A Matter of Pride

by Harte, Marie

  To make matters worse, they were pleasant about it. He didn’t need nice. He needed someone tough, arrogant and a bit mean. Someone so fucking beautiful he couldn’t take his eyes from her, even when she frowned at him or made fun of him for being too far beneath her to notice.

  Where the hell was she? It had been three days now. Anytime he brought up her name, the idiots around him changed the subject.

  He heard footsteps on the stairs, and his heart raced. But the footsteps sounded too heavy to be Stacey’s. And then the door opened.

  “Oh hell.” He groaned when Miles walked in. The cat’s hair was still blue, which would have been funny if Dean wasn’t aching, frustrated and pissed off that Stacey hadn’t visited him.

  Miles glared. “I just wanted to thank you.”

  “While growling?”

  “For saving my sister’s life.”

  Dean squirmed in discomfort. He could lie to himself all he wanted, but at the end of the day, she’d killed Lex while he’d been unconscious. “She saved herself.”

  “That’s bullshit. You nearly died keeping them away from her. She knows it, and I know it. We owe you.”

  “Fuck that. She doesn’t owe me shit.” How the hell could the woman think she owed him anything? Mates cared for one another. They didn’t bargain or charge each other for help.

  “Wait. She doesn’t owe you, but I do?”

  “Tell you what, Blue.” He took a perverse sense of pleasure seeing Miles clamp his jaw tight. “You forget about the hair and we’ll call it even.”

  “Hard to forget when the dye won’t wash out.”

  “Just use the counteragent under my sink. Grady or Burke could have told you it’s there.” Let them deal with Miles. It was the least they could do for their poor, unloved little brother. “I’ve used the same dye on them a time or two growing up.”

  “Yeah?” Miles narrowed his eyes.

  “Monty too. He knew about it.” Not really, but the wolf laughed every time he saw Dean, and Dean didn’t like it.

  “I’ll deal with Monty too. If I can find him. The wolf is hard to pin down.”

  But not too gone to send Dean a bouquet of flowers and a note that read, To Mr. Stacey Bermin: Congratulations on winning sucker of the year award. The bastard.

  Dean hadn’t claimed Stacey yet. And he needed to in the worst way. He felt her inside him, as if a part of her had bonded to him already. He hoped she’d started the process, but he couldn’t tell. He needed to see her again to know, but the blasted woman remained incommunicado.

  “Where the hell is your sister?” he blurted, unable to hold back.

  Miles smirked. “Which one?”

  “Stacey. Where is Stacey?”

  “Probably packing. With the threat gone, we’re going home. Lex is dead and his traitors rounded up—well, except for Quince.” Miles frowned.

  “But the others are okay, right?” While he and Stacey had been dealing with cats and Hunters, Monty and Quince’s guys had fought their own battle. A few dickheads from Miami had tried to tangle with Burke, but he’d made short work of them. Grady and Gabby, apparently, were one hell of a team. And Joel, thankfully, had gotten to knock some heads together too, which made the bear happy.

  So everyone was cheerful except for Dean. “Wait a minute. Packing? Going home?” His heart raced. Panic hit him from head to toe. “She hasn’t come to see me once!”

  Miles sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. He patted Dean’s knee, right over a tender bruise that was taking forever to heal.

  “Fuck. Cut it out.” Dean grimaced. “What do you mean she’s packing? You can’t go!”

  “Oh?” Miles blinked. “You want me to stay? I knew this enmity had to be of my own making. Dean, I feel so close to you right now. How about a hug?”

  “Damn it. Get off me, you moron.” He shoved Miles away, annoyed to see the blue-haired idiot laughing at him. “I’m talking about Stacey. She’s mine.”

  “Yours?”

  He should have been having this discussion with Miss Priss, but maybe he could enlist Miles to stop her from leaving. “I mated her.”

  “You don’t smell like her.”

  “We had sex. A lot. We have to get married.”

  “Not in this day and age. I want my sister happy, not stuck with some bumpkin because she enjoyed herself once.”

