by Lauren Dane
Lex nodded once and turned back to the table and everyone picked up their utensils and began to eat as the tension eased from the room.
Carter moved around the table and sat at Cade’s left hand and looked down as he filled his plate.
“So, Nina, Rey said you own a flower shop?” Eric asked her smoothly.
Nina liked him for trying to ease the tension for her. “Yes, in Bellevue, as a matter of fact.” She deftly blocked Lex’s attempt to put three rolls on her plate, taking one and passing them on to Cade, who winked at her as he took the basket.
“Her shop is about three miles from the coffee shop,” Lex said and frowned at her when she stabbed his hand with a fork when he tried to put another spoonful of potatoes on her plate.
Nina looked down the table. No less than four people rushed to ask her what she needed.
“Green vegetables? Salad?” Nina looked at the food laid out on the table.
They all looked at her blankly until Tracy laughed. “We’ll have to lay in supplies of green vegetables for you. Wolves aren’t much for salad.”
“Oh my goodness! Let me run to the store,” one of the wolves down at the far end of the table called out.
“No! It’s okay, really.” Nina held her hand up to stay her.
“Are you sure?” Cade asked.
“Of course. Sheesh, I was just looking for some green beans, I didn’t mean to start anything.” She barely held back her snarky comment but she didn’t want to challenge his authority here with his Pack.
Lex kissed her temple. “We’ll be sure to provide them for you next time.”
She smiled at him and looked back to Eric. “So anyway, yes, I own a floral shop. I know Carter runs one coffee shop and Melissa the other, what do you do?”
“Oh, I help with the construction business. I do accounts payable and receivable and the ordering.”
Carter steamed as he watched them all. He smiled and made nice but he couldn’t believe he’d been made to prostrate himself like that before Cade—and over a human! She was pretty hot, though. He’d lay odds she’d be a tiger in the sack. Maybe he’d order the Rogues to subdue her so he could have a bit of quality time with her before he killed her.
That would be win-win for him because the grief, even with the tri-bond, would drag Lex down and he could be killed too, leaving Cade vulnerable. Maybe Carter would be running this Pack six months from now.
After they finished dinner, they got up and moved into the large living room where they mingled and Nina met the other Pack members who were there. It was nice that Tracy and Layla and Sid were there and their other sisters Megan and Tegan were part of the guard. It was a relief to have friendly faces that she knew were in her corner.
Lex kept looking toward the door until Nina finally rolled her eyes and sighed. “Jeez, what is it already? You keep looking at that door and it’s working my last nerve.”
“I need to go deal with something. Pack business. I’m going to get Megan over here before I do though.”
Megan was part of Cade’s guard but she was also being chatted up by a very cute wolf at the other end of the room. Nina put a hand out to stop him. “Oh for heaven’s sake! I’m surrounded by your family, I’ll be fine. I’ll find someone to talk to.” Which was part of their plan anyway.
He looked around and then back at her. “I’ll be back in five minutes. Just don’t leave this room.”
“Okay, Dad. I won’t run with scissors either.”
He tried not to smile and failed. God, she was so totally irreverent. He dropped a kiss on her lips and left the room.
“You’re a lucky girl,” one of the women who’d had a not-so-friendly face on said as she sidled up to Nina. “You hit the jackpot with Lex.”
“Yes, well. I think so.” Nina smiled and resisted cracking on the cow, who was totally asking for it.
“He’s very good in bed.”
Nina smiled. “Yes, I know.”
“This must be so awkward for you, being the only human here and all. Surrounded by people who all know your...man better than you,” Red said with a pout.
A laugh burst from Nina’s lips. “Not as awkward as it must be for you. Honey, please. If you bent around any harder trying to let me know you fucked Lex to try and make me feel bad, you’d be a pretzel. Although you’re about as smart as one.”
