Conquer Me (Sawtooth Shifters, #4) Read Free

associates’ eyes roam all over my body. It was the best sex I’d had in a while. Walter couldn’t take that away from me.
    “Thanks.” I could see my breath in the night air. It was perfect, I needed to clear my head. Stuck in a room with Walter’s friends and family made me feel like I was trapped under ice. All the she-wolves, happily submitting to their husbands. Who was I to judge? Maybe they actually were happy. The possibility made my heart ache even more. I’d never know, because most of them avoided me. “You look great, too. You’re so tan. Going to the electric beach again?”
    “No! But I love it so I might keep it up. Mike surprised me with a cruise for our anniversary! The Mediterranean. Cass, it was amazing. The food, the wine, the views. Paradise. And the sex. You’d think we were on our honeymoon. He got me this, too.” She picked the diamond solitaire pendant up from her chest. “He wanted to upgrade the diamond in my wedding ring, but I’ve grown attached to the thing. I don’t care how small it is. But he insisted on getting me something.” Renee was beaming, the streetlight above us reflecting the clarity in her diamond and her love for her husband. Once she’d been in the same boat I was, in love with a wolf she could never have. She devoted herself to Mike, never looking back, in a way I never could with Walter. Mike worshipped the ground she walked on; maybe that could’ve changed my mind, too. “How are you?” she asked.
    Renee pursed her lips together, knowing damn well how I was doing. It had nothing to do with my father-in-law. Everyone in Sawtooth knew Walter fucked around on me, but somehow they thought I didn’t. It was even crueler, like a joke everyone stopped laughing at when I walked in the room.
    “Hanging in there.” I forced a smile. Renee knew I wasn’t stupid. How could I be, when he came home reeking of eau de slut with lipstick on his pants. “I keep picturing Walter in that casket. It’s a good look on him.”
    “Right? I always thought gray was his color.” Renee laughed, then looked around, motioning for me to follow her. We took a couple steps around the building; she peered back to make sure we were alone. “I saw Major the other day.” She took a deep breath. “He asked about you.”
    I couldn’t breathe. “Where? He’s back? What did he say?”
    “Yeah. At the bakery, getting coffee. He didn’t say where he’d been, but he said that he was back to work. He looks good, Cass. Real good.” She nodded at my shock. “He wanted to know how you were, but he was all shy about asking. It was cute.”
    “Major’s never cute.” Those tears were coming again, for a completely different reason.
    “No. Major’s pure fucking sex.” Renee hummed like she’d just had a bite of chocolate. “I probably shouldn’t have said anything, I’m sorry.”
    “No, you should have.” I headed back to the funeral home. “I’m glad he’s back.”
    This was exactly the kind of trouble I didn’t need right now.

Chapter Three
    M ajor
    “The band is paid for, we’ve got a dozen dancers. Some of them do more than just dance, of course.” X wiggled his eyebrows, light jumping in his eyes. “I’m so stoked about this party. We need this so bad, after all the shit we went through. It has to be totally fucking epic. What are we missing?”
    “Strippers, band, booze, women, what else could we ask for?” Shea tapped his chin, narrowing his eyes at me. “How about even a drop of enthusiasm from our fucking brother? Come on man, quit moping. These parties are your claim to fame around here. It’s going to be lame if you don’t snap out of whatever funk you’re in.”
    “I’m into it,” I lied. I couldn’t give a shit about this party. “You two can handle this. The shop’s a mess. We need to make some money to pay for your dancers, Shea.”
    Shea laughed. “Dude, I should show you my phone. They can’t wait to see me. I’m saving you so much money.