What if they all moved out because she wasn't able to pull her own weight financially? She'd be alone, again, but this time, with more nightmare fodder to fuel her nights. As horrible as using a good man made her feel, Victor was a bookstore owner and he had offered her a chance to make some reliable extra money. Rejecting him was like throwing money away.
Great, now you are a whore who sells her body for book sales?
There is nothing wrong with working in the sex industry Francesca! If a woman wants to freely sell her services she should be able to—
Oh good. Now she was arguing with herself. The truth was, seeing Victor again romantically felt weird. But why? Because of Brock and Kai? That was ridiculous.
She forced herself to look at the facts. Best case scenario, Brock was bisexual as well and was interested in her. That didn't change the fact that he was still in a relationship and that Frannie would be the sidepiece.
Then there was the problem of her not being able to control her body's reaction around Brock and apparently that inability extended to his partner, Kai. Those two men could make her purr with a glance alone. It felt too close to how Finn described the way finding a mate felt. And despite the obvious reasons for those two not being her mates, Frannie's own body wouldn't allow her one.
Frannie squirmed. She probably just needed to get laid. It had been so long since anything that wasn't battery-operated was between her legs. She texted Victor back, telling him her address and when to come. Right after, her phone rang. She looked at the screen to see who was calling but it just said Unknown. The hairs on her arm rose and she peered through her car window into the darkness.
Safe and sound. You are at your house. Safe and sound.
She answered. "Hello?"
Nothing. Not even breathing.
"Who is this?"
The line clicked. At the same time, there was a sharp rap at her window. Frannie screamed.
"Baby girl, you're going to give me a heart attack if you do that again," Daryl said, his voice muffled through the window. "You were sitting out here so long, I thought maybe you needed a formal escort."
With shaking hands, she undid her buckle and opened her door. "I'm sorry. You shifters are always coming out of nowhere," she said but didn't miss Daryl's cloudy look. He was no doubt remembering the one time a shifter had sneaked up on her and put a chloroform-doused rag over her mouth. That had been back when there was a turf war of sorts and Frannie had been caught in the middle. But, she'd been saved and the worst thing that had happened to her while she'd been in captivity was that she'd ruined her favorite yoga pants. And sleeping on the concrete floor for hours with her hands bound hadn't been fun either.
"I know self-defense now," she said, trying to keep her tone light. She waved her hands in front of her in a vaguely karate-type way. "You better watch out. Next time I might, hiya!" She swiped her hand down like a knife. "And break your nose."
"I'll be careful," Daryl said on a laugh that sounded like pebbles rolling across a table. He held his arm out for her to grab. "Tell me about your date. Was he a gentleman? Did you need to use your self-defense skills on him?" Daryl froze. "You tell me if you did because I will find that fresh little shit and—"
"No no, no self-defense needed." They stepped inside and she saw Finn, Luke, and Serena Ann were up still. She sat on the couch. "It was weird actually. Victor and I were in the middle of our date when that cop, you know Brock? He showed up at Vine and Dine with his partner...or mate? I don't know how to tell when you shifters are in normal relationships or mated ones. Anyway, they just sort of sat down with us. Totally crashed the date."
She slid her shoes off and pulled her hands in her shirt, unhooking her bra and sliding it through the sleeves. She threw it in the direction of her bedroom.
"Brock and another shifter?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, I'd never seen him before. Some lawyer I guess. Kai Mahelona."
Luke straightened. "He's an alpha."
"Really? I could have sworn he was with Brock. And Brock certainly seems...alpha-y. He's got that whole silent, growly, impose-himself-in-your-personal-space thing that you have, Luke."
"Jeez, thanks."
"I tell them like I see them."
Luke scooted over so there was room for her on the couch. "Maybe it's best for you to stay away from those two. Lion shifters are notoriously unpredictable and I met Kai years ago, definitely a lone wolf."
