Jesse could understand that, but he also understood Nick’s reasoning. In the past, people had attacked their pack by distracting the strongest members, dividing the pack to conquer it.
“You, Eli, and Zander will come along with me,” said Nick. “I know you might be reluctant to leave your mate, given that your protective instincts will be hypersensitive right now, but you have to trust that she’ll be safe here.”
Jesse was in fact reluctant to leave Harley, especially when she wasn’t fully comfortable with his pack mates, but he was sure that the females would have her back. Not that Harley needed their protection; she could take care of herself just fine. Scratching the underside of the margay’s chin, he asked, “Have your contacts found out anything about Hector?”
“A little. His human aunt and uncle raised him from the age of fifteen—his uncle had been the brother of Hector’s human mother.”
“His parents died?”
“No. His parents, Adriane and Thad, were the Alpha pair of Hector’s pack. Then one day they stepped down. Soon after, the three of them left the pack and became loners. But then Hector went to live with his aunt and uncle, which was considered unusual because Thad and Adriane weren’t neglectful parents.”
Jesse frowned, unsure what to make of all that. The cat climbed onto his shoulders, practically curling herself around his neck.
“I have people working on tracking his parents. If there’s anything worth knowing about Hector, they’ll have that information.”
“And if they don’t tell us anything we can use against Hector?”
“They will. Two allegedly good parents don’t give up their child without reason. If they had no problem doing that, they’ll have no problem sharing what they know in exchange for my protection—the lone shifter lifestyle is dangerous, after all.”
He was right. Being a shifter without a pack meant you had no protection; loners were vulnerable to attacks from extremists and other shifters. An offer of protection from Nick was nothing to sniff at.
“And if that doesn’t work, we bring them here and make them talk,” said Nick. “It’s not something we haven’t done before.”
No, it wasn’t. And it would no doubt work as well as it had in the past.
Nick then walked off, and Jesse turned in the direction of his lodge. The cat jumped down and then quickly climbed the nearest tree with that amazing agility that made her kind so unique. She kept pace with him as they headed home, leaping from tree to tree like an acrobat. When they finally arrived and he opened the door wide, she made a point of territorially clawing the porch before padding inside.
“Shift back, baby.” Bones snapped and popped, and then he had a naked Harley in front of him. As she stretched, he snaked his arms around her and nuzzled her neck, breathing her in, letting her scent pour into him where it belonged. “Your cat sure knows how to shred a man’s pride.” He figured Eli was mostly pissed that she’d taken him off guard and managed to bloody him.
Curling her arms around his neck, Harley shrugged. “He should know better than to act like an asshole toward you.” Or to talk smack about her.
Jesse pressed a soft kiss to her mouth. “I don’t know what his problem is, but Nick doesn’t seem to think it’s about you.”
Yeah, well, Harley didn’t care either way. She wouldn’t allow her mate to be used as an emotional punching bag by anyone. “I’m sorry that he did that to you. I know it had to have hurt to be baited by your own pack mate and used to vent his problems.”
“You made him pay for it.”
Her cat had enjoyed it. “I was preparing sandwiches and salad when Ally started fretting about Derren. They’re almost ready.”
“Good. I’m going to take a shower so I can get this blood off me.” Jesse scooped her up, and she locked her legs around his waist. “You’re going to help.”
“I am?”
“Yes. Then we’ll eat . . . but not until I’ve had a long taste of you.”
Well, she wasn’t going to fight him on that.
“Had any other visitors?” he asked, carrying her upstairs.
“Nope. Although Shaya did call earlier to ask if I was okay and if I needed anything. I think, like you, she was worried I would be bored on my own.” Harley pointed at herself. “Hello, feline.”
In the bathroom, he said, “Promise me something.”
“No.”
His mouth twitched. “Promise me that if you ever do feel bored, you’ll tell me. I’ll fix it.”
“How can I be bored when I have my violin and I’m surrounded by books? Trust me, I’m content.”
Too much time alone might change that. “Promise me something else.”
