Enforcer - 3. Chapter 3

“Are we there yet?”

If Parker wasn’t Colton’s mate, Jed might have been tempted to reach back and throttle the little man, then toss him out of the moving vehicle. This must have been the tenth time he’d asked that damned question. Instead, he bit his tongue and tightened his hands on the steering wheel.

Jed loved Parker like a brother, he really did, but sometimes the little guy got on his nerves. It wasn’t his fault, though. Since the “incident,” Jed admitted he could sometimes be a bit irritable. That’s why he was better off hanging out by himself.

He cut his eyes over to Trey, who looked back and shrugged. Trey let out a soft sigh, closed his eyes, and leaned his head back against the headrest.

Jed glanced over at the portable GPS unit stuck to the windshield. They had crossed the Canadian border a few hours ago, and according to the map, they were getting pretty close now. Jed would have felt more comfortable driving his own truck rather than Colton’s car, but the Lincoln was better for travel.

“We’re almost there, pup,” Colton answered in that soft voice he reserved only for talking to his mate. “Lay your head back down on my lap, and go back to sleep.”

“I’m too excited to sleep. It’s too pretty outside,” he said as he stared out the window. If the window had been rolled down, Jed thought Parker might have stuck his head out like a dog. Parker then added quietly, “And you keep pushing your boner into the back of my head.”

Jed and Trey both snickered, until Colton growled a warning. They couldn’t help it if their hearing allowed them to eavesdrop, even unintentionally.

Parker was right, though—not about the boner, but about the view. The backdrop of the Canadian Rockies was breathtaking. Everyone in the car was silent as they reverently gazed out the windows, looking at the tree-filled valley before them, surrounded by the snow-peaked mountain range that stretched as far as they could see. There were hardly any clouds in the sky, and the pure blue contrasted sharply against the brilliant white of the snowy peaks, as well as the deep green of the trees.

“It’s beautiful,” Parker whispered.

The land was untainted and untouched. The sacred forest called to Jed’s basic instincts. Jed felt the urge to shift deep in his bones. He wanted to run through the forest, to hunt and play with his pack.

Parker let out a soft whine. Clearly Jed wasn’t the only one feeling nature’s call.

“Parker.” Colton’s voice held a command in it that made Jed’s spine tingle. Even Trey sat up straighter. “Look at me. Control yourself.”

Jed glanced into the rearview mirror. Parker tugged at his shirt collar. His eyes glowed amber, and his canine teeth had dropped. Jed slowed the car, preparing to stop if a white wolf made a sudden appearance in the back seat. Parker was a newly turned wolf and he didn’t have the experience of the others, so Jed wasn’t surprised to see Parker losing control of his shift.

With Colton’s command, Parker’s wolf quickly submitted, and Parker slumped exhaustedly against Colton’s bigger body. Parker closed his eyes and panted softly, his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths.

“There you go, pup,” Colton whispered as he caressed his mate’s hair.

“We’re nearly there, boss,” Jed offered, looking at Colton through the mirror.

Colton nodded in acknowledgment, then turned his attentions back to Parker.

* * * *

When they arrived at the convention center, Jed was completely overwhelmed. The center was tucked away in the dense valley forest at the foot of a mountain. If you didn’t know to turn off on the nearly hidden drive, you would have driven right past it, which was amazing given the sheer size of the complex.

It looked like an exclusive five-star resort, complete with a nineteen-hole golf course, swimming pool, tennis and basketball courts.

The main building housed the convention center meeting rooms and was built to look like a lodge made of logs and stone to give it a rustic feel. Several buildings surrounded it, providing additional meeting spaces and all of the accommodations to house the convention center’s guests.

After parking the car, they walked into the lodge’s grand lobby in their standard formation: Trey on Colton’s left, with Parker between Colton and Jed on the right.

“Oh my god,” Parker whispered.

So Jed wasn’t the only one who was overwhelmed. The lobby was packed. Jed had never seen so many lycans in one place before. Representatives from wolf packs all over North America were present, nearly all of them alphas, betas or enforcers. The power made the room practically sizzle.