Frannie sat back against the couch cushion. She grabbed the throw blanket draped across the back and pulled it over her legs. "An unpredictable lion and a lone wolf. I sure know how to draw in the crazies," she said, staring at her present company. "Oh! Victor is coming to the pack dinner tomorrow. So, let's keep the actual shifting of animals to a minimum and let's all just try to be nice. Okay?"
"Maybe you shouldn't have called us crazy right before asking a favor," Finn replied. Serena Ann squirmed in his arms. She was a walker now. A full-blown little walking person. Luke had spent a week childproofing every surface in the house. There wasn't a corner in sight that wasn't foam-covered. Finn set her down and she toddled over to Frannie.
"You'll do it because you love me," she said, grabbing Serena Ann as she held her arms up to her. At least somebody did.
Chapter Ten
Frannie
Rumors were that Octavio was a beast in the bedroom. Esmeralda didn't require a beast, but she would welcome one if he could take care of the horrible ache between her legs that would not stop. She throbbed, her garden of desire was like a swamp.
Gross, Frannie.
She throbbed, her garden of desire was in a constant spring-like state, flowering in abundance. All she needed was for Octavio to come along with the shears.
Frannie disgustedly clicked out of her writing program. This book was getting on her nerves. Victor would be here any minute anyway. She checked her hair once more and then went out to the kitchen where Pippen was putting the finishing touches on dinner, chicken cordon bleu with sautéed vegetables.
"It smells amazing in here, Pips," she said closing her eyes to really enjoy the aroma.
"You've forgiven me then?" he asked in his soft, sweet voice. "I didn't know Brock was already with someone. I'm embarrassed to tell you what I thought, now. The way you were acting toward him. It seemed like, maybe there was something there. I thought maybe he was your mate."
"I'm human, Pips, I don't get a mate."
"Finn did, Christian did. Tons of shifters mate with humans."
"Not this one." She couldn't bear to tell even her friend the truth of why she would never get a mate. "I'm gonna have to keep doing it all the hard way," she said with a false smile.
"If that's what you want," Pippen said, sounding unconvinced. Conner, Pippen's mate, joined them then, greeting Pippen with a kiss on top of his head.
"Who is the man coming over?" Conner asked her with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
"His name is Victor. He's nice. I think. I know he's human." The doorbell rang and Frannie rushed to it feeling calm and prepared. She was in her element, her family was already doing its best to make the night go smoothly. Her house had never been cleaner.
Usually the pack family dinners were very informal affairs. There weren't even enough chairs to go around and they often were so loud one felt a little dizzy sitting in the middle of all the noise but everyone had come together today. Finn had cleaned up the common areas of the house until they sparkled. Luke had done the extra yard work he'd been neglecting and Daryl even pulled his long hair back into a ponytail. Not to mention the amazing dinner and dessert made by Pippen, though he would have done that anyway.
She opened the front door and her smile dropped. "Kai? Brock? What are you doing here?"
Kai and Brock stood at her doorstep, a little dressed down from the night before, but even in T-shirts and jeans they took her breath away.
"Francesca, we have something we need to talk to you about," Brock said, his gray eyes intense.
For a m
inute, her mind blanked. Brock wanted something from her and damn it if she didn't want to give everything to him. She came to her senses. "Now? Here? How do you even...oh, right. You've been here. Look, this isn't a great time. We're having a pack—I mean, a family dinner and—"
"Frannie?"
Frannie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Of course, Victor chose this moment to show up. Now was when she told him to be there.
He was on the sidewalk holding a bouquet of wild flowers. "Is this some kind of joke?" He narrowed his eyes at the two men in front of her filling up her doorway.
Oddly, their expressions matched Victor's in tone. Frannie couldn't think of a reason they would have to be angry right now.
"I thought you said this was a family dinner. What is he doing here?" Brock grumbled.
"Brock, calm down," Kai put his hand on Brock's massive forearm.
Frannie threw her hands up in frustration. "We were trying to have another first date since you two crashed our other one." Her anger finally eclipsed her attraction. "What is it that you need to tell me that is so important you decided to go full-on creeper and show up at my house?"
