by Dannika Dark
But I loved and respected the Weston pack. I couldn’t imagine feeling content anywhere else.
“Well, if Mr. Austin doesn’t light a fire tonight, then he’ll certainly be lighting one before the week’s end.”
“Yay!” She went bounding toward our enormous house in such a hurry that one of her hairclips came loose and fell in the grass.
I followed behind at a slow gait, looking up at our historical home. Lynn, Lexi’s mom, had chosen a light color for the exterior and had the men paint the house earlier that year. A long porch wrapped around the front, and a small attic window on the third floor overlooked the property. Austin kept the small attic space locked since we didn’t have enough personal items or furniture to store up there. Tall grass covered the open land on the right, and a long driveway stretched from the private road up to the left side of the house by the cars. Denver had built a horseshoe pit next to the house that got a fair amount of use. Everything about this secluded life had charm, including the flower gardens Lynn had planted.
When I reached the wooden porch, I sat down on one of the steps and admired a planter overflowing with colorful petunias. Our pack had made plans to eat lunch at a Breed restaurant in a few hours, something Austin arranged every so often. Lynn wouldn’t be able to make it because she had a project to work on for her interior-design class. Lexi had signed up for a course on decorating cupcakes to brush up on her baking skills since her new bakery wouldn’t be ready for several months. The work Lynn had put into this house was breathtaking—something many of us said she should get paid for. She didn’t like her old job, and suddenly this seemed like an opportunity to receive payment for something she loved doing, so Lexi had talked her into pursuing a new profession.
The door swung open and Izzy appeared. Her coppery hair lit up in the sunlight and she took a seat on the step beside me.
I placed my hand on her swollen belly. “How’s the baby this morning?”
She tipped her head to the side and leaned back on her elbows. “I have a feeling this one’s going to be wild like Jericho. It kept me up all night.”
I patted her stomach. “Be nice to your mother,” I said in a playful voice, scolding the baby.
“Jericho’s going to fatten me up if he keeps buying me donuts.”
“Is he still doing that?”
Her eyes sparkled when she looked at me. “If he’s not walking in with a box in his hand, he’s making me breakfast. Not that I mind, but you’ve never had Jericho’s cooking, and I don’t have the heart to tell him he’s just awful at it. He just doesn’t know what to do with himself. Sometimes in the middle of the night, he shifts in his sleep and his wolf guards my belly. I love Jericho’s wolf, but he sheds all over the sheets and keeps me awake with his low howls. I guess it’s the man’s version of nesting or something.” She lowered her voice. “Don’t mention this or he’ll know I’ve been snooping, but I don’t think he’s smoking weed anymore. I haven’t seen any in our room or in the house, and he doesn’t smell like it when he comes home from a show.”
I touched her shoulder. “Parenthood changes people.”
“Hell’s bells, I think he’s more excited than I am. The Relic said it happened the first time we had sex, and I wasn’t even in heat!”
Shifter women didn’t have the same biology as humans. Pregnancy occurred during our heat cycle, and only in rare cases did it happen outside of that. “It’s meant to be,” I said. “The little one couldn’t wait to be born and already knew who her parents would be.”
She smiled and her green eyes settled on mine as she sat up. “A girl? I told the Relic I didn’t want to know. You know how every Shifter wants their firstborn to be male because they might be an alpha. It’s driving Jericho mad. What makes you think it’s a girl?”
I shrugged. “Just a feeling. I suppose there’s a fifty-fifty chance I’m right.”
Izzy snorted and rubbed her thumb across the scars on her left wrist. She sometimes did it without thinking. Whatever cruelty her ex-lover had inflicted upon her was something only Jericho knew about, and no one ever brought it up around him. Everyone has a story, but sometimes it doesn’t need telling.
“We’re going to have a large family. Of that much I’m certain.” She winked, and we both turned our heads when Denver’s yellow truck rumbled up the driveway.
It skidded to a stop behind Austin’s black Challenger, and the hinges on his door squeaked when he got out. Denver strolled up, still wearing his sleeveless work shirt with the logo for Howlers on the left pec. He was the only blond in the Cole family and seemed comfortable in those shoes, even though it made him stand out. He yawned audibly and stopped at the foot of the steps, gazing up at us.
“You’re late,” Izzy said.
He rubbed his eye sleepily. “Yeah, well, Frank was supposed to relieve me at five and he called in. I’m going to be conked out by the time we head out to lunch. By the way, Rosie wants you to come up and see her sometime. She says you ditched her and now she knows how you really feel.”
Her expression fell. “She didn’t say it like that, did she?”
Izzy had briefly worked as a waitress at Howlers, but after finding out she was pregnant, she resigned. Jake, her boss, offered to keep her position open if she changed her mind. But Izzy decided it was time for her to find a job that didn’t involve serving horny men burgers and beer. Lexi offered her a position once the new bakery opened, and that sounded like her scene. Instead of a candy shop, they planned to serve coffee and delectable pastries for those who wanted to dine in or take out. Izzy said it sounded like a swell place to hang out, and they might drum up a lot of business since they didn’t have any competition in the Breed community.
