“He’s got your name and who you’re matched with to help for today’s project. Depending on who you’re helping and what they’ve said they want to do today, supplies will be up at the front for you to grab.” She waved them away. “Go on and get it going.”
Parker ran to the pastries and grabbed a croissant and some coffee and watched Nigel’s reaction when he was told he’d be helping Mr. Dunbury mow his lawn.
“Are you kidding? That old man’s miserable,” Nigel argued. “Give me someone else.” He glanced at his friend. “Who’d you get, Jeff?”
“I’m good. Besides, I think Mr. Dunbury likes, you,” Jeff chuckled. “Good luck!”
Nigel growled. “I won’t do it.” He turned to stomp toward Parker. “You can’t make me.”
Before she got a chance to swallow the coffee in her mouth, Parker gasped when Nigel went flying across the townhall meeting space. He hit the other side of the room with a thud. Her gaze snapped to Ryan who was growling and marching over to where Nigel was getting up off the floor.
Ryan picked up Nigel by the throat and slammed him against the wall. “What did I tell you about disrespecting me?”
“I didn’t,” Nigel squeaked. “I didn’t…disrespect…you.”
“She’s my mate,” Ryan snarled at Nigel. “You disrespect her, you disrespect me.”
“Sorry,” the kid mumbled, his face turning colors from lack of oxygen. “I’m sorry.”
Ryan dropped him on the floor like a bag of laundry. “Now get up and do what you’re supposed to do. This is our pride and you’re either a part of the solution or the problem.” He met Nigel’s gaze. “Do you understand? I won’t hesitate to extract you, Nigel.”
Nigel’s face paled and he rushed out the door.
“Whoa, mama!” Balgair whispered next to her. “He’s all alpha, isn’t he?” And growled.
She elbowed him and ran over to Ryan’s side. “Are you okay?”
He met her gaze and brought his lips down in a hard kiss that made her melt. She whimpered and pressed herself into him, loving the hunger in his kiss. He pulled back, breathing hard and his eyes flashing gold. She licked her lips and watched his nostrils flare.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he said low and rough.
“How?”
He cupped her face in his hand and brought his lips to hers. “Like you want me to fuck you right here, right now. I’m tempted to do it.”
She sucked in a breath and blinked. He kissed her and let go, turned around and rushed out the door with Barrick and Kell behind him.
“What. The. Fuck. Was. That?” Balgair asked. “I feel dirty just watching y’all make out.”
“You and me both,” Liam said. “If our parents saw that, they’d definitely get it out of their heads that we’re going to get married someday.”
“If her parents saw this, they might want to bleach their eyeballs,” Balgair said.
“Come on, you two,” Parker cleared her throat and tried to tamp down the urges running wild in her body. “We have work to do.”
She went around the town, seeing the kids doing everything from yard work to tossing out old furniture, cleaning the outside of the elder’s homes. Even helping some of them with the gardening.
“All right,” she sighed. “This is us three.”
“One house for all three of us?”
“Yeah. We have to paint the whole place inside and out,” she grinned at them. “This is going to be the home of an elder who lost his legs in an accident recently.” They went to the inside of the empty house and saw all their supplies already there. “All right, Liam, you and our other helper will take the outside while Balgair and I do the inside.”
Liam glanced around. “Where’s your other helper?”
“Right here!” Barrick said.
“Um,” Liam paled. “Are you sure I should be working with him?”
“I’m the twin brother,” Barrick said with a grin. “Much more laid back and not looking to rip your balls off for touching my woman. So we’re good.”
“Good…good to hear,” Liam said.
She and Balgair started painting the inside. It wasn’t long before Balgair started playing music on his portable speaker and singing along to disco music.
“Are you for real?” Parker giggled.
“Really, Parker? You must be bugging if you think anybody can do any kind of housework without music. That’s just insane.”
She laughed but couldn’t help to sing along with him as they moved from room to room. It was several hours before they finished. She checked out the house with a happy smile. It was going to look so nice when the elder moved in. First, he needed furniture, though.
Out front, she waved Ryan over when she saw him several houses away.
“Looks great,” he said with a grin, the intensity of that morning seeming to have dissipated.
“So when is his furniture arriving?” she asked. “We can help set everything up.”
Barrick joined them then. “I honestly don’t know. This was the first we’d heard of this elder, so Ryan had the house rehabilitated for him. But we still haven’t gotten many details from his family.”
Parker frowned. “Where was he?”
Ryan grimaced. “He was on a trip with his wife. The first time they ever left town. He got his by a bus. His legs were severed and there was no way to reattach them.”
Parker’s heart sunk. “But what does that mean for his tiger? I mean, he can still shift, no?”
Ryan and Barrick shook their heads in unison. “We’re not sure the extent of the damage but it was so bad that he might not be able to shift again.”
Sadness filled her for the poor man. To have lived his life able to run the forests and now be bound to a chair had to be devastating.
“I know that face,” Balgair said.
“Same,” Liam added. “We’re about to go furniture shopping, aren’t we?”
She glanced from one to the other. “He’s got nothing. We have to set up this place to make him feel at home.” She turned to Barrick. “Get in touch with his wife and ask where their personal stuff is. We can bring it over and set it all up, so he recognizes his things and gets a feel for his new home.”
“Okay,” Barrick said. “I can do that.”
She met Ryan’s gaze. “He’s going to need a ramp in the front and back of the house. Get someone on that.”
“I’ve got someone to do that in a few days.”
She nodded. “Good. I’m going to talk to one of my contacts to get them a special vehicle he can drive from his chair. And, of course, a chair he can move around in.” She turned to Liam and Balgair. “You two are in charge of furniture. Comfy but nice.”
They glanced at each other and then at Ryan. “See,” Balgair said, “told you.”
“Let’s go, Balgair,” Liam said. “It’s been a long day. Let me buy you dinner after.”
“You know the way to a girl’s heart,” Balgair laughed as they walked back to get their cars.