The Mane Squeeze

  “Because she loves her only son?”

  “Try again.” His mother rarely called unless there was something wrong or she wanted to see him.

  “She’s returning my call. Now do you mind moving your paw?”

  “Why did you call your mother?”

  “I can’t talk to my own mother just to talk?”

  “No.” Sissy’s eyes narrowed. “This better not be about that bear.”

  “What bear?”

  “The one that Gwen said dragged you around the room like a little boy dragging around his favorite toy.”

  Now Mitch’s eyes narrowed and they stared at each other while his phone continued to buzz away.

  “Whatever you’re planning, Mitch Shaw—”

  Mitch gave a little snarl before tossing Sissy’s hand off his and lifting the receiver. “Hi, Ma,” he said while staring at Sissy. “How’s it going?”

  With their job on hold until Animal Control could clear out the rattlesnakes living all over one poor couple’s property, Gwen and Blayne had the rest of the day to themselves unless another job came in. They went to their office to get paperwork done, but it was Friday and, to be honest, the desire to do anything but work got the better of them.

  Around lunchtime they ended up in the basement of the Kuznetsov building. Most of their trucks were out on jobs and that gave them a huge space to utilize.

  Gwen had Blayne put on her skates, and then she ran her through the drills her mother used to put her through back in the day. Because it was Blayne, Gwen had way more fun than she thought she would. No matter what she told her to do, no matter how many times she told her to do it, and no matter how often Blayne fell on her ass, the wolfdog never got upset, never complained, and always kept that smile.

  After a couple of hours, while Blayne raced around the basement and Gwen threw things at her head, trying to catch her off guard, one of the wild dogs wandered by. He watched them for a few minutes before wandering away again. About twenty minutes later, they had all the wild dogs down in the basement with them. They brought food, and since Gwen and Blayne had never gotten around to getting lunch, they ended up eating with the Pack. Gwen usually hated being around crowds of canines, but maybe it was the wolves she didn’t favor as much because the wild dogs weren’t that bad. They were extremely friendly as only dogs could be, and they were also funny and, unlike the wolves and cats, very welcoming of mixed breeds.

  Around four o’clock, two pups showed up. Both teenagers. One was Kristan, the daughter of Maylin, and the other Johnny, wolf and adopted son of Jess. Much bigger than any of the dogs who currently ruled Johnny’s life, Gwen wondered if the pup appreciated that Jess had married another wolf. Maybe he felt a little less alone? Gwen could relate after having spent her whole life surrounded by lions who were much taller and never understood Gwen’s desire to not constantly hang out with her cousins.

  Not surprisingly, Kristan eventually wandered over to Gwen and started chatting with her. Like fellow wolfdog Blayne, Kristan was a happy girl with a big smile, but Gwen also felt a kinship to the sixteen-year-old canine because they were both half Asian. Although Gwen knew more about her Irish side and her ancient druid relatives who may have liberated the people of their small village from the Romans or…uh…enslaved them. It wasn’t really clear, and it depended on who you talked to.

  None of that mattered to Gwen and Kristan because, just as it was between Gwen and Blayne, they were outsiders among outsiders, making them instant allies. So before Gwen knew it, she’d grabbed what Blayne called her “magic case,” which held all of Gwen’s favorite hair and beauty products, wet the teen’s multicolored wild dog hair and, with the reluctant blessing of her mother, Gwen began to remove a lot of the length to give Kristan’s hair more body and shape and make her look more like she was sixteen rather than twelve.

  While Gwen worked with a blow-dryer and curling iron, Kristan sitting at her feet, one of the wild dogs pulled out his MP3 player and attached it to speakers. Great eighties music pumped while Blayne had fun on her skates with a few of the other wild dogs on their skateboards.

  “She’s good, isn’t she?” Kristan asked, not even bothering with the mirror Gwen had given her to watch the progress of her hair. Her immediate trust in Gwen was humbling, if not daunting.

  “She’s very good. She’ll get even better.”

  “Are you on the team, too?”

  “Me? Nah.”

