The place belonged to the Mercury Pack and was allegedly run by its only margay wildcat, Harley. Apparently the females of the pack were anxious to meet Frankie, so Taryn had suggested that the females of both packs all meet up at the club for a girls’ night. So they were having a girls’ night. Only with Trick and Marcus. The males were there for “protection,” they said—like the females weren’t badass enough to protect themselves.
A few weeks back, Frankie might have been relieved to have Trick there. Now, though, she felt more settled in the pack. She wouldn’t go as far as to say she’d bonded with her pack mates; Frankie didn’t bond easily with anyone. But she’d grown to enjoy their company and feel more relaxed around them, especially Jaime and Makenna.
Trick put his mouth to her ear. “What do you think?”
“It’s a nice place.” Not everyone was dolled up in dresses. Like Frankie, some wore jeans, pretty shirts, and high heels.
Overhearing that, Jaime smiled. “It is, isn’t it? Harley didn’t make many changes when she took it over. She liked the look and feel of the place.”
Trick stayed at Frankie’s side as they all shouldered their way through the crowd, heading for the bar.
Taryn walked right up to the olive-skinned brunette tending the bar. “Hey, Ally, everything okay?”
The bartender grinned. “Great. Just give me a sec.” She slid a tray of neon-colored drinks to a waitress and then turned back to them. “What about you guys? Please tell me you’ve brought Frankie. I’ve been dying to—” Ally spotted her and then smiled. “Well, hey. Aren’t you just the cutest thing? I’m Ally, the Mercury Pack’s Beta female.”
Frankie knew her smile was a little on the shy side. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You too. I have to say, I was fascinated to hear how you two figured out you were mates without any drama or near-death experiences to open your minds. You recognized her on sight, right?” she asked Trick.
“That’s right,” he confirmed, sliding his arm around her waist.
Frankie bit her lip, admitting, “It took me a couple of weeks to figure it out.”
Ally sighed. “Yeah, it took me and Derren a little while, even though the signs were all there.” She crossed her eyes as if annoyed with herself. She pointed to a group of people in the corner. “That’s my mate over there. Derren’s the dark-haired one. The guy he’s standing next to is Zander, an enforcer, who’s mated to the blonde human in the little shorts—she’s Gwen. The redhead standing next to her is Shaya, our Alpha female . . . oh, and she’s just spotted us.” As Shaya took Gwen’s hand and started pulling her through the throng of people, Ally asked, “So what are you all having?”
Taryn had just finished placing orders when Shaya sidled up to them. She threw her arms around Taryn, and it was clear just how close they were. According to Trick, they’d been friends since childhood.
After the females quickly exchanged greetings, Taryn turned to the newcomers. “Girls, this is Frankie. Frankie, this is Shaya and Gwen.”
Shaya beamed at Frankie. “We’ve really wanted to go to Phoenix territory to meet you, but Taryn didn’t want you feeling any more overwhelmed than you already do. Damn, you’re so cute. Isn’t she just adorable, Ally?”
“Utterly,” said Ally, still preparing their drinks. “Even cuter than Jazz, and that’s saying something.”
“Jazz?” echoed Frankie.
“That’s Harley’s cousin,” Gwen told her. “You’ll see Harley in a second. She plays the electric violin. Totally awesome.”
Ally clapped her hands. “Here you go, everyone. Beers, cosmos, tequila, and cocktails galore.”
Riley was there first. She tossed back the tequila and then slammed the glass on the bar. “Needed that.”
Makenna snickered and turned to Frankie. “Riley can do that for hours before she even nears the vicinity of drunk. I think it’s a raven thing.”
Trick grabbed two beers—one for Frankie, one for himself—and then propped her up on a bar stool. Situating himself between her legs, he splayed one hand on her back. “You sure you want to chance getting shit-faced again? I’d really rather not have to summon a priest.”
She snorted. “I’ll be sticking to water after this. I can’t deal with two killer hangovers in one month.”
A broad male wolf suddenly appeared at Trick’s side and tipped his chin in greeting.