It didn’t escape Jed’s notice the Timber Pack delegation was the youngest group present as far as Jed could tell. There were also very few women. Neither was much of a surprise.

“I’m going to check us in,” Colton said. He scanned the room with narrowed eyes before turning to Jed and lowering his voice. “Watch Parker.” Colton tipped his head to Trey, and the pair headed toward the signs marking the way to registration.

Colton had already made sure Jed understood his primary duty was to watch over Parker and keep him safe during the Conclave. Some packs still tended to be homophobic or they scorned “turned” wolves—those who weren’t born lycans, but had been changed with a bite. Parker was turned, gay, and a submissive male. That was three strikes according to packs who liked to call themselves “traditional.” Any one of those by itself was enough to be exiled, but to be all three was a death sentence.

The alpha didn’t want to take any chances with Parker’s safety. That went without saying as far as Jed was concerned. Hell, hadn’t he already shown he took his duty seriously? Didn’t he have the scar to prove it? Just thinking about the scar was enough to set off the throbbing and itching.

Jed ground his teeth together while he tried not to squirm.

“This is insane,” Parker whispered, his eyes downcast. He was clearly feeling the dominance of the stronger wolves surrounding them. “We are at a freaking werewolf convention.”

Jed smiled and shook his head, amused by Parker’s words. “Don’t use the ‘W’ word too loudly. Some of these people don’t like it. Especially the ‘traditional’ folks.” Jed made air-quotes around the word.

Parker rolled his eyes. “Sorry. I meant lycan.”

He wasn’t sorry, the little brat. “Just make sure you stay close.”

Parker sighed. “I know, I know. I already got the lecture from Colton. Not to mention the territory marks.”

Jed snickered. Colton liked to mark his pup possessively just for G.P. His neck was often prominently marked with a hickey or two. Currently, the permanent mating scar the alpha-mate displayed at the base of his neck had a fresh bruise surrounding the visible teeth marks. He also smelled strongly of Colton. The alpha had obviously rubbed his scent all over—and all inside—Parker. It was unmistakable who Parker belonged to.

Not that Colton’s behavior was completely outrageous or uncommon. What few females there were in the lobby were also marked similarly by their own alphas.

When Colton and Trey returned with the room keys and info packets, they walked back to their car and drove to the building they were assigned to.

“This is a huge complex,” Parker said as he stared out the window, once more reminding Jed of a dog.

“Turn here,” Trey pointed as he read the map they’d been given.

Jed followed Trey’s instructions until they reached the building farthest from the convention center.

Their assigned building was like a hotel in and of itself. Each pack received its own suite. Theirs was located on the first floor, among the “coziest” of the available suites, given the small size and lowly status of their pack. Even so, it was plenty large for the four men, and the accommodations were top notch.

The three-room suite had one main living room and two small bedrooms. The living area even included a kitchenette as well as a work area. The cushy leather sofa and wall-mounted flat panel TV called out Jed’s name. He knew exactly where he would be parked tonight.

“This is nice,” Jed commented as he moved through the connecting door to what would be his and Trey’s bedroom.

Jed didn’t mind sharing a room with Trey, but he was grateful they each had their own queen-sized beds. Sure, the two had shared a bed many times when they were pups spending the night at each other’s houses on the weekends. But these days, Jed’s grown ass was too damn big to have to share.

He tossed his bag on the bed nearest the door, claiming it as his, and then returned to the living room.

Parker was already seated at the table. He opened up the info pack. Pulling out the lanyard that held his name badge, he held it up. “Look. It says ‘Parker Montgomery-Butler’. Cool.” With a big grin on his face, he excitedly hung the lanyard around his neck, then pulled the remaining badges and slid them across the table to the others.

Jed glanced at Colton. The smirk on the alpha’s face told Jed he’d purposefully given Parker his last name during registration. The man was unapologetic about marking his boy. Just in case someone missed the scar, the bite, or the smell, Parker would have Colton’s name around his neck. He wondered if Parker even realized what Colton had done. The man was smooth; Jed had to give him that.

