by Lauren Dane
“Not that, though I’m glad you remembered. How did you know I needed you?”
He breathed her in as they stood, hugging, the scent of wet earth—he bet Mrs. Cuthbert had done some work out in her massive garden—and a river off in the distance. All around that was Katie Faith. Her magic.
What odd things truly made someone happy. He smiled against her hair. “I’m the one who needed you.”
She hugged him tighter.
* * *
They’d gotten back and had settled on his place where he’d gotten her a glass of wine, something to eat and tucked her in next to him. He’d given her the time to change into her PJ bottoms and quickly text Aimee that things were fine and she was home. They’d driven by her parents’ house but the lights had been off and all was quiet inside. She’d left a message for them both that she needed to speak to them when they woke up and to call her then.
And now it was time to deal with everything else that had happened that night.
“You ran. The first time we met out at the batting cages,” she said before he could speak.
He hadn’t expected that. He opened his mouth to explain.
She shook her head. “No, don’t apologize. I brought it up to say tonight was different in all the ways that count. That means more than anything I can say. Thank you for coming to find me and thank you for standing with me.”
She brought him to his knees in so many ways.
“I will always come for you. I won’t be in your face when you need to be alone. I respect your independence. But I want to make you happy. I want to protect you. I want you to know I love you.”
She blinked up at him, surprised as he was at what he’d just said aloud. He’d been thinking it for a few weeks, but right at that very moment he tipped irrevocably into forever-love with her.
“I was going to say it first.” She made a face and then put her stuff down to hug him.
“So that means you love me too?” he asked, amused.
“Duh.” She settled back at his side.
“You want to talk about what happened with Scarlett?”
“She brought up my dad’s health. She held my cart! Like to stop me from going anywhere? This was after she followed me all over the store trying to start a fight. Told me what my role was as a witch here in Diablo Lake. The stuff...she said some things about your dad. Her tone when she did was vicious. Worse even than in the days after the wedding got called off and she was telling everyone I was whoring out all over the eastern seaboard.”
Shifters had a physical advantage over witches and humans. They were stronger, faster and had quicker instincts and reactions. Living in a mixed community meant shifter parents had to instill control in their children from the start. A fight between two shifters was a lot more violent than one between a shifter and a human. That the Patron of the Pembry wolves didn’t mind her manners made him so angry he had to focus on the feel of Katie-Faith’s skin against his where their arms touched. Letting her draw him back from the brink.
But there would be a bill come due at the end of this.
“She’s taunting you. That bit with the offer to give you a rental break and pay your moving costs? This is going to be trouble.”
“It already is trouble, Jace. But she’s gunning for more. I got the feeling she wanted me to say no so she’d have an excuse.”
She’d have to talk with Miz Rose about it. Because Scarlett was trying to use her like a pawn in her dumb power play and that was just what Miz Rose had been talking about. And she was trying to push Katie Faith around. Turns out, she was done being pushed around.
“All this politicking is making me so grumpy. Also hungry.”
“Lots of things make you hungry.”
When she’d turned to find him standing there at the batting cages earlier that night it was like everything she’d been ruffled by and scared of flitted away because Jace was there.
In his bossy pants way, he made everything better just because he’d been there.
“Are you saying I’m fat?”
The horrified look on his face was enough to have her laughing and throwing her arms around him again.
“You’re really mean, Katie Faith.”
She kept laughing.
“I’m going to need to take this to my grandpa and the rest of the elders,” Jace said.
“Do you think they’ll make me stop teasing you?”
He groaned. “Har.”
“I have to talk to all the witchy folks too. This isn’t just about this particular situation anymore. There are a lot of unhappy people in town when it comes to how the wolves are fighting back and forth and using the witches as their bargaining chips. And that is most definitely not our role in Diablo Lake.”
He sighed. “I know. But I’d be lying if I denied how much it amuses me that you’re mine because they let you slip through their fingertips.”
She glared at him. “Really? So, like the cool holiday toy? You and Scarlett are going to grab the last Katie Faith on the shelf and beat each other bloody to see who gets it?”
His chuckle died. “That’s not how I meant it.”
Of course it was. Oh, she knew he loved her for lots of reasons, but this whole being fought over stuff was really annoying now.
“I could lie to you. Pretend we don’t care about it. I’m trying here, Katie Faith. But if I hide stuff that’s important, it’s worse, don’t you think?” He shrugged. “I’m Prime, I’ll be Patron soon enough. I have you, this gorgeous, smart and talented witch who also happens to be powerful.”
“Like when the housecat brings home dead birds?”
He winced.
“I don’t want to talk about it anymore right now. I have to tell my parents about this tomorrow. You’re going to have to have some sort of wolf meeting thing and life goes on, I guess. I’m just dreading how far this is going to go before we find equilibrium.”
