Pride Before the Fall

by JoAnna Grace

  "Actually, I'm playing with your hard—" she stopped, tilted her head in a feline manner, sniffed.

  Kasey knew the minute she leaned in and inhaled that he was in trouble. All this time he'd hoped the candles would cover the scent his wolf gave off when it found his mate, but not in close proximity.

  "You sonofabitch!" She let go and backed away like she'd been burned. Long teeth exposed, Vivian hissed. "Get the hell away from me!" Her voice was gruff with the emerging of her cat.

  Tyrone came through the door upon hearing her yell. Vivian was behind him and guarded before she could register that he was in the room. "What the fuck?" He looked at Kasey, then Vivian, and back to Kasey. He wasn't an idiot, and the scent Kasey was giving off was much stronger than the candles. "V?"

  "I'm fine. We need a moment."

  Tyrone nodded. He might have shut the door, but he remained on the other side.

  When they were alone, Vivian was all business. She'd put the robe on and her cat was fully in her eyes. "I am not the mating kind, Kasey. So get the idea out of your head. I'm not like Melissa. There will never be one man for me. And it sure as hell won't be you. Just leave, okay? Take your money and go."

  Kasey touched her cheek. "Keep it," he whispered in her ear. "You're well worth twelve hundred. I would pay much more to see you again if that's the only way I can get you."

  Vivian's face showed her confusion. "Twelve?"

  "I gave Bristow a grand."

  Vivian's jaw tensed. "Asshole."

  "I'm sorry, but I had to know what was going on."

  Vivian shook her head. "No. Bristow. Asshole said you only paid eight hundred."

  "I'd be happy to have a talk with him." Kasey's timbre changed into his alpha mode. No one hurt what belonged to him.

  "I can handle my own business," she hissed.

  "Clearly." Kasey caught Vivian by the shoulders. "You know this has to end, right? You will stop doing this. Amilynn, too."

  Vivian brought her arms up to break his hold. At the same time she kicked one high heel right into his knee. "Don't think just because you let off some stench that you suddenly have the right to tell me what to do. I submit to no one. Man or beast."

  Kasey rubbed at his leg and let his wolf come out just enough to snarl at her. "You're mine now, Vivian. The wolf claims you."

  "The wolf can fuck himself." Vivian threw open the door and walked out, leaving Kasey hunched over.

  His kitty had some claws and he liked it.

  * * * * *

  Vivian, Amilynn and Conall walked into Bristow's office half an hour later. "How much have you screwed us out of?" She and Ami had added up how many private dances they had done in the last month alone and if Bristow was taking two hundred off the top, he owed them a nice chunk.

  "I don't know what you mean," he said, feigning innocence.

  Vivian jumped up on his desk, crouched down and grabbed his collar. "Listen to me, dick face, we know. You've been skimming off the top before you make the cut. That's not what we agreed to."

  Bristow, who was about to piss himself, shook his head. "No, no, Vivian. I wouldn't steal from you!"

  "Liar." She picked him up out of his chair and held him up off the ground with one hand. "I don't like crooks and I don't like liars. You're both. Tell me why I shouldn't flay your hide one layer at a time."

  Bristow kicked out his legs, his hands trying to pry Vivian off his neck. "I'll pay you back, I swear! I—I'm sorry."

  "You bet your ass you will." Vivian dropped him in his chair, nearly breaking the cheap plastic. "Then you can find yourself a new act. I don't work for people like you."

  The groveling began. Vivian knew it would. Bristow's nightclub had doubled its revenue since they'd come to work here. As he groveled, Bristow opened his safe and pulled out a stack of hundred dollar bills. "Here, take this. A—a—and that's only the beginning."

  If there was one thing that Vivian couldn't stand, it was weak, scummy men—human men even more so.

  Amilynn gathered the cash and saluted him with her middle finger. She and Conall backed off while Vivian left Bristow with a final promise.

  "You don't want to stay on my bad side. I'm not a nice person when you screw with my family." Vivian's nails elongated slightly and she drug her claws down the side of his desk leaving five scratches in the polished wood.