“Frankie, this is Jesse,” said Trick. “Jesse, this is my mate.”
Eyes so dark they were almost black studied Frankie carefully. Jesse then inclined his head, so she gave him a brief nod and said, “You’re Harley’s mate, right?” Trick had told her plenty about the Mercury Pack.
Jesse’s mouth softened at the mention of his mate. “I am. She’ll be over to meet you after her set.”
“Bracken doing any better?” Trick asked him.
Jesse’s eyes dulled. “No. I’m just so fucking glad that Ally had a vision showing him injured and dying. He was bleeding out when we arrived on the scene. By that time the extremists had hightailed it out of there. Ally healed him, but I think part of him wishes she hadn’t.” Hearing clapping, Jesse looked at the stage. His pained expression smoothed out a little at the sight of his mate. “Looks like Harley’s up now.”
Frankie turned to the stage just as a dark-haired, golden-eyed female walked on holding a metallic-blue S-shaped electric violin. Casting Jesse a quick, intimate smile, Harley propped the instrument on her left collarbone and placed the left side of her jaw on the chin rest. She and the DJ played alongside each other, and the tune had the entire dance floor going wild.
Drawing out the final note, Harley gave the audience a beaming smile. They clapped and cheered as she left the stage.
“She’s really talented,” said Frankie.
Jesse’s smile was one of pride. “I know, right?” His gaze was on the curtain that led backstage. Mere moments later, Harley appeared from behind the curtain and—smiling at each of the people who shouted compliments—made her way to the bar. Jesse pulled her into his arms and kissed her hard. “Amazing, as always.”
Harley’s mouth curved, her modesty clear. “Well, thank you.”
Shaya spoke then. “Harley, this is Frankie.” Leaning toward Frankie, she mock whispered, “Quick warning: our pretty kitty’s not good at talking with strangers.”
Harley rolled her eyes. “I heard about your mating,” she told Frankie. “Congratulations.”
Frankie smiled. “Thanks.”
Harley looked at Shaya. “See, I can talk to people.”
“You said six words,” Jesse pointed out. “But that’s actually progress.”
Shaya turned to Trick. “Did Nick tell you that Morelli called us, asking for a meet?”
Trick nodded. “I can’t say I’m surprised that Nick hung up on him without a word.”
Shaya’s nose wrinkled. “Yeah, my mate’s not what you’d call social. A little like his sister, actually.” She flicked a glance at Roni, who’d shoved a lollipop in her mouth and looked the height of uncomfortable.
Jaime turned to Makenna, sipping her cosmo, and then she frowned. “You’re texting Grace, aren’t you?”
Makenna didn’t even look up from her cell phone. “I just want to check that Sienna’s okay.”
Jaime sighed. “She’ll be fine. Relax. Enjoy yourself.”
“Trick, thought I might find you here.”
At those words Frankie’s eyes snapped to the broad, Latin-looking guy who was fast shrugging his way through her pack mates, making a beeline for Trick. And going by Marcus’s wince and Trick’s sudden stillness, this was someone from Trick’s past. Awesome.
“You haven’t been to Enigma in a while and—” Rio paused, taking in Trick’s proximity to Frankie and their claiming marks. “And you’re mated,” he sensed.
“That’s right.” Silently cursing, Trick tightened his hold on her as he said, “Frankie, this is Rio. Rio, this is my mate, Frankie.” A mate who was currently staring at Ri
o, her face blank. Feeling her agitation through their bond, Trick soothingly rubbed her back and laid a possessive kiss on her temple, hoping to keep her and her wolf calm.
Rio was staring right back at her, clearly gobsmacked. Then he seemed to shake it off. “I didn’t expect your mate to be female.”
Frankie gave him a hard smile. “Funny old world, isn’t it?” She took a long swig from her bottle, keeping her eyes on the male. Black bear, she sensed. Her wolf bared her teeth, wanting him gone. His very scent offended the wolf.
Marcus leaned toward Rio and spoke into his ear only loud enough for the bear to hear. Whatever he said made Rio bristle, and his eyes scanned their crowd. It was only then that Frankie realized that every Phoenix and Mercury member was glaring at the bear. He gave Trick one last look and then walked away. Smart.
