Kiesha deposited the cake in the kitchen before backtracking back to the living room where the majority of the people were gathered, and led her over to one of the couches near the fireplace. Once there, she introduced her to Carol Johnson, an extremely pregnant African-American woman who looked as though she would pop any day now.
Mary Elizabeth's eyes traveled from Carol's swollen belly to her face. “I don't mean to be rude, but should you be here? You look like you're going to blow any second now."
"That's exactly what I said and why I was against her coming, but what do I know? I'm just her husband and the father of her unborn child,” said the very attractive, bald male sitting by her side. Kiesha introduced him as Mark, Carol's husband and Refuge's only pharmacist. “Welcome to Refuge and to the Raven pack."
"Thank you,” she said as she reached out to shake the hand he extended toward her.
Rolling her eyes, Carol shifted in her seat. “Please! Don't get him started. I'm a nurse. I know what I can and can't handle. I'm sitting, aren't I? Besides, I'm the pack's beta and this is an official gathering. It's mandatory that I be here."
Alex walked up in time to hear the last comment. “I don't want to add fuel to the fire, but you know that's not true. The health and welfare of an individual comes before any social gathering. I would have understood if you didn't come. And having said my bit, I am once more backing out of this discussion."
Carol stuck her tongue out at him. “Coward. Be that way. Really, I'm fine,” she said to Mary Elizabeth. “Alex is my doctor. If anything happens, he's right here."
Kiesha and Alex took Mary Elizabeth around, introducing her to the rest of the pack and the neighbors. Though primarily a pack function, close friends of Alex were also in attendance so that Alex could show off his new mate. Those that Kiesha knew, she introduced. Alex performed the rest of the introductions.
Finally, she saw a familiar face. “This one I've already met. Hi, Shannon. I'm so glad I'm not the only newbie here. I feel like I'm wearing a sign that reads, ‘Fresh Meat, come and get it!’”
Shannon laughed. “I know what you mean. It's been a long time since I've been sniffed and sized up the way I've been tonight."
"Is this normal? I know Kiesha told me what to expect, but even with her warning, I didn't expect this."
Alex answered before the women could. “You're very observant. Most people wouldn't notice. The males are sniffing to see if you're mated. Some are testing for compatibility and some just like the way you smell. By the way, you do smell nice."
Both Kiesha and Shannon had explained about shifters highly advance sense of smell. Because of it, Mary Elizabeth did without the scented body lotion and perfume she usually wore and only used the scented body wash, which gave just a hint of fragrance. She hoped it would be much easier on the sensitive noses present.
She stood conversing with the three of them until some of the bolder men of the pack approached the alphas to ask the ladies to dance. Giving each other a ‘what the heck’ look, Mary Elizabeth and Shannon agreed and joined the people line-dancing on the makeshift dance floor.
This was so much fun. She wasn't a great dancer, but here it didn't matter. Fast songs. Slow songs. She danced them all, mostly due to the steady stream of partners who refused to let her sit down. Quickly heating, she took off the long-sleeved, red shrug she'd been wearing, revealing the black, leather and lace corset she wore beneath. The corset proudly lifted and displayed her generous breast while emphasizing her tiny waist. The skirt lovingly cupped her generous behind, displaying her figure to its best advantage. She wasn't a small woman, but she was an extremely curvy one. Curves she'd hid in the past were proudly displayed tonight. She couldn't help but notice that they were noted and appreciated by the men present. High on the attention and desire in the gazes of the men around her, she threw herself whole-heartedly into the party, enjoying being the center of attention for once.
Hugh arrived late. He'd waited until things slowed down at the diner before coming. Then he went home, showered and changed into a pair of fitted, black jeans and a close fitted black pullover that displayed his powerful body to advantage. When he walked through the door, he was instantly the center of female attention, not that he noticed. He slapped Alex on the back and bent down to give Kiesha a hug, congratulating them on the coming of their cub.
As he walked around, greetings were called out to him, since he knew everyone present. He spotted Mary Elizabeth on the dance floor, surrounded by wolves and she looked hot! She'd done something to her hair, something that made him want to run his hands through its silky length. His gaze slid down her body, taking in the outfit she wore and felt his pants get tight. He reached down and adjusted his cock to a more comfortable position.
She wore leather the way he liked it, figure hugging, short and black. Man, he loved leather on a woman. The way the leather cupped her body should be outlawed. It was clear from the smile on her face that she was having a great time.
His gaze switched to the cub she was dancing with and he took a step forward before he could catch himself. He could smell the wolf's lust from here. Reigning himself in, he reminded himself of the bigger picture. He had a plan for his life that included a mate and little baby bear cubs. Mary Elizabeth was not part of that plan. No deviating from the plan, he warned himself.
While he was giving himself a stern talking to, another wolf came up close behind Mary Elizabeth and placed his hands on her hips, rubbing his body against hers in a semblance of sex. His move pushed her closer to the man she was dancing with, sandwiching her between the two of them. The men were so close to her he doubted he could squeeze a sheet of paper between them. When the man in front slid his hands up the side of her body to rest just below her breast, Hugh lost it. A growl broke loose as he stalked toward the dancing trio. Screw the plan!
Alex was in the kitchen refilling the ice buckets when Shannon approached him. “Alex, you got a minute?"
"Sure, Shannon. What do you need?"
"I want to make an appointment to see you."
"As alpha or as your physician?"
"As my physician."
Concerned, he put the ice bucket down and crossed over to where she stood leaning against the center island. “Is there a problem? You seemed to be healing just fine. Are you in pain?” About three weeks ago, some wolves from her former pack attacked Shannon. One of them was her brother, Rory McFelan, the Sparrowhawk's pack alpha. He tried forcing her to mate and breed to keep their race from dying out. He'd picked two of the strongest males in his pack, hoping one of them would prove strong enough to subdue her. Regrettably for the men involved, neither were.
It was a dominance fight, pure and simple, and as such had been fought in wolf form. Shannon defeated both men in combat before taking on her brother. Wounded and tired, he easily defeated her before leaving her wounded and alone out by the ridge overlooking the river. Shannon was found and brought to him for medical treatment by their resident vampire, Nikolai Taranosky. She'd sustained a lot of damage and was too weak to shift back to human form, so Nikolai carried her to them after placing her under compulsion to keep her from attacking him. While she had perfect recall of the fights, she had no memory of the rescue, which, in his opinion, was a good thing. Nikolai had shown a little too much interest in Shannon for his comfort. She'd healed amazingly fast, even for a shifter. Carol was concerned that the healing was too rapid, but Alex hadn't thought anything of it. Maybe he should have checked into it like Carol requested.
"No, I'm not hurting anywhere. I mean, my stitches are all healed and everything's working just fine. It's just that, well, this is going to sound really strange. I think something is going on with me, inside my body. I don't hurt or anything. I just feel off. I can't put my finger on it or pinpoint anything in particular. I just know that something is wrong."