"Is there a problem here?" Felix asked from the sidewalk. He lived across the street with Sorell, who was right behind him, pushing the twins in their double stroller. He looked from Frannie to the alphas in front of her and then over to Victor. His gaze returned to Brock with a frown. "Brock? I thought you told me you weren't going to be an issue." His voice was hard.
Brock clearly bristled. "Last I checked I wasn't in your pack," he replied, stepping away from Kai to confront her brother.
Frannie's heart started beating like she'd mainlined caffeine.
"And last I checked I told you to give my sister some space," Felix said, moving forward. Frannie rushed out to stand between them but Kai grabbed onto her hand, pulling her out of the danger zone.
"They'll hurt each other," she said, frantically. It was difficult for alphas to coexist when they liked each other. She didn't want to see what happened to them when they didn't.
"Felix," Sorell warned his mate quietly. "Look at Frannie. This is hurting her."
Felix found her beside Kai, most likely seeing the fear and worry in her face. "Do you want him here, Fran?" he asked in a softer tone.
"I'd like to know the answer to that question," Victor called out from the sidewalk.
"Shut up, Victor," Brock snapped.
Frannie pulled her hand out of Kai's and stomped to Brock. "Don't tell him to shut up! He's being really cool about this." She punched him in the arm more out of annoyance than from any desire to actually cause him pain. She found that the idea of hurting Brock or Brock in pain was an unpleasant thought.
She'd meant to just punch him but had grabbed a handful of his shirt as well. His heat radiated against her hand and it became very difficult to keep herself from throwing her body against his and rubbing it up and down his torso.
She took a sharp breath in and pulled her hand away like he'd bit her. Finding his eyes, she saw the same desire that was inside of her, reflected back from his gray depths. This instant lust wasn't normal, it couldn't be. She eyed him curiously. "How do you make me feel like that?" she whispered but judging from his sharp hiss not so quietly that Kai didn't hear. She didn't dare turn to him, for fear whatever this was she felt would just be doubled. Get a grip, Frannie! This is so wrong.
"If you wanted us to leave, you really shouldn't have said that," Kai said, coming to her side like an animal stalking its prey.
Frannie felt stuck, frozen between a rock and a hard, delicious statue of a man. She licked her lips and Kai followed the movement. Was she going to orgasm from a look alone, in front of her house, in front of her brother? In front of Victor?
"No," she whispered. She didn't know what was going on with her body but she would not do something so shitty as writhe against another man in front of Victor. How would she feel if the roles were reversed? She quickly slunk back and behind Felix, sucking in mouthfuls of clean air. "Whatever you have to tell me needs to wait," she said. "I have plans right now. Come on, Victor, let me show you the rest of the house."
Conner and Pippen had come out, probably to see what was going on. Frannie saw Finn looking out the window and Luke standing in the doorway.
This was a perfect start to her second date. Frannie didn't look at Brock or Kai as she walked past them. Honestly, she didn't think she could. Whatever pull they had over her, it wasn't healthy. She'd been consumed by a man before and would not let herself become so blinded by love again. That sort of nonsense was best left to the heroes and heroines in her stories.
Except, even without looking at them, she felt them. She stayed by Victor's side, her hands shoved in the pockets of her dress because it didn't feel right to touch him.
Well that is some bullshit.
She stepped inside the house as Conner stepped out. He was partial pack master of The Den pack along with Felix and would help Felix talk to Brock and Kai. "Don't hurt them," Frannie said as quietly as she could as she passed. Conner gave the slightest nod.
Once inside, Frannie took the wine from Victor. "Let's open this up," she said, trying to sound cheerful.
Victor scowled. "I thought you said you didn't really know those guys."
"I don't." Frannie felt exhausted after what had happened. "I know what it looks like. I'm a romance author, for goodness sake. I use the this-isn't-what-it-looks-like plot point a lot. But really, I don't know what they wanted." She poured a glass for Victor and a glass for herself.
