by Milly Taiden
He shrugged. “I’m good.”
“Will you at least come help me guard the event? I swear craziness is going to happen and I’m not sure my men are ready to handle it alone.”
Savage gave him a look. “You’d rather a Savage bear come and take over? And scare them straight?”
Tyson showed even more teeth when he smiled wider. “Yeah. At least that’d be entertaining as hell.”
“I’ll think about it. You know, you’re lucky you’re a wolf,” Savage told him. “Or I’d throw Greer your way.”
Tyson blanched. “Hell no. I don’t need her bitchy ass in my life. Besides, she’s very vocal about only wanting the biggest, baddest bear. And that, my friend, is you. I have no room in my life for needy women.”
“All right, get out of here. I’ll come.”
“Great. I have to go. There’s a missing human reported in town. People think she might have left her man because he was abusive, but I’ve spoken to him and that’s not what I got from him.”
Savage ran a hand through his hair. “So where could she be?”
“He thinks it’s foul play. She’d never leave without her dog. It’s not like her. Now I have guys searching the bordering towns and investigating.”
He nodded. “Let me know if you need any of my people on that.”
“Thanks, man. I’ll see ya,” Tyson said and turned away.
Savage went into his cabin and showered. After that, he looked in his fridge, his stomach growling. Fuck. He had to get some meat in that place. The sound of a knock at the door made him turn.
“Uncle Sav!” His niece, Cara, ran into the kitchen and flung herself in his arms.
He hugged her tightly and smiled at her big brown eyes. “Hey, sweetie pie. What are you doing here?”
“Mama said we had to bring you food or you’d starve,” she grinned, showing two holes were her front teeth should be.
His sister, Poppy, walked in a moment later, carrying a pile of covered plastic ware. “You know, you were supposed to tell Uncle Sav to come help me, Cara.”
“Sorry, Mama. I forgot,” Cara giggled as Savage tickled her.
Poppy put the tray of Tupperware on the kitchen island. “You’ve had nothing to eat, right?”
He frowned. “I was about to cook.”
She raised her brows, marched to the fridge and opened it, not an ounce of surprise showing on her face that it was almost empty. “You need to have actual groceries to be able to cook, Sav. How many times do I have to tell you this?”
He grinned and kissed Cara on the forehead before putting her down. She ran out of the kitchen toward the game room in the basement. “You keep saying it, but I have a lot of stuff going on.”
Poppy rolled her eyes. “I heard. Greer’s telling the world you’re mating her tonight.”
He opened one of the plastic containers and pulled out a chicken drumstick. “She can wish.”
“When are you going to find a good woman and let her feed you?” She sighed. “You need somebody who can make chicken, Sav. Seriously.”
He choked on a piece of meat as he laughed at his sister’s serious face. “So that’s what I need to be looking for, someone who can cook chicken?”
She nodded. “Yes. Exactly. At least you won’t starve all the way up here. You can’t live on sex alone, Sav. No matter how good she is.”
He kissed her on the cheek and picked up another drumstick, no longer feeling murderous now that his family had come to visit and brought food.
“Ew, Sav! You’re all greasy,” she complained, wiping her face with a paper towel. “Sit down and let me serve you. At least eat on a plate. You’re not a total savage.”
He raised his brows. “I’m not?”
She stuck her tongue out at him. “No, you’re not. Even though Dad named you after one.”
He sat, watching Poppy move around his kitchen better than him. “Well, if it would have been Mom to name me, she’d have given me some weird flower name, like Magnolio or Cinnamon.”
Poppy gasped. “She would not have!” Then she bit her lip and grinned. “Okay, maybe she would’ve. But Cinnamon is a good name for a bear.”
“Sure, that will be my stripper name. Sound good?”
“You’re a dick.” She threw a roll and hit him in the chest. He picked it up and took a bite.
“I’m going to the gathering tonight,” he said.
Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. “You? You’ve never been. You say that’s for suckers.”
