Not that I had any. My current makeup collection consisted of five items, but I did have plans to grab a few extras after I got my first pay. Kellan had already told me he’d buy anything Iwanted or needed, but it felt wrong to take his money or rely on them financially when I couldn’t fully commit to the pack.
Not to mention I’d always paid my own way and had no plans to stop today.
No matter how many times a naked Hunter ran tantalizingly through my mind.
Chapter
Twenty-Seven
Cora picked me up from the front door, and since none of the alphas were home, I offered to bring her inside for a tour. Her stare turned to one of longing as she examined the outside weatherboards on the beautiful house. “You need to check in with your alphas first,” she finally said, shaking her head. “They’ll scent me as soon as they get home, and I don’t want to get you into trouble.”
I understood her reasoning, but it also pissed me right off at the thought of needing permission. It was only the fact that this wasn’t my house, and I’d claimed nothing with this pack, that stopped me from ranting and raving about it.
But I still found myself saying. “If they want topretendI’m part of their pack, then it’s my temporary home. You’re my friend, and I’d love to give you a tour of the common areas.”
Cora waved me toward her car. “It can wait for another day. Let’s lunch. I’m starving.”
The way the shifters of this city feared my pack was no joke. No one wanted to cross or upset them. I assumed there were politics at play here that I was unaware of, having not grown up in the cities, so I passed no judgement on Cora for her choices.
“Lunch sounds amazing,” I said as I jumped into the passenger side. “I’ve missed hanging out with you.”
She dropped her hand on my thigh and squeezed briefly before she started her car and headed down the street of the family compound. I’d seen a few vehicles enter and exit from the other houses but still hadn’t officially met any family.
I wasn’t even sure I wanted to, because it hurt to know that if I’d been born with a different designation, they would have been my family too.
Cora chatted all the way to Hawker House Brewery,telling me about pack life. “Warrick’s been gone all hours of the day and night with his squad, getting them ready for the Summit. The enforcers provide security while we have so many visiting packs and council members from other cities.”
“I never knew what a big deal this Summit was,” I said, realizing that if Warrick was this involved, Reeves Pack would be as well. They’d mentioned it once or twice, but not in any sort of detail. “Warrick said one of the alphas from Reeves Pack leads a squad too.”
Cora nodded, glancing my way when she stopped for a red light. “Yep, and you might be surprised to learn it’s Slade. His anti-social ass doesn’t seem the type to lead a group of soldiers or inspire any sort of loyalty, but they would die for him. I swear.”
She was right and wrong about suspecting it was Slade. He had the lethal badass vibe I expected from the leader of an enforcer squad, but he also had that whole scary shifter vibe that made everyone stay away from him. “I haven’t officially met or talked to him since I moved in. He’s…”
“Terrifying, intense, intimidatingly gorgeous?”
I nodded. “Yep. Pretty much all of the above and more.”
Her chuckle was relaxed. “Slade is the most dominant shifter in the world, and the last of his kind.”
She hadallof my attention now. “The last of his kind?” I repeated slowly. “I mean, I knew he wasn’t any of the obvious shifters...” I started racking my brain to recall any super rare beasts.
Cora’s eyes widened. “You should probably sit down for this information, girl.”
I rolled my eyes, laughing. “Okay, I get it. He’s a big deal. What is he? A cobra or something?” There had been an icy, cold-blooded feel to his energy that would fit a reptile.
Cora drove a few more blocks, dragging out the suspense just long enough for me to start sweating. And then she blew my mind. “He’s a dragon. Slade Riverson is a dragon shifter, hence why no one fucks with him. Ever. Everever ever.”
I stared at her, unblinking, while a low hum filled my mind. “Dragon… there… how? That’s not possible.That is absolutely not possible!”
Cora threw a sympathetic glance my way. “I know. It’s not exactly a secret, but if you didn’t grow up in Golden Claw, you might think it’s only a rumor that one of the ancient ones walk amongst us.”
“How old is he?” I sounded breathless. I felt breathless.
Her expression creased into worry, as if she knew I was on the verge of a panic attack. “He’s only been walking around on Earth for thirty-four years, even if his egg was much older.” His egg was much…Was she fucking with me?“Slade’s egg was unearthed by shifters in the deep trenches below Mount Blood, over in Europe. Apparently, dragon eggs can lay dormant for years until a burst of heat and energy kickstarts their birth. His was triggered by a volcanic eruption—he was born in his dragon form and shifted to human when he was two years old. Dragons are the opposite to the rest of us, who are born in our human form and shift when we’re older.”
“Who found him?” My voice remained echoey and weak.
There was a decent chance I’d pass out after finding out that I’d beensleeping under the same roof as a dragon. A dragon I’d rejected, and who quite likely hated me. Or at minimum resented my presence in their lives.
