Page 47 of Dual Nature

"Yes," both Zander and Elias answered at the same time.

"Thanks for the confirmation there, boys." I laughed as I wiggled out of Zander’s lap. "I'm gonna go find some shoes."

When I reached the door, Elias stepped in my way, his face dark with emotion. "Do I need to deal with Peggy? At the pack dinner, we warned the pack that we wouldn't allow any kind of disrespect like that."

"No, Milly laid into her already," I answered, resting a hand on his chest. "I don't want to cause even more trouble between us by having one of you scold her further. If she doesn't want me working in the greenhouse, I'm sure there are plenty of other places that would like my help."

"Just know that it's by your mercy that she lives. No one gets to talk to or treat you that way, my heart. Do you hear me?" Elias demanded, giving me a look that brokered no argument.

I cupped his cheek with my hand and stepped in closer. "I hear you, my protector."

Raising my face, he bent down and kissed me, gripping my hips in a hold that would bruise. Maybe I should have cared about that, but I loved the idea of having his mark on me, claiming me. Our connection hummed, but I knew it wasn't time to make him mine just yet. He pulled back and swatted me on the ass. "Go get your shoes on. The others are just about ready to head out; we'll meet you in the kitchen."

Far too pleased with his dark possessiveness, I couldn't help smiling as I jogged up the stairs to Zander’s room.

Without the twins present, we could all fit in Zander's Land Rover, with me wedged between Colt and Lane in the backseat. The sun was setting, but there was still enough light to see my surroundings and take in the dense forest that our pack lived in. Soon, we were on the highway, and the forest fell away, exposing the mountains and the open areas that towns now filled. We drove for about forty-five minutes until we got to the town Zander had made dinner reservations at. I was a little nervous about being around the normal population, unsure of how my wolf would handle things, but I knew I was safe with my mates. The world knew about supers; it was just me adjusting to being one of them. Plus, it wasn’t like we were going to announce our status as non-humans.

The restaurant’s parking lot was full, and the sign outside boasted of having the best BBQ in the state. Colt took my hand as we headed to the entrance while Lane tried to keep people from running into me as we passed through the waiting crowd.

"If you would follow me, I have your table set up for you. We have your party placed in the back dining area," the hostess informed us as she led us away from the booming country music.

The space she brought us to was slightly more upscale than the rest of the restaurant, and only five other tables were set up with plenty of space in between. Another small group was enjoying their meal, but with the way the room was arranged, we had a fair amount of privacy.

"Can I just say that I love your music, Zander. Your newest album has been on repeat for weeks," the hostess gushed as she clutched the menus and gazed up at him with wide-eyed wonder.

My hackles rose as it was clear that she was making a pass at my mate. A growl rumbled in my chest, but before I could do anything about it, Colt turned me to face him, breaking my fixation on the woman.

"Easy there, little one," Colt chuckled. "Zander has no interest in her, but he has to play nice with fans unless they do something to warrant getting upset."

This didn't make me feel any better, but I allowed him to pull out a chair for me. Zander, however, had other thoughts about the situation. He walked right up to me, catching me around my waist, and kissed the hell out of me, staking his claim for all to see. He purred as he pulled back and looked down at me, possessiveness shining bright in his eyes.

"Don't ever doubt that I only have eyes for you, my little dove. Wolves mate for life, remember?" Zander chided as he winked and slid my chair in for me.

The hostess and the guests at the other table gawked at our PDA, but that just made me all the happier.

Colt grinned. "Your other side must be getting stronger in nature because I don't think an omega could have pulled that off."

"Oh, my wolf wasn't pleased with it happening. She was just too scared to do anything about it," I explained. "You are all mine, and no one gets to covet what's mine. If she'd tried to touch him, I'm not sure how things would have gone down, to be honest."

"Sweetheart, life is never going to be dull with you around, is it?" Lane said with a smile as he handed me a menu.

The waiter came out and took our orders without further incident, leaving us to chat as we waited for our food and drinks. The conversation flowed as we talked about our day and other happenings with the pack. Zander shared a few crazy tour stories with us, making me glad he wasn't on tour. Otherwise, I'd be leaving a trail of bodies everywhere he went. The atmosphere was so easy and wonderful that I thought now was as good a time as any to bring up my request.

"Elias and I were talking this morning," I ventured, knowing I might upset Elias since we’d already come to an agreement. My fear was that he wouldn’t think I would ever be ready enough to talk about it with the others. Maybe I shouldn’t push, but the human side of me was more afraid of being locked away than it was about making him angry with me. And right now, the human was calling the shots, not the wolf.

"Finley," Elias warned as the others gave me their full attention.

Ignoring him, I pressed on. "I know this isn't going to be the popular opinion, but I would like to work on training to fight as a wolf." My mates tensed at my words, and I could tell their gut response was to tell me no. "Please hear me out. As the past few days have shown, you can't be around me all the time, which makes sense. You all had lives and jobs before I entered the picture, and you still have those; I'm the one who’s adrift without a true purpose. Working with the Organization, I spent all my life training, being tested, drilled, aiming for perfection. Now, I'm not using my body much at all, and I think that’s part of the problem with my wolf."

"Explain," Lane asked, watching me with a calculating eye.

"I know everything about my human body. I know how far I can push myself when I'm working or hurt. I know nothing about my wolf other than the fact that the voice takes up space in my head. Zander was trying to help me share space with her instead of shutting her out. What if training and working with Elias or one of the other betas helps me bond with her better?" I challenged.

Colt leaned in, resting his elbows on the table. "Why one of the betas? Alphas are the strongest and better fighters."

"No, it won't work that way," I answered, shaking my head. "I've been finding that I do far better at managing my emotions when I'm around lower-ranked wolves. Elias, Noah, and Mason are drawn to me by my other nature, and that seems to make a difference in how I react to them. When you or the other alphas get too intense or your dominance comes into play, my omega side gets pulled to the forefront."

We had to pause the conversation as our food was brought out. I was salivating over the smell of smoky BBQ chicken and the sweet hint of honey in the corn muffin. Each of us being more hungry than we'd like to admit, we let the topic drop as we stuffed our faces, and I moaned at the taste of the food. Thankfully, Zander had doubled up our orders because one of the normal portions would not have been enough. After working all day, I was finally understanding how the guys could eat so much in one sitting.