  “How come? I bet you two would make an awesome team. And you guys could have your own nicknames like the Terrible Twosome or the Battling Bitches.”

  Laughing, Gwen finished with the curling iron, unplugging it before setting it aside to cool. “Oh, yeah. That sounds like us.”

  “I’m serious!” Of course, she was serious. Wolfdogs were always serious, even when they had no idea what they were talking about.

  Gwen worked her hands through Kristan’s hair, playing with the curls until they fell the way she wanted them to. She stood and walked around, crouching in front of her. She fussed with the multicolored locks for a bit longer, wondering how long before Kristan would start dyeing her hair so she didn’t stick out as much.

  Leaning back and looking Kristan over, Gwen had to admit she’d done a pretty good job.

  Gwen picked up the mirror and held it up for her. “What do you think?”

  Kristan glanced at herself, began to smile pleasantly and look away, but her gaze shot back and she snatched the mirror from Gwen. “Oh, my God. Oh, my God! I look amazing!” She jumped to her feet, forcing Gwen to scramble out of her way.

  “Mom! Oh, my God, look!”

  May’s hands covered her mouth as she stared at her oldest daughter. “You look—”

  “Older,” Blayne muttered in Gwen’s ear after she’d rolled up behind her.

  “It had to happen sometime,” Gwen muttered back.

  “Yeah, but that young pup over there is a lot more fascinated with her than he was when he walked in.” The friends peered over at Johnny, and Gwen had to bite back her smile. Blayne was right. He was really interested. Kristan threw her arms around Gwen’s neck. “Thank you so much! I love it! You’re a miracle worker!”

  “I always thought so,” a voice said from the doorway and both Gwen and Blayne went tense.

  Looking over her shoulder, Gwen stared at her mother and—betraying bastard, son of a bitch, hope he burns in hell—Mitch.

  With a walk that made men stop whatever they were doing to watch, Roxy O’Neill sauntered over, her purse swinging from her hand, her hips moving from side to side. To anyone who didn’t know her, she looked too busy being sexy to be worried about anything else.

  But Gwen knew her.

  Drawing her hands through Kristan’s hair, Roxy nodded in approval. “Nice. Very nice. It fits her face and lets her look her age rather than too young or too old. You’ve always had an eye, baby-girl.”

  Looking around, Roxy smiled. “I see the plumbing biz is keeping you busy.”

  Gwen’s jaw clenched at the direct hit, and Blayne immediately put her arm around Gwen’s shoulders.

  “Early afternoon,” the wolfdog explained. “It’s been a long week.”

  “Uh-huh.” After turning in a complete circle, Roxy focused again on her daughter. “I’d love to see your office, baby-girl.”

  “Absolutely!” Blayne said and stepping forward, she took Roxy’s arm and steered her back to the double doors that led to the building elevator. “Let’s go see it. Gwen will be along in a bit.”

  As Blayne walked with Roxy, she managed to slam her skate-wearing foot on Mitch’s instep as she passed him.

  “Ow!” As he lifted his foot to rub it, Blayne turned into him, knocking the lion to the ground. “Ow!”

  “Oh, Mitch! I’m so sorry!” No, she wasn’t. Nor did she stop propelling Roxy toward that elevator.

  Once they were gone, Gwen realized she was clutching her hands together. Jess approached her, reaching out to touch her shoulder. Immediately Gwen s
tepped away. “Don’t…”

  Jess pulled back and the dogs gave Gwen her distance.

  Determined to face her mother, Gwen let out a breath and headed toward the elevator. Although she did stop long enough to kick her brother in the balls before moving on.

  Roxy watched her daughter walk into the office. She didn’t look like any of her cousins, yet she was naturally more beautiful than all of them. A face like her father’s, she had. With those bright gold eyes and that sweet grin, when she bothered to use it. Which, to be honest, was also like her father.

  “Can you leave us alone for a minute, Blayne?”

  “But I haven’t finished showing you how our billing system—”

  “Out.”

  Unlike the good old days, when her daughter and canine friend used to jump at Roxy’s orders, Blayne didn’t move until Gwen motioned toward the door. “Give us a minute, would ya?”

