Desert Bound (Cambio Springs) (28 page)

Ted was the one who replied, “No.”

“Then I’m Alex McCann, the wolf alpha, speaking to a senior member of the cat clan,” he said quietly. “You’re not an elder, and you’ve just insulted a member of my pack who is a guest in your daughter’s home. So yes, Lena, I do have that right unless you’re looking for a challenge.”

Ted saw the waves of fury pouring off her mother, but she knew Lena was stuck. She couldn’t challenge Alex without a massive inter-clan incident and no one wanted that. So she turned her attention to Ted.

“Teodora, you cannot be serious.”

“Mom—”

“This? For you?” Lena curled her lip. “This disrespectful,
macho
wolf you could run circles around?”

Alex said nothing, letting Ted respond. “Yes, Mom. We’ve talked about this. You know my feelings. They have not changed in the last twenty-four hours.”

“You could do so much better than him.”

Ted heard Robert McCann growl, but she spoke over it. “Your idea of better is vastly different from mine. I’ve made my choice. Am I no longer welcome in my mother’s house?”

“You should be the one stepping into leadership, not your cousin—”

“I don’t want leadership. I have never wanted leadership. I’m a doctor. I need to be trustworthy to everyone in this town. And for that, I need to
not
be a leader in our clan. We’ve had this discussion over twenty times that I can count and we’ve never agreed. So tell me now, am I no longer welcome in your home?”

Lena’s eyes were ice cold, but she said, “Of course you’re welcome.”

“Wonderful. Don’t insult guests in mine. Alex, could you pass me the cream?”

He released his hand from her thigh and reached across the table to hand her the pitcher. 

“We’re almost out,” he said. “Want me to get more?”

“That would be great, thanks.”

He rose and walked to the fridge to get the jug of milk while Ted tried to pretend her hands weren’t shaking. At the last minute, he turned and winked at her behind their parents’ backs.

“United front, baby. No matter what they throw at us.”

She started drinking her cold coffee, looking for all the world like breakfast between a pissed-off cat and a pissed-off, injured wolf was something that happened regularly at her table.

Thinking about it, she figured it probably
would
be happening regularly, so she might as well get used to it.

Alex came back to the table and reached for the carafe, warming up her coffee before he handed her the small pitcher of milk. 

“Lena? Dad? A warm up?”

Robert’s voice was wary, but Ted could see the admiration in his eyes as he looked at his son.

“Yes,” he said. “Thanks, Alex.”

“None for me.” Lena’s voice was acid, but she’d backed off, Ted could feel it.

“Now,” Alex started again, “we’re here because…” He looked at her and smiled. “Well, we’re here.”

Ted couldn’t help but smile back. He was just too damn charming when he put his mind to it.

He let her eyes go and continued, “Ted and I are making plans to have a life together. This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. The reason we asked you both here is for two reasons. One, we don’t want awkward Christmases.” Lena curled her lip, but Alex ignored her. “And two, while you two both think this is going to cause problems, Ted and I think this might be a way to solve some.”

Lena arched an eyebrow. “Do tell.”

Ted said, “Despite the recent change in the wolf clan, you two both represent your packs. Robert, you’re on the Elder Council. Mom, you will be. The wolves and the cats are have always been the two most powerful clans in Cambio Springs. This should be an alliance, not a source of contention.”

“Like we would bow to the wolves on anything,” Lena said.

“Woman, have we ever asked you to bow?” Robert snarled. “We have no interest in your grudges and political bullshit. That’s not how our kind work. So you do your thing and we do ours. You think I’m any more pleased about them being together than you are?”

“On that, we are in total agreement.”

Ted heard the low growl from Alex, but the old man kept speaking.

“If you think that, you’d be wrong. I may not be pleased my son chose your daughter, Lena, but I’m damn pleased he knows his own mind to stand up for her when he was pushed. And I’m pleased as hell your daughter doesn’t put up with your crap, either. I may not like her for my boy, but I can respect that.”

“Enough, Dad.”

“I don’t like it,” Robert said. “Or her. But you fought for her. Bled for the right to have her. And you earned that respect.”

