Bracken woke with a start, heart pounding, muscles tense. For a single moment, he wasn’t sure where he was, but then Madisyn’s scent pierced the panic fogging his brain. It happened sometimes—he woke, pulse racing, disoriented, sweat dotting his forehead. If he was having nightmares, he never remembered them.
Since he’d begun sleeping beside his mate four nights ago, he hadn’t had any of the weird episodes. Just woke feeling heavy and disconnected with that all-too-familiar dull feeling in his gut. But then he’d see her, and his dark cloud would lift.
He took a centering breath and rolled over. She wasn’t there. His heart slammed in his chest, even though he knew there was no real cause for alarm. He reached out with his senses, searching for her. She wasn’t in the bathroom, and he couldn’t hear her puttering around downstairs. He put his hand on her pillow. Cold. She’d been up awhile. He was a light sleeper, so how she’d snuck out of the room without him hearing her was an absolute mystery.
He liked waking up to find her sleeping beside him. Liked that she was the first thing he saw when he woke. Liked that it had become their morning ritual for him to eat her out and then either fuck her in bed or in the shower. Finding her gone annoyed him on a number of levels.
He slipped out of bed, did his business, and then pulled on his clothes. As he headed downstairs, he again listened for sounds of movement. None. Striding down the hallway, passing the empty living area and equally empty dining area, he entered the kitchen only to find that she wasn’t in there either. A knot of irrational panic began to clog his throat, and his heart began to pound like a drum.
Stepping out into the backyard, he saw no sign of her. But her scent, more feral than usual, was heavy in the air. He relaxed. She’d shifted into her animal form, and her cat was out there somewhere. He swept his gaze over the yard, skimming over the peony bushes, birdbath, cluster of rocks, tall oak tree casting shade—
Movement.
His eyes darted back to the rockery in the corner. He’d seen it the past few times he’d been out here but never paid any real attention to it. Thought it was just decorative. But as he got closer, he realized the rocky crevice was a very cleverly crafted shelter big enough for a small animal to comfortably burrow in.
Slowly, Bracken squatted in front of the rocky haven and inhaled deeply. Yeah, she was in there. His wolf pushed against his skin, wanting out, wanting time with the cat. Bracken ignored him and waited patiently for her to make an appearance. He didn’t have to wait long.
A silvery-gray head popped halfway out of the crevice, amber eyes locking on him, pupils strangely round rather than vertical. And the little cat didn’t look all that impressed about being disturbed.
Still, Bracken couldn’t help but smile. “Hey there,” he said softly. He’d been looking forward to meeting the feline, but Madisyn had kept him waiting, and he sensed it was because she wasn’t used to sharing her cat with others.
The feline made an odd gurgling sound. Sort of barked.
“I’m hoping that’s not a ‘Fuck off.’” But he got the feeling he was being reprimanded for disturbing her. Still, he didn’t move. Like Madisyn, she needed to get used to him sharing her space. That wouldn’t happen unless he made her see that he could fit into it just fine.
Looking rather put out, she let out a chuff-slash-hiss—it sounded like she was trying to hiss and cough up a hair ball at the same time. There was no real aggression there, though.
“Come on out here so I can get a better look at you,” he coaxed sweetly, again keeping his voice gentle. He knew she wouldn’t understand him, but he was quite sure that Madisyn would communicate what he wanted to the cat.
Looking adorably cranky, the feline padded out of the crevice. All fur, muscle, and grace, she blinked up at him. Her generous coat made her look much bigger than she actually was. In fact, the overabundance of fur often made their animal counterparts look stocky. But pallas shifters were slightly taller, and their coats were a little shorter, so they looked more in proportion.
“Morning,” he said softly, making no move to touch her. He remembered Madisyn’s advice on how to deal with her cat: Don’t try to pet her straight off the bat. Let her come to you. Don’t throw your dominance around, because it won’t work. And for God’s sake, don’t be all “Here kitty, kitty” unless you want your nose bitten off. With that advice in mind, he waited patiently for the cat to make the next move.
