by Gwen Rivers
“Ladies.” Spencer bowed before turning back to Liam. “Gray is on his way with dinner, but I was curious and wanted to see what you were doing in our little corner of the urban jungle.”
I stood back, hoping that if I stayed still, they would forget all about me.
No such luck.
“Emma protected one of the fae earlier.” Liam’s green eye burned with intensity as he cast me a glance. “And she wound up here with Kiesha. I thought it my duty to see them both fed.”
Spencer blinked at me before his attention went to Kiesha. “How old are you?”
“Ten.” Kiesha lied and lifted her chin and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Don’t lie.” Liam tapped the side of his nose. When Kiesha stared at him he continued, “Werewolves can smell them.”
“It’s okay. I was being rude.” Spencer’s gaze flicked to Liam who nodded once.
Whatever silent communication went on between them was lost on me.
Liam slipped past me into the bathroom. His scent lingered a moment after he closed the door. Like the first breath of air on a crisp autumn morning.
Another knock on the back door. The rundown restaurant probably hadn’t seen so much activity in years. Spencer let the newcomer in. The figure in the doorway was average size with dark hair and had the same two-toned eyes as Kiesha and Liam, although his were hazel and brilliant green. That and the blank spot in my emotional map where he stood told me that yes, he was indeed a werewolf.
No umbrella for him, though he wore a lightweight raincoat with the hood pulled up. He carried two large bags of food as well as two pizza boxes. “I brought meatball and Italian subs as well as two pies. Hope that’s sufficient.”
His voice was cultured and crisp like the British aristocracy.
“Plain cheese?” Kiesha stared at the boxes with a preternatural hunger.
“One of them.” The werewolf nodded to Kiesha and offered her a friendly smile. “Hello, I’m Gray.”
“Rage.” Her gaze stayed on the boxes, which even I had to admit, smelled divine.
“Hungry?” The new wolf moved into the kitchen and set his treasure trove down on an empty stretch of counter.
Kiesha moved forward but I deliberately blocked her path with outstretched arms. Had she been a full-grown werewolf, I would have had to use magic to keep her from shredding the idiot who separated her from her dinner.
“You first,” I said to the werewolf who’d brought the food. I didn’t really believe they would try to drug us. Not when, thanks to my vow not to attack Liam, they could physically control us in any way they chose. But Malcolm had taught me not to take chances.
The corner of Gray’s mouth hiked up and he flipped open the top pizza box. “Any particular slice?”
I closed the box and extracted the other, then pointed to the largest slice.
He grinned and then picked it up, wolfing it down in two bites. “Satisfied?”
Not hardly, but I gestured to Kiesha that she could partake.
The bathroom door opened and Liam emerged wearing a plain white t-shirt and gray sweats. His feet were bare. Werewolf at home in an abandoned restaurant.
“Everything all right out here?” He looked to me when he asked.
“Fine.” I held up the bag of sandwiches and offered him one.
“She thinks they may be poisoned,” Gray said.
Liam’s lip curled. “Is that so?”
“I don’t take chances.” I jostled the bag and he grinned.
“Smart as well as beautiful.” Liam held my gaze as he unwrapped a meatball sub.
A flush stole over my face. Stupid reaction to the charismatic werewolf. My human DNA diluted the forever young genes to half their usual potency. With my luck, I would age like sour milk.
So why did I get the feeling the Alpha meant every word?
And why did he keep staring at me as though he were beholding the sunrise after a lifetime spent in the dark?
Liam didn’t taste the sandwich. All his attention was fixed on the cagey fae female who looked ready to bolt at the first opportunity.
The werewolf girl was on her third slice of pizza. His gut clenched as he realized she must be starved. Gods, how long had she been on her own, not knowing who or what she was? Werewolf children were few, but they did exist. Liam was one of the youngest when he died. That had been jarring enough.
Kiesha would never grow up. She would never go through puberty or get married or have children of her own. The moment her heart stopped she’d been frozen as an immortal.
But he sensed the same fire in her that he saw in the mirror each morning. She was dominant, possibly as dominant as Gray. That would be a problem.
Bringing a dominant wolf into the pack was always tricky. Werewolves could sense dominance, but never by degree. And dominant wolves would fight other dominants until they sorted out the pecking order. Every few years or so there would be one who challenged Liam. None had ever succeeded.
There was one who could. But he didn’t want the job.
Liam couldn’t blame his uncle. Being Alpha was a thankless task most days. Werewolves, for all their instincts, could be just as petty as humans or fae.
It took a strong hand to keep them in line.
If he brought Kiesha to the pack before he prepared them, someone would challenge her. Not Gray, he knew his second too well to believe he would view the girl as a threat. Nor Autumn, his third. But some of the others might.
And then there was Emma. He didn’t want to spook her by moving too fast. His wolf had taken one look into her gray eyes and had known she was meant for him. But his human heart wasn’t on board. He didn’t even know exactly what she was. Something more than just a fae. The fight with the hate gang proved that much. And he didn’t smell glamour on her.
