About Face (Wolf Within) (11 page)

“He left me,” I repeated. I stared at his shoes, not him. He had on brown loafers that needed to be thrown out. What was it with the Murphy men that they had to wear shoes until they begged to be put out of their misery? “I have no idea why.”

“Bollocks.” He sounded so much like Murphy my heart skipped. “A man just doesn’t walk away from his bond mate without both of them knowing the reason why.”

“I’m here to get back with him. Isn’t that enough?” My hands clenched into fists, and the apple pie rolled around in my gut until I suspected I might puke on Councilor Glenn Murphy’s brown carpet. And I was damned if I’d be the one to clean it up either.

“Liam had a rough time of it with Sorcha and after her death. He needs someone stable in his life, not some flighty American girl who can’t even look me in the eye. I’m a Councilor. My experience has taught me that people who can’t look me in the eye have something to hide. What are you hiding? If you’re here to make a mess of his life again, I suggest you go back where you came from.”

“Do you know how hard it was to come here?” The words cut like ground glass in my throat. I forced my gaze to meet his. “Do you have any idea?”

“No,” he answered. “I don’t. Because I don’t know you. You seem nice enough on the surface, but I want to know what’s beneath it. Liam needs a good woman. He deserves one. I don’t know the particulars of how you two came to be together, but Jason Allerton had a hand in it, and that disturbs me.”

“Jason Allerton is a good man. He tried to help us.” Now I was pissed.

Glenn Murphy, incredibly, smiled at me. “So you do know how to be loyal. That’s the first positive thing I’ve seen today. You just might be good enough for my son, woman, but you’ll need to prove yourself.”

“How?” Goddamn Mac Tire males and the way they believed everyone had to go around proving themselves all the damn time. Why couldn’t we just be who we were instead of constantly trying to prove our worth to other people?

“By making the poor bastard smile again for starters,” he said. “He’s been back for four months, and I can count the conversations he’s had with me on one hand. None of them deep, all of them short. He talked to me more when he was gallivanting through America with you. Get him to talk to his da, and I’ll be happy. Stick with him, and I’ll be happier still.”

“I’m not the one who left,” I whispered. I looked into Glenn Murphy’s handsome face and wished I knew him better. Would he become a good friend in time? Or would he set obstacle after obstacle in my path? Make me jump through hoops just like my father had? I was so tired of jumping through hoops.

“Well, see that you’re the one who stays,” he suggested.

Chapter 7

The red-haired giant, Colm, was on duty outside An Puca again. He saw me with Fee and opened the green pub door.

“Still no ring,” I muttered, waving my ringless fingers in front of his face on my way past him

“Anyone with the Alphas gets in,” he informed me, and then he winked. His green eyes were frankly appreciative, and I knew I looked a hundred percent better than I had the night before. In fact, I looked damned good.

A new pair of black ruched leggings with a black sleeveless scoop neck tunic fitted me to perfection. They were new purchases from my Fee-inspired shopping spree. After we’d left her parents’ home, I’d splurged on myself in the vain attempt to push Glenn Murphy out of my head. My favorite purchases of the day were my new black platform ankle boots with dull gold buckles and a dark purple leather hobo bag. I’d braided my hair to the side and wore my bond pendant on the thick silver evening chain. It and a pair of silver studs were my only jewelry.

It was a cool night so I wore a purple leather jacket, also a new purchase.

Inside the pub it was warm, and I left my jacket and purse at the table near the bar where Fee held court. Before she could sit all the way down, a plate of sausage and mashed potatoes was on the table and a pitcher of water.

Alannah Doyle looked at me. “Bangers and mash, the same as Fee?”

I nodded. I’d never heard sausage referred to as bangers before, but this was Ireland. A sudden stab of homesickness assailed me. What the fuck was I doing here?

“I’ll bring you a Guinness too.” Alannah winked at me and bustled away to get my dinner.

The pub was boisterously crowded with people. My pack mates, but the only ones I knew were Fee, Alannah and Paddy.

Paddy appeared on the stairs about forty-five seconds after we walked in and joined us at the table.

He gave me an appraising look and grinned. “You look beautiful tonight, Stanzie.”

I rolled my eyes.

“And so do you, my adorable pregnant bond mate.” He turned his attention to Fee, who wrinkled her nose at him before she dug into her plate of bangers and mash.

