Werewolf Consort

by Girl, Breukelen

  One of us won’t settle for second place in this pack. But which one? So there’s pride involved. But that’s not it. The whole time I’ve had Paris and the Manhattan Maen in my life, my life has gotten further complicated and further away from the protected innocence I had as a Breukelen werewolf from the leading pack family. Have I fallen into some sort of inferior superiority complex from being in this pack, from being who I am to the werewolves of the Manhattan Maen, is that it? I doubt it. Surely not. Then why did her question just make me see red so instantly? I’m so deep in thought that I’m not really paying attention to my surroundings very much, which I know is down right stupid.

  “Bad day?” The voice next me says snapping me out of my thought bubble. I whip my head around and my eyes land on a male I don’t recognize. My nostrils flare and I get his scent instantly. Werewolf. I stand up to move and he stands up with me and I doubt it’s because he’s a gentleman.

  “No, you?” I ask in return.

  He chuckles. “You looked like the world hated you. It was written all across your face.”

  “Pretty sure it wasn’t.” I reply and step away from the bench. He steps with me, beside me. So I walk straight out into the middle of the park’s walkway which has people milling around it. It’s wide, I’m visible. “You can leave now.” I state at him.

  “Relax, I’m just here to give you a heads up.” He says back at me looking around us casually.

  I watch him closely. “The Tri-city council aren’t pleased with your union with the Manhattan Maen.”

  I let out a breath. “That’s old news” That’s been hanging around me since I started dating Paris.

  “Perhaps, but there’s a rumour out now, that says you’re union with the Manhattan Maen pack leader is assured. That you’re mated as husband and wife.”

  I turn my head to look at the male and study him. I don’t know him from a stranger. “Who are you? You’re not Manhattan Maen.”

  “And I’m not a Breukelen either.” He states back at me with a smirk, like he wants me to somehow assess him and figure it all out. I hate being a game to anyone, but especially werewolves like him. What a dick.

  “I know that. So am I to assume you’re part of the Tri-city council or some sub-section of it?” I see the slightest change in his facial expression and I know it is the later, due to his response time to my words. “Hmm, well then, that should make it easy to narrow down who you are if you’re not willing to give me a name.” I drop the hand nearest my handbag into my bag and inside of it, activate the screen with a swipe of my finger, before pulling out my phone quickly and pressing the camera option. Holding it up fast at him I snap a picture. All before he can finish saying “That wasn’t necessary.”

  “Really? You think creeping up on a lone female in a park, and acting like a mysterious pervert, by not formally introducing yourself, and presenting some ambiguous here-say as your purpose to talking to her, that protecting herself by taking a photo of said creep, isn’t necessary?”

  “You called me both a creep and a pervert, I resent both implications.”

  I start walking towards the front of the walkway to the busiest side of the park, where the traffic is visible. “Do I look like I care?” I throw over my shoulder and keep walking. He stays back where he is and my anxiety level goes down a touch. My phone rings and I see Paris’s name appear on screen.

  “Hello Sweetheart, I’m driving up to Washington Square now, tell me which side you’re closest too and I’ll get a park,” I see the Porche cruising slowly along the lane nearest the parking spots.

  “I see you, I’ll walk out to the parked cars, just double park beside one of them and I’ll jump in.” I state back at him. I jog over to Paris’s Porche and slide into the passenger seat. He leans across to kiss me even as a car behind us honks its horn.

  “You okay?”

  “Can you just drive me out of here. I don’t know why I had such a meltdown.” I say softly.

  “Mum told me what happened in the car with Tatum.” Paris says pulling away from the parked cars and driving forward. “ She can’t figure it out either.”

  “I just had Gabby Colton up in my face a few minutes earlier and”

  “Gabby,” Paris says suddenly alert and tense. “Damn it! She is supposed to stay away from you.”

  I put my hands up. “We didn’t fight. I mean, not physically. She just thought she’d have a go at me for not inviting her to the pack run. Tatum watched the whole scene play out in her apartment building foyer. It was ugly. And then, when we’re in the car, she attacks me, like she’s on Gabby’s side, even though she doesn’t know what a mega bitch that werewolf is.”

  “So you’re offended by Tatum’s action.” Paris says calmly watching traffic. “Which might explain why you felt like you had a melt down.”

  “I think, well yeah. She’s supposed to be my friend and god knows I don’t have many of those and barely any female ones. And she doesn’t know the history of Gabby and me and then she, the fucking lycan who’s been with us all of how many months? See’s fit to pass her judgment on me?”

