by Gina Kincade
Suki was right. As usual. But that didn’t help right now when she had to go play kitty Cinderella at a wolf man ball.
Sage waved at the girls and headed upstairs, Suki in tow. She whipped off her old jeans and Hot Whips shirt and tugged on some skinny jeans with sparkles on the ass and a new vintage design tee she’d picked up at the local outlet store. The mottled grey color and the rhinestone studded skull made her smile.
She yanked her overnight bag on wheels out of the closet and whomped it onto the bed.
“You really think I should hook up with someone?” Sage tugged two dresses out of the closet and traipsed back toward the bed. “Black or red?”
“Both.” Suki’s nose wiggled and she took her lip between her teeth. “And yes. I do.”
“I don’t see the point. I’m happy with my life.” Sage’s lips slid into a frown. “I have you and the girls downstairs. That’s enough to keep me busy.”
The lynx shifter smiled. “Sometimes you need a little more than just enough. Go find yourself a man and get your freak on, girlie. Me...I have some muffins to bake and a hot girl waiting for me at home.”
“I love you, you know that?” Sage wrapped her arms around Suki in a hug.
“I know. Now get out of here and have some fun. Remember, the baddies are gone. Maybe you’ll even see twinkle eyes there.” Suki gave her a quick squeeze and pushed her toward the door.
Sage snorted. “It’s safe. At least I think so. But finding him? I doubt it. It’s been six years. The guy has probably moved on and had a litter of pups by now.”
“You’ll only find out if you go, chica bean.”
“Wish me luck.” Sage snapped up her suitcase and purse and made her way toward the door.
“Are you kidding me? I feel sorry for the other women. They don’t stand a chance.”
Chapter Two
The Hot Whips Café was Carrick’s haven away from the insanity of his life. He’d been not much more than thirty when he stepped up to aid his father in ending the tyranny that had enveloped his pack. Young for a wolf. As his second in the Challenge, he had the right to take the place if his father fell during the battle. And he had. Despite the anguish of losing his sire, Carrick pressed on. Justin’s second had fled, never to be seen again.
Just as well. He would have had even more of a mess to clean up. His thoughts were drawn back to what he found when he stalked the halls of the Westmore pack headquarters. He recognized things weren’t right with the Alpha but never had he imagined the horrors he found when he entered the basement holding cells of the big house. Women chained to the floor in rags stared at him with fear in their eyes. Men shackled to walls, some in wolf form and others trapped mid shift. It made him want to vomit.
He had his second free them and begin the process of healing their battered bodies and minds. It would take many of them years. But the one image that haunted his mind was the young woman secreted in the cage with his sister. A cat shifter hidden among the wolves. He scented her before he saw her, unprepared for the hunger that ensnared him as he took in the too thin waif with the cascading mop of black hair and rose petal lips. Even dirty as she was, the scent of baked things clung to her. No. Not just baked things...cinnamon scones.
His mate.
His wolf discerned it for the truth it was. He recognized her. But the human in him rebelled. No. He couldn’t have found a mate in that place. But he had. And he didn’t even know her name.
Fury rippled through him at the thought of this beautiful creature and the abuse she must have suffered at the hands of the monster that lay dead in a pool of his own blood alongside his father.
The fucker deserved it. And then some. So did Michael, but where that asshole had escaped to was something he’d spent a lot of time trying to find out.
Their eyes met and the need burning inside of him hardened his cock and softened his heart. She was his and one day soon, he would come for her and make things right. But first she had to heal.
Even then, the wolf recognized his mate. He should have insisted on going with her but he’d given in and let the women take her. He’d been searching for his mystery woman ever since. He learned her name and that of her father, shamed and vilified for trying to take matters into his own hands when his daughter was attacked the first time, leaving her alone to face the onslaught that would come of both media and Justin. He’d also learned about the land the council had wanted to take from him and his wife, putting the family in the direct path of the council’s vengeance and Justin’s rage.
Her mother had died soon after and she had vanished. So here he stood, drawn to this coffee shop in an effort to forget things that might have been. Picking a mate out of the sea of women didn’t even appeal. None of them had the violet eyes and sweet scent of the woman who wandered his dreams at night.
The event was little more than a dog and pony show designed to topple him from his position as Alpha. Trouble was brewing. He’d lost his most trusted staff over the course of the last four weeks. And there had been a break in on the south side of the property last night. Foolish, whoever it was. Reid had let him know but their attention was quickly diverted to the upcoming Gathering. Had the two instances been related?
It wasn’t like his senior staff to not communicate with him, but one after the other, they just stopped coming in. Now the estate was in chaos, in full view on the human media and whatever hidden enemy was currently stalking him. It couldn’t be happening at a worse time and he had a strong suspicion it was no accident. Whoever was behind the disappearances had much to gain from making him look like a fool.
Carrick slid on his sunglasses and opened the door, letting the aroma of muffins and cinnamon envelope him. It was small thing really, but it reminded him of the girl who captured his heart and no matter how many times he tried talking to his wolf about it, his beast refused to let it go.
