“Got it. Next time I will lead with the party angle,” Ace said, but there was no laughter there. He was holding back for sure, and she couldn’t blame him, after losing his dad less than a week prior. She hadn’t known him long enough to truly understand his actions, but anyone who’d suffered a loss like that would be off.
Jay, on the other hand, had remained suspiciously tight-lipped and avoided eye contact with her, choosing to let his eyes roam everywhere else in the room but to Giselle. That made her nervous.
“We’ll make our travel plans, then,” Martina said, bringing the room back on point. “And we’ll see you in Washington by the end of this week.”
Ace extended a hand and shook with Gavin and Martina before pulling Giselle into a big bear hug. “You’ll do great.” He winked as he released her from his crushing grip.
Jay finally acknowledged her and reached out to give her a hug as well, but his was much lighter and less personal than his brother’s had been. “Keep your friends close, little wolf, and watch your back,” he whispered, before backing up and turning his attention to Taylor and Di for their good-bye hug.
Had he meant that as a warning to her or as a cautionary note as they entered into new territory? she wondered, but before she could raise a voice of question, the guys walked out the front door to the car where Richard, her newly appointed bodyguard, was already waiting to drive them to the airport.
“I don’t like this,” Giselle said, as the door closed, leaving her with her pack. She walked over to her favorite spot on the couch, from where she had a commanding view of the rest of the living room, and sat, grabbing a decorative pillow to squeeze her frustration out on as she sank into the cushion.
“What’s bothering you?” Martina took a seat next to her and tugged away the fancy pillow before Giselle could split a seam and send stuffing all over the room. “Are you mad that we have to go so soon?”
“I’m not mad. Stressed out, maybe. But definitely not mad,” Giselle replied.
“Then why are you trying to kill the couch cushions? Maybe retract the claws a little bit and tell me what’s got you so riled up.”
Breathing always helped. She’d tried yoga and hated it, but the breathing they’d taught had the best calming effect, so she went with that. A deep breath in through the mouth and then slowly push it out. When she’d taken a moment to compose herself, she found Martina and Gavin both patiently waiting for her to speak.
Di had already zoned out with a magazine she’d found on the coffee table. Taylor had wandered into the kitchen, and it sounded as if she were grabbing a soda.
Despite her attempt to calm down, when Giselle opened her mouth, the words poured out with all the control of a firehose. “Ace and Jay were acting strange. This whole Council thing. And why the sudden push to do it quickly? I thought we had time to transition power.”
Martina’s features tightened as she sat thoughtfully for a moment before responding. “Power must always be established among our kind. We thrive on leadership and routine, despite how it may seem. The Regional Alpha is an important title, so it would only make sense that they have some due diligence in this process.”
“I get that. I do.” Giselle sighed, knowing she hadn’t been clear with her barrage of thoughts turned into words. She tried to focus on a single thread of the issue bothering her; maybe they could work it out into the bigger picture. “But Ace and Jay. They were acting very... odd.”
“Honey, they just lost their father.” Martina sounded shocked that she would even mention the way they were acting.
“No. I know that.” Frustration forced a small growl up Giselle’s throat. She was speaking English, right? Why wasn’t anyone understanding her? Of course they would act weird after losing their father. But not that kind of weird. “I expect them to be sad, but Jay told me to watch my back. Like a warning. Like he was warning me.”
“You’re heading into unfamiliar territory, dear,” Martina said matter-of-factly.
How was this not a huge red flag to Martina or Gavin? Neither of them seemed the slightest bothered by what had just happened. Business as usual. Even her sisters were milling around like it was any old day, instead of the day they learned Giselle was going to have to put up or shut up about her birthright.
Martina was right, of course, about going into new territory and needing to be careful. And that would be a business as usual werewolfy thing. No one could fault anyone in her family for shrugging their shoulders at that; but Giselle’s gut was telling her there was more to this than Martina’s simple explanation.
