“There you are!” Gerri announced the second she saw Bailey. “I was wondering if you were purposely avoiding us.”

“I’d thought about it, but my mom taught me better than that,” Bailey joked.

“I’m glad she did. I didn’t want to have to drag you out here by your ear.” Gerri winked. “Are you feeling better now that you’ve had a chance to clean up?”

“Much better. I’m not sure what got into me earlier. Maybe it was the change of scenery and all the fresh air. It felt like my brain had been scrambled or something.”

“Yay. There you guys are!” Daisy quickly caught up to Gerri and Bailey. “I’ve got a few people I want you to meet.”

Fear must have flashed across Bailey’s face. That, or Gerri was quick to pick up on her uncertainty.

“Trust me, dear. They’ll love you.”

“If you say so.” Who was Bailey to argue with the people expert?

Gerri and Daisy quickly guided her through the throngs of people, diligently making introductions to everyone in attendance.

Bailey had to hand it to Daisy’s husband. He’d done a smash up job of throwing together this last minute barbeque.

The last pack she’d been around had serious issues, leaving her questioning their mental health. A small gathering she’d attended turned into a drunken orgy in five minutes flat. Those not fucking spent their time fighting. It was a complete disaster that Bailey wanted none of.

The wolves at Twisted Tail, on the other hand, were quite civilized compared to the others she’d met, so it was easy for Bailey to let her guard down and be herself. She didn’t have to hide the fact that she was a shifter, like she did around humans. The wolves would have smelled her a mile away and known exactly what she was the second they’d caught her scent. For once, Bailey found being around other shifters liberating.

What was even more impressive, everyone seemed to be nice—like regular down to earth people—not only that, they were genuinely happy to meet her. The wolves had no problem accepting her for who and what she was. They made her feel welcomed and at home. Which was something she’d never expected.

She may have had friends in the city, a mix of both humans and shifters, but everyone was always busy doing their own thing. They’d meet up for an occasional girl’s night, but they never shared the closeness this pack seemed to share. It left her feeling out of sorts.

None of it should have bothered Bailey, but deep down, it did. None of it should have mattered, it wasn’t like she had a mate knocking down her door or anything.

“Are you okay with all of this? I know meeting everyone like this can be a bit overwhelming,” Daisy voiced her concern.

“No, I’m good. I was just thinking about how well everyone seems to get along.”

“We’ve had a few problems here since Calder took over as Alpha, but most of the wolves are good people. They’ve been through a lot of shit with their old Alpha. I still cringe when I hear some of the horror stories of what it was like before Calder took over. We’re a work in progress here at Twisted Tail.”

Bailey smiled at Daisy’s description of the pack. “Work in progress or not, you’ve got a good thing going here.”

“Yeah, I do. I’m one lucky girl.”

Bailey caught his scent just as he came into view. Her conversation with Daisy coming to an abrupt halt as he made his way through the thinning crowd. Her bear roused once again, having caught a whiff of his delicious aroma.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about,” the bear whispered in her mind.

“Oh fuck! No! He can’t be.” Bailey’s heart skipped a beat.

“Oh, but he is.”

“Who is that mountain of a man?” Daisy asked.

“I, uhh—” Her mind reeled with the new information. She glanced at Daisy, unsure how to finish her sentence. Up until she caught his scent, she’d thought he was nothing more than one hot as fuck human. Now—she had no idea what to say or think. Thankfully, she didn’t have to worry about answering.

“I was hoping to find you here.” Gavin’s eyes never left hers as he spoke.

“I’m not sure we’ve met before. You are?” Daisy cocked her head to the side, wondering who the beast was and why he’d never shown up for any of their gatherings before.

“Gavin—what are you doing here?” Holy shit! Bailey was stunned to see him standing in front of her.

“I, ah—wanted to apologize again for bumping into you earlier today.”

“Apparently you two already know each other? Did I miss something?” Daisy asked.

“He’s the one. I mean—uh, the guy I ran into today,” Bailey stuttered as a blush swept across her face.

Daisy eyed the guy up and down, looking less impressed than she’d been a moment ago. “You mean the guy who knocked you into the mud and left you standing there freezing and soaked to the bone?”

A low rumble rose from Gavin’s chest. “Back off, wolf. I’ve already apologized. I offered to help her when it happened, but she took off.”

Bailey placed her hand on Daisy’s arm, knowing she needed to diffuse the situation. “It’s okay, really. He did offer to help me, but I wanted to get back to the coffee shop.”

Her answer seemed to satisfy Daisy just enough to keep her from attacking Gavin, or kicking him off of her property. She needed to keep him around for a little bit so he could answer a few of her questions. Starting with why the fuck couldn’t she scent that he was a bear when they first met.

“I’m sorry, I should introduce you. Gavin, this is Daisy. She’s Calder’s mate. Daisy, this is Gavin. I ran into him earlier today and had no idea he’d be here.”

“Does my husband know you’re here?” Daisy questioned.

“Yeah, actually I do.” Calder joined the trio, wrapping his arm around his wife and pulling her next to him. “He’s been doing some work for me. I hope you don’t mind that I asked him to join us this evening.”

“Not at all, babe. Bailey had a run in with him today. She came back looking like an absolute disaster. I was worried that something else had happened.”

“Don’t worry, they’re good. Isn’t that right, Gavin?”

Gavin nodded, “Absolutely. I also took care of that issue you asked me to look into.”

“Perfect. If you don’t mind, I’m going to steal my wife for a few minutes. Make yourselves at home, grab something to eat. You guys should stick around for the run later.”

Daisy looked at Calder like he’d grown a second head. “I can’t leave Bailey alone with him. She barely knows him.”

Calder leaned in close and whispered, “I’ll explain later.”