Devil Hills: #1 Scarlet, Lexi & Lily

by Diroll-Nichols, Karen

  “I’m just asking the question. I can’t imagine you just decide out of the blue to challenge Lucas. There haven’t been problems between the two packs in the past.”

  “And what do you think is the one new thing that entered the equation, Scarlet?”

  She felt like a mouse being toyed with. Information she didn’t have or was hiding elusively outside her reach. She looked at Lily, both of them displaying confusion until Lily swore softly and mouthed the word.

  “You.”

  Without thinking, the word was out of her mouth.

  “Me?” Disbelief in her own voice.

  “Bravo, my dear. You.”

  “Are you seriously that short of females? Trust me, you don’t want me. I’m nothing but trouble, ask Lucas,” she said with a chuckle. “Regrettably, I must decline the charming request. I’ve found and marked my mate. Good day.” She snapped the phone closed, her face scrunched up in confusion. “What the hell is wrong with all these people? First Lexi and now me?”

  “I need to research him,” Lexi said quietly, slowing as they neared the first hints of Devil Hills. “There’s something we’re missing. If it is you, then they were using me to find you.”

  “I wasn’t fucking hiding!” Scarlet grabbed hold of her hair and threw her head back.

  “Well…” Lexi grimaced. When Scarlet started swearing, it was never a good thing. “We’ve known each other for years. We spent time living together. We met up places.”

  “The last place was Seattle,” Lily said quietly, staring toward Lexi as she drove, but seeing past her. “That was the middle of May.”

  “Someone saw us there. But you always take round about ways home,” Lexi said, looking in the mirror at Scarlet as she pulled in front of the coffee shop. “I need food and these people make great sandwiches.”

  “And that time line matches to when Lucas started keeping an eye on me,” Scarlet stuffed her phone into her pack and reached for the handle, only to have the door disappear from her hands. She would have fallen toward the street except for those really sturdy jean covered thighs. Dark eyes went back and up. “Hi.”

  “Shit.” Lily kept her head in place and let her eyes glance outside the wagon. Jess was coming out of his office and Eli was coming from the parked pick-up in the square.

  “You do realize putting on a show for the town isn’t something I’m comfortable with,” Scarlet straightened slowly and shifted her legs to the outside, staring warily at the palm he held out to her. You’ve got to be kidding me, she thought, swallowing hard and sliding her hand into his.

  “We thought we’d take our mates to lunch,” Lucas said calmly.

  All three of the women looked at one another, safe inside the wagon. Lily pulled her collar to the side and so did Lexi, who mouthed: “Mates?”

  Scarlet pulled her hand back and held up a finger at him after motioning him back and pulling the door closed.

  “Lock the doors,” she waited and moved to the center. “Mates? They haven’t claimed either of you and I’d hope to god they’d ask first, but…”

  “Did you really think they wouldn’t find out where we’d been?” Lily hissed.

  “I think we’re panicking for nothing,” but Lexi kept her gaze from the outside and the three men holding their own conference by Lucas’ truck.

  “Really?”

  “Sarcasm noted,” Lexi snarled. “I’m hungry. And if they want to lecture through a meal, I really don’t care.” She shoved the door open, dropped the keys into her pack and slung it on her shoulder. “So where you taking us for lunch?”

  Eli opened his mouth to speak at the same time he watched Lily step out and look critically at the wagon.

  “You bugged the wagon,” she said, blinking and immediately seeing the answer on all three handsome male faces. Scarlet whipped her hand free and Lexi stopped her approach to Eli. “That’s how they know where we are all the time.”

  “Is that true?” Lexi looked at Eli, backing toward the wagon. “Is it?”

  “Lexi, we don’t want to risk your safety,” Lucas saw the pain on his brother’s face. The argument the three of them had over the decision while the wagon was in the shop. “We can’t be with you all the time and whatever is going on, the three of you are targets.”

  Lexi didn’t speak, her head shaking. She was furious. Her ponytail should be whipping around in a fury. But she was also hurt and that was stronger. Her ponytail didn’t even move with the light fall breeze.

