Chapter 3

Chapter

Three

N ew Orleans, Louisiana

The wheels touched down at Belle Chasse some twelve hours later. It had been a long flight in more ways than one. During the flight, his hosts had let him sleep, but as soon as his nostrils picked up the scent of grilled steak and baked potatoes, he came awake.

Ted Somersby pushed a button on the armrest of the seat that opened a compartment where a mechanized tray extended to form a place for the food he carried. He set the plate on the tray alongside real flatware, as opposed to plastic, and a long neck bottle of his favorite microbrew.

"Just one more way the company treats its employees better than the military. We don't ask our people to fly back on noisy transport planes or in economy class on a commercial airline. No sir, we have private jets with spacious seats, pretty flight attendants, and delicious food," said Ted who was one of the vice presidents of the company who was interested in luring him to the dark, private side of war.

"I told you Mr. Somersby, I'm not interested right now."

"Please, Commander, call me Ted. You're a certified hero. Your experience would be invaluable to us and we're willing to compensate you accordingly."

"Look, Ted, I'm flattered, really. I told you when I accepted your offer for a ride that I'd think about it, and I will. But first I need to go home and get some things straightened out with my girl. After that, I'll talk to her and see what she wants to do. I've spent almost a decade putting everyone else's needs in front of hers, including my own. She needs to know that from this point forward, she is going to be my first priority."

Ted nodded. "I can understand and appreciate that. What's her name?"

"Piper Nichols."

"Any relation to Riley or Travis Nichols?"

"Daughter and kid sister, respectively."

Ted laughed. "Well then, I imagine our meager food offerings don't amount to much by comparison. I bet she'll have a great meal waiting for you."

Rémy couldn't quite manage to stifle his chuckle. "You'd lose that bet. Piper takes fiendish delight in not being able to cook. She can bake like there's no tomorrow, but she can't so much as boil water without burning the kitchen down. She likes to say she raises beef, not cooks it."

"That wouldn't be a problem if you take our offer. You'll be able to hire your own personal chef." Ted held his hands up in resignation. "Now, that's enough out of me. You enjoy your steak—we serve them rare so if you want it cooked more, just let them know."

"Not to worry, Ted. I like my steak rare enough that if you gave it a bandage and a little TLC, it would recover and go back to grazing."

"Good enough. You let the flight attendant know if we can get you anything else."

Ted left him alone and Rémy thought that it would probably be best if Ted never met Piper. If he called her a pretty little gal , she'd be inclined to deck him—it was one of the many things he loved about her. With a smile still playing around his lips, Rémy enjoyed his meal and then allowed himself to drift back to sleep—the image of Piper smashing Ted's nose foremost in his thoughts.

W olf Meadow Ranch

Galveston, Texas

"Piper? You're late. I told you we were headed for New Orleans and wanted to leave by noon," called her father from his office.

She glanced down at her watch, realizing it was almost one o'clock. She thought they'd be gone by now. She'd hoped if she was late enough, they'd leave without her.

Realizing there was no way to avoid this confrontation, she joined her father in his office through the French doors. Piper was now glad at how filthy she'd gotten pulling that stupid steer out of the bog—not once but twice. "Sorry, Dad. I found a steer stuck in the mud, got him out and the damn thing went right back in. I swear when you cut their balls off, they lose all ability to reason."

"Piper, watch your mouth," her father snarled.

He was more pissed than she'd thought he'd be. Well, that wasn't exactly true. She knew he'd be pissed that she was refusing to go with them but hoped that by the time they got back from the weekend at the Gautier's celebrating Rémy's return, he would have had a chance to cool off.

Piper knew her best bet was to duck her head, bite her tongue, and just do whatever her father wanted her to do. But ever since she'd heard Rémy had recovered from being captured and tortured and was coming home on leave, she'd been spoiling for a fight. It looked like her father had just volunteered for the position of enemy combatant, even if he didn't know or deserve it.

She raised her head and locked eyes with her father. "What would you like me to watch it do, Dad? There are so many options. Maybe I could give a blow job to one of those idiots you keep parading in front of me."

"Enough, Piper," her father thundered, causing her mother to enter his office to break up the argument—a position she often found herself in.

"Cam, sweetheart, let it go. Piper is being forced to process some feelings she's managed to avoid for the past decade. I just got off the phone with Darby, she's sending their jet to pick us up, so we're not driving and have plenty of time. Go let Cody, Austin, Sam, and Amy know that the plane should be here in about two hours. I'd like to have everyone and the food we're taking ready to go when it gets here." Her mother turned to her, eyes flashing. "And you. Go take a shower, wash your hair, and get dressed. I packed your bag."

"Mother…"

"Now, Piper! Make sure you wear something other than jeans and a pair of cowboy boots."

Piper shot out of her chair, not yet willing to disengage. "I don't know, Dad. Having on nothing but my jeans and a pair of boots would show off my tits and ought to bring the wolves running. In case you haven't noticed, I have a really nice set of tits."

"Gabe!" her father roared.

The beta of the Wolf Meadow pack stuck his head in the room.

"Thank you, Gabriel," her mother said gently, "but I'll handle this." When the door closed and they were alone again, she turned on Piper. "That was beneath you."

