I look at Brantley, who is clutching the side of the table, and I shake my head in anger. I sit back down beside him. “Don’t even sweat it,” I reassure him.
He picks up Aiden and burps him. Aiden stares at me and I smile. I can’t wait until my baby is here.
Damon hasn’t sat back down yet. He is standing right next to me, daring anyone to try something else. I rub the back of his leg, resting my head against his hip for a second. Maverick is pissed; his body is shaking as he tries to control his wolf, and his eyes are completely golden.
“Everyone done eating?” Damon asks. He wants out of here; I know I do. I want to go to back to the house and get away from all of these people.
“Yes, Alpha,” everyone says in sync. I stand up—Damon’s hand on my back, helping me get up—and I put the diaper bag on Brantley’s shoulder. We walk past a line of tables and, from the corner of my eye, I see someone’s footshooting out in front of Brantley. Brantley trips, barely managing to stop himself from falling with the baby. He hands Aiden to me, and I hold him tightly to my chest. I have never once seen Brantley mad, but he grabs the guy by the hair and slams his head on the table.
“Mess with me all you fucking want, but put my baby in danger? You’re asking to die,” he snarls.
Oh my god. Good for him!
Damon laughs and I join in. Brantley stood up for himself, and the alpha of the other pack can’t do a thing about it, because his packmate started it. One by one, the others in our pack join in our laughter. We are all protective of Brantley; he’s had such a rough go of everything. Brantley takes the baby from me, kissing the top of his head.
I hear the sound of a chair scooting across the floor, and we all turn to see a huge tattooed guy walking toward us. I take a deep breath, and I instantly know he is a bear. Damon moves me further behind him as the man splits the distance between us and, to my utter surprise, he doesn't stop in front of Damon. He heads straight to Brantley. The guy stares down at Brantley, and they both take a deep breath.
“MATE,” the huge bear says, and Brantley nods.
A man who’d been sitting with the bear speaks up. “You better find a fucking new pack, your kind is not welcome.”
So many emotions come over Brantley and his mate, who spins around and pulls Brantley to his side, ready to face us if we try to hurt them. It would take a hell of a person to take him on; he is huge. Don’t get me wrong, most bears are huge, but this guy is really enormous.
“You guys are safe with us,” Damon says as his alpha powers run over them.
“In this pack, everyone is welcome,” Brantley says loudly. Many people’s faces reflect pure disbelief, and I smile at everyone in the room. A bunch of shifters are ready to bolt, and I know that they want to join our pack. “Everyone,” Damon says firmly.
Maverick holds open the door, and we file out of the building. I feel like I can breathe for the first time in a long time. The air in there was suffocating.
I look for Brantley. His mate has pulled him to the side, away from everyone. He is looking at every single person to make sure they don’t intend to harm them.
“Trust me, this pack is not like the others,” Brantley reassures him, and his mate relaxes and focuses on him. I am so happy that he found his mate! This is exactly what I wanted to happen—well, not the people being bitches—but I want my pack to be happy.
Everyone is on edge; it was very intense in there. I could feel the hate coming off many members of other packs. Others were curious, and some were fearful.
I want to add more females to the pack. Tomorrow I will try to speak with them and offer them a place with us. Many of them, especially the ones with mixed breed parents, have not had many opportunities. I notice them way back in the corner, because they are not welcome among the others.
When we reach our house, Brantley’s mate asks, “Where is your tent?”
“I am in the house.”
His mate looks shocked. I take my cue. “Come on, guys. Let’s get inside and relax.” I let my power out, wanting to calm everyone down. Brantley smiles at me, thankful. Damon holds open the door, and we walk inside. Our three guards go upstairs to rest until it’s their shift.
“What is your name?” Damon asks Brantley’s new mate, who is standing in front of Brantley, looking around the room. I love how protective he is. Brantley needs someone to put him first at all costs. I wink at Brantley, who is trying to hide his smile,
“Jackson.” He looks at me, then at Brantley.
“Please sit down, Jackson,” Damon says. “You guys will not be harmed. You are welcome. You guys are fully accepted within my pack. If someone has a problem with it, then they are out.”
Jackson studies Damon for a minute before he sits beside Brantley on the couch. “It is not this way in my old pack.”
We nod. “Most packs are not like this, but love is love in our book.” I smile at him.
Little Aiden lets out a cry, and Jackson’s head snaps around like he is just noticing the baby.
“I adopted him.”
Jackson smiles at Brantley. “I have a son.”
