Matt: Tales of the Were (Redstone Clan Book 5) (3 page)

“Got a minute?” Morgan looked up to see Matt leaning in her doorway. The man moved silently, but his yummy scent now wafted through the room, making her inner kitty sit up and purr.

Down, girl.
She had to work with the man. She wasn’t interested in how good he smelled or how handsome he looked.
Right?

“Sure,” she said, putting aside the paperwork she hadn’t really been able to concentrate on, anyway. “What’s up?”

“I’ve got a good start on what we talked about, but there are a few points I’d like to discuss with you before I go any further.” He walked into her office, bringing the drawings with him.

She stood and met him halfway. There was no place to lay out the big sheets of paper in her workspace, but there was a table just down the hall that would work.

“Follow me,” she invited. “We can lay this out in the break room and snag a cup of coffee while we’re at it.”

He reversed and allowed her to precede him out of the small office. She felt him following close behind, the papers in his hands waving out behind him like a flag. The image it made in her mind brought a little grin to her lips. For such a masculine guy, Matt Redstone hadn’t really impressed her as the office nerd type, yet he was proving he could push a pencil with the best of them, if need be.

The lights in the break room came on automatically as they entered, and Morgan went directly to the coffee station while Matt laid out his poster-sized sheets of paper on the table. She fixed a cup for herself, then turned to offer Matt a cup, which he declined.

Putting the cream back in the small fridge, she went over to the table, sipping her light, sweet coffee. She looked at the new schematics, noting the box on the lower corner that held the name of the person who drew them up. Her eyebrows rose as she saw Matt’s name in there, bold as daylight.

“I didn’t realize you were doing these yourself. I thought you had teams of architects and engineers back at your base who handled this stuff.”

“We do,” he agreed. “I help out from time to time. In addition to being one of the owners of Redstone Construction, I’m also a fully licensed civil engineer, which is what we need for these particular changes. I’ve been working on this project since its inception because of my friendship with Atticus. We all want this alliance to succeed.” Matt shrugged, easing his stance a little. “Plus, it’s just easier for me to revise the plans here, rather than send them back and forth. More secure. And faster.”

She was impressed but didn’t say anything further on the subject. They set to work, and Morgan realized Matt had a few very astute questions and suggestions on how to make the changes. He added a few details to the nature trail in the newly-proposed preserve that would allow humans to use the area without letting them get too close to the truly wild areas they wanted to keep private for the
weres
.

She liked what he’d come up with and was able to answer most of his questions about the specific laws of the county and state without having to refer to her books. There was one nitpicky question about setbacks from the property line that she had to double check, but aside from that, they spent a very productive twenty minutes discussing the changes he’d already made and the ones he would work on that afternoon.

“I want to get these done tonight,” he said as he rolled up the plans. “Can I convince you to join me for dinner? I know more questions will arise as I finalize everything. It would be helpful to have your input, so we can file these with the planning guys tomorrow morning.”

Was he asking her out? His phrasing was vague enough that she could take it either way. Either he was simply a colleague who wanted her to stick around for his own work-related reasons, or—and this was the option that gave her the heebeegeebees—he was asking her out because he was attracted to her and figured work was a handy excuse to get what he wanted.

She watched him carefully, trying to figure out which it was.

“Come on, Morgan,” he said playfully. “Give a guy a break. You’re looking at me like I have ulterior motives.”

“Do you?” she came right out and asked, one eyebrow raised in challenge.

Matt transferred the rolled plans to one hand and moved closer to where she stood, empty coffee cup in hand. He held her gaze, and she suddenly realized her breathing had grown faster. Not good. She wasn’t prey. Never would be. She was just as much predator as the bigger cougar. It was time he understood that.

“Maybe.” Matt seemed to read her expression and backed off a bit. She hadn’t been ready for that reaction, and it took her a moment to process his lighthearted smile as he leaned one hip against the table, watching her. “But you can’t blame a guy for trying, right? I promise, if you join me for dinner, it’ll be strictly business. I really do want to get these drawings done tonight, so there’s no more delay on the project.”