Finally, she regally padded closer to him, halting between his legs. Moving slowly, he reached down and stroked her fur. It was thick and lusciously soft. Whispering compliments, he kept on petting her until she relaxed against his leg, purring. Deep inside Bracken, his wolf lay down and rested his chin on his forelegs, content to have some time with the cat even though he wasn’t able to touch her just yet.
Bracken’s empty stomach rumbled, and the cat straightened with a blink. “I need food and coffee. You coming?”
She sprang at him so incredibly fast that he didn’t get the chance to shield his face. Luckily, he hadn’t needed to. She landed on his shoulder and then twisted to face the same direction he was facing. Perched there like a bird of prey, she loosely curled her bushy tail around his neck.
Bracken carefully stood. “Oh, I see. I need to carry this dainty princess around, do I?”
She mustn’t have liked his jocular tone much because it earned him a low growl, and she lightly dug her claws into his shoulder.
Chuckling to himself, he headed into the kitchen. To his surprise, she jumped onto the top of the fridge and settled there like it was a favorite spot. He blinked. “All right.” Under her watchful eye, he drank coffee and ate a bagel. No amount of coaxing made her join him at the table—she apparently really liked being up high.
Done with his breakfast, he put the dishware in the sink. “Are you ever going to come down?”
With what could only be described as a “Lord give me strength” look, similar to the one his grandmother used to flash him, she pushed to her feet. Damn, he loved this cat. She leaped onto the dining chair, as graceful as any gymnast. Bones cracked and snapped as she shifted, and soon Madisyn sat in her place—naked and smiling.
“I am totally gone for your cat,” he admitted.
Madisyn chuckled. “She kind of likes you too.”
“Just kind of?”
“For my cat, that’s undying devotion.” Madisyn had been sincerely surprised by how fast the feline accepted his touch. She hadn’t even tried chasing him away from her private space. The cat barked at freaking ants if they got near her precious rockery.
He crossed to her just as she stood and did a long catlike stretch. “You snuck out of bed,” he playfully accused.
“There was no sneaking. You just didn’t wake up.”
“Hmm.” Snaking his arms around her, he pulled her flush against him, stroking all that petal-soft skin. “You’re not at the shelter today?”
“I don’t do Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays, since I work at the club on weekends.”
“Speaking of weekends . . . Did Shaya invite you to the barbecue we’re having on Sunday?” He almost smiled at the way her nose wrinkled. He knew, of course, that his Alpha had invited her, just as he knew from Shaya that Madisyn had replied with a noncommittal sound. His mate wasn’t dumb. She knew they were throwing it for her. And he sensed that while part of her was grateful they were so welcoming, another part of her felt pressured by it. He hadn’t yet managed to coax her to his lodge for that same reason. She worried his pack would read too much into it and believe she was ready to move there.
“Can’t go,” she said. “Gonna be busy working on my domino tower.”
His mouth twitched. “Domino tower. Right. Well, you got three days to build your imaginary tower. I’m sure that’s enough.”
“I also have a pasta sculpture to build.”
His smile widened. “No one will start hinting at a mating ceremony, I promise. It’s not some sort of setup. They’re not all planning to pounce on you with questions, bully you to accept my claim, or work on making you move there using reverse psychology.”
Her brow creased. “Isn’t that where you make your therapist break down and sob awhile?”
He tilted his head. “You had a therapist?”
“Dawn has one come to the shelter every Thursday. She sent me to see him when I wouldn’t stop setting fires.”
“And you made him cry?”
“Not on purpose.” It wasn’t her fault that it creeped him out when she sang “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly.” Over and over. In a dreary voice. Cackling whenever she said the word “die.”
“Well, my pack mates aren’t going to subject you to any kind of interrogation or intervention. It’s just a barbecue. And I’ve already made Shaya promise she won’t ask you to shift just so she can meet your cat.” He gave Madisyn a pitiful look. “Please come. For me.”
She sighed. “I’ll think about it.”
