held a hand up like he expected Jackson to interject, which he would never do. “They’re in their thirties. If it’s not better by now, it’s not going to get better. So we need to look externally for a Second. I’ve been watching your career, son. I’m impressed. And when you found your mate and torched your career for him? I was cheering on the sidelines.”
Alpha Connoll must have been the second Alpha on the Tribunal who supported sending the Enforcers in to rescue Harris and Candice.
“Sir, I wouldn’t say I torched my career. I still have a deep commitment to working in law enforcement and Pack politics. I—”
The Alpha waved away his protest. “Son, it was a compliment. You walked away from something you’ve been training to do for your entire life—something most Weres consider the highest honor in Pack politics—for love. That takes guts. And it shows how much you value your word. To borrow a phrase from my youngest, coming into the Tribunal and looking us in the eye and turning that job down was badass.”
Jackson flushed and looked away. He’d assumed the Tribunal Alphas thought he was weak after he’d turned the job down. It was nice to hear at least one of them didn’t.
“The way you were able to put your personal feelings aside and run a rescue mission shows me you’ve got an iron will too.”
“Oh, sir. I didn’t run that mission. Enforcer Abernathy did.”
Alpha Connoll’s laugh filled the room. “Trust me, I read the report. You had a significant role in it. Abernathy was beyond impressed with you. In fact, she even petitioned the Tribunal to see if we would make an exception to the bond rule for you.”
Jackson’s heart leaped.
“Unfortunately, we can’t. It’s there for a good reason. As you well know.” The Alpha reached out and pushed a thick file folder across the table. “These are the details of the Connoll Pack. Number of members, Pack affiliations, all the treaties we’ve signed in the last twenty years. The alliances we’re duty bound to uphold. The threats we face. Take some time, look it over. Stephen will set you up in an empty apartment on the floor below this one. Get to know my Pack, and if you like what you see, you can come on the next full-moon run with us.”
Jackson took the folder. He felt like he was a beat behind. “Sir?”
Alpha Connoll stood, and Jackson followed on autopilot. The Alpha put a hand on Jackson’s shoulder and squeezed it. “I think you’d be an outstanding Second for this Pack. You have a good head on your shoulders, and you’re obviously good at what you do. Your work with Fang and Fury puts you in a position to be able to handle electronic surveillance and security for the Pack, which is something we’ve had to outsource until now. Read through that. Talk it over with your mate. And if you two are up for it, we’ll give it a test run at the full moon. If you can get along with my hard-headed son and the rest of the Pack, the job is yours.”
Jackson was speechless. Alpha Connoll had turned his world upside down. He’d resigned himself to never achieving his goal, and now it was being handed to him on a silver platter.
Jackson followed the Alpha to the door, relieved to see Stephen standing there when it opened. Stephen was beaming at him, grinning ear-to-ear when he saw the thick file. “It went well, then. Awesome!”
The Alpha laughed. “Get him some lunch, Stephen. Kid’s going to go into shock if you don’t get some sugar into him.”
Jackson grimaced. He’d been so overwhelmed that he’d forgotten his manners.
“I apologize, Alpha Connoll,” he said, tilting his head again. “Thank you for this generous offer. I look forward to getting to know your Pack.”
The Alpha didn’t seem big on propriety because he brushed the apology off. “Don’t worry about it. This is a lot, and I ambushed you. Take as much time as you need. If you have any questions, let Stephen know, and he can get you the answers. Most of the Pack will be leaving for the cabin tomorrow at noon. We like to spend a few days out there before the moon when it’s possible. Both you and your mate are welcome to run with us, and there will be a room for you at the Pack house. Stephen can arrange transportation for you.”
Jackson couldn’t do much more than nod. Stephen took pity on him and guided him into the elevator with a wink. He took him down a floor and used a set of keys to let him into one of the apartments.
“There are two on this floor. Our current Second is in the other one, but this one is empty at the moment. There’s a private stairwell up to the Alpha’s quarters, so it’s reserved for family or Seconds.”
It wasn’t furnished, but it had soapstone countertops and wood floors that were the same burnished color as the wainscoting in the hallway. The walls were all painted white, and there were a few gigantic windows looking out over the city. The kitchen and sitting room blended together into one big space, with two hallways leading off it.