  “Sure.” Blayne got up and rolled out the door.

  Roxy couldn’t help but study the quads on those tiny dog feet. The four-wheeled skates derby girls played in, unlike those ridiculous inline skates for the masses.

  Roxy remembered when her daughter wore the black and gold skates of the Philly Phangs. And she’d worn them for all of one bout. She never thought Gwenie would quit so easily, even with all the injuries she’d suffered that day. Never had she quit anything before or since, but something else must have happened, because her daughter never went back and she would never discuss it. Not with her, Roxy’s sisters, not even Cally, whom she held in highest esteem among the O’Neills.

  “How is she?”

  Gwen frowned. “How is who?”

  “Blayne.” When Gwen frowned, she added, “I saw what you two were doing in the basement. That’s derby training, baby-girl.”

  Gwen shrugged. “She’s good. But that’s not why you’re here.”

  She moved around her daughter. “Can’t a mother come visit her only daughter?”

  “Not my mother, no.”

  And this was why she adored her baby-girl. Gwen was all about the direct approach.

  Roxy lifted her arms, sweeping the room. “You give up everything I have to offer you for this? A cruddy little office and no real work? What did I do? Why do you hate me?”

  Gwen dragged her hands through her hair. “I don’t hate—”

  “You must if this is what you’ve resigned yourself to. And if it’s not me, what is it? Your cousins? One of your aunts? Did they say something to you?”

  “Ma, stop. They didn’t do anything. You didn’t do anything. I love what I do.”

  “Did you see what you did with that little girl downstairs? How beautiful you made her look with a set of shears, a blow-dryer, and an iron?”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “You could be doing that every day and running the business. Making real money. Have a high-end clientele. And you’d have family around you, baby-girl. Family to protect you.”

  She brushed her hand against the still-lingering bruises on Gwen’s face. They must be recent, since bruises for their kind didn’t last much longer than a day or two. Was no one watching her baby’s back? Other than that wolfdog who was too sweet for her own good? And Blayne’s face hadn’t looked much better.

  “Who did this to you?”

  “It doesn’t matter, Ma.”

  “Tell me.”

  “Why? So you can make it worse?” Gwen smirked. “And we both know you’ll make it worse. Besides, it was just a fight.”

  “And no one watching out for you. No one covering your back.”

  “Blayne watches my back. Blayne always watches my back.”

  “But for how long, baby-girl? She’s a canine who’s making new canine friends. Canine friends with money. Where does that leave you? I know you’re not comfortable with meeting new people, and that’s okay. You always have your family. The ones who love you and will always be there for you.”

  Roxy put her arm around Gwen, kissed her forehead. “Let’s get your brother and go grab some dinner. We can talk then.”

  “No.”

  “Don’t be mad at Mitch. He was only trying to—”

  “No. I mean I can’t. I’m…uh…meeting someone.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. A bear I’ve been seeing.”

  Roxy smirked at her daughter. “Really?” A bear? And her Gwenie? Well, that was interesting.

  “Yeah. In fact—” Gwen glanced at a wrist with no watch on it “—I’m going to be late if I don’t get a move on.”

  She kissed Roxy on the cheek and grabbed the straps of her backpack. “I’m really sorry, Ma, but you should have called first before coming all this way.”

  Gwen walked to the door and saw her brother standing on the other side of it. She saw him. And yet she flung that door open like she hadn’t. Thankfully, Mitch had always been quick and he managed to keep the door from hitting him in the face.

  “Off for a date. See ya.”

  Mitch scowled. “With that bear?” he yelled after her.

  “Damn right, bitch!” she yelled back, and Roxy had to rub her nose to hide the smile.

  Mitch walked into the office, looking around in distaste, but Roxy didn’t know if it was distaste for the room or the bear.

  “So you’re going to let her go out with that bear?” he demanded.

  Okay. Distaste for the bear it was.

  Mitch walked his mother to the overpriced parking lot across the street from the Kuznetsov office building. “I can’t believe you’re letting her get away with this.”

