And now his dick was getting hard.
“She’s hot, isn’t she?” said Marcus, following Dante’s gaze.
Trick frowned at Marcus. “You don’t do tall women.”
“I’d do her.”
“No one’s doing her.” Dante almost cringed at the command in his voice. It wasn’t as if he didn’t know that the guys did this just to needle him; it was a regular thing. But damn if he could help reacting.
Tao’s lips curled in amusement. “You finally ready to stake a temporary claim, Dante? Come on, it’s obvious that you want her.”
“How about we just order our drinks?”
“So you’re telling me that we came all the way here and you’re not even going to approach her?”
“I’m just here to keep an eye on our females, that’s all. It’s my job. Gabe’s a submissive wolf; he can’t exactly protect them all.”
Each one of his enforcers gave him looks that said, “Do you really expect us to believe that?”
“Have you all forgotten about the Glory situation? Her brothers could be here, and if they are, they might feel happy to use our females to get to me.”
Trick cleared his throat. “D, sorry to disappoint, but it seems like the point’s moot anyway. It looks like a claim has already been staked on Jaime.”
At those words, Dante’s head snapped around and his eyes zoomed in on the broad male who was now pressing his chest against Jaime’s back with his hands settled on her hips. She turned her head, smiled, and settled herself more firmly against him. A menacing growl escaped Dante. Every cell in his body wanted nothing more than to charge over there and snatch her away. Only one thing stopped him, only one thing kept his infamous self-control from failing him—if he went over there now and did that, he would, in fact, be staking a temporary claim. He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t get involved with any female from his pack. He wouldn’t.
But he could watch her, could make sure the dance was nothing more than that—a dance. He admitted to himself that if it looked as though things were getting more serious than that, there wasn’t much chance of him restraining himself from interfering.
As if Jaime sensed his heated gaze, her eyes landed on Dante. For a second they widened, and then she gave him a smile. It wasn’t a flirtatious smile or one filled with sexual promise, though. It was one of recognition, the kind you would give to someone you knew but didn’t bother your ass with; it was polite and warm, but quick to disappear. Motherfucker.
Trick blew out a rough breath. “Looks like you lost your chance there, D.”
“Nah,” Tao disagreed. “I’d say if he went over there and broke them up before things got too heated between them, he might have a shot. Of course we know he’ll never do that.” Dante didn’t even spare the guys a glance. He knew they were playing with him, knew they were trying to make him act on what he wanted. He also knew that if that prick’s hand crept any nearer to her breast, he’d snap the damn thing off.
What the hell was Popeye doing here? Jaime knew he didn’t like this bar, so she had to conclude that the others had urged him to go along. She didn’t dare look over at him, not wanting to see some female slinking all over him. And that was exactly what she would see. It was what always happened.
It made her sick to her stomach every time.
Ignoring his eyes on her—and she knew without even looking that they were still on her, she could feel the weight of his gaze—she continued to dance with the jaguar shifter behind her. He was easily a foot taller than she was, which was evident by the fact that his erection was level with her back rather than her ass. From her peripheral vision, she could tell he was a good-looking guy.
Rugged. She liked that. She threaded her fingers through his ruffled dark hair, and yes, it was as incredibly soft as it looked.
He trailed his free hand up her outer thigh, skimming ever so slightly underneath her silky turquoise strapless dress. “You ever been with a jaguar before, wolf girl?” She shook her head. Jaguar shifters came highly recommended by Riley, she suddenly recalled.
“Good. You up for having some fun tonight?”
Was she ever. True, she’d rather it was with Dante, but the cocky ass didn’t want her, and if he wasn’t going to scratch her itch, somebody else would have to do it. Pining over him was just pathetic. If she carried on that way, she’d have nine cats before long. She was already on her way to spinsterhood if she counted Hunk.
“Jaime?” called Shaya.
The jag hissed loudly, warning away the female.
Moving out of his hold, Jaime snapped, “No, bad kitty cat.” Turning to Shaya, she asked,
“What is it?”
“I need to pee.”
