Were She Belongs (3 page)

“Sure do.” He looked toward the dance floor and the corner of the room.

“As a matter of fact…”

Jacob stood up and took a step off the platform to meet Lexi halfway. “Lexi. So glad you’re here. I have some very special guests I would like you to meet.”

“Lex?” Everyone turned toward Sierra as she jumped up from the table.

“Sierra!” Lexi yelled back as both women embraced and danced around in a circle.

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Sierra touched Lexi’s cheeks as if she weren’t real and she was a dream. Lexi did the same. Her whole conversation with herself while riding in the elevator went down the drain. Her best friend was right in front of her, hugging her, and all the memories came flooding back.

The two women hugged each other again, then began crying.

“I thought you were dead, oh my. I thought I would never see you again,” Sierra cried, holding Lexi close.

Lexi couldn’t stop the tears either. “I can’t believe it’s you, Sierra.

I just can’t.”

They began asking each other a million questions, paying no attention to the small crowd of men around them until someone cleared his throat.

Both women turned toward the men. Both drying their eyes the best they could.

“Sierra?” Valco moved closer to his mate.

“Oh, Valco, this is the best week of my life. This is Lexi, my best friend I told you about. We lost touch after the…”

“After college. It was crazy, but somehow I couldn’t find out where Sierra was.” Lexi cut her off before she revealed too much information.

Sierra locked gazes with Lexi and grabbed her hand again to squeeze it. Even after all these years, it seemed that Sierra could practically read Lexi’s mind. It was the closeness they shared.

* * * *

Lexi swallowed hard at the sight of what appeared to be Sierra’s mate and the drop-dead gorgeous man she had seen on the monitor upstairs. She tried to maintain her composure, but the fact that Sierra greeted her so openly was a relief.

“This is Lexi. She’s my best friend from college,” Sierra added.

“You mentioned that, Sierra,” Valco replied with a smirk, then reached out to shake Lexi’s hand.

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“Nice to meet you, Lexi.”

Lexi smiled and shook Valco’s hand. She was glad she wore high heels. These men were all very tall. Considering she was very petite at five foot two, her four-inch heels were definitely needed around these guys.

“It’s very nice to meet you, as well.”

“Lexi is head of my security here,” Jacob added, placing a hand against her back. Lexi smiled, but she noticed the other hot guy raised his eyebrows in question to the statement. Probably some chauvinistic wolf? That was a relief. Now she could fight the physical attraction to him because he lacked personality.

“This is Paul. He’s Valco’s brother.” Sierra introduced Paul to Lexi.

She reached out to shake his hand, but instead he took her hand into his and leaned down to kiss the top of it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lexi,” he stated.

He seemed to freeze in place, and she could have sworn he sniffed her hand when he kissed it.

Cautiously, she pulled away.

“I can’t believe that you’re here. I’m in shock, Lex. How long have you been back in New York?” Sierra asked as the men listened in. The one Sierra introduced as Paul stared at her. She was feeling a bit uncomfortable until Sierra pulled her over to the tables. The men began talking, leaving Lexi and Sierra some time to catch up, but all eyes were upon her.

“Hey, don’t worry about them. I’ll keep them in line.”

“In line?”

“Yeah. Right now they’re thinking which one of them has a chance with you. Hey, are you married? Have a boyfriend?”

Lexi shook her head and smiled at Sierra. Her friend hadn’t changed a bit. She was still just as beautiful and just as bubbly as ever.

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“I can’t believe this. I can’t believe you’re here and that we found each other by accident. Holy crap, Lex. When you walked out across the room and I saw you coming…” Sierra covered her mouth, and the tears rolled down her cheeks.

Lexi pulled her close and embraced her friend. It was then that Lexi looked up and saw Valco, Paul, Jacob, and three other big guys staring at them. She lowered her eyes and slowly pulled from Sierra’s embrace. “I can’t believe it’s you. I have thought about you so much over the years. I’ve missed you, Sierra.”

“I’ve missed you, too. But now we can catch up. How long have you been working at my cousin’s place and living in New York?”

Sierra and Jacob are cousins.
This could get complicated
.

