Page 17 of Pack Scratch Fever

MADDOX

Joy.

That’s what I’m scenting on Piper.

It’s heavenly and sweeter than her normal minty lemon scent. She’s made of spun sugar with a citrusy, herby note.

Her smile makes time stand still.

I’ll adopt every cat in the world to keep her smiling like that.

There’s a fire in her eyes.

She looks alive .

I know I’ve been pushing her limits by flirting and calling her pet names, but I can’t help it.

She’s ours.

Even if Poe doesn’t see it yet, I know Avery does, and I’ll make Piper believe it.

“I would do anything you wanted just to see you like this,” I admit, and her brow furrows. “Any. Fucking. Thing. You. Want.”

Her pupils widen, and her mouth parts slightly. “I have to go,” she breathes. “I have to talk to the lady?—”

She doesn’t even finish her sentence before she power walks out of the aisle past Mari, lemon bars and sugary bliss wafting behind her.

I go to follow her, but the older woman stops me. “She’s a good girl,” she tells me, blocking my path and touching my arm gently.

I nod. “I know.”

“She’s been hurt before. She’s fragile.”

My eyes narrow. “I’m aware, and I don’t have any plans of hurting her, Mari, I promise you.”

“That last boy—” she sighs. “Well, I shouldn’t tell you this…”

I could betray Piper’s trust right now. It’s obvious that this woman wants to tell me everything she knows, and I would love to know who treated Piper so terribly.

I shake my head. “She’ll tell me when she’s ready.”

Mari pats my arm. “I hope so. That girl bottles everything up. She just needs someone to be patient with her. I wanted her to date my nephew, but no matter what I do, she doesn’t seem interested.”

A growl rumbles in my chest, but thankfully, Mari doesn’t notice.

“Your nephew is going to have to get behind me in line, Mari,” I state, and she laughs.

“She seems to like you, though. Are you coming back to help us again? The cats love you as well. We can always use volunteers.”

“Of course. As long as she’ll have me.”

Mari looks delighted. “Oh, it better work out with you two, then!”

I smile. “I plan on that happening, don’t worry.”

My plan is to follow Piper around like a damn cat if I have to.

I can tell Mari still wants to talk, but I’m engrossed in watching Piper speak with Darlene’s new owner. She’s all smiles as she kisses the grey tabby cat goodbye.

Am I jealous of a cat?

Yes, I am.

Avery would die laughing if he knew.

“I need to head out, sweetie,” Mari adds. “But it was so nice to meet you. Please take care of our girl.”

“I’ll make sure we do,” I promise her. “My packmates and me.”

Mari’s grey eyes widen. “Oh, a pack! How wonderful for Piper!”

I laugh, and Piper shoots a look my way, narrowing her eyes.

I simply wink at her, and she looks away, blushing.

“Be good, honey,” Mari says. She heads over to Piper and whispers something in her ear, and my Omega buries her face in her hands in embarrassment.

I snicker and busy myself with picking out more food to purchase for the cats. I can sense Piper’s eyes on me as I pay for my donations at the register, and when I hand her another massive bag full of cat supplies, she shakes her head and smiles.

“Okay, Maddox,” she says. “You really don’t have to do all of this.”

“Oh, let him, Piper,” Gary says. “Make sure he’s good for something.”

I still have my work cut out for me with Gary. He’s unsure about me, but I respect that he’s protective of Piper.

Something happened to her, and everyone around her must have seen the aftermath.

Of course, they would be wary of anyone coming into her life.

“We appreciate it, Maddox,” Heidi says gently. “Any extra that we have will go to our fosters. Who are we to turn down cat food?”

Piper rolls her eyes but keeps a small smile on her face. “Alright,” she says to me. “But no more. You’ve done more than enough today.”

“Like I told you, babe,” I say, “this is fun for me. This gives me something to do outside of staring at a computer all day.”

Piper bites her lip. “Fun?” she deadpans. “Sitting at a pet store all day was fun for you?”

“Of course. I got to look at you all day.”

She groans and punches me playfully on the arm. “You are impossible .”

But I hear Gary let out a soft huff of laughter, and I know I’m one step closer to winning over an important person in Piper’s life.

“I think we’re got this, Pipe,” Heidi adds, motioning to the tables. “We only have to bring Coral and Henry back—we had a great adoption day.”

Piper beams, her hazel eyes brilliant, and I hesitantly reach my arm around her shoulders, waiting for her to stop me.

She doesn’t. She steps in closer, her delicious Omega perfume surrounding me, and my mouth waters.

Heidi smiles. “We can take care of this, Piper. You’re free for the day.”

Piper shakes her head. “No, it’s only five o’clock. You don’t have to do this all by yourself.”

