A Mating of Convenience

by Elyce de Reefe

  She pushed those thoughts out of her mind and regarded the trio in front of her. They were so far from anything she’d expected. The fact that the pack had other human women, and they were going out of their way to welcome her…

  “You know, not that I don’t appreciate it, but I’m a little surprised at the warm welcome. I mean, after all— I’m the evil doctor.”

  She waited, watching carefully to see what their expressions might give away. It occurred to her this could be a carefully-orchestrated subterfuge designed to try to manipulate her into accepting her fate. But the women glanced at each other, apparently mystified.

  “Evil doctor?” Elizabeth repeated. “I thought you performed the surgery on Aster that saved her life.”

  For some unexplainable reason, Nina felt herself blush. “Well, I did do that. I mean, I treated her wounds. But… I’m talking about before.” She glanced around once more, taking in their bewildered faces. Interesting. Apparently the ‘guys’ were keeping these ladies in the dark. At least about some things.

  “I was working with Marten?” That got their attention, but it looked like shock.

  “What were you doing with Marten?” Lyla’s voice wasn’t exactly sharp, but it was close.

  “I was researching the Sickness.”

  Lyla sat back in surprise and Mari looked pensive, but Elizabeth leaned forward. “Oh, the sickness.” She rubbed her hands together. “Now we’re getting somewhere. I can’t get anything out of Cray on that. None of them want to talk about it for some reason—”

  She looked up suddenly and turned toward the path that led back toward the main house. She whipped around to face the trailer. Dean stood in the doorway, a cell phone in his hand. “Dean, you promised,” she hissed.

  “I never promised, Elizabeth.”

  “I have your cell phone.” She held it up.

  “Aster’s,” he said, holding up the phone in question.

  “Son of a bitch,” she muttered, and slapped the phone down on the table.

  Dean winced, but Nina wasn’t sure if it was at her words or the rough treatment of his phone.

  “Well,” she said brightly, “here comes my husband now.” She shot the fakest smile Nina had ever seen around the table and stood, just as a man with long, dark, almost black hair, burst into the clearing at a dead run. He stopped short and took them all in with one quick glance, his eyes zeroing in on Elizabeth. He did not look happy.

  “Hi, honey. Don’t you have more training to do?” Elizabeth walked toward him, her voice falsely bright.

  His mouth tightened and his fists clenched, but before he could say anything, Boaz exited the wooded path, also at a run. No, wait. That wasn’t Boaz. She glanced at Lyla. Sure enough, Lyla stood staring at the blond man. Nina stared too. He was every bit as large as Boaz. This had to be Aaron.

  As soon as she had that thought, Boaz appeared, trotting down the path as calmly as if he was just out for a jog. Beside her, Lyla sank back into her seat. Unlike the other two men, Boaz kept coming, skirting around Cray and Aaron, until he stopped just beside her. “Did I miss anything?” he asked in a low voice, his eyes on the path.

  “Not yet,” she answered, wondering if that were true.

  But then Lucas himself entered the clearing, not running, more like striding. Big, long strides that commanded attention.

  “Dog’s breath,” Boaz muttered. He shifted so he was standing just behind her. It felt familiar.

  Elizabeth’s tall, dark husband shifted to stand next to her, his shoulder just touching hers. Nina noticed his hands were still clenched.

  Lucas stopped in the center of the clearing and took in the scene. Nina watched, fascinated, as his eyes flicked briefly to Mari, who was glaring at him, before settling on Elizabeth. He drew in a breath.

  “Elizabeth, I told Cray I didn’t want Dr. Evans disturbed. She has important work that she should be concentrating on.” The words were delivered civilly enough, but it was clearly a reprimand.

  Elizabeth raised her chin. “We just wanted to welcome her. Since she’s human, we thought it would be good for her to meet the other women in the pack.”

  “Only I can welcome her.” His eyes narrowed. “She’s not Pack.”

  Nina almost flinched back from the bite in his words, and he was doing that looming thing again. Behind her, Boaz shifted his weight.

