Dire Wolf Mates - Chapter 27: Chapter 27

The band was playing a rock ballad, and the flow of customers was steady for a weeknight. Food was coming from the kitchen in spades. Their new hires were hustling from table to table, making sure everyone was happy.
All in all, Sheila could not complain. It would have been just like any other night if only the volatile moron at the end of the bar had used his brain and walked away. Leo was perhaps the most gallant and chivalrous male she knew. There was no way he would walk away from Al the asshat, leaving that female alone with the man who’d been ripping her a new butthole in front of everyone.
Sheila inched closer to the trio and listened intently as Leo flashed one of his patented, panty-melting smiles of his. Al was shaking, frowning hard at Leo’s invasion, but the woman, his girlfriend or whatever, seemed happy at the intrusion. Who wouldn’t be? She was blushing a bright, pretty pink under Leo’s attention—as any red-blooded female would.
Sexy, hot, golden boy. Kissable lips, hard body, and that delicious spicy musk wafting off him in waves. Yummy. Sooooo yummy.
Grrrrr.
Sheila stopped short, almost dropping the bottle of vodka in her hand. Leo’s gaze flashed over at her, one brow raised in question, but she ignored him. Replacing the bottle on the shelf with the others, Sheila pretending to concentrate on wiping the bottles and making sure the labels faced front.
What the heck was she doing? Getting jealous of the attention he paid that poor mistreated woman?
He was just being kind. Probably heard the hell the man was giving her and wanted to make sure she was safe. But did he have to be so good-looking while he maintained order?
Down, girl.
Sheila never said she didn’t find him attractive. Leo Crowley was a Shifter. That alone ensured he was physically fit and attractive. Exceedingly hot. Hell—she’d have to be dead to think otherwise.
He was a straight up eleven on a scale of one to ten. The detective’s pearly whites sparkled in the dimly lit bar, his platinum-streaked blond hair was pushed back off his forehead, making him appear approachable and friendly even. He had tanned, flawless skin beneath the scruff of facial hair that was already showing, despite his having shaved that morning. Yes, she knew of his impeccable grooming habits.
Truth was, she knew more about Leo the Lion than she cared to admit. He was model hot. And, sad as it was for her to admit, this was the first time he’d even looked at another woman, and she was jealous. Embarrassingly so.
Jealousy simmered beneath the surface, but she knew better than that. A woman was being mistreated by her male friend, and the good detective was doing something about it. Smile trained on the little lady, he opened his mouth and spoke.
“So, Marilyn, now that we have been introduced, what will you have?” Leo said, picking up on where he’d left off.
He was speaking loud enough for Sheila’s Shifter hearing to pick up on the conversation, and she bit back her smile.
Cheeky fucker.
OMG. Did he know she’d gotten slightly miffed?
Sheila cleared her throat, trying not to grin while Leo completely ignored the blustering male beside the now openmouthed woman. Al the dickhead was turning beet red, but Leo did not seem concerned in the slightest.
“Oh, um,” the woman, Marilyn, replied.
Her big eyes went round in surprise, and she blushed prettily. Sheila spared a glance at Leo, but his gaze was on the shorter woman, even if his attention was on the man beside her.
“Hey, she’s spoken for,” growled Al, the ass, who, as it turned out, was an actual Ass.
Sniff.
Huh. Why hadn’t she noticed that before? Sheila’s nostrils flared as the Donkey Shifter brayed at Leo. The hair on the back of her neck spiked, and her inner Dire Wolf pressed at her skin. Her inner Wolf didn’t particularly like the way Al was speaking to her mate.
Shit.
There was that word again.
Mate.
That itty bitty little word was something she’d been denying herself for weeks now. Fate had a plan, but Sheila was fighting it tooth, claw, and nail.
Mate? Nope. No fucking way.
Yes way. A whole lot of fucking way.
Her inner bitch had a way of really getting on her nerves. But now that she’d admitted the word to herself, it was all she could think about.
Mate. Mate. Mate.
There it was, flashing in her brain like the pink neon sign she’d craftily concocted.
MATE.
Ever since she’d scented his rain-washed scent, her Dire Wolf had known what he was to her. Sheila’s denial was about to end.
Well, fuck me, she thought.
Yes, please, inserted her Wolf.
Exhaling slowly, she prepared herself for the moment his scent invaded her nostrils. It was pure Shifter biology. Easily explained, but every time she caught a whiff, her hormones threatened to go completely crazy. Her ovaries were working triple time, going off like roman candles around the man. She could feel her heat simmering below the surface, that primal biological instinct that ensured the propagation of the species when one fated mate ran into another.
Not now. Think about something else, Sheila.
