Page 3

CHAPTER 2

K atlego sipped his fruity neon-green drink, savoring the apple undertones that somehow avoided that fake apple taste he detested. Perched on a tall stool, he swung his feet back and forth while waiting at the bar for Anthony to finish his meeting. With a drink that tasted a lot like apple suckers, Kat was having an unusually pleasant childhood flashback.

He’d come to Hotel Paradise for a meeting with the Alpha Mate, Anthony, about his position in the pack and what he could do to earn his house. The pack had given him a beautiful cabin in their new housing development. It wasn’t much larger than the one he’d shared with his grandmother, but it had three bedrooms instead of two, and so far, no belligerent assholes had come banging on his door, insisting he heal their easily avoidable wounds. It also had a nice patch of fenced land for a garden. So far, things with the Moon Pack had been far superior to his previous group.

“Sorry, I’m late.” Anthony’s woodsy, magical scent reached him before his words registered.

Kat clamped down on his mountain lion instincts to show his belly and bask in Anthony’s presence. “That’s fine. Your bartender has been busy trying to get me drunk while I wait.”

Anthony laughed. “He’s new. He does a good job, but I’m unsure if this is the right spot for him.” He gave the bartender a considering glance through his lashes before focusing back on Kat.

He tilted his head back and showed his throat. All that power aimed at him made him forget to breathe until Anthony turned away to request adrink.

“How are things going with your house? Are you settling in all right? I know you left home with only a small bag and your bird, and the cabin was barely furnished when you moved in. I don’t know if anyone has told you yet, but a few of our people opened a furniture store a year ago. They offer pack members a nice discount, and your housing allowance should stretch further through them. I can give you their address if you’d like.”

“Thank you, I’d appreciate that.” Kat cleared his throat and asked the question he’d worried over since he’d left his clan. “That was one thing I wanted to talk to you about, but maybe I should be asking Alpha Silver. Am I a pack member? I-I don’t want to impose more than I already have, and I know the houses are for pack members only.” His cheeks warmed as words tumbled from his mouth with little filter. This always happened when he got nervous.

Awkwardness, thy name is Katlego.

Anthony picked up his drink, ignoring the bartender’s fawning bow. “If you want to be. We rescued you to save you from possible experimentation, not to indoctrinate the unwilling. We provided you with a place to live and additional money because we forced you to abandon your home. If you don’t want to join the pack, we can move you off our lands and give you some money to get you started elsewhere. You’re not obligated to be a pack member.”

“No!” The word burst out before his mind had fully processed his instinctive denial. Kat swallowed the anxious lump in his throat when every head in the bar snapped in his direction. Shit! He had to fix this before the other customers dragged him out of there for shouting at the Alpha Mate. From what he’d seen, they were very protective of Anthony. Even the lone vampire in the corner glared at him.

“I didn’t mean to distress you.” Anthony sipped his drink. His analytic gaze picked Kat apart. “Silver has the final say, but he wouldn’t allow you to move onto the pack lands if he didn’t approve.”

Kat wished Anthony would look away. The Alpha Mate’s understanding smile didn’t detract from his overwhelming magic. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you. I don’t want you to think I’m ungrateful for all you’ve done, but I need to know the protocol for pack jobs. Are you expecting me to fill a particular spot? Do you have something you want me to do in exchange for my housing? I don’t have much money, and I’m uncomfortable being an official healer since you have an actual doctor.”

“We do,” Anthony confirmed. “You also said you’ve been a hairdresser. Do you want to do that? We require that everyone in the pack contribute somehow, but we prefer you do something you enjoy. A happy pack member is a better pack member,” Anthony said in a singsong tone as if he repeated it often. A few people in the bar snorted into their drinks. More than the lone vampire was listening in on their conversation.

