Chapter 16
Malcolm walked out of Roxy’s and started to head for the garage. Clare’s parts had come in, and he planned on getting her car done by sometime tomorrow. Seeing her so happy, hugging Deb repeatedly had Malcolm smiling. Even though his protective instincts for her went into overdrive, he was happy for her. He knew what she did was dangerous, but at least now they knew what she was doing and could keep an eye on things.
“What’s the smile for?” Jamie gave him a knowing smile of her own as she and Gunner walked alongside him.
“Malcolm,” Dell called out, waving him over. “Meeting at Garrett’s.”
“Gotta go.” Malcolm gave Jamie a smirk as he playfully poked Gunner in the tummy as he passed. He wasn’t happy about another fucking meeting, but if it got him away from Jamie’s prying questions, he’d take another meeting with a smile.
“Yeah, run away,” Jamie called out after him. “Your uncle Malcolm is a big chicken.”
Devon waited for Malcolm as he watched to make sure Jamie and Gunner got to their house safely. “So, what do you make of all this?”
Malcolm was careful about what he said. Devon, with all his side-eye looks and smirks, alerted him that Devon suspected he had feelings for Clare. He was still dealing with those feelings and didn’t need any outside voices in his head.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Malcolm answered, walking up the steps to Garrett’s. “But dangerous.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Devon nodded with a frown. “I don’t know how the town is going to take it.”
“Why does the town have a say?” Malcolm stopped looking at Devon. “Dell is Alpha, and what he says goes.”
“Didn’t you just leave an overbearing Alpha situation?” Devon asked with a cocked eyebrow. “Listen, it’s just the way it works around here. Even though this is Shifter territory, we do have humans that live in this town. Garrett and Dell are the same when it comes to making decisions based on how it will affect the town and everyone in it.”
Malcolm didn’t respond, but Devon did have a point. He and Jamie had been in a situation where the so-called Alpha made the pack decisions, and in some Shifter packs, that was the norm.
They walked into the large kitchen where Dell stood talking quietly to Garrett. Hunter was in the refrigerator; Marcus was on his phone as Brock stood talking to Tammy. His eyes found Taz, who leaned against the wall, his eyes taking everything in. Malcolm didn’t know Taz very well, but he seemed like a good guy. Intense for sure, and from what he had seen, the guy was one hell of a tracker.
Dell walked in with his arm around Roslyn, who Malcolm could not bring himself to call Ross. He had run perimeter with her a few times. She was good at what she did and took the safety of everyone in town very seriously. The woman also knew cars, almost better than he did. When he was having trouble with a transmission Dell had sent her over and to his surprise, she found the problem within minutes after he had spent half the day cussing and smashing shit. She glanced his way, giving him a smile then walked over to him.
“How are you, Malcolm?” She asked, stopping next to him.
She barely came to his chin; she was so tiny but fierce. He would definitely pick her to be on his side in a fight. “Good.” He replied with a nod. “Can’t complain. What about you? Haven’t seen you on shift.”
“Dell has me on the early morning runs,” Roslyn said, giving him a frown. “I hate those hours, but just because I sleep with the Alpha, I still have to do the shit jobs.”
Malcolm laughed with a nod. “Yeah, those aren’t my favorite hours either. Better you than me.” He teased and noticed Dell watching Roslyn as she laughed. Yeah, that sucker was head over heels in love with his mate. Dell noticed Malcolm watching and gave him a glare before turning his attention back to Garrett.
“Don’t worry,” Roslyn smirked. “He’s always glaring. It’s his thing. Plus, he likes you.”
Malcolm didn’t respond to that other than a smirk. He respected Dell, but he did not fear any man. What Malcolm had gone through in his life, the only fear he had was losing his sister and nephew. Clare’s face flashed across his mind, and he knew that he had one more person to add to his very short list of fears.
Dell called out for everyone’s attention. Once he had it, he began. “I want to hear everyone’s thoughts. I filled Roslyn in on everything. I want a woman’s view on this situation also.”
Malcolm frowned. “And what if everyone’s thoughts are against it?” Malcolm asked before anyone could say anything. “Clare is thinking it’s a done deal.”
“There is a safety issue we have to address,” Dell replied without answering Malcolm’s question. “And I am not making a definite decision until I talk with everyone.”
“Well, I, for one...” Hunter spoke up after shoving half a sandwich in his mouth, chewed then swallowed, making everyone wait. “I don’t think this is something we can’t handle. Most assholes who think it’s okay to hurt a woman is a pussy in my book and can be dealt with quickly and efficiently.” Hunter finished with a crack of his knuckles.
“For once, I agree with Hunter,” Marcus replied, then looked at Tammy. “Can I ask you a question?”
Tammy nodded, and Malcolm noticed a haunted look in her eyes. He then thought of Jamie, who was much stronger than this poor girl, and yet he had seen that same haunted look in Jamie’s eyes. Anger burned inside him. He stared as the woman stepped closer to her brother but was willing to speak no matter how uncomfortable she was.
“What would have happened to you without Clare?” Marcus asked the question as every eye went to Tammy.
“He would have found me again. Would have dragged me back. He has every single time, and it’s worse for me each time. My fear is that he will turn on Ben next.” Tammy said with a shudder.
“Over my dead body,” Brock mumbled, his eyes shifting to something behind Malcolm. He looked over his shoulder to see Clare walking in the door, stopping just inside the kitchen.
Malcolm glanced at Clare, who glanced at him quickly and then looked away. He stepped to the side so Clare to come further into the room. He inhaled as she moved next to him, taking her scent that he couldn’t get enough of. Damn, he had it bad and it not only excited him but terrified him at the same time. His feelings were getting harder to deny, and he honestly didn’t know what the hell he was going to do about it.