Page 30 of A Twist of Luck (Shifter City Fated Mates #2)

CHAPTER 30

EMME

M y head remained a fuzzy mess of confusion and self-recrimination as I made my way through the house. What the hell had I been thinking? Why had I even stuck around when I figured out who was in the garage?

I should have run the moment I scented him.

Fuck , it was probably half his scent’s fault, the connection between us pushing our beasts to be together, while blurring the memories of him being a raging prick with anger issues.

Despite zero regrets with Kellan, I wasn’t prepared to bond with the rest of them unless necessary. At least not until I better understood the consequences of Kellan’s claim, and whether he showed any signs of being corrupted by the energy.

I could feel tendrils of his calm, sleeping mind as I reached the foyer, and I found myself once again pressing my hand to the bite on my neck. The urge to return to him was strong, but I fought against it, needing food first.

I did end up taking a side quest to my room to put sweatpants on, and when I entered the calm of my space, I exhaled out my tension from Finley. There was a nice distraction in the form of a small pile of glossy magazines on the end of my bed, right where the basket of period supplies had been. Another gift?

The cover on top was a familiar publication even though I hadn’t seen a copy of Muscle Cars Monthly in years . There was also Bike Talk , Supercars of the future , Rebuilt , and a few other Ducati-specific ones.

There was no scent attached, leaving me with no idea who’d been thoughtful enough to leave them here. Clutching them tightly to my chest, I tried not to let more tears spill free—I was a walking water factory at this point. But could anyone blame me when I had a pack of alphas out here doing the things ?

Leaving the magazines on the end of the bed to read later, I threw on panties, black sweats, and socks to finish off the outfit. On my way out, I opened the windows to check out the day, relieved to see the sun shining over a perfect fall morning. It was peaceful at first, staring into the leaves that were almost all gold and orange, but after a few minutes there was this odd sensation of being watched. I'd felt a similar tingle down my spine when Hunter had been stalking me at Warrick’s home, but this was different.

This was no one in my pack.

With a yank on the shutters, I blocked it out, which dulled the sensation. I was probably still jumpy from everything that had happened over the past week, and as I’d told Finley, it wasn’t easy for anyone to get inside this property without alerting one of the alphas. Especially Slade, who was our guard dragon and security expert.

Leaving the window, I ducked into the bathroom to check my appearance, relieved to see I looked normal, my hair was finally dry after my shower, loose and hanging down my back. There was a slight flush to my skin, and I felt rather energized despite having recently shared my power.

I blew Kellan a kiss as I passed his door, because I was a lovesick fool, but I didn’t let myself get distracted from food again.

In the kitchen I expected to run into Florence or Gerry, but found myself staring at a strange woman, sitting at the bench and reading Hunter’s usual paper while she ate four of the breakfast sandwiches. She had strong alpha energy and was definitely a wolf, her scent giving off a faint hint of strawberries.

Okay, who in the fuck was this shifter? She was clearly comfortable enough with the pack to sit in their kitchen and eat their food, and I wasn’t sure which part pissed me off more—the fact that she was eating my favorite food in the house, or that she was so comfortable here when I’d never met her.

Comfortable and pretty, with long, tanned limbs, black curls, and a heart-shaped face.

When I stepped into the room, her head shot up and I almost took a step back, because pretty did not cover it. She was absolutely stunning, with huge blue eyes and full red lips.

Her face lit up when she saw me. “Emme!” she cried, like we were old friends.

She unfolded herself from the bench and hurried toward me, standing only an inch or two shorter than me. Along with her beautiful face, apparently she also had curves to absolutely die for.

Eating my sandwiches and also having perfect tits and ass…

Excuse the fuck out of me.

Her smile grew and grew, and the longer I stared into her features, the more I was reminded of someone. She had a more feminine look of?—

“I’m Kassidy. Hunter’s sister.”

Four little words and all my anger toward her vanished. “Shit, I’m sorry,” I said quickly, returning her smile for the first time. “I’m not sure if you could tell from my glaring, but I kind of lost my mind there and went weirdly territorial about another female shifter being in the house. I mean, it was mostly over the breakfast sandwiches, but a little over the alphas too.”

It was a huge overshare, but to my relief she snorted and let out a loud laugh. “Oh, damn. I see why my brother is so obsessed with you. You’re perfection.”

I froze at her freely offered compliment; my brain moved slowly as I attempted to process how I should take those words. Was I supposed to respond in kind with my own praise for this confident alpha? Friendship rules were hard, and I often felt like a fish floundering on land.

Kassidy saved me from overthinking when she placed her hand on my arm. “I’m a huge believer that women should always build up other women.” I was surrounded by her sweet, husky laughter. “And we also need to be honest with each other. Which is why I’ll tell you how amazing you are… and if the dress makes you look like a bag of potatoes. It’s balance. It’s trust. And it’s honesty. I value all three.”