  Elizabeth drew herself up. “How is she not Pack? She’s under Boaz’s protection.” Beside her, Cray’s hands twitched like he wanted to grab her.

  “Boaz is not Pack.”

  “Oh. Right. I forgot about that.” For the first time, she sounded uncertain. “But he’s going to join, right? Don’t you want to join the pack, Boaz?”

  Nina felt a large hand land softly on her shoulder, enveloping it entirely. He gave her a gentle squeeze. “That depends.”

  “Oh. Well…” Her eyes darted to Nina and then Boaz’s hand on her shoulder. She grimaced. “Right.” She looked up at Cray, her expression a cross between contrite and resolute. She turned back to Lucas.

  She regarded him for a long moment, and then she made a little grimace. “I’m sorry if I misinterpreted the pack—” she broke off and circled her hand in the air like she was looking for a word. “Dynamic? Politics?” She made a helpless sort of shrug. “But I’m still new at this and I thought it would be best, since she’s human, after all.”

  She paused again and huffed out a breath. “So— Now what? You want us to go back to the pack house?”

  “Yes, Elizabeth. Please go back to the pack house. Do not disturb Dr. Evans until I say otherwise.” He glanced around the table. “That goes for all of you.”

  “Fine.” Elizabeth shot Nina a glance and rolled her eyes. “Come on, ladies.”

  Then she turned and strode toward the path. And Lucas. “But don’t you be mean to her, Lucas.” She shook her finger at him as she approached. Cray moved up behind her and grabbed her hand, closing the offending digit in his fist. “I mean it,” she said as she marched past, trying to shake her husband off at the same time. “That is not the kind of pack I want to be a part of,” she shot over her shoulder. Cray wrapped an arm around her and dragged her down the path, but she hip-checked him, nearly sending him into the bushes. “And you!...”

  There was more after that, but Nina couldn’t really hear, and she was more interested in what was happening around her. Boaz put his other hand on her opposite shoulder and began to gently knead her tense muscles.

  Mari marched up to Lucas with quick angry steps, also shaking her finger. “Lucas Ardennes, we talked about this. Don’t you dare disappoint me.” And then she turned her nose up in the air and virtually flounced off. If you could call those determined little steps flouncing, anyway.

  Lyla raised her eyebrows at Nina wordlessly and rolled her lips in like she was trying not to smile. “Okay,” she said and stood. She bit her lip and walked over to Aaron, who had been standing quietly between Lucas and the table the whole time. His features were just a little leaner than Boaz’s, and his hair just a bit shorter. But she could clearly read that look of grim determination on his face. “Sorry, honey,” Lyla said, stopping briefly before him. “It had to be done.” His mouth tightened, just slightly, but he didn’t say anything.

  Then she squared her shoulders and headed toward the path. “What they said,” she stated regally as she passed Lucas, raising her eyebrows and giving him a significant look. Then she headed down the path, her stride long and sure, the soft fabric of her clothing fluttering gracefully in her wake.

  They all watched her go. It was quite an exit. Lucas had a hand covering his mouth and chin the way some people did when they were thinking, but Nina had the oddest feeling he was hiding a smile.

  There was a long moment of silence, which she broke by getting to her feet. “Well, that was interesting. But I have work to do.” She was only slightly disappointed to feel the warm weight of Boaz’s hands fall away as she turned to face him.

  “See you la
ter?” She looked up into that broad, handsome face to see that tiny half smile at the corner of his lips. He gave her a miniscule nod, his smile stretching, just a little.

  For some reason, she was smiling as she passed Dean on his way down the steps.

  The men stayed out there for a while, but of course they spoke too low for her to hear. She thought about getting Aster’s opinion on what had just happened, but decided since Lucas was her brother, that might not be the best idea. Still, the whole encounter gave her a lot to think about. Apparently, there was more to life here with the pack than she’d realized.

  She hummed to herself as she inserted another slide into the microscope. The fact that the pack had three human women in it, and all of those women felt comfortable confronting scary Lucas, was definitely something to ponder. And they’d come here against his wishes to welcome her. She bit her lip, wondering about them. She hoped this wouldn’t get them into trouble.