It was an unspoken rule that none of the girls ever walked off alone. “I’ll be right back,” Jaime told the jag, who gave her a very carnal smile that promised all kinds of things.
It was as she washing her hands in the sink after using the toilet that she heard an irritating voice behind her.
“You must be Jaime.”
CHAPTER FIVE
“You must be lost,” said Jaime.
Glory came to stand beside her in front of the mirror where Jaime was drying her hands with paper towels. “I’ll get straight to the point.” She dug out her lip gloss from her small, studded pink handbag that matched her pink skirt—which, considering its length, was more like a belt.
“That would be nice.”
Glory touched up her lip gloss, returned it to her bag, and turned to fully face her. “I saw you with Dante the other day. Don’t think I didn’t notice the way you were looking at him or the way he was looking at you. And don’t think I haven’t been watching the way he’s been staring at you tonight either.” She curled her lip. “Let me be very clear. Dante’s mine. He’s my mate.” Jaime’s wolf growled, enraged by not only the female’s confrontational behavior, but her claim on Dante. “Your mate? Really? Wow. See, I’d like to believe you…I say I’d like to.”
“He is mine. I knew it the second I saw him. The only reason I haven’t ripped out your throat is that you’re one of his wolves and it would hurt him. But I’m warning you, just like I warned every other tramp that looked his way… he is mine. I don’t doubt that he’s denying it to anyone who asks.
He might not be ready to accept the mating, but it doesn’t change the facts.”
“ Are they facts?”
The skin around Glory’s cheekbones tightened, but her expression quickly relaxed. “Why would I claim he’s mine if he isn’t?”
Jaime smiled and shrugged. “Well it’s your lie, sweetie, so go ahead and tell it however you like.”
“He’ll make it official when he’s ready. But just because I’m giving him time doesn’t mean I’m okay with him fucking little submissive sluts like you. ” Again Jaime’s wolf growled. Pacing and clawing, she urged Jaime to lunge at the female in front of her, but Jaime maintained a deadpan expression. “Thanks. That really means a lot coming from a backstabbing, rumor-spreading, attention-seeking, black hole of need. But then, I suppose it’s a good thing that you’re spreading something besides your legs.” Glory snarled. “I’d be very careful if I were you, honey.”
“Is that right?”
“I’m no submissive. I could easily take you, and we both know it.” The threat delighted her wolf, who at this point wanted nothing more than to rip out this bitch’s throat. Her wolf, as always, believed the solution was “attack.” She charged at her confines, body-slammed them, clawed at them. It was becoming painful to keep her buried, but Jaime somehow managed it. Unfortunately, Glory seemed determined to test her endurance.
“Do you know what’s so sad about this? That you think he would be truly interested in you even if he and I weren’t mates. Face reality, honey. He doesn’t want you. If he did, he wouldn’t have let that jaguar anywhere near you. Come on, look at you…Your wolf’s so submissive, she doesn’t even deserve to live. Let me show you what I like to do to submissive wolves l
ike you.” One of the bars on her wolf’s cage gave way, and Jaime’s wolf leaped for the surface.
Dante was staring at the door of the restrooms, impatient for Jaime to come back out, when he noticed Shaya dashing out and quickly squeezing through the crowds until she reached Gabe. Whatever she said to him had the guy’s eyes bulging, and then he was swiftly heading to the restrooms.
Without thought, Dante stalked through the crowds, intent on finding out what was wrong.
Reaching Shaya, he gripped her shoulder and twirled her around. “What is it? What’s happened?” Suddenly Nick was beside him, but Dante paid him no attention.
It all came out of her in a rush. “I was in the restroom in one of the cubicles when I heard them arguing and I figured they’d stop and one of them would walk out but then there was growling and I looked out and she had her hand wrapped around Glory’s throat and was pounding her head against the wall and I tried to pull Jaime away but she won’t listen and—”
“Jaime?” He still didn’t have a clue what was going on, but if it had something to do with Jaime, it had something to do with him.