“I wouldn’t mind cutting hair, but I don’t want a salon or anything. If people want to come to my house, I’d happily do it for a small fee. What I really would like to do is open a store for organic bath and personal care items. I have some great recipes for healing balms and soaps, and I enjoy the process of making things. I want to continue that.” He leaned back and clenched his hands together to prevent biting his nails. A terrible habit he reverted to when stressed.

“Hmm.” Anthony set down his drink, and his eyes took on a faraway glint.

Kat fidgeted with his glass as he waited for Anthony’s judgment.

It took a few heart-stopping minutes before Anthony replied. “How about this? You make me a sample of all the bath items you want to sell. Can you do large batches?”

“Yes. My last group went through tons of lotion and hair care items, but I had to leave my garden behind.” It had broken his heart to abandon the little plot where he’d grown most of his herbs, but his life had been on the line, and he had no difficulty choosing between the two.

“Send me samples of your products. If I like them, I’ll help you develop an exclusive line of bath care goods for my hotels. We can sell them in the rooms and gift shops and possibly make mini travel kits. Does that sound like something you’d be interested in?”

“H-how many hotels?” Would it be wrong to jump for glee during a business meeting? Kat barely kept it together.

“How about we start with this one?” Anthony tapped the bar. “This is my most upscale hotel so far, and if you can specialize your products by species, that would be even better. I can give you a list of the most well-known herbs that bother vampires, fae, and shifters. If you tell me what ingredients you’ll need, I’ll provide them until you can grow your own or find better sources. What do you think about making generic, non-scented versions for the rooms and scented ones for the gift shop? If they do well, we can expand and maybe put little boutiques in the other hotels.”

By the time Anthony finished speaking, Kat was all but vibrating in his seat. “I would love that project!” Not only would he be helping the pack, but he could also build a nice nest egg and possibly fulfill his dream of adopting a child. There were a lot of kids out there, especially shifters, who needed a home and didn’t have a relative to take them in. Some shifters were prone to rejecting children who were different in any way. Kat wanted to give at least one of those kids a home.

“Great!” Anthony’s charming grin almost derailed Kat’s thoughts.

No wonder he was a successful businessman. Who could resist a smile like that?

“If the contract works out, we’ll get you a workshop and some helpers. Maybe they can do the easy stuff while you develop new products.”

Kat bit his lip. “I don’t want to share my grandmother’s recipes. What if they steal them?” He held up a hand, stopping Anthony’s words. He quickly put it down when he realized what he had done. “Not that I think anyone in the pack is a thief, I just…” He didn’t know how to make it sound better.

A furrow deepened between Anthony’s brows. Kat winced at the sight, worried he’d somehow ruined his chance at stable employment.

“I can make a magical employment contract that will prevent them from sharing what they learn from you. Will that work?”

“Yes. Thank you.” He gulped a mouthful of his drink, not tasting it so much as giving him a way to hide his embarrassment.

“Hey." Anthony gently touched Kat’s wrist. “I’m not upset. It’s a valid concern. I understand why you might be nervous about sharing your family recipes with strangers. Even though I trust the pack, information can travel fast and far, within minutes. I’ll take care of the contracts when we find you employees. Do you have any other concerns?”

Before Kat could reply, a blast of magic slammed into the bar, bright and blinding. Only his foot hooked around the barstool rungs kept him upright.

Dishes tumbled, bottles of liquorsmashed to the floor, and some patrons fell off their elegant chairs. The other bar customers screamed and called out to each other. Only a few people had been as stable as Kat.

“What the hell?” Kat muttered. He blinked repeatedly, trying to clear the spots in his vision.

Once he could focus again, he gasped.

A boy lay embedded in the bar. The wood had wrapped around his body, and his face pressed close beneath the shiny, shellacked surface. His eyes were closed, and only the slow rise and fall of his chest revealed any signs of life.

Anthony stood from where he’d remained poised on his stool, unruffled as always. “Silence!”

Everyone stopped making sounds as if a pause button had been pushed.

Kat couldn’t help but be impressed by their automatic obedience.