Denver trudged up the steps and patted her on the head. “Why don’t you and the little bean go up there tonight and pay Rosie a visit?”
“Stop calling it a little bean,” she said, swatting his hand.
Denver chuckled and kicked off his sneakers before going inside.
“What’s wrong?” Izzy asked.
I glanced over my right shoulder at her. “What makes you think something is wrong?”
A smile brightened her face. “Because I know you, Ivy. When something’s wrong, you do that rocking thing.”
I stood up and shivered. “It’s my wolf. She’s restless.”
“So let her out.”
A gust of wind rattled the leaves, and I leaned against the banister. “I don’t like letting my wolf run on a full moon.”
Her eyebrows arched. “That’s just superstition.” Izzy rose to her feet and placed her hand over the curve of her belly. “Nobody believes in that.”
“There’s always an increase in violence during the full moon—even among humans. It alters people, and who are we to say that there aren’t mystical spirits at play? Science can’t explain the magic behind Shifters, Chitahs, Vampires, and the like. My wolf will just have to wait.”
Izzy led us inside and we took off our light jackets. “Well, your wolf is going to be a pissy little thing if you don’t let her run. Mine has gone into hibernation during the pregnancy, so it’s kind of nice.”
Women didn’t shift during pregnancy. They could in the first trimester, but since the fetus would remain in human form, it’s not something they did unless it was a medical emergency and the mother needed to shift to heal. The animal within the Shifter will become docile and allow the pregnancy to go to full term without demanding to shift. Wolves would do whatever was necessary to protect the new life within them.
“I need everyone downstairs,” Austin bellowed from the living room. “Maizy, go up and change clothes. We’re going out to lunch soon, and you have dirt on your pants.”
Maizy twisted her mouth and stomped up the stairs as the men ran down. He wasn’t her father, but he had taken on a fatherly role as Packmasters did with all children.
Denver dragged himself back downstairs, his blond hair disheveled and his blue eyes half-closed. “This better be g
ood,” he murmured, sitting down on the staircase.
“I bet you hear that a lot,” Trevor said with a chuckle.
Trevor was one of the younger pack members and had joined the house with April. He had charisma. I liked how he always dressed in button-up shirts and nice shoes, and also the way he stylishly combed his hair over his forehead. He played with Jericho’s band off and on, but had spent the last month looking for something else.
Lexi ran a brush through her glossy brown hair, watching Austin from the bottom of the stairs.
“Slight change of plans,” he began, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “I know we have a family thing planned, but I’ve invited a couple of local Packmasters. I have business to discuss with them, and it involves everyone in this pack.”
“What’s this about?” April asked worriedly, grasping Reno’s arm as if he might know.
Austin’s brows drew together. “We’ll discuss it at the restaurant. There’ll be too many questions if I give you the highlights right now, and I need to finish chopping some wood before I get my shower.”
“Can I watch?” Lexi asked flirtatiously.
He glanced over his shoulder at her with a heated gaze. “No, Ladybug, but you can help me shower when I’m done.”
She rolled her eyes. “I just blow-dried my hair; that’s not happening.”
He chuckled softly. “I want everyone to look presentable, so that’s why I called you in.”
“Sorry. My Sunday dress is at the cleaners,” Denver grumbled, his face smashed between two posts on the banister.
“You can borrow mine, sweetheart,” Wheeler said darkly. He strolled by the front door and anchored against it, a wicked smile hiding beneath a short beard.
Denver stretched back on the stairs and leaned on his elbows. “I would, but you dress like a slut.”
Austin cleared his throat. “Anyhow, just a heads-up. Next time when we do a family thing, I want everyone there. Just think of this as more of an outing with some business mixed in.”
“Good, then I can stay home and sleep.” Denver yawned, his eyes closed.
“You’re not off the hook,” Austin said gruffly. “The business thing shouldn’t take long, so I want everyone attending. That’s an order.”
“Aye-aye, captain!” Ben said, clicking his heels together like an obedient soldier.
A few of the men chuckled. Ben was a bit of a clown. He earned his money in poker tournaments, but wasn’t a serious guy. Not like his twin, Wheeler, who was always brooding. For two men who were identical, they couldn’t have looked and behaved more dissimilar.
“We’re all heading out together, so do what you need to do and make sure you’re ready by eleven. Carry on.” Austin headed toward the back door, raking his fingers through his tangles of dark hair.
April examined her nails. “I need to redo my polish if we’re dressing up. This doesn’t match my nice outfits.”
Reno kissed the top of her head. “No one’s going to be looking at your fingernails, princess.”
She wriggled out of his arms and he laughed as he tried to keep his grip on her.
“All right,” I said, breaking it up. “Let the women get ready so we’re not late. Wheeler, make sure the windows are locked up, and you’ll be in charge of shutting up the house and setting the alarms. Reno, you’re in charge of organizing who’s riding together. Let’s not have any last-minute bickering.”
The men smiled and looked amongst each other before going back to what they were doing before.
Izzy clutched my arm as we headed toward the kitchen to clean up the leftover plates from breakfast. “You’ll make a great mom someday. You have a way of keeping this pack in line. They sure don’t listen to me.”