  “I’ve lost my appetite,” she slid back into the wagon, the other two following, the doors locked quickly. “I can’t believe…”

  “Can you drive?” Scarlet asked softly, feeling the same hurt.

  “They could have told us. We’re not unreasonable,” Lexi swiped at her cheek and turned the key over, pulling out of the spot and putting them back on the road. “Where am I going?”

  “Head to my place,” Scarlet refused to look at the men they left standing in the street. “We have food…and if we want some space, we can head to Morning Star after we eat.”

  “I should have realized it sooner,” Lily stared straight ahead. “I’m honestly not even sure what I’m feeling.”

  “You’re usually the one wanting to shoot someone. And I’m not sure I’d stand in your way,” Scarlet let her head fall back. “I know they mean well. I know that. I know that…but it still hurts.”

  “It hurts,” Lily repeated, the sting behind her lashes something she hadn’t allowed inside for a very long time. “But I understand. How far would we go if they were in danger? I’d never sleep worrying about Jess.” Her laugh was a little watery. “I think having a guy makes your brain mush.”

  “Side effects,” Scarlet agreed, stepping into the light rain falling.

  “Looks like we have company,” Lexi swiped at her cheeks, dragged in a long breath and turned the car off.

  Scarlet walked to the house, coded in the alarm release and opened the door, her friends behind her. For a brief few seconds she thought about resetting the alarm and changing the code, but continued on to the kitchen with Lexi.

  “We got tons of food. Just help yourself.”

  “Connie left you a really nice roast. I’ll carve some,” Lexi flipped light switches and tossed her jacket toward the dining chair. “And really crunchy bread.”

  Scarlet tossed her jacket to join Lexi’s, crossing the large, open kitchen and opening one side of the industrial stainless steel fridge.

  “Got pickles and cream cheese. I know how you like your sandwiches. And lettuce…mayo…what else?”

  “That’s perfect.”

  “So how pissed are you?” Lucas missed the rolled eyes from Jess.

  “Subtle,” Eli complimented.

  “Yeah, he doesn’t do subtle well,” Scarlet added. “How pissed do you want us to be? You could have told us, but we understand why you did it.”

  Three men looked at one another. Their silence to each other said it all. It was impossible to figure out females.

  “She doesn’t have her guns drawn,” Jess remarked carefully, moving to stand beside Lily at the wide patio doors. “We were planning to explain about the marker. We had no idea you were taking off for the city today.”

  “Dinner…tonight?” Eli picked up the explanation. “All of us? It was on the agenda to explain.” He decided when his mate was wielding a carving knife, remaining at a distance was probably safest for now. Especially when that sexy tail was flipping behind her head.

  “It takes some mental adjustment,” Lily looked at Jess but kept herself from touching him. “Have you tagged my bike?”

  “Lily…” Jess exhaled slowly, his head shaking. “No. Your bike is not tagged. And believe me, I thought about it. And it isn’t because you come armed. It’s because I wanted to talk to you first. We also placed tags on our vehicles and had the app ready to share with you on your phones.”

  Scarlet’s head had come up and Lexi spun around, hastily setting the carving knife down.<
br />
  Lily looked at her friends, her head shaking.

  “Do you see the issue here?” Scarlet looked from one male to the other. But she could tell from their expressions, they didn’t. “Why didn’t you simply bring this up?”

  “Because it’s easier to get you to forgive us than wade through getting there in the first place,” Lucas injected flatly.

  So intent on his mate, he didn’t see both his brothers groan and close their eyes. So much for progress, Jess thought. Nor did he see the cougar tail flip and swish in earnest when she turned back to the roast to finish her carving.

  “What is it? Hard headed? Bull headed,” Scarlet paced the hardwood floor. “Can’t be Alpha headed because that means I’d have it, too. You dragged me here, Lucas Daniels. Under some idiot excuse that you needed me to handle the silly little girls vying for this spot. They’d have killed you by now,” she said with a laugh, her head shaking, one hand up and absently tucking a stray curl behind her ear.

  “Are you finished?” He asked, teeth grinding together.