“You’re so full of shite,” she muttered around a mouthful. She was beautiful. Her green dress brought out the amber highlights in her eyes, and she’d pulled her hair back into a silver Celtic knot design barrette so the angles of her face were sharply defined.

“Any sign of my stupid brother?” Fee gulped at her water, and when she set her glass down, Paddy poured more from the pitcher.

“No, and the bastard’s not answering his frigging phone either.”

“Gobshite.” Fee’s exhaled breath sounded more like a growl than anything else.

My meal arrived then, and I hid behind my Guinness so neither of them could see my expression.

A flat-screen television bolted to the wall showed a soccer match, although the sound was muted. Soft pop music floated above the animated chatter of the pack. On the television, one team scored a goal, and a yell of outrage went up from the crowd.

“You like football, Stanzie?” Fee asked as she followed my gaze to the television.

For a minute I was confused because I forgot in Ireland they called it football.

“I’m not much for sports, especially played by Others,” I admitted.

“Do you watch television? Go to movies?” Paddy raised one of his eyebrows in the way he had, and I had this mad desire to run to the ladies’ room and practice in the mirror. How the hell did he get only one brow to rise at a time?

“Sometimes.”

“Shopping with her is a trip,” Fee told him. “Surrounded by a sea of Others, Stanzie acts like she’s the only one at the shops. She barely deigns to meet the sales clerk’s eyes when she presents her credit card, and I don’t think she’s ever heard of small talk.”

“I couldn’t understand half the people today. Goddamn Irish accents,” I protested. A bloom of warmth stole across my face. “I’m not mean, am I?”

“No. More like oblivious.” Fee reached out to pat my hand reassuringly. “You’re a queen among paupers, love.”

“That doesn’t make me sound oblivious, that makes me sound patronizing and elitist.”

“Nah, just sheltered. I don’t think you did much shopping until lately.”

“I usually order online from catalogs. It’s easier,” I admitted. “Except for shoes. I have to try them on. That’s half the fun.”

“But shoe shopping is normally something you can do without some Other fluttering along in your wake, asking if she can help you.”

“Until I started buying designer. They keep all the shoes in the back except for the ones on display. It’s fucking maddening.” I bit my lip to shut my damn mouth. I
was
patronizing and elitist. Others didn’t matter much to me. Even when I’d worked in an office, I’d kept to my own cubicle as much as possible and done my solitary work without bothering with my coworkers unless I had to.

“Oi, who’s this, then?” A man with jet-black hair and vivid blue eyes slid into the empty chair at our table and stared at me with curiosity bordering on rudeness.

“Declan Byrne, this is Stanzie Newcastle.” Fee’s voice was prim. “My stupid brother’s bond mate, so keep your pecker in your pants, okay?”

Paddy snickered, propped his elbows on the table and leaned forward as if to watch a sports match.

The black-haired man winked at me. “I’m not in the habit of whipping out the family jewels before I’m properly introduced, so no worries, Fiona, calm down.”

Fiona stuck out her tongue and gave me a long-suffering look. “Declan thinks he’s God’s gift to women, Stanzie.”

“Paddy, did you put Fee up to this blatant cock-blocking act, or should I feel flattered she still wants me for herself?” Declan grinned in Paddy’s direction, and Paddy laughed.

“Stanzie’s her stupid brother’s bond mate, Byrne, you figure it out.”

“Ah, he’s not here. And he’s made it plain he thinks she wants out of their agreement. Tell me you’re here to find a new bond mate, love. Ever think about a triad?” He leaned across the table to smile at me, and I resisted the urge to spit a mouthful of Guinness at his arrogant face.

“Not since both my bond mates died in the twisted metal of what was left of my car after I crashed it,” I said, and both Paddy and Fee winced.

Declan Byrne’s flirtatious smile faded. “You kill ’em on purpose?”

When I picked up my glass, Paddy grabbed it. I guess he thought I was going to throw it in Declan’s face. Really, all I wanted was a sip of beer. Although the thought of tossing the contents in Declan’s smarmy face had crossed my mind, I’d planned on resistance., No matter what Paddy thought.

“Fuck off, Declan,” said Paddy. “Jaysus, try not to be such a bloody moron. I know it’s a stretch, but surely you can just about manage it.”

“I’m not the one who started it. She did,” Declan protested.