  Paris steers the car. “You may be over reacting.”

  “Yeah.” I mutter softly. “I just thought, we were friends and when she questioned my right to exclude Gabby from my own pack run ceremony, I guess I just thought,”

  “That she’d understand, given her own history and standing.” Paris finishes for me and looks at me.

  “Something like that.” I sigh and look out the window. “I feel betrayed by her questioning me.”

  “Oh Sweetheart,” Paris sighs lightly. “Welcome to the top of the heap. We play big up here.” He’s right, once you’re in, you’re in and that just makes you an obvious target for others whether it’s insecurities, righteousness, belief, or anything else. Paris’s comment makes me wonder how many personal attacks he has had to endure.

  22

  “Do you and Addison ever fight?” I ask turning my head to look at him. “I mean, really fight.”

  “Not often, but if either of us believe in something, we tend to believe in it wholly and that’s usually what leads to fights if we’re not of the same opinion and thinking.” He answers me honestly.

  I let out a heavy sigh and shake myself. “Wolves, why is our world so fucking full on?”

  Paris chuckles “It’s the only way we know how to be.”

  “True dat.” I laugh with him. “Don’t you ever wish we could just runaway? I mean, just for a little while. Kind of like a time out from it all?”

  “Yes, on occasion.” Paris replies. “But then I remind myself, I put my paw up to be pack leader and what I had to do to get that job. And I calm the fuck down and get on with the job of leading my pack.”

  “I honestly don’t know how you do it. You’re amazing.” I smile at him.

  “You want to run-away?” Paris asks me casually with a glance and I see a glint of mischief in his eye. “I mean, we are in this very fast car, which by the way, we haven’t had sex in yet.”

  I glance around me “I’m not sure that’s possible, have you seen how little room there is in this thing?”

  “I think we owe it to ourselves to at least try to have sex in this car.” Paris smiles broadly.

  “So what were you think? We’ll run away somewhere, park this car and go for it?” I ask curiously.

  “No I was just thinking, I owe you a honeymoon. A real one.” He looks at me with meaning. “So why don’t we just take off right now for our honeymoon. Tell me where you want to go and I’ll drive us there.”

  My mouth drops open, I wasn’t expecting that. “You’d do that for me? Just because I’m having a bad day? Ditch your pack duties and hide out with me?”

  “I’d do it for us. Like I said, I owe you a honeymoon. Plus I’m overdue for a break. Addison can handle things, he’s competent. Wiatt can back him up.” Paris explains.

  “Really?”

  “Really.”

  “You’d really just do that?
This so not like you!” I blurt out. Casual Paris is so much fun to play with when he relaxes fully. Which isn’t often.

  “What? Spontaneous?”

  “You know, loose, letting go of the control.” I say softer, less I should offend him as my phone starts to ring from somewhere within the depths of my handbag. “What about clothes and things?”

  “We’ll be adventurers, we’ll buy what we need on the way. Let’s just leave with just the clothes on our backs and what we have now.”

  I laugh, loving the idea. “Really? You’d do that?” I say back at Paris, wanting to make sure he’s really up for playing hooky for a bit, as I reach blinding into my bag for my ringing phone.

  “Of course, for you anything.” Paris smiles back at me. “Besides, I owe you a honeymoon, most normal people get to have one of some kind. Let’s go for say, what, a week or more? Just pick a place before we hit the city limits.”

  I laugh and not really paying attention to what I’m doing activate my phone, pressing a button. I doubt he can afford that much time away from the pack. “Y’ello” I say smiling back at Paris.

  “Hi Bg, it’s Conall.”

  My smile must’ve dropped off my face because Paris glances back at me and says “What is it?”

  “Hey, Conall, how are you?” I reply before turning my head to look out the window to avoid Paris’s angry glare.

  “Conall Wakely?” Paris Seethes, not at all quietly. “Do not talk to that werewolf.” He glances back out to watch the traffic on the road, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

  “You’re old man still hates me huh?” Conall says down the line. “Some things never change.” I could point out to Conall that the reason Paris hates him so is because Conall bashed me to a pulp when we were dating. But that seems trite. I’m with the better werewolf now. Besides, Paris and Addison did get their bit back on Conall for what he did to me. I’m pretty sure he still has some silver burns to show for it.

  “What do you want Conall?” I answer seriously.

  “Bet you forgot I still had your cell number huh?” He chuckles like we’re friends or something.

  “I no longer go for the Conall charm offensive, so why don’t you just tell me why you rang?”

