Read Online Perfect Mate by Jennifer Ashley - Free Book Online Page B

to play pool with someone.”
    Brody heaved a long sigh. “I thought of that. I’ve been asking. No one noticed.
I
didn’t notice.”
    Nell sensed a tingling warmth at her back, and she looked over her shoulder, expecting
     Cormac to be right behind her.
    No, he’d only walked in the front door. Holy Mother Goddess. She felt his presence
     all the way across a crowded room, over blaring music, and above the scents of Shifters
     who’d been sweating on the dance floor. Nell was aware of every step Cormac took from
     the door to her, the tingle growing the nearer he came.
    Bad sign. Very bad sign.
    Cormac stopped an inch behind Nell and slightly to her right, his warmth encompassing
     her. His position would let him easily move in front of her to block an attack by
     Graham, or swing around to guard her back if necessary. Protective and efficient.
    The significance of his stance wasn’t lost on Graham, who raised his brows and looked
     at Cormac then Nell with new assessment.
    “Get them to close the club a little early,” Cormac suggested. “Easier to look for
     Shane if the place empties out.”
    “You want to tell Shifters and Shifter groupies that they have to go home early?”
     Graham asked, his voice a grating rumble. “You value your life?”
    “If they think Shane might be in trouble, they can help,” Cormac said. “Recruit them
     to look.”
    Nell adjusted her wrap, Cormac making her too warm. “Shane will be so embarrassed.”
    “Better embarrassed than dead,” Cormac said. “Did anyone call Eric?”
    Brody shook his head. “I didn’t want to bother him if it turned out to be nothing.”
    Graham glowered down at them, but he didn’t growl that he was as good as Eric, that
     they didn’t need the Feline. The fact that Graham
didn’t
snarl and complain worried Nell. When things mattered, Graham took the chip off his
     shoulder and got the job done. Which meant that Graham was concerned about Shane too.
    “I got this.” Jace, Eric’s full-grown son, pushed past them and wove his way to the
     sound system. A moment later, he was standing on the small stage, microphone in hand.
     The music died away, the lights came on, and Shifters and humans looked up from the
     shadows, blinking.
    “Hey,” Jace said.
    The Shifters began to growl and mutter, but Jace stared back at them without worry.
     His stance was as easygoing as his father’s, and his presence started to fill the
     room. Nell felt it as the Shifters quieted, watching him—the need to notice this man,
     young as he was, and find out what he wanted them to do.
    “I’m looking for Shane.” Jace’s tone said both
We’re all friends here
and
Shut up and listen
at the same time. “I want everyone to look at the person beside them and check that
     it’s not Shane. And then leave—slowly. And if you see Shane on your way out, tell
     him his mom’s looking for him.”
    Soft laughter rippled over the crowd, but they obeyed him.
    Jace had them filing out without rushing or snarling. Nowhere did Nell see Shane.
    Once the club was empty, and the humans who worked there started closing for the night,
     Jace returned to Nell. “We can sweep the place for scent now.”
    He broke them into several groups—Graham with Misty to check the front, the Lupine
     bouncer to help Jace check the far reaches of the parking lot. Brody would take the
     rooms inside the club, and Cormac and Nell would check outside the back door.
    “He’s going to be challenging his father for leadership one day,” Graham said as Jace
     took off to search. He showed his teeth in a cold smile. “I want to be there to watch.”
    “I’ll make sure you have a front-row seat,” Nell said. “For now, can we find my son?
     I hope we
do
embarrass him. He can work it off for the next twenty years.”
    Cormac said nothing as he led her away to start their search. Nell found his silence
     comforting. No condescending reassurances—no
We’ll find him, don’t worry
. Cormac