This meeting of the Grand High Poobahs of the Alphas had deadly intent. And the consequences would go so much further than simply making her family look bad. That had to be what Ace and Jay were worried about. And the warning... who would be out to get her? Who had raised the red flag that made the Alphas decide to call this meeting? So many questions. Things that should be bothering her family, and yet there they sat acting as if she were the drama queen, overplaying her hand. A lesser wolf would let this go. Enjoy the ride and see where it took them. But Giselle could never do that. She had to get to the bottom of things. And seeing as she was on her own again, with fears and concerns, she decided to play their game.
“Whatever. I’m not going to stress it. Let’s talk travel. Who’s going with us?” Giselle asked.
“I am.” Di’s hand flew up as if she were answering a question in class.
“Of course you girls will all go,” Martina said. “My sister will be back by the end of the week – she and Jeffrey can watch the house, and we’ll all go together. It can be a little family vacation.”
Giselle laughed out loud. Vacation. Hardly. This was going to be super-stressful.
“Try to relax, Giselle,” Martina said soothingly. “The worst that can happen is you come home the same girl you’ve been since we knew you. Remember that. If they deny your claim, you’re still our Little Werewolf.”
Chapter 2
Martina’s words carried so much truth, and yet they couldn’t soothe the tension knotting her stomach. There was no shame in being their little werewolf, and she’d have happily remained that if it were allowed. All she’d ever wanted was a family to accept her for what she was. She’d only ever dreamed of her fur-ever home. And she’d found it with them. The irony was because of family – blood – she was no allowed to simply be a little werewolf any longer.
Be careful what you wish for. She was Murphy’s Law’s bitch.
The night crawled on its belly like a snail in no particular rush to move as Giselle tossed and turned, praying for sleep to take her away from her troubled thoughts. Her mind churned out scenarios of doom surrounding her upcoming trip north to Washington. Jay’s warning left so much to question, and as her family was already shrugging it off, she didn’t want to beat a dead horse with them. They were as stubborn as she when it came to the way they saw the world, and in her exhaustion, Giselle just couldn’t muster the energy it would require to open their eyes to the potential truth.
Everywhere she looked, wolf politics threatened to destroy the happiness she’d found with her new family. What was the point of being supernatural if you couldn’t even enjoy it? Perhaps that was the grand screw you of the cosmos. You could be human and boring; or supernatural and deal with endless amounts of unwanted drama.
Exhaustion only amplified her bad mood, and as the sun peeked through the edges of the window, it became painfully obvious that sleep had turned its back on her.
Giselle rose from her bed as quietly as she could, not wanting to wake her sisters. In her current frame of mind, conversation would be little more than Neanderthal-like grunts and snarls, which would only serve to add more confusion and anger to her agitated state. No. That sort of thing was best left for a time after she’d been properly caffeinated. She dressed and headed downstairs for the one thing that might help snap her out of the funk she was in and put a little pep into her preparations for travel.
Gavin, alw
ays the early riser, was already in the kitchen brewing the first pot of coffee for the day. Again her plans for a quiet start to the morning had been thwarted. Was it that much to ask for a little time alone to clear her thoughts? Apparently so. But unlike her sisters, whom she could easily brush aside, her adoptive father and co-pack leader was not so easy to ignore, and his position demanded a teensy bit more respect.
Giselle slowed her descent down the stairs, taking deep cleansing breaths so she might appear fresh when she hit the kitchen.
Busy with a pan of what smelled like bacon, Gavin’s back was to her as she stepped foot onto the tile floor, but quick as any wolf, he’d already prepared for her company and set out an extra mug on the counter.
“You’re up early.” He slapped a few more strips down on to the hot pan.
Tantalizing even in her sleep-deprived state, the smell of bacon just beginning to sizzle awoke her inner wolf and she sat begging. The whole house would be up soon with the call of that salty siren as an alarm. What wolf could resist? Hell, she knew more than a few humans who’d be roused from a coma if tempted with fresh, hot bacon. And as good as that sounded, she was still not ready to deal with people who expected her to do the words and talking thing.
