Page 48 of Lightning Strikes

“Sure. Let me get Veronica to take Vinny home, I’ll have Ronnie drive them or something.” I step back inside the dim clinic and sit beside her to let her know that she can take him home whenever she’s ready and Ronnie will go with her. She smiles sadly at me and thanks me before I pad down the hall to Ronnie’s office and knock on the open door.

“Hey, how’s it going today?” He asks as he tosses more papers onto his desk and rubs his eyes. I don’t know how he stands being in this office… There are papers and files strewn on ever surface, all over the floor…

I shrug and lean against the door. “Veronica brought Vinny back in, do you mind helping her home? He fell asleep in one of the patient rooms.” He waves me off with a nod, continuing to go through the paper files.

Carter and I walk around searching for a restaurant that sounds good for both of us. We end up agreeing on Italian. Can’t go wrong with that.

We get seated on the outdoor patio and I peruse the menu while he sips a glass of the white wine that was dropped off. I glance back up at him with a cocked brow and he purses his lips. I wonder where Ryan is… But knowing the guys, if Carter wanted to talk, Ryan stayed back to watch the clinic while I’m out.

“Okay… So Mac mentioned something to Russell and he passed on the message… Are you and him not together?”

I snort and lean back in my seat. “It’s complicated. We’ve been ‘together’ since we were sixteen, went to college together, and we still saw other people. Or at least I did, he never did anything with another woman around me or just wasn’t vocal about anything. When I dated Adam, he backed off and that was my first real monogamous relationship. Mac… He’s been a sort of friends with benefits until now, I think this is a real relationship now. I love him and he would be my choice if I did decide to mate someone.

“Adam and I were almost there. I fell hard for him, always looked up to him… And he fucked up and that solidified my non-monogamous ideas… and not wanting to mate. At least not anytime soon… Why?”

He chuckles and sets down his empty glass. “He told Russell that if any of us are interested in you to basically not hold back.”

I groan and pick the menu back up and decide on the eggplant parmesan. “And what did the four of you think about that?”

“It was shocking… I mean you’re gorgeous and fun to be around. You’re also pregnant and we thought you were going to mate Mac. None of us want anything serious and we’re all sort of stuck together.”

I send him a droll look and tilt my head. “You guys work every other day. There are plenty of unmated females in the pack that you can fuck on your off days, or hell, sleep with at their place.”

He blinks at me. “I haven’t touched another woman since my ex left me for her ‘perfect mate’.” He scowls and waves his hand for the waitress to pour more wine for him. “I just wanted to see where your head is at, or if Russell and Mac were serious. Maybe this is something we all need to have a meeting about because we haven’t known either of you for very long. What if you get serious with one of the others and Mac flips and wants you to himself?”

I shrug and stare down at the lemon wedge floating around my water. “He knows that would never work with me, especially not after Adam. I had a momentary lapse of insanity for a few years and it’ll never happen again, you can bet your ass on that. And you’re right, we don’t know each other very well… But wolves are sexual, sensual, emotional creatures. We bond faster and easier than humans do. If you or any of the others want more time from me, just ask. It’s been incredible being around the four of you and learning more about the touch that my wolf has been craving. We only ever got that from Mac… My parents, as incredible as they were, weren’t very… touchy-feely people.”

He hums and we end up placing our orders and changing the subject. I won’t bring up anything about the clinic or what’s going on with the pups and the school, so we stick to easier topics. Why I became a vet, why he became a guard… Easy topics that show me that a considerate, kind type of person he is. Why on Earth would his ex choose someone else?

He has that whole ethereal look, definitely otherworldly with his chiseled bone structure along his cheeks and jaw. His pitch-black eyes, white hair, and the palest skin I’ve ever seen. Like a damn vampire in the movies. He’s tall, lean, and well-muscled and so damn stoic, I want to crack that icy exterior. I also want to lick him.

Either it’s my hormones… or just me. I’ve always been a sexual woman and being around five unmated males all under my roof has been damn torture. At least Mac and I finally fucked, but it hasn’t happened since. I’ve been stressed out about the clinic and he’s been training.

I pay for the meal with the fancy little meal tickets from the alpha and he scoffs at me as I place down extra bills for the tip. “You know I askedyouto lunch, right?”

I shrug as I shoulder my bag and begin walking through the restaurant to the front door. He wraps an arm around my back as we head back to the clinic where Ryan’s waiting… He really should have just come with us; I’m supposed to have two of them with me at a time anyway. “Why didn’t Ryan come?”

“I think he was afraid of the rejection in case Mac was full of shit. He has it bad for you.”

I chuckle and lean my head on his shoulder as we get closer to the building. “Well, now you can pass it back around.” I wink at him before I amble through the doors and notice that it’s only Ryan here. Ronnie must have taken Veronica and Vinny home.

“Scout woke up and I just fed her, her bottle. She’s off running around probably trying to find you, we really should put a bell on that little demon.” He grumbles and stretches his long arms over his head and stands up from the chair beside the reception desk. His red hair is messy around his forehead and he runs his fingers through it to move it out of his eyes. I squeeze his arm as I walk down the hall searching for the little kitten.

I hear her meowing from Ronnie’s office and frown as I step in. I look down as I walk, to be safe, and find her under the desk pawing at the trash can. I sigh as I pluck her up and nuzzle her into my neck. I pull the trash can out and see that it’s filled with Ronnie’s lunch that he didn’t finish and kiss Scout’s head. Maybe it’s time to start weaning her from the formula already. I step out of the office, close the door to find Ryan and Carter already talking outside.

Gossip queens.

_____________

I’m leaving up the new sign on the clinic door when my phone starts to vibrate in my pocket. Melissa’s name and face are flashing on the screen and I grumble as I answer.

“Hello, sunshine.”

She chuckles and sighs into the phone. “I miss you. Did you hear about Morrow?”

I frown and step back to make sure that the sign is level. Ronnie’s leaving tomorrow and I put up the new hours of operation and my cell number for emergencies. “What about him? Is he going to trial or something?”

She mumbles under her breath. “No… Someone murdered him in his cell last week before he even had his first court date.” I sit down on the sidewalk at the curb and blink at our black SUV parked in front of me.

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