Whatever he’d been expecting to see when he barged into the women’s restrooms, it hadn’t been Jaime sitting on and pinning down a bleeding female. Glory was lying on her stomach while Gabe looked on, appealing to Jaime for her to stop. Then Gabe had his arms around her and was tugging her backward, away from Glory.
“You have to fight it, Jaime. Please, fight it,” said Gabe.
Fight it? It was then that Dante noticed her eyes. They were wolf. There was no sign of Jaime there. If she had been in her wolf form, he’d have thought she might have gone feral. But this wasn’t feral. This wasn’t a loss of control. Not on the wolf’s part.
What he saw in her wolf’s eyes made him shudder. Rage. Pain. Fear. Torment. A primal need to defend. A primal need to protect. He saw a traumatized wolf reacting to danger in the only way it knew how.
“Please, Jaime, please, please fight it,” Gabe begged as she strained within his hold. “You can’t let your wolf win this.”
Dante still didn’t have a clue what exactly was going on with Jaime, but he did know one thing; a dominant wolf in that state wasn’t going to respond to a plea from a submissive wolf. He stalked over to her and collared her throat with his hand in a very dominant move. It gained her wolf’s attention. Jaime instantly froze and released a chilling growl.
He released a growl of his own, one that warned her not to challenge him insisting that she back down. Instead, she thrashed, apparently perceiving him as a threat and wanting only to eliminate him. At least her attention was no longer on Glory. That got him thinking…
“Tao!” He knew the Head Enforcer had followed him inside. “Get her out of here!” he ordered, gesturing to a moaning Glory. Her presence and scent would only make Jaime’s wolf worse.
As Tao passed by with Glory in tow, Jaime lunged at her with such strength that she managed to break out of both his and Gabe’s holds. Christ, she moved fast. Dante moved faster. He grabbed her just as she reached Glory and pulled her back against him. He kept his arm wrapped securely around her, pinning her arms to her sides. At the same time, he collared her throat again with his free hand. Like before, it transferred her focus to him, and she froze briefly before struggling wildly again.
“Stop,” he growled into her ear. She didn’t. He looked at the others who were all gathered near the door. “All of you out! She’ll feel cornered if there are too many in here!” Gabe lingered, looking anxious and edgy. “Out. I’ll take care of her, I promise,” he added reassuringly.
Once they were alone, Dante returned his attention to the writhing female in his arms. “Jaime, I know you’re fighting her, baby, or you’d be in wolf form by now. I need you to fight harder for me.
Concentrate on me, concentrate on my voice.” Very, very slightly, her struggles eased. “That’s it, Jaime, fight harder for me, come on.” Rocking her from side to side, he whispered things softly into her ear, hoping to calm her wolf’s mood even though he knew the animal wouldn’t understand the words.
Little by little, her struggles eased until, a minute later, she slumped against him. Sighing with relief, he turned her to face him, keeping her in his arms, and slid to the floor. Sitting there with her cradled against his chest, he continued to rock her slightly. “Jaime,” he breathed. He was surprised when her lids fluttered open. Smoky-blue eyes looked back at him.
“Now you know.” Then she passed out. Shit.
The creaking of the restroom door had him looking up. Tao was wearing an expression that was an equal mixture of concerned and wary. “Is she all right?”
“I don’t know.”
“What the hell is going on?” Tao’s voice was soft but demanding.
“I don’t know that either.”
“But you know she’s definitely not a submissive wolf, right? You must have sensed the dominant vibes—they were clogging the air.”
“Yes, I sensed them,” Dante said impatiently, irritated that he was again stuck with unanswered questions. “Look, I need you and the guys to make sure Shaya and Hope get home fine.
Gabe is coming with Jaime and me. I need some answers, and I seriously doubt I’m going to get any of them from her right now.”
Tao swallowed hard. “Are you sure it’s a good idea to take her to pack territory?”
“You’re suggesting I don’t?” His voice sounded dangerous even to him.
“Hey, look, I really, really like Jaime. She’s a great girl and she’s a good addition to the pack, and I don’t like the idea of her anywhere alone. But, well, she’s dangerous, Dante.”