Second only to the smell of delicious cooking meat, the pot of fresh coffee begged for her attention. Caffeine was most certainly what she needed. And then maybe a slice or two of bacon, slathered in maple syrup.
Gavin spun around to fetch his mug and began to pour his own cup of wake-up juice. “Late night or early morning?” he asked with a knowing glare.
As Alphas went, Gavin broke the mold. He had never been the hard-line type of father or wolf. He often allowed mistakes to be the teacher, and let Giselle have a long leash. Had Martina asked the same question, Giselle might have been tempted to be evasive, knowing that they’d already talked the night before, but with Gavin she felt she could just speak her mind.
“Couldn’t sleep. Might need something stronger than that.” She pointed to the mug he was pouring coffee into.
“Still angling to get that espresso machine, are ya?” Gavin laughed, as he nudged the empty mug her way down the counter.
“It’s a triple shot kind of morning.” Giselle yawned loudly, then realized she might have just woken the house.
“That bad? Still feeling the pressure?” Gavin’s tone carried no tone of impatience, thankfully.
The last thing she wanted was to hear more about her overactive imagination. Not that she expected that from Gavin.
“No point in rehashing it.” Giselle brushed away the words with a wave of her hand, swatting them like flies.
Gavin nodded. “No point in refuting it, either.” He tipped his mug and winked. “Go with my blessing, but bring back something for Martina, or she’ll be angry.”
“She’d never know if you hadn’t set the bacon alarm. I’m surprised people aren’t lining up already for a taste.”
Gavin turned on his heels. “Thanks for reminding me.” He flipped the bacon, and its wafting smell put her under a spell. She almost considered forgoing coffee to be first in line. “You can stop drooling already. I’ll send you off with a few slices.”
Above them both, the ceiling rumbled. Too late. The house was awake. “We’ve got incoming. I’ll have to get some for the girls too.”
“Price of doing business.” Gavin pulled a few glistening ribbons of bacon still sizzling at the edges from the pan and set them down on a plate he’d previously prepared with a paper towel. “Do you have enough cash to cover their drinks?”
“Yeah. I can cover it.” Giselle swiped a handful of bacon and turned before he could stop her. She ravenously shoved the hot strips in her face as she headed for the key rack to pick up the car keys. “I’m taking your car, okay?” Giselle ducked into the garage and hit the door opener to muffle any sound in case Gavin tried to protest. His jeep was always more fun to drive than the car she shared with the girls. Any chance to drive it was worth the lecture she’d get later.
Early as it was, traffic was non-existent and the coffee shop blissfully empty. Giselle gave in to the temptation to stay and enjoy the non-wolfy silence as she sipped her favorite caramel-laden triple shot beverage. No doubt with the siren’s call of bacon, the entire house was awake, so she couldn’t stay long, but a few stolen moments of peace wouldn’t hurt. And the second they saw her with coffee, all would be forgiven.
Tasting of pure sugar and caffeine heaven, the moment the liquid touched her lips it revitalized her spirit. Things didn’t look so foreboding. She’d find a way to wow the Council. And there was the underlying bonus she’d almost forgotten about with this trip – she’d finally be able to meet her long-lost father.
Sure, he’d be comatose, but she’d see him. More than just a thought, more than just a picture in Cassandra’s wallet, he’d be a real, tangible presence in her life. A connection to who she was and could become. That alone would be worth the trip up north and the snooty wolves she’d have to woo.
Laughing at her own thoughts about wooing strange old wolves, she failed to recognize the scent of the wolf who’d just walked into the coffee shop.
She was mid-sip when he strolled up behind her. “May I beg an audience with your highness?” Asher asked.
She swallowed the singeing liquid quickly and turned in time to see him recovering from a low bow. The royalty jokes were beginning to grate on her nerves, and Asher was the primary reason for it. She punched him in the arm as he rose to meet her eyes. “Seriously, man... This is getting old.”