“No.”
His smile widened. “Swear you’ll play for me sometime.”
“You mean the violin?”
“No, Scrabble. Of course I mean the fucking violin.”
“Your language is fucking awful,” she said as he urged her into the shower and turned on the spray. “And maybe I’ll play for you sometime. We’ll see.” It was much easier to play for an audience of strangers than to give a private performance to someone she knew well.
“You will play for me.”
“And giving me orders is supposed to achieve what?”
“You will play for me.”
“You know . . . I’m starting to wonder if it’s not that you lack caution lights; it’s that you only gargled from the fountain of knowledge.”
He growled. “Personally, I think you’re trying to make me crazy.”
“You have no proof of that.”
Growling again, Jesse gently massaged her honey shampoo into her hair as she soaped his chest. He loved her hair; loved the color and texture and natural shine. Loved how it felt against his skin, loved burying his face in it as they slept.
After a quick rinse, he then smoothed conditioner into her hair while a soapy hand slowly pumped his cock. There was only so much a guy could take. Soon enough he had her legs hanging in the crooks of his elbows as he took her hard and fast against the tiled wall.
Clean, sated, and dressed, they ate their lunch in a companionable silence . . . which was probably why they easily heard a crowd quickly approaching.
Harley cocked her head. “Is that Marcus I hear trying to calm someone down?”
Jesse sighed. “Yes.” And it was no doubt Roni.
Swallowing a slice of cucumber, Harley said, “I’m guessing they’re outraged on Eli’s behalf and I’m now an even bigger bad guy than I was before.” Honestly, it bothered her more than it should have that these people were so quick to vilify her. It was like they’d pounced on the whole thing as an excuse to do some venting of their own.
“I won’t let any of them harm you,” Jesse stated.
“Neither will I,” she said as they rose. “What are you going to do if people start demanding that I leave?”
“Is that a rhetorical question?” He took her hand. “If you ever leave this pack for any reason, I’m leaving with you. But I don’t think they’ll demand that; I really don’t.”
“We’ll soon find out if you’re right.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Harley and Jesse opened the front door and walked onto the porch hand in hand, presenting a united front. Roni, Marcus, Kathy, Kent, and Caleb stood at the bottom of the stone steps. Marcus didn’t spare Harley or Jesse a glance, too busy trying to keep Roni calm to even look their way. It wasn’t working; she was tense as a bow and, like Kathy, radiated hostility. Kent and Caleb glared at Harley—a ballsy move for submissive wolves. She could have used her dominant vibes to force them to lower their gazes, but fuck ’em.
Harley was kind of surprised Nat and Kim weren’t present. Surely they would have at least enjoyed witnessing Harley taking a verbal beating.
“I don’t know what you guys think you’re fucking doing, storming to our home like this, but you might want to rethink it,” rumbled Jesse, as offended and outraged as his wolf. “Did you rile them up, Ka
thy?”
Kathy didn’t look at him; she was totally focused on Harley. “My pack gave you sanctuary . . . and you repay us by attacking my son?”
“You all need to leave,” growled Jesse—the guttural sound came from both him and his wolf.
“Come on, Roni, let’s just go,” coaxed Marcus, gently urging her backward. “Ally healed him; he won’t have any permanent scars. It’s over now.”
“Did you see what your cat did to my brother?” Roni snarled at Harley, making Marcus groan and lower his head in sheer exasperation.
Harley jutted out her chin. “I did.” Her cat puffed up her body and whipped her tail, expecting a challenge from the other female. Harley didn’t want to fight with Roni, but she suspected it might come to that. The she-wolf was pissed.
“Did you see how deep those wounds were?” demanded Roni, fingers curled like claws. “Don’t you have any control over your cat at all?”
Jesse swore. “She isn’t feral; she’s just protective of her mate. Go judge her.”
Roni said to Harley, “He doesn’t need you fighting his battles—”
“And I’ll bet Marcus doesn’t need you fighting his,” said Harley. “But can you honestly tell me you never once stood up for him, even though he might not have needed it?”