“Three bedrooms down here,” Stephen said, waving toward one hallway, “and a study and library this way. The study opens into the master suite, which is also down that hallway.”
Jackson was floored by how open the space was. The ceilings must have been nine or ten feet. It didn’t feel like stuffy apartment. It felt like a space a Were could be comfortable in. “Are all the apartments this big?”
“They all have the high ceilings, but most aren’t quite as large as this. There are only two apartments on this floor. Most of the floors have four to six apartments. We also have an entire floor in the middle dedicated to a nursery school and play space.”
This was amazing. Jackson put his file folder on the counter and pulled up a stool. He was trying hard not to get attached, but he could already picture Harris cooking at the gas range in the corner.
“I’ll leave you to look through that. What would you like for lunch?”
Jackson shrugged. “Whatever’s easy.”
Stephen rolled his eyes, then seemed to realize that wasn’t becoming of a Pack liaison. “Sorry. I’ll pick up an assortment of sandwiches. Would you like me to have your mate brought here when he’s done with Dr. Lewis?”
Jackson had already started in on the paperwork. “Please,” he said, turning another page. Even the Pack financials were here. Alpha Connoll must be dead serious about his offer if he was giving Jackson this kind of insight without a commitment from him. Then again, he’d be crazy to turn this offer down. The Alpha had to know that.
He glanced at his phone after Stephen let himself out, wondering if he should text Harris. This was big news and his first instinct was to share it with his mate.
Signing the paperwork with Tate yet?
A second later his phone dinged.
You know I wouldn’t without talking to you. But he may or may not be having a lawyer draw them up.
Jackson grinned. This was perfect. They could both be happy here without giving anything up.
I might have a job offer.
Harris responded with a key smash of characters, most of them exclamation points.
I’m not surprised. You’re amazing.
Jackson grinned. He’d wait to drop exactly what the offer was on Harris until they were together. He wanted to see his mate’s face when he told him that being mated to him had helped all his dreams come true.
Chapter Seventeen
Three months later
JACKSON tugged at his sweaty T-shirt, pulling it over his head the moment he entered his apartment. The last time he’d led a sparring class shirtless, two girls and the Alpha’s youngest son Ryan ended up knocked on their asses and injured, so he’d adopted a strict no-nudity policy in the gym.
The Pack had balked when he’d suggested classes on how to fight, but once they’d realized how much fun it was, there had been a surge of interest.
Harris said it was because the teacher was hot, but Jackson thought he
was biased. The shirtlessness incident backed that theory up, which was why he now taught in a loose Camp H.O.W.L. T-shirt of Harris’s and basketball shorts.
“Honey, I’m home,” he called out. He tossed his T-shirt on the counter, doubling back when he thought about how angry Harris would be. He detoured into the laundry room instead, dutifully putting it in a pile of dirty clothes.
Their apartment was gorgeous, and letting it get cluttered would be a crime. Plus, as Second, their door was always open. Figuratively. He’d made the mistake of leaving it unlocked once, and he and Harris would probably never live it down.
Jackson heard voices in the study and made his way there. Harris was skyping Candice. Her latest movie premiere was next week in New York, and Harris was going with her.
Jackson peeked around the doorframe, his mouth going dry when he saw Harris had been modeling the tuxedo Candice’s agent sent over for him. Jackson whistled, making Candice laugh and Harris blush.
“Looks like you’ve got a half-naked mate who wants your attention,” she teased. “Hi, Jackson!”
Jackson grinned and slid into the chair Harris had vacated so he could see the screen. “Hey, Candice. We still on for ramen when you’re here?”
“Yes, God. Emma’s coming too, if that’s okay. They haven’t been letting me eat anything because they’re afraid I’m not going to be able to fit into the dress Dior is lending me for the premiere. I’ve been eating protein bars in the bathroom to get enough calories.”
Jackson laughed. “I keep telling you we need to find you a supernatural agent.”
She rolled her eyes. “I know.”
“We’ll do some looking when you’re here,” he said. He pressed a sloppy kiss to Harris’s cheek and sauntered out of the room, giving him a heated look where he knew the camera wouldn’t catch it.
“Gotta go,” Harris said. Jackson could feel his eyes on him, so he swept his basketball shorts and boxers off, adding a swagger to his hips as he walked into their bedroom. “See you next week, sweetie. You’re still staying here?”