  “More than once,” Dean muttered. “You don’t understand. She’s inside me.”

  “My sister lives inside her designs, so it stands to reason she’d live inside her friends and family as well. She’s a part of all of us, Dean,” Miles said kindly. And Miles was never kind.

  “Look, you sorry ass. She’s mine. I love her, I’m mating her, and that damn shrew better get her ass in here or she’s going to be sorry!”

  He’d never yelled so loudly in his life, but Dean was a man on the edge. In pain, horny, missing Stacey like crazy and worried to death she’d slip out of his grasp before he could make that final connection bonding them permanently.

  “Stacey Bermin. My sister. You think you love my sister?”

  “Unfortunately, yeah.” Dean lay back against the bed, feeling dizzy. He’d strained something when he sat up too fast. Fuck. He needed out of this bed, to get to her before she disappeared again.

  “But why?”

  “Because she’s bitchy, uppity, kind of mean and pretty. She loves with her whole heart, and she’s the biggest liar I know.” How could he not love a woman who conned people with every breath? A conceited princess with no heart? Hell no. She was just a woman afraid of being alone, who didn’t know how to connect with people without saying the wrong thing.

  “A liar? My sister?” Miles looked confused. “We are talking about Stacey and not Joy, right?”

  “Joy came to see me. I’m talking about the obnoxious one, the blond bimbo who should have been taking care of me, like a proper mate.” He tried to get up again, but this time Miles held him down.

  “Easy there, Tex.”

  “This is Montana, dickhead. Who the hell are you calling Tex?”

  Miles sighed. “Okay, Mr. Literal. Where do you think you’re going?”

  “To find Stacey.”

  “To do what, exactly?”

  Dean just grinned.

  “For God’s sake, you can barely walk.” Miles rubbed his eyes. “Let’s say you find her. What do you think is going to happen once you declare yourself? Do you expect her to move in here and have a litter of kittens to go with the pride’s growing brood?”

  Dean scowled. “She loves me back, you know. She’s just too damn scared to handle me. Knows I won’t bend to her every whim, and she’s not sure what to do about it. But I know her. We’ll check out Miami together and do what she needs to. I’m flexible. I can tolerate a lot for the right woman.” And it was her.

  Stacey Bermin, the only female he hadn’t been bored with after a few dates. The sole feline he wanted with his last breath, whom he considered more important than all the pranks, camp outs and women in the world. He couldn’t believe she’d been right under his nose all this time. For her he’d do anything. But he had to find her first.

  “You truly amaze me, Chastell.” Miles shook his head. The bastard looked good in blue, go figure. “Stacey is currently packing in her cabin. We have plane tickets. Our departure is in two more days. So I suggest you heal as quickly as possible and get yourself packed. We’ll be ready to roll.” He frowned. “When did you see Joy last, anyway?”

  “Yesterday. She poked her head in, saw I was fine, then darted out of here before I could say boo.”

  “Shit.”

  “Miles?”

  “I have to go. If you see her again, sit on her and yell for me. That girl has some explaining to do.”

  Dean could barely handle thinking about one Bermin female. Now Joy was in trouble? He shouldn’t have been surprised. But what to do about Stacey? She had a right to be upset that he hadn’t done more to protect her. She’d saved herself, made her own mon
ey and had her own life down in Miami. What the hell did Dean think he could give her that she couldn’t get from someone else, somewhere else?

  As he sat, a subtle scent invaded. Stacey had been on his mind and in his heart for so long, he’d completely ignored the fact that she’d stayed with him in other places. And if she had, that could only mean she’d given herself to him—in no small way.

  It didn’t take him but a minute. The answer was so clear, it slapped him in the face when he looked at that handsome man staring back at him in the mirror. He knew what he could give her.

  “Me. I’ve got me.” Dean grinned, confident that Stacey might actually be better than him in a lot of ways, but he’d burrowed under her skin and refused to leave. Now to show her he had staying power.

