Page 14 of Bitter Discord

“Ranger wants a fight so he can feel better about his leg, and Dirk is an easy mark. Easy to piss off,” Landon said, grumbling. He stood, and Heath quickly took the spot for himself. “It’s werewolf bullshit. He needs to feel like he’s strong enough to hold the position he has. He’s had a few months to get used to it. Now, he wants todosomething. I don’t think he planned on doing it, but it happened, and that’s why.” Landon leaned on the window and stared at the yard. “Eventually, we’ll have to let him pick the fight and feel good about himself or discover his new place. We have to be there to make sure no one dies. The pack needs to be there to see how their life may or may not change.”

“He does well on full moons with three legs. He could probably handle a fight now, even if he doesn’t technically win it,” Heath said confidently, then shook his head with a groan. “But we can’t do anything about this right now. Jacky, I’ll keep him close and put him to work during my office hours. He needs to feel useful, and that will do it. He’ll be in the house every day until we have a moment to give him what he wants. Once this week is over, I’ll talk to him about getting him back into dedicated training. Right now, he’s allowed to join the play fights on the full moon, but everyone is gentle with him.”

“And Dirk isn’t there for it,” Landon added. “He and I head out with Fenris earlier in the evening.”

“Correct.” Heath tilted his head toward me, flashing a charming smile. “We’ll get this worked out. It happens. As Landon so aptly called it, this is all werewolf bullshit.” Heath had to calm down, and now, he was practically lounging beside me, sinking deep into the couch, his legs stretched out. That charming smile was still there, and his scent was around me, filling the air with the calm and a touch of exasperation he felt at this situation.

“If you two aren’t worried, then I’ll stay out of it. I don’t really have the time to handle this right now.”

“No, you don’t.” Leaning over, his soft kiss told me he understood. “I would never ask you to handle it or to be something you’re not. That’s what I would do if I thought you should handle how packs function and how to solve the small problems.”

“I wouldn’t say we’re not worried,” Landon corrected as he looked in our direction. “There should always be a bit of worry when it comes to fights in the pack. They’re common, but they can be managed. Where’s Dirk?”

“I sent him out on a run to cool his temper, then told him to take a shower,” I explained. Landon finally smiled. “And no, you can’t join him,” I said, smiling sweetly as Landon’s smile turned into a more feral expression. Heath chuckled as Landon’s nostrils flared.

“That’s rude,” he growled.

“It’s Carey’s bathroom. You will not have sex in it,” I countered strongly, hoping to make sure he understood I was serious. Heath’s chuckle turned into a laugh as he kissed me again and stood up.

“Why don’tyougo for a run and cool off?” Heath asked his son, earning a glare. “Don’t look at me like that. I was just offering you some advice. Actually…” Heath grinned. “Run all the way home. I’ll send Dirk with your truck. He’ll probably get home before you… or while you’re in the shower.”

“Pa, what…” Landon trailed off, his glare fading. “That’s a good idea… a really good idea.”

“Oh my God,” I mumbled, getting up as Landon handed his truck keys to Heath. Landon was out the door a second later. Shaking my head, I watched the front door swing shut on its own.

“You are…”

“Very good at wrangling werewolves. Go kick up your feet. I’ll handle the werewolves,” Heath said, smiling at me. “You’ll be doing your own wrangling this week and should take your last chance to relax.”

I nodded, finding no way or reason to argue. I wasn’t even halfway through the day, and I was tired.

CHAPTER SIX

HEATH

Heath watched her leave, hoping she would take his suggestion to heart. She deserved to relax for a moment, something he’d tried to make her do all morning. He’d delegated her final errands and made sure she enjoyed their family breakfast. There was a lot he couldn’t do for her, but he was resolved to make everything run smoothly where he could, so she didn’t have to carry it all. He couldn’t do the conversation with Dirk, but he had tried to make it one of the last things on her plate aside from packing. Her week was going to be hell, and they had less than twenty-four hours before it started.

Clearly, my werewolves had to be stupid in front of her.

He wasn’t angry or even resigned. It was just how these things played out. He had been an Alpha long enough to know if something out of the normal routine was coming, something else was going to be missed. He hadn’t accounted for Ranger’s needs as well as he should have.

Ah, well, this was my fault more than anyone else’s.

He didn’t deal with Ranger first, though. Tucked away in the office, he’d be out of the way. Heath waited on Dirk, wondering how far his son would get by the time Dirk showed his face.

His phone buzzed in his pocket as he waited. Sighing, he realized everyone would know he was done with the movie theater, which meant they could call or text whenever they needed. Checking it, he was glad to see it was just a status update from Shamus. The mansion was now stocked. They had run into Teagan and the boys finishing up, letting them take in the groceries, and now they were all headed back to the territory. Heath sent him a quick reply, asking him to head over to the house. He only asked for Shamus. If he had Ranger, he might as well get Shamus and have a small meeting before the pack meeting at Kick Shot.

Tomorrow... I have to introduce the pack to Zuri, daughter of Hasan tomorrow.

Jacky wasn’t the only stressed adult in the house. Heath knew the stakes of Zuri’s visit beyond the political issues Jacky and her family faced. He’d heard for months what Zuri and Jacky were worried about—Zuri and Jabari coming out as witches. This was where Zuri planned to reveal the information. It could rattle their family and its grip on the species. They were worried about Jacky double-crossing werecats to help werewolves and how other werecats would treat her once they saw her.

He cared about all of those problems, but while the ruling family of werecats generally brought stability, much like Callahan and Corissa did, they weren’t what he was thinking about.

The patriarch of her family and several of her siblings hate me, and one of them is coming here.

He knew Zuri openly supported Jacky. The Politician, the Negotiator, whatever the world wanted to call her, vocally supported their engagement and rooted for them among the family and when she talked to other supernaturals. She was diplomatic and smart.

That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t make the best impression. I don’t need to convince Zuri I have the best of intentions. She trusts me there, or rather, trusts Jacky’s judgment, but I need more than that. I need her to understand I would never let my werewolves or any others hurt her sister. Jacky is the one who I will pick every time if others make me choose. There are only two people over her, and Carey and Landon would never ask me to. If Zuri can go back to Hasan, having witnessed it herself, she might finally sway that old bastard to give even just the smallest of blessings. I just need a shred of his approval.

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