Wolf with Benefits (6 page)

Still, he’d worry about all that tomorrow. Right now he was going to sit on this couch in the wild dog’s big living room and watch the wild dog’s extremely big TV for a few hours. The house was quiet with most of the dogs bedded down for the night, so Ricky was looking forward to a little alone time.

Of course, that alone time lasted all of fifteen seconds before he looked over and realized there was a young wolf sitting next to him. Johnny. Bobby Ray tried to pretend he’d only adopted the kid with Jessie because his mate already had plans to do just that, but Ricky knew it was because the wolf liked the kid. True, he was in that awkward, not a pup but not a full adult either stage, which could make for some tough times, but the kid definitely had some promise. Lots of it.

And, just like Bobby Ray at that age, it seemed the boy was having some problems that at the moment Ricky Lee could easily relate to.

“Why,” Johnny asked Ricky without much preamble, “do females have to make everything so damn difficult? They ask you a question, you answer, they flip out.”

“Well—”

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” the eighteen-year-old went on. “Nothing. I answered a question. That was it. Now it’s being thrown in my face.” He pointed at himself. “I don’t need this. I don’t deserve it.”

Johnny relaxed back into the couch, and moments later, the wolfdog female he’d most likely been complaining about came sauntering through the living room.

Kristan Putowski, one of the oldest Kuznetsov Pack pups, waved as she walked by. “Hey, Ricky Lee.”

“Hey, Kristan.” Yeah. Kristan was a cutie. And when Ricky Lee was eighteen, he would have been all over that like a bad rash. So he understood what Johnny was going through. Especially when Kristan’s friendly wave to Ricky Lee turned into the middle finger just for Johnny.

“I’m not apologizing!” Johnny yelled after her.

“That ain’t subtle,” Ricky Lee told the boy once Kristan was out of the room.

“Subtle?”

“Yeah. Subtle. Can’t go around yelling at a female shifter. They’re mean, boy. All of ’em.”

“I’m not scared of Kristan Putowski.”

“Should be. It’s them friendly cute ones that’ll cut a man—and have no remorse about it.” Ricky leaned in a bit and lowered his voice. “Have you two . . . ya know?”

“What? No! Never! Kristan’s like a—”

“Don’t say she’s like a sister.”

“Why not?”

“Because that’s exactly what Bobby Ray used to say about Jessie Ann . . . and you saw how that relationship ended up.”

“Oh.”

“Besides, hoss, we both know you’d only be lying through your fangs.”

The boy sighed. “I put up with her. Okay?”

“Putting up with her’s good. Staying away from her’s even better. At least for now. Give it a few years. You’ve got a girlfriend?”

“I’m too busy for a—”

“Mistake number two.”

“When did I have mistake number one?”

“You need to get yourself a little girlfriend. Nothing you’re planning to make permanent. Just someone to keep you out of trouble.”

“I’m never in trouble.”

“You will be if you keep hanging around Kristan.”

“Yeah.” Johnny sighed, big hands combing through his hair. “I know.”

 

Toni dropped onto her temporary bed and blew out a breath. That’s when she saw the large TV with a big red bow around it, the DVD player, and the stack of brand-new DVDs.

Her father. He knew the one thing she loved to do after a long day of dealing with her siblings was sit in front of her TV and relax.

She was nearly across the room to see what DVDs he’d picked out for her when a familiar and very welcome scent caught her attention. She charged back across the room and threw the door open.

“Cooper!” Toni threw herself into her brother’s arms and hugged him tight. “When did you get back?”

“I came straight here from the airport.”

Toni pulled back and looked up at her brother. “Wait. How did you know we were here?”

“I got a text from Mom when I was waiting for my layover in Geneva.”

Sure. She texted Cooper in Geneva but not Toni a few city blocks away.

“I’m so glad you’re home,” she said. Not meaning their Washington house but back with the family. “You staying for long?”

“Well, when I got back into LaGuardia, I got a call from Aunt Irene, who told me very clearly that I was needed home because I have to share sibling duty before you snap like a twig.” He smirked. “Did you really cry?”

“Oh, God.” Toni dragged her brother into her room and closed the door. “I had a moment of weakness. Okay?”

“I didn’t know you had any weaknesses.”

“Very funny.”

Coop dropped his travel bag to the floor and took off his denim jacket. “What’s going on?”

“Just the usual.”

“Not that usual if I’ve got Aunt Irene calling me. She never calls me. I don’t think she ever calls anyone. Not even Mom.”

“She doesn’t like talking on the phone unless it’s actual business.”

“She doesn’t like talking on the phone or she’s worried the government’s still listening in to her calls?”

“Both.”

He nodded and dropped into a comfortable chair across from Toni’s bed. “Well, big sis, I’m here to help. You. Mom. Dad. Whoever. I’ll be especially efficient if you let me beat up Kyle and tell Oriana she’s getting fat.”