“Good enough. Missed you this morning.”
She curled her arms around his neck. “Did you?”
“Yes. I don’t like you not being there when I wake up.” He kissed her, licking into her mouth, groaning as her taste sank into him. “I like opening my eyes to find you lying right there.”
She snorted. “You like morning sex.”
“That too.” Tucking her hair around her ear, he said, “For the first month or so after I lost my family, waking up in the mornings was the best part of my day.”
Having lost her own parents, Madisyn understood. “Because for those few seconds that you didn’t remember what had happened to them, everything was fine.”
He nodded. “Then it would all come flooding back, and the rage would be right behind it. When it finally sank in that they were gone, I didn’t have those few seconds of contentment anymore. I’d lost them. I’d wake with a dull feeling in the pit of my stomach. I still do. But then I open my eyes, I see you, and it goes away.” He caught her face in his hands. “Until it properly sinks into my brain that I’ve found you, I’ll keep on waking up with that dull feeling in my stomach. So yeah, I like to find you right there when I wake up.”
Melting a little inside—God, she was turning into such a girl—Madisyn swallowed. “I’ll wake you before I leave the bed next time.”
He kissed her forehead, silently thanking her for what he knew wasn’t a reasonable concession. “Now, since I didn’t get my taste of you this morning”—he lifted her and sat her on the table—“I think I’ll have it now.”
“No, I don’t want more gouges in my table.”
Sitting on the chair, he gripped her thighs and pulled her toward him. “Then keep in those claws.”
But she didn’t.
That evening, blood buzzing with annoyance, Madisyn poured herself a shot of tequila and tossed it back, relishing the burn as it slid down her throat.
Ally’s mouth twitched into a smile. “You do know that, as my fellow barmaid, you should be serving drinks, not drinking them, right?”
“Either I drink a few shots of tequila to calm my fraying nerves, or I go slap that bitch around.” Madisyn gestured at Claudia Brookson, who was busy eye-fucking Bracken.
Ally winced. “Tequila it is.”
So Madisyn downed another shot. Whenever Claudia came to the club, she always sat in the same corner in the same seat, surrounded by the same male wolves—all of whom were members of her security team. Sometimes she’d attempt to talk to Bracken. Other times she wouldn’t. But she always did her best to, at the very least, catch his eye—flicking all that blue-black hair, thrusting out her breasts, continually crossing and uncrossing her long, slim legs. Thanks to the slit in the side of her dress, there was a lot of leg to see.
Bracken had been manning the door with Derren for most of the night, occasionally ducking his head inside the club to spare Madisyn a brief glance, checking on her. Then, half an hour ago, he’d switched with Eli so that he was patrolling the indoor perimeter of the club. Bracken had to be aware that Claudia spent a lot of her time watching him—the guy missed nothing—but he was paying the she-wolf no attention. That didn’t seem to bother Claudia at all, though.
“Maybe she thinks he’s playing hard to get as opposed to just plain ignoring her,” Madisyn mused.
Sitting on a stool, Gwen sipped her mojito. “Or maybe she likes that he’s not proving to be an easy conquest for her. Having guys fall at your feet with little effort on your part must get old after a while.”
One hand on her hip, Ally braced her other hand on the bar. “No, this isn’t just about her wanting to play hide the sausage with him. She’s determined to have him as her bodyguard.”
“Yeah, Zander mentioned that,” said Gwen. “Why is she so determined, though? I mean, I get that Bracken would make a good bodyguard, but so would lots of guys. Or is this just her having a problem with the word ‘no’?”
“I don’t think Daddy’s Princess is used to being denied things,” said Madisyn. “Also, Bracken really would be an excellent personal bodyguard. Extremists fear him. Shifters admire, respect, and fear him. Humans know of his story, and those who believe he executed the extremists don’t seem to judge him harshly for it, if at all.”
