Page 25 of Help Wanted, Vampires Inquire Within
“Wolves!” Jack said, getting everyone's attention. “This is my date.My date.Could you all kindly fuck off?”
“Nope,” an older woman said, drawing out the “o” sound and popping the “p” at the end.
“Adelle,” Jack whined. “Come on.”
“We can’t afford to have you mess this up,” Adelle said.
Getting up, Skyler carried one of the pastries she’d cut into quarters to Adelle. “You have to try this!”
Not a single wolf said anything as Adelle took the offered fork and tried a bite. That made it clear that Adelle was well respected within the pack because not even Gail objected to Skyler sharing with her.
“Isn’t that a lovely flavor,” Adelle said with a kind smile. “Do you want to join us?”
Skyler nodded and the wolves were quick to rearrange everything. The next thing Mason knew, the three of them were sitting at the table with Adelle, Remy, and another wolf named Marcel. The rest of the pack made themselves comfortable at the tables next to them.
“I didn’t see that coming,” Rissa said from behind the counter in a whisper loud enough for even Mason to hear.
Zan snorted. “Once you’ve hung out with wolf packs enough, you’ll see it a lot. They are not into individual activities."
Even though everyone could hear the two, they ignored them. Wolves saw their community-orientated life as perfect. Anyone who disagreed was just jealous.
“When I was a kid, the Sandy Paws Pack visited us often,” Skyler told Adelle. “They’d shift and run on our property and the desert beyond. They always brought food, and we’d have bonfires. Watching the adults play with the cubs in shifted form was my favorite.”
Mason heard the longing in her voice. Judging by Adelle’s gentle smile, she heard it too.
“We do bonfires and pig roasts in the summer,” Adelle said, reaching out to pat Skyler’s arm. “We don’t have any cubs now, but we will.”
One of the wolves made a grumpy sound. “Don’t look at me.”
“No one’s looking at you, Kayla,” Remy said. “We all know it’s Gail who’s going to be popping out a dozen cubs when she finds her mate.”
Gail grinned. “Not a dozen, but probably at least four. Four is a good number.”
Mason watched Jack’s expression relax as Skyler and the wolves chatted. As much as Mason had to brace himself for lifewith a pack, it seemed Skyler would fit right in. Maybe the pack intrusion wasn’t the worst thing to have happened on their date.
“That’s settled then,” Remy said, making Mason realize he’d missed what they were talking about.
He gave Jack a confused look.
“We have permission to view the property we’re buying,” Jack explained. “The pack wants to take Skyler there.”
“And Skyler wants to go,” Skyler said with a smile.
“That’s fine,” Mason agreed. “But I’m driving.”
“Thank the goddess of the hunt,” Marcel said under his breath.
Jack made an aggravated sound but everyone ignored him. Jack handed Mason the fob to his car with a faux scowl.
“I’ll give you directions,” he said with a defeated sigh.
“I’ll let you pick the music,” Mason offered.
A smile exploded across Jack’s face. “Deal!” Then he turned to Skyler. “And you get to ride shotgun. This is going to be so much fun!”
Skyler
It took almost an hour to get to the property. It was hidden deep in the hills of Valley Center, a city in Northeast San Diego County. Mason handled the car well, and with its modern suspension, it didn’t sag too badly even under Mason’s weight.
