“The Society was dealt a blow,” Lisbeth countered, “and that weakens their position, including who they ordain to run their cities.”
“Lethe’s mom is planning a coup?” The bloody implications made my heart skip a beat. “Taking out Linus makes no sense. The Society won’t leave Atlanta in gwyllgi hands. It’s too valuable. She must realize that.”
“Our relationship is stronger now than ever, thanks to your friendship with Lethe.” Linus tapped his fingertips on his chin. “Because of that friendship, she’s aware of what’s happening in Savannah. She may simply be taking precautions with their most vulnerable members in the event there’s spillover.”
Given his ties to Atlanta, and his relationship with me, that was entirely possible. “Want me to touch base with Midas?”
“He’s loyal to his alpha.” Linus dismissed the idea with regret. “He can’t tell us anything without his mother’s express permission. The only way to override her is to challenge her, and he won’t do that. He doesn’t want to take up the mantle.”
Frowning, I studied the screen, wishing I saw answers there. “Lethe is her heir.”
“Lethe followed you to Savannah, and she remained there. There’s a reason she was challenged for her position as second in the pack.”
“Pregnancy made her an easy target,” I argued.
“It’s more than that. They must believe she plans on establishing her own pack, in Savannah.” Linus made it sound like a done deal when Lethe and Hood hadn’t breathed a word of that possibility to me. “If that’s the case, the sooner they dethrone her, the better for the stability of the pack.”
“You did buy her a house to grow into,” I reminded him. “If she wasn’t considering a move before, she will once she realizes how close that puts her to my refrigerator.”
“Plus, she’s memorized your debit card number and security code.” A tiny smile cut his mouth. “She could still have food delivered to Woolly, meet the driver at the gate, and walk it back to her place.”
Able to picture it clearly, I sighed. “Remind me to have a new card issued when we get back home.”
Home had been a slip of the tongue. He was already there. I was the fish out of water. But I had gotten so used to him in my home, in my life, I couldn’t see him fitting elsewhere. A lifetime of memories of him and me at Woolworth House just cemented the absolute certainty he belonged there, with me. Always.
Since he couldn’t very well deny his ties to Atlanta while in his city, with his team, I backed away to give him space to handle his business.
After the team wrapped up their meeting, we exchanged goodbyes then exited the way we had come. To prevent our conversation from carrying, I kept my thoughts to myself until we were back in the van.
“You told me you kept your team anonymous,” I began, “and you meant it.”
Cranking the engine, he guided us out and onto the street. “The meeting didn’t go how you imagined?”
“You could say that.” I shoved him for teasing me. “Why was Bishop present?”
“He was given the same choice as the others. He prefers to coordinate our efforts.” Linus let the silence drag for a moment. “He was in a bad place when I found him. Perhaps he feels since he was handpicked there’s no point in hiding his face from me?”
While it made sense, it was still risky. “What about the others?”
“He’s our point of contact,” Linus explained. “He travels the bases, knows each of us, and protects the team’s identities.”
Linus, as potentate, would be a talking point. There was no hiding him, no protecting him. And that went for me too. Our engagement would be announced in a lavish party as soon as Savannah had dusted herself off and gotten to her feet again. But it was nice to think these people could do good without painting a public bull’s-eye on their backs.
The trip back to Mary Alice’s building was short now that we could take a direct route. Facing down the garish hallway leading to our suite wasn’t any easier the second time around. The bright colors were quick to remind me I had a slight headache, but the suite itself offered instant relief from the psychedelic assault.
“Um.” I spotted Midas in the kitchen first. It was hard to miss him. But I wasn’t as sure about the lean black man sharpening his knife while he sat on the couch. “Hello?”
“Mary Alice let us in,” Midas explained. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“No,” I said slowly. “Who’s your friend?”
“Your face right now.” End over end, the man tossed his knife, catching it without looking. “I wish I had a camera. Boaz would pay good money to see you speechless.”
“Taz?” I gawked as she—he—rose. “You’re—you’re a man.”
“Yep.” Brown eyes dancing with mirth, he traced the waist of his pants. “Want to see—?”
“No. Goddess no.” I covered my eyes with my hands. “You’re worse than Boaz.”