Gwen nodded. “I can speak on behalf of my fellow humans when I say we knew intellectually that extremists made such attacks. We also knew that the Movement retaliated. But we never had a personal story to follow before. The majority of humans feel bad for Bracken—he lost his entire family. There are photos of him at the scene of the attack, cradling his dead nephew. No one with a heart would be unmoved by that.”
“He made the extremists look like monsters to both shifters and humans,” said Madisyn. “Claudia likes to be seen with the right people. Having Bracken Slater as a bodyguard would say a lot about her. Not just to humans, but to shifters.”
Gwen placed her glass on the bar. “What do you think it will take for her to back off?”
“I don’t know.” Madisyn blew out a breath.
“Maybe it will be enough to know that he’s found his mate,” said Ally. “She won’t want him as a bodyguard if he’s mated. She’ll want his loyalty to be solely to her.”
“I heard she warned Shiloh away from him,” said Gwen.
“She did,” confirmed Ally. “Bracken wasn’t exhibiting any interest in resuming his pursuit of the margay, but Claudia apparently didn’t want to take any chances that Shiloh might make a move on him.”
Ally looked at Madisyn. “You didn’t need to worry about Shiloh, by the way. Honestly, she was never really into Bracken—and as an empath, I am sure of that. She liked him, was both impressed and exasperated by his stubbornness, and she might have eventually gone on a date with him. But she hasn’t been moping about his lack of contact. Doesn’t feel even a hint of longing when she looks at him. Just wisps of compassion.”
Madisyn gave a slow nod. “Good. It would have been awkward between me and Harley if I ripped out her cousin’s spinal cord.”
Ally snickered. “That it would have.”
A trio of guys approached the bar, laughing. Madisyn quickly prepared their orders, smiling her default barmaid smile. Once they were gone, she involuntarily flicked a look at Claudia and noticed that the bitch was speaking into the ear of the male at her side, her eyes on Bracken. And in those eyes was sheer cunning.
“You’re baring your teeth again,” said Gwen.
Madisyn took a long breath. “My cat wants to eat her.”
“You know, I still can’t quite believe you’re a pallas cat,” said Ally. “I watched the CCTV footage of you and the bears several times. You totally kicked ass.”
And because Madisyn had come to know the Seer well enough, she said, “You passed it on to the Phoenix Pack females, didn’t you?”
All innocence, Ally replied, “Well, I thought it important that they knew what the sows looked like.”
Madisyn snorted. “Hmm.” Her amusement fled her system when Claudia stood just as Bracken was turning the corner near her table. “Oh, she’s making a move.”
“She may not move toward him,” said Ally. “She could be going to the restroom or . . . Shit. The bitch is persistent. Walk away, Brack, just walk away,” advised Ally, even though he wouldn’t hear her.
But Bracken didn’t walk away. He stopped, giving the she-wolf his attention—the very thing she’d wanted all evening.
Madisyn’s lips thinned as Claudia rested a hand on his arm. “He’s letting her touch him. Why is he letting her touch him?” He knew the bitch wanted him, yet he wasn’t making his boundaries clear. Which just made her cat want to bite a chunk out of his face. When the she-wolf then gestured at her own table, Madisyn flexed her fingers. “If he follows her to her table, he is so single.”
“I don’t think he’ll be that stupid,” said Ally.
“I don’t know,” said Gwen, doubtful. “He’s letting her get closer. That’s stupid.”
Bracken backed up a step, and the bitch’s hand slipped away from his arm. Claudia didn’t try to cover the distance he created, but she sure looked like she wanted to.
At that moment, he fleetingly glanced at Madisyn. Claudia didn’t miss it. She tracked his gaze, and her eyes sliced right through Madisyn like a blade.
Gwen gasped. “They’re talking about you, Mads. And she does not like whatever it is he’s saying. It’s not making her back away, though. Bitch.”
“Who’s a bitch?” asked a familiar male, sliding onto a stool opposite Madisyn. Mason Grant. “Evening, Miss Drake,” he drawled.
Madisyn flashed Mason her barmaid smile, though it was strained around the edges. “Hi. What can I get you?”