“This will never get old.” Asher flashed her his award-winning smile, and his teeth sparkled in the early light. No guy should have weapons that powerful. Though she alone seemed immune. At least, this morning she was. “You’re like our own personal princess now. And I’m kissing ass as hard as I can to ensure my place in your court.”
“Seriously, dude. Enough!” Giselle rolled her eyes and returned to sipping her drink.
Asher scooted into the seat across the small table. His face scrunched in confusion. “You’re supposed to be happy about this.”
“I am. Just... it’s a lot to take in.”
“Yeah, and it will only get better. You’re about to have a list of suiters a mile long. Everyone will want to be the mate...” He waved a hand as if to show her the line already forming behind him.
She glared at him as if trying to will his mouth to stop moving. She’d already tuned out his words, but those lips of his kept flapping. “I’m going to stop you right there. I’ve got a boyfriend. Remember?”
“A witch.” Asher laughed. “You saw how well that worked out for your family in the past.”
“That’s a low blow,” she growled. Her level of caffeine had not yet risen enough to deal with his wolfy elitism.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” Asher said cautiously.
“Yeah, you did,” Giselle snarled at him. Caffeine was starting to take effect, and before she opened her mouth again, she paused and took a moment to breathe. Asher was a dick sometimes, but not intentionally so. His family was the upper class of wolves in that area, and they often forgot their manners in mixed company. “I know you aren’t trying to piss me off. Wolf laws and such. Whatever. I get it.”
“Yeah, babe, you’re in the spotlight now.” Asher’s famous smiled returned. “At some point, though, you’ll have to make a choice. The wolfy way...”
“At some point. But not today.” Giselle gulped the last bit of her drink and stood, hoping Ash would get the hint that she was done with the conversation.
Asher stood as well and waited for her to walk before he followed. “Sooner than you might think. Maybe even before you officially take the title.”
“You think they’ll push that hard right off the bat?” She’d wanted to end the conversation, and leaving would surely do that, but as she took a step toward the door, she remembered she was supposed to grab drinks for the rest of the family. With a silent curse, she changed cour
se and headed for the counter to order.
Asher kept time with her like a shadow. “Wolves are not known for allowing gray areas. Pretty black and white about things.”
“And you wonder why I’m not chomping at the bit to take the roll. I live in the gray areas.” Giselle pulled a twenty-dollar bill from her wallet and ordered five more coffees to go.
Asher placed his order as well and again followed her to a table to wait out their drinks. “Hey. Maybe you’ll usher in a new age for wolfdom.”
“I’m not even going to justify that with a response.” Giselle tried to hide her laugh, though the image of her face on a campaign poster was amusing.
“I believe in you.” Ash scooted up close and nudged her shoulder with his. “Giselle. Making Wolves Great Again!”
She couldn’t hide the full-blown laugh that bubbled up from her chest this time. “Are you my PR person now? Is this the official Giselle for Alpha slogan?”
“Anything to earn brownie points with my liege.” Asher puffed his chest and saluted.
He was a jerk sometimes, and then others... Giselle sighed. He could be so damn adorable. “I sense much brown-nosing in you.”
“We all have to be good at something.” Asher flashed his signature smile-and-wink combo at her.
Giselle rolled her eyes, feigning annoyance. “Yeah, because kissing ass at a college level is something to aspire to.”
The barista called out Giselle’s name, and she was quick on her feet to go retrieve the drinks.
“At least I know who to turn to when I’m feeling low.”
“Happy to bolster your spirits.” Asher winked as she walked out the door drinks in hand. “Now, knock ’em dead and come back an Alpha!”
Chapter 3
“Who needs caffeine?” Giselle arrived home like the conquering hero with treasures from a far off land. Her offering to Gavin seemed to appease him enough to let her off the hook for taking his car.
Fearless Little Werewolf Page 2