Trick turned to her and rubbed his nose against hers. “Sorry about that.”
“Why?” she asked. “You didn’t do anything.”
“I don’t ever want you being touched by anything or anyone from my past, even though none of them were important to me.”
While that was sweet . . . “There’s no way you can guarantee that, just as I wasn’t able to keep my past away from you. You handled Vance just fine, and I handled the bear—note that I didn’t smash the bottle over his head, despite the temptation being so strong.”
His mouth kicked up into a smile and he kissed her neck. “I like it when you get all possessive.”
“Hmm.”
“It’s hot. My wolf likes it a fuck of a lot.”
“Does he now?” She tilted her head slightly, giving him access to his claiming mark. Her eyes fell closed as he licked and nipped and traced it with his tongue. Feeling the weight of someone’s glare, she opened her eyes and saw Rio watching them from the other end of the bar. It was instinct to possessively prick her claws into Trick’s back.
Trick looked up, his gaze trapping hers, and kissed her hard and deep. “Mine.”
She smiled. “Not gonna argue with that.” At the sound of a low growl, Frankie looked in time to see Roni smack her mate’s chest.
“No, no, no,” said Roni. “There will be no dancing.”
Marcus curled his arms around her. “But sweetheart—”
“No. You’re not getting your way this time.”
But he got his way after Roni had downed a few shots. They all gravitated to the dance floor, and Frankie wasn’t surprised to find that Trick danced as smoothly and confidently as he did everything else. He also had her totally turned on.
Really, the entire group had a ball. They drank. They danced. They sang. They laughed.
When they were once again at the bar, Trick’s cell phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket and told her, “It’s Trey.” Swiping his thumb over the screen, he answered, “Hello?” Trick knew that if it weren’t for his enhanced shifter senses, he might not have heard his Alpha over the noise.
“We have Drake,” said Trey. “Ryan tracked him. He’s in the hut.”
Trick went rigid as satisfaction and anger trickled through him. “Has Dante taken a shot at him yet?” The Beta was a damn good interrogator.
“No. We figured that you were owed that pleasure.”
Grateful, Trick nodded. “I’ll be there soon.” He ended the call and looked at his mate, feeling like utter shit. She was relaxed, truly relaxed, with the females of his pack, and it was clear that she was even letting her guard halfway down for the Mercury Pack females. Now he was about to spoil her evening. “Baby . . .”
Frowning, she grabbed his arm. “Something’s wrong. What is it?”
“Yeah, what the fuck put that dark look on your face?” asked Marcus, who’d been doing his best to eavesdrop on his conversation with Trey.
Trick scraped a hand over his jaw. “We have Drake in custody.”
Frankie’s brows flew up. “Drake?”
Trick nodded. “Ryan found him and brought him to our territory.”
“You need to go,” she understood.
“I can wait. You’re enjoying yourself—”
“She’ll be okay here with us, Trick,” said Marcus. “Really. This place is safe. We won’t let anything happen to her.”
Trick curved his hand around her neck. It went against his instincts to leave her there, but he wasn’t going to insist on her leaving when he had no intention of allowing her to join him in the hut to deal with Drake. “You can stay here and enjoy the rest of the night with the girls. They’ll keep you safe and bring you home. Or you can come with me now back to our territory, but I can’t let you come with me while I deal with Drake. I’m going to fuck him up, Frankie. I’m going to make him hurt. I don’t want you there for that.”
Frankie wanted to point out yet again that she wasn’t freaking fragile. She also would rather enjoy watching the bastard suffer. But she could feel Trick’s anxiety, and she knew how hard it would be for him to have her there. Despite how badly he’d wanted to get his hands on Drake, he hadn’t left her that day when she was attacked. He’d stayed with her, knowing it was what she needed. In return she could give him what he needed now . . . on one condition.
“You might be better staying here than waiting in our room for me,” Trick added. “I don’t know how long I’ll be in the hut, but I do know I won’t be in the best mood when I’m done with that fucker.”