“I’m afraid I can’t stay. I have to get to my club,” said Mason. “I just wanted to see how you were doing and ask if you’ve had any trouble from the bear clan?”
She blinked, quite frankly taken off guard by his interest. “No trouble.”
“That’s good. It surprises me, though.” He drummed his fingers on the bar. “The bears haven’t returned to Enigma or appealed the ban. Have they not shown up here?”
“As far as I know, no.”
“Remember to call me should they give you any problems.” When she said nothing, Mason’s mouth curved. “You won’t call, will you?”
“No.”
He pursed his lips. “Is that out of sheer stubbornness or because pallas cats don’t like accepting help from outsiders?”
“A bit of both, really.”
“That’s a hell of a bite you have there on your neck. Who’s the lucky and clearly very territorial guy? Or have you killed him for having the nerve to mark you?”
“Bracken. He’s still breathing.” Perhaps not for much longer, though. Unable to help herself, she glanced at Bracken again. He was still talking to the freaking she-wolf. His brow furrowed when he caught sight of Mason, and something dark then flashed in his eyes.
“Who is it you’re looking at?” Mason asked, glancing over his shoulder. “Ah, it’s the man in question. He seems pretty cozy with Claudia.”
Frowning at the amount of familiarity in his voice when he spoke the bitch’s name, Madisyn asked, “You know Claudia?”
He turned back to face Madisyn. “I do. She’s a nice woman. Not quite as sweet and wholesome as she comes across on TV, though.”
Ally sidled closer to Madisyn. “Really?”
Mason nodded. “She has a lot of her father in her—and I mean that as a compliment. She’s self-driven, charismatic, good at manipulating people, and she’ll do what needs to be done to get what she wants. And what she wants most is to be the first shifter Hollywood star. I think a lot of her ambition has to do with her older sister.”
“Sister?” echoed Madisyn.
“Angelica was a sickly kid, so she got a lot of their mother’s attention,” Mason explained. “That’s probably why their father lavished so much attention on Claudia. He was trying to make up for it. Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t. In any case, I’ve always thought this craving that Claudia has for fame, admiration, and the envy of others comes from that.”
Gwen leaned toward Mason. “So how does one go about pissing Claudia Brookson off?”
The tiger smiled. “Well, let’s see. There are two things that Claudia hates—one is rejection, and the other is being glossed over in favor of someone else. But I wouldn’t recommend you try to piss her off. Even the nicest person can make a bad enemy.” His gaze cut to Madisyn. “But then, so can pallas cats, right?”
Her mouth curved into a bloodthirsty smile. “Oh yeah.”
Seeing Claudia head his way, Bracken swore under his breath. He did not need this shit. He really didn’t. She’d tried to catch his eye a few times tonight, but he’d ignored her. There’d be no doing that now because she’d planted herself right in his path.
Her smile wasn’t sultry or flirtatious. It was sweet, friendly, and seemed strained with fatigue. “Bracken, it’s very good to see you, as always.”
He gave her and the males flanking her a brief nod.
“It’s been a few weeks since we last spoke.” She tilted her head in a delicate, almost birdlike movement. “How have you been?”
“Good,” said Bracken simply.
“I noticed the club’s security is tighter than usual. Is there a problem?” When he didn’t answer, she smiled. “Of course, you’d never discuss pack business with an outsider. I admire that depth of loyalty. It’s one of the reasons I believe you’ll make an excellent addition to my security team.” Uneasiness crept into her expression. “Right now, my team needs to be tighter than ever.”
His brow creased. “You’re having more problems with the extremists?”
“Cain didn’t tell you?”
“Why would he? I’m not a member of the Movement.” Bracken knew that Claudia reported her troubles to Cain, as if sponsoring the group meant they owed her their protection. She’d initially tried to hire Bracken through Cain, who had made it clear that he wouldn’t be providing her with security and that she would need to speak with Bracken directly.
“They firebombed my restaurant. I was inside it at the time.” Claudia let out a shaky breath. “My team got everyone out of there. No one was seriously hurt, but that restaurant was my baby. Obviously, I can’t prove it’s them, but we know firebombing is a signature move of the extremists.”
