Page 4 of Remy & the Wildcat

Thyme snorted. “It’s not spooky or dangerous. It has to be done. Once I’m alpha female, the pride has to have a place to go where there’s good hunting grounds. Do you know how many fights broke out during last month’s full moon?”

Dana shook her head, blonde curls bouncing. “No, but I heard about a couple.”

“There were five fights, and two of the fights merged into one big mess. Several of the males ended up at the healer’s home for severe injuries. Without game to hunt, the males are on edge, and hell, so are the females.”

“But we just bitch at each other, we don’t throw punches,” Dana pointed out.

“True, but it could always come to that. I feel like there will be more fights tonight, you know?” She pressed a piece into place, smiling at a family of ducks that were floating under the bridge. “Do you want to come with me?”

“Hell no. Plus, Robby said he wanted to hunt with me tonight.” Dana wiggled her brows suggestively and Thyme chuckled.

She paused in her chuckle and said, “You don’t want to wait for your truemate?”

Dana shrugged. “I kind of feel like it’s antiquated, you know? Like something our ancestors did. Life moves at a fast pace now. Why wait to start the next chapter? My biological clock is keeping me up at night.”

“You’re twenty-five.”

“Yeah, and my mom was mated at eighteen and had three kids by the time she was my age. Which she never lets me forget. I feel like half my life is over. And Robby is sexy as hell and fun to be with, plus he’s got a great job and he’s high in the pack. I think he’s going to ask me to be his mate soon.”

Thyme hummed and let the idea of not waiting for her truemate roll through her head. Did she really want to just choose a male to mate that she liked? Sure she could grow to love a male in time, but she didn’t love anyone right now. Hell, she hardly liked most of the males her age.

Her wildcat let out a definite no in her head in the form of a snarl.

No. She was going to wait for her truemate.

“Well, it might not be your choice anyway,” Dana said.

Thyme blinked in surprise. “What?”

“I mean, Robby said that Leif was going to petition the elders to challenge you when he turns twenty-one.” She twirled a puzzle piece between her finger and thumb. “Wouldn’t you rather just forget about being alpha and settle down with someone? Let Leif have the headaches.”

Thyme wasn’t sure what to say first. She eventually sputtered, “He’s awful.”

“Sure. All alphas are, I think. Assholes to the core. You’re not an asshole, though. And you haven’t found your truemate and maybe you won’t ever, so why keep the pride waiting when you could just step aside?”

Thyme waited for Dana to look at her and said quietly, “Because I can’t just step aside, Dana. According to our laws, if Leif wants to leapfrog me and take over, assuming he can find a female desperate enough to mate him before I find my truemate and take over, then I have to fight him. Like really fight him. Leif is dangerous and unhinged on the best of days, imagine what he’d do to me in a fight for dominance, even if the elders say it’s not to the death?”

Dana’s brow furrowed. “I didn’t know. Robby said that Leif wanted to take over and that it wasn’t a big deal for him to take it from you. He didn’t say anything about a fight. That would not be good.”

“Definitely not.”

Thyme sighed and put the puzzle piece down on the pile of ones that looked like they belonged together. “I’m going for a walk.”

“I’m sorry, don’t go.”

“It’s not your fault, you didn’t know.”

“I just feel like shit, now. Maybe you’ll find your truemate tonight and you won’t have to battle Leif at all. Or maybe he’s just a blowhard and doesn’t have the balls to take over.”

If there was one thing Thyme knew about her half-brother, it was that he very much had the balls to do anything he put his mind to, no matter who he had to hurt to get what he wanted. She couldn’t let Leif take over the pride.

She didn’t think she’d survive the fight.

Remy parked the RV at the back of Lonestar, the restaurant his mom managed. She’d been running the restaurant since he was a baby. He’d occasionally helped out as a teen, busing tables and helping himself to the baked goods she was skilled at creating. The weekend breakfast pastries were a hit with the town and generally had a constant line out the door for the Danish, donuts, and other sugary treats she liked to make. His favorite was her big-as-a-dinner-plate cinnamon rolls.

He opened the door and walked into the restaurant, smiling at Beth, who was at the hostess stand.

“Welcome home, Remy,” she said with a wide smile. “Let me tell your mom you’re here. Grab a seat anywhere in the dining room.”