Echoes of Fire (The Mercury Pack #4)(20)

“He felt it.”

“And he wants this, right? I mean, he’s not stupidly pushing you away out of guilt over his family’s death or anything?”

“No, he wants the bond.”

Makenna frowned. “You don’t sound happy about that.”

“I am. Sort of. I mean, like you said, he never harbored a crush on me. I really doubt he would ever want a relationship with me if there were no mating bond, and that kind of puts a downer on this for me.”

“You’re not thinking of fighting this, are you? Because it would be fruitless. Bracken’s the type to go after what he wants.”

Madisyn nodded. “Point in fact, he pursued Shiloh relentlessly.”

“Forget about Shiloh. Like I said, experiences change people. Bracken has changed in many ways.”

“Yes, but the fact that I annoy him hasn’t changed. I really don’t think he likes me as a person.”

Makenna waved that away. “If he didn’t like you, he wouldn’t have given you the time of day. That’s the way he is. My mate’s the same.”

“Speaking of Ryan, how is he?”

“His usual gruff self.”

“How’s Sienna?” Just thinking of Makenna’s little girl made Madisyn smile. The toddler was the cutest thing ever.

“Fine. She was busy stealing food from Dexter’s pockets when I left . . . which is bad, because she then eats his stash, and you know that kid hoards things for weeks on end.” Makenna rolled her eyes. Little Dexter was a cheetah shifter who’d once been a resident of the shelter before the Phoenix Pack adopted him. “But I refuse to be distracted. Back to the none-too-small discovery you made last night—how do you feel about it? Not about Bracken being your mate. About finding your mate.”

“It’s a little scary. Everything will change if I let him claim me.”

“If?” echoed Makenna with a snort. “You’re going to let him claim you at some point.”

Madisyn raised a haughty brow. “Is that so?”

“Yes, because at this point in your life, you want a mate. You just don’t like change—never have. Get to know the guy better, give this a chance. I don’t think you have to worry about Shiloh trying to lure him from you. But Claudia Brookson might be a problem. Whenever I go to the Velvet Lounge on the weekends, she seems to be there. And she always has her eye on Bracken.”

“She wants him to be her personal bodyguard. Maybe he would have accepted the role if it wouldn’t mean joining her pack—I don’t know. But by the way she looks at him, I’d say she’s hoping to also have him in her bed.” Just the thought made Madisyn’s blood boil. Her cat bared a fang.

“She might be respectful enough of mating bonds to back off,” said Makenna. “If she doesn’t, you can take her. Just the same, you can deal with Bracken. He won’t be an easy mate, but neither will you. If he thinks differently, he’ll have some shocks coming his way. Does he know you’re a pallas cat?”

“I don’t think so. I don’t recall him ever asking. Dominic’s the only one who won’t stop pestering me about it.” The blond, incredibly hot wolf was another of Makenna’s pack mates. “I’d tell him to shut him up, but it’s more fun to mess with him.”

Makenna snorted. “Dominic has probably already correctly guessed what you are and is just fucking with you right back. He’s very perceptive.”

The door swung open, and Dawn walked in. “Sorry about that. So where were we?”

“Well, we were talking about telling the packs about the Maverick Clan,” said Makenna. “But then you left, and Madisyn got talking about her and Bracken.”

“Bracken?” echoed Dawn as she returned to her seat, frowning at the impish grin on Makenna’s face. “You’ve started something with him, Madisyn? What about Lucah?”

Madisyn sighed. “I really don’t feel like telling this story again.” So Makenna told the story instead.

“Oh, sweetheart.” Dawn sent her a look overflowing with sympathy. “You should have told me about this sooner.”

“I was embarrassed. Still am.”

“You have no reason to be,” Dawn insisted. “It was Lucah who messed up. Not you. I don’t get why someone would play another person like that.”

“Me neither. And what was his end game? Because that’s exactly what it was to him—a game.”

“It could have started out that way, but that may not be the case now. Did he claim to care for you?”

“Oh yeah.” Madisyn snorted. “He was smooth, said all the right things. Lying bastard.”

“But totally insignificant,” added Makenna, “since you have your true mate now.”

It seemed to take a few moments for the import of those words to hit Dawn. Then her eyes widened. “Oh my God, Madisyn, you found your mate?”

“It’s Bracken,” Makenna told the cougar, eyes twinkling.

Wincing at Dawn’s squeal of excitement, Madisyn said, “You can’t go around telling everyone, Dawn. I need some time to get used to it myself.”

“I take it you haven’t let him claim you yet—it’s not the kind of thing you’d rush into. Still, don’t delay it too long. I’ve been waiting a very long time to see both my girls mated.” Dawn gave a watery smile. “Now you can forget all about that damn idiot Lucah and build something with Bracken.”