Immediately, her brain flashed back to the first time she’d caught sight of him. It was the night those humans had tried to set off a bomb in Serious Moonlight. Detective Crowley had been the lead investigator on the scene. One sniff of the Lion Shifter’s fresh scent, and Sheila’s Dire Wolf had gone gaga for the big pussy.
He smelled the way a grass field did after a good, cold, crisp rain. Clean and untainted, tinged with ozone and budding with life. It was her absolute favorite fragrance. One she wanted to roll around in and coat herself with. Damn biology, she grunted and ignored the flash of gold from his eyes as they landed on her for a second before returning to the other female.
Grrr.
Awareness raced through her veins. A wave of his scent hit her again, stronger this time. She closed her eyes, willing herself to calm down. But how could she when he was so close and smelled so damn tempting? It was all she could do not to throw herself over the counter and attack him like the animal she was.
Sheila had a little bitty reputation for being reckless. Derrick had given her hell for that for as long as she could remember. Especially for her habit of riding her Harley during the fiercest rainstorms.
When she could, she’d take off in her fur, but that hadn’t been too often when they’d lived on the road. Blue Valley was their last chance to find a permanent place in the world, and so far, so good. She couldn’t wait for the next storm. She’d get to run through it in the safety of the woods they’d claimed behind the Pack house. It was nice to think she could do that anytime she wanted.
Strange. Different. Good.
The house was big, yet a little crowded for a Pack of adult Dire Wolves, in her not so humble opinion. Still, it was theirs and she had space that was just her own. Finally—and wasn’t that awesome? She wasn’t ready to give it up. Did not want to lose herself to anyone, mate or not. And no, not even to the yummy smelling pussycat.
“I said she’s spoken for,” the Ass said again.
Sheila watched Leo’s golden gaze find the imbecile. She waited a beat, ready to smack the Donkey down if he got out of hand. Protectiveness welled inside her. She’d deny it in the light of day, of course. But just then, every fiber of her being was attuned to the heated situation developing. She’d started wanting to protect the woman, but she had a bigger mission now.
Protect her pussy—and not the one between her legs. She meant the six and a half foot tall Lion Shifter whose golden gaze haunted her dreams. The Donkey narrowed his eyes, blunt teeth bared, as he tried unsuccessfully to hold Leo’s predatorial stare.
Good boy.
Leo growled low and deep, but his body was too relaxed. He could get hurt if he was not battle ready. Now, he might have to follow the law as a cop, but she didn’t. Sheila Rand was a law unto herself. A fierce Dire Wolf, Sheila could more than handle the situation. She waited and watched, surprised when straightlaced Leo moved so quickly, she barely caught it. He had Al’s hand under his, pinned to the bar top, and that was when she saw the switchblade.
“You brought a knife to my bar? Oh Al, you imbecile,” Sheila muttered, taking the thing from his hand, and tossing it in the trash.
Leo nodded at her, gold eyes flashing briefly, then he curled his lip in disgust at the man. Sheila’s inner Wolf was practically tripping over herself to get closer to him.
Sexy, powerful, dominant.
Fine. So he could take care of himself, she admitted reluctantly. Leo wasn’t done either. He revealed his long, wickedly sharp canines in a not-so-friendly reminder of what he was. A predator. A Lion. King of the beasts.
Normally, she would snort at the thought. But not now. Not when he was flexing his badassery to protect a strange female while keeping it secret from the humans in the bar. The Leo she knew was a cut and dry kind of man. But not this side of him. He practically oozed dominance, and she had to admit it was sexy as hell.
Gulp.
Sheila was getting a little hot around the collar at this hint of Leo’s baser, ferocious nature. Okay, so she had a thing for dominant males. She had always known she could not settle for a submissive. Sheila was too damn sassy for that. She would kill any lesser man’s spirit with her snark, not to mention her thighs. Her strength had been a slight problem once or twice with past lovers, and she really fucking hated holding back.
Not Leo. He can handle us.
Her Wolf was very dominant, and the beast inside her enjoyed the byplay between her would be mate and the lesser male. Especially when the Ass actually started shaking in his seat. Sheila couldn’t help it when her belly tightened, and her skin grew heated. Leo was hot as fuck when he was being all growly.
“Marilyn, are you spoken for?” Leo asked the woman, eyes trained on Al.
“Oh, well, I um⁠—”
“Dammit Marilyn, I’m your husband!” Al shouted, wincing when Leo appeared in a blur on his other side.
He had Al’s collar in his fist and was snarling deep in his throat as he pulled the fucker off the stool to stand in front of him.
"Do. Not. Speak. Unless I talk to you first, understood?”
“Yes?” Al whispered.
The word came out more like a question. He whimpered and Sheila’s nostrils flared. The Ass might have just peed a little. Oh, fuck no. She was not cleaning that if he made a puddle. Eyes narrowed, she leaned over the bar to check, but thank goodness, the floor was clear. His piddle was still in his pants.