  And then her lips twitched, remembering that hip-check. Probably not. She had to admit, Elizabeth had a point. Her husband was very attractive. All dark and broody good looks, with the high, rounded cheekbones and dusky, honey-kissed skin of a Native American.

  She thought about Boaz’s almost smile, the approval in his eyes as he looked down at her. She drew in a deep breath and steadied her hold on the slide, concentrating on what she saw through the oculars. Maybe in another life, in another world, she might consider just staying.

  If not for Eva.

  But really, nothing had changed. She would be leaving the moment the serum was ready. Sooner, if the opportunity presented itself.

  Chapter 10

  The second thing to break up the peaceful rhythm of the days happened the following morning. It was still very early when Boaz woke her with a gentle shake.

  “Come on Nina, we’re on.”

  “What?” Nina had no idea what he meant.

  “I hope you can cook.”

  “What? Boaz, what are you talking about?”

  “It’s our turn to make breakfast for the pack.”

  “Are you serious?” There was no hiding the disbelief in her voice.

  “Yes.”

  Just that one word. She almost rolled her eyes. Like that should surprise me. It wasn’t like Boaz couldn’t use full sentences. He just preferred not to.

  He didn’t give her time to do more than pull on clothes and pull her hair back in a ponytail before leading her down the stairs to the kitchen. As she descended the stairs, she caught a glimpse of the valley out the front windows. It had been cool the night before, and the mist was still rising from the river in the early morning light.

  Boaz reached the kitchen and pulled open the refrigerator door. “What should we make?”

  “Um…” His question left her a little nonplussed. “What do you usually make?”

  He shook his head. “Don’t go by that. We’re in last place.” He pointed at a chart stuck to the refrigerator with a set of wolf magnets.

  Wolf magnets. That made her smile. She could see there were four teams, and yes, it was clear that Boaz’s was not doing well. But it looked like Lucas’s team was doing just as poorly. That made her grin.

  “Okay.” She rubbed her hands together, feeling her competitive spirit start to rise. “How many people are we cooking for?”

  “There are eight living here in the pack house, nine now, including you.”

  Nina felt a little jolt. There were seven other people living in this house with them? Where were they? How come she never saw them? She studied the names on the chart again. Okay, Jesse she knew. Well, at least he’d been there the night they stormed her lab. Although, come to think of it, she hadn’t seen him since that night. Mari she’d met yesterday. And of course she knew Lucas. But the rest of these people?

  “Who is Gage? Is he Mari’s mate?” He was listed on Mari’s team. Boaz made a strangled choking sound and Nina remembered that Elizabeth said Mari wasn’t married. Wasn’t mated. She winced. She still wasn’t used to that term.

  “Gage is Lucas’s brother.”

  “And who are these others?” She pointed at the names on the chart.

  “Eli and Zeke are my younger brothers.” He said it with no particular inflection. As if it was no big deal that he had two more brothers—living in this house with them—that he’d just never mentioned. “Jeff is a youngster the pack took in about a month ago.”

  “You have three brothers?”

  “And a sister.”

  She must have looked shocked, because he quickly continued.

  “She doesn’t live here.”

  “Oh.”

  It was the most she could manage. Just when she was starting to relax and feel like she understood what was happening around here, she found out she had absolutely no idea. It was a very unsettling feeling. What did these people do all day? She shivered.

  She couldn’t help noticing there were several names that were absent. “Just how many people are in this pack? What about Elizabeth. And your brother Aaron and Lyla? Where do they live?”

  Boaz shrugged. “It’s a small pack. Only formed a few months ago. Officially, there are eleven members.” He gave her a long, unreadable look. “But I will probably join. With you. My brothers, too.” He paused. “Probably.”

  Nina started counting on her fingers, but gave it up. “So other than Gage and your brothers, is there anyone else I haven’t met yet?”

  “Jeffrey.”

  She rubbed her head. “Right. And um… just where do Elizabeth and Lyla live?” Her voice was a little weaker than she’d have liked, but she couldn’t help it.