Red’s eyes narrowed and she moved in to try and menace Nina with her body. “Well! I was just trying to be friendly. It’s not my fault Lex can’t get enough women in his bed. He particularly likes the way I give head. I’m sure that it won’t be a threat to your mate bond when he seeks me out. After all, you’re only human. You can’t possibly give him what he needs.”
Nina didn’t move an inch. “Look, Floozy McSkank, get the fuck out of my face or you’ll find out just how well a human can defend herself,” she said in a low voice.
Suddenly Tracy was at her side and Melissa on the other. “Cindy, you need to apologize for your behavior right now,” Melissa said.
The room got silent again and Nina groaned and rolled her eyes. “It’s fine. Ol’ Floozy here was just about to move along. Right after I told her that if she ever so much as looked at Lex again I’d carve her eyes out with a plastic spoon.”
Cindy’s eyes widened and she took a step back and lowered her eyes. “I apologize.”
Nina sighed and turned her back and saw Lex moving back into the room with alarming speed. “What is going on?” he demanded. “Are you all right?” He looked to Melissa and Tracy accusingly.
“She’s fine, Lex. She held her own just fine.” Tracy patted his arm and laughed as she and Melissa moved away. Frowning, he pulled Nina out into the hallway, away from the crowd.
“I was only gone for six minutes! Damn it, Nina! I shouldn’t have left you alone.”
“Lex, chill out or you’ll pop a vein for god’s sake. Everything is fine. It was a stupid girl thing. One of your chippies wanted to try and tell me you’d fucked her. As if that was news. You can’t rush to my aid when stuff like that happens, it undermines me.”
“Nina...”
She put her fingers over his lips. “Why don’t you show me the rest of the house?”
He sighed and held his arm out and she took it. Once they were in the business office she shut the door and locked it. She moved to him and embraced him tightly, her lips going to his ear.
“We don’t have time for that,” he said teasingly as his hands went to her ass.
“Get over yourself. You have to leave me alone long enough to talk with people or this won’t work,” she said quietly into his ear.
He stiffened. “This is too dangerous. You saw how hostile Carter was earlier.”
“That wasn’t hostile, that was stupid. Anyway, we’re in a house full of people, no one is going to hurt me. But I can’t even start poking around if you won’t leave me alone for two minutes. Go find Cade and leave me to mingle.”
“Nina, you don’t know werewolf culture very well. You could unwittingly offend or start something and it could go off the rails before you know it. You have to watch yourself and what you say. And Cade is...busy.”
“Ahhh, gotcha. I thought I saw him making eyes at that chick with the cute jeans and pretty eyes.” Nina pulled back and looked into his face. She twined her arms about his neck. “Well, I’d tell you to do what you normally do at these things but I have a feeling that involved you getting busy and since I’d have to kill you if you even thought about fucking another woman, I’ll have to advise you to mingle or take a phone call instead. I’ll be good. I promise not to start a war or anything.”
He looked dubious but sighed because he knew she had her mind set on this stupid plan. “You have ten minutes, Nina, and I’m not leaving the room.”
She tiptoed up and kissed his lips qui
ckly. “Okay.” Grinning, she bounded out of the room and he followed her out, glad she couldn’t see him roll his eyes.
But Melissa only wanted to talk about where Nina got her boots and Eric was too busy staring at her breasts to say anything interesting. Nine minutes and fifty-eight seconds later, Lex showed up at her side and put his arm around her waist.
Carter came around then, slobbering all over Lex. “So wow, congratulations, Lex! Who’d have thought, huh? Rey’s sister? Under your nose all this time and everything.”
He turned to Nina and gave her a look that was supposed to be pitying, but was really so artificial that she wanted to gag. “Welcome to the Pack, Nina. How come we’ve never seen you before? Were you and Rey close?”
Nina hated this asshole with the heat of ten thousand suns. How smarmy can you be? He was clearly fishing and using her dead brother to do it. “Rey and I were close in our own way. He came to me when he had a problem. But once he got bit he was very involved with Pack life and I had a business to run.” She squeezed Lex’s hand tight. “But I’m so glad he came to me at the end with that laptop.”