Still, he wanted to get to know her. Her caution and the wary look in her eyes called to him to protect her from any hazard. And the city was full of threats, especially with the rising number of twisted ones congregating around his territory. His instinct screamed that he couldn’t reveal his true interest in her. If he told her what she was to him, she would bolt. He could set guards on her, but he got the feeling she would resent that.
Do it anyway, his wolf growled. You need her safe.
Liam ignored the beast. There were times when the animal instincts served him well. But he wasn’t about to give in to his baser urges where Emma was concerned.
At least not so soon.
He needed time. A safe place to keep them both.
Their current location wasn’t exactly ideal, but he could make do.
“Call North,” he ordered his second. “Have him contact a realtor. Tell him I want to buy this building.”
“Buy it?” Gray raised a brow.
“We’ll need to start renovations as soon as possible.” He continued, ignoring the question in the other wolf’s tone.
“And make it into a restaurant again?” Kiesha sounded excited by the prospect.
Liam tossed the aluminum foil into the trash bin. “Maybe a coffee bar and internet cafe. I’m not really a restaurateur.”
“Thanks for that,” Spencer mumbled as Gray took out his cell. “He had to get rid of the last number because North kept sending lewd texts and calling in the middle of the night.”
“I’ll talk to him again about phone etiquette.” Liam tilted his head to study Emma. “What do you think, a coffee bar?”
Her gaze went to the door. “I think I’ll have to find somewhere else to sleep.”
He shook his head. “No. We’ll keep the overhead space as a loft. You and Kiesha can stay there for as long as you like.” At least until he could find a way to convince her to come to the pocket realm with him.
She frowned. “This is Manhattan. There’s no way I can afford that.”
He wanted to tell her that he would always provide for her. But that sounded old-fashioned and creepy, even in his head. “We’ll work something out.”
; She held his gaze as though she could read his intentions. He watched the way her hair lightened as it dried. She wore no makeup and her scent….
It was enough to send a wolf to his knees.
“Well, we should be going.” Spencer looped his arm through Gray’s. “Got to get up early. Classes won’t teach themselves. Shout if you need anything.”
“Will do.” Liam followed them to the door then turned back to his girls.
His girls. Hell. Everything was happening so fast. So why did it feel…right?
“Classes?” Emma asked.
“Spencer is an econ professor at NYU.”
“Can I have more?” Kiesha peeked into the sandwich bag.
Emma must have decided that he wasn’t trying to poison her or the girl because she held out the last sandwich. “Go ahead.”
As Kiesha unwrapped her prize, Liam tugged on Emma’s arm. “I need to speak to you in the other room.”
When they were safely out of werewolf earshot—on the far side of the building— he lowered his voice. “I need your help.”
Both her eyebrows went up and she crossed her arms over her breasts. It was a struggle for him not to look down at the feminine assets he couldn’t wait to explore.
“With what?”
He jerked his chin in Kiesha’s direction. “She’s dominant. Very dominant.”
“So?”
“If I bring her around the pack, she’ll be challenged.”
The skin between her eyebrows crinkled when she frowned. “When you say challenged—”
“A physical fight for superiority.”
Her face went pale. “But she’s a child.”
“I know. This is new territory for me. That’s why I’m buying this place. I need a safe location for her. I was hoping you’d be willing to stay with her.”
She hesitated. He saw her weighing the possibilities.
Please say yes. Liam held his breath, too desperate for her answer.
Her chin jutted up. “On one condition. You don’t get to question me.”
He raised a brow. “Meaning?”
“No questions about who I am, where I came from or how I did what you saw me do. Your curiosity will have to go unsatisfied.”
He moved a little closer to her, allowing himself to look her over thoroughly. Her supple womanly hips ensnared him and made him aware of just how long it had been since he’d had a woman beneath him. “I’m sure I can find another way to be…satisfied.”
He didn’t miss her shiver. Or the glare that followed as she stepped back. It was sick but he was half hoping she would try to knee him in the balls. He liked her fire.
“And I’ll pay my own way,” Emma continued. “If you really mean to set up a coffee bar, I’ll work here for my keep.”
“You don’t have to—”
She held up a hand. “I don’t accept charity.”
His mate was stubborn and prideful. Qualities he hadn’t appreciated before. “If that’s what you want. Promise me you’ll stay here.”
She shook her head. “I can’t do that.”
Which told him she couldn’t lie. He’d suspected it but having it confirmed was a weight off his mind. So that much of the fae curse applied. He filed it away for future reference. “Then promise me you’ll stay at least until the renovations are done.”
She stared up at him for a long moment. “I promise I’ll stay as long as I can. For Kiesha.”
He sensed that was all he would get out of her. “Go eat something before the kid finishes it all and makes herself sick.”
She started to walk away and he was admiring the view when she hesitated.
“Liam?”
It was the first time she’d spoken his name out loud. And something about it sent a jolt through him. As though he’d been struck by lightning.
“Yeah?”
She turned and held his gaze. From any other being, his wolf would have perceived it as a challenge. But from Emma, it was welcome. She could look at him until the world ended and he would be content to stay pinned by her gaze.
