“I hate you,” I growled softly. “I really do.”
“Of course, you do.” He took a long swallow of his beer. Watching him, with his classic good looks in his perfect suit, totally out of place in my shithole of a bar, I wondered how I ever found myself in this position. Sure, I had gotten involved with his war in Dallas, but I didn’t have to let him move into my territory. His excuse about having me help protect Carey was probably honest. He was technically a werewolf Alpha of two, him and his son, and they were the only defense his human daughter had.
My answer had been spur-of-the-moment. Looking back, I knew I should have told him no, that it drew unnecessary attention to me, or I didn’t want an Alpha werewolf hanging around in my space, but I said yes because of things like this. Opportunities to have those elusive things called friends. Some form of community that didn’t involve my own kind, which I was actively avoiding and had for several years.
“So, bowling. Tomorrow. What time?” I pressed for more information, trying not to sound too excited or desperate. I liked bowling, and just the idea of going with people was exciting.
“The place on 69 opens at three. Do you know it?” With my nod, he continued. “Meet us there by three-thirty.” Heath was still smirking into his glass.
“Sounds good. Gives me time to get some sleep.” With that, I yawned, realizing just how tired I was. For some reason, the last week had been a long one, with only a few nights when I got a full night’s sleep. “I hate long weeks.”
“We’ve had one ourselves. Landon and I had to spend two nights in Dallas, thanks to some meetings. Our old pack wanted us to check in as well, make sure everything was going well. Nothing official, just old friends, but very important old friends. A lot of the werewolf council had flown in.”
“They don’t have spies?” I asked, smiling because I knew the answer.
“No, they don’t. They can’t seem to convince anyone to come out here and check on us. Something about everyone scared of the big…supernatural who runs Tyler and Jacksonville and the surrounding area.” He grinned back at me.
Our plan was working. Heath was able to pull Carey out of the werewolf world and be her father, and I was the nuclear deterrent who got some friends out of that world. It wasn’t perfect, but it was holding. Sometimes, I thought the polite man in front of me was overreacting to what happened in Dallas, but I was always quick to remind myself I didn’t know all of his history. I didn’t know how many enemies he had or who they could be. I only knew he thought they were a danger to his daughter.
Things I maybe should have asked about before letting him move in. Too late now.
“Must be some scary supernatural,” I commented lightly.
“Truly. Shook up a lot of my old pack when it rolled through Dallas and showed them who the dominant predator was.”
I wanted to laugh, but I bit it back. We had to be careful about talking openly about too many supernatural things. What surprised me was his comment about her being the dominant predator. In a one-on-one fight, we both understood I could wipe the floor with him. His son, too, but no self-respecting werewolf Alpha, retired or not, admitted to something so vulnerable. It exposed a weakness when weaknesses got wolves killed.
“You’re a fool,” I whispered, looking down to pour him another beer.
“For admitting it?” he inquired, obviously knowing where I was going with my comment.
“Yeah. Aren’t you supposed to maintain that you’re the strongest? It’s how you get other wolves to fall in line. One of the ways.” I gave a half shrug, silently trying to dismiss my knowledge. I knew a lot about other supernatural species, something Hasan made sure was a frequent part of my education shortly after I was Changed.
“That mattered when I ran a pack, but…that supernatural showing up and doing what it did reminded every wolf in North America that we don’t run the world. Everyone is quietly eating that dose of reality right now.”
My stomach sank a little more, remembering Jabari’s texts and what the implications of two dead werecats could mean. “You all already knew about…” I didn’t know how to finish that without giving away anything more. I glanced around the bar, glad to see every human in the room was instinctively avoiding the two dangerous predators at the bar. It always happened. Once Heath walked in, they gradually drifted to the other side of the room, hiding by the booths and pool tables. They would claim it was a sign of respect for Heath, but Heath and I knew the truth.
“We did know but seeing is believing. Seeing the truth is different from hearing it. Harder to ignore, harder to deny. Don’t worry, none of them are really angry or upset. They’re cautious. Actually, I know a couple of Alphas who have reached out to introduce themselves to some…cousins, hoping to start better relations.” Heath sipped on his beer. I put the new one in front of him, causing him to chuckle. “Wolves are social things. Insular in our own ways but more social than the rest of our world. We adapt to a new player on the stage, even if it’s really one of the oldest players, and this time, many wolves are making sure we’re allies.”
