Mate Marked(42)

“I should have known better,” Leland said. “For that, I apologize. Want me to go scrub the porta-potties?”

“Some other time. Right now I’m in more of a mood to celebrate than punish. I’ve got to admit, she had me worried.” Roman shook his head.

Then he glanced over at Marcus, who was headed out of the circle. Probably back to his tent.

“Hey, you can cancel that call to the forensic whatever the hell.”

“Oh, I didn’t really call one,” Marcus shrugged. “Why draw official attention to our pack? But they’re real—I would have called one in before I saw you mated to that she-beast.”

“Aw, Marcus, I didn’t know you cared.”

That earned him a dirty look.

“I don’t,” Marcus growled at him. “But this is the only pack I can handle, and there’s no way I could stay here with that lying hellhound as your mate. Now go apologize to Chelsea before it’s too late.” And he headed back for his trailer in the woods.

* * * * *

“Am I making a mistake?” Chelsea asked Pepper, who lay curled up on the front seat, looking forlorn.

She was sitting in her car, parked in front of her house. What had been her house.

Everything she owned was packed up in her suitcases and plastic bins. It was depressing how little time it had taken to pack up her entire life and stuff it into the back seat of her VW bug. So much for putting down roots.

Pepper let out a groan.

“But what can I do? I should have told them, Pepper. Now I’ve got the whole pack fighting with each other, and I’m an idiot for actually thinking Roman cared about me, and oh for God’s sake be quiet,” she finished up by glaring at her phone, which was chirping with a text message notification. Roman had tried to call and text her a dozen times in the last hour.

It was a text message from Chief Tomlinson. “Meet me in one hour by the old Big Bob Dairy on Route 37,” the text said. “Please come alone. There’s something shady going on, and I need your help.”

Chelsea looked at the text message and tried to consider what to do next. She’d done research on the town of Juniper after she’d agreed to be sheriff, wanting to get to know the entire area. The dairy was closed—it had gone out of business years ago. So he wanted to meet her where there was no chance anyone could see them.

Well, she might as well tell him in person that she was quitting. And whatever he told her, maybe she could figure out who to pass the information along to.

I’ll be there, she texted him back.

As she texted, a car pulled up behind hers, and Erika climbed out and walked up to the driver’s side of her car.

Chelsea rolled the window down.

“I really don’t think you should leave,” Erika said to her. “The pack is starting to come around. Loretta’s been talking to them about psychics—she’s got an empath on her father’s side of the family. Now that she’s explained it to them, I’d say three quarters of the pack have come around.”

“But a bunch of them still don’t want me here, so my staying here will just cause dissension in the pack,” Chelsea protested. Still, she felt touched that Lorena had taken the time to argue her case. And that Erika had come to talk to her. Nobody had ever tried to get her to stay before.

Erika shrugged. “So? There’s always dissension in the pack. When do you ever get one hundred percent of everybody agreeing with each other?”

Chelsea had to admit that was true. Still. “I wouldn’t have a job. Or anywhere to live.”

“You could stay with my family,” Erika said. “And you could probably do some odd job stuff around the garage for the time being. We really want you to stay. It’s not just me talking—the pack sent me because they know I’m your friend and they figured you’d listen to me.”

Chelsea felt her resolve start to weaken. The Silver Peak pack might be one big, squabbling family, but they wanted her to be part of that family. They’d gotten to know her, and now they knew everything, and they wanted her to stay.

“Of course, there’s El Jerko,” she said. “Him and his”—nausea gurgled in her stomach— “mate. I’d have to see them around town until he decides it’s time for the pack to move on.”

“The hell with him, and his pack,” Erika said. “We’ll just give them the cold shoulder. They’ll be leaving soon enough anyway.”

“I’ll make you a deal,” Chelsea said. “I’ll stay if you promise not to give up on Leland. Listen, we have absolutely no reason to think that the pack knew about this,” she pointed out quickly as Erika started to argue. “Leland is a great guy. He’s handsome, he’s sexy and he clearly likes you. Also he can burp the alphabet—I forgot to tell you about that.”