  With just an hour before she had to go to the airport, Stacey rearranged the clothes in her bag for the twelfth time. She had no urge to pack again but couldn’t help herself, not when she’d be leaving part of herself with Dean in Cougar Falls. The people here were far from sophisticated, and hell, their obsession with denim and flannel gave her hives, but she’d seen more truth, honesty and integrity in the pride in the short time she’d hidden out here at the ranch than in her many years in Miami.

  Yet her business was there. Her life showing off her designs, her skills. Without that, she’d lose money. And without money, she’d… What? She had her looks, but those would fade in time. Money gave her a sense of power, and as long as she kept making it, she’d be okay.

  Her sisters thought she was making a mistake. Melissa and Amy planned to stay in Cougar Falls. Miles was coming, of course. Joy… Stacey frowned. Her hotheaded sister had gone ahead to meet them in Miami. But she’d been acting funny. Stacey really should talk to Miles about it, but she couldn’t stop missing Dean, and she hadn’t left yet. It annoyed her to feel so connected to him when he hadn’t once asked about her.

  Grady and Burke had shaken their heads sadly when she’d asked about him, and not wanting to be a source of pity, she’d pretended it didn’t matter. But it did. That jackass had his life thanks to her. But did he even want to know how she’d fared?

  A knock at the door startled her. She hadn’t heard anyone near. “Yes?”

  No one answered. Irritated at having her pity party interrupted, she flung the door open and stared at nothing. But she scented Dean close by.

  Her body quivered with recognition, and the cat inside her started to purr. Her animal spirit wanted to lick him up, to see for herself that her mate had survived and was ready to procreate once more.

  That slutty cat would be the death of her.

  She turned and slammed the door behind her, except it didn’t shut. Something—someone—shoved her toward the bed.

  The door shut and locked before she caught her balance. And then Dean was crowding behind her, not giving her time for breath before he slammed her face down onto a quilt comforter.

  “Oomph.”

  “Sorry, baby. My balance is a little off.”

  “Get off me, you oaf,” came out muffled against the bed sheets.

  “What?” He moved back and sat on her.

  Stunned that anyone would confuse her with a chair, she tried to buck him off the small of her back. “Get off!”

  “Not until you unpack, princess.”

  “You— Unpack?”A jolt of warmth shook her.

  “Yep. You heard me.” He groaned. “Man, my body is killing me. A good mate would see to her man’s comfort. So unpack and get me naked. I need some lovin’.”

  She couldn’t have heard correctly. “I’m sorry?”

  “About time you apologized.” He sighed. “I figure you’re scared now that we’ve committed to each other. But that’s okay. We can go to Miami or wherever you need to be to do your fashion stuff. But I’d like to visit on holidays at least. Winters here are beautiful, and my cat likes the snow.”

  “But—I—you—”

  “Still, it would have been nice if you’d come to see me. I asked about you constantly, but my brothers told me you didn’t give a crap. I know better.”

  “Your brothers are assholes.” She glared up at him over her shoulder, wishing he’d move those dense bones of his. Dean had asked about her constantly? Warmth unfurled through the cold spots in her heart. “I’ve visited you more than once since you were injured. Hell, I stayed with you through several nights. I was told you never asked about me. Not once.”

  “Is that so?” He got that look in his eyes that promised payback, and she was glad not to be on the receiving end. “So now you know. I was waiting for you.” His expression sobered. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to save you.”

  “What?”

  “That I passed out in that nasty ski lodge and you had to fight Lex yourself. I didn’t doubt you could kick his ass, but you shouldn’t have had to.”

  “It was a pleasure.” But it meant the world to her he’d believed she could beat Lex. He seemed more upset that he hadn’t helped her, not that she’d taken Lex out.

  “I remember biting Jeremy’s ankle, but not much else.”

  She chuckled. “You gnawed on him a bit. Then Grady crushed his larynx.”

  “Good man.” Dean nodded. “For that at least.”

  Silence filled the room.

  “Dean?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Could you move your ass?”

