36. Clara
Clara
I’m more nervous than a vampire around garlic as a pickup truck from the Evergreen Pack makes its way up the bluff. They’re the first to arrive for the barbecue. I’m waiting in front of the house with Bram, Jack and Dagan just behind me.
Victor isn’t here. I haven’t seen him since I called Finian back from him last night.
Connor, an alpha with fire-red hair and green eyes, steps out first and helps Cali down.
I notice the care in his hands. At just over four months along in her pregnancy Cali’s cute little bump is just starting to show.
Seth, her tall blond alpha, and Bax, my cousin, round the truck and move toward her, flanking her like three watchful bodyguards.
Bax breaks away and comes to me first. We hug, and he kisses my cheek.
Bax has always been my favorite cousin—more like a friend growing up.
His eyes flick to the alphas behind me, assessing.
He presented as a dominant alpha last month, a first for the Evergreen Pack.
But they’ve adapted well. Since Bram is the Ember Pack’s dominant alpha, it’s customary for him to greet the dominant of any other pack we meet.
But since they technically met at the hospital they just shake hands.
At the time Bax had been distracted by his omega in distress. Now, he’s focussed on me and my living situation.
Bax takes Brams hand without smiling. My anxiety spikes, and my scent must shift, because when Bram’s done shaking his hand, he runs a steady palm up and down my spine.
“Bax is my cousin,” I remind him.
“It’s nice to meet a member of Clara’s family.” He turns to Cali. "I hope you're feeling better." Bram’s crooked smile softens him. He looks completely harmless, considering he writes gruesome murders and hideous hauntings.
Cali returns it. "I am, thank you again."
“I thought there were four of you,” Bax says unceremoniously.
My heart sinks. Of course he knows. He owns the only café in town and probably asked around. I hadn’t told him the exact number of alphas in the Ember Pack just to avoid this exact awkwardness.
Bram doesn’t miss a beat. “Victor is indisposed. He wasn’t feeling well.” Not technically a lie. I’m sure he wasn’t feeling well enough to deal with my family or anyone. My heart clenches, and my omega lets out an invisible whine. I force it down.
“We’ve got the barbecue going in the back,” Dagan signs.
Seth surprises me by replying in both speech and sign. “ Starving.”
We’re about to head that way when tires crunch up the drive.
Winnie’s pink Jeep ambles in, Rose riding shotgun and glaring at the missing doors like they’re a personal insult.
Rose hops out too fast, nearly eating dirt before Seth catches her.
She clutches a dish in one hand and her phone in the other.
Winnie has a platter of cupcakes with festive sprinkles.
The Ember Pack introduces themselves again. Rose looks like she's about to pass out when Bram offers to sign her copy of his book that she has clutched under her arm. She walks away looking at the book like it's made of magic.
Another vehicle arrives. A sleek, silver Benz, and I wince at the gravel pinging its paint. Hunt, dark-skinned with golden eyes, steps out and helps Sunny from the middle seat. Jess and Luca emerge next. Then the driver’s door opens and out steps an imposing man in his forties.
Salt-and-pepper hair, razor-cut jaw, slacks, and a sports jacket. Cole. He’s dressed for a boardroom, not a barbecue. Sunny’s dominant alpha. And I can tell he’s here on a mission to judge my living situation.
Bram straightens, his expression steady. Cole strides across the drive, offering his hand with a predator’s gleam. Bram meets it head-on.
“Cole Night,” Cole growls.
“Bram Razor,” Bram returns, his smile gone. Suddenly, I believe he writes murder for a living.
“Where is your fourth?” Cole asks. So, he’s gathered the information about my pack and found it lacking.
I clench my fists and breathe deep. He won’t accept the illness excuse. But Bram’s presence shifts from less scholar to more six-foot-eight alpha with dominance like steel under velvet.
“My pack is my concern.” His voice is low, almost a growl.
Cole’s reply is sharper. “Clara is a good friend of my mate. She’s close to pack. Her safety is my concern.” His dominance crashes into the air.
For a heartbeat, panic burns through me. I need my friends and my pack to get along. Then Bram pulls me close and, shockingly, yields.
He kisses the top of my head without looking away from Cole. “Clara is safe with me. Victor is my fourth, and he isn’t coming tonight. That’s all I can say. I’ll take a blood oath if you want.”
I tense. Blood oaths are no joke. They're legally binding, enforceable by lethal retribution.
“No!” I blurt.
“Yes,” Cole says.
I s tep between them, glaring at both him and Sunny. “I invited you here to meet the pack that’s courting me. Not to demand legally binding death agreements.”
“He offered—” Sunny starts.
“I don’t care. Be polite or leave.”
Sunny sighs, stepping forward to hug me. “Fine. No blood oaths.”
Cole says nothing, but doesn’t break Bram’s gaze until Bram kisses me lightly. “You’re the boss, Ghost,” he says, with absolute sincerity.
I turn to Cole. He nods once. “I apologize if I overstepped.”
The tension cracks, and we head to the backyard, though Bram lingers at my side.
“What were you thinking? A blood oath?” I hiss.
“I would take one without hesitation to swear to your safety,” he says steadily. “Because if harm ever came to you, I’d rather die.”
The words lodge in my chest.
***
The yard is decked out for fall. Glass-top table, swivel chairs, a full outdoor kitchen courtesy of Jack, gear from Dagan to make the space perfect. I’d splurged on Halloween decor like hay bales, specialty pumpkins, black plates with vintage ghosts, orange and purple twinkle lights.
At each place setting is a pumpkin and carving tools. Some guests light up—Cali, Seth, Hunt, Winnie. Others look puzzled. A few—Jess, Dagan, Rose, and Cole—look outright horrified. I bite back a wicked grin. Let Cole feel the hot seat for once—with crafts.
As everyone moves to their seats, Cole intercepts me behind a hedge, away from prying eyes.
“ Yes?” My bravado is running thin.
“I’m sorry if I upset you.”
“It’s fine. I know you’re looking out for me.” What he said about me being close to pack actually really meant a lot. Doesn’t mean I’m going to let him get away with being a dominant ass.
“I’m still concerned,” he says, eyes sharp.
“Why? Living together before courtship isn’t typical, but neither was you camping on Sunny’s lawn when you met her.”
“That’s not it. I’m concerned about when our alphas clashed.”
“What about it? You were more dominant than Bram. So what?”
“No,” Cole says flatly. “I wasn’t.”
I blink. “I felt him yield.”
“Because he chose to. He tried to hide it, but I could sense it. That alpha is one of the most dominant I’ve ever met.”
My gaze drifts to Bram, standing alone at the edge of the bluff, watching the sunset.
“So the question is,” Cole says quietly, “why would he hide it?”