“It wasn’t a joke,” Roger said indignantly. “You told me to bite Taylor on the neck really hard because her blood would taste like chocolate.”
“Really,” Herbert said severely. “Very juvenile. Hardly befitting of a leader.”
Phineas cleared his throat with a harrumph. “I do not see any place settings for us. Surely Jerrold told you we’d be joining you for dinner?”
“It must have slipped his mind,” Cliff said, glaring daggers at Jerrold.
“Did you forget to tell them, dear?” Jerrold lightly cuffed the blonde on the side of the head.
With anyone else, it could have been a joking love-tap, but her flinch and her look of fear spoke volumes. Taylor stifled a gasp.
Cliff looked at her. “I’ll explain later,” he whispered. “I know it looks bed.”
“You think?”Taylor whispered back furiously.
The woman held perfectly still and stared down at the ground with her hands clasped in front of her. “Sorry,” she whispered.
Taylor thought she heard Jerrold mutter, “You will be.”
She was pretty sure Jerrold had neglected to tell Cliff on purpose, then blamed it on his wife.
Taylor barely restrained herself.
Serafina was looking at them with horror, and Dax and Roger looked as if they were about to cry.
Somehow or other, I will find a way to kick Jerrold’s ass, Taylor thought furiously.I hope I really do become a werewolf, because then I can rip his face off.
“Take our places while we wait for new place settings. It is only right. You are the Elders, and I insist.” Grant flashed his most charming grin and stood up. Everyone else stood up too.
Taylor refrained from rolling her eyes. Grant was such a competitive butt-kisser.
The dinner was almost comically awkward. Jerrold attempted to insult Cliff at every opportunity, and Cliff parried his insults coolly, never once looking rattled. Grant continued to shamelessly butter up all the older people, and Austin sat there sullenly, ignoring them. Every once in a while, he had a wink and a smile for his cousin Serafina, and a couple of times he made her laugh by tearing off pieces of his bread roll and throwing them at her.
“The younger people in this pack are so undisciplined,” Jerrold said.
“Gosh, that’s only the third time you’ve mentioned it during this dinner,” Taylor said. “Looks like you’re suffering from some memory loss. Head injury? Or do werewolves get dementia?”
Austin choked on his beer and coughed out a laugh. He and Serafina exchanged amused glances. Cliff stifled a smile.
Jerrold’s face went red and he clenched his fists. He let out a low warning growl and started to rise from his chair. Everyone froze, forks in the air, food half chewed.
Cliff put his fork down on the table. “Careful,” he said. “You know what will happen if you challenge my intended mate. That’s one of the rare exceptions to the rules.”
“I believe that I’m done here,” Jerrold said. “I’ve made my point.” He glanced at the Elders for emphasis, then stood up. Leota followed him out of the dining room. She’d barely touched her food.
After Jerrold left, the Elders peppered Taylor with questions, which she unfortunately could not answer.
They were very concerned about her having been turned. They asked her all the same questions that Cliff had, but she had no new insights to share.
When they were finished eating, Grant winked at the Elders and said, “Well, that was delightful. I look forward to dining with you again soon.” He gave his brother a mocking bow, and he and Mandy left.
“Yes, I can’t get enough of these family dinners,” Austin said. “I’m sorry I stayed away for so long. Goodnight, Pipsqueak and the Mutts,” he added to Serafina. “That’s the name I’ve decided to give you if you ever form a rock band.” He sauntered out.
As the table was cleared, Cliff stood up and led Taylor outside to the rose gardens behind the house. He waited until the door had shut before he groaned and threw his hands in the air. “That was a disaster.”
Chapter Nine
They paused by a curved stone bench next to an enormous rose bush that was bejeweled with hundreds of fat white blossoms as big as fists. The night breeze ruffled Taylor’s hair and carried the perfumed scent of roses, and an enormous half-moon glowed overhead. Taylor had never been particularly conscious of the moon and its phases before, but she was now.
