his hand joined with Mila’s, they smiled. And he knew that if he hadn’t warned them in advance that it wasn’t wise to get touchy-feely with a pallas cat, they’d have descended on her as a group. Most of them had pestered him at one point or another to bring her here.
Trey gestured at Taryn. “This is my mate, Taryn.”
The Alpha female waved, her smile wide. “Howdy. I was hoping you’d come.”
As Trey called for the kids to come down to meet Mila, Makenna spoke. “It’s really good to see you, Mila. I’m Makenna. The tower of doom and gloom behind me is my mate, Ryan. Ignore the scowl. It’s a permanent thing. Standing next to him is his cousin, Zac. Oh, and that she-demon scrambling over here is my little girl, Sienna.”
Mila smiled at the dark-haired girl, who she’d seen plenty of photos of, thanks to Madisyn. “She’s Madisyn’s goddaughter, right?”
Makenna nodded. “That’s right.”
“Looking better than you did the last time I saw you, Mila,” said Dante. “This is my mate, Jaime, and our boy, Hendrix.”
“I’m so psyched to finally meet you,” said Jaime, cradling the sleeping baby. She tipped her chin toward the people sitting beside her on the fallen tree. “This is my brother, Gabe, and his mate, Hope.”
Sidling over to Dominic, Trey said quietly to him, “We tried to get Allen to come here, knowing Greta would be on her best behavior if he were around, but he’s visiting family in Florida.”
Dominic let out a quiet curse. Before Mila could ask him if something was wrong, Taryn spoke again.
“Let’s get the rest of the introductions out of the way. The boy who’s climbing Trey’s back is our son, Kye. Over there on the blankets we have Lydia, Cam, Grace, and Rhett.” She pointed at the group of people on the lawn chairs. “That’s Marcus and Roni, a pair of mated enforcers. Trick, another of our enforcers, is next to them with his mate, Frankie, who is an amazing sculptor. Sitting on the log opposite Jaime is our Head Enforcer, Tao, and his mate, Riley, who is also the pack’s Guardian. The boy climbing Tao like a fence post is Dexter, and the little girl with pigtails hanging from the branch above my head is Savannah—they belong to Riley and Tao. The little girl peeking at you from behind Riley’s leg is Lilah, she’s Grace and Rhett’s daughter.” Her brow creasing, Taryn gestured at an elderly woman, hesitantly adding, “And this is—”
“I’m Greta, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Smiling, the old woman shook Mila’s hand, all grace and warmth.
Mila’s mouth kicked up into a smile. “Same to you. I’m Mila.”
“Such a beautiful name.” Greta lightly touched Mila’s dark curls. “And such pretty hair.”
“Thank you.”
“You know something? I’ve been waiting for my boy to finally meet someone worthy. You took your sweet time,” Greta chastised him, her eyes twinkling.
“Oh, you’re related?” asked Mila.
“Not by blood, but I think of him as my grandson. He thinks the world of me, just as I do of him.” Greta patted his arm. “Now, Dominic, you go find a seat for your Mila, and then get her some food and—Kye, don’t climb the camper!” She offered Mila an apologetic look. “Excuse me.” Greta walked toward the van and tried to shoo Kye off the hood.
Becoming aware of an unnatural silence, Mila looked to see that everyone was staring at the old woman, their expressions ranging from shock to confusion.
“What just happened?” Taryn asked no one in particular. “Seriously, what was that?”
Frankie looked from Mila to Greta. “What did you do? I mean, she was . . . pleasant to you. While sober.”
“Greta likes pallas cats, remember,” said Dominic.
Makenna’s frown smoothed away. “Ah, that’s right. That’s why she has a soft spot for Madisyn. I totally forgot.”
“Can we go back to the tree house now?” Lilah asked her mother, who nodded.
As the kids dashed off, Dominic led Mila toward an empty lawn chair.
“No, she has to sit by me,” declared Jaime.
Dominic frowned. “She’ll be almost directly across from—”
“By me,” Jaime insisted. “I have about an hour to convince her to be my best friend. I can’t do that if she’s all the way over there, can I? Work with me, Dominic—I’m on a schedule here.”
Rolling his eyes, he led Mila to the fallen tree. Gabe and Hope shuffled over, making room for her and Dominic to join them. Instead of sitting, Dominic went to get them some food.