Despite our dishonesty tonight, Rhett was a good guy. A truly, genuinely good guy, with rock-solid morals and the confidence to act on them.
Was that what happened to you when you had a functional, normal home life?
Rhett pressed his palm more firmly into my lower back, steering me past his tall and brooding brother and into the kitchen. The smells were even better in here, and I almost drooled.
“That’s Tyler,” Rhett tossed a thumb over his shoulder. “This is Dustin. Everyone, this is Angie.”
I waved awkwardly.
Tyler grunted, returning to his place in the kitchen, arms crossed, eyes cool. Dustin looked up from his pot, still whisking, and gave me a two-finger salute. “Welcome to the Maddox clubhouse.”
“Angie’s hungry.”
My cheeks flushed. “I mean, we’re both hungry. We had cheese puffs and chocolate-covered peanuts for breakfast.”
“You didn’t feed her breakfast?” Cindy squawked from the other room. “When I met Kenneth, I couldn’t get the man to stop feeding me. I think I put on fifteen pounds during those first three weeks.”
“We didn’t exactly have a lot of options.” Rhett pulled a chair away from a long rectangular table and offered it for me to sit.
I plunked down, watching all four brothers move about the kitchen. Rhett stopped to hug Dustin before snatching a loaf of bread from beside him.
Before I knew it the table was loaded with bread and butter, sliced cheese, and jerky. Rhett handed me a plate, and I accepted it.
I bit into the bread, moaning at the taste. “This is the best bread I’ve ever eaten,” I said, trying not to spit crumbs everywhere.
“I made it,” Dustin said, puffing his chest out.
“It’s my recipe, don’t let him get a big head,” Cindy shouted.
Rhett disappeared from the kitchen, reappearing a moment later with Cindy on his arm. He guided her to the table and helped her into the chair beside me.
I shivered when Rhett leaned over me, pressing his mouth to my ear and murmuring, “I hope you’re prepared for your interrogation.”
Chapter 6
Angie
Rhettwasn’tkiddingaboutthe interrogation. Cindy shot rapid-fire questions at me, her eyes never leaving her slice of bread as she buttered it.
The first few questions were easy.
“Where are you from?”
“Do you have any family?”
“What do you do for a living?”
We got hung up on that question when I explained I’m a tattoo artist and Dustin immediately asked for a free tattoo. That turned into an argument between him and Rhett that lasted over ten minutes, while Cindy repeatedly rolled her eyes and jerked her thumb in their direction, muttering, “Alphas. Can’t go five minutes without starting a fight.”
I frowned. “I thought wolf packs only had one alpha.”
“We only have one alpha in charge,” Cindy explained. “He’s the baddest of the bad. There can be plenty of alphas in a pack, as long as they’re willing to co-exist. Not all packs are like this one.”
She pursed her lips, lowering her voice as she asked, “Has Rhett told you about his first pack?”
His first pack?
I remembered the faraway look in his eyes when he told me about the packhouse earlier. The food sat heavy in my stomach, and I instinctively brushed my fingers with his as he stood beside the table. Rhett squeezed my hand without turning away from his brothers.