Approaching one of the men who appeared to be in charge, Tade quickly blurted out his request, then held his breath, wondering if he’d misread the situation. He’d done so in the past and, just to ensure it wouldn’t happen this time, he kept his fingers crossed. The man nodded his head and left the room. Tade drew in a deep breath—his luck had held, at least up to this point; now he would wait for the man to return. Sitting as close as possible to the door, Tade jumped a bit every time the door swung open only to be disheartened when it wasn’t who he was waiting for. Just when he had given up, the man appeared.
“Hey,” Cody said, heading over to Tade. “C’mon, I’ll take you to Remy.”
Tade’s eyes grew comically wide as he stared at Cody. “Really? He wants to talk to me?”
Chuckling, Cody replied, “That’s what you wanted, right? To speak with him.”
Jumping up, Tade nodded vigorously while trying to rub the wrinkles out of his shirt. “I did…I mean, I do…want to speak to the Ruler…you’re right…that’s what I want.”
Smiling in amusement, Cody murmured, “He’s going to love you…are you ready?”
“Yes sir,” Tade said. “Is there anything I should know? Like what to call him?”
“I’m not sure…he’s my brother-in-law, so I call him Remy. But I have heard others call him ‘Your Majesty’ so I would go with that unless he tells you otherwise.”
“Right…good advice…very good advice,” Tade murmured, trotting after Cody, his thoughts focusing on how to make his best impression. Looking down at his clothes, he grimaced at their condition, but after being locked in a room with only a toilet and a tiny sink for longer than he wanted to remember, there was nothing he could do other than hope the Ruler would understand. “He will, I’m sure of it,” he muttered, tugging at one sleeve and then the other.
Cody stopped and quickly turned around, grabbing Tade by the shoulders to prevent them from colliding. He knew the magic user didn’t think he’d heard his last remark, but thanks to his wolf’s hearing, he had. Looking down into Tade’s face, Cody found nervousness, a little fear, and a great deal of hope. And that was what he focused on. “Can I give you a piece of advice?” he asked, gently.
The compassion Tade saw in Cody’s face began to calm the butterflies that had been fluttering in his stomach. He was so struck by its sincerity, he was incapable of saying anything, leaving him only the option of nodding in response to Cody’s question.
“Trust me, Remy won’t care about the way your clothes look, or that your hair isn’t combed or anything regarding your appearance. What will be important is who you are inside. Idon’t know what you have in mind but remember this…right now Remy needs magic users he can trust…ones who can see his vision for a better mystic world, and believe it’s possible. Are you one of those magic users? Do you believe in his vision?”
Tade stared at Cody for a moment before he grinned widely. “I do believe…that’s why I want to see him…I have an idea…not that I’ve done it before…but I’m not dumb…I know my foster father thought so…but I’m not…really I’m not…I got all ‘A’s’ in school…I just thought…”
“Whoa…I got it. Now go in there and convince Remy that you are the man for the job…whatever it is,” Cody replied, smiling. “Are you ready to see the Ruler now?”
Cody was right. He could—no—hewoulddo it. Straightening his shoulders, Tade nodded.
~/~/~/~/~
Following Jackson’s scent, Smokey finally located him, sitting in another office. Pausing at the open doorway, he knocked, then entered after receiving permission. “Do you have a moment?” he asked.
“I do,” Jackson said smiling. “Have a seat.”
Sitting down, Smokey studied the Alpha for a moment before blurting out, “Norm and I have claimed Theo.”
“You mean with a bite, right?”
Smokey nodded. “And after talking last night, we decided to stay here…with the Blackwood Pack…if that’s all right with you.”
“Norm and Theo are already valued members of my pack and as I told you yesterday, you are welcome here also, especially sinceyou have claimed Theo. But what about Norm? Do you intend to bite him too?”
“I do,” Smokey replied, pausing a moment before adding, “but I need to talk to Dylon first. According to Theo, he’s with Glenn right now. Do you know when he’ll be back?”
Leaning back in his chair, Jackson studied Smokey, trying to discover the reason behind the question. Other than a faint blush on the shifter’s cheeks, there wasn’t anything that raised a red flag with him. “They should be back tomorrow. Is there something I can help you with in the meantime?”
Smokey’s blush deepened at the thought of having that discussion with the Alpha. Shaking his head, he murmured, “Thanks, but it can wait.” Rising, he had started for the door when he heard Jackson’s voice asking him to stop. Turning, he looked at the Alpha, hoping he wasn’t going to use his power to force him to explain his need for Dylon.
“I just wanted to offer my congratulations on your mating and also welcome you to the Blackwood Pack,” Jackson said, smiling at the relief on Smokey’s face.
“Uhm…thanks?” Smokey muttered, then seeing Jackson’s eyebrow shoot up, he added, “I mean, thanks…for both.”
Chuckling, Jackson said, “You’re welcome. Also, since you have decided to join my pack, there are things you should know about us, so let me know what’s a good time to have that discussion.”
“Is this stuff my mates already know?”
“About the pack? Yes, they do,” replied Jackson.
