Chapter 27
Squatch.
Watching the negotiations and controlling my emotions so my scent didn’t leak all over the room took more out of me than I expected. I’d have rather ran a double marathon with spikes in the bottom of my feet.
Every cell in my body wanted to proclaim that Kitty was mine, but that wouldn’t be helpful. I hated having to hide my relationship with Kitty from her father, but I’d do it if that’s what it took to keep her safe. Kendra and Eric had come to the party at the compound the night before, and they’d told me that my job during this is to make things easier on my kitten, not more difficult.
Stepping forward and claiming Kitty in front of her father would’ve caused problems, so my wolf and I stood down.
Brooke had invited me to sit with her while we ate. I’m comfortable with her. I’ve fed her more times than I can count. I’ve seen the dark side of her, too. She tortured a pedophile in my presence once, and invited me to help. I did, following her lead, but I didn’t want to rape the man, as she’d hoped. To her credit, when she understood how much it would bother me to do it, she’d brought others in to handle it. I had to watch, but she didn’t make me do it, so it was okay. She let me see in his head a little, and the bastard deserved every minute of the four days of torture she put him through before she finally allowed him the solace of death.
I never want Brooke on my bad side, but so long as I don’t do anything to put myself there, I trust her. Mostly. So I sat with her as her friend while I ate, and we talked of her night garden, and of a charity event the MC was planning — if we’d add in her favorite charity to the list of charities who’d benefit, she’d like to be a silent partner. I wasn’t authorized to agree to it, but I thanked her for the kind offer and assured her I’d take it to Mad Dog.
And then, once the signatures were in place, copies made, and the business was finished, Brooke stood and walked to an empty portion of the table. “Squatch, Val, could the two of you come here, please?”
We came to her, and she stood between us, holding our hands. “Vincenzo, let me be the first to formally introduce you to Sasquatch. His friends call him Squatch. He’s madly in love with your daughter, enough that he and his wolf stood quietly at her back, controlling his scent, in order to make life as easy on his true love as possible.”
Kitty’s father looked at me, and then his daughter, and then back to me. “True love?”
“Yes, Sir.”
His eyes went dark, nearly a flat black. His voice was carefully controlled, so there was zero emotion. “Wolves mate for life.”
“They do, Sir, but your daughter was not aware of this until recently. She knew we are monogamous. I assumed she knew we mate for life.”
He looked to Val. “You love him?”
“I do, Daddy.”
“You said it was new. You implied it might not last.”
“I said it was new. I didn’t imply how lasting it would be.” She looked at me and smiled. “It’s still new, but I guess things kind of went fast.”
Her father looked at me a few more seconds, nothing friendly about it. Finally, he shrugged and said, “She was still stripping when we found her, so it must not be too serious.”
“I respect your daughter too much to take away her source of independence.”
Brooke was still standing between us, holding our hands, and he looked at the contact. “You were friendly with the child vampire while we ate.”
“Her name is Brooke, and if you think she’s a child, you haven’t been paying attention.”
He pursed his lips, as if he had so much to say, and was deciding how wise it was to share it. Finally, he said, “My daughter is an exotic creature. Vampires love to collect such things, and it would appear she’s done exactly what was needed to bring a golden tiger close enough to have as a regular meal. I’m not certain why she wants to drink a common werewolf down, unless perhaps the biker thing does it for her?”
“And what would you do for my favor, Vincenzo?” Brooke asked. “Would you bare your neck? Would you eat my pussy? Or perhaps even fuck me?”
The tiger recognized he was in danger, and he stood, but I didn’t think he understood the danger. If he wanted to fuck her, there’s a good chance she’d kill him where he stood, but the greater risk was that she’d take days to kill him slowly.
“I’m no one’s meal, and I’d never fuck a damned child.”
I heard Kitty let out a breath. She’d been afraid for him too.
Brooke looked at His Majesty and then back to Vincenzo.
“I’m not drinking you down as we speak because I won’t disrespect your king to make my point. You should thank him for the fact you don’t have to change to regenerate enough blood to walk out the door on your own feet.”
Brooke levitated between us, so her head was a little higher than Kitty’s. “I can find her, you know. No matter where you take her. If you take her against her will, I’ll see everyone dead who was a part of it, exotic creatures or not. She’s won her freedom. No one is taking that from her again. Not even me.”
She seemed to vanish, but the door was open now, so I knew she’d just left really fast. I stepped sideways, pulled Kitty into my side, and kissed the top of her head without taking my eyes off her father. “Tell me where you want me, Kitten, and I’m there.”
“Before she left, Brooke told me he’d kidnap me if he thought he could get away with it, but since he sees he likely can’t, he wants to try for whatever relationship he can salvage. Can you stay close enough at Denny’s to keep me safe, but still let my father and I have a meal together?”
“Kirsten and I will also be in the restaurant, watching over you,” His Majesty said from his spot near the door Brooke had used for her exit.
Brooke’s vampire guards had left, but the various shapeshifter under her employ were still just outside the door.
“Who’s riding with who?” I asked.
“You and Val can ride with Kirsten and me,” said the Amakhosi. “I assume Vincenzo will ride with his people.”
“Can we clear the room?” I asked. “I’d like a few moments with Kitty before we leave.”
Because if I didn’t get a chance to kiss her and hold her soon, my wolf was going to make a scene, and the human wasn’t of a mind to try to stop him.