“Does Cain have the names of the culprits?”
She bit her lip. “If he did, would you hunt them for me?”
He threw her a dark look. “I’m not a fucking hit man, Claudia. I just wondered if he knew who was responsible.”
She laid a hand on his arm. “I apologize if I offended you. I’m just a little edgy. Off-balance. Cain doesn’t yet have any names for me, and I can’t deal with these people when I don’t even know who they are. I worry they’ll come back; try something else.” Stepping a little closer to him, she gestured at her table. “Come have a drink with me. We can talk more.”
His wolf curled his upper lip, not wanting another female’s touch, warning the she-wolf away. “No, thanks.” Bracken stepped back, making her hand drop from his arm.
“Oh, come on. It’ll be nice to chat.”
“You have plenty of company with you. You don’t need more.” Bracken slid his gaze to Madisyn, unsurprised to find her staring at them; he’d felt her eyes on him. Her expression was blank, but he had the feeling she was pissed. “And I have someone I need to see.”
Claudia followed his gaze, and her face tightened. “Oh, I see. Well, the little bobcat isn’t going anywhere. Surely, she won’t mind your having a drink with a friend. And if she displays the sort of jealousy that says you can’t have a harmless chat with another female, you’ll know to get rid of her.” Again, she gestured at her table. “I’m sure she can wait while we talk.”
“We have nothing to talk about.”
Claudia’s lips flattened. “I understand why you turned down my offer. Your pack is important to you, and they’ve been there for you through a terrible time. But it’s not as if you’d never see them again if you left. In fact, I think they would agree with me that perhaps a fresh start in another pack is what you need. Especially when it would mean that, by not fighting my wish to recruit you, they’d gain my father as an ally.”
“My unwillingness to switch packs isn’t the only reason I turned down your offer.”
“Maybe there was a time when a quiet life suited you. That time passed when your family died. Be honest with yourself, Bracken. You’ve been restless since you executed those extremists. Part of you misses the rush of the hunt. You wanted the bastards to pay, and they did, but it preys on your mind that there are so many more of those bastards out there. You can’t go around eliminating them all, but you can help fight against them.”
“And that’s what you had in mind for me? Someone who’ll eliminate extremists for you?”
Her jaw went tight. “Of course not, Bracken. I simply mean that the position I’m offering you would help with your restlessness. I’m willing to make you head of my security team as well as my bodyguard. That’s no small thing.”
“No, it’s not. But those positions aren’t for me, Claudia.” A delicate feminine laugh snared his attention. He didn’t need to look to know it was Madisyn, but he looked anyway. And every muscle in his body tensed as he saw her bantering with fucking Grant. His wolf rumbled a dark sound and sliced out his claws.
Done explaining, Bracken said to Claudia, “I won’t change my mind on this. Let it go. Make your offer to someone else.” He skirted around her and stalked away.
“How long do you think it will be before the restlessness eats you up inside until there’s nothing left?” she called out.
Bracken almost laughed. He’d already lost huge chunks of himself. Turning, he said, “It won’t eat me up anymore, because now I have her.”
Claudia frowned. “The bobcat?”
“Madisyn’s my mate.” His pride in that fact was clear in every syllable.
The she-wolf’s eyes iced over. “If you were mated, I’d smell it.”
“The bond hasn’t snapped into place yet, but it will.” Bracken would do whatever the fuck he could to make sure of it. “Whoever takes on the position of your bodyguard needs to be at your beck and call twenty-four/seven. That male can never be me. Madisyn is my priority. She’s the only person whose safety I’ll guard with my life.” And if that wasn’t enough to make Claudia realize she was wasting her time with him, he didn’t know what would be. “Hope you manage to deal with those extremists soon.”
With one last nod at her team, Bracken turned and made a beeline for the bar. Grant was still there, the bastard. And the tiger was watching Madisyn intently as she served a bunch of rowdy males—one of whom was leaning across the bar toward her.
