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After another day spent with the pair without spotting any game, Bickham had promised him a grizzly this weekend, and in a special location away from other hunters. The big man had sounded extremely confident.
Lucas had drawn him out by expressing skepticism based on their poor luck hunting so far.
In response, Bickham had boasted that he’d found a huckleberry patch, baited the area to attract bears, and set up a trail cam. And that he’d already gotten one bear at the site.
Holy shit, did he just confess to shooting Rob?Lucas thought.
Then came the cherry on top of Lucas’s day. Bickham proudly showed him trail cam footage on his phone. It was a night shot, and there was definitely a grizzly feasting on those ripe berries. The shaggy hump between its shoulders was unmistakable.
“I put a bunch of dog food near those berry bushes,” Bickham explained. “That bear’s gonna keep coming back until it’s all gone.”
This was the kind of turning point in his investigation that Lucas had been hoping for.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow’s definitely going to be the day I take those two dirtbags down.
He bent to kiss Malia, taking time to enjoy her soft lips and sweet taste.
“Ready to go face the wolves in their den?” asked Malia when they finally parted.
She gave him a wry smile, but the sharp tang of stress began to infuse her scent.
“Yeah. And don’t worry, I didn’t forget about dessert,” he assured her. “It’s in my truck.”
With no time today for either of them to prepare something for the potluck that followed the meeting, Lucas had stopped by Cinnamon + Sugar and purchased an assortment of cookies, brownies, lemon bars, and mini tarts topped with glazed fruit.
Knowing that Malia was stressing about introducing him to her parents and pack leadership, Lucas wanted to make a good impression.
It was going to be difficult to balance staying in his undercover role tonight and not poisoning the well for his future relationship with the people most important to his new mate.
While Malia took a quick shower and changed out of her uniform, Lucas retrieved the large bakery box from his pickup.
When she emerged, she was dressed in jeans and the same extremely flattering top she’d worn for the video chat with his parents and girls yesterday.
Lucas was happy that the upcoming meet-and-greet was going to be casual dress. He’d packed for a hunting trip, not any kind of formal event.
Hand in hand, they walked a quarter-mile up the ranch’s long gravel driveway, to where a big, white ranch house stood. It looked to be at least a hundred years old, surrounded by evergreen trees and lovingly maintained, with a wide wraparound roofed porch.
Malia led him to the back door, which led into the very modern kitchen.
He was greeted with the mingled smells of various casseroles heating in the double oven, complemented by the mouth-watering aromas of assorted kinds of chili, baked beans, and curries simmering in a collection of slow-cookers standing on the long stone counters.
Lucas placed the box of pastries on a table in the breakfast nook, then followed Malia over to the door to the basement, which was located next to the pantry. It stood open, and the sounds of conversation drifted from below.
“My dad—he owns a construction business—restored the house and did all the work down here,” Malia whispered as they began to descend the stairs.
“It looks real nice,” Lucas assured her as the meeting room came into view.
When Malia had informed him that the pack’s monthly meetings were held in a basement, he’d pictured something dark and damp, with concrete floors and a low ceiling.
This large chamber had decent height, and was beautifully finished with drywall, paint, recessed lighting, and carpet.
Rows of folding chairs had been set up facing a pair of sofas placed side by side at one end of the room. Three couples occupied the sofa. He didn’t recognize the two older pairs.
But he recognized Malia’s parents immediately from the family portrait that stood on her dresser.
Mary Jacobsen-Swanson was acurvy, extremely fit middle-aged woman with long blonde hair hanging in a thick braid over her right shoulder. Her posture alert, she sat next to Malia’s dad, a big, dark-haired, bearded bear shifter who bore a distinct resemblance to his cousin Evan.
One of Tyler Swanson’s thickly muscled, tattooed arms was slung around his mate’s shoulders, and they both smiled and waved when they spotted Malia and Lucas.
