“Your cousin?” I asked in disbelief.
She held up a hand. “Not by blood. He’s called once or twice to invite me to meet my real family, but I’m not there yet. I’ve had enough drama in the past year. Anyhow, my family’s right here. I don’t need a DNA test to tell me who loves me. Stay away from Lorenzo.”
“Bad news?”
She twisted her mouth. “Not a bad guy… I don’t want to make it sound like that. He’s…” Then she sat up and turned her chair toward me, leaning forward. “Okay, here’s how it is. Lorenzo is rich. Filthy rich. He runs one of the largest packs in the territory, and he’s a man to be feared. I say that because he’ll take the law into his own hands. He has… issues with people saying no to him. He also doesn’t give his pack a slap on the wrist for insubordination. The wrath of Church is something to be feared. Was he hitting on you? Please tell me he wasn’t hitting on you. Lorenzo has a few bitches in his pack he brings to bed, so he’s not a monogamous wolf looking to settle.”
I covered my face and smothered a laugh. “I wasn’t planning on going to bed with him, Lexi. I just ran into him when he was about to throttle some unfortunate drunk in front of an audience. Ivy stopped him.”
“Ivy?”
“She has a subtle way with words that seems to put men in their place.”
Lexi leaned back and crossed her bare legs. “That’s for sure. Ivy’s not his type—she’s too sensitive and demure. Lorenzo likes his women fiery, just like you. Sassy is the word I’m looking for.”
“Thanks,” I said with a generous smile. “Better than some names I’ve been called.”
She rolled her eyes. “From jackasses in the bar, I’m sure. I click with you, so I hope it works out between you and Jericho. April’s a good friend, and we get along famously, but she has a different personality type than me. Austin calls me feisty.”
“That’s attractive to an alpha.”
“Yes, which is why you need to stay away from Lorenzo.”
I swatted at a mosquito. “No need to worry. I wasn’t the one he was looking at.”
She furrowed her brow, but before she could reply, my phone rang.
“This is the party to whom you are speaking.”
Lexi quietly laughed and looked at the crowd behind her.
“Hello?” I glanced at an unknown number. “Jericho, is that you?” The line went dead, and I set my phone on my lap.
“Who was that?”
“Wrong number. What does Austin think of all this?”
She pursed her lips in thought. “He’s on the fence, but that’s his job as a Packmaster. At the end of the day, he can’t tell his pack who to love. I’m not saying Jericho loves you; I don’t really know what your relationship is behind closed doors.” She fidgeted and then sat up straight. “Yeah, this just ventured into awkward territory.”
“No problem,” I said. “I like your honesty.”
Jericho and Austin reappeared with several white boxes and a six-pack. Austin sat on the ground in front of Lexi, and she spread a paper napkin over her lap before he handed her a hot dog.
“This isn’t what I ordered,” she said.
Austin rubbed his jaw. “If I had stood in that line, you would have never seen me again.”
“That line was ridiculous when we left,” Jericho agreed. He walked behind me and leaned over, presenting me with a sauerkraut-covered hot dog. I put the box in my lap, and he put his hands on my shoulders. “So, Isabelle has given our band a new name. It’s a good time to shake things up with a little change now that we have new blood. I think with Trevor’s looks, the girls are going to dig the new name.”
“What is it?” Lexi asked after taking a huge bite of her hot dog. Austin reached up and wiped a dollop of mustard off her lip, then licked it off his finger.
“Heat. I think it’s pretty badass.”
“That’s perfect!” Lexi’s chuckle graduated into a cartoonish laugh that made her snort and cover her mouth. “That’s what the women go into watching you onstage.”
Jericho’s fingers began rubbing my shoulders while he listened. Suddenly he leaned down and whispered, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Why?”
“You hunch your shoulders when you’re stressed.”
I moved out of his grasp and picked at my hot dog. “I’m not stressed.”
“Isabelle…”
“Was it the phone call?” Lexi asked.
When everyone went quiet, Jericho walked around and knelt before me. “What call?”
“Just a hang-up call.”