Island Stripe Pride - Chapter 59: Chapter 59

“Uh, Carter? What’s my assignment again?” Bruno asked the older male.
But Carter didn’t answer right away. He was too busy looking down at his mate as she leaned back in her chair, rubbing her rounded belly. A grin was tugging the man’s face into an expression that would have been unrecognizable a year ago.
Happy. Carter looked completely and totally happy. Bruno’s Tiger chuffed, the animal practically green with envy.
Lucky, lucky motherfucker.
He probably wouldn’t smile if Bruno slapped him upside the head. Then maybe they would shift and have some real fun, tussling like they used to in the old days. Before Carter had someone that completed him. Something that made him smile. Something in his life worth protecting. Back when Bruno did not know what he was missing.
Mara, his inner beast purred her name.
Dumb, sappy tomcat. Thinking about a woman who was way too good for him was bound to distract him from what he was supposed to be doing. A Tiger could get hurt that way. Maybe killed.
Grrrr.
That might be true, but Bruno wasn’t in the city anymore. He was in suburbia heaven, taking care of the Pride’s interests at the Lodge, watching after Nonna, pining for a soft, curvy, fluffy little she-Bunny.
Sad whine.
Was this the life he really wanted? The answer was a simple, unequivocal yes. If it was his for the taking, he’d be holding onto it with both fucking paws. But looking down at his scarred up mitts made him see just why he couldn’t have nice things.
Bullish, brutish, monster of a man. What female would want him? Not smart enough. Not soft enough. Just not good enough. But maybe he could be. Possibly. Sorta. Kinda.
Shit.
Bruno had never been a keeper before, but he wanted to be. Fuck yeah, he wanted to be.
“What’s going on with you and my baby sister?” Toni asked abruptly, cutting into Bruno’s envy-inspired, slightly psychotic, and downright depressing thoughts.
“What? Nothing! Not a thing,” Bruno replied, hands raised in surrender.
“Hmm,” she narrowed her eyes, the terrifying female actually gave him the chills. “I’m watching you, and don’t think for a second I’ll let you tomcat around my sister!”
Damn, for a cute and fluffy Bunny, Toni was downright frightening when she got angry. Bruno raised an eyebrow and looked away from the feisty little female. Arguing with women, especially hormonal women, was simply not his thing, and nothing was more unpredictable than a pregnant Shifter.
“Toni, let me talk to my guy here. Why don’t you go enjoy some of that soup Mara left in the kitchen, eh?” Carter whispered to his mate, dropping a soft kiss on her brow.
“Fine, but I’m watching you hotshot,” she huffed before racing to chow down on some of that delicious smelling soup.
She’s a good cook. Everything he’d tried or sniffed of Mara’s cooking always left his tummy rumbling and his mouth watering for whatever it was she’d conjured with her magical little hands. She really will make some lucky fucker a good mate someday.
Grrr.
Oh, his Tiger did not want to think about that. As far as his animal was concerned, Mara Casabella was not meant for anyone else. A sentiment that was proving problematic, since she actually hated his fucking guts.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Bruno kept his gaze carefully averted. He was already in trouble for missing whatever assignment the Neta had just given him, and he didn’t want Carter tearing him a new asshole for crushing on his sister-in-law. Which, if he were honest, he was. Big time.
How emasculating. Bruno D’Italia had a high school crush on one of the cutest critters in creation, and she wouldn’t spit on him if he was on fire.
Fanfuckingtastic.
“Alright, she’s gone. Now, spill. What the fuck is up with you, bro? You weren’t listening to a word Dean was saying, were you?” Carter asked.
Eyebrows raised, lips quirked in a half-grimace, half-smile, Carter actually seemed concerned. He leaned back in his big office chair, waiting for Bruno to answer him, but the truth was, he was stalling.
“Is it hot in here?” Bruno muttered.
He paced the room, ran his hands over his face, and said the first thing that came to his idiotic mouth.