“Because you’re an asshole not letting her finish her damn dinner before you’re crawling halfway across the table so you can look down her shirt close up. Have some pride, man.” Paddy gave him a shove and Declan grabbed the edge of the table to keep from falling out of his chair.

“Well, how in the hell many people has she killed? I only knew about the psychopath whose throat she ripped out, but she killed her bond mates too? Bloody hell, Padraic, are you letting just anyone into the pack on Liam Murphy’s say-so? You know damn well his taste in women is frigging awful.”

“Piss off.” All of Paddy’s goodwill evaporated, and his eyes narrowed. “You’re so full of shite, Declan. Stanzie and Liam are your biggest competition, so we all know you’re only here to divide and conquer. You think with a triad you’ll be in even better position as Mac Tire’s next Alphas?”

“Not if I bond with a bitch who kills people right and left like this one. Bollocks to that.” Declan’s handsome face twisted into ugliness as he shoved back his chair and stomped away. Good thing Paddy had grabbed my glass after all.

“Sorry about that, Stanzie.” Paddy’s eyes gleamed with ire. “Why the hell’d you have to say that about your bond mates, anyway? Why are you giving him ammunition? Didn’t you listen to anything I told you last night?”

“I’m just trying to eat my dinner, Paddy,” I said, but the truth was I couldn’t eat another bite. What I wanted to do was get up and walk the hell out, but I couldn’t do that either.

Pack politics were such a bitch, and I’d never played them right. Tonight was no exception.

“What the hell’d you ever see in that bastard?” Paddy rounded on Fiona, who calmly forked up the last of her mashed potatoes and ate them before she answered.

“It’s a girl thing,” she said and Paddy groaned.

“You say that every single bloody time you fuck up. Why can’t you admit you fucked up for once?”

“Because I’m not convinced I did.” Fiona set down her fork and looked contemplative. “The sex wasn’t that great. I kept waiting for it to get better, but it never really did. So, Stanzie, don’t waste your time, love. You want good in bed, take Paddy. The man knows what do with his tongue when he finally shuts the fuck up and puts it to other uses besides bitching.”

I flashed back to my tribunal when we’d all shifted so my wolf could meet the Council’s wolves. Images of Paddy with his head buried between the thighs of one of the Advisors filled my mind, and I wriggled a little in my chair.

Paddy saw me do it and grinned, the bastard.

“Sadly, she has scorned all my advances, Fee,” he lamented, and Fee looked highly entertained.

“Good things come to those who wait, love.” She patted his arm consolingly, and he sighed.

“Fiona taught me everything I know as far as tongues go,” Paddy said, and he and Fee watched my face and burst into laughter.

“We’re always looking for someone to practice on together,” he added, and Fee gave me a wink.

“Hell,” I said. “My Guinness is gone. This night has gone from awful to tragic. I might cry.”

“Fee and I could make it better,” Paddy teased, but he got to his feet and took my glass to the bar for a refill as I’d intended.

“We’re terrible flirts, Stanzie. Tell us to fuck off, and we’ll stop, I promise.” Fee heaved herself to her feet. “I can’t even drink half a bloody glass of water without feeling like I’m drowning in my own piss. Being pregnant is bollocks, I swear.” As she muttered to herself, she waddled for the ladies room.

“Sexy,” I mused. She cursed the group of men crowded beneath the flat-screen television, blocking the way to the restrooms. They scattered once they realized who swore at them. One of them tried to help her, and she almost took his head off.

Paddy put my beer on the table and, laughing, took a seat.

“Mother of God, that baby can’t come quick enough. I swear she’s waddling like a frigging duck lately. That only started this week. Normally, she’s graceful as a swan.”

“So says the pig who knocked her up in the first place. Your compassion is overwhelming, Alpha.” I took a healthy swig from my beer, and Paddy grimaced at me.

“Killjoy.”

The speaker system shut off, and the pop music died. I looked around and saw Declan Byrne at a control panel behind the bar. He moved toward a small stage on the side of the pub and pulled the cover off a gorgeous twenty-two string Celtic harp. It could have been the twin of the one I’d once owned.

Declan Byrne was the musician of the pack, apparently. He sat behind the harp and fiddled with the strings and levers a bit to tune it and then launched into a cheerful Irish song that showcased his technical prowess. He was definitely no stranger around the strings. A few members of the pack gathered around and began to sing. I turned my chair around so I could watch. He played with an easy grace that must have taken him years to develop.