  Bristow pissed himself and it sickened her. She huffed at his lack of physical control and left.

  "Well, that was fun!" Amilynn grinned from ear to ear and fanned herself with the cash. Vivian rolled her eyes. Leave it to Ami to get off on intimidating humans.

  That morning, they went home and counted out the cash, dividing it equally between the five of them.

  "I know what I want to do this weekend!" Amilynn said enthusiastically. "I'm going dancing!"

  Conall sighed heavily, knowing he would have to go with her. "Ami, come on. You dance all the time. Have a little mercy, will ya?"

  Ami hopped into Conall's lap and snuggled against his neck. "You know you love taking me dancing." He hugged her, his arms nearly covering her whole body.

  He chuckled. "No, I really don't. Threatening off human perverts doesn't do it for me."

  Vivian, feeling rebellious, said, "I think we should all go out." Four sets of stunned eyes looked her way. "What?"

  "You want to go dancing... at a club... with human men making body contact?" Amilynn asked, her brows nearly reaching her hairline.

  "Yeah." Vivian nodded. "Look, for the first time in a long time, I think we're in a safe place. I don't think anyone from Nevada could pass into Kasey's territory without him knowing it. Why not let our hair down a little?"

  "She has a point," said Ty. "Unlike the other territories we've been in, the Blackburn Pack has meshed with society. Kasey has people everywhere. They don't live on a reservation secluded from humans. If any other cats were to come around, the wolves and bears would know it."

  "Even I've been more at ease here." Melissa leaned into Ty's arm. "I haven't felt the need to stay cat since we've moved in."

  That was rare. Melissa was most comfortable in her cat form. Her senses were more acute, and since Melissa's snow leopard was small, she could easily hide.

  "Then why not let loose and have some fun?" Ami hopped up and grabbed her wallet, heading for the door.

  "Where are you going?" Vivian laughed. "We can't go dancing at five in the morning!"

  "I'm going to get a magazine. I want some new clothing ideas. I plan on looking extremely hot when I let loose. Wanna come?"

  Vivian realized she was nowhere near sleepy even though she'd been up all night. "Hell, why not?"

  CHAPTER SIX

  Kasey paced his bedroom for hours that night. He couldn't possibly sleep after what happened with Vivian. The cat had made him as hard as a rock when she danced. It didn't help things when he'd scented her. He'd felt her cat, smelled the Needing coming upon her. The wolf inside him howled and clawed at his chest to get free. Mate. The word burned in his brain, straight from the heart of his wolf. The bastard had chosen a cat. Of all the women in his Pack or even of his sub-species, why did the wolf want a cat?

  On a human level, Kasey couldn't complain. Vivian was the finest of temptations wrapped in eroticism and dipped in untold pleasures. She was fire and passion and strong enough that his wolf didn't dismiss her like all the other women he'd taken to bed.

  Kasey had been forced to meet every single woman in his Pack and in the bear Clan. Mothers would send their daughters to him the minute they became of age to see if the alpha would connect. The few who made it past a first date rarely intrigued the man and never intrigued the wolf. At least not until the exotic feline sat in his office and asked to reside in his territory. Now the wolf was standing at attention, waiting for the man to catch up. The wolf had known all along. It took jealousy for the man to get the hint.

  The problem was that the wolf didn't have to deal with the political ramifications of mating a cat. Kasey rememb
ered when the bears had merged with his Pack. It was tense, but tolerable until a young male bear started dating a young female wolf. Kasey had to step in before both families went for blood.

  Of course, argued the wolf, that same young couple has now been married for fifteen years and has both wolf and bear offspring. Their families couldn't be happier. Your family will understand too.

  Kasey sat on the edge of his bed and put his head in his hands. A cat. A damned cat.

  No, said his wolf, not just a cat: a tigress, a goddess of the wild. She's strong. Vivian is the only type of woman who would ever hold our attention. We could never mate with a submissive woman. We need the challenge, the fight. Just think of how great the sex will be.

  Kasey popped to his feet and began pacing again. His wolf needed a muzzle.