  “No, I am not. You can’t throw me into a position where we’re meant to be equals, caring for a pack – not three little helpless females like us – but an entire pack – and expect me to sit on my hands and do nothing. Because that isn’t my definition of an Alpha,” she glared at him, ignoring the attempts not to laugh from Eli and Jess.

  “You tracked us to the other side of the mountains,” Lily commented casually. “Not curious about why we were there?”

  Prickling necks seemed to strike all three males at the same time, their palms up and rubbing heavily.

  “Sometimes it’s best just to go with…no,” Jess said carefully.

  “We met with Caroline Baxter and two of her females.” Scarlet didn’t jump, didn’t flinch at the long, heavy curse that shot through the room. She leaned slightly forward, dark eyes wide and voice deliberately low. “Oh, sorry, baby, I forgot to mention it to you. I figured it would be easier to apologize for the misstep than ask permission.”

  Lily moved with a speed any predator would envy and Jess felt his body tense when she put herself between Scarlet and Lucas. Those wild, spring curls moved very slowly when she shook her head at the hand Lucas brought up to grab Scarlet.

  “Don’t. You might not be willing to allow her to be a genuine Alpha,” sharp green eyes sparked with anger. “But she is ours. What would you have said if we brought the idea to you for consideration?”

  “No.”

  Scarlet let out a clipped laugh. “Just no. Just like that. Why, Lucas? Because we’re girls? Because we can’t possibly have a brain to think of other ways than violence? Because if you don’t give us any power in the pack, well, naturally, no other pack has females worthy of making decisions,” she shook her head, watching Lily move to the side. “Is that what you saw with your parents? Was your mother sitting quietly at home raising pups and knitting? I know damned well she wasn’t because we’ve talked to her.”

  “My mother was raised in the pack. You weren’t.” He felt his jaw tense, her words doing more to kick his ass than if she’d taken him outside to fight.

  “Protect me, Lucas,” she said softly. “But don’t smother me. I can’t live like that.”

  “Why did you contact Caroline Baxter?” Jess asked quietly, aware of Lexi sliding the roast to the counter and moving to his brother’s side.

  “We’ve been searching for answers to this mess, which means gathering information. From all sources.” Lexi answered, letting Scarlet get level again. “The females they’ve been sending around weren’t even close to the inner circle. Caroline was apologetic that her females had bypassed her and listened to the mandates of the males. She’d heard rumors but…”

  “She didn’t want to believe her males were so stupid as to try and instigate a pack war and endanger the pups and elderly,” Scarlet pulled a stool over and sat down. “She’s angry and I’m guessing was on the phone to her council, who happens to be her family side of the pack, and I’m pretty sure they’ve effectively dropped from this collective. They were the only power James and Morrison had on their sides.”

  “James and Morrison both formed small…almost thug-like packs when they were forced out of their family packs,” Eli ran both hands through his hair.

  “Caroline told us there’s no…god, is there ever a good reason for an idiot war? She says their territory fits them with some to spare. They take care of their own and aren’t hurting for what belongs to others. They have good investments and solid businesses,” Scarlet folded her arms on the counter and let her head fall into the cushion. She missed her quiet Inn. She missed simple, dumb fights about nothing. She missed listening to Marie and Charlie fight about whose turn it was to restock the freezer. She missed Marti Franks telling her there was too much cinnamon in the cinnamon rolls.

  Lexi glared at Lucas and went to bring the other things to the counter for sandwiches, the bread knife slicing off thick chunks and stacking them on a plate. How can things feel so good and so warped at the same time, she demanded of the mixed up thoughts inside her own head.

  Eli moved beside Lexi, his hand up and grabbing the twitching bundle of tawny colored hair. He grinned when her gaze instantly swept to him.

  “You know it does that when we have sex?” He whispered in her ear, the faintest touch of pink in her cheeks. “I think it’s sexy.”

  “Canine,” she rolled her eyes and began building a sandwich.

  “Feline,” he returned with a wink, taking a plate and following her actions.

  “So how does an Alpha grovel?” Lily reached for a plate and began collecting things for her sandwich.

