“All right, I’ll be your first lady. On one condition.”
He squinted at her. “Which is?”
She tugged him around and stretched up to whisper the words against his lips. “On our way to each town, we get to spend one night in a hotel doing nothing but screwing each other silly and sleeping late the next day.”
“Deal.” He kissed her, quick and soft. “A day off between stops. It’s the least we deserve.”
I love you. The words came to her lips, but she bit them back. It was too soon.
Even if it already felt true.
Chapter Twelve
The distinctive beep of a truck backing up echoed across the clearing, and Julio sidestepped a mound of freshly dug earth to greet Sydney. “Everything going smoothly?”
“Like magic.” Arms crossed, Sydney surveyed the bubbling activity in the heart of his domain with an expression torn between excitement and dumbfounded shock. “Alec Jacobson’s better than Santa Claus. Shows up, dumps a few grand worth of trailers on us, eats a couple dozen cookies and disappears back north.”
More like a few hundred grand, though Sydney probably knew the exact amount, down to the dollar. Julio eyed the clearing, as well as the new dirt paths meandering out into the forest.
Gone were the tents and old, leaky campers, replaced by a cluster of new single and doublewide trailers. “Will it be enough room until the others get set up?”
“Hell yeah.” Sydney nodded to the nearest trailer, which was already set up and buzzing with activity. “Four bedrooms and a living room with plenty of space to curl up. Jacuzzi tubs too. I think Patty’s jealous.”
Sera’s laughter drifted out of an open window. She’d disappeared into the newly finished trailer with Patty, an antique sewing machine and an army of teenage wolves who popped out the front door from time to time on various errands. Sydney watched with an indulgent smile as the latest girl hopped down the temporary stairs and dashed for the house, a list clutched in one hand. “Patty’s going to miss your girl too. You promise to bring her back for a visit, huh?”
Julio nodded through the sharp stab of longing. Sera had a life, for Christ’s sake, and she’d likely be busy the next time he had to drive over. “Yeah, absolutely. Whenever she wants to come.”
“Good.” His smile faded. “I know you have to hit the road tonight. I’m not friends with many of the rich wolves in the Southeast, but I’m on speaking terms with most of the poorer alphas in southern Alabama and Georgia. Word about what you did here’s likely to spread. What should I tell them when they call?”
The need was there, not only in Sydney’s pack, but in others as well. “I have money,” Julio mused aloud. “Most of it used to be my uncle’s, so it’s only fitting I redistribute some of it. If they call you, pass on the number to council headquarters. We may have to start inviting people out there to tell us what they need.” Especially if Alec was going to be back in New Orleans, like he’d said.
Sydney chuckled. “Oh, I’m sure most of them already have the number. But I can let them know it’s time to start using it.”
“If I don’t manage to convince them myself. My driving tour’s not over yet.”
“You’ll probably do it, at that.” Sydney clapped him on the shoulder. “You’re a good man, Mendoza. A strong wolf, but a good man. If you ever need anything…I’ll fight for you. We all will.”
The words reminded him of his mother. You’re more than a wolf, Julio. You’re a man. She’d always said it so seriously, with a gravity he never appreciated until stepping into the challenge circle in pursuit of his council seat. You’re both, so don’t you ever let them make you choose.
“Fighting’s the last thing I want,” he told Sydney, “but I appreciate it. And I’ll keep it in mind.”
“You do that. And while you’re always welcome in our home and among our pack, I won’t be offended if you bundle your girl up and go find someplace less crowded to spend the night.
There’s a nice little place over in Destin. Patty said Sera might like the restaurant there.”
“No, your people need to settle in. The longer I’m here, the more uncertain they’re bound to get about what I’ve done and why.”
A bit of tension in the other man’s shoulders eased, maybe at not being forced to say as much himself. “They’re grateful, don’t ever think they’re not. And you having Sera and her being so happy… That’s mostly kept the women from wondering what you’ll ask of them in return. But change comes hard.”
And for good reason, considering the sorts of things his uncle had likely coerced from them in addition to their money. “Then it’s time for us to split. But we’ll see you and Patty soon, Syd. If not here, then in New Orleans, all right?”
“You bet. Now go get your girl.” Sydney nodded toward the trailer with an amused noise.
“And get a hotel room before one of you gets bit by something poisonous because you’re rolling around naked in the woods every night.”
Julio ignored the jibe because it was true, but the place was so damn crowded, who could blame him for wanting to run off into the woods to be alone with Sera? He walked up beside the makeshift steps and leaned his head in the open door. “You finished sewing curtains yet?”
“We’re getting there.” Sera grinned at him over the head of the high-school-aged wolf seated in front of the sewing machine. The whole living room was covered in plastic bags from a local fabric store, and Sera had to hop over a bolt of fabric to reach the door. “You ready to start packing?”
“I thought I’d handle it while you finished up here.”
She reached down to smooth his hair back from his forehead, fingers lingering at his temple.
“All right. You know which way we’re headed yet?”
Any place but Atlanta, considering that Alec had warned him to steer clear of Cesar and his father for the time being. “Tennessee? The mountains are nice, and there’s a pack in Sevierville we could visit.”
“Sounds perfect.” She touched his lips briefly before straightening. “I’ll start saying my goodbyes.”
For a moment, he wanted nothing more than to drag her back against him. But no matter how great things had been for them, for her, amongst Sydney’s pack, it wasn’t where they belonged.
And it was time to go.
The hotel turned out to be a wood-shingled New England-style building with Victorian furnishings. Sydney had apparently called ahead, and the man behind the desk favored Sera with a broad smile as he handed over their keys.
“Looks like you’re the belle of the Florida panhandle,” Julio murmured teasingly as they stepped into the elevator.
“Queen of the redneck shifters,” she replied just as lightly. “It’s different. Not bad, but weird.”
“If it’s not bad, does that make it a good weird?”
“Maybe.” She cuddled close to his side, her fingers tracing absently along his belt. “I always knew wolves could see past the coyote thing if they had a reason to get to know me. I guess a lot of them never had one before. But none of them wanted to piss you off.”
As usual, she was selling herself short—and giving him far too much credit for something he hadn’t done. “It was you, Sera. They might have been polite in deference to me, but that’s it.”
Instead of arguing, she gave in with a laugh. “Okay, maybe. But that’s partly the submissive thing too. All other things being equal, the stronger a shifter is, the more they’re going to want to take care of me. It gives me an unfair advantage.”
And it bothered her. “Want me to ask them to leave you alone? Back home, I mean?”