  “I need to talk to you about something.” Conall says mysteriously as ever.

  “You’re on a phone, so talk.” I state back at him all business.

  “I was hoping we could meet to discuss it. It’s important. You can pick the place, have as much beefed up alpha security as you like. Hell bring the old man along, it concerns him too, really.” I glance back over my shoulder at Paris who is trying to not look out the corner of his eye at me.

  “What did you want to discuss that concerns the Manhattan Maen pack leader?”

  “Leaders, right? I mean, I know why you didn’t invite me on the pack run the other night. And I know I wasn’t the only one not invited. You mated and married, right? Before the packs, and its elders.” Wow word travels fast around here. “So it’s like official in the eyes of both packs now.”

  “Conall,” I warn him.

  “But it’s not about that. But I’m coming to you because I guess right now, you are part of the hierarchy of the Manhattan Maen and probably the Breukelen still, so you’ve got sway and influence over this thing.”

  “What thing?” I ask still unclear what the phone conversation is about.

  “The rule about not crossing territories on a lunar week night.”

  “Why would you need to cross territories?” I ask in honest curiosity.

  “Because my mate lives in Manhattan and I need to be with her.” My eye brows shoot up. “You of all people should know exactly how much uh, management, should we call it, that I require during lunar week. And she knows exactly how to uh, manage me.” He says back at me in code and I wonder if he’s just rang to somehow try and taunt me that he’s having sex again. Or something like that.

  “Why don’t you and you’re mate, just get out of town together on a lunar week, that would solve your problem right?”

  “Short term it might. But we want to be together, have to be together during lunar week and we’re from different packs. So we need to talk to you and Paris about getting permission to attend either territory so we don’t step on anyone’s paws.”

  I look out the front car window at all the traffic around us. “Conall, can’t you just you know, do what you always do?” I mutter softly into the phone.

  “What’s that?”

  I groan inwardly. “Come on Conall you know what I mean, you’re rather used to multiple partners, can’t you just grab another partner for lunar week.”

  “No I can’t.” He says angrily down the line at me. “This isn’t like it was with you Bg, this relationship, it’s serious.” My anger surges up in me and I ball my spare hand into a fist. I’m so very fucking stupid. I’m taking a phone call from my ex boyfriend who’s throwing some kind of greatest sex he’s ever had thing in my face, like is has more meaning than the longest relationship I’ve ever been in has. I want to tell him to fuck himself. He’s saying all the years we were together, meant nothing and so that’s why he had a right to cheat around on me. But oh no, not with his new girlfriend. I feel the insult digging into my skin and look down to see I’m pressing my nails into my palm tightly.

  “Rules are rules.” I state back at him deliberately.

  “Come on Bg, it’s a dumb rule anyway.”

  “It’s not a dumb rule Conall, if you ever stopped to look at the bigger picture you’d see it’s a complicated rule but a necessary one in our world.”

  “Can you at least give us a guest pass for this lunar week?” My eyebrows arch up in surprise. Does he really think I alone can change this ruling that has been set down and agreed upon by all the New York werewolf packs? Just say yes, it’ll be fine. I understand you need to fuck.

  “It’s really not up to me Conall.” I sate back simply at him.

  “Could I at least book a time to discuss this with you and the Alpha of the Manhattan Maen?” He says sounding formal. Which must mean, he really wants this to happen. He’s actually serious. Oh my god, has Conall grown up? Finally?

  “I can’t do anything about it this week Conall,”

  “But I need to know before Lunar week!”

  “I’ll bring it up with the Alpha on your behalf and get back to you.”

  “But Bg, you have to understand,” I disconnect the call and stare at my phone for a moment before letting out a heavy breath.

  Paris is staring straight ahead, “Do I even want to know?”

  “Relax,” I say looking at him. “It wasn’t about Conall and me. He has a genuine concern he needs to raise with you as the Manhattan Maen pack leader. Well, kind of with both of us actually. In terms of me being a Breukelen.”

  “What could your-ex-domestically-violent boyfriend, possibly want to raise with the both of us, that’s so important, he can call your cell phone at any time to discuss?” Paris says defensively.

  “Okay, first of all. I forgot he would still have my cell number. And that’s not a big deal. Up until now, he hasn’t called me since I warned him to back off for good.”

  “Exactly which time was that?”

  “The time I made him my bitch.” I state angrily back at Paris. “Can we focus on the actual reason for the phone call now?” Paris shrugs his large shoulders. “He’s dating someone from the Manhattan Maen and he wants to be able to see her during lunar week.”