Page 4 of Pack Scratch Fever

PIPER

“I’m sorry ,” Blair says as she locks the door to the rescue. “He smelled like catnip ?”

“I swear,” I laugh, my face aching from smiling. “And the kitten didn’t want to let go of him. Alvin was into him, too.”

“So, he smells like catnip, but he doesn’t like cats.” Blair smiles knowingly. “Duality of man. He’s cursed forever, I fear.”

I chuckle. “Good. He was rude as hell.” I read the paperwork he dropped off. “ Poe Carlsen.”

“Sounds pretentious,” Blair agrees. “Like he’s some scholar that’s too good for everyone.”

“Yeah, he was acting like the form was an inconvenience,” I murmur. “It took him two whole minutes to fill it out, but obviously, his time is much more valuable than that.”

I skim the form he left. Poe’s not even ten minutes from here; it didn’t take him that much effort to visit.

According to his birth year, he’s thirty-nine years old.

Old enough not to be a douche.

“He was cute, though,” Blair says knowingly.

I look up. “Huh?”

“He was cute. You wouldn’t still be staring at his form if he weren’t.”

“No?!” I sputter. “What are you talking about? I was just reading it.”

“What did he look like?” Blair grins as she tidies up the reception area. “Cuter than Kyle?”

I make a face. “Okay, Kyle’s not cute. Anyone is more attractive than he is.”

“Correction. Kyle is objectively attractive, but he requires a lobotomy and personality change to be tolerable. So, was Poe cute?”

“Don’t be weird,” I murmur, unable to look at my friend.

Truthfully? Poe was handsome. Ridiculously tall, olive complexion, brown hair, piercing grey eyes, and a little scruff on his face. He had the occasional grey hair on his head, obviously from being an insufferable, arrogant prick.

“Ha. He was cute. And he smells like catnip? He’s a perfect match for you,” Blair says.

“Please don’t try to set me up with anyone. Not after you’ve been hounding me about my suppressants,” I sigh.

“It’s just a little teasing,” Blair assures me. “It just sounds like a perfect scent match to me. You love cats, and he naturally attracts cats.”

I huff. “Yeah, I can see how catnip and catmint could go together. Too bad he’s not an animal person. At least he brought that kitten in safe.”

The sweet kitten is in her little quarantine cage until our vet can get her fixed and vaccinated. She is a purr machine, and from what Blair and I could tell, completely healthy. She has no fleas, and her fur is a pure, clean white.

There’s no way that Poe doesn’t have more kittens in his backyard. I wonder if I’ll end up seeing him again.

I shrug. “But it is what it is,” I continue. “I could never have imagined being with someone who doesn’t like cats.”

The thought makes my chest ache. I imagine a different scenario, where Poe did like cats and our conversation earlier went differently.

Maybe it ended with him asking me out, realizing that we’re scent matches.

Maybe—

There’s a knock at the door, startling both Blair and me. I look up to see two handsome Alphas standing outside, one holding a cardboard box in his hands.

One wears a soft smile and has messy golden blonde hair. He gives a smile and a friendly wave when he sees me, and the other one holding the box just smirks. He has sharp, handsome features with short black hair and knowing eyes.

“Ugh,” Blair groans. “Another drop-off. What is the point of having a sign if they don’t read it? We’ve been closed for half an hour now.”

The one with dark hair knocks again, and I sigh, standing. “You know we’re not going to say no to a cat if we have space,” I mutter.

“I know,” Blair huffs.

I unlock the door and give both of the Alphas a polite smile. “Hi, we’re actually closed for the evening,” I say. “Can you come back tomorrow?”

But as the breeze hits me, so do their scents.

Judging by the way my body responds, my suppressants haven’t been doing anything for me.

My knees almost buckle when I inhale them.

The blonde one with the box smells like sweet chamomile tea, like a comforting cup I would drink in the summer.

He’s slightly floral and nutty with a tantalizing aroma that makes my heart pound.

The other Alpha, the one with icy blue eyes that pierce through me, has a ginger and pepper scent. Still slightly sweet, but with a kick.

They’re both mouthwatering to smell and to look at.

I panic.

I want to shut the door in their faces and never see them again, because they smell utterly tempting.

Just as delicious as Poe, but in their own ways.

“I know you’re closed,” the dark-haired one purrs. “But we could really use your help.”

My body shivers at his voice. It’s rich and low, with a commanding bass that makes my stomach flip.

A slight mew comes from the uncovered box, and I snap out of my stupor.

I was never going to reject a cat when we have the space.

“We would really appreciate it,” the blonde one says, his tone sincere. “We know you’re the best place to go, and we would be forever grateful.”

