Page 11 of Slade's Feisty Mate
A neutral territory meant that while supernatural creatures could live and work in an area, no one ran it outside of the human government responsible for the area.
“Do you think he’d let me use it?” Gretchen asked.
“Us,” Slade said.
“Right, I mean, would he let Slade and I shift and hunt on the full moon?”
Aubrey shrugged. “I don’t see why not. He doesn’t use it. It’s twenty wooded acres. My grandparents bought it so they could build a home when my grandpa retired, but they never got around to it. You can ask him when we meet up with him tonight.”
“I thought you met with him for dinner last night?” Slade said.
Alaric shook his head. “He had an issue with his kiss.”
“I still think it’s strange that vampire groups are called kisses,” Slade said, pulling Gretchen from her chair and into his lap, devouring her in a kiss.
“Could you keep the public groping to a minimum?” Galen said, grumbling. “Some of us are trying to eat.”
Slade lifted from her lips and looked at his brother. “Did you have a mating dream last night?”
“I don’t know. I just dreamed about gold and pink. I have no idea what that means.” He rubbed the space between his eyes with his thumb.
Lia, their sister, said, “We’d love to sit and chat all morning, but Aubrey is taking me to a boutique to go shopping and then we’re going to hit the kiss’s club, Heat, tonight where we’ll meet with Caleb. Do you want to come, Gretchen?”
“Slade and I are meeting my parents in an hour. But we could go to the club tonight.”
Slade made a face, and she leaned in to whisper in his ear, “Come on, sexy. Rubbing up against each other in the club for a few hours will be a lot of fun.”
His lip curled. “It would be more fun to do that naked, in your room.”
“Our room.”
“Guys, fucking seriously,” Galen said, making a show of plugging his ears.
“Oh, before I forget,” Aubrey said, “Caleb said that you and Slade should move onto the fourteenth floor. You can have your pick of suites. You’ll have a lot more room, and it’s more private since it’s not an open floor.”
“Cool. But what about Caleb’s visitors?” Gretchen knew Caleb used the fourteenth floor, where Aubrey lived, to house special guests, like visiting masters.
“There are a dozen suites on the floor, and I’m the only one with a permanent residence. Use your card to check out the rooms and pick your favorite. You can have the bellhops help move your things from your current room.”
Gretchen was thrilled. The suites on Aubrey’s floor were amazing. They had three bedrooms, a full kitchen, and great views.
“Wait, sweetheart,” Alaric said as Aubrey made the motion to push her chair back. “We need to talk about the fights.”
Slade’s hold on Gretchen tightened. “I’m not fighting anymore.”
“Neither am I,” Alaric said, “but first we need to break our contract with Jonathon and figure out employment. My mate is not supporting our family.”
“I’m still fighting,” Galen said. “Until I find a mate, I don’t have any problem being part of the NWFA.”
“Fine,” Alaric said. “After I take the girls shopping, I’ll pick you guys up, and we’ll go see Jonathon.”
“How hard will it be to break your contract?” Gretchen asked.
“Not hard. It’s not a real contract with any kind of ramifications for us leaving. It’s more of an oath to fight in the NWFA until we find our mates. He got a year’s worth of fighting out of us,” Slade said.
“For employment, why don’t you work at the hotel? We’re always looking for security guards,” Aubrey said. “I’ve got openings for guards on every shift. And I’ve got a hostess opening at the restaurant here, and I could use another concierge, Lia.”
“Oh, fun! Maybe I’ll meet my mate and shift in public the way Slade did, scaring the crap out of everyone.”