That’s when things had gotten really ugly. Not everyone in the Pack agreed with Xander, and the guys had taken sides. And the ones who went against Gage weren’t only pissed about Mackenzie, they were calling him out as Pack leader. There’d been a few stare downs over the years, but it’d never gone further than that, and certainly never with any of the more senior werewolves. But this fight was going to make the scuffle in the weight room the other day look like child’s play. Blood would definitely be shed.
Or it would have been if Cooper hadn’t defused the situation with one simple question.
“Mac’s The One, isn’t she?”
Gage didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. The rest of the Pack retracted their claws, suddenly more interested in debating whether the myth was real—and what that meant for the Pack. If Mackenzie Stone was really The One for him, would it keep her from spilling their secret if and when she discovered it? Did the intense attraction have the same effect on her, too?
Gage hoped to God it did, but he didn’t know much about it. Unfortunately, neither did Cooper. But before Gage could say anything, dispatch had called about the hostage situation at the mall.
“Should we drive through again and get you another burrito?”
Mackenzie’s soft voice interrupted his thoughts and he looked down to see he’d not only eaten the entire burrito, but had practically licked the wrapper clean, too.
He grinned and crumpled the wrapper. “Nah, I think I’m good.”
She didn’t look convinced. “You can have some of mine, if you want.”
“Thanks, but I think it’s time we get you home. It’s late.”
She didn’t protest as he started the car. It was well after midnight and she looked as exhausted as he did. She finished the rest of her burrito in silence, then leaned back in the seat.
Gage had to resist the urge to pull over just so he could see if her lips were as sweet as he remembered from that afternoon. He tightened his grip on the wheel and forced his attention back to the road. Xander had been right. He didn’t think clearly when he was around her.
Xander was right about something else, too. Mackenzie was a distraction to the team. Gage had thought they were tense because they were worried she’d stumble on their secret, but now he realized it was because her pheromones were making them crazy. Mackenzie was jonesing bad for him and his pack knew it.
Gage thought again about what Cooper said. He’d never believed the myth about every werewolf having one perfect soul mate waiting somewhere out there for him. He’d always thought it was something werewolves came up with to explain why they had such shitty luck with women. They had shitty luck with women because werewolves were moody, secretive, aggressive, and just plain crappy at connecting on a human level. Or so he’d thought. But maybe Cooper was onto something. Maybe Mackenzie was The One.
What else explained why he couldn’t think clearly when he was with her? Because he’d dated a lot of women, and none of them had ever had this kind of effect on him.
And how do you know she’s not just playing you?
Brooks’s words echoed in his head. What if he was so blinded by Mackenzie that he couldn’t see what was right in front of him?
Gage glanced at her as he pulled into the parking garage. She could barely keep her eyes open, she was so tired. Looking at her right then, he was ashamed for even thinking she might be using him.
“Do you want to come in for a while?” Mackenzie asked when they got to her door.
Man, he wanted to. But he needed to put some space between them if he was ever going to sort out the jumbled mess of emotions he was feeling.
“It’s late and we’re both beat.” He brushed her hair back from her face. “Rain check?”
“Of course,” she said, then frowned. “Are you sure you’re not too tired to drive home? Maybe you should stay and sleep on the couch.”
He chuckled. “If I stay, something tells me neither one of us will be getting any sleep. I think it’s better if I go.”
“Okay.” She gave him a stern look. “But you have to promise to text me and let me know you got home, okay?”
“I will.” He tilted her face up to gently kiss her on the mouth. The feel of her lips under his was enough to make him say the hell with it and take her up on her offer. He needed to get out of here. Now. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She smiled and went up on tiptoe to press her lips to his once more. “Count on it.”
Damn, she was making it hard to believe she wasn’t The One. Why else would it be so hard to turn and walk away from her?
Chapter 8
Mac usually needed four alarm clocks set five minutes apart and positioned in different places around the room to force herself to get out of bed in the morning. And that was when she got up at a reasonable time like eight o’clock. But last night, she’d set all four clocks for 6:00 a.m. so she could get to the SWAT compound before Gage had to run off and save the world like he’d done yesterday.
But he and half the team were already loaded up and ready to roll by the time she pulled into the parking lot. Not about to let him leave without her this time, Mac jumped in the passenger seat of the SUV Gage was driving.
“You’re perky this morning.” Gage gave her a sidelong glance as he followed the big operations vehicle out the gate. “Guess you slept well.”
After everything she’d seen yesterday at the hotel, it wouldn’t have been a leap to think sleep would be a long