“That’s good,” I mumbled. “I’m not really involved with politics, so thanks for that news.”
“It’s been going on for months, and no one told you?” He narrowed his eyes playfully, but there was no missing the cunning, curious light in his eyes.
“Nope. I don’t want to be involved. I don’t care to be involved.”
“Strange because…” He leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a barely audible whisper. No human ears would pick up what he said. “You’re right in the middle of it, letting wolves live near you, in your space.”
“Don’t make me throw you out,” I snapped, suddenly fighting a bolt of hostility. His comment sounded like trouble, and like always, I wanted no part in it. I didn’t want attention. “Out of the bar, my territory, and out of the state. You drag me into anything else, and we’re going to have real problems.”
“I just figured we were on the topic, so I would give you the recent news. I’m not looking to draw attention to myself, promise. Or you. Word is, many supernaturals have been curious and confused by the new living arrangement here, but they don’t have any reason to talk about it. They’re just curious.”
“Once an Alpha, always an Alpha. Natural politicians, the lot of you.” I made it sound like an insult—it was and wasn’t. Supernaturals like Heath stayed alive because they were so good at making the right allies and playing the field without pissing off too many people. Had he made mistakes? Yeah, that was pretty clear from what happened last year, but even I could tell he was a survivor.
Politicians still sucked, though.
“Always, even without a pack. It’s not something I can turn off.”
I had long figured that out.
“Well, forgive me, but I don’t plan on telling you anything on my end. Whenever I learn about something from…” I couldn’t say ‘my family,’ so I trailed off, trying to find the last word. He only watched me, too curious, too insightful for my liking. He wanted to know so much more about me, and I fought to say anything for a minute under his gaze. “When I learn something, it’s normally told to me in confidence. Something that can’t join the world of rumors.”
“Of course.” He was still smiling, though. “The only time I ever hear about…your kind is when one crosses paths publicly with another group.” He had phrased it very carefully, something I was grateful for as I looked over his shoulder and saw Joey watching us with suspicion.
“I can’t tell you all my secrets. Sorry.” I threw in the apology because I knew there was an expectation. He’d given me information I either didn’t know or was purposefully ignoring, and I refused to return the favor. “And can you talk to that man?” I didn’t need to say who. Heath sighed heavily in return, telling me exactly how bad he felt about who I was dealing with.
“I didn’t mean to bring that much attention to you. Honestly, when he first approached me, I had no idea who he was or what it was about. Then he said ‘werewolf,’ which confused the hell out of me. I approached your territory and realized what you were. Since I couldn’t get close to learn more about you, I used him to get me basic information.” Heath sipped his beer before continuing. “Has it gotten worse?”
“Yes, since Carey came down here,” I answered. “It used to be a joke, and now it’s a bit of a game, but its frequency is increasing.”
“Unless you want to tell him...” Heath’s sympathetic look told me everything. There was no fixing it without dragging Joey into the supernatural world. Since neither of us really knew Joey that well, nor was he an employee, there was no incentive for it. Telling someone you can’t trust led to disaster, and that was something I never flirted with.
Unless it’s for Carey. Then I didn’t just flirt with disaster, I took it out to drinks and asked it to fuck me on the first date.
“No, he doesn’t need to know. It just started to make me uncomfortable, and…” I trailed off, realizing what I was about to ask. I was a werecat, and this was my territory, and I was about to ask a wolf to handle his previous spy and get him off my back. “You know what? Don’t worry about. I’ll start throwing him out of the bar if it gets too bad.”
“Good. I’ll finish my beer and get out of your hair early tonight, then.” He nodded slowly, glancing over his shoulder. I saw Joey jerk his gaze away. “Your territory, your decision.”
I didn’t reply to that, quickly beginning to fill glasses as I saw one of my regulars stand up and walk over. By the time she was at the bar, I had three beers and a margarita waiting for her. She took them without comment, and I silently added the drinks to her tab.
It was another thirty minutes before Heath wandered out.