Possessiveness pricking at him, Bracken headed to the end of the bar and flipped aside the barrier to let himself through. Passing a frowning Ally and ignoring her chastising look, he prowled toward Madisyn, who hadn’t looked away from the flirty motherfucker leaning toward her.
“What are you?” asked the male.
Madisyn gave the blond an enigmatic smile. “A barmaid.”
“I mean, what kind of shifter are you?” he pushed.
“Feline,” she said.
Eyes dancing with humor, he persisted. “Yeah, but what breed are you?”
“One that’s more trouble than it’s worth.”
He burst out laughing. “I can’t place your scent at all. Come on, you gotta tell me what—” He cut off as Bracken came up behind Madisyn and snaked his arms around her.
Pressing a kiss to her neck, Bracken breathed her in. “Hey, baby.”
The blond instantly straightened, clearing his throat, and gave them both a respectful nod. “Keep the change,” he told Madisyn. And then he was gone.
Mason snorted a laugh. “You sure do have a way of putting people at ease, Slater.”
Bracken didn’t even look at the tiger, effectively dismissing him. His only interest was the female who was as stiff as a board in his arms. She slowly turned, eyes unusually cold, and gave Bracken a brittle smile that made his hand itch to cup his dick protectively. Yeah, she was pissed. His wolf pushed against Bracken’s skin, wanting to soothe her anger.
“What can I get you?” she asked, her tone arctic.
He rubbed his nose against hers. “A kiss would be nice.” He froze as he felt the prick of claws surrounding his balls. “Or not.”
“Madisyn,” Ally called out, “these girls here are asking for those foo-foo cocktails you make.”
“I got it covered,” said Madisyn. She released Bracken’s balls, shooting him a look that cautioned him to give her space, and then turned away.
Bracken was just about to follow her because, yeah, he was a persistent bastard. But then Mason fucking Grant spoke, amusement heavy in his tone.
“You’re not going to have it easy with that one. But then, felines don’t make easy partners.”
Bracken glared at the tiger. “You’re still here? Why, exactly?” Because he clearly hadn’t come for a drink.
Mason smiled. “I came to ask Miss Drake if she’d had any further problems with the sows.”
“And why is that any business of yours?”
“I thought about making it my business, but I see that you’ve beat me to it. If I’d picked up any sexual undertones between the two of you at Enigma, I would have made a move sooner. Know that if you mess this up—”
Bracken only took a single step forward, but it was enough to make the other male stiffen. His apprehension pleased Bracken’s wolf, who wanted the asshole gone. “Madisyn is not an option for you. She’s my mate. She belongs to me.”
Mason’s brows lifted. “Huh. Well, you took your time acting on it, considering she’s worked here for years. Or did you not know until recently? Hmm. It was the same for my sister. She and her mate had known—and despised—each other for decades before finally realizing they were true mates. They’re inseparable and sickeningly happy now, but it took a while for the mating bond to fully form. Most likely because the reason behind their initial and elemental dislike of each other had been fear of mating.”
“Fascinating. Also irrelevant to me.”
Mason’s mouth curled. “Well, despite that I find myself envying you, I congratulate you on finding your mate, Slater.” Sliding off his stool, he nodded. “Take care of Miss Drake. And be careful of Claudia Brookson. Like I warned the human, she can make a bad enemy.”
As the tiger melted into the crowd, the tension seeped from Bracken’s shoulders. Feeling eyes on him, he saw that both Ally and Gwen were glaring at him like he’d shit in their shoes. He sighed. While he was glad that his pack mates were protective of Madisyn, he didn’t want their interference.
“Leave it,” he told Ally when she opened her mouth—no doubt to give him a bucketful of shit for talking to Claudia. Skirting around her, he headed to Madisyn.
His mate’s eyes clouded with annoyance as she looked at him. “How did I know you’d push instead of backing off?”