“Piper,” Gary insists. “Just go have a fun rest of your evening, kiddo.”

I grin. “Yeah, Piper. Have a fun rest of your evening.”

She scowls at me, and I resist leaning down to kiss her.

She’d probably slap me, and I’d deserve it.

Or enjoy the slap too much.

“Fine,” she huffs. “But I’m not leaving just yet. I’ll be here if you need me.”

Gary sighs. “I figured you’d say that. Make your boyfriend take you to dinner or something.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.”

Not yet.

I squeeze her shoulders. “I’d be happy to take you to dinner, dear .”

“Ugh.” She moves away from me and scowls. “I’m not leaving until these cats leave. I’ll browse around and be here if you need me, Gary.” She walks away, leaving a trail of her sugary scent behind her.

Once she’s out of earshot, Gary points at me. “Be good to her. I mean it, son.”

I nod solemnly. “I will.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it. And you’ll come back and volunteer more?”

“Absolutely.”

“Then go talk to her and buy her a decent meal.”

“With pleasure.”

Gary scrutinizes me, as if he’s trying to see every part of who I am. It would be unnerving if I didn’t do the same to other people. “She’s a good kid and works her ass off.”

“I can tell,” I say easily. “You have no reason to doubt me, Gary.”

He harrumphs . “All right. Well, make sure she eats.”

“I will.”

After I’ve received Gary’s nod of approval, I search for Piper, following her sugary scent.

I find her standing in front of a gerbil habitat, her back to me. A dark brown gerbil has its face to the glass and eyes her curiously.

“You’ve got an army of people ready to go to war for you,” I tell her. She scoffs and taps where the gerbil’s nose is, quirking her lip as she does.

“Yeah. They can be a little protective, I guess.”

The gerbil runs away to join its cream-colored counterpart, and Piper turns to face me.

“Gary wants you to have dinner,” I smirk. “He gave me specific orders to make sure you eat.”

She raises an eyebrow, unimpressed. “Well, lucky for Gary, I have instant noodles waiting for me at home.”

“Come on,” I purr, crossing my arms. “Avery got to take you to dinner. Why not me?”

I need to make sure she’s eaten.

I need to make sure she’s taken care of.

The more I learn about her from her friends, the harder it is to fight the urge to scoop her into my arms and take her to our packhouse.

We have a nesting room waiting for her, and she doesn’t even know it.

She opens her mouth but closes it quickly.

“See?” I insist. “You have nothing. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t take you to dinner.”

Piper squints, as if looking for a reason. “I’m not hungry.”

That doesn’t deter me. “You will be eventually. And when that time comes, I’m going to be the one to feed you.”

She bursts out laughing. “Oh, my god. Do you know how ominous that sounds?”

But I have her smiling again, and that’s all that matters.

“I said feed you, not feast on you,” I quip, and she laughs again, light and carefree. The two gerbils make a reappearance, standing on their hind legs and wrinkling their noses. Piper hums delightedly as she watches them.

“Did you ever have pets?” she asks. “The cat colony that destroyed Poe’s herb garden doesn’t count.”

I chuckle. “No, they definitely don’t count. I did have dogs growing up, though. They were mutts, just huge beasts that my mother adopted one day from a rescue like yours. She was against buying from breeders, and she said to always adopt pets, never shop for them.”

“Oh, wow. Your mom sounds really awesome,” Piper says.

I shrug. “She was, yeah.”

There’s a beat of silence.

It doesn’t hurt to talk about her or my father anymore. The issue is the awkwardness that comes from the other person when they realize I’m talking about my parents in the past tense.

But Piper is worth it. She deserves to know.

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Her eyes soften, and her mouth falls open.

“It was a long time ago,” I say. “And you’re right. She was awesome. You two would have gotten along well, I’m sure.”

“What about your dad? Is he into pets?”

“He was as well.”

She looks horrified.

“I’m an idiot,” she stammers. “I’m so sorry, Maddox. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“I have nothing to hide from you,” I say. “It all happened so long ago, sweetheart. I’ve lived more than half my life now without them. There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

It’s not my favorite topic of conversation, of course. I was seventeen when I lost them to a drunk driver. But the hardest part is the pity that follows after the explanation.

I don’t want Piper to stop asking me questions about my life. I don’t want to stop sharing with her.

“Anyway, Stone and Pewter got me through it. Those dogs saved my life. Having them to care for is what kept me going through everything. I understand what people mean when they say animals are special, Piper. We’re lucky to have them.”

There’s a beat of silence, and Piper’s warm eyes shine.

“I had no idea,” she breathes. “And here I am, thinking my problems are bad. My parents are still around, but they don’t like me, so I have a chip on my shoulder, I guess.” She laughs bitterly.

“What do you mean?” My eyes narrow.

How could someone not like her?