He grinned. “I’m not actually there to find someone. I’m going to help Tyson oversee the place.”
“Oh. And what will you do if you find a woman that calls to your inner bear?”
He blinked. “I’ll pick her up and bring her home. No questions asked. But seeing as that’s not going to happen, I’ll stick to guarding the event.”
Her shoulders dropped. “You’re such a party pooper. It would serve you right to find your mate and she make your life a living hell.”
“Nah. It’s not gonna happen.”
“Jerk.”
Chapter Five
Zuri glanced down at her heels. Man, this was such a bad idea. The shoes were too high. She hadn’t worn heels in ten years. Edward hated for her to dress up. He was a laid back person and wanted her in flip flops and shorts, not in dresses and heels. At first, she’d argued with him, but eventually decided he was right.
Those were more comfortable. They never went anywhere she needed to dress up, and for a long time, she didn’t even talk to her family. It wasn’t until after the marriage ended that she realized he’d isolated her from her loved ones and from who she was. She’d become who he wanted and that had done nothing for their marriage.
“Come out, already!” Isaline yelled. “Is it dinnertime yet?”
“Seriously, Isaline,” Sage said, “I think you have a tapeworm or something. You need to get that checked out. Nobody can be hungry 24/7.”
Zuri let out a nervous breath and walked out of the bathroom. “Okay, so what do you all think? Is it too much? Should I put something else on?”
“Oh my god,” Mirabel gasped. “You look…”
What? She looked what?
“Amazing,” Sage ended. “Absolutely.”
“Gorgeous.” Isaline grinned. “You’re so gonna get laid tonight!”
“Isaline!” Sage admonished. “Hopefully, she meets a decent guy.”
“Then gets laid,” Mirabel added.
Zuri laughed. Her mother was incorrigible. “You’re sure I look okay?”
“Not okay, honey, gorgeous,” Sage told her. “This dress looks fantastic on you.”
Zuri glanced at herself in Sage’s full body mirror. The dress was gorgeous. A silver satin that hugged her curves and somehow managed to make her ass look amazing while the wrinkly waistline detracted from her belly. The strapless neckline and built in pushup bra made her boobs look fifteen years younger. She felt like she was going to prom all over again.
“I admit, it’s a lot more comfortable than I thought it would be.”
Sage smiled widely. “And that powder cream will help your thighs not rub so you don’t have to wear those ugly shorts underneath.”
“Yeah. I always wear them with dresses, but it would have been noticeable with anything this tight.”
Isaline fluffed Zuri’s long dark curls and sighed. “Those blue eyes and that dark hair on that peachy skin are going to drive men crazy. Those shifters are gonna lose their minds over you.”
“And then she’s gonna get laid,” Mirabel laughed.
“Mom!” Zuri shook her head. “We get it. You want me to get laid.”
Mirabel nodded vigorously. “And pregnant, if at all possible.”
“Mother!” Sage laughed. “Do you want the pregnancy before she gets to know the guy or after?”
“She’s thirty-nine, I don’t think it matters at this point.”
She picked up her evening bag and met her mother’s gaze. “I’ll ke
ep that in mind.”
The evening was cool. It was getting to the point that the daytime heat and evening cold made a person need a ton of layers when leaving the house. Thankfully, she had a wrap and took it with her. No way in hell she could drive in those heels, so she slipped them off to drive. She had twenty minutes to get her mind in order. Don’t be a baby. You got this.
The town hall building was lined with vehicles. Men and women in evening wear walked inside. She sat in her car, watching the crowds. Fuck. She glanced at the passenger seat where she had put her wrap and noticed something on the floor.
A quick reach and she realized it was a small bottle of cotton candy vodka with a note tied to the neck.
I know this is not the best way to get you going, but it might help calm your nerves. You’ve got this. Love, Isaline. P.S. I hope the food is good.