  Roxy remotely unlocked her gold Lexus SUV and tossed her bag into the car. “I don’t know what you want me to do.”

  “Tell her she has to come home. You’ve done it before with the cousins.”

  “Yes, but they were…”

  Mitch, not sure how there could be a “but” there, motioned to his mother to continue when she stopped talking. “They were what?”

  Roxy gave him that soft smile that fooled a lot of nonrelated male lions but not Mitch. She patted his chest. “You need to come to Philly for a family dinner, baby-boy. Make sure to bring your girl with you.”

  Mitch grinned. “And I’ll bring Gwenie.”

  “Mitch—”

  “Invite the whole family. We’ll be there. Tomorrow night.”

  Roxy shook her head and got into her vehicle. “I swear, baby-boy, sometimes…just like your father.”

  “I’ll try not to take that as an insult, Ma.”

  He closed her door and waved at her until she turned out of the lot and onto the street. Already working on how he would get Gwen home for a family dinner—also known among the O’Neills as a Family Pile-On—Mitch never saw that fist coming until it grabbed a hold of his hair and yanked.

  “Not the hair! Not the hair!”

  “You rat!” Blayne accused, while using her other hand to slap Mitch in the face and head. “You big rat!”

  Desperate as he felt precious hairs pulled from his head, Mitch grabbed hold of Blayne’s arms and twisted them back until she let him go.

  “Off!” he ordered, pushing her away. “Did you think I was really going to let this go? Especially after last night?”

  She put her hands on her hips, reminding him of Gwen. “Because he batted you around that hotel room like a Tonka toy?”

  “No. Because he had my precious baby sister on his lap for your entire derby bout.”

  Blayne’s eyes grew wide. “How…how did you find out about that?”

  “Don’t think you can hide anything from me, little girl. When it comes to my baby sister, I know all.” He walked up to her and leaned down until their noses touched. “And this isn’t over.” And it wouldn’t be until he got Gwen away from that circus freak bear and got her back to her Pride where she belonged and would be safe.

  Smirking, and feeling pretty damn smug, Mitch headed toward the corner and a cab, but he froze when Blayne tossed after him, “You know everything, huh? Did you know that when y
our hair started falling out in clumps back in your senior year it was because me and Gwen put Nair in your leave-in conditioner?”

  When he spun around, roaring in outrage, Blayne yelped and skated off in the opposite direction.

  Jay Ross stared at the cash in his hand. “This is it? I usually get twice this.”

  Bobby B., who owned the Staten Island bar Jay was in, shrugged and carried another case of beer behind his bar. “What do ya want me to tell ya? You’re not the only dealer out there. And the product you’ve been givin’ us ain’t been that great.”

  “I need more money.” Donna’s bitch mother had been on a rampage since she’d found out that her kid once again nearly got her ass kicked by an O’Neill, but who’d counted on that goddamn bear being there again? And the only way to calm the evil bitch down was with cold, hard cash.

  “Then bring in better product. The last two died pretty easy and that don’t make for much of a show,” Bobby B. complained, dismissing him.

  Jay started to head to the door but stopped, an idea hitting him. “What about females?”

  Bobby’s head came up, the older full-human looking at him with definite interest. “Females? A name will get you three times what you used to get. Bring one in yourself…and it’s six times.”

  “Six?”

  “They’re popular and hard to grab.” Bobby smiled. “Deadlier than the male.”

  The man had no idea.

  Jay walked out of the bar and headed to his car. No way could he move that product on his own, but if he could get the Pack involved…He shook his head, resting his arms on the roof of his car. Sharyn McNelly happily took his money, but she didn’t want any involvement in what he did. Still, there had to be a way, and Donna pretty much ran the younger Packmates. But her mother ran Donna…

  Then again hate like that didn’t just go away. And that bear couldn’t be there every time to protect O’Neill. No way.

  Yeah…Jay just needed to bide his time. And he was good at that.

  Knowing what he needed to do to make some quick money now and a lot more money later, he unlocked his car and pulled the door open. He was about to get in, but he stopped, quickly scanning the street. It was weird. He felt like someone was watching him. He could feel eyes on him.