“So you’re a man whore and not afraid to admit it?” Jenniffer asked, smirking over at Dom as she shoulder bumped him.
“Yep! Sis here has the baby department down pat with the kidlets she’s spitting out. Since we claimed Raso as family, she’s helping out. I’m in the clear. I don’t have to deal with that for a bit longer. That should keep the MacLeod parents happy for a bit.”
“Why should they care if you have kids?” Jenniffer asked in confusion, looking between Pratt and Dom.
“Cuz, mom and daddy MacLeod claimed Jack and Dom as their kids too, so any kids they have, they would consider them their grandchildren also. Same with the rest of my team, Highlander’s teammates and the teammates of his brothers. One big fucking happy mutt clan! And now your included. Momma MacLeod already wants to talk to you on the phone, but I talked her into waiting a few days.” Pratt announced, taking another bite of toast.
“Wait, what?” Jenniffer asked, shock overtaking her.
“Later, now, Dom, you and Jack deal with the trash, I’m taking Jenniffer here to the vets to check on Zorro and Ajax. Once we’re done there, Jack you can come grab her from the office. We’re gonna get these three gremlins checked out by the vet while we’re there and then you guys can meet with the insurance adjuster about getting Jenniffer’s kennel back up and running. Even if we have to help build the damn thing.”
Pratt grabbed Jenniffer’s hands as she pushed through the intruders, calling for the three dogs who came running and jumped into her SUV. Jack and Dom couldn’t help but laugh as Jenniffer just went along with it, unsure how to respond with everything.
CHAPTERTWELVE
Jenniffer had spent the rest of the afternoon at the vet’s office checking on Zorro and Ajax, both who had improved in the few hours they were there since the fire. She was allowed to see both dogs, who’s tails wagged happily when they heard her voice. Never being one to cry, she realized she’s cried more in the last forty-eight hours than she has in her life. Some were tears of shame, or pain and the rest was tears of happiness.
“You ok? I know I have a tendency to overpower, but I mean well.” Pratt asked, looking over at Jenniffer as they headed to the Sheriff’s Department where Pratt worked.
“Yeah. I’m just overwhelmed with everything going on right now. Never even considered Miller to be in partnership with Jeff’s baby momma. I don’t even know what he has against me, honestly. Jeff’s never talked ill about him. Yeah, he talked about bringing Miller in on his plans with starting his own security company, but that’s all it ever was, just talk. To the best of my knowledge, Miller never even put money towards the business. Jeff never really talked to me about that stuff. Just what he wanted…” Jenniffer trailed off as those memories assaulted her, causing her breathing to accelerate fast.
“Hey, focus on my voice. You’ve done nothing wrong. Miller was on a fast track to nowhere. He was already in trouble with the military and under investigation at the time Jeff was killed. Jeff’s death only prolonged the process. Some even believe that he set Kimberlee on him since he was seen around with her. But, I’ll be honest, if Jeff was any kind of real man, even if Miller had set that twat on him, he could have said no and told you or told the woman to piss off and told asshole to knock his shit off. Since he didn’t, it would have been only a matter of time before he did it with someone else. And before you say it, no, that’s not anything on you. It’s him. Any man who will cheat on a woman who he claims to love, didn’t truly love her to begin with. My own husband, his father and hell, even my whore of a brother says that shit all the time.Theytell me that when I get in my head thinking about all the sluts my husband used to dangle his dick around before he met me.” Pratt warned Jenniffer, shaking her head at her own memories.
“Really?” Jenniffer asked, confusion in her voice.
Pratt laughed as she looked back at the road. “Yeah. My brother is a man whore, no doubt about it. Before he met me, my husband, hell even his brothers, all man whores. My father-in-law told me he loved being single and able to taste the varieties life had to offer. When he met my mother-in-law, no other woman existed. And that man had to work his ass off to get her attention since she knew what a slut he was.” Pratt laughed, smacking the wheel of the SUV she was driving.
Jenniffer laughed, “Oh wow! What about your husband?”