“Me too,” I said, feeling comfortable with her already. Kassidy had a strong personality, like her brother, the hurricane. I’d already known that to some degree, after Kellan explained her decision to shun quintet life and live on her own without any pack. And not for a reason like mine, but because she valued her independence and privacy.

“In the face of honesty,” I continued, “I have to say that you’re quite possibly the most beautiful, intimidating female I’ve ever met. I really need to meet your parents and assess the genetic combination that created the perfection of you and Hunter.”

Kassidy’s face shuttered, but before she replied, a mocha scent wrapped around me, and a wall of muscles pressed against my spine. “You will meet my parents over my dead body, little omega,” Hunter said shortly, wrapping his arms around me. “Their particular brand of evil will never taint your particular brand of sweet innocence.”

I spluttered and tried to turn in his arms, but he was far too strong. He kept me locked against his front, his hands sliding under the hoodie and across the bare skin of my stomach. “I’m far from innocent,” I protested, squeezing my thighs together in an attempt to counter how good his touch felt. Kellan had flipped the switch, and whatever hold I’d had on my sexual needs was gone. “I found my mom’s body when she died, and went on the run, and lived like a rogue for years. I’ve seen some shit.”

Even if most of my adult life had been more about loneliness and boredom, the earlier years with Mom and her pack had left scars. Most internal, but I’d always have one large reminder on my back. My innocence had slowly bled from me in those years. Now I was a broken mess who couldn’t even bond with her pack except under duress.

Kassidy, who watched me closely, shook her head. “It’s not about discounting what you’ve experienced in your life, Emme. Hunter understands that you’ve been through hell too, right, brother?”

Hunter grunted, and we nodded along with the universal sign for agreement from an alpha. Or disagreement. Or anything, really. In this case, though, it sounded like the affirmative.

“It’s the purity of who you are in your essence,” Kassidy continued with a very brief smile. “Our parents are not good shifters. I’d go as far as to say that there’s true evil within them and their quintet. Hunter has the right idea in keeping them far away from you.”

Hunter brushed a thumb over my cheek, and I glanced up to find him smirking. “Your cheeks are pink, baby girl. You can’t take compliments, that’s for sure, but I do enjoy this flushed look on your face.” His thumb scraped lower and lower, until it brushed over the mark on my shoulder, shifting the hoodie to reveal the bite. “How are you feeling after this?”

“I think that’s my cue to leave,” Kassidy said as I remained caught in Hunter’s predatory gaze. “I just popped in to check on our Kellan. Tell him I’ll see him tomorrow at the family barbeque.”

Shit, it had been almost a week since we got Kellan back here, and tomorrow was the Sunday family event.

“Tomorrow is hockey,” Hunter said softly, gaze remaining on me. “They had to shift the game back a day.”

“I’ll see you there, then.”

“See you tomorrow,” I called to Kassidy, tearing away from her brother. “It was really nice to meet you.”

She darted over and pressed a kiss to my cheek, which had Hunter growling and lifting me away from her. “Mine,” he added, in case his actions weren’t clear enough.

His sister’s smirk was so similar to Hunter’s that I almost did a double take. “I know, brother,” she said, patting him on the cheek. “I’ve seen the tattoo. But you also need to learn to share. Emme is my new sister, and I will love on her as much as I want. Don’t even think about fighting me on that, or I’ll destroy you. Entitled alpha or not.”

My responding smile was broad and amused, and it only grew as Hunter groaned. “I’m ordering you two not to gang up against me. You’re not allowed. That’s a fucking command from an entitled alpha.”

Leaning away from his hold to meet Kassidy’s gaze, I said, “Well, new sister, I feel it’s my duty to inform Hunter that you’re technically an entitled alpha as well.”

Hunter looked aghast. “But… she’s in a pack of one.”

“Still counts,” we said together, and Hunter dropped his head back and pressed his right hand to the bridge of his nose, muttering goddess be damned , which set Kassidy off into laughter once more.

“Oh, she’s not going to be any help here, Alpha Hunter. You’re well and truly fucked.”

With that, she laughed all the way out of the kitchen, a real pep in her step.

Hunter remained in the position of half despair until I patted his chest, and his gaze snapped down to mine. “I’ve really been looking forward to meeting her, and that did not disappoint in any way.”

With a shake of his head, he lifted me higher, burying his face in my throat as he breathed me in. The fire of his dominance died down with each inhalation, until eventually he placed me on the stool Kassidy had left pushed away from the counter. “Just know, little omega,” he said, leaning down to my height, “that whatever you two cook up, you’ll be the only one who gets punished.”

His eyes darkened, and the flash of gold had me squirming in my seat.

It was hard to tell if he was kidding or not, but in reality, I really didn’t care. Hunter’s punishments took on a whole new meaning these days, and I was here for it .

Time to start my plan to stir up these alphas’ lives. Slade might be the first on my list, but Hunter, the domineering asshole, was second.

I couldn’t wait.