“My car, doll.” Raphael picked up her hand.

No. No, he wouldn’t.

He kissed her fingers.

Every nerve in my body burst on fire.

“You seem like such a well-matched couple.” I smiled at them. “Physically and intellectually. Rebecca is so stunning.”

“Don’t forget loyal,” Raphael said. “And loving.”

So is a dog. “I’m sure your mother is simply delighted with you both.”

A muscle in Raphael’s face jerked. My goodness gracious, I’d hit a sore spot. Aunt B, his mother and the head of Clan Bouda, was a legend. Boudas were wild, and she ruled them with sweet smiles and razor-sharp claws. One look at Rebecca and Aunt B would have an instant apoplexy.

Raphael’s eyebrows furrowed. “My mother’s approval isn’t necessary.”

Aha. “Does she know that?”

Ascanio approached, carrying a coffee mug on a platter, with a small jar of sugar and a cup of cream.

“She is a terrible woman,” Rebecca said.

Ascanio froze.

I stared at Raphael. Are you going to let it slide? Honestly? Aunt B was his mother, but she was also his alpha, and Ascanio was a member of the clan.

Raphael leaned toward Rebecca, his voice intimate but firm like steel wrapped in velvet. “Sweetheart, never insult my mother in public.”

“She insults me. And you don’t do anything about it.”

Ascanio focused on Raphael, waiting for a cue. Aunt B ruled the clan, but Raphael was the male alpha.

Raphael leveled a warning stare at Rebecca, but it had no effect.

“She’s rude and spiteful—”

Ascanio picked up the jar of sugar and emptied it over Rebecca’s head. The white powder spilled over her hair and dress.

She gasped and jumped off the chair.

“Oh no!” I opened my eyes wide. “I’m so sorry. Teenage boys are such a clumsy lot.”

“Raf!”

Raf? What was he, her poodle?

“Why don’t you go outside and wait for me in the car,” Raphael said.

“But—”

“Go outside, Rebecca.”

She marched out of the office, pouting. Raphael’s eyes sparked with a deep ruby glow. He looked at Ascanio, as if deciding what he should do about him. The boy ducked his head and said nothing, his gaze firmly affixed to the floor.

Ascanio was a talented young shapeshifter, but I had fought beside Raphael. He could go through a room full of Ascanios in seconds and leave none of them alive.

“Ascanio,” I sunk so much quiet menace into the word, the boy froze, as if petrified. “Did your alpha look like he needed help?”

Ascanio’s voice was clipped. “No, ma’am.”

“Go outside and wait until I come to get you.”

Ascanio opened his mouth.

“Outside. Stay in the back lot. Don’t speak to Rebecca.”

He clamped his jaw shut and took off. A moment later the back door closed.