Victor's first drink nearly emptied his glass.
Uh oh.
She smiled at him brightly. "I think Pippen is almost done. Once he comes back in, we can eat and you can meet everyone and we can forget this part ever happened."
***
Frannie set her glass down and sent yet another silent beg in Pippen's direction. If she was very lucky, she'd get through this dinner without Pippen cutting Victor in two, not that he wouldn't deserve it at this point. She should have realized when he started drinking so fast that there was going to be trouble. His scowl had never cleared and throughout dinner he kept making snide comments about everything from the chipped dishes to the prints she had hung up on the wall rather than the original art. Had he been such a snob elitist the day before? Maybe a little, but then, pretty much everything about Victor on their date had been eclipsed by Brock and Kai. She could say this about him, Victor had a knack for systematically offending every person at the table. And although their smiles now looked more like bared teeth, everyone around her was still putting up with his rude behavior. Because of her.
Victor set his fork down loudly. "I have a great cookbook at my shop that teaches you how to not overcook your chicken," he said while pushing his barely eaten plate away. "I can lend it to you."
Every person at the table turned his head toward Pippen. Conner tensed, though Frannie didn't know if he was preparing to hold Pippen back should he choose to leap over the table and punch the snide words out of Victor's face or if he was going to jump over the table himself.
Pippen swallowed his last bite. Frannie watched his Adam's apple bob. "Maybe you'll enjoy dessert more," Pippen said tightly. "I made homemade ice cream."
"Yum," Frannie said.
At the same time, Victor quipped, "I'm lactose intolerant."
"Is there any more wine?" Frannie asked desperately.
"We have some pie left over," Finn said, even his voice was laced with annoyance. "Unless you are also allergic to apples?"
Victor swallowed the rest of his wine. They'd gone through his bottle and a few more. At first, Frannie thought he was just trying to get settled, get comfortable. It became clear that he had other intentions. Victor's mouth turned down at the edges as he shook his head back and forth. "No, I'm fine. No reason to waste calories on stale, probably store-bought pie. Your daughter, is she in a lower percentile? I only ask because I noticed she isn't as developed as she should be a
t her age."
Frannie coughed to cover Luke's very wolf-like growl. "Where did we land on the wine issue?" she asked. At this point, maybe she could just get him so drunk he passed out. Frannie's stomach was a rolling, stormy ocean. She felt horrible for Victor and what he probably felt when he first showed up, but this was ridiculous.
"Your date drank it all," Daryl replied.
Victor laughed cruelly. "Can you blame me?" he said, pointedly looking at each member of Frannie's pack family. "I've never seen so many gay guys in one room. Too afraid to drink the water around here, there must be a reason why you are surrounded by so many gay peo—"
Frannie stood so fast her chair fell to the ground with a loud bang. She threw her napkin on the table, unsatisfied with the noise it made. "Get out," she said in a low voice. "Get out of my house."
Victor paled. "It was just a joke. C'mon, I have so many gay friends."
She grabbed Victor by the wrist and twisted it like Conner had taught her during their self-defense classes. Victor yelped. With the hold she had, he could either stay and suffer more pain, or follow her lead. He chose the latter and she took him through the living room, practically tossing him out the front door. "I apologized for how this date started but I also explained that that wasn't my fault. You proceeded to get drunk and complain about everything. Those people in there tried really hard to welcome you. And yeah, they did it for me and not for you, but the least you could have done is appreciate it. And finally, the only person who gets to make gay jokes around here is me!" Frannie slammed the door shut. She stomped back into the dining area where she'd left her family. "I'm going to call him a cab, will someone please make sure that jackass gets into it?" Her throat nearly closed up with tears. She couldn't stand to look at her family, knowing what she had put them through tonight. Each of them had held their tongues. She needed to get away from the crushing guilt that looking at them gave her. "I'm going out for a drink."
Wolf's Mate Mpreg Romance Box Set Page 71