Chapter One
Dear God, kill me now. Megan Warden pretended to sleep rather than engage with her insane mother and listen to her prattle on and on about men, children and pregnancy as she had for the last seven hours. Seriously, the military should look into using Beth Warden for interrogation. No terrorist could ever hold up under this stuff.
“I was telling Grandma, there are going to be many single wolves at this event, Megan. Who knows who you might meet,” her mother repeated for the thousandth time.
Megan kept her head down, her chin against her chest and tried to regulate her breathing. She’d been drinking “special” coffee all day long but werewolf physiology meant the alcohol wore off relatively soon.
So her mother continued talking, knowing Megan wasn’t really asleep but Megan kept pretending anyway. Oh the little games you play with family.
“You can’t hide under those dark glasses forever,” Layla cracked from her place next to Megan. They hurtled down the road in the huge SUV her older brother Lex had arranged for them. She’d taken the farthest row back, hoping her mother and grandmother would get into the other car in this caravan of horrors but no, they both decided to ride in this one.
“Shut the fuck up. You’re married and you’ve bred. You’re the freaking golden child.” She kept her head down and her voice low but they’d hear her anyway. Damned wolves.
“Megan, did you just say the F word?” Her grandmother tsked at her. She had a twinkle in her eye as she said it, proving she was just as much a Warden as the rest.
“She started it.” Megan knew she sounded petulant but she was past doubting her sanity, and full throttle into cursing her life.
Tracy snorted out a laugh and not for the first time, Megan wondered why in the hell she’d agreed to take a road trip to a wedding with her mother, grandmother and her married sisters.
Because she was the Enforcer of the Cascadia werewolf pack and it was the only way Lex would agree to them going without a full escort of armed wolves. As it was, Dave, her cousin and her sister-in-law Grace’s personal bodyguard, was there in the car behind them along with two other guards.
And okay, so she did love her family, and her sisters were all in from out of town and she didn’t see them nearly often enough. On paper, conceptually, it sounded like fun to hang out with the Warden women for a week or so.
Stuck in a car with them for hours on end? Not so much with the fun.
“Can we stop sometime soon? I have to pee.” Tracy ran a hand over her belly at Megan. “Maybe she’ll stop for a few minutes.” She winked and Megan rolled her eyes.
“We should be stopping for the day at some point anyway. Tracy has got to be uncomfortable and Grandma needs to rest.” Beth turned around in the seat. “Oh you’re awake now!” she said when she caught Megan with her eyes open.
Damn. The woman was diabolical.
“I think we should at least get to the California border before we stop. And I’m fine. I’m just pregnant for goodness sake. But dinner would be nice. I’m hungry.” Tracy’s lips quivered, barely holding back laughter.
That suggestion met with enthusiasm and Tegan called out that she’d pull over in the next town.
Their noisy group took over pretty much the entire small town Oregon restaurant. Meganlaugh at the picture they all made. Boisterous, happy, all of them emanating that vibrant otherness Weres seemed to.
“Why are you bogarting the catsup?” Tegan demanded.
“Just to annoy you apparently.” Megan shoved the bottle at her sister with a smirk. She looked back over to her mother, pasting sincere-looking concern on her face. “You know, you might be more comfortable in the other car with Dave. You can feel the road more in our car I think. You and Grandma both.”
Dave kicked her but it was every werewolf for herself.
Nina laughed from down at the other end of the table but didn’t offer her opinion on the matter. Better for her anyway as Megan was her bodyguard as well as the pack Enforcer. One suggestion from Megan to Lex about Nina’s safety and suddenly her sister-in-law would have to go everywhere with three bodyguards.
“Well, aren’t you sweet? But we’re fine. We’ll be stopping for the night soon enough and I don’t get enough chance to visit with Grace and Tegan now that they’re on the other side of the country.” Her mother smiled, patting Megan’s hand.