  Kasey also thought about what Vivian did for rent money. The performing he could handle. The Pack could handle it. The Pride was talented beyond measure, and Vivian had a vocal gift he would never deny the world. But if they thought for a minute that Vivian and Amilynn were going to continue their illicit activities once Vivian stood at his side as alpha's mate, they had another thing coming. Kasey wouldn't be mated to a woman one step above a stripper. He was well enough off to provide for the entire Pride, no problems. This would stop and he would see to it.

  There was only one way to settle this. He took out his phone and fired a text to Vivian.

  We need 2 talk.

  * * * * *

  They had been right under his nose. Vivian and her traitorous band of scum had sent his best trackers on a while goose chase for years. Once in Chicago, Trace's tracker had nearly caught up to them. He'd been close. So fucking close.

  Now he sat behind his desk and stared down one of his senior officers and trackers. The man was supposed to be watching the local territory in Nevada. He wasn't surprised that Vivian had snuck back into the state under the radar. It was a bold move; the kind of thing he would do. What better place to hide than in Trace's back yard, the one place he should've had complete control over.

  But clearly didn't. That pissed him off.

  Trace motioned for the young woman standing beside his desk to pour him some water. The chains around her wrists jingled as she filled his glass, handed him the cup, and stood with her head down awaiting his next command. He tucked a wild strand of her blonde hair behind her ear and she flinched. Trace sneered and pushed her to the floor. The girl scrambled to get to her feet and take her place once more behind him. At least she knew where she belonged. Maybe he wouldn't have to whip her after all.

  After taking a purposefully long sip of his water, his eyes trained on the tracker, Trace stood, arranged his shirt and silently prowled to the man reporting in. The bastard had the nerve to shake, his eyes glued to the floor.

  "Are you sure you have nothing of use?" asked Trace's number two man, Rod.

  "The club owner merely said they had left as fast as they came. They were here about three months, worked the strip joint, played a few songs for the crowds, then one day took off. He said they didn't even collect their last week's pay."

  "So you were close to them." Rod concluded. "How long ago did they leave?"

  "He said it couldn't have been more than a week at best." The tracker spoke to Trace, "I nearly found them and if you let me pursue, I can find out what happened to make them leave so fast. I promise, Trace. Just give me another chance and I'll deliver the bitch."

  No doubt, if given another chance he would chase Vivian and her crew like the bulldog he was.

  Trace reached up and touched his cheek. The man whimpered. With a sigh, Trace stroked his head. This sniveling rat couldn't help that he was incompetent. He also couldn't help that Vivian had spent months living in the same state after moving around the country for years.

  Problem was, something made Vivian leave the state and it wasn't the man Trace had sent after her. Which meant this tracker wasn't as hot on her heels as he claimed.

  And Trace didn't believe in second chances.

  He twisted the tracker's neck before the man could blink.

  The body dropped to the floor at his feet. Ignoring the gasp from the young woman behind his desk, he stepped over the body and went to find something to fuck. Rod would clean up the mess.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  As soon as their show was over Saturday night, the Pride dressed up and went out on the town. There was an air of excitement—even the guys were frisky and loose. They found a club called Vibe that was featuring Latin music that night, their favorite.

  The moment they walked into the nightclub, they began dancing. Vivian didn't fail to register the wolf at the door, nor the bouncer watching the crowd from the edge of the stage where a live band was playing.

  Amilynn, who had never met a stranger on the dance floor, had a partner as soon as she stepped out. That girl was a born dancer. If she were human, Ami would be something of a prodigy. Latin, hip-hop, break dancing, ballet, it didn't matter. She picked up on dance choreography like Vivian picked up on lyrics. It made her a great fighter. Ami could detect body cues with lightning speed.

  Of course, she was exceptionally beautiful too. Her blonde hair, generous boobs, and flirtatious smile had men waiting in line to dance with her. She would audition them all, but always ended tearing up the floor with the one most skilled.