“Oh, he was a major man whore! The first three years of our relationship was the tramps coming out of the woodwork when they found out he had gotten hitched to one woman. It was like a challenge for them to get his attention. Girl let me tell you, them hoe’s tried their damn best to get his attention, especially when I was knocked up. Lord let me tell you, that man was a beast when it came to me knocked up. I think if he could wing it and my captain wouldn’t brain his ass, I’d be knocked up every year until the dr told him to stay the fuck off me. He admits he gets scared to touch me when I’m pregnant because he’s insatiable, but hell my sex drive goes through the damn roof with that man when I’m knocked up, and it’s already through the roof when I’m not knocked up!”
Jenniffer coughed when she started laughing hard at Pratt’s antics. “Oh my goodness!”
“Girl don’t even get me started on Raso and Marcus!” Pratt laughed. “That man went almost four years without getting laid when he met her. He tried dating to get her off his mind because she wasn’t giving him the time of day. Drove us batshit crazy. Took them four years, but they are finally together and the happiest I’ve seen either of them. So, with that in mind let me say this…” Pratt paused looking over at Jenniffer to get her attention. “That man is crazy about you. I get it, your ex hurt you. You were hurt physically, mentally and emotionally not just by your ex but what happened to you in the Middle East. I like you, a lot. One because you’ve put a smile on Jack’s face that hasn’t truly been there until he’s met you. And two, you have fire. He needs that. I’ve got your back girl. So does my family and my brother. Jack is family, so that automatically makes you family because he’s claimed you. Now you’re claimed by our crazy crew. You’re screwed, oh so fucking screwed.” Pratt laughed at the end.
Jenniffer laughed because she didn’t know how to handle that last statement. Especially since they had just pulled up to the department. Raso was standing outside with Kane who was sitting like the good dog that he was, slightly leaning into Raso.
“Well shit!” Jenniffer mumbled, a smile on her face.
“What?”
“Not only has Raso claimed Kane, as you stated earlier, but looking at how he’s leaning into her, he’s also claimed her has his own. I truly hope your team was the one supposed to be getting one of the dogs because he’s not going to bond with anyone else now.”
“We’ll figure it out. Still the three in the back that can be worked with if there’s an issue, and let’s not forget the other two that are probably inside with the rest of the team.” Pratt smiled at Jenniffer. “Welcome to the family, princess.”
Jenniffer spent the next hour with Pratt, Raso and their work family while she waited for Jack to come and pick her up. She really didn’t know how to wrap her head around everything. She’d never really been close with anyone before, but these guys were fast becoming people she could easily see herself getting close to.
When it got close to the time that Jack said he would be there to pick her up, she waved bye to the group, gave the six dogs a quick check and bye pets before walking out of the door to the parking lot. When she got out there, she froze. Standing next to his truck, Jack and Tabitha Monroe were talking.
She froze when she saw Monroe put her hand on Jack’s arm as she leaned forward to kiss him. When she didn’t see Jack fight her off, Jenniffer literally went numb inside. Instead of making herself known, she turned and walked the opposite direction, leaving the parking lot towards the bus stop. She was done with men for good.
* * *
Jack arrived to pick up Jenniffer, glad to be able to see her again. He’d missed her while he was at the department giving his statement to his supervisor about what had gone down last night. He advised his supervisor he would be staying at Jenniffer’s to provide security for her until they caught whoever had set the fire to the kennels.
When he’d arrived at the Sheriff’s Department, he was shocked to see Monroe coming out of the doors. He’d been ready to text Jenn to let her know that he was in the parking lot when Monroe came up to his truck door. Getting out, as if he was heading inside to deal with something, she had cut him off and asked how he was doing.
Being polite, he’d answered her question and made to move as if going around her. Monroe had reached out to rub his arm asking about the fires at the kennel when he was struck quiet since it wasn’t something that had been freely discussed. Even the firefighters had agreed to keep it quiet until they could get some investigating done and they could find out what had caused the fire.
