I touched my hot cheek and suddenly felt light-headed. A short sip of cold water seemed to abate the miserable feeling coming over me. At least temporarily.
Denver had his right elbow on the table with his chin tucked in the palm of his hand. His eyes were heavy-lidded, a man satisfied after a hearty meal.
Maizy stood up from her chair.
“Sweetie, where are you going?” April asked.
“Home!”
She stomped off and bumped into a man briskly walking by. He gripped her arm and leaned down to look at her.
“Whose human is this?” His voice was layered with disgust, and Maizy shrank back with a look of fright on her face. “Humans aren’t allowed in here. Get the manager!”
Heads slowly turned.
Denver had risen from his chair, his knuckles white as they pressed against the table. His entire body was practically vibrating. “My advice is you better take your goddamn hands off her.”
The man lifted her arm even higher, and by that point, Prince had risen from the table along with Austin. “If I let her go, she’ll scurry off like a cockroach and infest the place.”
Without warning, Denver shifted into his wolf in a flash of magic. His wolf was grey and white, like a sled dog but much larger. He was halfway on the table and exploded into action, leaping through the open gap between Jericho and April.
“Oh, shit. It’s on now,” Wheeler said, tossing his napkin on the table.
Two glasses crashed to the floor and a ferocious snarl escaped as he lunged at the man. People in the restaurant merely turned around to watch, some laughing and whispering to one another.
The man let go of Maizy and threw his hands out, gripping Denver’s throat before he locked onto his jugular.
Fear gripped my spine, and I hoped this didn’t end with casualties. At the very least, we could be blacklisted and not allowed to return to the restaurant. But if the violence escalated and someone got hurt…
“Denver!” Austin shouted. “Submit.”
Wheeler stirred his finger in his glass, pushing the ice in circles. “Go out to eat with the family, they said. It’ll be fun, they said.”
Denver’s wolf was one of the most violent wolves I’d ever known. While he would normally submit to Austin with reluctance, this was another matter entirely. He was Maizy’s watchdog and would fight to the death to protect her.
Blood streaked the man’s arm as Denver latched on, tugging hard.
“Goddammit, don’t make me shift in here!” the man said, punching Denver’s wolf in the face. “You don’t want to see what the fuck I am.”
“A goat?” Wheeler suggested. “Waiter, I’ve changed my order!”
A few chuckles rose from spectators. The manager approached, fire burning in his eyes at the calamity unfolding in his restaurant.
“Denver…” Austin reached out.
April’s breath caught and Reno stood up. Everyone knew this could end badly. Denver’s wolf had blood in his mouth and if he showed disobedience toward his Packmaster in front of others, Austin would be forced to take action.
“Denny, let him go!” Maizy said, her little brow furrowing as she scolded him. She bravely went up and wrapped her arms around him, clutching his soft neck.
Denver’s wolf began to calm, letting out a few stray growls before releasing his hold.
The man angrily snatched a cloth napkin off someone’s table and held it to his bleeding arm. “You should learn to control your mutt,” he bit out.
Austin took a step forward, and his voice became low and dangerous. “You had it coming when you put your finger on my packmate.”
The manager apologized profusely to the offended man. “Sir, I’ll have a table reserved for you on your next visit. Everything on the house.”
He shook his head and glared at Austin. “He’ll be picking up my tab. Be sure to give me his name so I can bill him for my suit.”
“Forgive me. His party will be banned from coming back.”
“That’s bullshit,” Austin growled. “If you have a problem with my wolf’s actions, then you take it out on him. Don’t even think about blacklisting my pack or my guests. I’ll take this to the higher authority.”
Denver moved between Maizy and the man like a wall of fur and fangs, still protecting her. She held the scruff of his neck, staring at the manager. “That man tried to hurt me, and Denny didn’t do anything wrong.”
The man with the bleeding arm flicked his stony eyes at the manager. “Since when do you let humans in here?”
The manager wiped the sweat off his balding head and looked between everyone.
Prince intervened. “I’m afraid the little one is right. Regardless of what Breed she is, a man should never put his hands on a woman, let alone a child. I think we can agree it escalated too far, but if that wolf is her watchdog, then he is entitled to protect the child if someone is threatening her safety. Little one, show him your arm.”