Connor and I chatted for a few minutes, talking about useless shit mostly, but it was nice to catch up. I was tired still, after almost dying and traveling to Faerie and back, so after some time I dropped my head back on the couch and let the warmth of the fire wash over me.
There was a beat of silence, and then he said, “Did your family drama have anything to do with Louis?”
I had spoken to Connor about Louis just one time, years ago. We’d both been shit-faced and maudlin, our conversations moving to deep and meaningful places. He’d never looked at me the same after that, and I think part of him knew I would always love Louis.
A long sigh left me as I stared into the ceiling. The fire was dancing shadows across the large wood beams, and it was lulling me to sleep. “Yeah, it was Louis.” I yawned. “He almost broke the world.”
Connor rumbled beside me before he reached out and pulled me closer. Supes loved to touch. It was life for us, and everything relaxed further inside of me. “I heard what happened. He’s now organizing the council leaders, rallying them to try and reverse the humans’ knowledge of us.”
There was an interesting tone in Connor’s voice, but I was too sleepy to delve further into it. But I did manage to say, “You’ve always thought that supes should not be in hiding.”
My face was pressed into his shoulder now, the woodsy and snow scent he carried soothing to me. It was safe and familiar.
“Yes, I voted for this to continue, but there’s another, larger vote coming late tomorrow.”
Louis would be very busy until then, because he was going to try to convince everyone this was a bad idea. Which meant he would not come looking for me.
“What if he doesn’t look for me?”
I must have murmured that out loud, because Connor squeezed me tighter. “Then he’s a fucking idiot and I will beat his ass into the ground next time I see him.”
I had to chuckle. Connor could probably take on most supes, but he stood zero chance against Louis.
Bastard.
Sleep stole over me then, and I allowed myself to fall. I trusted my little pack, and knew I’d be safe with Connor here.
Sometime later I was woken by banging at the door. Lifting my head, my cheek felt numb from being pressed against Connor’s hard chest. I blinked a few times, realizing there was rhythmic breathing coming from beside me. We’d both fallen asleep.
“Elizabeth Montgomery,” James hollered. “Open the damn door.”
Untangling myself, I slipped out of Connor’s arms and crossed to my door. It swung open to reveal James and Paulie, both of them ruddy-cheeked and smiling like crazy supes. Even Paulie, who had very dark skin, looked flushed.
“Baby girl….” Paulie swung me up into his arms, squeezing me tightly. “We missed you. Don’t fucking worry us like that again. Fuck. I almost sent out a fucking tracker for you.”
Paulie’s favorite word was fuck, and fucking was his favorite activity.
“Put me down, you big asshole,” I said, hitting him on the shoulder.
My hand immediately ached and I wished I’d learn not to hit these damn bears. They were all built like tanks. Paulie and James were slightly shorter than Connor, but still close to six and a half feet tall. Paulie had black hair, cropped close to his head, military style. His skin and eyes were almost black, and he was without a doubt too pretty for words. James was all blond curls. He’d be adorable if his face wasn’t severely masculine. He was rougher than Connor, but with so much sex appeal that I wasn’t surprised women threw themselves at him.
The Lakeside pack bred their bears really well. I was probably a saint for not sleeping with all three of them, but I’d always valued their friendship the most, and sex would muddy the waters. Connor and I were lucky we’d gotten past our thing and become nothing more than friends.
“Where have you guys been?” I asked. Connor and I had been asleep for a while. I could tell by how rested I felt.
“Mary Lou’s!” James shouted, and I realized they were both semi-wasted. “Come on, girl. It’s 90s R&B, and we know you never wanna miss those nights.”
I laughed out loud. “Yes, that’s exactly what I need. Give me five minutes to change.”
Connor was up now. I caught his eye as I dashed past, and he winked at me. My heart swelled a little, and I wondered if this could be enough for me. The love I had with these three, my family, my pack.
I didn’t need Louis. Fuck him. Always breaking my heart and leaving me to pick up the pieces.
I was going to drink and dance tonight, because I needed to forget. I needed that more than anything in this world. In my room I shimmied into a pair of skinny jeans, pulling on some boots with heels. The height was required. Other than that, I just wore a black bra and tank, because it got damned hot in the middle of the bar during these dance nights.
Slapping on a little makeup, I quickly braided half of my hair to keep it off my face while still leaving most of the long length down my back. I had so much hair, it was hard to manage at times.
When I left my room, it was to a chorus of whistles and catcalls. “Damn, baby. Will you marry me?” Paulie asked, reaching out and taking my hands to spin me around. “You are probably the most gorgeous supe I’ve ever seen.”