  Vivian didn't have the breasts Amilynn had, but she had long legs that received just as much attention. While Ami wore low cut dresses that showed off her assets, Vivian wore a tight, short dress and heels that accentuated the length of her legs. The men didn't find her height intimidating on the dance floor, and she easily paired with a guy who swung her around like a professional.

  Even Conall had hit it off with a woman at the bar. They were laughing and flirting for a while before she dragged him to dance. Vivian smiled as he 'attempted to learn'. It was his play. Conall lived in a house with three dancers; the boy knew how to move.

  The three girls had even taught Ty enough to make him proficient. Of course, the only woman he would dance with was Melissa. The two of them had learned each other so well they were like one person when they moved. Vivian thought how perfect they were together as Melissa shed her usual shyness and danced against Ty. Dancing made Melissa go from a submissive to a sexy, confident woman. She and her mate were practically having sex on the dance floor.

  Two hours later, Vivian knew this was just what she needed. Over a series of failures, she'd finally found an attractive guy whose scent didn't repulse her when the lead singer of the Latin band had sought her out after they finished their set. Dance tunes blared from the speakers as their bodies rubbed against each other. She knew all too well what was coming in the next couple of days. Her breeding cycle had come full circle and she was about to go into heat. The sensual contact with a male, human or not, was exactly what her body called for. When his hands went low on her back or lips touched her neck, she closed her eyes and pretended he was a wolf with gray-blue eyes.

  * * * * *

  Kasey was getting antsy, pacing the floor when he finally decided to go to the nightclub. It was one of the Pack's many businesses around the town and he had every right to go see what was going on. His man had called him the minute he smelled the Pride walk through the doors. He called again when two of them left but the others remained. After a description, he figured it had been Ty and Melissa who'd departed.

  "They looked ready to get behind closed doors, if you catch my drift. But the blonde, she's got Martin drooling and he usually doesn't act crazy for anyone." Kasey remembered how his senior officer lost his composure the first time he'd seen Amilynn. Martin would have been called the minute the cats entered a Pack-owned business. "The big guy has had a few and he's laughing it up with some bimbo in a booth. Can't see his hands, but she looks happy." The informant laughed.

  "And the brunette, the tall one?"

  Kasey heard him clear his throat. "Well, sir, she's enjoying herself all over the guy who sings for the
house band. And he's on cloud nine."

  Kasey didn't mean to growl into the phone, but he did, right before he crushed it in his hand. The plastic gave way like a feather.

  And that was how he found himself standing in the midst of hundreds of sweaty humans gyrating to the thumping of bass. It took him two seconds to spot Conall still pleasuring a woman under the table. His massive body shielded them from everyone, but the woman's face didn't hide a thing.

  Next, he found Amilynn. No surprise she was dancing on a platform above the crowd. At the base of that platform was Martin, smiling and pleased with his view. He was going to deal with Martin later. But he couldn't find Vivian, and Amilynn would know where she was.

  It took Martin half a second to recognize Kasey after he tapped the soldier's shoulder. Martin paled. "Sir."

  "Enjoying the show?"

  "Yes sir. I mean, no sir. Well, she is very, uh—"

  "Costly. Get lost." Kasey looked up at the blonde who was now laughing at Martin. "Where is she?"

  Amilynn jumped down with feline grace, landing lightly in her heeled boots. "Why do you want to know? Looking for another show?" Amilynn wiggled her brows.

  "Sure. You seem to be working for free tonight," Kasey spewed with contempt.

  Amilynn's playful demeanor faded. "Fuck you. Don't pretend like you know me."

  She turned to walk away and he grabbed her arm, pulling her small body right to him. He leaned down and spoke in her ear. "I know you better than you think and you deserve much more than to be some bastard's plaything. You're too good for this kind of rebellious behavior."

  Amilynn's eyes locked with his and for a moment she was so shocked he saw the intelligent and vulnerable woman inside. Years of being used and mistreated by men had made her turn the game around. Now she was the user.

  She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin, her poker face back in play. "Save your psycho babble, pooch. It's bullshit. If you're stupid enough to interrupt her, you deserve the ass kicking she'll give you. Vivian went out the back with some guy. Good luck, asshole."