“I’ll agree to that, even though being in a room full of humans makes me nervous.”
They had amazing breadsticks; I could devour them by the truckload, so I was willing to suffer through the energy suck.
“Great! Let’s pig out like old times. I’ll call Austin and let him know I’ll be coming home late.”
“Sounds perfect. Let me just feed little Misha before we go.”
***
After we finished our salads, the waiter served the main course. Lexi had ordered the chicken Alfredo and didn’t waste a moment digging in. I leaned over my plate and smelled the heavenly aroma of my tilapia, shrimp, and broccoli. Human restaurants had good food, even though the atmosphere was usually colder and less vibrant. People didn’t talk to or look at other customers, and sometimes they didn’t even talk to the people at their own table if they were preoccupied on their electronic toys. Being around too many humans drained my energy, and I’d often wondered if there was something to that. A Mage had once told me that most of us had higher levels of energy than humans. Maybe that explained why we thrived in the company of our own.
“So how’s work going?” Lexi asked conversationally, slurping up a noodle.
I brushed my dark curls behind my shoulders and then savored a generous bite. “It’s the same old drama. We have a new girl with all these ideas, and it’s ruffling everyone’s goosey little feathers. The bickering is so petty, and sometimes the women act like a group of hungry jackals protecting a pile of bones. I say there are enough bones to go around.”
“Don’t you mean boners?” Lexi said with a half smile. “No offense, but you work with some crazy women.”
“It’s much worse now,” I added, tasting my wine. “One of our girls went missing, so everyone is clamoring to get the attention of her regulars—especially the men who request private lap dances.”
“No one knows where she is?”
I shrugged and swallowed another bite. “It could be nothing. Maybe she just took off and decided she’d had enough of this life. I hate to bring down dinner with such a morose topic.”
“Naya, you’re always upbeat, which is great, but I want to hear what
else
is going on in your life. Don’t keep secrets from me just because it’s not polite dinner conversation. Did anyone call the authorities? What Breed was she?”
I poked at my meal, annoyed with the Italian music blaring from the speakers. “Most of the girls are Shifters, and I think her animal was a cougar. Well, that was the rumor anyhow. Lacy didn’t have any family, and I doubt our boss called the Council to investigate. Most clubs don’t want to attract negative attention for fear it might drive away the customers.” I set my fork down and wiped my mouth with the cloth napkin.
“What’s wrong?”
Within the past year, work had been so different after the place switched hands. The rumor floating around was that the new owner was a human, but I’d never personally met him. Humans weren’t allowed to own Breed businesses, so no one believed it. On the few occasions I’d caught a glimpse of him, he would walk briskly to his office in the back and close the door. The only person allowed in there was Dean, our manager. Dean had recently put his foot down and stopped letting things like tardiness slide. We liked Dean, but lately he looked more like a man who was afraid of losing his job.
“Nothing to worry yourself over,” I said, waving my hand. “All the drama that goes with work should stay at work. I’m sure you don’t want me to bore you with the details.”
Her fork clicked against the plate. “
Bore
me. I’m all ears. I’ll tell you some personal stuff if you tell me.”
My brow quirked. “
Do
tell, because that’s a juicy bone you’re waving in front of my curious nose.”
She nibbled on her lip and leaned forward. “I want to have a baby.”
My eyes widened and I quietly squealed. “
When?
”
Her lips made a funny sound as she blew out a breath. “Jesus, don’t get your panties in a riot. I’m not pregnant.”
“What’s this about then?”
“You know how humans have a biological clock that ticks near menopause? Well, mine ticks every time I go into heat. Not to mention Izzy found out last week that she’s pregnant again. All of a sudden, my wolf wants babies.
That bitch
. Here I am about to start up a bakery, and I can’t stop thinking about having babies with Austin.”
“I bet lots of women think about having babies with Austin.”
She grinned in agreement. “He said we should wait. He said it’s too soon, and he wants to make sure the pack will stay together and strengthen before we bring kids into the equation. I didn’t think kids were a math problem. The last time I was in heat, I was all over him and he nearly buckled. After that, he built that damn heat house out back. So the next time I hit my cycle, I have to stay locked up in there. Do you know how embarrassing that is? It would be one thing if I were single, but I feel like I’m in the doghouse with my own mate.”
I circled my finger around the rim of my glass. “So
this
is what goes on in packs.”
“Austin is the best lover I’ve
ever
had, and I really want to feel that with him while I’m in heat. Izzy said it’s intense—like
nothing
I’ve ever felt before. I’m getting the tingles just sitting here thinking about it.”
“Me too,” I said with a wicked laugh.
We resumed eating and I poked at my salad.
“Anyhow,” Lexi continued, “it’s been on my mind. Jericho is an amazing dad. When he found out she was pregnant, he came home that night with a stuffed guitar to put in the crib. It plays a little lullaby when you wind the key in the back; it’s so sweet,” she said wistfully.
Jericho was also doing well with his music from what Lexi had told me. His band, Heat, had gained such a following from Internet downloads that the demand for them to perform had grown exponentially.
My tilapia was so good that it took me a minute to respond. “Enjoy
their
baby until you’re ready for your own. You have hundreds of years ahead of you to start a family. The bakery is your time to shine, and you don’t get chances like these too often, especially if you’re taking care of a bunch of kids. Enjoy Izzy’s baby, enjoy selling your cookies, and
then
think about a family. This is one instance where I agree with your wolfman.”
“You’re probably right. Sometimes I forget I’m going to live for centuries; it’s still hard to get used to the fact I’m a Shifter. Austin said it’s just my instincts kicking in, but I’m serious… I really want children with him. It has nothing to do with hormones or anyone’s expectations—I just want something in this world that’s
ours
. To look at a little baby and see Austin’s beautiful eyes and my mouth.”