Roni’s eyes slid to Marcus, who gave his mate a pointed look.
“I didn’t think so,” said Harley.
Whatever Marcus whispered into Roni’s ear made the anger leak from her expression. The female raked a hand through her hair. “Eli has a lot going on right now.”
So fucking what? “He doesn’t get to wear that like a badge and think it gives him the right to treat his pack mates the way he treated Jesse.” Harley spoke to the others as she added, “And if anyone here disagrees with that, they should be fucking ashamed of themselves.”
Kent and Caleb exchanged looks, suddenly uncomfortable, and did the human equivalent of tucking their tails between their legs.
Roni sighed. “Eli—”
“It’s your brother and he’s hurting,” finished Harley. “You want to protect him. Fine. I had a brother and . . .” No, she wouldn’t talk about Michael. They hadn’t earned a piece of her heart. “My point is I know the instinct to defend a brother is strong, so I understand why you’re so upset. But I’m not sorry for what I did and I won’t pretend to be, so if it’s an apology you’ve come for, Roni, you’re wasting minutes out of our lives. And if it’s a fight you’ve come for . . . bring it.”
Jesse and Marcus sprang into action and inserted themselves between Harley and Roni. Marcus angled himself so he could look at both females as he said, “This ends now. We don’t want fighting within the pack.”
“I wasn’t aware that you regarded me as part of it,” said Harley.
Marcus winced. “I didn’t at first.”
“No one who will rip strips of flesh from my son’s back is welcome here!” declared Kathy.
“Your son had every chance to stop antagonizing Jesse,” began Harley, “but he kept at it—even when Jesse tried to walk away. He was trying to pick a fight. You should thank me, really. If I hadn’t gotten involved, they probably would have fought.”
“Thank you? I should thank you?”
“You don’t have to actually say the words. A box of chocolates will do just fine.”
Everyone froze as Nick, Derren, and Ally walked out of the trees. Taking in the situation, the Alpha scowled. “What the hell is going on here? I got a call from Zander telling me a bunch of you were storming through the forest like you were on some kind of crusade.”
Kathy turned to her oldest son. “You saw what she did to Eli!”
“Yes, I did.” Nick’s jaw tightened. “And I told you to let it alone. Just like I told Roni that Eli wasn’t a victim of a feral attack. He’s working through some personal shit right now and it’s clouding his decisions. This is not helping. Roni, you know better than to let Mom get you all riled up.”
Kathy gasped. “Nick!” He just ignored her.
Fed up with this shit, Jesse announced, “We’re done here.” He took a step back, placing himself at Harley’s side. “I had a great deal of respect for you, Kathy, but you lost a lot of that today.”
The fire in Kathy’s eyes dimmed. She swallowed. “I’m just defending my son.”
Harley shook her head, incredulous. “Eli used Jesse as both a physical and emotional punching bag. If you can defend that, if you’re willing to defend that, you don’t deserve the trust Jesse has in you.” Spinning on her heel, Harley marched inside.
Jesse sighed at the crowd. “Eli implied that having Harley here would make me pull away from the pack. Ironic that if I pull away to any extent, it will be because of what you guys did today. Not because of her.” Before anyone could say another word, he returned to the lodge, slamming the door behind him.
He tracked Harley to the kitchen, where she was staring out the window. He slowly curled his arms around her and kissed her nape. “I’m sorry about that, sweetheart.” She hadn’t deserved any of that.
“Not your fault.”
“I want you to feel safe here.” He wanted her to find peace in this place. That was hardly going to happen when she had his pack mates confronting her. He kissed her neck again. “I won’t try to defend what Roni did tonight. I will say that she’s a good person. She’s very protective of her baby brother. Her mother . . . well, she knows what buttons to push.”
“I know. I’m not mad at Roni,” said Harley truthfully. “I know how manipulative some people can be.”
“You’re talking about Clive.”