“It’s a long time coming. This is how it goes when two packs live so close to one another.” Jace shrugged. “It works here because of the land and the witches. Mainly, Dooley and Pembry get along, work and play side-by-side. But this isn’t playing by the rules. They’re pushing and pushing to see how far they can go. It’s not going to end easily.”
“Great.”
“Don’t get me wrong, darlin’. We’ll get there. Eventually. How about a massage, another glass of wine and some sex to make everything better?”
Chapter Fourteen
It hadn’t made everything better, but, as always when it came to sex with Jace, it certainly helped her get a decent night’s sleep.
In the morning, he headed to the big house to have breakfast with his family and to tell them what had happened, and she drove over to her parents’ place where she’d asked Miz Rose to meet them.
Her mother answered the door and by the look on her face, she’d had a call already.
“I think you have some stuff to tell us, huh?”
“I didn’t say anything last night because I didn’t want him upset before bed,” she said to her mother quietly. “And because,” she sighed, “I just didn’t have anything left to deal with it last night and it would have ruined your sleep and I just couldn’t.”
“Okay. I understand. But we worry about you. Next time, just tell me.”
“Stop whispering in there!” her dad called out from the kitchen.
Her mom rolled her eyes and led Katie Faith through to where her dad, Miz Rose and TeeFay already waited.
Katie Faith simply launched into the story, not wasting any time, editing it the best she could to give her parents the information but keep her dad calm.
By the end though, he was red faced and clearly pissed off. Katie Faith snuck looks at her mom to follow her lead on how to proceed with this.
; “Maybe you could all fill me in on some history. Miz Rose, you’ve said this situation has been going on for decades now. What do you mean specifically?”
She had a hard time believing that if she went to Jace with the facts, he’d listen to reason. But she needed to understand all the facts better first.
“Yvonne Johnstone.”
Yvonne was one of the Pembry elders by marriage. Goodness knew all the ways they were kin to one another, but she was a witch married to someone in Darrell’s granddad’s generation.
“One of the first witches from my generation to essentially be traded off to the wolves in what they call a dynastic sense. She’d been set to marry a witch, and after a meeting between her parents and the parents of a werewolf she ended up engaged to him. Her dad got more business and the pack got themselves a witch.”
Katie Faith looked to her mom. “Momma! I can’t believe no one ever told me this story.”
To be fair, every time she’d ever seen Yvonne and Dean together they seemed happy. Their kids, unlike Darrell and some of his brothers, made Katie Faith believe not all Pembry wolves were elitist jerks.
But they were a powerful family in the pack. Yvonne’s magic most surely was one of the reasons. Having a witch in your pack, especially a powerful one meant your alphas could change forms far more quickly. It meant you could manage your own hunting ground and family.
She’d always considered it a beautiful sort of synchronicity, but this was something else entirely.
“I know we’re up here in the woods and all, but this is Middle Ages stuff,” she told her parents.
Miz Rose chuckled. “The more power the shifters gain, the less they see us as an independent power and partner in this town. We’re the boys and girls they marry to keep their packs strong enough to rival one another. It used to be that we all lived here and worked together. Our magic was complementary.”
“Now it’s all wolf dominance displays and silliness. Like they’re the only voices that matter,” her father said.
Katie Faith sighed, shaking her head. “I want you to know Jace isn’t like that. He doesn’t treat me like that. Heck, his grandma makes me pie! His brothers carry my stuff up the stairs if Jace isn’t around. In all my interactions, especially since I moved in, his family has been very warm and lovely to me. And sure, part of it is my power, but I just can’t see the next generation of Dooley wolves acting like this. I certainly can’t be part of it if that’s the case.”
“That boy is cow eyed over you. Patty raised him, along with his grandma on his momma’s side. He respects women,” Miz Rose said. “But JJ isn’t as modern in his thinking.”
“And there’s bad blood.” Everyone turned to Katie Faith. “What? It’s no secret. I know what the rumors hint at, but nothing specific. So, tell me why Scarlett said all that about Jace’s dad. I know he was repudiated. I’ve felt weird asking Jace but I know he’s forbidden from discussing it and he’s a Prime so the rules are extra hard on him.”
“I can only tell you what I know, which is based on some personal knowledge but mainly gossip because the wolves closed ranks and no one spoke of it. Josiah was here one day and the next he was gone and no one ever said his name in public again.” Miz Rose settled in the way she did before telling a juicy story. Katie Faith already felt bad for Jace.
“Josiah never was much for rules. Or manners. He was one of those men who were so handsome they were pretty. Sweet talker. He got into trouble on and off all his life. He had a taste for too much liquor and other people’s wives. Scarlett is walking a very fine line here by bringing that up to you.”
“She had venom in her voice.” Scarlett was going to try to hurt people Katie Faith cared about. She’d already done it with her antics so far.
“That woman has been nuttier than a fruitcake since she was knee-high. You told Jace about it. It’s a private matter, a pack issue. When you’re married, I expect you’ll be part of those discussions, but you’ve done all you can at this particular time.” Avery rapped his knuckles on the table.