  “Usually he kicks someone’s ass,” Jess remarked casually, snatching a slice of roast off Lily’s plate, her fingers slapping the back of his palm. “Damn, woman, you’re fast.”

  “And you’re a thief,” she slid a plate to him. “Fix your own food, wolf.”

  Jess bared his canines at her, the corner of his mouth lifting. He froze in place, her fingers up and touching the extended pristine white teeth. Fascination filled her expression as she leaned in to look at the other one while touching the one closest to her.

  “Lily…” Eli almost lost to the laughter at his brother’s expression. “I think you’ve shocked him. He’s the delicate one…” he dodged the fist that struck out at him, the snarl from Jess seeping from the corner of his mouth.

  “I’d never seen them this close before. Amazing,” and she completely broke the spell by kissing him, drawing her tongue along his teeth.

  Jess closed his eyes, sighed and let his canines recede.

  “Females make you nuts.”

  “Is that a medical assessment, doc?” Lucas asked, fixing himself a sandwich and biting into it. He set it on the plate and put his palm on the back of Scarlet’s neck, massaging gently. “I’m sorry I’m a jackass.”

  “That was eloquent,” Eli looked at his brother with one brow arched.

  “He’s a man of few words,” Scarlet said, her voice muffled since she hadn’t lifted her face from her crossed arms on the counter. “But too damn cute to not forgive,” she lifted her head and let herself rest against him. “I guess that’s why they call it love.”

  “You really spoke to my mother?”

  “We really did. She has no idea why your head’s up your ass sometimes other than the protection thing mates have,” Scarlet laughed at the grimace crossing his features. “She also told me your father was the same when they first got together. She said it was a wonder they had any children, let alone three since there were times she wanted to strangle him while he slept.”

  Eli was choking on his sandwich. Jess had squeezed his eyes shut and dragged in a long, slow breath.

  “We also learned that one of the other packs females consider the Daniels’ boys hot and focused,” Lexi commented, picking off a piece of roast and eating thoughtfully, enjoying the chuckle from Lily and the chokes from the males. “Or that they didn’t like fe
males.”

  “Excuse me?” Eli’s head snapped up.

  “I’m trying to figure out how you could possibly give off that impression,” Lily watched the looks of surprise on their faces. “Maybe the girls flirting with you just felt…impotent.”

  “You really do like seeing those canines, don’t you?” Scarlet asked with a gurgle of laughter.

  “I think they’re sexy,” Lily teased with a wink at her friend. “Seriously…you’re dying to ask why we went to Caroline Baxter.” She saw the immediate interest in all three of them.

  “We did a little research on all the packs involved in this,” Lexi said thoughtfully. “Everyone’s got pages these days in some social network somewhere. Caroline has a good reputation in the business community, fair and honest. And profitable. We know you’ve been trying to make contact with them.”

  “None of them are returning any calls or forays,” Lucas said flatly. “The next move was going to be a face to face visit.”

  “Which is probably what the two idiot packs were hoping for,” Lily sighed. “I don’t doubt it would have been a serious trap.”

  “Why didn’t you think to approach the females?” Scarlet looked from one to the other, ending up watching Lucas closely. Their faces held a mixture of embarrassment and simple blank expressions that almost made her laugh.

  “We follow by making attempts to talk to their council and Alpha’s,” Lucas said slowly. “I’d like to say we hadn’t gotten there yet, but to be really honest, we’ve never had something like this happen. Even Dad can’t remember idiot moves like they’re trying.”

  Scarlet could easily hear his frustration, her hands sliding over and covering his on the counter top.

  “Some packs do nothing but involve themselves in pack wars,” Eli leaned against the counter beside Lexi. “I guess maybe there should be some research done on why they’re idiots, but that’s not likely to happen except from within. Dad is big on peace.”

  “We went to the females because we were curious,” Lily said, absently straightening the things they’d gotten out for lunch. “Females are the least likely to want violence. It’s natural to protect their kids and elders and Caroline did some investigating of her own before she met with us. She’d heard rumors, but the females they used were…almost still kids. Which is another sore point to her.”