Page 4 of The President

“Vivi?” I probe. “Who are you afraid of?”

“My former pack,” she murmurs. At my imperious look, she sighs, and I can feel the tension rolling off her in waves. “My father raised me as a single father after my mother was shot and killed by a poacher when she was out doing her own hunting. They were fated mates and he should’ve followed her into the afterlife once she took her last breath, only he said he needed to live to take care of me. His parental obligation overrode his desire to follow her spirit once it left this world.” I nod and motion for her to continue.

He’s a braver male than I am because I suspect if Vivienne died in front of me, I’d be mere seconds behind her.

Not if we have cubs to raise,my wolf states.We would protect them with our very being.

“One night, our alpha came to the house, and I overheard him telling my father that he was pushing for me to mate with his son, his mean-spirited jerk of a son, that is, who gets off on hurting others… especially women. He was persistent on our joining even though we’re not fated mates. I know those types of chosen matings can work as long as both parties involved agree, but I’ve always dreamed of finding the one that the goddess had specifically picked out for me. It’s silly, I know, maybe nothing more than a young girl’s dreams, but when I realized that the alpha was going to make it a decree, I couldn’t stay.”

“What did you do?” I question.

“My best friend, Angie, came over and we basically packed my life into my vehicle, and I left while my father, the alpha, and his son, were gone for a pack meeting of some sort. Angie had heard that Zephyr Hills accepted all shifters, and that it was protected by a motorcycle club, which is how I ended up living here.”

“Vivi, I need all the information you have on that male,” I command. “I’ll have my IT guy, Popeye, do a search to make sure this dead male walking is staying right where he belongs. Not here.” My finger jars as I pound the tip of it into the tabletop. I’m not playing around when I ask her for this information. For my peace of mind, I need to know where the threat to her is at all times, so I know how imminent it is that I end it and how soon it needs to be taken care of.

“You’d do that for me?” she asks. I see hope briefly flicker in her eyes before it dims.

“I’ll do anything necessary to ensure you are safe, mate,” I rasp out, her scent wrapping around me like a wound vine.

Before she can answer, a server comes to our table and we spend the next few minutes placing our order for drinks, as well as food. I can see the curiosity in the waitress’s eyes since I’ve never been in here with a woman. Public dating isn’t my thing. Sure, my brothers and I come into town and eat here several times a month, but I’ve always kept my private life just that. Private. While some of my brothers choose their flavor of the week from the town girls, I don’t since I held out hope, even if my mind tried to convince me that wasn’t a realistic possibility, that maybe someday I’d have a mate. If by some miracle of fate, a mate came along, I didn’t want her to be faced with my dalliances every time we came into town. So, I either avail myself of our club girls, my own damn hand, or out of town. The irony aboutthatis ever since Chaos and Stealth found their mates, two out of three of those options have lost their appeal. My only decision now is which hand to use.

Granted, that feeling of hope had lessened the longer I was alive and she didn’t come into my life, but Fate must have a sense of humor or something because right as I was thinking maybe I’d find someone to settle down with so I could have some pups and a family, I met Vivi.

“This is almost unbelievable,” she says. “I mean, I remember how my parents were together, of course, but I thought my mate would come from either someone in my old pack, or one of the ones located nearby.”

I can’t help the growl that slips from my lips at her words. Her eyes flash with desire and I scent her arousal as it wafts toward me.

Claim now,my wolf states, pacing inside my chest.Mate wants us.

I resist rolling my eyes, a habit I’ve acquired thanks to Tressa and Nini. The two women set the clubhouse on its head, that’s for sure, but the changes that have been made have turned the place I’ve lived in for so long into more of a home than anywhere else I’ve laid my head. Now, with both of them expecting, the clubhouse is even undergoing a renovation of sorts.

Gone are the days when the brothers who indulge can light upanytype of cigarette, and for those who vape, they also have to go outside. Honestly, I enjoy the clean, fresh smell now; the stale odor of cigarette smoke and weed no longer clings to every single surface. Especially since they also insisted that we get new furniture in the common area. Even the bar didn’t survive their onslaught, as the prospects had to sand and revarnish the damn thing. Still, the new muted colors of the walls suit all of us and I’ve noticed that the brothers are smiling more. I imagine Vivi there and my dick grows hard picturing her sitting with the other two old ladies laughing and nattering on about something or other.

“Did you just growl?” she teases just as the waitress comes over with a tray that’s loaded down with our order and starts setting our food and drinks down in front of us.

“Anything else?” our server asks.

I glance at the table, see the condiments are on the edge near the window, and reply, “Looks good, we’ll let you know if we need anything.”

She nods and leaves, so I pick our conversation back up, looking at Vivi and state, “Yeah, I did, sweetheart. My wolf knows you want us, and he let his feelings be known.”

Her giggle makes her already beautiful face look more radiant which I wasn’t aware could even be possible. “Mine is shredding my insides,” she admits, blushing.

I decide to let her off the hook. Slightly, anyhow. “Let’s eat, then I’ll give you my information so we can make plans to meet up later. I need to get the stuff back to the clubhouse for Tressa and Nini before their mates decide to turn around and kick my ass.”

“Aren’t you the president, though?” she questions.

“Yeah, and they’re my enforcer and sergeant-at-arms,” I reply as I add ketchup to my plate. “They won’t care that I outrank either of them when it comes to their mates and their happiness.”

“From your growl a few minutes ago, I suspect you’re the same way,” she murmurs as she butters a biscuit.

The simple act of placing that thing against her luscious lips then taking a bite has my cock straining against my riding leathers.

Fuck, my mind screams.If she keeps that up and makes any more noises that have me wanting to swipe my arm across the table to rid it of the plates and glasses then fuck her until we break that table, I’m gonna die.

“Are you okay?” she asks. At my curious look, she says, “You’re literally over there, practically attacking your food while growling at it like it’s ready to respond in kind. In fact, the hair on your arms looks fuller.”

I glance at my arms and realize that for the first time in a very long time, my wolf is closer to the surface than I thought, and I didn’t even call on his abilities. Focusing, I mentally urge him to slow his roll and calm down, so we don’t frighten our mate or any of the other patrons.

---