“The Kitcheners are a very wealthy clan. We could use some modernization.”
“What does your father think of the union?” Mr. G asked.
“He’s against it. Vehemently. No one should be forced to be with someone, especially if they aren’t a nice person.”
Mr. G’s lips pressed together. “Do you have a picture of this young man? We need to make certain he doesn’t find you.”
She let out a long breath. “Unfortunately, no. I left my phone and computer at home. I didn’t want him to be able to trace my whereabouts.”
“What about social media?” Mike asked. “Most people are on it.”
“I’m not, so I don’t know.”
“I’ll call my son Mason,” Mr. G said. “This young man’s name is Douglas Kitchener, correct?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Can you give me a description of him? Mason is a private investigator, but if he can’t learn enough about him and his whereabouts, we know of another man who runs a white-hat hacking service. He has access to all sorts of things we don’t.”
“That sounds great. Doug is thirty, and as I mentioned, he’s a werewolf. Tall, maybe six-feet-two and a bit chunky. He works at a bank, so he’s not out in the woods getting into shape like the men at this table are.”
Mike sat up straighter. He was pleased she’d noticed they weren’t slouches.
“Tell you what, Cassidy. Have a good night sleep and leave this Doug person to me.”
As if she’d been told Doug had been removed from the face of the Earth, joy radiated off her. “My friend Mindy was right. The Grangers—and Mike—are the best.”
CHAPTERSIX
The next morning, when Zach arrived at Mike’s place, he looked around. “Dude, you need to hire a maid on a permanent basis.”
“It’s not that bad.”
“For you, maybe, but what about Cassidy? What kind of impression do you want to make on her?”
“Fine. I’ll clean it. I’ll even change the sheets and wash the towels.”
He’d even change the sheets?“Let’s fast forward a few weeks or whatever time it takes for Cassidy to trust us enough to want to be with us permanently. If we live at my place, you have to clean up your act.”
Mike held up his palm. “I can do that, but what if she doesn’t want to move to Montana? Ever. Her life is in Wyoming.”
“Did you forgot Doug and the Kitchener Clan? Do you think she’ll want to be where they are?” Zach asked.
“I’m hoping we can come to an agreement with Doug. If we’ve mated with her, he’ll have to find another woman to be with.”
“Good point,” Zach said.
“Not that Cassidy isn’t a catch, but why did he push her so hard to be with him? Hasn’t he heard of the concept of dating?”
“Maybe he thinks he’s some super mate material. She said Doug’s father is the Alpha and that Doug is a banker. Maybe he plans to be next in line for the job of running his clan.”
“If he does, he might become more egotistical,” Mike said.
“True. I know Dad said he’d try to find out about this guy, but maybe her friend Mindy can give us some details. How about we ask Mason to stop over at my parents’ house with a burner phone for Cassidy to use? I'm sure she'd like to speak with her friend.”
“I bet she’d appreciate it.”
Mike left to grab the sheets off the bed, while Zach picked up the clutter in the living room. While the one-bedroom apartment was nice, was it really all that safe? He supposed he and Mike could take turns watching the apartment complex to make sure no one bothered her, but they wouldn’t be able to keep it up for long. Even werewolves needed sleep sometime.