She thought about it. He seemed sincere. And mischievous. But, then, he was a cat, after all. Cats were known for mischief. She ought to know. Her own inner cat got her into trouble often enough that she was familiar with the phenomenon.

Curiosity was another trait she had trouble with, sometimes. For example, right now, her curiosity was pushing her to find out just what Matt Redstone had in mind. Would he be the polite businessman at dinner? Or would his wildcat come out to play?

She simply had to find out.

“Okay. A working dinner. Here,” she stipulated. “I’ll order in. There’s a place we use regularly. Atticus does a lot of soirees and dinner meetings and always provides food for his guests. Do you like salmon?”

“Fish, beef, fowl,” he agreed. “Anything in the carnivore range.” He smiled, showing his pearly whites. “Although a little lettuce, now and again, is good for the digestion, I hear.” He gave her a mocking, doubtful expression. “Order anything you like. I’m easy.” He winked and headed for the door.

“I’ll just bet you are,” she murmured, knowing he would hear. His chuckle as he went back into the office he’d been given was downright sinful.

CHAPTER TWO

Matt worked straight through the afternoon, pausing only occasionally to call and confer with the architectural team back at Redstone Construction’s headquarters. He spoke to Grif briefly, assuring the Clan’s Alpha that he had things under control.

He worked on the show plan—the one they would file with the human government. The secret plan was also adjusted slightly but remained on Matt’s secure laptop, in a highly encrypted file. He had just printed out the final draft he wanted to go over with Morgan when the aromas of dinner came down the hallway toward his borrowed office.

His stomach started rumbling, reminding him that he’d pretty much skipped right over lunch. A few snacks, here and there, pilfered from the break room didn’t make much of a meal for a hungry shifter.

He rolled the plans and followed his nose to the big conference room where Morgan was unpacking a series of insulated bags. Dinner had arrived, it seemed, and from the gourmet scents tickling his nose, she hadn’t spared any expense.

“Smells delicious,” Matt said, walking in and heading straight for the sideboard where she’d laid out the plates and utensils.

“I ordered a little extra, since I figured you’d be hungry,” she said, still working on laying out all the different platters and sauces.

Shifters ate a lot, burning off any excess in the process of shapeshifting and running in their beast forms. Morgan knew this, being a cat shifter herself, but to any human looking at the spread, it probably seemed like she’d ordered dinner for eight. At least.

Something else struck him. Her words and actions hinted at the fact that she was aware he hadn’t eaten lunch. Matt’s inner cougar growled in satisfaction. She’d noticed him. While it wasn’t a huge step forward, it was still a step. She’d cared enough to notice he hadn’t eaten and had made sure to order extra food so he could eat his fill. She cared at least that much about his welfare, which was a start.

“Looks good.” Matt sniffed as he leaned over her shoulder, eyeing the food. The scent of fine cooking was making him salivate, but Morgan’s scent set his senses on fire—as she had done since the moment he’d met her.

“Wait ‘til you try the salmon. I don’t know how they do it, but their recipe is one of the best I’ve ever tasted.” She enthused as she unwrapped two healthy portions of the pink fish. She dumped a whole fish on her plate, giving him about the same amount when he held his plate out.

He’d start with the fish, since she seemed so taken with it. Cats liked fish. Of course, cougars liked just about any meat, preferably raw. But Matt’s human side could appreciate the flavors both cooking and sauces brought out.

He added a few more items to his plate and sat with Morgan at the big conference table. His drawings were rolled up on the other end of the table, to avoid getting soiled. Matt was hungry enough to push aside work for the moment.

They ate in comfortable silence for a bit, Matt trying each of the dishes Morgan had ordered. She had good taste. And the caterer was top notch.

“This is all delicious,” he commented after he’d tried a little bit of everything. “But you’re right about the salmon. I’ve never had better.”

She smiled in agreement, toasting him with her fork, which was loaded with another bite of the creamy pink fish. She washed it down with some of the purified water they used in the winery and stocked in the office in plastic bottles.