“Spit it the fuck out, D’Italia. I’m aging here, and I got better things to do than look at your fuckin’ mug all day,” he snarled, and Bruno returned the gesture, lips peeling back over elongating fangs.
“There he is. Come on, out with it,” Carter replied, grinning like the crazy fuck he was.
Fine. He asked for it. Bruno stopped his pacing and faced off with the man.
“I fucked up,” he growled.
“Fucked up how? You haven’t been given any assignment other than security here for the last six months, and you’ve been aces, bro. Come on, what is it really?” Carter asked, perplexed.
“I fell for the wrong woman, C. She’s outta my league, hates my fucking guts, actually. I’m useless. Antsy. My Tiger’s all fucked now. I-I can’t focus,” he growled, punching the wall in frustration, and cracking the solid mahogany molding there.
“I’ll fix that,” he muttered., but the man ignored that little bitty denty in his wall.
“No way. You’re in love!” Carter accused.
“Fuck. Maybe. Yeah. I think so,” Bruno growled, the vibrations in his chest growing stronger the closer he came to affirming that very thing that scared him shitless.
“Yes or no, bro. There’re no halfsies with this shit,” Carter schooled him.
“Fine. Yes.”
There, he admitted it. But did he feel better?
Absofuckinglutely not.
Bruno was in love with a woman he could not have, and there was nothing more tragic in his opinion. The female in question was too pretty, too smart, and too damn refined for the likes of him. She deserved a better man than he could ever hope to be.
“Oh man. Fuck, bro. You mean to tell me you’re in love—like love love—with my sister-in-law? With Mara? For fuck’s sake, Bruno, Toni is gonna go apeshit.”
“I fucking know, Carter. I love her, okay? It’s not like I could help it,” he snarled, slapping himself on the back of the head. It was pretty hard to let go of the L word now that it was out in the open.
“Toni’s gonna castrate me for bringing you here, Shit. You can’t love her!”
“Well, I do!”
“But Mara fucking hates you!”
“Shit, Carter. I fucking know, alright?”
“Damn. Talk about mission impossible,” grumbled the bald asshole.
Hmmm—that sounded good. In fact, it was definitely how Bruno was going to save Carter’s contact info on his phone. Bald asshole had a nice ring to it. Maybe bald douche face fart breath. Yeah, that was a good one.
Carter was chuckling now, softly at first. But after a few ticks, the man’s shoulders started shaking, and he was doubled over, gales of laughter flying from his stupid fat head. Bruno seethed. Like he really wanted to be a source of entertainment for that baldheaded behemoth.
“Really? This amuses you?”
“Hell yeah, it amuses me,” Carter retorted.
The litter box using fuckwad was wiping his eyes from laughing so damn hard. Bruno’s Tiger growled. He did not particularly enjoy being made the fool. It wasn’t like he could help how he felt about Mara.
How could he? What with those big blue eyes, always flashing at him with annoyance. That stubborn chin he fantasized about nibbling, and those pouty little lips next. She had an adorable, pert nose with a tiny little upturn at the end.
Her brown hair was dark and thick, glossy like the expensive chocolate he’d seen her eat from time to time. She’d had it cut recently and the new do looked hot as fuck. Especially with that little heart tattoo she’d kept hidden on the back of her neck, made visible now beneath her shorn locks.
Bruno liked body art. He was covered in tattoos. Had two full sleeves on his arms, and more across his back, pecs, and abs. He had piercings too and liked every single one.
Including the four barbell Jacob’s ladder piercing on his cock. Bruno had dated a Shifter whose brother was a professional body piercer back when he was a teenager. The guy was a pro, an artist, and a submissive Lion Shifter.
Bruno would not have allowed any other fucking person near him with a needle. The male’s submissive nature made his own dominant monster feel protective, as was natural for his kind. It was the reason he could get away with doing the job.
His ex had wanted him to get the work done to increase their sexual pleasure, and he’d been into it as a horny teenager. Later, he’d learned to love body art as a means of self-expression. He appreciated real good work. To Bruno, the art he loved was the same as those paintings hanging in fancy museums folks loved to stare at.