Frankie rested her hands on his shoulders. “I’ll stay here. But when you’re done, you don’t go running around pack territory to blow off steam. You come back to me. I should be in bed by then, waiting for you. If I’m not there, you wait for me. That’s the deal.”
“Deal.” Trick kissed her hard, gliding his tongue against her own, needing her taste. “I love you. Stay safe.” He turned to Marcus, face hard. “Anything happens to her, you pay for it.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” said Marcus.
As Trick stalked off, Frankie gaped at him. She spluttered, shooting a glare at his retreating back. “You can’t tell someone you love them and then just leave.” But Trick was too far away to hear her.
Marcus chuckled. “It’s just like him to dump a bomb like that, casual as you please, and then walk off.”
“Well, it wasn’t fair.”
“If he’d hung around, you’d have felt that you had to say it back. He probably wants you to say it when you’re ready, not before.”
Figuring Marcus was likely right, she sighed and felt her irritation slip away. “Do you think I did the right thing by staying behind?”
“Yes, I do. He needed the space to get his head ready to deal with Drake. He won’t want you to see him that way.”
Recalling how much he’d hated that she saw him fighting with Drake in the restroom, she nodded. “I just wanted to be sure he wouldn’t feel like I’d left him alone while he was brooding. Why are you grinning?”
“You totally love him.”
“And you’re totally annoying.”
“I can’t argue with that.”
Snorting, she returned to the dance floor. As the night went on, there was more drinking, more laughing, more singing, and more dancing. Later, when she was at the bar ordering herself another bottle of water, an offensive scent hit her nostrils. Her wolf lifted her head, instantly alert. Dammit.
Rio leaned against the bar. “I have to ask . . . how did you do it?”
Frankie gave him a bored, sideways glance. “Do what?”
“Convince a gay guy to imprint on you. How does that even work?”
“Trick isn’t gay. Nor did we imprint on each other. We’re true mates.” Not that she owed the guy any explanations or anything.
“Not possible.” He shook his head, adamant. “Let’s not bullshit each other, okay? Life’s too short for games.”
She frowned. “Life is like the longest thing you will ever do. Once you’re gone, you’re gone.” She had no idea why people said that.
He blinked, surprised, then gave a fast shake of his head. “You know what I’
m getting at.” He moved a little closer to her. “Look, I’m guessing you’re not fully imprinted on each other yet. That’s a good thing. It means you still have an out. You need to take it.”
“Is that a fact?”
“Yes, it’s very much a fact. Things might be going good for you and Trick now, but it won’t work in the long run. Neither of you are what the other truly needs. On the sexuality spectrum, Trick is way, way, way more toward the gay end.”
She snickered. “I’m pretty sure he’s straighter than the pole you dance on every Saturday.”
His face went rock hard. “You have a mouth on you. I’m actually trying to help here.”
“No, you’re being an asshole. A jealous, bitter one. I would have thought Trick had better taste. Now if I were you, I’d run along.” She wiggled her fingers in the direction of the exit.
“Why? It’s not like he can hurt me if I don’t. He left you.”
“Yeah, but, see, he left me with a ton of people—all of whom will leap on your skinny ass if you touch me. The fact that you’re breathing my air will be enough to piss them off.”
“I’m not going to hurt you. I don’t rough up women. I do, however, like getting roughed up in bed.” His mouth curled into a wicked, cruel smile. “Trick, well, he does like to play rough. I sure hope you’re into anal. That’s his thing. If you give him that, there’s a chance he’ll stick around awhile. A slight chance, anyway.”
“You’re mumbling. But then, I’ll bet it’s hard to sound coherent when you have a mouth full of bullshit. Just swallow it down. I’m sure you’ve had plenty of practice with swallowing.”
His eyes flared. “Where Trick’s concerned, I sure have. Tastes good, doesn’t he?”
God, she really despised this asshole. She put her hand over his. “You know, I can only think that you asked a genie for a big cock but he turned you into one instead.” She unsheathed her claws, stabbing them into his hand, scraping bone.