The Mane Event. Shelly Laurenston

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      Mace had to wait a good five minutes before he could hope to comfortably stand and not embarrass himself.

      That woman…that woman was everything he’d ever wanted. He’d known it all those years ago. Tonight only confirmed it for him. The kiss and that simple touch practically blew his boots off. And she felt it too. He could see it on her face. He could smell it. Her desire rolled off her in waves and practically knocked him from the room.

      No, he wasn’t letting Dez MacDermot get away. He’d take her down like his ancestors took down full-grown zebra.

      Smitty finally returned to the table as Mace signed the credit card receipt. He smiled at his friend. “Well? Where did you go?”

      “Well, nothin’. That girl’s got a temper. I wasn’t about to stay around for that.”

      “You were pushing her.”

      “Well, if I waited on you two to quit pussyfootin’ around and get down to it, my grandchildren would be runnin’ the Pack.”

      “I don’t need your help, Smitty. I’ve got this under control.”

      “Really? Then why are you here alone?”

      Mace stood up. “It’s all about timing, Smitty.”

      “Yeah. Sure. Hopefully timing will keep you warm tonight, hoss.”

      The two men walked out of the restaurant. “You don’t understand Dez. You can’t push her. She needs subtle, refined encouragement.”

      “You forget. I watched that woman put away a steak. She ain’t subtle.”

      “This is true. Excuse me.” Mace moved past three men. “But then again, I’m not really that subtle either.”

      “Mason Llewellyn?”

      Mace stopped and turned. He knew before he even turned around what he would find. If he hadn’t already smelled them, Smitty’s growling would have been a dead giveaway. He tolerated Mace well enough, but that was about it.

      There were three of them. Large. A good ten years younger. Raw. Hoods. One didn’t meet a lot of lion hoodlums these days.

      “Yeah?”

      “Wow. It really is you. I told these guys it was.”

      Mace watched the man closely as Smitty paced behind him. His wolf buddy did not like this one bit. Of course, he didn’t like it much himself.

      “You know, you and your Pride are real well known around this city. It’s a real honor to meet you.” He held his hand out. “Patrick Doogan. These are my brothers.” Mace grasped the man’s hand with his own. Cold, gold eyes sized Mace up. Debating his strength. His power.

      “So, Doogan. What can I do for you?”

      He glanced at his brothers. “Smart, ain’t he? I told you he’d be smart. He knows we aren’t stopping him in the street to just say hi.”

      “I know you didn’t simply find me in the street by accident either. So can we cut the bullshit?”

      Doogan grinned. A true predator this one. Not a soft bone in his mammoth body. “I wanna tawk to youse sometime ’bout ya sistas.” The man’s New York street accent painfully assaulted Mace’s ears. Dez’s made him laugh and turned him on, especially when she struggled to hide it. Not Doogan’s. Mace wanted to slash the man’s vocal cords with his paw. “See if we can discuss some…uh…possible business arrangements regardin’ the Llewellyn Pride.”

      Mace shrugged. “Sure. That would be great. And you have sisters that I can have…and fuck. Right?”

      Doogan’s eyes narrowed, while Smitty softly chuckled next to him.

      “Since that is what you want my sisters for, right? To mate with you? To breed with you? To rub your fuckin’ feet?”

      “I don’t like to be fucked with, Llewellyn.”

      “Then you shouldn’t bend over and hand me the lube.”

      Mace couldn’t believe how angry he felt, but discussing his sisters like high-priced collateral galled him to no end. True, on any given day he detested them severely, but still…they were his sisters. His sisters. You don’t talk about a man’s sisters like you’re buying hookers for a bachelor party.

      He watched, fascinated, when the façade of one cat chatting with another turned to outright hatred. Doogan hated what Mace represented. What Doogan and his equally large brothers would never be.

      “I’ll have your sisters, Llewellyn, and I’ll fuck ’em all.”

      “You’re underestimating the women of my family. They don’t play nice with others. They’ll rip your cock off and show it to ya. And when they do, I’m going to laugh my ass off.”

      Mace turned to walk away, but Doogan’s voice stopped him cold.

      “Tell me, Mason. How’s Petrov doing these days?”

      Mace sighed. “You know why you’ll never have the Llewellyn Pride?” He looked back at Doogan. “Cause you have no class.”

      In less than a second, Doogan was on him.