Until he offered, I hadn’t realized glamour transformed a person to that degree. I assumed it was an illusion, but this meant a tangible illusion or a physical manifestation. Either way, I wasn’t keen on finding out which, even if she—he—had offered.
“No need to be rude.” He harrumphed. “Or a prude.”
If passing on an illusory peen viewing got me labeled a prude, I could live with that. Happily.
“I’m going by Jake Clemmons from here on out,” Taz said. “You can call me Clem.”
The smug twist to his smile told me there was a story there, but I was afraid, after the peen, to ask.
“You mentioned staying in deep cover. You’re good with doing that as a man?”
Afraid I might have offended her—him—with the question, I was ready to backtrack when he cracked a smile.
“I’ve always wondered how the other half lived,” he admitted. “And it’s not like I can’t go back if I decide I miss being a woman.” He made a show of hiking his junk. “I peed a minute ago. Standing up. No toilet paper required.” His grin was infectious. “It changed my whole perspective on life.”
Returning his maniacal grin, I stuck out my hand. “Nice to meet you, Clem.”
Tempted as I was to ask if the sacrifice had been worth it, I could tell he thought so.
As we shook, he shot a wink over his shoulder. “What do you think, Lawson?”
Shock had prevented me from noticing when Linus joined us, but it was hard to miss him now.
“Remarkable.” He walked a circle around Clem. “I’ve never seen glamour before and after.”
“You’ve done it now,” I teased. “He’s going to take you up on the offer to see your, um, perspective.”
A glint sparked in Linus’s eyes, and I debated how I should feel about his eagerness to peek down another woman’s pants, even if she was currently a man. I settled on amused. The man truly was curiosity personified.
“I got used to stripping with the women in my unit.” Clem shoved his hands in his pockets. “Men, not so much.”
Patting my fiancé’s arm, who was hiding his disappointment well, I ventured, “I’m sure Linus would be just as happy if you answered a few questions.”
Linus’s eyebrows winged up, daring to hope again, and Clem rolled his eyes.
“Sure.” He dipped his shoulders. “Why not?”
“I have to get back,” Midas interrupted before the interrogation began. “Mom has a barbeque scheduled the day after tomorrow, and she expects me to take several eligible females from the pack on a hunt for the main course.”
“Mothers do love matchmaking, don’t they?” Unable to stop from meeting Linus’s gaze, I winked at the man Maud and the Grande Dame had selected for me long before I chose him for myself. “Sometimes they even get it right.”
“I understand my duties to the pack.” Darkness wreathed Midas’s face as he glanced down at his forearms, at the scars there. “I will fulfill them.”
“Soon your mother will have her hands full of Lethe Jr.,” I said, hope for him in my voice, “and you’ll be off the hook.”
“For a while.” He smiled, and his grim mood lifted a fraction though it never fully went away.
“On the topic of your mom—”
“You’ll have to ask her about the enforcer presence in the city.” He crossed his wrists in front of him. “My hands are tied.”
Smiling to let him know there were no hard feelings, I said, “Can’t blame a girl for trying.”
After Midas left, Clem took position out in the hall. I didn’t envy him the eye-blistering job.
“We could heat up the takeout in the fridge.” I cozied up to Linus. “Watch a movie. Make out on the couch.”
With it close to midnight, I might even squeeze in a few more hours sleep before our early meeting.
“Mmm.” His arms came around me. “That sounds…”
Clem shoved open the door. “Expecting a delivery?”
“Yes,” Linus answered over my groan. “We are.”
The first order had arrived by courier, the poor guy struck mute or blind or both by the hall décor. Seconds later, Neely set my cell buzzing, ready to live vicariously. Reluctantly, Linus and I set aside the dream of a quiet dinner and put on a fashion show via video chat for my friend and fashion consultant instead.
After we got the clothing folded and packed in our new suitcases, the rest was easy. I didn’t care about the underwear. No one but Linus would see it, and after a man saw you modeling granny panties, there was nowhere to go but up from there. The toiletries didn’t matter either. Once I got home, I planned on resuming my theft of Linus’s shampoo and body wash. Or maybe, though probably not, buying my own. The cosmetics came with detailed instructions from Neely, who forced me to make up my face while he watched and critiqued before signing off when Cruz came to collect him for bed.