  “Oh.” He shifted off her and groaned, but at least she could breathe comfortably again.

  Until she noted his bare upper torso and the low-riding sweatpants. She worked hard to swallow. “You look like hell.”

  “Back at you, sugar.”

  “Please. I look divine.”

  He grimaced. “Yeah, you do. But you don’t look happy. Why the fuck are you packing?”

  “I have a life to get back to. I don’t belong here.” So why did she suddenly wish she did?

  “You could if you wanted. You could help all the pathetic women in Cougar Falls, the ones needing fashion advice. Then they wouldn’t have to shop online.” He cleared his throat. “I could build you a house. A big one that you could design any way you wanted. And I’d tell you every day how beautiful you are.”

  Her heart raced. “I know I’m beautiful.”

  “No you don’t.”

  She frowned. “I’m gorgeous. People love me.”

  “No. People love the blond hair, the blue eyes and those delectable tits and ass. I love that too, sure, but for me, it’s the woman on the inside who counts.” Dean lay back on the bed and put his hands behind his head, looking like he meant to take a nap. “I’m in love with the woman and that mean cat behind the façade.”

  This was how he told her the most important words she’d ever heard in her life? How he declared that he loved her?

  She rolled to her knees and loomed over him on the bed, her hands planted on her hips so she wouldn’t wrap them around his throat. “You tell me you love me while half asleep?”

  “I’m injured,” he whined and looked up at her through half-shuttered lids. “And I’m aching.”

  “You big baby.” She melted inside, remembering how much abuse he’d taken for her. He loves me. Oh my God. “You probably say this to all your dates.”

  He opened his eyes wide, and the honest love there said what words never could. “No. Never said that to anyone. Just you.”

  As they absorbed what that meant, Stacey knew now was the time. She either took a chance on Dean, or she went back to the lonely beaches in Florida, where empty, shallow and handsome men hung on her every word. None of them wore Levis, and none of them had ever seen beyond the blond veneer. And she would never claim any of them, not since she’d already given her heart to the sneaky cat watching her like prey.

  She bit her lip. “You’re probably making it sound worse than it is.”

  “I’m not. I really, really hurt.” He shifted on the bed and brought her attention to the growing bulge in his sweatpants.

  “Oh?” Interested, she leaned c
loser.

  “Yeah. If I remember right, you’re supposed to make me all better.” He crooked his finger.

  Bemused, she leaned down, and he whispered in her ear, “You claimed me, baby. You can’t take it back.”

  Hell. He knew.

  The overjoyed grin on his face was her undoing. He didn’t leer. He didn’t smirk or laugh. He purred with happiness.

  “And you’re glad about that?”

  “Hell yeah. I’ve lusted after you for years, but you’re such a pain in my ass.”

  “Dean.”

  “Man-whore this, bastard that. But you always seemed like another person under all your bluster. I think you like me—you always liked me. And you claimed me, princess.” He crooked his finger again, and when she leaned close, he kissed her. “Let me claim you back.”

  “But I’m leaving.”

  “With me.”

  “You love Cougar Falls. Your family is here.” He’d actually leave his home for her?

  “Yep. And they’ll always be my family. You’re my mate, Stacey. We both know it. The question is, are you brave enough to keep me?”

  “Explain that.”

  He shrugged. “Women love me. That’s a fact. But I’m a one-woman cat. I might have dated a lot, but only one woman at a time while I’ve been looking for that special girl. I found her. It’s you.”

  “Me.” That’s right. Me. Her cat preened.

  “But you’re going to have to be able to handle the fact that I’m hot, sexy and a chick magnet. I figure if I can handle all the Romeos wanting your attention, you can deal with my fan club.”

  What he said made sense. Kind of. “A little arrogant, aren’t you?”

  “Then I’m the perfect man for you, aren’t I?” He pulled her closer to lie next to him on the bed. “I’ve kept my distance for years, but once I tasted you, once you got inside my cat, I was a goner. Put me out of my misery and say yes.”