Turning over the envelope, Parker dumped out the papers and brochures onto the table. He read through the itinerary, giving the rest of the men an overview. “There’s a meet and greet tonight… Then we get free time for a run and hunt. That sounds awesome… Tomorrow there’s lots of meetings; same for the next two days. Oh, look. There’s a session for alpha-mates. Am I supposed to go to that?”

“If you’d like,” Colton answered. He ran his fingers down Parker’s head, twirling a strand of the blond locks in his fingers.

Parker shrugged. “Might be cool, I guess.”

Colton’s hand drifted across the back of his partner’s neck, and began to lightly stroke the mating scar. “Or you could just stay here in the room.”

Parker shot Colton a dry look. “Away from all the other big, bad werewolves, right? Sorry, lycans.”

Colton grinned.

* * * *

“Set my bags over there,” Shauna told Buzz.

He complied without complaint, though it chapped his ass he couldn’t find the backbone to stand up to his… wife… to be.

Buzz just couldn’t bring himself to call her his mate. Yes, he knew gay wolves didn’t get mates, and he should be grateful Derek didn’t exile him when he found out about his deviation. Still, in the back of his mind, he held the hope that maybe they were all wrong. That maybe someday…

With a quiet sigh, he placed the bags down on the luggage rack inside the closet. It didn’t do any good to dream. Derek was his alpha, and Buzz had to do what he commanded.

“Come here, Bradley.”

Buzz startled at the sound of his given name. The only person who ever called him “Bradley” was his mother. Even his father had called him Buzz. Buzz had heard the story a million times of how, as a baby, he was fond of making noises with Z sounds in them.

Pressing his lips together to keep from snapping at the woman, he turned to see Shauna sitting on the bed. She patted the space next to her, indicating Buzz should sit.

Buzz put on a smile he hoped looked genuine, and sat where she indicated. Thank god they didn’t have to share a room. Not that he wanted to share a room with Shauna’s enforcer, Roy, either. The ‘roided-up man always looked down at Buzz with loathing all over his face.

She reached up and softly stroked his hair. “You worry too much, Bradley.”

Buzz tried not to bristle at her touch. She was treating him like a young pup that needed to be comforted, and he didn’t like it.

“No one calls me Bradley,” he said, annoyed that he had to repeat himself. “Except for my mother.” And since his parents were dead, that’s the way it would be.

“If you think I’m going to call a grown man who is about to be my mate by a child’s name—”

Buzz let out a growl. “Don’t call me Bradley.” And don’t call me your mate.

“I know you’re not happy,” she said, futilely attempting to sound soothing. “But this union is for the best. You have to know that. Our bond will only strengthen the new, merged pack. It will cement our place in the rank.”

Buzz looked at Shauna with surprise. The she-wolf was using him to rise up the ranks of the pack. She didn’t come right out and say it, but it was completely obvious. He hadn’t really processed her earlier words, but Buzz was sure she had mentioned becoming a pack beta. If she thought Derek was going to put a woman in such a position, she was delusional. Unless she worked something out with Derek… Was that what she was getting out of this?

“I promise I will do my best to make you happy,” she continued as she ran her fingers down the side of Buzz’s neck, stopping where it met his shoulder. “You’ll look so good with my bite.”

At that, Buzz gasped out loud. She wanted him to be her bitch! Before Buzz could speak, Shauna stood and walked out of the room.

Stunned speechless, Buzz took a moment to compose himself before he followed her out of the bedroom to the living area.

With their pack delegation so large, they had been assigned two large three-bedroom suites. The room bustled with pack members, a mixture of familiar people along with new ones from what used to be the Eldorado Pack.

Shauna went over to speak with her overly-muscled enforcer. While Roy shot Buzz looks of disdain, Buzz ignored him, moving to the window to give himself a little space.

Surrounded by a roomful of pack-mates, Buzz had never felt so alone.