She’d go in the other car herself but with Grace and Nina along, that was two Alphas, including the Supreme Alpha, so as the Enforcer, Megan needed to be there. Gah.
“Here, Beth, have I shown you the pictures of little miss I’ve-got-my-daddy-wrapped-around-my-finger? Last month we took her for her first haircut and I think Cade might have cried.” Grace, her sister-in-law and current savior, grinned at her before turning her attention back to Beth. “I know he baked two dozen cookies when we got home.”
The pictures began to circulate from several directions and Beth eased back, happily engrossed in her grandbabies. For the moment, Megan let herself relax and enjoy the people who vexed and charmed her most in the universe.
After another several hours, they finally pulled into a hotel off the freeway and Megan skipped the late night pie and ice cream and headed to the room with Tracy and the bags. Nina would be right next door but no one in their right mind roomed with her but Lex. Nina was not a fun roommate, she was nosy, never shut up and thought fart jokes were hilarious.
“You did a good job with her today, you know. She just wants you to be happy but I remember how hard it was to be her target.” Tracy groaned as she put her feet up on the bed in the hotel room she shared with Megan.
“I know she does, Trace. But hello, do it’s my choice? This whole wolf mate thing is sort of out of my hands. Plus, kinda busy you know? Being Enforcer is a big job. I don’t have the time mom does to think up ways to torture other people. My days are filled with keeping Nina in line and watching over Gabriella so Lex doesn’t stroke out when she plays at going up and down stairs. The usual.”
“I know. It’s just I’m so happy, I want it for you. I know it’ll come when it’s meant to and all that mystical stuff but I remember waiting. I remember wanting. I…well I think it sucks you and Jack aren’t mates. Or any of my wolves. I’d love to have you at Pacific with me. This having a baby thing is sort of scary. My mother-in-law is nice and all and with Ben’s kids living with us, it’s wonderful and I feel like I’m a mom already, but I want you. I want mom.”
Megan moved to lie beside Tracy and her sister put her head on Megan’s shoulder with a soft, contented sound. The contact eased her frustration and they both relaxed.
“Portland isn’t that far. I can be down there in three hours. All you have to do is ask. You know that, right? I love you.” Megan’s heart squeezed. For all Tracy’s tough talk, it was Megan who was still surrounded by the Pack they grew up in while Tracy was in Portland with her new family.
Tracy sniffled. “I know. I’m just a bit weepy. The hormones are insane. I do love how Nick and Gabe just agree to whatever I demand though. That’s some heady power tripping.” Her sniffle morphed into a giggle and they both started laughing.
“Oh man. Cade baking cookies when his daughter needs a haircut, Lex popping a vein when Gabby decides it’s super cool to jump from the middle of the stairs down to the bottom floor. Sid is the coolest dad ever and lets the kids take over his studio to make giant art projects and Layla, the most uptight woman I’d ever known before Sid is all laid back when her daughter has blue paint stains in her hair for a week. And now you guys. It’s so cool. Tegan and Ben are trying. It’s me and Dave now and he’s totally abandoning me when mom starts sniffing around. Believe you me, if Jack was my mate, I’d have nailed him ten times a day since we first met. Alas, nothing.” She shrugged. “I’m not pining. I’m super busy. It is what it is. I can’t change it. My life is really good except for the non-mate part. I date. I have sex. I have a great, albeit nosy family, a wonderful job.” She exhaled sharply. “Aside from the really insane idea of a road trip to LA with my mother to a wedding, I’m happy.”
And it was true, Megan reflected the next morning as she’d shuffled into the car, a giant cup of coffee in one hand and a huge bagel stuffed with ten kinds of protein in the other. She was happy. It wasn’tshe thought about really. Some wolves were lucky enough to find mates early on. And others faced the horrible fate of losing them like Tegan had. It would happen when it happened so Megan thought it was utterly pointless to worry about it. It wasn’t who she was anyway.
***
