Sorry, Charlie (Poconos Pack) (4 page)

“Uh-huh.”

Charlie glanced down at her pretty pink pedicure. “Has Teddy Jr. woken up again?”

“Uh-huh.”

Suddenly she had an armful of cuddly, turned-on male Wolf. Charlie wrapped her arms around her mate’s back. “Round three, baby?”

“Uh-huh.” He nipped her neck.

“A man of few words. I like that.” Charlie grinned at her mate, more than ready to indulge her mate’s appetites. “Think you can make me roar?”

“I can sure as hell try.” And as his body began to make hers sing, she was pretty sure he’d succeed.

Chapter Four

Charlie smiled into her coffee cup as Chela and Belle hurried toward her. She’d made sure to wear a V-neck shirt in order to show off her mating mark. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail, just in case. She didn’t want it to cover the mark up, not until the entire Pack saw it.

The Pack had taken to her like a duck to fire. Oh, she knew most of them liked her. Chela would have told her otherwise. Nope. They were all terrified of her stupid-ass brother, just like her mate had been, so they tended to be on the overly polite side.

Her Lion wanted to play with them until they broke through that shell and either laughed with her or yelled at her. Either would work, because if they could do that then they’d truly accept her as one of theirs.

Now that she’d finally mated Ted she really
was
one of theirs. Hmm. Maybe Chela and Belle could help her overcome the Pack’s reticence.

Belle parked her ass gingerly on one side of her, her wooden cane carefully laid on the bench beside her. “Girl, you look like you’ve had a bite.”

Chela took the opposite side. Chela smirked, her gaze on Charlie’s mark. “Have fun last night?”

“Mm-hm,” Charlie hummed. She was practically purring with pride and satisfaction.

“How’d you do it? Tie him to the bed? Threaten him with honey and fire ants?” Belle started to bounce a bit in her seat. “Oh, I know! You knocked his ass out with chloroform and when he woke, you were mated.”

Charlie stared at Belle, amused. This was the woman who’d smacked a rival on the nose with rolled-up papers and tortured her mate with “There Ain’t No Fleas On Me” on endless repeat. Of course she’d understand Charlie’s way of thinking. “Worse. I threatened to call my brother.”

“Ooh,” both women breathed out.

“She pulled the brother card,” Chela choked.

Belle had that evil grin on her face that Charlie was coming to love. “You need to introduce your new mate to your brother, don’t you think?”

“Belle,” Chela warned. “Ted might run to Abu Dhabi to get away from him.”

“You knew Sebastian was the reason Ted wouldn’t mate me?” If so, Charlie was going to rethink this whole BFF thing.

“Nope. I just felt his tension, and you gave me a reason for it.” Chela made a disgusted noise. “I’ve been bugging him about it for a while now, but he would never tell me what was going on. He’d tell me it was work, or his back ached, or his Wolf needed a run, blah blah blah.”

“I’m right, though.” Belle gestured, and one of the waitresses of Lowell’s Steakhouse came to take her order. Belle was not only Luna, she was manager of the restaurant, so the waitress hurried over with a smile. Belle was popular with the Pack. “Mocha latte, iced, no whip. Also, waffles with strawberries on top.”

“I’ll take coffee and the special, please.” Chela smiled warmly at the waitress, who was Pack. Chela hitched her thumb toward Charlie. “And she’ll have the same.”

“I will?” Charlie was amused. Ever since she’d made friends with Chela, the woman was constantly trying to feed her. Charlie was charmed by it, but she was going to need to buy bigger jeans if she ate all the food Chela got for her.

“You didn’t have breakfast yet. I can hear your stomach rumbling.” Chela patted Charlie’s hand. “Don’t worry, what you don’t eat Belle will.”

Belle nodded. “I’m hungry.” Belle glared at the world in general. “Nobody likes it when I’m hungry.”

The waitress fled, running for the kitchen.

“Now see what you did?” Chela gently scolded Belle.

Belle shrugged. “I’ll be nicer when the pain meds kick in.” She leaned back, sighing wearily. “The rain’s been killing me.”