Blair snorts behind me, and my lip twitches.

“Alright, well, when you say it like that ,” I murmur, swinging the door open. “Come on in.”

They’re handsome, my body has a reaction to them, but that doesn’t mean anything.

The cat is the important part.

The blonde Alpha places the box gently on the counter. “I hope you have room,” he says politely, gifting me a small, sweet smile. “We understand if you don’t.”

I study him. He’s wearing an emerald green V-neck shirt and light wash jeans, and his amber eyes stand out in contrast to his outfit.

“Yeah, we know you’re the best around here,” the other Alpha says, looking at Blair then shooting me a quick wink. He’s in a black sweatshirt and dark jeans, and chipped black nail polish colors his fingers.

He’s the exact opposite of the other Alpha.

I catch Blair’s expression, and she rolls her eyes and quirks her lip. At least they didn’t come in just to flirt—they came to seek help for a kitten.

“Let’s see what you’ve got,” I say, “and then we’ll go from there.”

I reach into the box and pluck out a cream-colored kitten with a brown face and ears, along with icy blue eyes. It gives me a slow blink, and I cradle it to my chest.

“Oh,” Blair breathes. “You found a Meezer.”

The dark-haired Alpha tilts his head. “A what?”

“A Siamese,” I explain. “But we call them Meezers.”

“She’s gorgeous,” the blonde Alpha says softly.

My heart pounds at the gentle expression he gives the kitten.

“We have space for her,” I say. “Once she gets vaccinated and fixed, she’ll be one of the first to get adopted out. I just need you to fill out some paperwork.”

“Thank you,” the dark-haired Alpha sighs. “We would keep her, but our roommate…you know how it is.” He shrugs. “Some people just aren’t fun.” He looks at me pointedly, a hunger in his eyes.

Blair comes to take the kitten from me. “Having a pet is a big responsibility,” she says, cradling the ball of fur. “We’ll take care of her, though.”

He turns his attention to Blair, but all the intensity he had in his eyes disappears. “You guys are famous, right?” he asks. “Avery and I looked you up online before we came.”

I glance at the other Alpha, who still has a sweet smile on his face.

Avery.

“I’m Piper, by the way,” I say, and he reaches out his hand to take mine.

“Avery. And my friend is Maddox.”

I pretend not to be affected by the simple act of a handshake.

But I realize with a start that I haven’t touched an Alpha in…forever.

When the creepy or annoying ones come around, I make sure that there’s always a respectable distance.

I don’t flirt back.

I have no interest.

My stomach cramps, and I do my best to keep a straight face as I inhale Avery’s sweet, comforting scent.

Oh, no .

They need to leave.

“Here,” I say quickly, yanking open the desk drawer and placing the form on the table. “Since we’re technically closed, if you could just fill out this form, we can take care of everything from there.”

I can feel Blair’s eyes watching me. She’s known me long enough to recognize the subtle panic in my voice, and I’m sure she has an idea why.

The Alpha’s scents are affecting me way too much.

First Poe and now Avery and Maddox…

I’ve got to get home.

“Do you ever need volunteers?” Maddox asks, and I almost choke. I practically throw the pen at Avery, who frowns when he takes it and begins to scribble in his info.

“We always need volunteers!” Blair says cheekily. “Volunteers or donations! There are always more cats to help, right, Pipe?”

I turn to Blair, who is watching me with a smirk on her face. I purposely ignore Maddox’s stare and keep my eyes locked with my best friend.

I want to kill her.

But who am I to turn down what’s best for the cats?

“Of course,” I mutter, finally turning to meet Maddox’s gaze. I look away quickly though, unnerved by the way he’s watching me. “I can give you our contact information, and you can come back another time.”

I grip the edge of the desk, mortified at my reaction to their scents.

This is ridiculous.

My body is betraying me at the worst possible time.

“Sounds great, gorgeous,” Maddox purrs, and I wrinkle my nose in distaste, even though a tiny shiver travels down my spine.

Gorgeous.

Avery slides the paper back to me with a grin, his sweet tea scent making my mouth water.

“We appreciate everything. We would keep her if we could,” he says, his tone softening.

He looks wistfully at the kitten Blair holds.

“What you do is special, and we’re sincerely grateful.

We’ll be sure to come back in the future with donations. ”

My heart skips a beat at Avery’s kindness. “Thank you,” I say.

“See you around, Pipe,” Maddox says, flashing me another grin, and I scowl at his casual use of my nickname.

“I’ll walk you both out,” Blair says, kitten still cuddled to her chest. I stay rooted in my desk chair, keeping my legs clamped together.

I’ve never had such an intense reaction to scents before.

First with Poe, and now with those two other Alphas.