“I’ve been living in New York and working for Jacob for a little more than a year. What about you? Who’s the hunk?” Lexi asked, tilting her head toward Valco. As they glanced his way, he locked gazes with Lexi, smiled, and winked. She wondered if he heard her remark. Thinking back to what Sierra had told her years ago, wolves had excellent hearing.

“He heard me, didn’t he?” Lexi asked.

Sierra giggled, then nodded.

“He’s my mate, Lex. We came to visit my cousin Jacob, and next month Valco and I will have the mating ceremony.”

“That’s fantastic, Sierra. I know how much that means to you. So how long are you in town for? Where are you living?”

Sierra smiled.

“I’ll be here for the next few days. Then Valco, Paul, and I will be heading back to Texas. We have multiple packs that have merged over the past few years, and with Valco and I marrying, there will be another major convergence. Valco owns acres and acres of land in Texas, and they have a small town and community that’s about ten minutes from the main house. It’s absolutely gorgeous there. We came here to meet Valco’s brother Paul and his two other brothers, Andre and Saber. Saber’s been away on assignment. They’re triplets.

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Oh, jeez, listen to me ramble on and on. Tell me about your life. What happened that night? Why did you disappear?”

Lexi glanced over Sierra’s shoulder and saw the concerned looks on Paul and Valco’s faces. Even Jacob was eavesdropping. If Lexi could even call it that. They had impeccable hearing despite the loud music from the connecting room.

Lexi didn’t want to answer.

She took a deep breath and stared at her best friend. Sierra was gorgeous with long brown hair, deep brown eyes, and perfect skin.

She loved her so much, and having to lie to her or deceive her was heart-wrenching.

“Sierra,” she began to say, then spoke with a whisper, afraid the others would hear.

“Sierra, so much has happened in my life. I’m sorry about how I disappeared. I didn’t mean to hurt you, and I hope you can forgive me for that. I can’t get into that now. It’s not the time or the place.” She smiled, then touched Sierra’s hair as her eyes welled up with tears.

“I’ve missed you so much. I’m so glad that I had the opportunity to see you again. To see how happy you are, and to know you have found your mate. He’s hot,” she stated with a smirk, trying to lighten up the moment.

Sierra looked over her shoulder, and Lexi followed suit. By the smirk on Valco’s face, he obviously had heard Lexi anyway.

“I have to get back to work. Please be sure to let me know when you’re leaving so I can say goodbye this time.” Lexi squeezed Sierra’s hand and got up from the table.

Sierra jumped up. “Lexi!” She paused as Lexi looked over her shoulder and bumped into Jacob, who grabbed her by the shoulders to steady her.

Lexi could have sworn she heard a growl, and when she looked at Sierra, she looked shocked. Lexi glanced at everyone around her, and when she saw Paul, he looked pissed off and his eyes were shining yellow.

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She must have made them mad by walking away from Sierra.

She looked up into Jacob’s eyes. He held her in place.

“Jacob, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. I would never hurt Sierra. Please, I need to go… Just let me go,” she stuttered.

Everyone seemed to be on the defensive between Paul, Valco, and their men and Jacob with his men. All their eyes changed color, and instantly Lexi felt like the outsider who crashed their moment and was now the bad one. She had to get the hell out of here before she became their dinner.

Lexi gulped down her fear and gathered enough courage to get Jacob’s attention. “I have to get back up front. Please help me out here,” she pleaded, and he released her.

“It’s okay, Lex. We’ll talk later,” Jacob stated, but he looked at her oddly, as if he saw something he hadn’t before, and she was instantly worried. She probably just screwed up her whole secret life.

Lexi quickly walked away from the strange situation.

* * * *

Valco grabbed Paul by the shoulders and shoved him further into the small room. Jacob pulled the curtains closed.

“Paul, what the fuck was that about?”

Paul was breathing heavily and looked like he was about to knock his brother on his ass.

“Paul,” Sierra spoke in a gentle tone.

“Lexi knows about werewolves. She knows we exist.”

“What? How can she?” both Valco and Jacob asked.

“I wasn’t kidding when I told you she was my best friend.” Sierra chuckled.

