Page 62 of Cursed Luck
Brandy laughed. “You know he’s probably listening in now, right?”
Debbie shrugged. “I haven’t said anything I wouldn’t say to his face.”
“My hearing in human form is not as strong as in wolf form,” Claudia said, joining the group. “An alpha can tune in farther, and in wolf form, I’d guess Peter’s could stretch a good distance. Focus is imperative if you want to listen farther.”
“It’s crazy in here. I’m not sure I know how he even knew we arrived,” Mia said.
“Peter’s been on alert for a few months—”
“Why?” Mia blurted, interrupting Brandy.
“You don’t know my story, do you?” Claudia asked.
Mia’s brows pinched together as she looked around at all the women and shook her head.
“Max found me behind Debbie and Junior’s house. I was in my wolf form, beaten, bloody, dehydrated… everything you can think of. I’d escaped Benito Sivella’s compound with Katia. He’d kidnapped me and held me prisoner as part of his sex-trafficking operation. It was a mess, but thanks to Peter and everyone here, we were able to take care of him. Peter’s been on alert because he’s trying to find my sister. He vowed he’d save the rest of the werewolves held hostage by the lead ringer, Garrick Sivella.”
Mia sat frozen. Part of her wanted to vomit after Claudia’s horrid past spilled from her lips. The other part wanted to scoop her up and hug the shit out of her. Inhaling deeply, Mia leaned forward and clasped Claudia’s hand. “I didn’t know…”
“It’s okay.”
“So yeah, needless to say, Peter’s been on alert. I was wondering if you were coming, and I think it’s why he tuned in a little more. Sorry about that, I didn’t mean for him to snoop on your conversation with Eddie,” Brandy said, bringing the conversation back.
Mia nodded. “It’s okay. It all makes sense. I can tell he cares about you guys. Is that why there are werewolves behind the house?”
Brandy nodded. “You probably saw Joel. He’s always taking guard when Peter comes by.”
“Joel volunteered to keep an eye on me when everything went down,” Vanessa said, joining their growing circle.
“He was my shadow until Benito was taken out,” Claudia said.
Mia smiled at the affection in their voices. “Sounds like he’s a great guy.”
“He is,” Claudia said. “Oh, hey, there he is! Peter must have called him.”
“Called him?” Mia asked.
Claudia winked and tapped her temple with two fingers. “As the alpha, he’s linked to the members of his pack. Joel? Come inside and meet Mia!” Claudia called.
All the heads turned toward the back of the house, silence filling the home. A man stood on the patio as he pulled on a T-shirt. He glanced down at his bare feet and offered a sheepish grin.
“Don’t worry about it,” Debbie called.
The large man nodded toward the group of brothers chatting as he entered the home.
Rounds of “Hey, Joel” greeted him as he padded toward the group of women she sat with.
“Joel, this is Mia, Edward’s mate,” Claudia announced.
Mia pushed to her feet and offered her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“Nice meeting you too. Sorry if I scared you earlier.”
She waved off his apology. “Don’t worry about it. I should apologize for sounding like a bigot.”
He grinned. “This is all new for us, although I’ve become very fond of this bunch of troublemakers.”
“Hey!” Vanessa said and slapped his thigh. It was about at her head level from where she sat.