“No,” Toni told him firmly. “You can beat up Kyle, of course . . . he clearly needs it. But I’m working to ensure Oriana doesn’t get any eating disorders. So no comments on her being too skinny or too fat. You can, however, tell her that she seems dumb compared to the rest of the family and that her eyes are too close together.”

“Oh! And her nose is pinched?”

“Absolutely.”

The pair laughed and Toni felt so much better. Coop wasn’t only another sibling, he was one of her best friends. They were only three years apart, so Toni didn’t have to take care of him as much as she had the others, and that maternal thing had never really kicked in. Instead, they’d spent a lot of time getting into trouble and pissing off Coop’s piano teachers. Like their mother, Coop was another child prodigy. The first of the Jean-Louis Parker siblings, but not the last. Yet for whatever reason, he was also the most normal. He seemed to take after their mother the most, with very few signs of OCD, no extreme arrogance, and no penchant for setting fires.

Funny thing was, of all their siblings, Cooper had the most reason to
be
arrogant. Tall and incredibly handsome, with the body of an Olympic diver, brown eyes, and shoulder-length black hair that had hints of gray, white, and gold, Coop was an international superstar. Those who didn’t even like classical music came to see him perform. His concerts were always sold-out affairs no matter what country he was in, his audience always filled not only with the wealthy but the powerful. Dignitaries, royalty, politicians—all came to see Toni’s younger brother play piano. Then there were his CDs and DVDs, which had made her brother independently wealthy. And yet, at the end of the day, Coop was
still
a jackal. And that meant his family continued to be the most important thing in his life.

So when Coop was home, he helped Toni with the other siblings as much as he could. Just like their sister Cherise, who came four years after Coop. But his talent kept him on the road a lot and having him home was a wonderful treat for Toni. Because Coop got it. What was “it”? She couldn’t say . . . she just knew her brother got it. And she adored him for that.

“You tired?” she asked him.

“Wide awake. Why?”

“Daddy brought me a TV and a shitload of DVDs.”

Coop sat up in his seat. “You think he has
Anne of a Thousand Days
in that pile?”

Toni’s eyes grew wide. “If there’s a God in heaven . . .”

That was the other thing she liked about her brother. They both had the same taste in movies and TV. A geeky taste, but still . . .

Okay. So maybe this summer wouldn’t be so heinous after all.

R
icky Lee had fallen asleep on the couch while watching TV, but he wasn’t annoyed when a young pup woke him up by tapping on his forehead with a tiny little fist.

“Morning!” the pup said with a whole lot of doggie cheer. “The moms are making breakfast. Do you want them to include you?”

“Depends. What’s for breakfast?”

The pup leaned in and whispered, “Waffles, I think. Because you’re here and Aunt Jess likes you, which she says is surprising because your sister still gets on her d-word nerves. But I wasn’t supposed to have heard that part.”

Ricky snorted and whispered back, “Well, I’m glad you told me. I like to know everyone is happy I’m here. And I love waffles. So yeah, I’m up for breakfast.”

“Okay!” the pup cheered and charged out of the room.

Chuckling, Ricky swung his legs off the couch, stood, stretched, and yawned. Then he gave himself a good, once-over shake and headed to the kitchen. The wild dog adults—male and female—were busy getting the kids fed. The wild dogs always fed their pups before they ever ate. Honestly, nothing entertained Ricky more than to watch the wild dogs and lion males dining together. Lion males did not wait for
anyone
before they ate, and in the wild, Ricky was sure that always held true. But here in Manhattan, with the wild dog Jessie Ann in charge, the lion males had learned to wait their turn or suffer her wrath. Of course, her wrath mostly involved lots of yelling, threats, and nipple twisting, but whatever she did, it was effective.

“Morning, y’all.”

“Hey, Ricky!” Jessie poured him a cup of coffee and handed it to him. “Sleep well?”

“Yep. Also got to watch a
Xena: Warrior Princess
marathon on DVD. Which one of y’all is the big fan anyway?”

The adult wild dogs shrugged and said in unison, “All of us.”

Of course.

“I’m going to go out on the stoop for a bit,” he told Jessie Ann.

“That’s fine. We’ll call you when we’re done feeding the kids.”

Scratching his head and yawning again, Ricky made his way down the hall, out the front door, and sat on the fourth step of the stoop. It was real early for most wolves. They’d get up to go to work on time but not just to greet the day. They were mostly nocturnal. But Ricky liked early mornings, even in New York City. The sun just coming up and the people usually friendly. So sitting on that stoop, drinking that coffee, and waiting on his waffle breakfast was what he’d call a good way to start off the day.

Actually, he really couldn’t think of things getting much better . . .

