“Hey you two, break up whatever you’re doing!” Talia shouted as she bounded up the stairs with Ella and Lauren Hayes, two jaguar shifters who had mated with Asher and Max, respectively, right on her heels. The two jaguars might as well be sisters for how much the petite, honey-blonde haired cousins looked like each other.
Right now the three women were practically jumping up and down with excitement. Lauren nudged him out of the way and grabbed Margery’s hand. “Welcome to the pack, Rex,” she said in his direction as she dragged Margery to the stairs. “We’ve got some party planning to do.”
Margery smiled and shrugged as if to say ‘what can you do’ while Lauren dragged her away. Her smile was real but something lingered in her scent and in her expression that had those invisible icy fingers tightening around his throat again. Fuck, he was an idiot. He should just tell her he was moving in. Because he wasn’t going anywhere.
At the tiki bar by the pool behind Grant’s house, Margery grabbed another martini for herself and a beer for Rex. Rex didn’t need to eat, but he could drink liquids other than blood. And she’d discovered that his favorite beer was Dos Equis. Grant must have known that too because he’d stocked the bar with them.
She was still impressed that Grant had managed to keep this party a secret from her. She was glad he had though because if Rex hadn’t accepted joining the pack and she’d known about the party…She shook her head. No need to think about that because he was a member now, something that made her happier than she’d ever been. Even if he had mentioned moving into the empty place next to hers. She hadn’t known how to respond and had been grateful when Lauren and the others had dragged her away to help prep for the party.
Maybe it was stupid but she’d assumed he’d move in with her. The last week had been amazing and more intense than she’d ever imagined possible. She knew what she felt for him and it was way more than the mating call. She’d thought he felt the same. Since she didn’t want to depress herself, she locked all those thoughts down tight and made her way around the pool.
She ignored calls from her packmates to jump in and play volleyball and sidled up to Rex who was talking with Lauren and Max, Grant’s second-in-command. He was one of her favorite packmates and she was so happy he’d found someone.
“You didn’t have to get that,” Rex murmured as he took the beer and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
Even if she felt off-balance by what he’d said earlier, she loved how affectionate he was. There was no guessing where she stood as far as that went. “It’s your party, you’re not going to do anything but relax.”
The heated look he gave her in response made her toes curl in her sandals. When a plastic beach ball flew past them, hitting Lauren in the head, the jaguar shifter playfully batted it back at a group of the partygoers and quickly excused herself to join them.
“Give us a few minutes?” Rex asked Max, who raised his eyebrows but trailed after his mate. Rex then took Margery’s martini and set it on a nearby table next to his beer before taking her hand in his. He linked his fingers through hers, his grip reassuring. “Take a walk with me.”
“What about the party?” she asked as they headed down the private wooden boardwalk to the beach. Not that she really cared. She loved being alone with Rex.
Music was blasting, everyone was relaxed and drinking and she knew in an hour or so they’d move it to the beach for a bonfire. But for now it was just the two of them. There were a couple boats idling out in the water, the nearly full moon gleaming down on everything. He didn’t respond until they reached the end of the long boardwalk. “What’s going on with us?” His voice was so low she almost couldn’t make out the question above the softly crashing waves in front of them and the party noise behind them.
“What do you mean?” He’d probably picked up on her emotions, something that was a good and bad thing. She gestured toward the surf, wanting to sit in the sand closer to the ocean. Even though that vampire was still out there, she and Rex were two strong supernatural beings. She wasn’t worried about being ambushed. Especially not so close to the pack.
As they sat in the sand, he kept his fingers threaded through hers and he turned to face her. “Something’s bothering you.” A statement, not a question.
She sighed, knowing she needed to be honest. She might be new to this relationship stuff, but he deserved her honesty. Even if it would hurt if he told her that he didn’t want to live with her. As she started to respond, her hair blew slightly back as something whistled past her face.