“I think we all need to keep ourselves sharp. Katie Faith and the others need to keep training too. She’s not the only talented witch in this town I work with. We need to stand together here. I’m not dying knowing our children are so vulnerable.”
“Rose Collins you stop that right now. You’re not dying any time soon.” Her mother sent the older woman a censorious look. “But I agree with the rest. We should all meet more often. Just to keep our community connected. Keep folks strong, but also let ’em know they’re not alone. And in that, let the shifters know we’re done being played with too.
“Things are going to keep on this way for a long time to come. Even after we fix this current situation,” her mother added. “You’ve gone and hitched yourself up not to just any shifter but a Prime. It’s going to be tough sometimes.”
“He’s a handful, but he leaves me alone when it comes to the important things.” She hadn’t realized what an important quality it was until Jace. Or, probably to be more accurate, until she was ready to demand it and had a man who respected her independence. “I need to get to the Counter to open up,” Katie Faith told them. “I’ll talk to you all soon.”
* * *
Jace had asked Damon and Major to meet him for the talk with their grandparents. They all sat at the table already when he came inside.
“Hey, y’all.” He grabbed a seat and began to fill his plate. “Let me tell you what happened down the A&P last night.”
Once he’d finished, his grandmother sighed. “I will say that sweetheart of yours makes me like her more by the day. Takes a strong spine to stand up to the fury of a woman like Scarlett.”
“Katie Faith is an alpha through and through.” Jace didn’t hide his satisfied expression. Sure she was little and had a weird sense of humor, but damn she was badass and sexy. “She’s not really the issue anyway. Pembrys are over the line here and the witches are going to be mad about it.”
He watched his grandfather’s face darken, not sure if he should tell them about the way Scarlett had brought up his father or not. But if they found out—and of course they would—and he hadn’t told them, it would be worse. It was his job to share things with his family.
“She brought up Jace will turn out like his father.”
“In the middle of the grocery store?” Damon’s astonished expression was nearly comical.
“Not the first time they’ve mentioned the repudiation and his reputation.” The set of JJ’s mouth told Jace his grandfather wanted to punch someone bloody. “It ain’t none of their business who you’re like or not like. They’re just burnt up their sons are all knotheads and dimwits. You pay them no mind, you hear me?”
“JJ, you need to keep yourself together here,” his grandmother warned. “Nothing they say changes a damned thing. They don’t matter.”
Major said, “But they do. And this is just another in years’ worth of rule breaking from Pembry wolves. I can’t say shit about my own father, but the Patron of a pack can? In a public place? And this is already all over town. I heard about it about ten minutes after Katie Faith left the store.”
Jace sent his brother a glare. It wasn’t doing any good to get their grandfather any more whipped up.
Major hardened his jaw, glaring back. “This is about her. They’re pissed you snagged her up.”
“This has been building for years. She’s part of it, sure, but it’s more than that.”
His grandmother interrupted. “This has always been about strength. Who has it. Who doesn’t. Katie Faith being with Jace means she’ll lead this pack soon enough.”
“Katie Faith has her own perspective on all this. The witches are stirred up. Last night’s events make it worse.”
“You need to be sure to tell her to keep them calm,” JJ advised.
Jace
and Damon snorted while Major shook his head.
“One does not simply tell a woman like Katie Faith what to do,” Damon said, imitating Boromir’s speech from Lord of the Rings.
“You really get her,” Jace told his brother.
“She’s not just going to let Jace pat her on the head and tell her what to do.” Damon laughed along with Major.
“If she means to be at your side, she has to toe the line. That’s how it works.” JJ’s chin jutted out just the same way Major’s had a few minutes before.
Jace had absolutely no intention of running anything about his relationship with Katie Faith past his grandfather. It wasn’t up for discussion. “This is Dooley business. Right now she’s not a Dooley. She’s something else entirely and that’ll be between her and me.” He’d never make her choose her allegiance that way.
JJ rocketed up from his chair and then swayed slightly, the high color from his anger drained away, leaving him pale and shimmering with sweat. He righted himself quickly, wiping his brow with an ever-present handkerchief.
“This is a breach and it should be answered,” Jace told his grandfather before he got any more worked up. “I’m Prime, let me handle this.”
His grandmother got up under the pretext of getting something from the fridge, but on her way she took a long, careful look at her husband before meeting Jace’s eyes for a moment.
His grandfather suffered from Roame’s Disease. An illness that struck only werewolves. Little was known about it, though certainly more than even a decade before. Though he was much better, stress could cause flare ups resulting in debilitating abdominal and chest pain.
“Yeah, you handle it. I’m available if you need me,” Damon told him and Major echoed that offer.
“I appreciate it.” Jace stood, clearing his dishes away. “I’ve got to run now. I’ll check back in with you later or if anything else changes.”
Thing was, he realized as he drove in to work, everything had changed.
