CyrusThe Marshal swerved into the garage parking lot."Any idea what this is about?" Tank asked me."I don't know. But everyone stay put and I'll find out," I replied."Hey, you're not calling the shots now," Mac said, getting up in my face."I'm still your Beta.""And I'm VP," he replied.From the corner of my eye, I saw the Marshal's driver side door open."We don't have time for this. Come on," I said.Mac and I both hurried across to join Blayze, who was standing in front of the garage. At the same time, the Marshal stepped out of his Charger. His cowboy hat, badge, and sidearm made him look like he'd just been plucked out of the old west. He put on a pair of aviators as we approached."What can I do you for, Marshal?" Blayze asked."I have reason to believe the fugitives, Robbie Cooke and Travis Lawrence, are bankrolling the citizens of this town to keep them underground," he replied."Sorry, but I don't know anything about that. My boys and I run a legitimate busines
BonnieHarlow somehow didn't seem completely surprised by what I'd just told her."So that tattoo on Blayze's shoulder? The one that says 'Bonnie?'" she asked."You noticed that, huh? Yeah, that's me," I admitted. "Our fathers were close before the big split. Alpha Quinton Black and Beta Jessie Rollins had been friends since they were pups. They started the MC together. Blayze and I were bound to be close."After we graduated high school, the pressure was on to make it official and get mated. But I didn't wanna rush into things. I had a lot to learn about becoming Alpha after Quinton retired, and getting mated didn't seem like the right path just yet. But Jessie had other ideas. Didn't think a woman should be Alpha. I knew it wasn't done much, but it's the twenty-first century, ya know?"Anyway, Jessie started telling Quinton that he should consider making Blayze Alpha instead. Wanted me to take the traditional role of Luna. You know what that is?" I asked Harlow.She shook her h
HarlowBonnie eyed Madoc suspiciously."I know you're not accustomed to taking orders," he said to her. "So I'll try my best to give you some time to adjust to new management."That clearly pissed Bonnie off, but she held her tongue for the time being."You ok if I go?" she asked me.I didn't know what other option we had, so I nodded."If I find out you so much as looked at her funny—" she began, but Madoc released his grip on my wrist and raised both his hands in the air."I'm just having a meet and greet with my newest employee," he replied."I'll be back in just a couple minutes," Bonnie assured me and headed for the door.When she was gone, Madoc said, "Why don't you be a dear and make me a margarita?""No salt with a little umbrella?" I asked."Good memory."I made my way behind the bar while he sauntered over to the jukebox. Coins clanked into the machine, and he selected a song. As I measured and poured the margarita ingredients into the cocktail shaker, a glitter r
Harlow"Splendid!" Madoc exclaimed. "That's exactly the kind of go-get-'em positive thinking we need. Hip, hip..."Madoc threw his arm in the air, waiting for a group "hurray," but it never came."I see we don't do group chants," he said. "We'll work on that.""This is bullsh*t," said Bonnie."Now, Ms. Black," Madoc replied, "if you have feedback you wish to share, please save it for the suggestion box. You can hash out the rest of the details yourselves. I'll be right over here if you kiddies need any help."Madoc sat on a bar stool, pulled out a newspaper from his jacket, and began working on a crossword puzzle.Bonnie looked like she was about to blow her top."I'll be ok," I assured her."We're sending Stitch as one of the escorts," she said. "At least we'll have someone there to help if Harlow gets hurt. That leaves three more.""I volunteer," Cyrus said, throwing me a quick glance."You just wanna go 'cause your wannabe girlfriend's leading the charge," Blayze snapped.
HarlowThe next day, Red, Goldie, and I finished up all the passports for the trip. Then Red closed up the bar at 3:00 in the afternoon, so everyone had time to get ready for the potluck. The whole MC was expected to be there, and from what I could tell, a lot of non-MC pack members were attending, too. That also meant that Cyrus and I would once again be in the same place. But being surrounded by people from both sides, we couldn't actually interact with each other."This used to be Arlene's big tradition," Red explained. "A pack-wide potluck at her place the night before a group got on the road for a big out-of-town mission. I've actually kinda missed it. The last one we had was right before the Mexico incident.""That was when Cyrus's father was killed?" I asked.Red nodded. "Him and eleven others. Lola, Dax, and Mac were the only ones on that mission that made it outta there alive. D*mned hunters just ambushed 'em. That last potluck was the last time things really felt whole."
Harlow"What's that about?" I thought to myself after seeing some blonde getting handsy with Cyrus. After all we'd been through in the past week, I felt like I could trust him. His "friend" on the other hand… Brat, Red, Gunner, and I got the food off the back of our bikes and followed Bonnie to the front steps of an old farmhouse. Cyrus had walked up to the porch and was talking to a pleasant-looking middle-aged blonde woman. She was full-figured with a round face and wore a hippie-style dress under a fringy leather jacket. "Is this the famous Harlow?" she asked when we approached. "Our newest prospect," Bonnie replied. "It's good to see you, Arlene." "You too, sweetie." Arlene gave Bonnie a kiss on the cheek. She turned to me and said, "You've certainly made an impression on both of my boys. I'm Blayze's mom." She extended her hand to me. "And Cyrus's momma number two." "It's n
Harlow"You human b*tch!" Stella screamed as she lurched forward and put her hands on Brat's throat. The girl was small, but she was still a werewolf and had no problem lifting Brat off her feet. She dropped Brat back down, though, when Red and Gunner both pulled her back."Stella, come on!" Gunner exclaimed.Stella began to shift, and sandy blonde hair began to sprout all over her body."Enough!" Blayze's voice roared from across the yard.Suddenly, Stella stopped the shift and came fully back to her human form."Blayze," she said with a pout. "This human—""You're at my mom's house," he said sternly. "You disrespect her; you disrespect me. Get out.""But—" Stella began."Now!" Without another word, Stella left. One of the Howler guys followed her out. I presumed to give her a ride.Red and Gunner both burst out laughing as Bonnie and the other officers approached."Well," Bonnie said to Brat, "that's one way to start a patch-in.""I'm sorry, Bonnie," Bra
Harlow"Do you know how to attach a PDF to an email?" Madoc asked, shattering the ominous moment we'd just shared."Wait—what? Was that your question?" I asked. He turned on his heels and hurried back to his computer. "Yes. I've spent the last hour-and-a-half trying to figure it out." I was taken aback when I realized he was using a boxy computer monitor that was so large it looked like it could launch a nuclear missile. A burst of laughter slipped out before I could stop it. He scowled."Sorry," I said. "I just realized that you're using a computer that came out before I was born." He still wasn't amused. "Why do you want my help anyway? You could have asked anybody else to do this for you.""I like you." Madoc shrugged. "In a purely platonic sort of way, that is. So...is that a 'yes' with the PDF?"I sighed. "Yeah, I can help you." "Amazing." He got up from his swivel chair and pulled it out for me."I just find it…" I paused, trying to be delicate. "Unique that