The kind posh woman and snotty men paid top dollar to gawk at and say dumb things about. He had never cared what anyone thought of him or his body art. But suddenly, he wondered what Mara thought. He wondered if she liked his tattoos. If she would like his piercings. Shit. Thoughts like that were turning him into a pussy.
You are a pussy. Pussy-cat. Get it? His inner Tiger chuffed, but Bruno was not amused.
“Easy, bro. Of course, it amuses me, man. You were like the king of the man hos back in the city,” Carter told him, wiping his mouth to stop his amusement from showing.
Man ho. Great.
“For fuck’s sake,” Bruno growled, rubbing the back of his head harder. At this rate, he was going to end up bald, like this fucker, if he didn’t cut it out.
“Look, I have had my fair share of females, but no more than you had, Carter. I never hurt nobody. Any girl I took out already knew the score and was fine with it. You know me, Carter. I’m not bad,” he whispered the last bit.
Was he trying to convince himself or the other male? Bruno didn’t know. Maybe both.
“I know, I know, but this is my mate’s baby sister, man. You can’t have her,” Carter said, sitting forward.
His eyes glowed with his Tiger, and Bruno felt the weight of his stare heavily.
“The Cat wants her, man. He knows,” Bruno confessed. “At least, I think he does. I need to spend some time with her, to be sure.”
“Bruno, man. Shit. I really hope you’re not talking about fucking my future sister-in-law in front of me, man,” snarled Carter.
“Of course, not. I mean, I just want to get to know her better. But how do I get her to listen?”
Carter steepled his hands, a stupid smirk on his face, and Bruno snarled in frustration, turning around and slapping the wall. He hated being the center of attention. That only led to being the target of some asshole’s jokes. That had been a big part of his childhood. One he hated.
Bruno was always being teased for being bigger than the other kids. Taller, wider, a little slower talking, too. Having no parents only encouraged the little shits to fuck with him.
The assholes he’d gone to school with had no idea what it was like to be him, constantly wrestling with his inner animal. The monster inside him bigger, stronger, and because of his recessive genes, a fucking beacon to other prides who wanted to use him.
Bruno was a Shifter, though, so he couldn’t fight the normals he’d grown up with. Protecting the Shifter secret was too important for personal squabbles. He’d had to rein in his natural instincts more times than he could count.
Of course, things had changed when Nonna had asked Dean Romero to mentor Bruno. The burden of his beast got easier to manage with the help of his Pride mates, but he still hated being teased.
“Easy, man. Look, I’m sorry. I’m not making fun of you. However,” Carter began, and Bruno turned to face him.
“What?”
“Well, if you’d been listening, you would know where the Neta told me to assign you.”
“Fuck. I am leaving, aren’t I?” he asked, fear making him growl.
Bruno’s eyes widened, his heart started pounding a rapid tattoo in his chest. Time. He needed time. Fuck, he needed more time, leaving right now was not at all what his beast wanted.
The enormous white tiger inside him was snarling and scratching at his insides. Bruno grunted against the pain. A forced change, and indoors, too, was not something he would relish.
“No,” Carter told him, a sympathetic smile on his face, and he felt his tension lessen. Bruno’s animal paused and waited.
“You’re staying right here, bro. Dean gave you an assignment. You’re going to help me manage an upcoming wedding for a Luani Pride Lion and his mate.”
“A wedding? When?”
“This weekend.”
“And after that?”
“After that, we’ll see. I mean, I sure as hell need help running this place. I can’t be at the Lodge twenty-four seven with a mate and cubs coming. This isn’t for everyone, though Suburbia is a lot different from city life. But, if you think the Lodge and Verona Falls are enough for your beast,” Carter began, and shrugged, leaving the rest unsaid, but Bruno understood.
“I get it. I have to earn my spot here. Prove this is where I belong to you and the Neta.”
And to Mara.