 

Toni was up, dressed, and walking down the stairs by six the next morning. Her appointment with Ulrich wasn’t until around ten, but she was used to getting up early because of her siblings. Mostly, because classes started very early in the day and she needed to be around to mediate and moderate. Already, she could hear Kyle and Oriana arguing about which of them was more important and more talented, and which should be allowed to use one of the rooms on the first floor as their art studio /practice room.

Toni knew she’d not only have to find out exactly what classes the kids were taking, but she’d have to start working on a schedule as soon as possible. When dealing with so many pups at one time, schedules were critical to managing the insanity. This, of course, applied to any large family. But a family of focused, driven little nightmares needed schedules the way breathing beings needed air. It was the only way to survive without unnecessary bloodshed or jail time.

And that was what Toni did best, wasn’t it? She managed the schedules of her family, negotiating agreements and timelines, while threatening important body parts when necessary.

For instance, she already had figured out how she was going to end the argument, but Cherise suddenly charged past her on the stairs. “I’ll handle it,” the twenty-year-old cellist promised as she ran by. “I’ll handle it!”

Although she probably wouldn’t handle it
well.
Cherise, the sweetest of their brood, was also the most sensitive next to Freddy. As it was, she was a borderline agoraphobic. Getting her out of the house was an unbelievable task. Funny thing was, those who booked her into concert halls all over the world thought her reluctance to travel was a negotiation tactic. It wasn’t, but her agoraphobia at the very least paid well.

Still, if Cherise wanted to try managing their siblings, Toni wouldn’t stop her. The way to learn was to do. Toni knew getting everyone handled today with little to no drama would not be easy, but she was ready and alert.

“Morning, sis,” Coop said as he fell into step beside her.

“Hey, Coop. Did you get any sleep?”

“A little. Jet lag is kicking my butt. But you know me. I do love a nap, so I’ll just sleep later.”

“Great rooms, though, right?” Toni asked. “I love my bed.”

Together they headed down the second-floor hallway to the last set of stairs.

“Me, too. But I have to admit,” Coop continued, “I expected to find Livy asleep under my bed last night. I think I was a little disappointed when she wasn’t.”

Toni stopped in the middle of the hallway and focused on her brother. “Why would Livy be under your bed?”

It wasn’t a question Toni asked because she was concerned that her best friend, Olivia Kowalski, was found under her brother’s bed. Livy was nearly as close to Coop as she was to Toni. So Toni didn’t care if Livy was asleep under Coop’s bed or hers or Cherise’s. It wouldn’t be the first time that happened, and it wouldn’t be the last. No. That wasn’t why Toni was asking the question.

“Is that little bitch in Manhattan?” Toni demanded.

“You know,” Coop said, turning to face her, “she’d probably be more likely to keep you up to date on her current locations if you didn’t call her ‘that little bitch.’ ”

“I only call her that when she’s clearly avoiding me. I texted her last night and told her what was going on. She didn’t even call me back.”

“Livy hates talking on the phone. You know she’s not good at it.”

“Of course I know that.
I
know all of her quirks and foibles better than anyone else. But if she’s in Manhattan—”

“She won’t tell you that if you’re just going to yell at her for not having an actual place to live while she’s here.”

Toni stamped her foot. Three times. “It is
not
okay to just crash at someone’s house because they make the mistake of leaving the window cracked when they leave for a vacation. Who does that?”

“Livy does that. Livy’s mother does that. Livy’s entire family does that.
All
of Livy’s kind does that. If there’s one thing we can all agree on, sis, it’s that
her
people are not like
our
people. So instead of ranting about it—”

“Oh, forget it! I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” Toni pushed past her brother and continued down the hallway. Coop, taller than Toni, quickly caught up.

“Are you pissed at me now?” he asked.

“I’m pissed at the
world
right now. I should be back in Washington, starting a boring office job while I worry about what temporarily abandoned home my best friend has recently placed her camera bag in. I should not be stuck in Manhattan hoping to beg a job off the cousin off my mother’s best friend’s mate.”

“Come on now, you know Ulrich loves you.”

“Shut up, Coop.”

Her brother laughed and the sound of it made Toni smile despite the fact she didn’t really want to.

“Speaking of which, did you see Mom and Dad yet?” she asked him.

“Nope. They were sleeping by the time I went to bed.”

“I haven’t seen Mom since before I took Freddy to Aunt Irene’s hotel room yesterday . . . which makes me nervous.”

“Why?”

“Don’t know. Just feels like she’s up to something. She wanted me out of the house for a reason last night. I mean, she’d normally take Freddy over to see Aunt Irene herself.”

“You have a point.” Hearing the latest argument from their siblings, Coop’s head cocked to the side as they hit the top of those last stairs and started down. “Kyle and Oriana?”

“Of course. But Cherise is going to handle it.”

“She is?”

“She needs to try,” Toni reminded him.

“I wish her luck.”