Melissa’s eyes lit with interest as Carter leaned forward. “Laptop? Do you mean you have something of Rey’s? That could help find who killed him?” Carter said this, his voice filled with faux concern for Gabriel.
“We don’t know what’s on it but we hope so. He said some stuff, thought some answers were on the laptop. Oh, I suppose I shouldn’t say anything else.” Nina tried her best to sound clueless about the laptop.
Lex watched Eric’s indolent posture change as Nina spun the story. He saw Melissa’s interest and Carter’s barely restrained curiosity.
“Well, I know a little bit about computers if you want help,” Eric said, his eyes straying yet again to Nina’s breasts.
“Will you excuse me a moment?” Nina asked them.
Lex looked down at her with alarm. “Are you all right?”
She shook her head at him and laughed. “Yes, I’m fine. I just need to go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back. Stop being such a mother hen.” She reached out and touched his face briefly and sauntered out.
Lex watched her until she turned the corner and had to ruthlessly hold himself in place to keep from following her. His mate was trouble and she invited it wherever she went but if he followed her to the bathroom, she’d kick his ass.
Instead he took his frustration out on Eric. “Pup, I appreciate the offer of help with the computer but if I ever catch you looking at my mate’s breasts like that again, I’ll rip your head from your body and beat you with your spine. Are we clear?”
Eric’s blinked several times and he swallowed and dropped his gaze. “Yes, Enforcer.”
Melissa laughed. “She’s quite lovely, Lex. Strong. She’ll be good for the Pack. Will she change soon?”
“That’s for Nina to decide and not right now. She just lost a brother and her house was burned down by one of our own. You can’t blame her for not trusting us completely,” Cade said this with a bit of an edge in his voice as he came to stand next to Lex.
“So are you speaking for her now? I thought Lex was her mate.” Carter wore a smirk as he spoke.
“I’m her Alpha and her anchor. That’s enough.”
“But he’s not speaking for her, in any case, Carter. He’s making a statement of fact.” Lex glared at the other man. “She lost her brother. She’s devastated and I’d never ask her to make such a big decision right now.”
“Like being claimed?” Eric asked.
“You know that’s just how it works, Eric,” Melissa said with annoyance. “A mate is a mate. You can’t change that. But becoming a new species, that’s a big deal. Lex is right to wait.”
“You think she’d want to change. It would make her stronger and faster, extend her lifespan. It would improve her in many ways,” Eric said.
“God, what kind of pond scum was Rey, then? I mean, I know humans are bad but if being changed makes them better, he must have been one step below trash before he got bit.”
“What did you just say?” Nina said, shoving her way through Cade and Lex and into Carter’s face.
Lex moved closer trying to protect her. The room had gone silent and everyone was watching the exchange. “Honey, let me handle this,” he murmured.
She turned and her eyes flashed at him with unshed tears. Her turmoil was clear in them, her guilt and rage. “Back off,” she hissed and turned back to Carter.
“I...uh...”
“Yeah, that seems to be all you’ve got when someone confronts your bullshit attitude.” She looked around the room. “You all feel the same way? That humans are scum? That my brother was trash?”
“Nina, honey,” Cade said, an edge creeping into his voice. Things could go bad with a moment’s notice with wolves and she was so damned fearless.
“Don’t you ‘Nina, honey’ me! He said it right in front of you and you didn’t say anything. My brother died for you people. He may not have been Mr. Upstanding Citizen, but he wasn’t trash. From what I can tell, he ran your errands and took care of things for you so your hands didn’t get dirty.”
“I didn’t say anything because you stormed in here before Lex or I could get a word out. You need to let me handle this,” Cade warned and reached out but she stepped away and his eyebrows went up.
Nina turned back to Carter. “So, big man, say it. Or are you too much a coward to say it to my face? Huh?”
