Wicked Cravings (The Phoenix Pack, #2)

by Suzanne Wright

Was there a funny side to a female maintaining you were her mate to her seven brothers who wanted your balls on a plate for “abandoning” her?

The “abandoning” part aggravated Dante just as much as the false claim. He would never walk away from his mate, even though he wasn’t yet ready to find her.

When his mate came along, she would rightfully want all of him, she would demand to be at the center of his life, and she would expect his loyalty to be with her, first and foremost. For a Beta, that could be a problem. At present, Dante’s loyalty rested with Trey and his life was dominated by his responsibilities to the pack.

His mate, however, wasn’t going to be content to share him. He’d seen it happen many times before.

Dante took a gulp of coffee. “Personally, I prefer females who, like me, are uncomplicated.” Rhett snorted. “Someone like that would bore the hell out of you, and you know it. Just as you know that you’re not so uncomplicated at all. You might be easygoing and laid-back, but underneath all that you’re deep, complex.”

You need to be as protective of yourself as you are of everyone else.” Dante really wanted to punch Rhett.

The guy was genuine, loyal, and he would give any of his packmates the shirt off his back, but he would also analyze their every move, take them apart, and find out what made them tick. It was the way his geeky, analytical mind operated.

Annoyingly, he couldn’t just allow people to have their problems. No, he wanted to “fix” everyone. It was why Taryn call...

It wouldn’t be the first time a gang of brothers had targeted Dante. At least this time they weren’t his own.

As usual when Jaime was mentioned, Trick smirked devilishly at Dante, making the claw marks on his cheek darken.

“Who would’ve thought a slip of a girl could spook the normally unflappable you? It’s so much fun to watch.” “She does not spook me.” “Yes she does, she always has.”

Dante had expected that her crush would have died by now. Apparently not. She hadn’t flirted shamelessly with him or harassed him, but she had made her interest in him clear with bright smiles, subtle touches, and heated looks. Dante, however, had no intention of responding to her interest—something that he had made perfectly clear to Trick last night.

No, he liked women who would challenge him, because it made their eventual surrender that much more gratifying, and it meant that his dominance over them was real. They weren’t submitting because it was in their nature, they were submitting because he was in total control.

Despite such strength, he didn’t believe that she—or any other submissive wolf, for that matter—would be able to handle the full force of his personality.

He would never have even so much as a one-night stand with a female from his own pack. He didn’t want his true mate feeling uncomfortable when he finally found her and brought her home.

There was no mistaking the source of that husky laugh. That was another thing about her that got the attention of both man and wolf. She had a voice that could liquefy rock.

Dante was not interested in having any type of relationship, no matter how casual, with Jaime Farrow.

Marcus shuffled over, ensuring that there was an empty seat beside Dante, just as he did every morning. Traitor.

In an outfit that emphasized delicious curves that Dante would never have guessed were hiding under the baggy clothes she usually wore,

Then she did something that she had never done before, something that had his wolf growling in irritation. She gave Dante the same brief, polite smile she gave to everyone else…and walked right on past him and sat between Dominic and Shaya. Motherfucker.

Jaime pretended not to notice the surprised expressions directed her way. The pack shouldn’t be so shocked that she was considering Dante a lost cause.

Sure, Jaime had a major thing for Dante, but damn it, a female had her pride. He’d made it clear through his indifference that he had zero interest in her. Chasing after a guy who didn’t want her was n...

She could try her hand at seduction and see if he caved…Snort. She’d have more luck trying to nail jelly to a stone wal...

Besides, she’d overheard him talking to Trick last night. He didn’t think of her that way, he’d said. She wasn’t his type, he’d said. He liked his women slim, he’d said. Superficial asshole. As if those comments weren’t embarrassing enough, she hadn’t been alone when s...

Well Jaime had not dressed in her skintight New York T-shirt and her slim-fitting blue jeans this morning to show him that she wasn’t so chubby anymore thankyouverymuch. She had not put on a little more mascara, eye shadow, and lip gloss than she usually did. And s...

Seriously, though, who could blame her for wanting Dante as much as she did? With his wide shoulders, broad chest, and solid arms, he had a build that screamed “powerful,” “lethal,” “dangerous.” She had grown up around well-built males, had seen...

His compelling, assertive personality made him seem as though he took up even more room than he actually did. He would have seemed unapproachable if it w...

Given how gorgeous females tended to flock around him, Jaime wasn’t exactly surprised by his aloofness. He wasn’t in a position where he had to settle for plain Janes like herself. Then there were the differences in their personalities. He was a stickler for rules, whereas Jaime saw them as suggestions. He had a strict moral code, whereas she had her own sense of right and wrong that didn’t always cohe...