“There’s no way. She’s worked here for over a year and a half and never let on to knowing what we were,” Jacob replied, then turned toward the direction Lexi walked. It appeared to Paul that Sierra’s cousin was upset.

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“I’m sure it wasn’t meant as an insult, Jacob. I swore her to secrecy, so she kept the promise.”

Paul looked up at his brother and then Sierra.

“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to frighten her. I…I can’t believe this. I didn’t know it would be like this.” Paul rubbed his hands through his hair, then looked over Valco’s shoulder toward the curtain.

“Paul?” Valco spoke to his brother.

“That woman, Sierra’s friend, is…. She’s my mate.”

“What?” Paul heard everyone say in unison.

“Lexi is your mate? You’re sure, Paul?” Sierra asked.

“A wolf knows when he finds his mate. You should know that, Sierra.”

Valco smiled and laughed, then slapped Paul on the back.

“Congratulations! This turned out to be one hell of a trip.”

“This is all your fault!” Paul exclaimed, pointing at his brother Valco.

“My fault? How the hell is it my fault?”

“Sierra, you have to tell me more about her,” Paul inquired after giving his brother a dirty look.

They turned toward Sierra.

“I haven’t seen her in years, but she’s a great person. She would do anything for you, including giving the shirt off her own back if you needed it.”

“Images like that are not good for me right now in my current condition,” Paul replied, shifting his weight from one foot to the other to ease the tension and bulge between his legs.

Valco laughed.

“Jacob, what can you tell us about Lexi?” Valco asked, turning toward Sierra’s cousin.

They all looked at Jacob.

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“She’s a fantastic worker. The best security person I’ve ever had working for me. She keeps to herself. The guys all like her and respect her.”

“Where did she go? I need to find her,” Paul asked, heading toward the curtain. Valco grabbed his arm to stop him.

“Slow down there, wolf. The woman is human from what I could sense and smell. She didn’t seem too keen on sticking around. Maybe the idea of being around a bunch of wolves frightens her?” Valco stated with a smirk.

“I’ll change her mind.”

“You’ll remain here,” Jacob countered, and everyone looked at him. The others growled.

Jacob put his hands, palms forward, in the air. “I mean no disrespect, alphas. There are lots of humans around the club. I need Lexi to focus on the security situation right now, and it also seems to me she needed the space.”

* * * *

“Something’s wrong. I can feel it. I’ve known Lexi for years, and…” Sierra swallowed hard, then turned away. A moment later she felt Valco’s arm around her shoulder.

“It will be all right, love. We’ll work this out,” Valco whispered, before gently laying a kiss against the top of her head.

“It’s not like her to be abrupt, or at least I wouldn’t think she would pretend to be happy to see me. I don’t get it,” Sierra whispered as Valco embraced her.

“We’ll figure it out and get to the bottom of it. I sensed she was sincere when she saw you and you two embraced. But I also sensed fear. Let Jacob see what he can find out.”

Sierra hugged Valco close and nodded her head against his chest.

“You two, go keep an eye on Lexi.” Paul pointed to two of his guards. Sierra watched as they headed outside of the curtain.

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Jacob followed.

* * * *

Paul was annoyed. This came completely out of the blue. The instant he saw Lexi walk across the room, he felt her, smelled her scent, and knew she was his mate. The way the other men watched her and instantly wanted her had his hackles rising. He had felt his wolf surface, and it would have sprung through had it not been for Valco. Then he felt the connection with his brothers, Valco first, then Andre.

“Try to remain calm. This is obviously a touchy situation. She’s
not were, and Andre felt the connection from afar. This is unheard
of.”
Valco spoke through their telepathic connection as he comforted Sierra.

“I’m still a few hours away. I want to see her. I want to see what
she looks like,”
Andre stated in his firm, assertive voice.

All alphas were dominate in nature, and Saber was the worst. Paul wondered if Lexi was meant for all three of them.

“It’s possible, brother. That would make her quite special. What
does she look like? Tell me,”
Andre asked.

“She is gorgeous, brother, like a goddess. Her eyes are as green
as the finest emeralds, her lips, her creamy neck, and voluptuous body
edible in every way.”