“Your big mouth?”
She snorted. “That too. I’m sure he or she would inherit my laugh and Austin’s deranged sense of humor. Poor thing.”
“Well, as often as Austin runs around shirtless, let’s pray for a boy.”
Lexi smirked and turned her plate in a circle. “He can’t help it. He’s hot-blooded.”
“You can say
that
again.”
“More wine?” the handsome waiter asked, tilting the bottle toward my glass.
I smiled fiendishly and sat back, watching his gaze shift direction when I crossed my legs. He poured the wine so slowly that I thought it might turn back into grapes. I had to admit, I loved putting a rosy blush on a man’s cheek. That was in
my
nature. My instincts ran a different course than Lexi’s, and I didn’t try to fight them.
“Thank you, darling.”
He blushed. “My pleasure.”
Damn, those humans were so sweet I could just eat them up.
He walked off with a skip in his step, and Lexi shook her head with a private smile. “I still don’t get why you’re single. You could have any man you set your sights on, including one with money. Is it because of your animal?”
Sly
. Lexi was always trying to get me to slip up and reveal my animal in conversation. I didn’t as a means to protect myself.
“Maybe it’s because of
their
animal. Ever think of that?”
Shifters weren’t all united. Quite a few would stand in line to cut my throat if they discovered I was a panther. Centuries ago, even though other Breeds treated us as slaves and outcasts, Shifters had a hierarchy. They would use panthers for entertainment, like the untamed lions in the Roman arenas who would savagely feast upon the soldiers. When a Shifter displeased his owner or committed a crime against another Breed, they were thrown in a pit with a starving panther. Some shifted and fought for their lives. Others tried to escape.
None survived.
I loved Lexi to bits, but she had an intimate bond with Austin that complicated matters. She would eventually disclose my secret if I told her, and then the pack would find out. Denver worked at Howlers and might say something to a customer. In life, you have to look out for yourself because no one else will.
I simply didn’t trust a man not to open his big yapper.
“I don’t know why you keep it a secret,” Lexi said, twirling noodles on her fork. “You should be proud of your animal. I feel a little insulted you’re keeping things from me when I tell you everything. I thought we were friends.”
Whenever she insinuated it had something to do with me not valuing our friendship, it made me stir in my seat. “You know how much I adore you, but Shifters are private creatures. You didn’t grow up in our world, and you haven’t experienced some of the hardships we have. What happened a few years back with that crazy second-in-command going after Ivy was just a small taste of some of the dangers in our world. People turn up missing all the time, and show me where the Breed version of the FBI is? Austin doesn’t reveal what his animal is, even though anyone with a brain cell can sense an alpha wolf up close. This isn’t a safe world like the one you grew up in.”
“The human world isn’t so safe either,” she said, averting her eyes.
I reached across the table and touched her hand, sympathizing with her tumultuous past. “I just want you to get a little seasoned before we go to the next level.”
Lexi nodded and lifted her glass of wine. “Are you still coming to Maizy’s birthday party? It’s tomorrow at noon.”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” I said, sitting back in my seat. “I put my foot down this time and told Dean I had something important going on and needed the full day off. I’ve only been to
your
birthday parties, and we all know how much fun those were.”
Lexi laughed and her cheeks flushed. “There will be no alcoholic beverages at this one, Naya. We don’t celebrate children’s birthdays quite the same way. And I only passed out once.” She held up one finger, which should have been three.
“I have the
perfect
present for the baby.”
She tilted her head to the side. “A dress?”
I buttoned my lips. In the past, I had lavished Maizy with princess outfits and costume jewelry. But time marches on, and soon Lexi’s little sister would outgrow her love of fairy tales and realize no such thing existed in the real world. The days of dressing up in pretty gowns were ending, but I still loved indulging that sweet girl.
“It’s a secret. You’ll find out when everyone else does,” I sang.
“That worries me.”
I nibbled on my breadstick carefully so as not to smudge my red lipstick. “Worry when she’s twenty and comes to Auntie Naya for her first sexy outfit. Run for the hills, because her auntie will deliver.”
“Over my mother’s dead body. That’s another thing I haven’t mentioned,” she said solemnly, setting down her fork and leaning back. “My mom is sending Maizy away.”
“What?” I gasped.
“Not now—she’s much too young. I think the attack on our home a few years ago really made my mom think twice about the influence we were having on Maizy. She wants to send her off to a boarding school when she’s a teen so she can also be around other kids her age. Affluent people do this all the time, and Austin has the money. It’s an opportunity for her to get a better education than she is with the homeschooling, and Mom wants to prepare her to live in the human world, not ours. I suggested we just send her to public school, but Maizy’s so smart, and Austin thinks it’ll do more harm than good. I’m not sure how I’m going to feel about it when the time comes, but I know how I feel about it now. It’s not right. She should stay with us until—”
“Until
when?
She’s not a wolf, Lexi. She’s not going to grow up, mate with a wolf, and move in with his pack. What if she wants to be a doctor or a lawyer? What kind of education can you give her at home that’s going to prepare her for that dream? At some point, you’re going to have to let her go. She needs to be with her own kind and go to college, get married, have children, and move away. That’s what humans do, and no matter how much you want her to live in this world, this isn’t where she belongs. You almost gave me a heart attack. I thought you meant she was leaving any day now.”
“It might as well be,” Lexi grumbled, picking at her breadstick. “Mom is afraid if Maizy stays with us too long, we’ll make an impression that can never be undone.”
“Lynn is making plenty of money for herself freelancing as an interior designer. Why doesn’t she just move out with the little one and buy a nice house in the suburbs?”