  “Elizabeth and Cray have a cottage downstream.” He indicated the direction of the footbridge with his chin. “And my brother has a cabin just a little ways past the trailer.” He jerked his head in the opposite direction.

  “Oh.” She had a vague memory of him telling her that once before.

  Still… she tried to digest the fact that they’d never come across either of those structures on their various walks. That had to mean he’d deliberately avoided them. She wasn’t sure what that meant, but it gave her an uncomfortable feeling. It was like she was standing on quicksand that kept shifting beneath her feet.

  “What should we make?” Apparently done discussing the failure of the rest of the pack to present itself, Boaz poked his head back in the fridge. The fact that the women had deliberately disobeyed orders to greet her began to take on even more significance.

  Nina stood there for a moment, unable to decide what to do. Act natural, she reminded herself, but it was hard. Had she really been starting to trust him? Don’t be stupid. He’s still one of them.

  The coffee finished brewing and Boaz turned from the fridge to grab two mugs from the cabinet, casting her a glance over his shoulder. He was still waiting for an answer. Fine. She could do this. She examined the chart.

  “Well, let’s see. What did they make the last couple of days?”

  They ended up making French toast from a variety of leftover French and Italian bread that had been stored in the freezer for that purpose. Nina made a simple fruit salad of cantaloupe and blueberries while Boaz fried up an enormous quantity of bacon. Zeke came down in the middle and she set him to slicing the bread, which had thawed enough to be cut by then.

  It turned out Zeke was the youngest of the Masters brothers, and he was a big surprise. Slimmer, and several inches shorter than Boaz, he was also a complete chatterbox. And he was enormously curious about her. He asked her dozens of questions throughout the breakfast preparations. And despite her misgivings, his eager cheerfulness managed to put her at ease.

  Somehow, before she knew it, Zeke had gotten more information out of her than Boaz, Lucas and Dean combined, including the fact that her parents had died while she was still in college. She was on the verge of mentioning Eva when she remembered where she was and shut her mouth.

  She instructed him to put a little vanilla in the egg batter while she sautéed pecans in butt
er. She insisted they wait until people actually arrived before dunking the bread and dropping it on the huge two-burner griddle Zeke had unearthed for her. There was nothing worse than soggy French toast, and if she was going to be part of this competition, she intended to win.

  The most interesting thing about the morning was the way Zeke and Boaz worked together in complete harmony, understanding each other with just a nod or a look. Boaz showed no sign that Zeke’s constant chatter got on his nerves. It was almost like he was relieved to have Zeke there to drive the conversation. Especially whenever Zeke brought up anything personal. She could almost feel Boaz’s intense focus narrowing in on her answers. She had to keep reminding herself that she was not flattered by his interest.

  Jeff, who turned out to be a teenager of about sixteen or seventeen, was the first to arrive.

  “I smell bacon,” he said, stumbling up from the basement looking sleep-rumpled and adorable in a dark tee and grey sweats that hung precariously on his lean frame. He had dark hair and a lean, angular face. He stopped dead when he saw her and shot a frantic look at Boaz. She caught Boaz’s nod out of the corner of her eye.

  “Hi, I’m Nina,” she said, hoping to put him at ease.

  “Uh…” He dropped his eyes and glanced around like he was thinking about escape. His searching gaze came back to Boaz, who nodded again, reassuringly, Nina thought.

  “Jeff,” the young man finally mumbled by way of introduction, ducking his head and blushing.

  “Here, Jeff, sit down.” She guided him to the dining table where plates and cups had been set, along with glasses and a pitcher of orange juice. The big glass bowl of fruit looked beautiful in the center, the peachy orange of the melon a perfect complement to the dark blue of the berries.

  Mari arrived next, followed almost immediately by Lucas.

  “Nina!” Mari exclaimed. “It’s so nice to see you. That smells wonderful.” She shot Lucas a look that Nina could only call a mischievous smirk and started towards her. Lucas took her arm and redirected her to the table, giving Boaz a hard stare.