Page 54 of Stealthy as a Wolf

The only one who didn’t set me off was Maggie.

It was like my cat had imprinted on her.

I tolerated the other men, my cat indifferent to them, but everyone else was an irritant. The noise in the strip club was too loud, the lights too bright, and I could only imagine how Maggie must’ve been dealing with the sensory overload.

She’d basically been on the run her whole life, living in hiding, and us assclowns dragged her into public without a second thought.

She had a right to be paranoid after what she survived.

We thought we would be enough to protect her.

We took a gamble.

Now I wondered if we made a horrible mistake. It took only one wrong person to recognize any of us, and we were dead. The thought of her injured or dead was totally unacceptable. I’d spent my whole life fighting, and I realized that I didn’t want to live in a world without her in it.

I ran a hand down my face, sick at heart for taking away her right to decide for herself.

And now I needed to confess to her what we did.

So I told her the absolute truth.

“We are idiots. We needed a way to get into the Summit without being spotted, and I have a friend who runs the northern branch of SAAB.” Used to getting blank looks, I continued before anyone else could interrupt. “Soul-bonded Animals Against Brutality. They fight against inhumane treatment of real animals. They protest at every major event. I figured they would be able to smuggle us into the Summit without us being spotted.”

Instead of freaking out or tearing into me, Maggie did the last thing that I expected. She remained totally calm, her expression just a tad curious. “How did you meet this person?”

Caught completely flat-footed, I just blinked.

It was almost like she was jealous.

Wait?

Could she be jealous?

I answered slowly, awe filling me at the very thought she cared enough about me to feel that way. “We went to school together. I met her before I was sent to prison.”

“Dated?” She shot back almost before I was finished speaking, her eyes narrowing dangerously. The golden gleam in them was totally captivating, the intensity a razor-sharp edge…and I didn’t have a doubt that if I answered this wrong, she’d reach into my chest and yank out my heart.

The tables around us quieted, the air quivering with the potential danger.

I probably should’ve been leery, but my insides just turned to warm goo.

She was totally jealous.

“No.” I didn’t even bother to stop the grin from spreading across my face. “You might say that we bat for the same team.”

Her eyes sparkled for a second, and I swore that I could feel her wolf peering out at me. I waited for my cat to hiss, braced for claws to slice me up with the need to defend myself. I did not expect my puss to let out a broken purr loud enough to rattle in my chest.

Much to my beast’s satisfaction, the sound seemed to tame her wolf. Maggie’s eyes softened, her posture relaxed, and she leaned back in her seat. She looked away, like she was bored, but I didn’t miss the sharpness to her eyes as she surveyed the room.

I beckoned to Natalie to join us, and the turtle straightened, her neck extended as she sauntered toward the table. While she cast the men a cursory glance, her avid, pale green eyes were liquid with fear as she watched Maggie.

My cat hissed in my head, not caring that she was a woman.

Maggie wasmine.

Natalie shot me a smirk, casually grabbing a chair from a nearby table, before she spun it around and straddled it, resting her arms across the back. Her face gave off a blocky appearance, her movements slow and lazy as she tipped her head in my direction. “Matty, it’s good to see you. Imagine my surprise when I received your message, especially when you’re supposed to be in prison.”

Maggie’s head snapped toward Natalie, her fangs flashing in warning when she took the teasing as a threat, and a growl vibrated in her chest. Natalie’s eyes flashed black, and she lowered her head, her shoulders hunching, reminiscent of her animal counterpart.

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