SAGE STEERED THE CAR past the reporters congregating outside the front gate. If she’d thought it was a circus before when she’d watched the news had progressed into something even worse. Reporters perched all around the perimeter of the Alpha’s home with clusters of women vying for their attention. This was what came of the shifter population being outed and for a moment she wished things were back to being secret like when she was a kid.
Just being here brought a tightness to her gut and a tickle to her nose.
“Not now,” she ground out, baring her teeth in a snarl.
Pop!
“Damn it all to hell.” She held her hand up to her face and felt the offending whisker, waving her freak flag to God, the universe and everyone in the traffic jam in front of Werewolf’s R Us headquarters.
She hadn’t been around the pack in so long but despite the anxiety, she could sense the tendrils of her people reaching in to envelope her. It surprised her. She wanted to hate them but as she watched the woman crawling over the gates like spiders, she realized her pack were victims too. Then. Not anymore.
She wondered what became of the girl who cried for her father in the dark after the former Alpha killed him. The same girl had dried her tears when she’d been abducted and helped her to stand against the most frightening thing that had ever happened to her. And she was still here.
Those that tried, fared little better than her father. Until the new Alpha took control and wiped the monster from the earth. Well, one of them anyway. It was sobering. And in a weird way, liberating. She’d heard great things about the new wolf in charge. Programs for families in crisis. A security company with state of the art components and wolves no one would dare mess with. The Westmore pack had come back to its own with a reputation for not backing down in anything.
She hoped the other women who were held captive got their lives back like she did. Sage reached out, searching for their communal pack presence and instead of the contentment she was looking for, she got a mix of garbled anger and frustration. And it all seemed to be centered on the front gate.
Humans milled around the iron g
ates, attempting to jump over the fences. They were out of control and interfering in what should have been a private shifter only event. To find a mate was a sacred thing. For the media to put the Gathering on television like some kind of reality show was stupid, no matter how out of the closet the shifter population was these days.
The whole thing was misunderstood. Love for shifters was different than it was for humans. One touch and you knew. One moment and everything gelled. It wasn’t like anything else. At least when she’d talked to some of the girls at the café about their love lives. Doubt. Distrust. Uncertainty.
Mating was chemistry but also an understanding born of the need to be a team. A unit. A family and that was one thing she longed for. But the sacrifice of herself to do it? She’d only know that if she ever found the right man. One fleeting moment was not enough to stake her whole life on and she wanted to make sure. She just had to get through this weekend and she promised herself she’d maybe give muffin guy another shot.
Maybe.
Another human woman darted across the street and tried to overpower the guard.
As if.
Impatience gave way to anger. Anyone who understood anything about pack law knew a male couldn’t do anything to harm a female. That included humans. The females would be inside, likely getting ready for the gala.
Shit.
That meant she had to do something. In her anger, the whisker had abated but her gums ached with the itch for sharper teeth. She kept a rein on it. For now.
For a second, she stopped to wonder why she gave a rat’s ass. It wasn’t like she’d been a part of pack life. In fact she’d done everything, including change her name, so she wouldn’t have to be involved.
But she was and deep in her bones she couldn’t escape it. No matter how hard she fought and how hard her human self wanted to back the car up and take her happy ass back to her café.
The closer she drew, the more entwined inside of her mind they became with the pack around her and like it or not, the feeling of being home began to sink in.
This was her pack and these dumbass women were scaring the bejeezus out of the guards. Big, brawny wolves held captive by an army of Spanx wearing silicone warriors with fake eyelashes. It was funny. And sad. And fucking annoying.
“Alpha! Pick me! I’ll be your girl!” A human woman in a low cut dress barely covering her boobs or her plentiful ass strutted in front of the gates, blocking the entryway. The hapless guard was on the phone, a panicked expression on his face. Sage met his eyes and he nodded, signaling her through. Or he tried to, but little miss slutty was blocking the street.
I so do not need this today.
Playing with billionaire wolf boys was bad enough without having to deal with human women who didn’t stand a chance. All she wanted to do was get in, check in and get the hell back to her café. She liked her life and she didn’t need a hook-up to be happy. At least that’s what she kept telling herself.
And she was a big fat liar too.
Her cat stretched and let out an annoyed chuff. She wanted to find their mate and this seemed the most likely place to do that. Sage gazed up at the Georgian style mansion in the distance and sighed. What would she do if she lived in a house that big? Obsess about how long it would take her to find the kitchen, most likely.
Her nose itched in irritation and she had to take a couple of calming breaths before another unwanted whisker poked through. She ran her hands along her jeans and took a deep breath. No more nice kitty.
Sage rolled down the window. “Excuse me. Will you please move? You’re blocking my car.”
The blond haired bimbo turned to her, hostility written across her face. “Who the hell are you?”
“Invited. Which you aren’t. So, please do yourself a favor and get out of the way.”
“Bitch.” The woman stormed toward Sage’s car, fists clenched.
Sage sighed.
“Get back in your car and go home. This is a pack event and doesn’t concern you.”
“Make me.”
Why did people have to insist on being difficult?
