Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 113406 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 454(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113406 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 454(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Madisyn went pliant against him. “Don’t let her spoil this barbecue, Bracken. That’s what she wants.”
“If you’re uncomfortable and want to leave—”
“I don’t.”
“Nick will lay into her later,” said Shaya, glaring at Kathy, who seemed totally oblivious to the harsh looks she was receiving. “He can’t right now because it would offend Harley’s cousins if he looked upset by them being here.”
“Roni looks like she wants to drag her mother through a rosebush backward,” Makenna noted. “I really hope she does.”
Madisyn patted Bracken’s arm, frowning at how tight his muscles were bunched. “Go get yourself a beer or something. I’d like one.”
He rested his forehead against hers. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Then I’ll get you one.” He laid a soft kiss on her mouth and then stalked off.
“He is pissed,” said Makenna. “Utterly and righteously pissed.”
“In his position, I would be too.” Sinking back into the sofa, Madisyn sighed, eyes on Kathy. “I figured she might act weird like she did last night. Or make snarky remarks or give me the cold shoulder. Maybe even the silent treatment. I never expected her to invite Shiloh—this is supremely unfair to her, and the margay will quickly realize exactly why Kathy did it. If Shiloh had been carrying a torch for Bracken, this would have been hard for her.”
Just then, Dominic settled himself on the arm of the rattan sofa and put a napkin near Madisyn’s face. “Hey, do you think this smells like chloroform?”
Rolling her eyes, Madisyn swatted his arm. She could see the concern lighting his eyes and knew he’d come to check on her. “I’m fine.” But she’d allow him to distract her and make her laugh purely because it would annoy Kathy to see her enjoying herself.
“I’ll bet your cat wants to claw Kathy’s eyes out, though.” He shot Madisyn a dirty look. “I can’t believe I had to find out what breed of shifter you are from CCTV footage.”
She just snorted at him. Dominic was gorgeous. Seriously gorgeous. He knew it too. There were flirty undertones to their conversations, but they’d never crossed the friends line. He’d have driven her crazy. Driving people crazy was her job.
She’d heard that he and Bracken had had a threesome with a female once. Madisyn had envied the lucky bitch. Not her cat, though. She liked Dominic in a sisterly way.
“Why don’t you just tell people you’re a pallas cat?” he asked. “Why are you so mysterious about it?”
“Who doesn’t want to be a little mysterious?” Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise her if Makenna was right that Dominic had already correctly guessed what Madisyn was. Hearing panting, she looked to see the pack’s Labrador, Bruce, meandering around and giving everyone puppy-dog eyes, hoping for scraps. “Sorry, big guy. I got nothing left.”
“Greedy bitch,” Dominic muttered. So she shoved him off the arm of the sofa.
He laughed, the weirdo. “Don’t be mad, kitty. You know I want you.” Settling back on the sofa’s arm, he said, “Hey, I’ll give you a nickel if you tickle my pickle. I’ll even chuck in a dime if you take your time. Ow! Why do you always go for the nipple?”
The small crowd near the buffet table parted as Bracken headed to the cooler. His jaw hurt from how hard he was clenching his teeth. He couldn’t fucking believe that Kathy had pulled this shit. It wasn’t so much what she’d done as why she’d done it. In trying to cause his mate discomfort, Kathy had betrayed him. Everything in him longed to go and confront the bitch, but he didn’t trust himself not to grab her by the fucking throat—especially when his wolf just wanted to rip said throat right out.
The barbecue wasn’t simply a subtle welcome party; it was a step toward gradually bringing Madisyn into the pack. It was important to him that she felt relaxed and at ease on his territory. How the fuck could she ever feel either of those things when she had Kathy working against her?
“You okay?” asked Eli.
Bracken plucked two beers out of the cooler. “What do you think?”
Eli winced. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault.”
“I know, but we’re all aware of how wary Madisyn is of joining the pack. The point of this barbecue was to get rid of that wariness.”
“Which Kathy knew,” Marcus pointed out, rubbing his mate’s back. Roni still looked ready to leap at the woman and tear her a new one. “Lucky for us, Madisyn’s above this shit.”
Cutting his gaze to Kathy, Eli sighed. “Only my mother could walk around with a smile on her face while pretty much everyone in her general vicinity is glaring at her.”
“I have to say, Madisyn’s acting remarkably restrained,” said Jaime, the Phoenix Beta female.
“You saw her on the CCTV footage,” Roni reminded the Beta. “You don’t get warnings with Madisyn. No posturing or glaring. She just lunges. She might look calm, but she’s probably far from it.”