Page 28 of Doubly Tied

Later, she told her pink girly bits. This was important. Sexy fun times aside, Anise Freeman had just walked into the Wolves’ den.

Literally.

“These are our Guard,” Mayne told her as a group of large males walked in and lined up in front of her.

“This is Thomas Garrison, the Pack Beta. He is head of the Guard,” Brody said, but his voice was thick with his Wolf.

Surprised by his aggressive display, she turned her head to see his eyes were glowing a bright shade of amber as the Wolf named Sam bowed low before her. She hardly paid attention to the four others’ names, concerned as she was for her mate.

“He is the Alpha,” Mayne said, as if that somehow explained his behavior.

Ani was no fool. Besides, she had a subscription toWild Planet. The network was famous for its animal shows, and she knew Alphas were always proving their strength through aggression and dominance. Coupled with the fact they were newly mated, she rightly assumed he was tense because of her.

Without bringing attention to herself, Ani slid her hand under the arms of her chair and brushed her fingers on both males’ legs. The rumbling stilled, replaced by a sort of relieved hum. The Guard took their positions around the Triad, and then the others came in.

If she was at all intimidated by the massive Wolves, some with decidedly unfriendly faces, who entered the space, Ani did her best not to show it. This was probably the most physically fit group of people she’d ever seen in her life. So many muscles! And not just the men, either. The females were trim and fit as well. There was one with long, blonde hair braided down her back, and damn, she was giving Ani a look that said exactly what the she-Wolf thought of her curvy human self. And it wasn’t good.

Oh fucking well.Ani narrowed her gaze.

She was wearing the same outfit she had on the night before, as it was the only article of clothing she had with her. But Ani felt very out of place in her strapless sundress. The flimsy thing was far more appropriate for Moongate Island than it was for Texas.

The Pack mostly wore denim jeans with button down shirts, cowboy boots, and hats low on their mostly good looking heads. A lot of murmuring and whispering surrounded them, but everything quieted once an older man with all gray hair walked in. On his arm was a female who looked very much like her mate, Brody.

His mother and her new husband, Sam Greeves,Mayne’s voice whispered inside her head, and her pulse sped up at the strange but not unwelcomed invasion.

Sorry, love. I thought it would be easier to explain this way.

That’s okay. This is good,she thought at him, shocked to find she was actually talking this way.

It is a fringe benefit of being a fully mated Triad.

I like it. It will just take some getting used to, I guess,she returned.

We will help you through that.

Why isn’t Brody talking?she wondered.

Because,his voice returned,I must focus. An Alpha can be challenged at any given time. I will never put you in that kind of danger if I can stop it before it begins. So I am watching and listening for any dissent.

I see. Be careful.Her heart squeezed at the thought of anything bad happening to him.

He is a good Alpha, sweetheart. Don’t worry,Mayne reassured her.

Ani wanted to grin at the smile she felt behind his words. Mayne made no secret of his happiness, and it alleviated some of her worry over this whole thing. It was Brody she was concerned about. His eyes were trained on his mother’s down turned head, and she could feel his unhappiness rolling off him in waves.

Her Alpha Wolf stood up and the room went still. No one looked him in the eye, and she felt waves of power rolling off him. Her mate was pissed as hell. A fierce spike of possessiveness flowed through her, and she soon realized those feelings were not her own. Oh no, they were coming from him, from Brody as he stared down his mother’s husband.

Ani did her reconnaissance as the gray-haired Wolf strutted inside. Shoving his wife into the corner while he hooked his thumbs into his too tight belt and strolled inside like he owned the place. He was cocky, ignoring the Triad and attempting to capture the attention of the other Wolves in the room.

Few eyes flicked to his personage, but only a handful remained on the man who was significantly lesser than either of her mates. Ani’s breathing grew slow and deep as she looked, really looked, at the Wolves in the room. Most of them seemed to emanate a sort of ethereal yellow glow, the likes of which she associated with the moon.

Made sense to her, since Wolves were connected to the lunar cycle. These Wolves were good and loyal to her mates. They were the real backbone and core of the Pack. The ones who were not so sure were less vibrant, but still a buttercup color as they wavered between the dominant male and her mates.

Their loyalty would need to be tested, she realized with some sadness. Her mating with Brody and Mayne was supposed to bring stability and peace, but she understood the second Sam Greeves had walked into the room, that not everyone felt that way. The man was boastful and cruel. She could tell from his sickly green aura. Those Wolves, the ones who were of the same mind as Brody’s stepfather, also had the same iridescent glow about them.

“Well, well, looks like you finally returned to your duties, son,” Sam addressed Brody, pointedly ignoring Ani and Mayne.

“I am not your son and I always perform my duties wherever I may be, Sam. I certainly do not need you to tell me that.”

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