Do right by her? The bite she’d tried to chew lodged in her throat and she choked. A friendly hand pounded on her back then she had a lapful of dog. Her plate spilled over to the side, and the canine thrust his nose in her face. The deep gold of his eyes caught her attention, but the other adults around her scrambled.
Someone caught the dog by the scruff and there were admonishments, but between the choking and the dog, she couldn’t get any words to come out. The animal weighed a ton and yet the intelligence gleaming in his eyes—definitely a him—captivated her so much she almost forgot she couldn’t breathe.
Suddenly, a hand caught her arm and all but pulled her from the throng, then the arms wrapped around her, with two hands fisted just above her navel, then the force of the squeeze freed the meat lodged in her throat. Sucking in a grateful breath of air, she leaned into the man holding her.
The boisterous noise deadened to almost pure quiet and even the dog sat, tail tucked. “You know better,” Brett’s words seemed to boom across the gathering, though he never raised his voice. The dog went to its belly and lowered its ears and head. Hell, even Colby wanted to bow under the disapproval ringing through his tone.
“It’s okay,” she wheezed. “Just caught me off guard is all.” The last thing she wanted was to be the reason the party stopped. Brett didn’t release her immediately.
“Let’s have Gillian take a look to be certain,” he ordered, and didn’t give her any say in the matter before taking her arm and leading her toward the house. The partygoers scattered, and not once did he have to change direction to avoid anyone. They all avoided him.
Torn between embarrassment for the scene and worry at the reaction his guests had to him, Colby tried to match her pace to him. “Really,” she said in a lower, rougher voice. Her throat hurt some. “I’m okay.”
“Then Gillian will say you are fine, and you can rejoin the festivities.” In other words, do as she was told and don’t argue. They weren’t quite to the house when she couldn’t keep her silence anymore.
“Really, who shoved a big ol’ stick up your butt? And can we see if Gillian can dislodge it?”
If Brett had quieted the crowd, her statement plunged them into silence. The man in question paused and gave her a long, cool look. Maybe she should learn to keep her mouth shut, but dammit… She wasn’t the dog, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to slink down on her belly. She hadn’t done anything wrong.
Meeting him glare for glare, she raised her brows. One thing life had taught her repeatedly—she could give a man a lot of things. She could give them her time, her money, even her heart. Never, however, would she give up her power.
The tension in Brett’s face eased a fraction, then he began to chuckle. The laughter rumbled out of him, sounding almost rusty from disuse. “We’ll talk to her about the stick in my ass after we make sure you’re all right, deal?”
From behind her a whisper of excitement threaded through his guests. Did no one ever tell the man no? Maybe they didn’t, though she had the distinct impression his parents did. Cocking her head to the side, she mulled her answer rather than conceding immediately to the compromise.
“Deal—if you go first.”
The corners of his eyes crinkled, and his mouth twitched. Was he as aware as she was of their audience? “Flip a coin?”
The concession squeezed at her heart. “I can live with that.”
“Good.” The warmth blazing in those too cool eyes threatened to scorch her, but she kept her chin raised. No way he could miss the racing of her pulse, the quiet fury in him earlier scared the crap out of everyone else. So why the hell had it turned her on and beckoned for her to face off with him over it?
Cause I’m as crazy as the lunatics living in this asylum, that’s why.
Chapter Nine
The choking incident annoyed Brett. He stood silently by while Gillian gave her a once over, his attention focused on the healer for anything she might try to gloss over. Not that Gillian would lie to him, but she would try to put him at ease. His irritation had been clear to every single wolf in the field. Grateful for the way they’d all reacted to his invitation or not, he’d been explicit about Colby’s humanity and lack of knowledge. One email blast brought over fifty wolves in from the local community. Another thirty would be there by nightfall.
Summer picnics and romps used to be the norm. It was time they achieved the norm. Trent could be forgiven his slip and so far Colby hadn’t commented about the young wolf except to say he was a heavy dog. Gillian hummed as she inspected Colby’s throat, listened to her heart and even checked her blood pressure. The tools were all useful, but the Willow Bend healer possessed a rare gift among the wolves—she could work her healing on humans. So while she might be doing the medical dance for Colby’s benefit, she was also checking her with her gift.