“We just lost our accountant not too long ago. Didn’t you say you did the accounts for Cascadia?”

“Yes, and I can help until you hire someone else on, but I’m not an office job kind of woman, Nick. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m the facial piercing type. My hair is frequently odd colors and I like to come and go as I please. You can’t do that unless you own a funky business like a record store or you help with the books when your brother is the Alpha.”

“In caseyouhadn’t noticed, your brother-in-law is the Alpha. Like Ben is going to care if your hair is what—blue? Pink? And that damned brow ring is growing on me. It’s sexy. But you could open up a record store down here if you wanted. A second Spin the Black Circle. That could be good.”

“I’ve thought about it. I need to do some research to see what’s down here already. There aren’t a whole lot of independent record stores anymore so if there are two or three in a city this size, that’s already filling that niche.”

“Take your time. Hell, be a woman of leisure if you want.”

She laughed. “Well, thank you, but no. I like working, I just need it to be what I like. And eventually we’ll have children and a flexible schedule will be a must.” She froze at the look on his face. “You do want children, don’t you?”

His eyes filled up with unshed tears. “Yes. Yes I do, and I was beginning to wonder if it would ever happen. But the thought of a little girl with your eyes and those freckles just makes me happy, baby.”

She released the breath she’d been holding. “Oh good. I want them too. In a few years.”

“We’ve got time. So now what we’ve tap-danced around it, what are you going to do about the joining?”

“What does she say?”

“What do you mean?”

Tracy looked at him, annoyed. “Nick, do I look slow to you? Of course you called her and told her what happened. What did she say?”

“Am I that transparent? I just wanted to talk to her, to let her know you were upset. It was nothing more than that.”

“Oh yes, we mustn’t let sweet Sarah get her fee-fees hurt. God knows how fragile she is. You know, she is an Alpha female, Nick. She can hang with the big dogs. She can certainly talk shit like one.”

“Tracy, she really isn’t like that. She was caught off-guard and she’s really upset that you overheard her saying all of that about you. She doesn’t want you to get the wrong idea and she desperately wants you to like her. It’s important to her. Family is important to her.”

“Uh-huh. So back to my question. What did she say about the joining?”

“She would be horrified if you didn’t join the Pack because of what you overheard her say in what she termed today,a moment of jealous lunacy. She wants you to be a part of Pacific. You’re my mate, that in and of itself is important to her. She’s the Alpha female. But she’s also my sister-in-law and she wants you to feel welcome. Lastly, she really wants to get to know you. She knows you’re coming to a new city and will need new friends and a family to fill in for yours since you’ll be a few hours away. She asked me to see if you’d give her another chance.”

Now that she’d experienced the intensity of the anchor bond she understood Sarah’s behavior a lot better. It still bothered her that Sarah had said the things she did, but what else could she do? There was no place for Nick in Cascadia. Lex wasn’t just an Enforcer but the Enforcer. He was the bar that other Enforcers strove toward. And Nick was born to be Second in Pacific. Tracy was the youngest of six, she had the freedom to do what she wanted. And she wanted to be with Nick.

“I still don’t like her. But I’ll go tonight to see what she says to my face. I want this to work, Nick, I really do. Because I love you.”

He smiled and she felt his relief.

“Now, I have a problem. You smell like another wolf, which makes me want to f**k that right out of you. In addition, you smell like my mate, which also makes me want to f**k you. You are deliciously sexy and each breath you take pushes those sweet ni**les against your shirt, showing me those rings.

Refer back to my previous proposed action.”

“Why, Nick, would you care to retire to the bedroom to have wanton hot monkey love?”

He threw back his head and laughed. “No, baby. I want you to get those jeans off and bend over the arm of this couch right now. I feel the need to christen this room.”

“Oh, my,” she said faintly as she rose to obey.

Chapter Four

Some hours later, Tracy and Nick drove up the pretty driveway of the Pacific Pack house. Tracy felt languid and satisfied. Nick had made love to her all afternoon long in every room and on every piece of furniture that would hold them up. She felt thoroughly taken care of and desired.

She snuck a look over at him and smiled. He had a bite mark on his neck that he hadn’t bothered to try and hide. In fact, she suspected that he’d forgone a shirt with a collar to show it off. At one point her wolf had surfaced and she’d bitten him, hard, right as she came. Because the bite was from another wolf, it would be there for a while instead of healing within hours.

Happiness stole over her when she saw her parents’ BMW and Cade’s Mercedes along with the SUV

they’d driven down in the day before. Her family was there! She suddenly felt the need to hug her mother.

Nick parked and turned to her. “Wow, look at you. You’re brimming with joy. It’s seeing your family here?”