“Having a claim on a woman’s heart is one thing, but winning that love is something else entirely.”
“Well, rubbing up against me won’t win him any points.”
Austin smiled and slanted his brows in the sexiest manner. “It seems to work just fine for me.”
Changing the subject, I gestured toward April with a nod of my head. “We need to call Charlie. April can’t do this by herself, and it’s unfair to expect her to. She needs advice from a Mage, and he’s the only one we know.”
Austin’s blue eyes shone paler in the daytime when his pupils shrank from the bright sunshine. He regarded April for a moment. “You okay with that?”
In silent acquiescence, she lowered her head.
Austin pulled out his phone and sent a text. “The sooner the better.”
“Now?” I almost shouted.
“If not now, when?” he asked with a wink.
I blushed and averted my eyes, reminded of our stay in the cabin back in Colorado. I really needed to vacation with Austin while in heat more often.
***
“After all I did—you son of a bitch! How dare you skip town and play dead while still owing me money,” Maddox growled in his Southern drawl. Reno and Austin restrained him in the middle of the kitchen.
Charlie shifted on the bench, his back to Maddox, arms crossed on the table. “I told you we’ll settle it later. Is it really the money you’re mad about, or is that just a diversion so people will forget you played a part?”
Maddox lunged and accidentally stepped on Sparty’s tail. The cat yowled and went flying across the room. Maddox’s brown hat fell off, and some of his longish hair covered part of his face.
Wheeler leaned against the doorjamb. “Invite Charlie over, they said. It’ll be fun, they said.”
My mom stepped in front of Maddox and pinched his scruffy beard, which was silvering more than his hair. “Listen here, old man. April and Charlie have something more important to settle than just money and pride. Don’t embarrass me, because I’ll yell at you in front of everyone if I have to.”
Reno grimaced and loosened his grip, taking a step back. “Maybe you need to take a walk, buddy.”
Maddox narrowed his eyes down to razor-thin slivers. His hair reached his shoulders, but without his hat, he looked my mom’s age. After another beat, he drew in a hard breath, then released it through his nose.
“Stubborn old wildcat,” she said, clucking her tongue.
A smile curved up his cheek, and his eyes danced with amusement. “I thought you were a cat lady,” he said gruffly.
She picked his hat up off the floor and pulled him out of Austin’s grip. “Come on, mountain man. Show me where you’re going to build my new bookshelf.”
“What bookshelf?” he asked, following her out of the kitchen.
Wheeler saluted us with two fingers and followed behind them.
“Austin, come sit down,” I said, nodding toward the head of the table.
He pulled out a chair and took a seat, Charlie on his right and April on his left. Reno stepped over the bench and sat next to Charlie, who became uncomfortable due to the close proximity of April’s mate.
Austin steepled his fingers. “What are we going to do about this situation?”
“She’s not moving in with you. I don’t care if you’re her Creator or not,” Reno said matter-of-factly. “You don’t go making little sparklers without taking responsibility.”
April leaned forward and said quietly, “If you call me a sparkler one more time, you’re sleeping outside.”
I tried to stifle a laugh but felt it tickling the back of my throat.
“We’ve got ourselves a situation here, one that’s going to involve you whether you like it or not,” Austin began. He folded his arms and kept his eyes locked on Charlie. “We’re not a pack that discriminates, so April being a Mage isn’t a big deal. What is a big deal is that she has no idea what to do with that. You have a responsibility, but Reno’s right. Mage rules or not, I don’t want April moving out of this house to live with you or any other Mage. That’s not the Shifter way.”
“She’s not a Shifter,” Charlie reminded him. “And I never claimed to want her.”
April’s eyes flashed up.
Guilt crossed Charlie’s expression, and when he frowned, several long lines etched in his forehead. “I’ve never been in this situation, and I don’t have a master plan. I’ll settle my debts with Maddox to make you happy, but money doesn’t govern my life. The only debt worth paying is a life for a life, and that’s what I owed April for what I’d taken. The fates won’t let you run from that kind of debt; that’s why they put her back in my life. I can’t take it back, and I don’t know what you want from me.”