“Can you gather them? We’ll be down in a minute.”
Virgil shrugged. “Come on, Catcher. I know when we’re not wanted.”
“Virgil?”
He twisted around.
I wrapped my arms around him. “I’m so glad you’re all right. I missed you.”
Virgil rubbed my back. “Missed you too, sugarplum.”
After they rounded the corner, Atticus joined my side. “What are you thinking about doing?”
I sighed inwardly while brushing wolf hairs off my shirt. “If you want to court me, my pack needs to know. I didn’t plan on telling them so soon, but Virgil won’t be able to keep this a secret.”
He crossed his arms. “Let me speak to Tak first. I don’t think it’s a good idea if the pack sees him react negatively. I can warm him up to the idea.”
“Warm him up? You’d have to set him on fire. He won’t understand why a Vampire wants to be with a Shifter. He respects you, but like everyone else, he’s worried about your gifts. It’s better if we tell them all at once. I don’t know where things will stand when this baby is born, but it’s time to see how much this pack supports me.”
Chapter 19
After I informed the pack that Atticus was courting me, everyone ruminated in stunned silence. Krys cupped both hands over his mouth, elbows propped on the table. Tak’s brow furrowed as he stared blankly from the opposite end of the table.
The only one who didn’t look like she was hit with bad news was Melody, who was smiling in confusion.
“Are you kidding me?” She squirmed in her chair while looking at Atticus. “I’ve known you since I was a teen, and I’ve never seen you date anyone. All of a sudden you’re in love? Joy? When did this happen? Have I been living under a rock?”
Lakota stifled a laugh.
Atticus and I remained at the opposite end of the table from Tak, as if distance might lessen the blow.
“While at his house, we got a chance to know each other better,” I explained.
“I knew it.” Krys sat back. “He charmed you. That’s what they do.”
Atticus pressed his fingertips on the table and stared daggers at him. “On my word, I would never manipulate a woman’s feelings for me.”
“Bullshit!” Krys shot out of his chair, knocking it back. “Vamps manipulate people all the time to get whatever the fuck they want.”
This wasn’t the Krys I knew. While he loved a good fight, he wasn’t a hothead who went around yelling at people.
“Krys, sit down,” Lakota told him.
“This is apack, not a coven,” he fired back. “A Vampire has no place here.”
Lucian scooted back. “I suppose that meansIshould leave?”
Being the peacemaker, Archer stood and gripped Krys’s shoulder. “Everyone needs to chill out and sit down,” he said, shoving his cousin back into his seat. “Let’s hear them out first before we go nuclear.”
Bear stroked his bushy beard. He didn’t like being in the middle of arguments, and I could tell by the look on his face he was trying to figure out a way to reduce the tension. “Anyone want coffee?”
“Whiskey,” Krys grumbled.
Tak folded his arms on the table. “Nobody is drinking alcohol at a pack meeting. If you can’t control your temper, leave the room. Attacking each other isn’t the pack way.”
When it quieted again, I continued. “I’m not sure yet what this is between us, but I can’t ignore my feelings. Good gracious, I felt the same way as you before all this. But then we spent time together, and… I can’t explain it. I’m here declaring that Atticus could be my future mate. I gave him permission to court me, and we’ll see.”
Robyn stroked Catcher’s ear from her seat. “If it does work out, what are your plans? If he were a Shifter, you’d be decidingwhose pack to join. But since he lives alone, does that mean you’re leaving us?”
