Page 6 of Wolf Duty

The kid’s eyes narrowed. “You’re wolf. But not pack.” He tilted his head in a very wolflike gesture. If they could move like an animal’s, Bay would bet the kid’s ears would have swiveled forward.

Hiding a smile, Bay wiped his mouth with a napkin. “Did you shift recently?”

The boy nodded. “How did you know?”

“Sometimes when I spend a long time in wolf form, the animal gestures stay with me, and it takes a while before I speak in full sentences again.”

The kid smiled, flashing blinding white teeth and cute dimples. “Nobody’s told me that before. I thought it was just me.”

Bay frowned. He knew the pup had just lost his dad. But if he was shifting already, his father should have taught him details like the beast staying with you for a while. Maybe the man had been sick before he passed away. One way or another, someone in the pack should mentor the pup, especially if he was dealing with grief. Powerful emotions could derail a newly made shifter, so who knew what it would do to a wolf pup? “You should ask someone in your pack about stuff like that.”

The boy hesitated. “If I ask, it makes my sister look bad.”

Just as Bay was about to ask what the hell that meant, the server abruptly appeared at the short end of the table. “Refill?” She poured coffee into his mug before he could answer. Her caramel-colored eyes focused on the boy. “Karim, you know you’re not supposed to bother the customers. Go back into the kitchen.”

“But he got the last piece of brambleberry,” the boy protested, pointing at the plate on the table.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Her lips moved, as if saying a silent prayer.

“He’s not bothering me,” Bay said, feeling weirdly guilty about the pie again. He reached farther out with his senses than before to see if Sonya was a shifter. If she was the sister the kid had referred to, she should be. She still registered as human, though.

Those magnificent eyes popped open. “That’s nice of you to say, but?—”

“How can he be wolf but not pack?” The boy waved his hands at the woman. “I understand why you are not pack. But how can he be if he is a wolf?”

Bay frowned. The kid shouldn’t be asking a non-pack human about wolf business. He tapped into the connection with his own beast to see if his human senses had missed something. His animal brother, hyper-alert and focused on the server, ignored him.That was new.

And then her scent revealed an undertone he’d missed when she’d been across the coffee shop. “Witch,” Bay said. Normally, the wolf would have alerted him, but his beast just quietly observed Sonya. Maybe she’d mated with one of the local shifters, and that’s why the kid talked pack business with her. A weird pain hit his chest when he thought of the server having a mate. His wolf growled its displeasure.

Her eyes narrowed. “Not exactly, but how is that any of your business?”

Shit.He’d pissed her off, and he could understand why. After all, most shifters were suspicious of witches. He’d once been one of them. But Laney had shown him the error of his prejudice. So had Regie, the true mate of Bolt’s. She was gentler in her corrections than Laney, despite Bay, delirious and dehydrated, scaring her when he’d tried to protect Bolt from her. He knew he didn’t have the words to explain all of that and settled for “It isn’t.” He rubbed his chest. That weird pain hadn’t eased.

“Correct. Let’s keep it that way.” She turned back to the boy. “Kitchen. Now.” Her tone left no room for argument. After a quick look at Bay, the kid scuttled off the seat and dragged his feet toward the counter. The server watched him until he disappeared through a door in the back and then faced Bayagain, rattling off, “Anything else I can get you? No? Great, here’s the bill.” She dropped a piece of paper on the table and walked away.

This was a record, even for him. Usually, he said more than a few sentences before a woman stalked off, angry or offended.

He focused back on the job, and in a quiet voice, dictated a text to Justice.

Found kid. Next step: Track down the alpha.

His phone read out the quick reply:

Justice

Excellent. Give ETA for return when you have it.

Bay watched Sonya glaring at him from the other side of the counter as he counted out cash for the bill and included a hefty tip. What was the connection between her and the shifter pup?

Regarding the ETA that Justice had asked for, Bay had a bad feeling that his mission would not be as short or as uncomplicated as they had expected.

Step number one, find the alpha. Step number two, make nice with the witch.

He looked back over at Sonya. Her angry gaze blazed even hotter, and he winced inwardly. Maybe he’d push that step farther down the list. After he’d gathered more information about her.

No need to catch another blast of her fire before he knew what he was walking into. Rubbing his chest again, he left the coffee shop and headed for his rental car.

CHAPTER 5

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