She laughed, her hands shaking so hard it took a few tries to finally get the bottle open. She didn’t sip, she guzzled that shit so fast, she felt like someone had lit a fire in her chest down to her stomach.
Holy fuck! She’d never had liquor straight up. She took a few deep breaths and after…uh…whatever number of minutes, she left the wrap behind because she was hot and got out of the car, slipped the heels on and straightened her spine. She could do this. She could definitely do this.
The walk to the building wasn’t long, but she swore she heard Eye of the Tiger playing in her head. Why in the world that would be the theme song for this night, she had no idea. The front door was manned by a group of tall men in black suits.
Their eyes gave them away. That golden glow told her they were shifters. All four sniffed, inhaling her scent as if to see if she’d bathed. Her mind went blank. Had she bathed? Of course, she had! How could she forget? It had been less than an hour ago.
“Gentlemen,” she cleared her throat. “Good evening.”
“Ma’am,” one of them said with a smile that would make Isaline want to reach for a pork chop. “Are you alone this evening?”
She nodded, watching them once again inhale deeply. She wanted to do the same, just to see if she could smell whatever it was they were smelling.
“No need to be nervous, my dear,” one of the men said. “I met my mate at this event last year. We recently had our first child.”
She smiled politely. “Thanks.” Then she frowned. “How, um, how did you know I was nervous?”
They all grinned at her at the same time. “We’re shifters.”
Right. Like that answered every mystery in the damn universe. “Okay, well, I guess I’ll go inside and…”
“Just walk around, meet people and chat. Have fun,” the same guy said. “We’ll be out here if you need anything.”
Chapter Six
Zuri rushed inside, her heels making walking a near death experience. The inside of the building was decorated in dark blues and purples and the retractable ceiling had been pulled back so only the glass ceiling was closed. This allowed the moonlight and stars to be seen indoors. Waiters carrying drinks moved around the crowds. One stopped in front of her to offer a glass of champagne. She took it and downed it.
“Zuri?”
She turned with her empty flute and tried to get her eyes to adjust to the darkness. “Felicity?”
Her classmate, Felicity Towers, was no shifter, yet she was at the party, too.
“Imagine my surprise to catch you here!” Felicity squealed. “Thank goodness because it is weird as hell barely knowing anyone.”
“I’d say.” Zuri handed the empty glass to a waiter and grabbed another.
“I almost didn’t come,” Felicity told her. “My mother’s worried. Our neighbor went missing a few days ago. Some of her family think her husband did something to her, but he was always really nice.”
Zuri frowned. “So why didn’t you almost come?”
“If there’s someone abducting women, I don’t want to be a victim. My mother only let me come because I promised the person who invited me I’d be here.”
“So how did you get invited?”
Felicity shrugged. She was a big girl like Zuri, but with a lot more style. Just to go to class, she always looked incredibly put together and had the best outfits. Her southern accent was something nobody could resist. Her warm smiles either. “Professor Ramos told me she was going to make it her business that I find a mate,” she laughed. “Apparently, my peach cobbler is going to land me a shifter.”
Zuri grinned. “If only my fried chicken could do a miracle for me.”
Felicity took a glass of wine from a waiter that came directly to her and thanked him. “Girl, you make the best fried chicken. I honestly only came out of curiosity. Not like I have a chance against that.”
Zuri glanced in the direction Felicity was looking. There stood a tall, slim woman with the body of an athlete. She had amazing arms and legs. She wore a super short black dress that looked more like a nightie than a gown.
Her long red hair had been curled and she had bangs that accentuated her elfin-like features. Her thousand-watt smile pulled in the men around her, like moths to a flame.
“She’s gorgeous,” Zuri said softly.
“That she is. She’s also not interested in any of those men,” Felicity said, taking a sip of her wine.
Zuri frowned. The woman had at least eight men vying for her attention, her beauty drawing them. “How do you know.”
