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“I’m all in.”
“One of the other contestants said you couldn’t shift,” Bjorn said. “What was that about?”
Logan steeled himself. “My last film went on hiatus. Rumors were going around it was because I couldn’t shift.”
He was known for his werewolf roles, especially the TV show, The Wolf’s Moon. If he couldn’t shift, his career was on life support. Did he have an ulterior motive for being here? That would have to be tomorrow’s problem, because tonight, I had a woman who I promised I could change her life for the better, and so far, all I’d delivered was drama. I couldn’t keep Cindy waiting any longer.
“I have enough money to take care of her. And the kids,” Logan called after me. “They’ll want for nothing.”
I nodded. “They need more than your money. They need your heart. Wait here. I’ll let you know if she wants to see you.”
No answer when I knocked on the trailer door.
“Cindy, let’s talk,” I called out.
After another knock, she came to the door, looking shellshocked. She didn’t say anything right away.
“Can I come in?”
She nodded.
“So that got out of hand quickly.”
She didn’t even crack a smile.
“Cindy, I promise to do better.”
“I’m not mad things got crazy. It’s a reality show. I’ve watched every episode of The Real Werewives at least three times. I expect crazy, but I never thought I’d get set up. That’s why I freaked out. Then I realized you’d never do such a thing.” She sank down into the couch and knotted her hands in her lap. She looked so vulnerable with her torn dress and smudged makeup. Tonight, she should be celebrating. Not reliving her past. “What really pisses me off is Pedro came back now. Only because someone else wants me. Who knows if he actually still does? I’m sure that’s not the last we’ve heard of Pedro. And even more maddening, he thought that would be enough to get me back.”
“He should’ve been tossed on his ass long before he made it anywhere near the stage. I will get to the bottom of this.” Chances were he’d sweet-talked his way in. We’d hired as many locals as we could for the event day crew, and he knew some of those wolves... Hugo and I had to talk.
Like that claim that my old pack was hanging around waiting for an answer from their love letter. I felt the same way Cindy did. Exposed. Violated. They didn’t care what I was doing without them, until what I was doing got good. And they still had the audacity to think they were owed an all-access pass to my life.
If we accomplished nothing else with this episode, the two of us would be establishing some strong boundaries, and then building a moat around them for good measure. Because we both deserved to live like queens.
“Tell me what you think about Logan Mathis.”
Her eyes widened. “I can’t believe out of all the wolves in the world, Logan Mathis was on the other side of that stage. I’m a huge fan. I’ve watched The Wolf’s Moon so many times. And how is he even more beautiful in person?”
“Maybe your wolf knew what was about to happen.” She wanted this wolf, and there was no way I would take him away from her just because he didn’t adhere to my rules about who should be on the show.
“You don’t really think he’s my mate, do you? I mean, he’s just here for the show and he goes onto his next role, and I go back to my normal life.”
“It’s not just for the show if I can help it.” And just like that, I went from wanting Logan Mathis gone to doing whatever it took to make sure he spent forever with Cindy.
Her mouth dropped.
“How am I gonna do this? He’s so famous, and I’m such a mess.” She toyed with the frayed shoulder of her dress, where Pedro had ripped it. “And I’m wearing someone else’s mark.”
“Why don’t I let him explain it to you? He’s waiting outside the door.”
“He is?”
I nodded.
“I’m nervous.”
“That means you care.” I put my hand over hers and squeezed it. “I’m a really good judge of character. I think you should give him a chance.”
Cindy leaned back on the couch. “I can’t believe this is my life.”
“And it will only get better from here.”
I rose and headed out of the trailer, nodding to Logan and Bjorn. They’d been chatting, and I had a feeling those two might hit it off.
But Logan wasn’t here to make friends.
I’d make sure he was here to claim his mate.
“Hey.” Hugo was waiting for me by the stage. “Listen. Pedro got past some of the guys in our pack.”
“And you fired them?”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “I told them if it happens again, they’re fired. But I want to keep them on payroll for now, because Pedro wasn’t kidding. Montana’s been spotted deep in the mountains. They’re sending some new wolves into town, watching you.”
“They can watch me all they want.” Montana was far from my biggest problem right now, and that was saying a lot. “Did you see where Marissa went?”
He motioned toward the other side of the stage, where our wolves had gathered. “You think she’s got something to do with this?”
Oh. I hadn’t considered that. “I need to clarify her job description.”
Marissa sat behind a folding table, checking the last of the wolves out. They looked hopeful when they saw me. Like they might have another chance.
“Thanks for everything today, gentlemen. Even though you weren’t chosen, you played a major role in The Mating Game.” I turned to Marissa. “Have a moment to chat?”
“Of course.” She gathered up her paperwork and followed me to my trailer. I took a seat in one of the fluffy white chairs and motioned for her to do the same.
“How do you think today went?”
Her expression brightened. “I can’t wait to see the footage. That was exciting. The crowd had no idea what would happen next.”
“We definitely kept them on their toes, but there was a little problem. I didn’t know what would happen next.” I hated to play the role of the wicked drag queen of the west, but we needed to get on the same page. “You told me you wouldn’t hire actors.”
“I canceled most of them, but I couldn’t bring myself to pull the trigger on Logan Mathis.” She swooned. “He’ll send our ratings through the roof.”
“Viewers will tune in for the transformation and the romance,” I reminded her. “We don’t need to rely on cheap tricks.”
“But Cindy chose him. That means he’s her mate. What if he wasn’t here, and she picked the wrong person, or she didn’t pick anyone at all?”
She had a point, but with such a high-profile wolf we had to be extra careful to get this right. “From now on, I’ll interview all the candidates before they take the stage. No more actors. The only reason I’m not firing you is that she actually chose him.”
And I liked her. A lot. But not everything about this job could be easy.
She swallowed hard and nodded. “I’m sorry. I really want this show to be amazing, and maybe I’m trying too hard. I won’t do it again.”
“I know you won’t. Now, let’s talk about Pedro. Was that a surprise or was it just a surprise to me?”
Marissa pressed her lips together. “He reached out when we started auditions for mate contestants. At first, I thought it might be a good idea to find out why he left like that. Because it could’ve made a beautiful redemption story.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and closed my eyes for a long blink.
“Please, let me finish. Once we went to Cindy’s house, and I saw how he left her, and how wrecked she was, I realized this woman can’t go anywhere but forward. So I called him and told him there was a change of plans.”
“Wait. You called him?” This wolf was rumored to be hiding out deep in the forest where he most likely wouldn’t have access to technology.
Marissa nodded. Either she didn’t know his backstory, or he’d lied to her. “Yeah. I called the number he put on his application. Obviously, he was pissed. He said it wouldn’t be the last we heard of him. I never thought he’d actually make it to the stage.” She shook her head. “I have a bad feeling I underestimated Pedro.”