Ted found herself warming to Alex’s dad. She was fine with him not liking her. She could even respect it, because he clearly had his reasons, even though she didn’t agree. After a while, he’d warm up. Or, he could just stay being an ornery bastard. If Alex could put up with it, she could, too.

Her mother, on the other hand, was being pissy because she didn’t like being bested. She’d return to ignoring Alex and Ted when she got over it.

“This—” She waved between them. “—is a perfect example of what we should avoid. Petty fighting should be beneath both of our clans. If we have an issue, we discuss it. Come to a consensus privately so that we provide clear leadership for the town in public.”

That shut both of them up, because Ted saw they were both considering it. 

The wolves didn’t like arguing. Thought it made them look weak to have to bicker about matters on a council they thought they ran. But it was necessary at times. All council decisions had to be unanimous. And most of the bickering was between the cats and the wolves.

The cats, on the other hand, had always been the second strongest, and they knew it. It was partly by design and partly their nature. Most cat shifters had little interest in any matters but those that affected their immediate family. Their loyalty was deep, but only extended to blood relatives. And frankly, Ted knew that most had no interest in the real responsibilities of town leadership.

In forming an alliance, the cats got equal footing in decisions and the wolves avoided public bickering. It could be a win for both clans if Alex and Ted worked things right.

Alex said, “Think about it. Talk it over with your elders, Lena. I can speak for the wolves that we’re open to a private alliance. With Ted and I together, the other clans will suspect it, but they won’t say anything.”

“And the first topic for discussion is the mayor’s position,” Robert said.

Lena agreed immediately. “Yes. And Ted, I know you don’t—”

“Not going to happen,” Ted said with a groan. “Mom, seriously? I told you I don’t want to be in leadership.”

Lena waved a hand. “The mayor’s position is in name only. You would just implement what the Elder Council wants.”

“No,” Alex said quietly. “That needs to change.”

Robert asked, “Why?”

“Because the cats and the wolves already have enough power, Dad. The mayor needs to come from one of the other clans. And he or she needs to not be a rubber stamp. Look what happened with Mayor Matt.”

“Cat,” Robert sneered.

“Matt Marquez was a decent guy,” Alex continued. “He got frustrated with the lack of respect the council gave him, and that was part of the reason—”

“His wife went nuts and killed people?” Robert broke in. “I don’t think anyone can take that blame but Missy Marquez.”

Alex leaned forward. “We don’t have to run everything. The town won’t fall apart if we share the load.”

Robert didn’t have any response to that. 

“I’m going to have a resort to run, along with managing the business in L.A. I don’t have time to micromanage. That’s not the kind of leader I’m going to be. You know this. You’ve always known this.”

After a few more moments of silence, Robert sighed and said, “Not a Quinn.”

Lena sipped her coffee and said, “A bear would be ideal. The Campbells are steady and involved in the community. The birds are even more insular than the cats and they have a tendency to wander. A bear would provide enough of a counterweight to our representatives on the council to make the other clans feel as if they have a say. Everyone trusts them.”

Ted said, “Or we could—I don’t know—give democracy a try and let people vote on it.”

“Fine,” Alex said. “But I’ll be instructing my clan that none of them are going to run.” He looked at Lena.

She said, “I’ll speak to my father and my aunt.”

“And I’ll speak to Old Quinn,” Robert said. “Need to talk to him about something else anyway.”

“Will Quinn be a problem?” Ted asked.

“I don’t think so. He’s got enough on his plate right now.” Robert glanced between Ted and Alex. “Any news on Marcus’s murder?”

“Caleb is working with both of us now,” Ted said, feeling her mother’s eyes on her. “And I know he has Ollie checking out some leads, too. Jeremy is smoothing things over with the Sheriff’s office and doing what he can. He’s still got a lot of friends there. But we need to find Joe Smith. Put the word out that if anyone sees him, they contact me or Alex. We have some questions.”

Lena said, “That woman and her children deserve to know what happened. Marcus was a good father.”

Robert asked Lena, “How are the kids doing?”

“They’re adjusting well enough,” she said. “But the attention and uncertainty are wearing on them. The other children are mostly kind. I’m keeping an eye on things.”