“Do you see how she keeps glancing over there?” she pointed to the right side of the room. There were four men standing together, talking by one of the walls. She couldn’t make them out, but they were super tall. One guy had his back to her, but his broad shoulders and giant arms were not something that could be missed.
“Yeah?”
“I’m sure she’s just doing it to get one of their attentions, but I don’t know which guy is the one she wants.” Felicity sipped her wine and continued watching.
“Well, none of them seemed interested in what she’s doing, so who’s to say they care?”
Felicity nodded. “They probably don’t. To be honest, it doesn’t look like it. But she’s working damn hard for people to notice men want her.”
Zuri rolled her eyes. “I hate games. People play too many games. Why is it so hard to walk up to a person and say hi, my name is and I like you.”
Felicity laughed. “Good question. The truth is, I don’t know. I do know that I’m sure we’re going to see some interesting things tonight.”
Chapter Seven
Savage growled as he made his way to the men’s room. He’d been told there was some kind of issue and they needed him to fix it. What the hell was going on with this event? He might not be wearing a damn suit, but he wasn’t a plumber. When he radioed Tyson, the sheriff cheekily told him that checking on bathroom complaints was part of the job, too. Asshole.
Inside the men’s room, he found nothing wrong with any of the stalls or sinks, so he turned to go.
“Savage, baby,” Greer said with a wide sensual smile. “Why have you been ignoring me?”
Savage gave her a once-over. What the hell had he been thinking to get involved with her? Sure, she had a hot body and knew how to please a man, but Poppy was right, a man couldn’t live on sex alone. He might have at one point enjoyed having sex with Greer, but he hated her personality. That would never do for a mate. He needed to like whoever he mated.
“What do you want, Greer?”
She gave him a sly grin. “I’ve been missing you,” she said, swinging her legs in her tight little black dress. “I was hoping to catch you alone.”
He nodded in realization. “There was never anything wrong with the bathroom, I take it.”
“Sorry, honey, but on the plus side, I’m here. You’re here. How about we take advantage of this?”
“I’ve got a job to do,” he said, and marched toward the door.
“Sav, wait!” She grabbed his arm.
He quickly pulled it away, disgusted that she’d touched him and frowned. “Get out of
my way, Greer. I already told you it’s over. You’re never going to be my mate or leader of my clan.”
He stormed past her, his fury rising with every second he had to smell her. The bear inside had suddenly pushed to the surface and he had to do his best to keep it under control.
“You’re going to change your mind. You wait, Sav. You and I both know I’m the only woman for you.”
He slammed the door open, the back of the metal crashing into the brick of the building. His animal was acting bizarre. Something wasn’t right. He bumped into people as he walked through the center of the hall.
His vision became unfocused and the ability to control the beast become more difficult. He’d never experienced anything like this. He was the oldest clan leader and though he wasn’t an elder, that required hundreds of years in the clan, he was old enough to know when something was wrong.
He shoved bodies out of the way. Then, he inhaled and his animal roared.
The loud sound broke through his lips, making those around him quiet in anticipation. The scent drew him in. He inhaled again. It was roses. Roses and candy and sweetness all wrapped into one. He pushed people out of his way. He was getting closer. That scent grew more powerful as he neared it. It was passion, and sexy, and god, he could scent the last time she’d touched her pussy in the shower not long ago. Fuck! He had to find her. His mate was there.
One of his men stopped in front of him. “Sav?”
He punched him hard enough to hear bone breaking.
“Yo, Sav,” another said. “What the fuck, man?” Grabbing his arm.
Sav sent him flying across the room. People rushed out of his way, pushing each other in the process.
“Whoa!” Tyson jumped in front of him. “Are you okay?”
Savage roared and shoved his friend. “Get the fuck out of my way.”
Tyson’s features were blurred, but he could still see his confusion and shock. “Talk to me, Sav. What’s going on? This isn’t like you.”
Savage inhaled and another groan left his lips. He marched forward, searching for the one he’d fuck. His woman.
