Dominated(6)

“Do you know a kid whose first name is Marcus?” he asked his mother.

“Marcus? A kid? I don’t think so. There’s an older guy named Marcus. He’s about twenty-five and lives with his parents in Iowa. He’s mentally challenged and often behaves oddly. Why?”

Ahh, that had to be him. Somehow, Gabe hadn’t envisioned someone that old. His parents needed to keep better tabs on him if he was wandering around scaring girls.

“He’s frightening young women. Why is he running around here alone?”

“What? Are you serious?” His mother raised an eyebrow. “How do you know?”

“Because one of them just fled this Marcus character and ducked in here to escape him.”

“Crap. Okay. I’ll talk to his parents. He’s usually harmless.” Caroline headed back toward the door.

Gabe followed her. “He wasn’t harmless tonight. In fact, he scared this girl out of her mind forcing himself on her.” If his mother was willing to take the reins on this one, Gabe was more than willing to let her. But he had every intention of ensuring his mother knew how serious he was.

She turned toward him as they stepped into the hall. “I’m on it. Thanks for letting me know.” She took off at a clipped pace, leaving Gabe in her wake.

Good. He needed a minute to pull himself back together before he entered the main hall.

He had no need to make himself available in the singles room. After fortifying himself for the experience for the last several hours, the idea was now moot. Kathleen Davis was his mate. He might as well join his parents and their friends at the adult gathering.

The entire gathering was a strategic arrangement so singles could meet and hopefully find their mate in other singles. Adults who were already mated met with other adults to discuss wolf politics and happenings all over the continent.

There was no rule that stated single adults couldn’t mingle with mated ones and vice versa. It was just understood that generally speaking, available wolves flocked to other available wolves.

Gabriel Albertson was no longer an available wolf and his mixture of relief and distress over the fact followed him into the great hall in search of his father.

Edward Albertson waved toward his son from across the room as soon as Gabe entered. Neither man was difficult to spot in a crowd. They both stood over six feet and sported blond hair that made people glance their way.

As he sauntered across the room as if it were the most natural thing in the world, Gabe caught the gaze of many relatives and friends, most of whom he could barely remember from years ago but assumed he should know if his memory were jarred.

“Gabriel.” His father patted him on the back as an introduction. Edward Albertson was surrounded by his friends, men he’d known most of his life and enjoyed reacquainting himself with every two years. “You all remember Gabe, right?”

They nodded and greeted him in kind.

His father went on to explain how Gabe had done in school and how successful he now was as a pediatrician.

Gabriel blushed and ducked away as soon as possible to grab a glass of wine from the bar. Now that his entire stance on this weekend was altered, he just wanted to indulge in a few glasses of Merlot and alter his thinking.

The moment he turned back from the bar, he scented her. Kathleen.

She was in the room. Why? Did she also know she was fated for him? Had she decided not to return to the singles room for the same reason he’d opted against it? He smiled to himself. Perhaps she’d actually taken his advice and made a beeline for her parents.

How was he going to endure her presence even for one minute? What he needed was to beg out and go for a run. The longer he subjected himself to the scent of Kathleen Davis, the more tortured he would become.

Chances were Kathleen had no idea he was her mate. She was too young. Unless the wolf claiming his mate was about the same age, Destiny had a way of keeping the younger one in the dark until reasonably appropriate. In this case, Gabe feared years of solitude while he waited.

Hoping to make a casual escape, Gabe sauntered toward the door, half holding his breath and keeping his head low as he weaved through the crowd.

Before he could reach the exit, a hand landed on his shoulder. “Gabriel Albertson. So good to see you.”

Gabe lifted his head to find himself staring into the eyes of a man he was sure he’d met, but couldn’t remember. Behind him stood the one and only Kathleen Davis. Shit. Was this her father?

“Sir.” He swallowed and kept his gaze locked on the man in front of him, carefully glancing only for a second at Kathleen.

“My daughter tells me you helped her out a while ago. Thanks. I appreciate your assistance. If I’d known Marcus was such a bully, I would have paid more attention. I’ve had words with his parents. They are taking care of the matter.”