Even when he was a kid—a small, scrawny, scowling, defensive little boy—he had fascinated her.

As Shaya had pointed out, though, Jaime could ensure that she hid it from him. She could fake indifference and lead him to believe she was over the craving, salvaging some self-respect. She could paste a smile on her face and appear to be the happiest she had ever been. That was exactly what Jaime intended to do.

Jaime liked their Alpha female. She had a wit that almost anyone would love, and Jaime admired her strength. The female had actually overcome her latency so that her wolf was no longer trapped within her—which had been unheard of until now.

Dominic’s smile was as flirtatious as always. “I’d have gone home with you, too. Would you have kept me?” She rolled her eyes

“I’m not flaunting. I’m just making the point that because I don’t dress slutty and leave nothing to the imagination doesn’t mean I have a beer belly or something.” “You should have seen his face when you walked in. I was half expecting him to drool.” “It’s just the breasts. My girls get everyone’s attention.”

“Want to see what I’ve got?” he asked. “That depends, does it itch and is it contagious?” He scowled again.

For a split second she forgot herself and was about to offer to personally deal with the dominant female. A submissive wolf wouldn’t do that, a voice in her head reminded her.

As she passed Dante, she couldn’t help but notice he was scowling at her. What the hell was his problem? It seemed that no matter what she said or did, he intended to be an ass.

“You’re admitting defeat?” Ivy shook her head incredulously. “In all the years I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you give up on anything.” “There’s giving up, and there’s salvaging self-respect.” She told them about the conversation she’d overheard between him and Trick. “What an ass,” said Ivy.

At present, none of that was going to be a problem for Jaime, because even if she found the person who was the other half of her soul, she wouldn’t want to mate with him. Because of her problems with her wolf, there was simply no way Jaime could form that metaphysical link with her mate without risking his life, and that wasn’t something she was prepared to do.

She wasn’t the type of girl to be put off by the itty-bitty fact that he was so boring a boomerang wouldn’t go back to him. It was actually kind of endearing.

No sooner had Jaime and Shawn placed their orders than the door opened and in strode the object of her dirtiest—okay, most sinful—fantasies. As usual, he looked dauntless, sharp, capable, and so freaking hot she hitched in a breath. His dominant, confident, purposeful walk shouldn’t have been so damn attractive, considering it bordered on cocky, but it heated her blood and roused her wolf.

The guy was genuinely interested in Shaya, Dante was sure of that. Whenever Nick was in their territory, he watched her with the same naked voracity that he had at Taryn and Trey’s mating ceremony. Oddly, though, he never spoke to her, and the bubbly female never made any attempts to speak to him—as if by mutual agreement they were each pretending the other didn’t exist. It was weird, to say the least.

Dante probably would have reacted the same way if he hadn’t felt…distracted. There was a trace of a familiar scent in the air that made his nerve endings come alive. He scanned the diner slowly, confused and curious…and his mouth fixed into a hard line as his gaze landed on a particular table. Motherfucker.

Because she wasn’t alone. No, she was sitting opposite some guy, giving him that beaming smile that never failed to affect Dante. Whereas usually that smile shot straight to his groin, it was now twisting his gut, because it wasn’t directed at him.

What, you’d expected her to sit with you even though you give her no encouragement whatsoever? Well, yeah, he had, actually. It was what she normally did each morning.

Dante’s wolf growled at her aloofness, pushing at him to go to her. So this was the reason she was no longer interested in him. What was so damn special about that guy? He just looked like some pretty boy. Not that Dante truly cared or anything. His ego cared, but that was different—Jaime’s abrupt indifference was a blow, and no dominant wolf reacted well to an ego blow. That was all it was.

He should be relieved that she had gotten the message that he wasn’t interested. Instead, he was annoyed.

although her crush had made him feel uncomfortable, he’d liked it.

With her attention suddenly gone, it felt…cold.

“Hey, it’s Jaime,” drawled Trick, smirking at Dante. “Looks really good today, doesn’t she?” Tao strained to look. “Who’s that guy she’s with?” “No idea,” said Trick before turning back to Dante. “Well, it seems like you’ve been officially replaced.” Dante ground his teeth so hard that it was audible, which made Trick’s smile widen. Nick didn’t even have the decency to hide his amusement.

But then, Jaime had never responded appropriately to danger. She didn’t seem to have a “flight” response. That had gotten her into all kinds of shit.