“Maybe to females who challenge her, but not necessarily to anyone else.” He knew that Jaime didn’t go around picking fights. Glory had to have challenged her.
“You saw her, Dante. Her wolf lost it.”
“No, she didn’t.” He sighed. “I think something’s wrong with her wolf. She seems, I don’t know…damaged.”
“So you’re saying you think Jaime lost control of her? That still makes her dangerous. Trey’s not going to like that, especially since she’s been lying to us about being submissive.” He was right, Dante knew. The Beta in him agreed that the right decision for the pack would be for her to leave, but every cell of his body rebelled against it. His wolf, too, was angry at the idea of her leaving.
“Dante—”
“I gave you an order, Tao. Just concentrate on that and leave me to deal with this, all right?” It wasn’t actually a question. With a stiff nod, Tao left. Shifting Jaime’s weight slightly, Dante managed to stand upright. Then, curling her legs around his waist, he held her close as he exited the restrooms.
Instantly Shaya came forward, and Nick grabbed her arm, attempting to pull her back.
Scowling at him, Shaya shrugged Nick’s hand away. “Is she okay?” she asked Dante, looking both confused and concerned, as did Hope. Trick and Marcus appeared to be as wary as Tao. Gabe was looking guilty and awkward.
Dante simply gave Shaya a nod. “You, come with me,” he told Gabe, who then followed behind Dante as he made his way out of the bar and over to the SUV. It made more sense to lay Jaime across the backseat, but Dante found that he wanted her close. Not bothering to question the impulse, he placed her on the passenger seat and draped his jacket over her.
Impatient for answers, Dante only waited until he had reversed out of the parking space before he started to dig for an explanation. “Well,” he drawled, glancing in the rearview mirror at the male wolf, who was fidgeting nervously in the backseat. “It would seem that she isn’t submissive.”
“Nope,” Gabe confirmed.
“But Jaime keeps her wolf subdued?”
“Yeah.”
“Why? It’s clearly driving her wolf crazy and making her—” He broke off as realization dawned. “Her wolf was already this way. That’s why Jaime subdues her.” Gabe’s voice was sad as he spoke. “She doesn’t see that she has any other choice.?
??
“But I remember seeing her shift once when we were kids, and her wolf was fine. What happened to make her like this?”
“That’s Jaime’s story to tell.” Although Gabe’s tone wasn’t disrespectful, it was resolute.
Dante admired his loyalty to his sister.
“How long will she be out?”
Gabe shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen her have to fight her wolf so hard before. It’s usually a few hours before she wakes up. It drains her.”
“Wait a minute, what do you mean you’ve never seen her have to fight her wolf that hard before? Are you saying it’s getting worse?”
“She doesn’t talk about it much. She doesn’t want me to worry. It used to be months at a time before her wolf had the strength to put up a fight like that.”
“When was the last time?”
“A few nights ago. When she has nightmares, it freaks out her wolf.” Dante’s hands clenched around the steering wheel. “Fuck.”
“She wasn’t going to put any of you in danger,” he assured Dante, clearly worried that his sister was in trouble with the pack. “She’d planned to leave as soon as it got too bad. She didn’t say it aloud, but I know her. I wouldn’t be surprised if she leaves tomorrow.” His voice broke with the last words.
“Why?” It came out a growl; both he and his wolf had no intention of letting that happen.
“After that incident, she’ll see herself as too much of a risk to the pack.”
“It looked to me like all she did was respond to a challenge.” Okay, so there was much more to it than that, but that was pretty much at the crux of it.
“Yeah, but you and I both know that won’t mean squat to Trey, given his overprotective state right now. It won’t mean squat to her conscience either.”
“If she leaves, if she’s without the connection of a pack and without territory, it’ll most likely make her wolf worse.”
“I know,” he croaked. “She’s done so much for me, you know. When our parents died, we went to live with our aunt and uncle, and they were great and all, but they already had five kids of their own to care for. A year later came a set of twins. You know what it’s like to live in a full house.