Addressing the room, Anthony asked, “Was anyone injured?”

Murmurs of ‘no’ and ‘we’re fine’ rumbled through the bar.

Anthony stepped away from the embedded body, blocking it from casual view. “Good. I want everyone to evacuate while we investigate what happened! Don’t worry about your bar bills. We’ll cover them to make up for the inconvenience. No one will be charged for this afternoon, and if you need to have anything dry cleaned, submit the bill to the front desk for reimbursement.” Cheers burst from the patrons as they happily vacated until only Anthony and Kat remained. Even the bartender had left after a head tilt from Anthony.

It must be good to be queen . Kat held back a snigger. He was feeling cattier than usual, or maybe Kattier.

“Shall we check out our visitor?” Anthony asked, disrupting Kat’s internal sniggering.

“Yes.”

Before they even reached the bar, Alpha Silver rushed into the room.

“What happened? I could hear people mutteringabout a magical wave and free booze.” He reached for Anthony, who clasped his hands.

The Alpha pair stared into each other’s eyes until Kat cleared his throat to break up the moment. Usually, he could watch the beautiful couple forever, but a kid was buried under the bar top.

“Right.” Anthony flashed Kat a megawatt smile, before returning his attention to his mate. “How did you get here so quickly?”

Kat had wondered that also. He’d heard the Alpha pair had a mental connection, but Silver still had to travel across town. Didn’t he?

“I was coming to surprise you with a lunch date when everyone came streaming out of the hotel. What happened?”

Anthony pointed at the bar. “He did.”

Silver peered at the boy lying inside. “How did he get in there?”

“We don’t know,” Kat said, joining the couple in staring at the poor kid. “He looks like he’s breathing, but how can he be alive in there?”

Anthony pressed his right hand directly over the center of the boy’s chest, then closed his eyes and let out a low hum. His fingers emitted a brilliant white glow. Two seconds later, he removed his hand and opened his eyes. “If my reading came out right, he’s a dryad. He must have used dryad magic.”

“But, who is he?” Silver tapped at the bar top as if trying to get him to move.

“Stop that,” Anthony scolded as he rubbed his forehead. “He’s not a fish in a tank. The dryad who sold me the wood was a friend of my mother. Her original tree was diseased, so we salvaged what we could for the bar top. She had already grown a new tree and claimed she wanted it removed. Before she sold it to me, she made me agree to give Sanctuary to anyone who came through it.”

“And you agreed to that?”

Kat nodded along with Silver’s question. It seemed like a needless security risk.

“Mother vouched for her,” Anthony said as if that explained everything.

Silver’s shoulders relaxed. They both must have a lot of faith in Anthony’s mother.

“Do you know him?” Silver asked.

Anthony shrugged. “He looks young, so maybe he’s her son?”

“I thought all dryads were female?” Kat couldn’t resist interjecting. Granted, he didn’t know much about dryads, but all the stories he’d read only mentioned females.

“Apparently not.” Silver tapped at the glass again.

Anthony smacked Silver’s fingers. “I’ll call Mother. She’ll know how to get him out. If he’s here, he probably needs sanctuary. It might not be safe for him to go home.”

Still staring at the bar, Anthony stepped away and pulled out his phone.

Kat had heard through pack gossip that Anthony’s mother, Hallea Carrow, was a forest witch. He didn’t know if that was true, but the one time he’d seen her, she had smelled divine—a bit like Anthony, but without the underlying scent of ozone.

“Is he okay in there?” Kat eyed the unconscious boy. “He won’t suffocate?”

Silver shook his head. “Not if he’s a dryad.”

“I still can’t believe there are male dryads.” Kat had loved mythology when he was younger, and not one of the stories he’d read had ever mentioned a male dryad.