“What do you need me to do?” Charlie pulled out her notebook from the briefcase she’d set on the floor when she’d arrived in the restaurant. They had these informal breakfast meetings several times a week, allowing Belle to give both Chela and Charlie their marching orders for the day. Even though Charlie worked for both Dave and Belle, she tended to do more for Belle than her de facto boss. Ski season was over, but that didn’t mean the Lodge wasn’t busy. Rick had been smart when he took over the Pack. He’d renovated extensively, making the Red Wolf Lodge something to be proud of.

The Pocono Mountains were a ski and resort area in Northeastern Pennsylvania, a southern part of the Catskills mountain chain, and was roughly two hours away from Halle. The Lodge boasted of two ski runs, one bunny and one intermediate. It also held a four-star restaurant, an onsite day spa, and rooms in the main lodge for guests, as well as rental cabins on the west side of the mountain. The east side was reserved for the Pack members and their families who worked for the lodge. There was a full gym, babysitting services offered by some of the Pack females, and even a small golf course. All of it sat on about three thousand acres, a third of which was forested. Hiking and horseback riding were popular in the spring, bringing enthusiasts from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York year round. The banquet facilities boasted glass walls that gave you a stunning view of the mountains. Winter weddings were popular, and she was pretty sure the place was booked for the next year.

Charlie
loved
living in the Poconos. She loved living in a place that had more than one season. She loved the snow in the winter, the flowers in the spring, the indoor facilities and the warmth with which the inner circle had accepted her. Part of her job was to be the go-between for Belle’s restaurant and Dave’s banquet facilities. It was a demanding job, an exhausting job, and she loved every second of it.

“Nuh-uh. Put that away. We have other dogs to fry.” Belle waved her hand toward the notebook. “Let’s have a party.”

Chela and Charlie exchanged glances. Chela was worried, but Charlie felt more amused than anything. She was pretty sure the whole Lodge could catch fire and she’d feel the same. Today was a good day.

“Excuse me?” Chela said. “For who?”

“Why, Charlie and Ted, of course.” Belle was starting to get that look on her face, the one that told Charlie her friend was up to mischief. “And we need to make sure we invite the Lowes. After all, it’s not every day the Leo’s sister mates.”

“You’re doing this to teach Ted a lesson, aren’t you?” Charlie started to smile. Ted needed to get over his fear of her brother, either by hook or by crook. With Belle in charge, it would more than likely be crook. She cocked her head, thinking as fast as she could. “My favorite color is brick red. Just in case you’re thinking formal.”

Belle’s wicked expression became downright evil. “I think it should definitely be formal.”

This put a smile on Chela’s face. “I can’t remember the last time I saw Steve in a suit.”

“It was probably at Ben and Dave’s wedding.”

“That was months ago.” Chela was the one who pulled out a notebook. “We need to decorate the hall.”

Belle pulled out her own notepad. “And talk to Dave about the date.”

“Could we have petti fours?” Charlie sighed, putting her chin on her hands. “I love petti fours.”

“I don’t see why not.” Belle rubbed her hands together. “We get to go gown shopping, ladies.”

“You should scare the pants off of Ted and wear white,” Chela told Charlie.

Charlie examined her nail, pretending nonchalance. Inside, she was loving this idea. “I might be able to come up with something.”

The food was delivered as they talked, hashing out details for a night Ted was sure to remember. By the time they were down to just sipping coffee they’d gotten almost everything they needed list-wise. Now all they had to do was implement their plan.

“I’ll talk to Dave and make sure that the event halls is ready for use.” Belle frowned, tapping her pen on the pad. “Chela, anyone else who should be on the guest list?”

Chela stared at her pad. “The New York Coyotes Alpha and Beta, maybe?”

Belle snorted out a laugh. “Please invite them, just for Rick’s sake.” Nathan Consiglione and his brother Keith were the Alpha and Beta, respectively, of their Pack. The Poconos Pack leaders had written a pass-through treaty, allowing each to go through the other’s territory without consequences barring crimes against the Pack. Inviting them to a function the Leo would be attending would be a serious step up the shifter ladder for the Coyote Alpha. If he cared at all, that was. She’d met Nathan, and she had the feeling he didn’t give two fucks what anyone else thought of him, even her. She’d liked that about him.