“Luigi knows how to cook,” she said after delicately wiping her lips with a napkin. Matt never thought he’d be jealous of a thin piece of paper, but there it was.
He
wanted to touch her lips—preferably with his own. “He’s our go-to caterer, and he never fails to impress the clients.”

Matt needed a change of subject as he studiously looked at his half-full plate. He was already planning on seconds. Maybe thirds. But he didn’t want Morgan to see how attracted he was to her. Not just yet. She was skittish and had to be approached from the side. A head-on attack would only scare her off.

“So, you’ve told me how much Atticus likes his new employees and their superior sniffers, but what about you? Have you had time to meet Jenny and her family? I know they’re wolves, but there don’t seem to be a lot of other shifters around here for you to socialize with. Have you made friends, yet?”

She took a moment before answering, her voice subdued when she finally spoke. “I’ve never really had any friends like me. Not since my family was killed. The only Others I know now are vampires, and they’ve treated me well. I remember how it was in my Clan, and I don’t really want to go back to that—or watch others suffer in that kind of environment.”

Matt grew concerned. “Was there something wrong in your Clan?”

“Probably not in your eyes.” Her voice turned bitter.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He was getting really alarmed now. Was her Clan abusive? Was that why she’d avoided her own people? It wasn’t common, but it had been known to happen from time to time.

“Well, you’re a man. Men rule in the shifter world. Women sit home and have babies. And speak when they’re spoken to,” she said, all in a rush. “I prefer Marc’s idea of a woman’s place. In school. In the office. Equal intellectually, even if we’re not always equal in brute strength.”

“Whoa… Hold the phone. You really think that all shifters keep their women barefoot and pregnant?” That might explain a lot about her attitude, but how was he to overcome such thoughts?

“Well, don’t they? I haven’t met a single woman who works for your company. So far, it’s all guys. And Jenny and her family are all single, unmated women. I know they’re nesting. Once you build those homes with the nice, comfy dens, I anticipate Atticus is going to lose most of his new workers to maternity leaves that never end.”

“Oh, man…” Matt tried to interject, but it seemed Morgan was on a roll.

“I tried to tell Atticus this, but he doesn’t believe me, for some reason. He told me to wait and see, but he doesn’t understand that once he lets these wolves into his domain, he’s going to be stuck with them.”

“Whoa, there.” Matt held up both hands, palms outward.

He didn’t quite know where to start with refuting her beliefs, but he had to set the record straight. This was his Clan she was talking about. They weren’t Neanderthals. Women held positions of power in the Clan, but apparently, Morgan hadn’t seen enough of the Clan to know any better.

“I suppose you’re going to try to tell me that your Clan is different. That the men don’t rule. That your Alpha is enlightened.” The sarcasm in her tone almost made Matt’s rising anger get the better of him, but he held it together.

“My Alpha—my brother—
is
enlightened. We’re not cave men. We don’t keep the women at home. They do as they please, and if they want to work for the company, they are given jobs to suit their abilities. You haven’t met any of them, yet, because you’ve been dealing mostly with the construction team leader to this point. The design staff is almost seventy percent female. Many of them mated. And our legal team is headed up by a female raptor who makes most of us shake in our boots. The woman is formidable.”

Morgan looked like she didn’t believe him. Damn. The woman was stubborn.

“Look, if you won’t believe me, then maybe you should talk with our priestess. Kate will set you straight.” He tried to be understanding, but Morgan’s doubt struck him through the heart. “I don’t know what you saw in your home Clan, but most shifters don’t live like that, anymore. There might’ve been a time in the past when we did—just like humans subjugated their females, and still do in some parts of the world—but Redstone isn’t like that. My mother wouldn’t have stood for it.” He had to smile, remembering his brilliant mother. “She was a research scientist, you know. Kept working in her laboratory until the day she died. She raised us all to respect women and made sure every male in the Clan did the same. She was our Matriarch in the truest sense of the word.”

When Morgan didn’t say anything, he looked up at her. He knew there was a brightness to his eyes that she wouldn’t miss. It happened whenever he thought of his mother.