Jacque reached over and patted her knee. “Miss them already?”

She gave her a small smile and shrugged. “They’ve been through a lot and are going to go through much more before it’s all said and done. I guess I’m like a mama hen. I worry about my chicks.”

Jen plopped down next to Sally on the couch and gave her brown hair a slight tug. “Yeah, well, listen up, Mother Goose. You are our best friend. I’m not saying I won’t like the new little chickadees, but just remember who claimed you first. So no crying over spilled healers, or whatever.”

“What she means,” Jacque chimed in as Jen proceeded to look over her fingernails intently, “is that she really missed you. Both of us did.”

Sally leaned over and wrapped Jen in a hug. “I promise no one could ever take your place, Jen. You put the fun in dysfunctional.”

“You put the we, in weird,” Jacque joined in as she climbed over to the other couch and wrapped her arms around her two best friends.

“You put the poss in possible,” Sally continued.

“That isn’t even a thing,” Jen growled though she was hugging them back.

“True, but if there were, you would be the poss,” Jacque agreed.

Jen was smiling when she shoved them away. “Enough sap, and enough about the new gyps. I want to hear about the new males.” Jen stopped midsentence and frowned. “Is it just me or are your men blocking you two as well?” she asked them.

Sally felt the walls in Costin’s mind go up. She immediately tried to get through his defenses, but the more she pushed, the stronger he made them in response. “Costin’s not letting me in.”

Jacque nodded. “Fane isn’t either.”

Sally’s eyes narrowed. “Costin mentioned,” —she tapped her head indicating that he’d shared the information via the bond— “just a little while ago, that he was going to speak with Vasile.”

“So did Decebel,” Jen growled.

Jacque’s jaw clenched. She hated it when Fane blocked her. It brought back the painful memories of just a couple of months earlier when he wouldn’t let her in because of his struggles with what she’d endured at the hands of the witch, Desdemona. “Wolf boy better have a damn good reason for blocking me,” she practically snarled.

“Whoa, baby mamma’s got claws.” Jen grinned, momentarily forgetting her irritation with her own mate.

“And she called him wolf boy, not wolf man like she usually does,” Sally pointed out.

“The hormones are starting to get to you, aren’t they?” asked Jen.

Jacque pinched the bridge of her nose. “One minute I’m fine and the next I really, really want to throw something at someone.”

“Okay…well, sitting here wondering about what team fur ball is meeting about, heavy emphasis on the ball part, isn’t going to help keep prego calm. So back to these new wolves that were brought in to help with the new healers. Any of ’em hot?” Jen asked as she waggled her eyebrows at Sally.

Jacque slapped Jen with a pillow just as the door to the suite opened.

“Any of who hot?” Decebel growled as he prowled into the room, his eyes focused on his mate.

“Do you have a radar that tells you when to walk in on me talking about inappropriate things?” Jen asked as she narrowed her eyes on Decebel.

“Considering you are always talking about inappropriate things, I don’t really need a radar. It’s pretty much a given that when I walk into a room you will have just said, or be in the middle of saying, an inappropriate comment.”

“Oh, good one,” Jacque cooed as Sally reached out her fist to her friend.

“Agreed.” Sally nodded.

Jen’s head snapped to the side as she pinned her two best friends with a glare. “Nobody asked for commentary from the peanut gallery.”

“I would like to think we are less peanut and more awesomesauce gallery,” Sally said as she glanced at Jacque. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

“Totally agree.”

Jen gave up giving them the death glare, considering it wasn’t working, and turned back to face her mate. “What’s up, B? Maybe you’ve come to tell us why you superior males have kicked us out?” She tapped her head at the same time she tried to breach his mental block.

He gave her his best wolfish smile, which he knew made her all gooey inside. Damn wolf, she thought to herself.

“Perhaps, I’m just blocking you because of my own inappropriate things that may or may not include something or someone hot.”

Sally and Jacque pushed themselves back further on the couch as Jen stood up slowly. “If you’re thinking about something hot, it had better be a freaking desert or South Texas in August.”

“And if it’s not?” Decebel asked as he took a step toward her, his eyes flashing to the glowing amber of his wolf before going back to their usual color.

Jen let out a low growl.

“Oh dear,” Sally muttered.

“We should video their fights. It’s so much better than anything the CW has,” Jacque murmured attempting not to attract the attention of their seething friend.

“Then tell me, B, what it is that you might be thinking about that is hot? What is it that you are thinking about that is so inappropriate that you have to block your mate from your mind?”

“I don’t understand why you are getting so upset, Jennifer.”

“He’s using that freaking soothing calm voice. I hate it when they do that,” Sally huffed quietly.

“Totally hate it,” Jacque agreed as she bit her nails and watched her friend and her mate intently.

Decebel continued as Jen took a step toward him. “I have to deal with you checking out other males, discussing other males, and purring over other males.”

“Oh, that last one was said with a little bite,” Sally chuckled.

“He totally wants to give her a little bite,” Jacque added and the two snickered as quietly as they could.

“I. DO. NOT. PURR,” Jen bit out through clenched teeth.

“Wanna bet?” Decebel’s voice dropped low as his eyes began to glow again with his wolf. This time they didn’t stop glowing.

“Okay, that even turned me on,” Sally continued her commentary.

“Totally hot and bothered,” Jacque said fanning herself.