Robert grunted and Ted tried to suppress a smile. Alex’s dad may have disliked her mom, but no one could deny that, for the children of Cambio Springs—no matter their clan—Lena Vasquez was their champion. Every child in that town was hers, and she made no bones about it. More than one neglectful parent had felt the edge of her claws if they didn’t straighten up.

Alex leaned over and whispered, “We need to work on giving them some grandkids. They won’t be able to fight about other shit when they’re fighting over our kids.”

“Slow. Down.”

She felt his grin against her neck when he kissed her.

“Not a chance.” 

The swoop of steel guitar hit her as Alex swung her around to the Bonnie Raitt tune on the jukebox. Ted decided that “Something to Talk About” was their tune, because every eye was on them as they danced around the Cave and more than a few of them were talking.

Partly, it was the fact that they were together—very very together—but most of it was about the fact that Alex was the new McCann alpha.

She couldn’t say he looked different, except for the red bites and claw marks that were almost healed. She couldn’t say his voice was different or that he walked differently.

Except he did.

It was that indefinable quality that had marked him when he was fourteen. The one that had always caused friction with his father. And now it was the settled confidence of knowing he
was
the biggest and baddest. And no one—at least no one who didn’t want their ass kicked—was going to challenge him.

Being alpha looked good on Alex. So it was probably a good thing he’d mated with her. A lesser woman, Ted decided, would let the man walk all over her, because that walk was damn sexy.

They’d spent the day poking around the construction at the resort. The site had dried out from the rain, but more storms were in the forecast, so they were hustling. Ted had the day free from the clinic, so she’d asked Alex to show her around. It was the first time that she’d truly allowed herself to feel excitement.

The Cambio Springs Resort and Spa was clearly Alex’s labor of love. He loved it and was involved in planning every inch. From the mineral water pools to the guest cottages, he explained it all. The treatment rooms. The restaurant and private dining nooks. The landscaping. Watching him talk about it made her fall in love with him all over again, because she was finally starting to understand his passion. And that understanding gave her peace.

They’d lost years, but that sacrifice meant something when it could lead to something so beautiful.

The resort would be stunning. But more than that, it would be a lifeline for the place they both called home. And the complete privacy that Alex was cultivating as the hallmark of the resort would also be the thing that kept the town safe. It would be an oasis, but a private one. And in a little over a year, it would be complete. According to Alex. They were already taking reservations.

She was startled out of her thoughts when his mouth swooped down and kissed her hard.

“Don’t think so loud, Vasquez.”

She smiled and curled her hands around his shoulders. “You’re so lucky I’ll have you, McCann.”

“Yes,” he answered. No hesitation. No bickering. Just a cocky smile. “And you’ll have me again when we get home.”

“You’re insatiable.”

“You’re irresistible.”

And how was she supposed to resist when he said stuff like that? Ted had to raise her voice a little to hear over the crowd. “When are you moving your stuff in?” 

“When do you want it?”

Ted couldn’t pass that one up. “I want it whenever you want to give it to me, McCann.”

He burst out laughing and stopped dancing to lift her up in his arms and swing her around. He met her lips for a lingering kiss on the slide down.

Happy. Ted didn’t think she’d ever seen Alex so happy.

She didn’t think she’d ever been that happy, either.

Ted saw Sean and Allie dancing in the corner of the room. Sean bent down to whisper something in her ear just before Allie threw her head back and laughed. 

“Playing with fire,” Alex muttered.

She glanced behind the bar. Ollie’s jaw was set, and he was pointedly ignoring anything but the drink he was pouring. 

“What’s Sean up to, Alex?”

“Other than being an idiot?”

“Hey.” She tugged on his hair. “He’s not being an idiot.”

“He’s playing with her. She doesn’t need that.”

“He’s not playing her. Sean adores her the same way you do.”

“Do you see me flirting with her in front of the bear? Right after her husband took off?”

“No, but you’re not Sean,” Ted said. “He’s a flirt. Always has been. And I’d say that right now, having a good friend give her some harmless flirtation probably makes her feel pretty damn good, since her asshole husband had been ignoring her for years.”