Sage switched off the car and opened the door, narrowing her eyes. “You know...I’d be running right about now if I were you.”
“You can’t touch me.” The woman put her hands on her hips, a smirk sliding across her heavily made up face.
Sage chuckled. “No....they can’t touch you. Pack males are never allowed to manhandle a female in anger. Let alone a human female. But I can.”
The woman’s haughty gaze faltered. “You wouldn’t.”
“Try me.”
This idiot was threatening her pack and her cat growled, pacing beneath her skin. Some pack members may have been shitty to her in the past but that didn’t mean this idiot got to treat the guards like doormats. Not when they played by the rules. In the old days, the woman would have been mauled or worse.
Like the old Alpha’s pet did to you.
To us.
Her cat was adamant. The female’s behavior was a threat to her and those around her. No one hurt her people. Her pack.
Sage advanced, a light sheen of black fur appearing along her skin. Her muzzle extended and she let out a roar. “Leave. Now.”
The woman let out a screech, backing away with fear in her eyes. “Get away from me!”
“Then get the hell out.” Sage hissed, taking another step in her direction. “You have no right to infringe on pack business. Go home.”
Turning tail and running, the bimbo darted back toward the sea of cars, leaving Sage alone at the gate. More cars had arrived and she stalked back to her vehicle.
Media on site turned her way and she cursed, making every effort to calm herself so the camera would only capture what the public was supposed to see. Nice kitty. Not a threat.
“Thank you.” The guard sent her a crooked grin. “She’s been there for hours.”
“No problem.” Sage walked back to her car, relieved the altercation was over.
“I’ll open the gate for you.”
“I’d appreciate it.”
Chapter Three
Sage made her way up the winding path toward the mansion, dodging groups of women dressed in their glittery finest. God. How big was the pack these days? Parking her car took what seemed like hours. Too many cars. Too many people and a staff obviously not prepared for an event of this magnitude. The sounds of laughter and frivolity drifted on the breeze and she shivered, clutching the handle of her rolling overnight bag in her hand.
The early evening hours gave the structure a foreboding appearance, but the festive lighting placed around the perimeter helped to dispel any misgivings. A wolf shot across the lawn followed shortly by a second larger one and they tumbled through the grass, yipping playfully.
That wouldn’t have happened with the previous Alpha.
No way.
She didn’t remember the pack being quite so large, but then again her parents had kept her as far away from it as possible. The fact was, there were women everywhere. Their eyes followed her progress up the steps.
She made her way to the front door and found it open, a rather harried looking butler wrestling with a woman’s clearly overstuffed overnight bag. Underwear and stockings hung out as they tried in a joint effort to close the errant piece of luggage.
“Miss, I wish you wouldn’t try to go through your unmentionables here. I’m certain there must be a space for you upstairs in one of the bedrooms. I’m sure one of the other guests can assist you.”
“I didn’t open it. The damned thing flew apart by itself. You shouldn’t have invited all these people if you didn’t have room to put them up for the night. Where am I supposed to change? In the hallway here?”
She had a point. Even with a house this big, there was no way there were enough beds to place all the women she’d seen. It was a nightmare.
Sage waded through the sea of females in search of someone who knew what the hell was going on. Caterers whisked by on the way to wherever
the gala was being held and a rather irritated brunette tromped down the hall, a frazzled male in tow. She wore a beige party dress, riddled with sparkles so it caught the light whenever she moved. Her hair was swept up in an elaborate style reminiscent of the vintage looks Sage favored herself.
And she looked very familiar.
“I don’t care how we do it, Reid. We have to get order around here before Carrick gets back or heads are going to roll.”
“The Alpha will return. We can discuss it then.” Reid scowled. “It’s time for me to get changed. I suggest you ready the staff.”
The glittering female drew herself up, eyes sparkling with challenge. “You arrogant...”
Sage couldn’t help it. One look around the great hall and it was obvious no one was in control of anything and whatever staff they had was scarce. “Did you book a hotel?”
“Excuse me?”
Sage dropped her suitcase at her feet. “If you’d booked a hotel, these women would all clear out as soon as the gala is over and you’ll have your house back. As it is, I couldn’t even get through the front door without being accosted by renegade lingerie.”
The other woman blinked and sucked back an expression of pure delight. “Oh, I like you. I’m Jess, the Alpha’s sister.”
“Sage.”
“I know you, don’t I?” Jess asked, softly cocking her head. “I just can’t place it.”
“Maybe. I run a coffee shop in the next town over.”
“You’re here for the gala.”
“Yep.” Sage sighed. “I didn’t have much choice with the mandatory thing.”
Reid grimaced. “Pack law. The Alpha searches for his mate, so each female must attend until the Gathering is over.”
“That didn’t sound like a twisted version of Cinderella. Not at all.”
Jess snorted, a grin sliding across her face.
“Wait. You mean I have to stay the whole night?” Dread snaked through Sage at the thought. “I haven’t found a place to stay or anything.” She yanked her phone from her jeans pocket and with a groan started to do a search for open hotel rooms.