Anthony returned in time to answer his question as Silver shrugged. “Dryads produce asexually, and there is a taboo about introducing men into Groves. I don’t know how the leader got away with growing a son. To answer your question, Kat, he will be fine inside there since he’s naturally part tree.” Anthony slid his phone back into his pocket. “Mother is on her way. It’s better to let her get him out. My magic isn’t good for delicate work.”

Silver snorted.

“Hush you.” Anthony bumped shoulders with his mate.

Kat smiled at their interaction. It was always refreshing to see pack mates affectionate with each other. Even those bonded in his last pride weren’t much for casual touching. It might have been the atmosphere, but that group showed little love, even among lovers.

A soft noise heralded the arrival of Anthony’s parents.

Anthony sighed. “If you’re still spending all your spare time together, why did you two even bother getting divorced?”

“We might be divorced, darling, but we’re still fuck buddies.”

“Mother!” Anthony’s shocked response sent his father, Gallien Carrow, into peals of laughter. If Anthony’s laugh was tinkling wind chimes, his father’s was an orchestra of bells.

Kat crossed his arms and gripped his opposing shirtsleeves to keep himself in check. Damn, Anthony’s father was beautiful.

“Darling, stop that.” Hallea smacked her ex-husband across the back of the head. “You’ll make that sweet kitten’s nose bleed.”

Gallien rubbed his sore head and glared at Kat. “It’s not my fault he’s weak-willed.”

The urge to claw his smug face was almost irresistible. Unfortunately, he’d be crushed with a twitch of Gallien’s fingers. Moon Pack gossip had given Kat the rundown on Anthony’s parentage. The Fae man might not be as powerful as his son, but four times more powerful rather than ten made little difference if both could leave Kat as a splat on the floor.

Hallea approached the bar and gasped when she saw the person embedded inside like a fly in amber. “Rance!”

“You know him?” Anthony joined his mother to stare at the boy.

“I’ve only seen a picture of him. He’s Talula’s son.”

“And Talula is?” Silver prompted.

“The dryad priestess of the Grove. I thought it might be him when you mentioned a male dryad, but now I’m certain.”

Anthony frowned. “Why would she send him to me? I’ve never met her.”

Hallea shrugged. “I doubt he had much choice. She probably told him to come here in case of an emergency. Something must have happened at the Grove.”

Anthony frowned. “I don’t know if I can get him out of there without harming him.”

Hallea patted Anthony’s shoulder. “I’ve got this. Everyone, step back.”

“This is so fascinating,” Kat whispered as he joined the others several feet away. “I rarely get to see magic other than mine.”

Kat might not be a bookworm, but he loved magic, especially other people’s. The variety and flexibility never failed to fascinate him, even the scary parts.

Silver laughed. “Stick around, and you’ll see more than you ever wanted.”

Anthony glared at his mate. “Are you saying you see too much magic?”

Silver raised his hands. “Of course not, my love.” He dared to kiss Anthony’s cheek. “With you, I see just the proper amount.”

Kat covered his mouth to hide his grin. Anthony had his Alpha twisted around his finger.

A low humming broke his admiration of the Alpha pair’s relationship. The hairs at the nape of his neck rose from the energy pouring from Hallea and the powerful magic answering her call. Kat struggled to breathe as the air became heavy with an unseen force. Anthony’s and his father’s eyes glowed with the rising magic.

“Whoa,” Kat whispered.

A loud crack snapped Kat’s attention away from the father-son glow show.

Rance now lay on top of the bar. Surprisingly, the wood beneath him remained intact and unmarred despite the sound, as if the teenager had simply melted through the surface.

“Good job, Mother,” Anthony praised.

“Thank you.” Her bright smile reminded Kat of Anthony’s. She pressed a hand to Rance’s forehead. Golden light shone between her fingers. Soon after, she snatched her hand back and tilted Rance’s body toward her.

“I wonder how he got burned,” Hallea mused. “The Sacred Grove has rune wards to prevent fire. He should’ve been safe.”