“Look, it could be worse—” Toni began as she and Coop reached the last step, but Toni’s words were cut off when she saw her mother. Dressed comfortably in loose jeans, a B-52s T-shirt that was older than Toni, and her favorite battered “rehearsal” tennis shoes, Jackie headed toward the front door. Normally this was nothing for Toni to notice or remotely worry about . . . normally. But now Toni understood why her mother had avoided her and Coop last night—because her mother wasn’t alone.

“Mom?”

Still walking, but not turning around, Jackie said, “I know what you’re thinking, Antonella.”

“You have no idea what I’m thinking or you’d probably pop me in the mouth.”

“Trust me. I have a plan.”

Of course she had a plan. Jackie Jean-Louis always had a plan. She was a plotting little jackal who was always up to something as long as it benefited her career or her children. But unlike some musicians, who could be downright psychotic about their careers, Jackie was just sneaky. She never did anything to take someone else down. Jackie didn’t have to because she had full confidence in her skills as a musician. Ever since she had picked up her first violin at the age of three, Jackie knew that she was unbelievably talented and no one would ever be able to bump her out of the spot she’d earned as one of the world’s finest violinists. No one.

But Jackie wanted to take that next step. She wanted to be the mentor of the next “world’s finest.” She’d had lots of students over the years, many of whom had gone on to wonderfully successful careers. But none that were quite in her league. They’d never be quite as successful as she. Quite as well-known. She wanted that student who would turn her into The Great Master.

And that, Toni knew, explained the dog walking beside her mother. Not a shifter but an actual dog. The family hadn’t had a pet since the feral cat they’d found under their home that kept hissing at them. They’d give it food and, after a few years, it wandered away. It was the perfect pet for the Jean-Louis Parkers because they only paid attention to it when they felt like it. It didn’t need to be walked or taken to the vet or dealt with in any way except to toss it some food and gaze at it for a few minutes when one of the kids needed “inspiration.”

But real dogs needed lots of things that no one in Toni’s family was capable of providing at the moment, including her and
especially
her mother.

Yes. Her mother. Who opened the front door and told the dog, “Go take your walk, sweetie. When you’re done, come back and scratch on the door. I’ll let you in.”

The adult dog, appearing to Toni’s eyes to be a rescue her mother had picked up somewhere, saw that open door as a bid for freedom. It bolted and Toni’s jackal ears immediately picked up the early-morning traffic barreling down the street.

Running purely on instinct, Toni jumped off the last step and bolted out of the house, following that dog right into the street. Moving fast, she tackled the dog, wrapping her arms around its slim body, and made a wild leap for the opposite sidewalk.

Toni had almost made it, but the truck speeding down the street still clipped her with its fender, sending Toni flipping over the hood of a parked car to land hard on her back in front of a stoop.

When she finally got her breath back, Toni opened her eyes and saw the wolf she’d met yesterday staring down at her. He was holding a coffee mug. With an annoying amount of calm, he sipped his drink and remarked, “Darlin’, at this point, I’m startin’ to think you’re sweet on me.”

 

The She-jackal’s eyes narrowed dangerously but when she opened her mouth, all that came out was a little “yip” sound. Ricky quickly rested his coffee cup on the wide stone handrail and rushed down the stairs to the prone female.

“Darlin’, I’m sorry to waste time teasing ya. I’ll call an ambulance.”

She shook her head no, but when she tried to take his hand, she cringed something awful and put her hand right back down.

That’s when two jackals came running over from across the street. One was an older female. Her momma, Ricky would guess. They had the same eyes. And a male, close to the She-jackal’s age.

“Toni!” the older female barked. “What the hell were you thinking?”

There went those eyes dangerously narrowing again.

“Mom,” the male warned, and that’s when Ricky realized this was Toni’s brother. He ignored the sense of relief he felt. “Not now.”

“This isn’t my fault,” the older She-jackal argued. “It isn’t.”

The male tried to take the dog that Toni still held with one arm, but the animal lay flat against her, its entire body shaking.

“Poor thing.” The male sighed. “It’s terrified.”

“Also not my fault.”

The glass and metal security door behind Ricky opened, and several adult wild dogs rushed down the stairs and surrounded the jackal.

“Are you all right, hon?”

“Been better,” Toni squeaked out.

“Not my fault,” the She-jackal pushed.

“Grit your teeth,” Ricky told Toni as he slipped his arms under her. “I’ll take you back to your house.”

“Oh,” the older She-jackal said, suddenly looking around. “That’s such a long trip . . . can’t we just bring her inside here?” She smiled sweetly at the wild dogs. “You guys don’t mind, do you?”

The wild dogs might not have minded, but from the way the She-jackal’s two children gawked at her, Ricky felt certain they did mind. A lot.

 

Toni knew her mother was sneaky, but holy hell, this was some hinky shit!