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Chapter One
Barron Kincade tugged on his black T-shirt, his mind wandering to the monotony of the night ahead.
“Hey,” he said as he walked into the kitchen and found his grandfather at the stove, stirring a batch of chili. “Smells great.”
“I’ll leave a bowl for you,” he said. “It’s not ready yet.”
“Sounds good. Thanks.”
“Have fun,” Donnie said. “But not too much fun. It’s work, after all.”
Barron snorted and clapped him on the shoulder. “See ya.”
He headed outside and climbed onto his motorcycle, put on his helmet, and drove to the bar. When he arrived at Tails, the shifter bar where he worked as a bouncer, he clocked in, said hello to Titus in the stock room, then settled at his post at the door. Diesel, a male he’d known his entire life, was his partner for the night. They often worked together at the door.
“Damn it,” Diesel said as he walked on to the concrete patio. “Someone swiped my stool.”
“I’ll grab one,” Barron said.
Barron walked into the bar to locate a stool for Diesel, who’d severely broken his leg falling out of a tree when he was young. Even after multiple surgeries and his fast-healing abilities as a shifter, he still walked with a limp and couldn’t run as quickly as others in his shifted form.
Barron carried a stool outside and set it down.
Diesel sat, stifling a groan. He rubbed his leg with the heel of his palm. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem.”
The bar opened at seven, and even at a few minutes till, the line stretched around the front of the building. Friday nights ladies drank free. Barron swept his gaze down the line, his cat practically snoozing in his head. No heart-match in the line.
“What’s that look for?” Diesel asked.
Barron tapped the side of his head. “My cat wants to settle down.”
“Ah. I think that happens to all males after they hit twenty-five. At least you don’t have an injury derailing your prospects.”
“What do you mean?” When Diesel raised a brow in disbelief, Barron amended his statement. “I know about your leg – I meant what prospects?”
The male’s face shadowed for a moment and Barron could see the longing in his dark eyes. “I went to see Abbie last week, and she said she had a match for me from another pride and scheduled a meeting a few days later. The female and her family watched me walk into the front room at Abbie’s with my damn limp and her father refused to sign off on our mating. He said I wasn’t whole, and he wouldn’t have his only daughter mated to a male who couldn’t provide for her. The female agreed.”
Barron wanted to find the female’s parents and beat some sense into them. Diesel was an honorable male, and a damn good hunter, even if he couldn’t all-out run like the rest of them. “That’s bullshit.”
“It is what it is.”
“It’s still fucking awful. I’m sorry.”
Diesel shrugged as though trying to distance himself from the conversation. “I think I’ll be single forever. What’s the male version of a spinster?”
Barron shook his head. “You’ll find someone when the time is right. I believe if a lion chooses to wait for his heart-match then he’ll find her.”
“I think I don’t have a choice but to wait.”
Titus opened the door. “Send ‘em in, guys.”
Conversation between Barron and Diesel stopped as the crowd moved forward. Diesel checked IDs and Barron opened the door for people, scenting as they passed to ensure he couldn’t smell gun oil or anything that would indicate a weapon. He took his duty as a bouncer seriously.
The night moved on, trudging like it could sometimes when he was thinking about something besides work. The faces of the human males and females waiting to get into the club blended together. Aside from the two underage girls who tried to get in with fake IDs, no one stood out.
“Some people just can’t wait to grow up,” Diesel said, shaking his head at the females who scurried back to their vehicle.