“Because you know I can’t ignore it when you’re hurting.” Invading her space so that they were in their own private bubble and his voice wouldn’t carry to the people around them, Bracken lightly traced the shell of her ear. “I’m sorry, baby. But I had to talk to Claudia.”
Just hearing the bitch’s name come out of his mouth made Madisyn want to bare her teeth. “No, you didn’t. You could have walked away. You should have walked away.” God, she wanted to pop him one right in the face. Or maybe burst his ballsac with a fountain pen. It wasn’t just that he’d given a female who coveted him the time of day, it was that he then had the bald-faced nerve to make a possessive display to scare off a flirty patron. The only reason she wasn’t shoving him out of her space was that it would be good for Claudia to see him there.
“She’s no one to me,” said Bracken, his tone sober and reassuring. “She’s never been anyone to me. You, however, are everything.”
Good answer, but it wasn’t enough to mollify her cat. The feline wanted to rake his face with her claws. “Hmm. You both seemed kind of friendly to me.”
“She sponsors the Movement and is very active in discrediting the extremists, so she has my respect. But that’s all. I don’t want her. Never did. The only female I want is right here.”
Bracken winced as her eyes went cat for a second, showing him the depth of the feline’s anger. “Baby—”
“She wants you, has pretty much offered herself on a plate to you, and you let her touch you. That doesn’t send the right message. Nor does standing around chatting with her. And it made me feel like shit. If our situations were reversed, you’d be going postal right now.”
Just the thought of another male touching her was enough to turn Bracken’s thoughts homicidal, so she had him there. “I’m sorry for making you feel that way. I really am. Believe me when I say that I did not want or welcome her touch any more than I wanted to speak with her. But that conversation needed to be had because she wasn’t backing off. I was damn sick of her coming here watching me, and it was pissing me off that you had to see her doing it.”
“So what exactly did you say to her?”
Relieved that some of the staunch had left her spine, Bracken swept one hand up Madisyn’s back and cupped her nape. “I told her you’re my mate. She knows I’m taken. That tells her she has absolutely no chance of making me her personal bodyguard or anything else. I needed her to get that. That was why I heard her out. It meant that, in turn, she had to hear me out.”
“Do you think she truly listened?”
“She doesn’t strike me as stupid or so stubborn that she’ll ignore the facts simply because they don’t suit her. She needs someone who’ll owe their loyalty to her. I have you, which means my loyalty already belongs to someone else. It means you are and will always be my priority, so no other female could have any hope of entering the picture. I’m of no use to her at all.”
“The latter would be true if all she wanted was a new bodyguard, but she wants more than that. She wants you.”
“Doesn’t matter. You matter. You matter more than anything.” Hoping she wouldn’t scratch his eyes out, Bracken boldly laid a kiss on her mouth, relieved when she softened. “I’ll never let her touch me again—I swear that to you.”
“Oh, you mean like how you swore you’d stop drinking out of my milk cartons?”
His smile said busted. “We all have our quirks. For instance, some of us only eat one thing on our plate at a time, talk constantly in our sleep, always seem to be cold no matter the weather, and weirdly save cardboard boxes and Bubble Wrap from any packages they receive.”
“You never know when you might need them. And what about those finicky people who go crazy if there’s a crumb in the bed and point-blank refuse to have food in their car?”
“That’s not being finicky; that’s just being tidy.”
“Finicky,” she insisted, humor dancing in her eyes.
He pulled her close and kissed her again. Softly, sweetly, but also dominantly.
Madisyn pushed against his chest, feigning annoyance. “I have to work, you know. In fact, so do you.”
“Security work is boring.” He propped his hip against the bar. “Watching you is much more fun.”
She’d sensed that he didn’t seem to find much satisfaction in his position of enforcer. “Did you want to be an enforcer when you were young?”
“No. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a video game designer. You?”
She smiled. “I wanted to be a sports announcer.” She’d thought it would be cool.
He straightened. “If you’re not going to be serious . . .”
Her eyes widened. Truthfully, she insisted, “I am.”
“Yeah, sure. Now give me more of that mouth.”