“It’s funny,” Vann said. “The DuChamps like to talk about their old-money status, but the wolves have been shifters way longer.”
GiGi grinned. “And now with Rosie and Ash getting together, who knows what that will mean.”
Vann added, “And don’t forget you and me.”
With almost everything out in the open, and GiGi assured that he wasn’t angry with her, she seemed more open to the idea of fated mates.
“I have very few friends outside of Rosemary,” she said. “You have no idea how hard it is to make friends with people. And this whole time you’ve been visiting me and I didn’t even know it. So I guess we were already friends, in a way. It makes it easier to accept the whole destiny thing. I still can’t believe you are Buster. My Buster, who I’ve been feeding hog intestines!”
“It’s okay, I kind of liked it,” he said. “Wolves aren’t picky, except when it comes to mating.”
GiGi blushed and bit her lip. He was never going to get tired of watching her do that.
“Fine,” he said. “You can come along on a hunt.”
“I can?” She clapped her hands. “Yay!”
“Next full moon, it’s a date. In the meantime, I need to know something. Do you get seasick on boats?”
“No,” she said. “Why?”
“I have big plans for you, Peaches.”
“What kind of plans?”
“That’s another secret. A nice one, though.”
GiGi
It was mid-March, and the night of the full moon was warm and damp, but the spring hadn’t yet had time to settle into outright humidity. Spring flowers were blooming as GiGi and Vann held hands in the dark, headed north to the other side of Lake Pontchartrain. The pack, she was told, was looking for a new hunting ground, after an incident in an alley downtown in which the wolf Ash nearly bit through a man’s throat who’d put his hands on Rosemary. As a group, they’d decided that while rules were changing, wolves were marrying panthers, strong feelings were high, and everyone was starting to lose control of their inner beasts, it was best to hunt away from Normals.
Up until that night’s hunt, GiGi had spent all her time while not at the restaurant lazing around Vann’s house. She’d never been happier. It wasn’t just the sex—though certainly the mind-blowing cunnilingus on his kitchen island, tantric style in his oversized clawfoot tub, and doggy style in the bedroom made her life joyful and exciting—but the simple pleasures of domestic life made her heart happy and fulfilled.
Apart from the nightly movies with popcorn and snuggling on the sofa, the abundance of sex was borne out of the dread over Vann’s looming departure. They needed to fit in as much time as possible with each other. Vann’s break was coming to a close, and he would have to fly out the next day. And he would not be back until the bachelor party, a few days before the wedding in June.
He and GiGi had hashed out every possible plan, but every discussion ended the same. She needed to stay to plan the cake and be there for wedding planning; GiGi refused to let Vann break his contract with his travel show.
When they arrived at the clearing in the woods on the edge of the lake, Pen, Ash, Bobby, Gavin, and JB were already there. Pen did not look happy to see her but said nothing as nobody else seemed to have a problem with GiGi being there as they shifted.
When the inevitable happened, they had already undressed. GiGi respectfully kept her eyes away from the others and focused on Vann. Naked in the moonlight in the trees, he was even more stunning than the Viking god superhero he resembled fully clothed in the daylight.
And then, the change began. They all looked at each other and looked at GiGi. Ash asked in a deeper, edgier voice than normal, “Do you think it might be dangerous for her to be here?”
Vann glowered. “She’s my mate, no matter what anybody here thinks. Anyone try anything with her, they’re toast. Whether you’re in my pack or not.”
There was a growl from Pen and then Bobby chimed in. “Come on, you know we’re better than that.”
Vann nodded at Bobby but gave Pen a look of warning. “I do know that. I trust all of you. And we’ve already accepted Rosemary as part of the family, so I hope we can all just get over ourselves. Okay?”
Pen let out a low growl before nodding and running off down the path, disappearing into the woods.
Vann gave GiGi one last kiss and then turned, letting out a huge howl at the moon. He disappeared behind a huge oak tree, and when he reappeared, he had changed.
There was her Buster. He trotted over to her and nudged her leg as she reached down and gave his shining grey fur a pet. And then he took off at full speed down the path.
What choice did she have but to run and try to keep up? Eventually, she did, and when she arrived, they were all sharing a dinner of fresh rabbits. She could not watch them eat adorable rabbits. She could not even bring herself to serve rabbit at her restaurant, nor could she ever eat wild bunnies when she