“Nina!” Lex said, grabbing her arm, pulling her back from Carter.
“Control your mate,” Carter snarled and Nina broke free and was on Carter, knocking him to the ground. The heel of her hand was lodged against his windpipe, knees against his arms.
“Control this, you piece of shit!”
Lex pulled her off Carter, amazed at how fast and vicious she was for a human. He snarled at Carter, who was gasping for breath. Nina kicked and tried to break free.
“Put me down! Now, damn it!”
“Nina! Calm yourself. It’s over. You proved your point,” Cade said as she struggled in Lex’s arms.
“I call a challenge!” Carter said as he got up.
The room erupted in a chorus of argument then.
“You’ll stand down right now, Carter,” Cade warned.
“She drew first blood. She disrespected my station. She’s not a wolf, she doesn’t have Lex’s status. I use my right to challenge.”
“If you do this, Carter, you’ll be sorry,” Lex growled.
“You bring this human into this house and she disrespects the Third and I’m supposed to be silent about it?”
“Carter, you started it. Come on, she’s a human! She has no chance to defeat you,” Melissa said urgently.
“Shut up or I’ll challenge you after I kill her,” Carter snarled.
Lex dropped Nina and lunged, grabbing Carter by the throat and backing him against a wall. “If I kill you first, it’ll save us all the trouble.”
“Lex! Stand down,” Cade called out and Nina turned to face him, confusion on her face.
“You think I’m going to let this piece of shit kill my mate?” Lex asked, his voice less human than it had been just a moment before. His eyes had taken on a sort of luminous quality.
Tracy had moved to Nina’s side and Megan, her sister-in-law who was one of Cade’s guards, was on the other. The rest of Cade’s guards were in the room, fanned out, waiting.
“You cannot interfere with a challenge! This is Pack territory. As Third, it’s his right to challenge anyone who threatens his position. You would be subjecting yourself to censure and shunning if you interfere in that.” Cade’s voice was clear and unwavering but Nina felt his pain. Lex moved his hands away from Carter’s throat but stayed close to him, effectively keeping his back to the wall.
Cade turne
d back to Nina. “But I’m sure that Carter understands how upsetting his comments were to Nina, who just lost her brother and to one of us. I’m sure that we can forget this whole stupid incident once everyone just calms down.”
“I want this bitch’s apology and I want her to show obeisance,” Carter called out.
A collective gasp of outrage rippled through the room.
“Someone mind telling me what the fuck is going on?” Nina said.
“When you knocked Carter down in front of the Pack you showed him disrespect. And you nicked him and drew blood. As Third, it’s his right to challenge anyone who is lower in rank than he is for such acts,” Tracy murmured.
“Lower in rank? Challenge?”
“As a human, you don’t have the same rank as your mate like you would if you were a werewolf. Essentially, you’re a guest in the Pack, not a member of it. At least not in the sense that Lex is a member.”
“Lovely. How equitable your society is. And this challenge is what? He wants to smack me around?”
Tracy paled. “No. Unless the challenger calls it off, a challenge is to the death.”
“Are you kidding me? This asshole insults me, insults my brother and wants me to apologize or he’ll use his genetically superior strength and speed to kill me?” She turned and looked back at Carter, body still hemmed in by Lex. “Very brave of him. I can see why he’s so high up in the Pack.”
Nina moved closer to Megan.
“I’ll challenge him first. By challenging my mate, he’s disrespected me,” Lex called out.
“That’s not how it works and you know it,” Cade said. “You can challenge him...after.”
Cade turned to Nina. “Honey, I know this is hard but if you apologize it’ll all be over.” His voice was hard but she could see the pleading in his eyes.
“Not just an apology, Cade. I want her obeisance too,” Carter called out.
“He wants you to apologize the way he did earlier,” Megan said quietly.
“This asshat wants me on my knees kissing his shoes when he called my brother trash?”
“Nina, please,” Lex begged, coming toward her. “Please, just apologize.”