“Thank you,” she said softly.
He let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding.
His mate. Gods help them both.
4
What possessed me to agree to Liam’s terms? I didn’t want to become entangled with werewolves. But the thought of Kiesha getting literally tossed to the wolves in a dominance fight….
Did the girl even know what she was?
And what had provoked Liam into appointing me as her caretaker? Did I look like a desperate hard-luck case to the wealthy Alpha? If so, I was going to have to set him straight. It would have made more sense if he’d told me to leave, chased me out of his city after seeing what I could do to the gen-pop. Instead, he’d given me a job and a place to live.
He wanted something. And that slow, hot look earlier clued me in as to what.
He was still downstairs. As I stared up at the ceiling, listening to Kiesha’s soft snore, I considered that look.
He was a male. And I was…present.
What was the old saying? Women needed a reason for sex where men only needed a place.
And he’d bought the place.
My teeth sank into my lower lip. Sex wasn’t something I subjected myself to casually. But not only had Liam agreed to give me a roof over my head and a job at his coffee bar, he had agreed not to delve into my past.
He definitely wanted sex.
The question was, did I?
Would I panic when he touched me? Would I cry like I had that first time with...
I shut the memory down hard before it could form claws and drag me into the abyss. Accept the things you cannot change.
No questions. Liam had promised. Though he wasn’t a fae to be held absolutely to his vows by mystical means, his being a werewolf was almost better. He wouldn’t ask questions, no matter how I reacted. Their word was their bond, live and die by the sword and all that crap.
Would I ever have a better chance to try?
Decided, I peeled myself out of bed and crept to the hall. Liam had decided to sleep downstairs, giving the two of us our privacy. I wondered why he didn’t just go home to the PR. Was he waiting for me to make a move?
Better to get this out of the way.
My bare feet made no sound on the stairs, but he turned from where he’d been sitting in a darkened booth and watched me approach.
“Can’t sleep?” His smile was light, friendly and completely at odds with the hunger in his eyes.
Slowly, I shook my head.
“Come, join me.” He pushed a bottle of some amber liquid across the table.
“Odd that the looters didn’t find that.” I nodded to the booze.
“Oh, that wasn’t here. Gray brought it for me.”
He looked so casual, so at ease. Had I ever been that laid back?
Fearing my courage would give out, I padded forward. Instead of sitting in the seat across from him though, I stopped by the end of the table and reached for the hem of my t-shirt.
His hand shot out and gripped both of mine in a firm hold. “What are you doing?” His tone sounded panicked.
Had I misread his intentions? Maybe he didn’t like women. “I thought…don't you want me?”
There was no mistaking the hunger in his eyes. “I do, Emma. You’re beautiful and far too tempting.”
“Then, what’s the problem?” Rejection made me snappish. He had no idea how hard it was for me to make the attempt.
He ran a hand through his shaggy hair. “Jeez. We just met.”
The Alpha werewolf said jeez. I snorted.
He looked at me and his multihued eyes were troubled. “Is this something you do? Exchange sex for favors?”
My humor fled. “Never.”
“Then why would you assume I would?” He didn’t sound angry, just curious.
“People don’t do favors for strangers without a reason,” I murmured.
“You haven’t been h
anging around the right people.” He gestured to the seat across from him.
After a moment, I took it.
He poured me three fingers of whatever was in the bottle. “Do you like whiskey?”
“Never had it.” He looked like a man who knew something about booze.
“It burns like hell going down.” He refilled his own glass.
“Then why drink it?”
He gave a rueful smile. “It reminds me I’m still alive.”
Huh. I took a cautious sip. He was right about the burn, but it wasn’t an unpleasant sensation.
“How long have you been in New York?” he asked.
I shot him a look and he held out his hands. “That’s not about your past, just your present.”
“I just got off the bus before the incident.”
He nodded. “I love this city.”
“Why?” I was genuinely curious.
“There’s always something to do. My pack and I stayed hidden for so long. I spent so much time as a wolf that I forgot what it was like to be around people I didn’t know. To try foods I’d never tasted, hear languages I don’t speak. Everyone blends in New York. The tourists, the sailors on leave, urban crawlers, fae and werewolves.”
“Is that why you took a post here?”
He nodded. “I suggested it to Addison, actually.”
How odd to be talking with one of the beings who’d started the entire fae immigration. I’d heard rumors that he was somehow attached to the Unseelie queen, Addison Jager. Was she why he’d turned me down?
Though I desperately wanted to know, it seemed unfair since he couldn’t return the inquiry. Instead, I asked him something I desperately needed to know. “Are there many dark fae here?”
He finished his drink and offered me more. I shook my head. Liam refilled his own glass before answering.
“More recently. What do you know about them?”
They killed my mother and my brother and I will find the ones responsible and make them beg for death. Beyond that? “I know they are power-hungry. When I first heard that fae woman scream earlier I thought it was them.”
“And yet you went anyway?”
I shrugged. It’s the only answer he’d get.