The men didn’t see me as one of the guys. They were more inclined to obey a serious-minded woman, whether she was headstrong or quiet. I enjoyed spending time with the pack, but I limited my participation in the late-night parties. Therefore, even though Lexi was the alpha female of the house, they took me a little more seriously. I treated them as brothers and kept my distance so they didn’t get any mixed feelings about me.
If only I had learned that trait long ago.
Chapter 2
Ten minutes after twelve, the Weston pack arrived at the Breed restaurant. The Breed formed communities separate from humans. It wasn’t uncommon to run into a Mage or a Chitah, but Austin was more populous with Shifters than any other immortal. Our animals preferred rural areas where they could run, so we gravitated to the South or to mountainous regions.
I was bubbling with excitement because this was my favorite place to eat. My old pack in Oklahoma had limited my social life and never allowed me to go out to restaurants. My reactions to simple things seemed to amuse the men in my pack.
The restaurant seated by reservation only to keep humans out. In the Breed world, we’re given a unique alias to use in human establishments—most of us only carried identification with that name. The person taking the reservations simply ran a cross-check of the names to ensure only Breed ended up on the list. Humans just assumed they needed connections to get a table. Occasionally a popular place might open their doors once a year for humans to dine, just to appease some of the big shots and lower suspicions.
The smell of sizzling steak wafted through the door when we entered the building, and I soaked in the magnificence of the ambience. The lights affixed to the stone walls cast a charming glow throughout the room. Our shoes tapped against the wood floors as we approached the waiting area in front of the bar. All the round tables had a mahogany finish with a unique pattern in the grain. Curved-back chairs surrounded the tables and several rooms branched off the main dining room for a more intimate dining experience. Austin hadn’t planned for the Packmasters to meet with us when he made the reservation, so those rooms were booked.
The waiter led us to the back of the dining room, away from the kitchen and bathrooms. The men had a commanding walk when moving together as a pack, and several people looked up from their tables as we passed by. Everyone walked around a long table that stretched along the far wall. Austin saved three chairs next to his at the head of the table. Since Reno was second-in-command of the pack, he took a seat on the opposite end of the table, even though it would distance him from the conversation. The second-in-command supported the Packmaster, and the seating arrangement allowed him to keep the pack in line.
I sat against the wall because I didn’t like my back to the crowd. Reno was on my right and April across from me.
“But I want to sit by you,” Maizy said, giving Lexi an inconsolable look.
Lexi led her by the hand to the chair beside April. “Maze, the adults have to talk about something, and then maybe later we can switch chairs. Okay?” Lexi returned to her seat on the same row I was on, between Austin and Wheeler.
April opened her purse, found a pen and crumpled piece of paper, and drew intersecting lines for a game of tic-tac-toe with Maizy. The chair to my left remained vacant and Denver sat on the other side of it with his head on the table, half-asleep.
“Where’s Trevor?” I asked April.
She hunched her shoulders. “His wolf had to run. Austin asked him to stay behind and keep an eye on the property. I’m not sure what that’s about since we’re not exactly hiding the crown jewels.”
The waiter promptly took our orders and delivered a round of drinks.
“No, the tea is mine,” I said, signaling him with my hand.
The young waiter looked at me with Vampire eyes as black as onyx. He took the tea from Jericho’s hand and walked around the table to set it by my plate. It wasn’t common to see Vampires in service positions, and Austin didn’t remove his eyes from him for a second. Vampires had impeccable hearing and often worked as spies or guards, but if Austin had anything secretive to discuss with the Packmasters joining us, they would have held their meeting at the house. Austin seemed apprehensive about the young man, so I assumed it had to do with bad memories from his days as
a bounty hunter. To be honest, I had never met any Vampires to form an opinion on them.
“That’ll be all,” Austin said.
I sipped my raspberry tea and winked at Maizy. She wore a bright smile on her face that made her dimples irresistibly precious to look at.
Reno folded a cloth napkin into the shape of a bunny’s head with long ears. When he finished, he propped it in front of her and said, “How ’bout that?”
April reached out to touch it and tipped her glass over. Reno caught it before the ice spilled, and he wiped up the mess without saying a word. April smiled sheepishly and asked the waiter for another napkin.
Reno smirked and leaned toward me to say privately, “She’s adorable as hell.”
Izzy thumped the back of Denver’s head and he groggily looked up.
“Is my steak ready?” he asked, looking around expectantly.
Wheeler held up a slim breadstick like a weapon. “I got your steak right here, sweetheart.”
Denver snorted. “Always knew I’d die from carbs.”
Jericho pulled out two breadsticks and began tapping them on his plate like a drummer. Izzy, who sat directly across from him, tossed her purse on the table. “Well, I thought I could at least make it through dinner. It seems the bigger I get, the smaller my bladder gets.”
“Does the little bean have to go potty?” Denver asked playfully.
She rose to her feet and made her way around Austin. Jericho got up and walked her to the bathroom. It’s not as if she were in danger walking from the table to the bathroom in a busy restaurant, but male instinct kicked in during pregnancy. Women were more vulnerable because of the baby. Violence wasn’t permitted on the premises, but it still made some of the customers edgy to have a Mage or Vampire sitting so close.