“Yep.” Her father had a whole species eating out of his hand because he knew how to play others so well. “I won’t say Kathy is quite as talented as he is at it, but she’s good.”
Gently turning Harley to face him, Jesse began to massage her shoulders. “I knew Kathy would have problems with you being here. I didn’t expect her to pit you and Roni against each other. I don’t think anyone would have expected that.”
“Maybe Nat and Kim riled up Kathy, who then riled up the others.”
“Whatever the case, Shaya’s going to freak.” His Alpha female liked Harley and didn’t tolerate shit like that. He continued his massage, but the tension didn’t leave her. And he quickly sensed . . . “Your cat’s pissed.”
“Very.” The cat had a wicked temper and was raking Harley with her claws, wanting out.
“How do you usually calm her down?”
“Give her freedom for a few hours. But if I did that now, we both know what she’d do with that freedom.”
Hunt down the wolves who had challenged her. “Let her out.”
“Look, I know you’re pissed at Kathy and might find some satisfaction in seeing her mauled—”
“I never meant give her the freedom to go hunting. I meant, let her out, trust me to calm and soothe her.”
Harley grimaced. “I’m not sure that will work.”
“My wolf would calm for you.” He rubbed his nose against hers. “Trust me. Shift. I’ll calm her.”
“It takes her hours to truly simmer down, and you have to go back to work.”
He shook his head. “I’m done for the day. I’m not leaving you.”
“You think there’ll be more trouble?”
“No.”
“But your protective instincts are doing a frenzied dance after that little confrontation, so you don’t want me out of your sight,” she guessed.
He kissed her. “I never want you out of my sight. Now, come on, let her out.”
Dubious, Harley nonetheless stripped naked and placed her folded-up clothes on a dining chair. “Good luck.” Then she gave her cat the freedom it craved.
Jesse crouched down so as not to seem so intimidating to the angry margay. “Hey, pretty kitty.” She spat at him, repeatedly smacking the floor with her tail. “I know, I know. But you can’t go hunting.” Risking his eyeballs, Jesse scooped her up and held her against his chest. She
squirmed and let out a low guttural growl; sharp claws pricked him, but she didn’t draw blood. He took that as a good sign.
“Shush,” he soothed, petting her with firm strokes all the way from her head to her tail. The writhing soon stopped, but she kept on growling—it was one continuous sound. “I’m mad at them too.” He scratched the top of her head. “But you still can’t kill them.” And so the growling continued.
When some of the tension finally left her, Jesse lay on the sofa, legs crossed at the ankles, and rested her on top of him. He scratched her behind the ears and under her jawline, until the growling turned to purring and she relaxed.
Grabbing the remote from the coffee table, he switched on the TV. The cat opened one eye and, apparently uninterested in the choices that Netflix had to offer, closed it again and drifted off. They stayed like that for hours as Jesse had his own movie marathon. The Wolf of Wall Street was just finishing when there was a knock at the door.
Still pissed with his pack, Jesse wasn’t in the mood to get up and greet anyone. “Who is it?” he called out gruffly, stroking the waking cat sprawled on his chest.
“Me,” said a female voice hesitantly. Shaya.
He silently swore. If it had been anyone else, he could have told them to fuck off. But he found it practically impossible to be mad at Shaya. “Door’s unlocked.”
It slowly opened a little, and Shaya stepped halfway inside, clearly unsure of her welcome. “Hi.” She smiled at the cat. “Hi, there.”
The cat released a quiet growl.
Shaya’s smile wavered. “Not a happy kitty.”
“No,” agreed Jesse.
The Alpha female blew out a long breath. “Can’t say I blame her. Our pack let you both down today—hell, they let themselves down. Bracken and Zander feel truly awful.”
Jesse frowned. “They had nothing to do with it.”
“No, but they were part of the last pack that ganged up on Harley. It’s eating at them that ours did the same thing. That’s why they’re both currently guarding the perimeter of your lodge, refusing to let anyone near it. I had to prove my intentions were honorable before they’d let me pass. I mean, hello, I’m Alpha female here.”