Hell, she loved that about the Poconos Pack as a whole. She’d come to the Pack to be a normal woman, not “the Leo’s baby sister”. She was sick and tired of people treating her like she was made of glass. Thank God for Dave, because he’d been the one to convince her to try for the job of the Luna’s aide. And thank God she and Belle had clicked like sisters from another mister.

Chela poked her in the side. “I can feel you. You’re tickled pink over all this.”

Belle’s eyes widened in delight. “Yes! Now I can
really
boss you around.”

“You do that already, idiot.” But Charlie knew what she meant. Belle was now her Luna.

“Pfft.” Belle waved her hand. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”

Charlie turned to Chela, but before she could speak, Chela nodded. “Yes. Be afraid.”

Charlie laughed. “Okay, my Luna. Do your worst.”

She really should have been afraid of the look that crossed Belle’s face then, but in the distance she heard Ted’s voice and just couldn’t seem to be bothered. It flowed over her, awakening memories of their quickie lovemaking session on the couch and the slow, intense fucking he’d given her afterward. She’d fallen asleep in his arms and woken alone, but he’d left a note complaining about having to go to work. Even better, he’d made coffee before he left.

He was forgiven for leaving her without waking her up just for that.

“Aw, look at her. She looks so sappy,” Chela crooned.

“Someone heard her mate.” Belle pinched her cheek. “That’s
so
cute.”

Charlie gave her friends a double bird, but otherwise kept her mouth shut. She’d also learned that if Belle really wanted to give it to her there was no way Charlie could win. She was good, but Belle was better.

Belle snickered into her coffee mug.

“Seriously. We’re both thrilled for you, you know?” Chela hugged her from the side, leaning her head against Charlie’s shoulder. “I was going to do something painfully awkward if Ted didn’t get his head out of his ass soon.”

“How painfully awkward?” Charlie wanted to hear this one.

Chela merely smiled, sending a shiver down her spine. The Omega had wicked scary powers and a smile to match. “It would have been for the good of the pack.”

“Uh-huh.” Charlie could no longer hear Ted’s voice. She’d probably see him later in the day, possibly when they were done work.

“Aw, boo-boo, did Teddy-Weddy go bye-bye?” Belle’s exaggerated pout didn’t break when Charlie shot her an evil side-eye.

“I’ll shoot off the invitations today,” Chela said, ignoring both Belle and Charlie. “Any idea what your brother’s schedule looks like? I don’t want to invite him for a visit when he can’t make it.”

Charlie smirked. “Oh, he’ll make time. I’ve been telling both him and Kincade to keep their asses in Sedona, that I don’t need either of them checking up on me.”

“Have they listened?” Belle cocked her head. “I remember a pair of Lions who checked in about a month ago, stayed a week and barely left the Lodge.”

Chela snorted out a laugh. “You didn’t get the memo.”

Charlie hid her face in her napkin.

“Memo?” Belle glanced from Chela to Charlie and back again. “What did you people hide from me?”

“Nothing,” Charlie choked out.

“Just a whole lot of complaints.” Chela’s expression was innocent.

“It’s my job to take care of those, right?” Not really, but Charlie had dealt with those personally, just in case the Lions really
had
been sent by her brother.

“Do tell.” Belle leaned on her head on her hand.

Chela was too busy laughing to answer, so Charlie did. “The complaints were noise related.” She used all her years growing up the sister of the future Leo to keep her face straight, almost bored-looking. “The people next to them requested that we ask the Lions not to watch Animal Planet quite so loudly.”

Belle’s brows rose. “Let me guess. The Lion wasn’t sleeping in the jungle that night?”

Like she hadn’t heard
that
one before. “Apparently the Lion was on a killing spree, if the sounds were anything to go by.” Charlie had been the one to knock on the door of the Lion shifters. “When I went to speak to them, the male opened the door, ready, willing and able to handle any female that came by.”