wanted them to come back again and again—which was why he’d warned his pack to be nice and not run Mila through a gauntlet. Honestly, though, he didn’t believe they’d be anything less than welcoming, especially since they were so excited to be finally meeting her.
He drove into the concealed parking lot at the base of the mountain and whipped the SUV into a free space. “Come on. They’ll be waiting.”
As they walked hand in hand through the expansive forest, Dominic took her down the most scenic route. They crossed the river, meandered through a pretty meadow, and passed a frothy waterfall. He watched her carefully, absorbing every reaction, loving it whenever her face lit up. “So you like it then?”
“Yeah, I like it,” Mila replied. Her cat liked it even more. The feline’s excitement built as she drank in every scent, every sight, every sound.
Her stomach fluttering, Mila blew out a breath. She wasn’t nervous. Aside from the moments before a performance, she was never, ever—
Okay, she was nervous. Not about meeting the pack itself but because she knew it was important to Dominic that they like her. Madisyn and Harley had assured Mila that the Phoenix Pack were good people and that they would like Mila for the simple reason that Dominic mattered to her. Still, that didn’t chase her nerves away. And the stomach fluttering intensified when she heard voices and laughter up ahead.
Dominic gave her hand a supportive squeeze. “They’ll be nice, just like your pride mates have been nice to me. Well, most of them have.”
Mila’s head whipped around to face him. “Some of my pride mates gave you shit? Who?”
Her protectiveness made Dominic smile, and he just had to press a quick kiss to her mouth. Though he hated to speak the bastard’s name, he explained, “I meant Joel.”
“Oh. Well, he doesn’t like most people.”
Dominic’s brows drew together as a thought suddenly occurred to him. “He’s very different from me.”
“Yeah, he is,” Mila agreed. Their biggest difference was that whereas Dominic had an easy way with people and could make friends in an empty room, Joel didn’t warm to others easily and didn’t consider many people friends.
“Fate pairs us with someone who’ll suit our personality. It paired you with someone very different from me.”
Something about the way he said that made Mila frown. “And what, you think that means that you and I won’t work in the long run?”
“Don’t you?”
“No. Adele’s very different from me. Sweet, bubbly, and a little oblivious. Yet, she and Joel really do complement each other in many ways.”
Dominic’s brows shot up. “Never thought of that.”
She gave him a patronizing pat on the head. “What have I told you about thinking? You leave that to me.”
He brought her hand to his mouth and nipped at her fingers. “Kind of bitchy when you want to be, aren’t you?”
“You’re only realizing this now?”
The scents of sawdust, tree sap, smoke, and food drifted Mila’s way just as they stepped into a clearing. Some people were perched on the fallen trees framing a man-made fire pit. Others lounged on patio chairs or lay on blankets. Plates, cups, and various foods were spread across the nearby picnic table.
A few camping tents had been set up near a small campervan. Mila supposed they were for the adults, who were hardly likely to sleep in the nearby tree house.
It was no typical tree house. It was more like a miniature cabin built on high, thick tree stumps. There was a rope ladder on one side and a spiral wooden staircase on the other. The cabin had a front porch, cute little windows, and a tube slide attached to the center of its base—she was guessing there was a trapdoor that opened onto the slide. Kids were swarming all over it like insects, laughing and squealing.
Digging cans of soda out of the huge cooler near the picnic table, Trey was the first to spot her and Dominic approaching. Even though her cat had met him once before, she went on full alert, eyeing the Alpha carefully, sensing his level of strength, and identifying him as a potential threat.
Built like a freaking tank, Trey headed toward them. He nodded at his enforcer before inclining his head at her. “Good to see you again, Mila. Welcome to Phoenix Pack territory.”
And then all the chatter just stopped.
Dominic stifled a smile. It was almost comical the way all the adults turned their heads at once. As they took in the sight of