“There are many ways to get around runes,” Anthony reminded her. “And he might not have been at home when injured.”

“That’s true,” she agreed.

Kat stood on his tiptoes to look over Silver’s shoulder and gasped at the sight. Burns covered the dryad’s back in a ruinous line of destruction. His flesh bubbled crisply, and a good chunk of it had charred off, leaving a broad, oozing wound an inch wide and at least four inches long.

Kat bit his lip at the gruesome sight, trying not to cry in sympathy. That had to hurt. He ran through healing options in his head. He might not want to be the pack healer, but he wouldn’t leave an innocent child injured. “I have some burn salve in my bag,” he offered.

“Will it help with this?” Hallea pointed to the wound.

“It should. I made it when the guys thought that flamethrower tag sounded like a great idea. Luckily, it was a short-lived game.”

He saw Anthony mouth the words ‘flamethrower tag’ to Silver as they exchanged bewildered looks.

“I know. They’re idiots, but I still have some of the salve left over.” He picked up his bag from the floor and dug through it. “I should have my medical kit in here,” he muttered, searching for the white bag with the red cross. It was a habit to always carry it with him. Having emergency supplies saved more than one mountain lion. He idly wondered how they were coping without a healer on hand. Shaking his head, he brutally dismissed his worry. Their health stopped being his problem when they were willing to sacrifice him to the wizards.

Kat suspected Konnar, his previous Alpha, hadn’t understood how often his clan needed Kat’s help. When the next idiot required medical care, they would have to recruit outside the family. No one else had bothered to learn healing.

He finally latched onto the kit when he was about to wonder if he’d forgotten his medical supplies at his old house. Pulling it out, he ignored the looks the others gave his perfectly normal medical kit. He unzipped the sides and flipped it open.

“Wow.” Anthony’s surprised voice had Kat glancing over at him.

“What?”

“That’s probably the most complete first aid kit I’ve ever seen.”

“Thanks.” Kat couldn’t help but smile proudly as he located the tin of burn cream. “Here you go.” He handed it over to Hallea. “Just a little bit across each burn. Apply it twice daily. I also have some light gauze to cover the wound.”

“Thank you.” She opened the tin and sniffed. “Lavender?”

“Yes.”

“Nice. I can usually make wounds disappear magically, but burns are tricky.” She tested the salve on two minor burns and smiled at the results. “This stuff is great.”

“Thank you. I always think that just because it’s medicinal, it doesn’t have to smell bad.”

“Will it scar?” Silver asked, a curious expression on his face.

“It shouldn’t, but everyone heals differently.” It wouldn’t leave scars on a shifter, but Kat had no experience with other species.

“Dr. Winslow is out of town until Friday, so any help you can give is appreciated,” Silver said. “Do we have anyone this kid can stay with? We need someone to watch him until he wakes up and tell us what happened.”

“Usually, I’d say Dare, but he and Steven are out of town until tomorrow.” Anthony folded his arms.

“I can!” Kat offered.

Anthony turned to him. “Are you sure? You just moved in, and I gave you a big job.”

“I can do it after. I have an extra room, and I don’t currently have any other duties. Besides, he probably won’t be unconscious much longer, right?” he asked Hallea, who nodded.

“Other than his burns, he’s magically depleted. I cured the minor lung damage from the smoke.” She handed back the tin. “If you could continue to apply the balm, there isn’t anything else to do until he wakes.”

“If you give me your number, I can call you when he gains consciousness.” Kat wanted to help this poor kid, and for once, he was able to assist. Besides, Silver and Anthony had full-time jobs and a pack to run, and it never hurts to be on the good side of the ones in charge.

“Is that fine with you?” Hallea asked Silver.

After a long look at him, where Kat was sure the Alpha was measuring either his soul or his body for a coffin, Silver nodded. “Yes. I’ll help get him situated in your spare room. Make sure to call us immediately when he wakes up.”

Kat quickly agreed.