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Hell, better than it had been since the vampires first took me.
I needed to knock on wood or something, just to make sure that didn’t change.
ten
LOVE
We walkeddown a few houses before slipping through a plain archway that Madd said led to the place his pack would meet. Tori reeked of perfume so strongly my eyes were nearly watering, but she grinned at me every time I gagged at the smell of her.
Something told me she was going to be wearing a ton of perfume alotin the near future.
She’d downed both of the bloodbags we’d been saving before we left, knowing she would need to shift.
We saw a lot of other people walking from different parts of the neighborhood, and many of them waved or grinned when they saw us. Most of them were men, and less than a quarter were women.
Much of the pack was already waiting in the forest when we made it out there, with people still pouring in.
Madd led me to the front of the crowd with his hand on the small of my back. Everyone seemed to be facing the forest, and that’s the direction he led me in.
The men gathered gave us more than enough space, with the crowd parting widely.
I was pretty sure the distance was for Madd’s sake, considering his warning about being lethal when he got possessive.
Tori followed behind us, and I heard multiple men coughing at the thick scent that followed her. I had to bite my cheek to stop myself from grinning when they did. Knowing her, she wasn’t bothering to bite back that grin.
When we finally reached the front of the crowd, Madd turned us so our backs were to the trees. His arm went around my waist and remained there, holding me to him.
A few other men were already there—I immediately recognized one of them as Bauther, who I’d learned was Madd’s beta. The beta was the alpha’s right hand man, and the enforcers answered to both alpha and beta.
Bauther nodded at me, clearing his throat uncomfortably.
Tori snorted softly, and I bit my cheek harder.
“What should we do?” she asked Bauther, who was standing right next to her.
“Just let us do the talking,” Bauther said.
“Want me to just let you do the talking too?” I murmured to Madd, as he eased me closer. His possessive grip on my waist definitely wasn’t easing up.
“Yes. The pack knows and trusts me.” His lips brushed my ear, and I tried not to shiver.
He wasdefinitelymore attractive than could be considered healthy.
I waited where I was as more and more shifters filtered in. When the flow had died down for the most part, Madd finally raised his voice.
“Madden pack,” he said, his voice carrying over the crowd. An alpha could keep his wolves somewhat controlled with the magic of his role, but it was instinctual magic, not one that could truly be manipulated. “Meet my mate, Lovene Hansen. As you’ve already deduced, Love is a baker, and lived on the outskirts of the city with her best friend, Tori.” He gestured toward Tori without glancing over at her. Through the corner of my eye, I saw her wave.
A few of the mens’ eyes gleamed a little.
They probably looked at her and thought, “POTENTIAL MATE.”
“Tori moved into the empty house on Gray that a few members of the pack prepared last night and this morning. Love has agreed to move in with me.”
Surprised murmurs and expressions rolled through the crowd.
“Love and Tori need our protection,” he said, raising his voice. The way his grip tightened on my hip told me he wasn’t as confident as he had pretended to be earlier. That made me a bit nervous, truthfully. “They’re blood wolves who recently escaped from the vampire clan that created them. They came here looking for peace, and we can provide that. Know that if you choose to leave, you will be free to do so, as always.”
More murmurs went through the crowd. “For those that wish to join, tonight, we run,” he called out.
