Bane took me to the sale at Yonaweti as promised.

They had some really great deals that I couldn’t pass up, especially if I ended up staying, but I did reel myself in a bit. I had a bit of savings, but it wouldn’t last forever, so I had to be smart about my spending.

I realized I hadn’t talked to Bane about work. Was he expecting me to be a stay at home mom to take care of Sloane? Obviously, I wasn’t taking a job as a nanny, I’d be his mate, therefore, I wouldn’t get paid.

I liked working, and having money of my own, so I made a mental note to bring it up later.

But now we were headed to the pack meeting and barbecue, and I was extremely nervous.

“Will there be other humans there?” I asked as we drove into town.

“Uh, yeah, sure. Our community is pretty well integrated. There are humans who were born to inter-species couples, some who grew up in town, side by side with shifters, and there are the humans who married into the pack. Also, it’s not only wolf shifters who attend. Some of our friends are bears, and we’ll get the occasional mountain lion passing through.”

“Oh, how do you know… uh, who’s who?”

Bane shrugged.

“I guess you won’t. Me? I can smell the difference, but unless someone were to shift in front of you, which they won’t do, you’ll never know. Does it matter?”

I thought about it, then shook my head.

“No, I’m just curious. I’m not quite sure what to expect and I want to be prepared.”

“Understandable,” he replied. “Like I said, it’s a good mix of people. Don’t worry, they’re a pretty open and welcoming group, I’m sure tonight will go smoothly.”

I nodded and remained silent, but as he brought the Jeep to a stop, my stomach fluttered with a flurry of nerves.

“You okay?” Bane asked, and I turned my head to look at him. “Because if you’ve changed your mind, we don’t have to go. We can turn around and go back home. You can meet the pack later.”

I smiled, thinking he was the most considerate man on the planet, then shook my head and said, “No, I don’t want to go home. I’m fine.”

He nodded once, then we both hopped out of the Jeep and headed towards the building where the meeting would be held. Bane had told me that afterwards, everyone would go outside where the barbecue would take place.

They’d built the facility a few years back when they realized they needed more space.

Bane held the door open for me and we went inside. Everyone was already seated, and it looked like they were going to start, which was good. It meant I had more time to get myself acclimated before I had to start talking to people and answering questions.

We went to the back and grabbed a couple seats on the end of the row.

As a huge, I mean… gigantic, man walked to the microphone, the room got absolutely silent. Then the giant man grinned and said, “Welcome. Who’s ready to party?” and the crowd cheered.

My nerves eased a bit as the man, who Bane told me was their Alpha and leader, spoke. It was easy to tell that the people loved him and he had their best interest at heart. He talked about what they could expect over the next few months, construction on a new youth center, the state of their council, in need of a new enforcer, whatever that meant, and the fact that they had a new newsletter which would be coming out monthly.

Once the meeting was adjourned, everyone started filing outside, with Bane and I joining the pack.

“Bane, long time no see.”

I looked left to see Bane’s Alpha, the one who’d been running the meeting, walking toward us.

“Nathan,” Bane said, reaching his hand out.

Nathan shook his hand and looked at me.

“And, who’s this lovely lady?” he asked, and I couldn’t help it. I blushed.

His voice was very deep. Commanding.

“This is Katja,” Bane said, seemingly unbothered by my reaction to his Alpha. “We’re… dating, I guess you’d say. Trying to see if we suit, and if she’s a good fit with Sloane. If things go well, she’ll become my mate.”

Nathan looked surprised for a moment, then he grinned easily and said, “How very… scientific, of you.”

I knew that most paranormals were passionate people, and like Bane with his first mate, Sarah, knew instinctively when they met their predestined, fated, mates. There was a pang in my heart at the reminder that Bane would never feel for me what he felt for Sarah, but I shook it off.

Bane just nodded, rather than replying to Nathan’s unspoken question.

Nathan allowed it and asked, “Where is Sloane?”

“She’s with Grayson.”

“Ah, and how is your brother doing?”

“The same. Happy with his farm and solitude,” Bane replied.

“Yes, well, give him my best next time you see him. Nice to meet you, Katja, I hope to see you again.”

“Nice to meet you, too,” I replied shyly, then watched him walk away before whispering, “Wow, he’s intense.”

“Yeah, comes with being the Alpha,” Bane said, then asked, “You hungry?”

“Of course,” I replied with a small laugh, and we started toward the long table packed with dishes of food.

Before we could get there, we were stopped again. This time by a pretty woman with long dark hair and caramel skin. She looked nervous and I wondered briefly if she was one of the women Bane had told me about. The ones that threw themselves at him.

“Hi, Bane,” she said, her voice strong, but soft, as if she was forcing herself to talk to him.

“Oh, hey Shonda, how are you?” Bane asked, then motioned toward me and said, “This is Katja.”

“Nice to meet you,” Shonda said, giving me a sweet and friendly smile.

Probably not one of those women then…

“You too,” I replied, shaking the hand she offered.

“Is Sloane here?” she asked Bane.

“No, she’s with Gray,” he replied, then looked to me and explained, “Shonda watches Sloane sometimes, when I have a tour.”

I noticed that Shona’s eyes had widened when Bane mentioned his brother’s name, and that she was clutching her drink so hard the plastic cup was scrunching in.

“How’s Gray doing?” she asked, her voice trembling.

I looked at Bane’s face, to see if he was catching on to Shonda’s obvious interest in his brother. He wasn’t.

“The same. Happy being alone,” he replied, not noticing Shonda’s flinch. “I’ll tell Sloane you were asking about her, she’ll be happy. She loves spending time with you.”

“I love spending time with her, too.”

“Well, I’d better get Katja some food before she gets hangry,” Bane joked, and I punched him playfully in the arm.

“Nice to meet you, Shonda, hopefully we’ll see each other again,” I said as Bane practically dragged me to the food.

Shonda’s smile dropped and she looked down, looking so sad that I wanted to run back and give her a hug.

Bane let my hand go when we got to the table, and as I reached for a paper plate, I felt a hand on my arm, and another voice. This one, not so welcoming.

“Who are you?”

I looked to my right to see a blonde woman standing there, hands on her hips. The thought that she’d be a beautiful woman if she wasn’t sneering at me flitted through my mind, but rather than sneering back, I smiled and said, “I’m Katja, and you are?”

“I’m someone who belongs here and with him, so why don’t you take your fat ass and get lost?”

Now, in my rational brain, I knew I no longer had a fat ass. I’d squatted and lunged that sucker down to the toned piece of flesh it was today. But, when you were ridiculed for that ass for years, it tended to be a sore subject.

I dropped my plate and spun to face my villain head on, but before I could respond, Bane was beside me, his arm wrapped around my waist.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Tanzi?” he asked angrily, and her expression went from bitch mode to flirty.

I didn’t even try to hide my eye roll.