"Beneath me? Dad has trotted every male wolf he can think of in front of me and expects me to play nice, look pretty, and just go along with it and spread my legs. Well, I won't do it."

Riley put her hand on her mate's broad chest. "She doesn't mean it, Cam. She's looking to pick a fight with you. Let it go and let me deal with her. Please, sweetheart."

Piper watched as her father's emotions played across his face. He was torn between his anger with her and his love for her mother. As usual, love for her mother won.

"I told you we should have shipped her off to that Irish nunnery," he snarled. "See that she's dressed appropriately and on her best behavior." He pointed at Piper. "You will thank your mother for her interference. This is the last time. From now on, if you step out of line, you'll be treated like any other she-wolf in this pack."

Cameron Nichols stalked from the room, Riley closing the door behind him. She turned around as Piper slumped into a chair.

"I'm sorry. I'll apologize to him as soon as we get up to the landing strip. Or I can do that now, if you like."

"No. Your father needs some time to cool down. A direct challenge to a male alpha wolf is rarely the best way to deal with one, and you'd be wise to remember that." She sighed and looked at her daughter. "I should have known you didn't want to go. I might have been able to talk my way around your father, but now you've put his back against the wall, and he has no option but to hold the line. An apology before we leave will mollify him, but you'd best behave yourself on this trip."

"For Christ's sake, Mother, I'm almost twenty-seven years old."

"And thus should know how a she-wolf is expected to act. Like it or not, as daughter to the alpha, you are held to a higher standard."

Piper snorted. "I'm aware but it doesn't make it fair. Unlike the boys, I get none of the perks that come with being one of his progeny."

"Think not? He continues to give you more responsibilities around the ranch every day."

"For now. But then he turns around and pressures me to accept some jackass he thinks would make a good foreman as a mate. And he's convinced himself that I need an alpha male."

Riley smiled. "Well, sweetie, I hate to tell you this, but he is right about that. You'd lead anyone other than an alpha around by his dick and while it might please you in the short term, you'd never be truly happy with anything less."

Piper rolled her eyes. "Please, can we skip the part where you remind me how much I'm like you?"

"Actually, I've been thinking about that. When I really look at it, you're far more like your father. Wolf Meadow is your home, and it is as necessary to you as the air you breathe. And like him, you need a mate who is your equal—one that needs your love and support as much as you need his. Just let it be for now, Piper. We'll figure it out—together. We're a family. Your father loves you and only wants what's best for you. But part of the problem is that he doesn't know the real reason you don't want to go."

"I don't want to be paraded around like some pedigreed broodmare with all the studs bidding on taking me to bed."

"You and I both know that's not it. You could handle that. In fact, I think you rather like intimidating prospective mates and scaring them off. There is one reason and one reason only that you don't want to go, and his name is Rémy. I can still remember hearing you cry when he left for the Naval Academy. You sounded like your heart was breaking, but you wouldn't admit it to anyone. You decided to build yourself a little fortress at Wolf Meadow so no one would ever hurt you again. And now the only man who can penetrate those walls has come home. Travis believes part of why he's returned is to win you back. I can tell you that when you face death up close and personal, a lot of things become clear."

"So what am I supposed to do?" Piper said in a broken voice. "Just throw myself in his arms and beg him to take me to bed? I tried that once and it didn't work."

"Oh hell no. That sonofabitch hurt you and even though I know he wrote to you many times, you still need to make him understand the depth of the pain he caused you. Make him sweat, make him work to earn your love. Then, if you still feel about him the way I think you do, graciously forgive him and hold it over his head for the rest of his life."

Piper laughed. Only her mother could lift her spirits that way. "You are truly evil, Mother."

"Yes I am. It's one way you and I are so alike. Now, go upstairs, take a shower, and get cleaned up. I'll find something for you to wear that won't be too obvious but will still knock Rémy Gautier's socks off."

Shoulder to shoulder, they exited her father's office. Cameron Nichols was leaning against the newel post at the foot of the stairs with his arms crossed over his chest. It seemed that now her father was the one looking to cross swords. Piper turned loose of her mother and ran to her father, throwing herself into his arms.

"I'm so sorry, Daddy. It's that time of the month and my hormones and Irish blood got the best of me. Can you ever forgive the awful things I said to you?"

"Of course, I can, baby. I've lived with your mother for a long while and know that time of the month can get the best of anyone. You go on upstairs and get ready. If the Gautier pilot has to wait, he has to wait."

She kissed her father on his cheek and started up the stairs. Her mother stopped and kissed her mate. "She's just feeling a bit under the weather. I'll go up and help her get dressed."

Riley tried to pull away, but Cameron Nichols drew his mate back into his arms and whispered, "Neither of you is as smart nor as subtle as you think you are. Nor am I as gullible and stupid. If you don't think there isn't a single male wolf in this pack who doesn't know when that time of the month is for each of our she-wolves, you had best think again. Whatever you two are up to? Don't. It's been a while since you spent any time over my knee that wasn't strictly in the pursuit of pleasure, but that can change in the blink of an eye."

Piper couldn't hear all of what they were saying, but she knew both of her parents well enough to guess. She ran up the stairs and pulled off her boots and clothes once she was inside her room. Turning on the shower, she got under the pulsing lukewarm water and let it do the majority of the work of getting her clean.