No Mate of Mine

by Lisa Oliver

  For a long moment there wasn’t a sound in the office as Pearson tried to pull himself together. Cam felt an overwhelming sense of sadness as well as respect for the man who had shared his harsh story. He had no doubt that the big Alpha in front of him would have tried to save his brother. He couldn’t imagine what it must have felt like to watch someone he loved torn to shreds by the people who were supposed to support him. Pearson would have been groomed his whole life to be the Alpha of his home pack. But he had left, after Michael’s death; that much was obvious. Now Pearson was the powerful Alpha of a pack he had created for himself. Apparently a haven for gay shifters.

  “So that’s why…” Cam said softly, not sure if he should speak.

  Pearson straightened up and took Dante’s hand in his own, looking at Cam straight in the eyes. “That’s why I have a pack full of gay paranormals and why I will fight for your right to be here if you accept your place as the pack Omega. You will be treated with the same love, care and respect any female Omega in another pack should be treated and I will kill anyone who dares even look at you the wrong way. My pack is supposed to be a safe place for all who are accepted in it, and that goes double for you. You will be the heart that I always thought would be missing from this pack, and I will cherish that to my death. I give you my word.”

  “As do I. I have never met an Omega before, but believe me Cameron, you will be safe here,” Dante said softly, the compassion for his mate showing in every nuance of the man’s face. Another strong Alpha, clearly on Cam’s side.

  Cam didn’t know what to say. The vehemence in Pearson’s eyes was hard to look at, but there was conviction and promise in Pearson’s tone, that Cam knew to be true. He could trust Pearson, and while he didn’t know how the other wolves in the pack would accept him, he believed that the big Alpha in front of him meant every word he said.

  Behind him, Roger sat silently, his body a comfort, but he wasn’t pressing Cam to make any decision. Wasn’t trying to influence him, or push his wants and needs onto him. Wasn’t ordering him to accept Pearson’s offer, or anything else. Having to make up his own mind was unnerving and empowering all in one go.

  Cam knew how much Roger loved his pack - that had been obvious from the way all the men had come to save him before Cam even knew who Roger was. It was evident in the carefree way Roger interacted with his Alpha and the pride Roger had when he’d introduced his new mate. Roger wanted Cam to be part of the pack, but he didn’t push him either way. His big mate just sat patiently and waited for Cam to make up his own mind, the Alpha and Alpha Mate doing the same in front of him. The respect shown, three powerful men giving him the space to make such an important decision, was what clinched the deal for Cam. No one had ever done that for him before, not in his whole life. He had to take a leap of faith.

  Still a little unsteady on his feet, nervous about what he was going to do, Cam stood up and respectfully tilted his head. “I accept you Pearson as my Alpha, and offer you my allegiance, my loyalty and any skills I may have, for this pack’s benefit.”

  He heard Roger’s exhalation of relief behind him, but he kept his eyes on his new Alpha. Pearson stood up and came around the desk, gently cupping Cam’s nape with a huge hand – the sign of acceptance.

  “You’re accepted little Omega, and thank you. You are now part of the pack,” Pearson said softly before going back and sitting behind his desk again, pulling his mate into his lap and burying his head in Dante’s long hair.

  Cam felt a gentle tug behind him, and turned, climbing back onto Roger’s lap. Big arms circled his waist, keeping him close as Roger buried his own face in Cam’s hair. Maybe it was a scent thing? Cam wasn’t sure, but he looped his arms around Roger’s neck and let his mate have his sniff. It wasn’t a hardship, offering his mate comfort. It just wasn’t something Cam had ever done before. Not that anyone had ever asked him for it before either. Until two days ago, Cam had never been asked anything – only told what to do. If this making decisions thing was going to be an everyday occurrence, it was going to take some getting used to.

  Lifting his head at last, Roger grinned at Cam, his face open and happy. “You are going to be totally safe now my little mate. You are not a lone wolf anymore, you will have the pack behind you, supporting you in every way.”

  Cam smiled too. He felt like he was living in a dream state, but if he was then he never wanted to wake up. “I only need you,” he said softly and that was clearly the right thing to say because Roger’s smile got wider and then Roger was leaning over and Cam’s lips were caught in a scorching kiss.

  Without thinking, Cam responded. How could he not? Roger was every fantasy he’d ever had, come to life. His cock flared up, his body hummed and he could feel his ass preparing itself for his mate. He knew that if Roger wanted to fuck him on the floor of his Alpha’s office, then Cam would gladly rip off his borrowed pants and let him do it. In Roger’s arms, Cam didn’t care about anything but getting closer.

  “Roger.”

  Dimly Cam heard Pearson calling out to his mate, but as Roger wasn’t stopping his tongue inspection of Cam’s mouth, his hands were still rubbing delicious spirals all over Cam’s back and the man’s cock was rock hard against Cam’s thigh, Cam wasn’t going to do anything to stop whatever his mate was planning to do. The whole thing, Roger’s body, his scent, the way he could be both gentle and firm with his hands – why the hell would he want to stop the delicious rise of pleasure that came from such an assault?

  “Roger. Enough. We have to talk about Donoghue.”

  Okay. Well that there was a perfectly good reason to remember where they were and why they were called into the Alpha’s office in the first place. The mere mention of Donoghue’s name was enough to have Cam’s cock drooping. From the way Roger pulled his head back and looked over at Pearson and Dante, it seemed the cursed name had the same effect on his mate.

  “What about Donoghue? We’re mated. True mates. Cam has the scar to prove it. He’s also pack now, so can’t be taken. How did the fucking idiot even know we were the ones that took him?” Roger said, refusing to let Cam move aside and if anything, tugging him closer.

  Pearson sighed. “I’ll get the others in. It would be easier if we could discuss this in one sitting. Is that okay?” The Alpha was talking to Roger but he was looking at Cam. Unsure what ‘others’ the Alpha was talking about, Cam just nodded his head.

  Within minutes the office was filled and Cam recognized the pair who had been driving the car that had taken him to Roger’s – Kyle and Teric, who smiled at him kindly when they were formally introduced. Kyle had movie star good looks graced with long dark hair, while Teric had green eyes like his own, and a mop of curly black hair. The smaller man moved with the grace that indicated his cat shifter heritage, and Cam wondered what type of cat Teric shared his spirit with.

  Cam also remembered the big shifter with the scarred face and the military haircut from his rescue. Roger introduced him as Steel. Steel was a hard looking man, but he looked at Cam kindly. He had a lovely looking mate, not much bigger than Cam, called Levi who sported a beautiful gold infinity collar. There was another huge shifter, built like a battleship, who went by the name of Ace. Cam thought Ace had amazing hair, and he was with his mate Devin, who was apparently the resident vampire. Devin was smaller than the wolf shifters, but not as small as Cam, although he had the build of a dancer.

  The other three men were wolf shifters, although Cam thought the one called Farren, who was apparently an enforcer, looked more like a bear shifter. With his strawberry blond hair spilling about all over the place, and his outfit made completely of leather he reminded Cam of a cuddly bear he wanted to hug tight, although given that Farren was a wolf shifter that probably wasn’t a good idea. He seemed friendly enough though.

  Sebastian, who could have been a built male model, was overly friendly, causing Roger to growl and the others to laugh. Apparently flirting was his thing, but Cam didn’t take it personally. He could already tel
l that Sebastian did it to everybody and didn’t mean any offence by it. The enforcer just believed his own hype about how good looking he was.

  The last man in the office was quieter and a bit smaller than the other enforcers. He was introduced as Phillip. Cam didn’t think Phillip could be an enforcer, but then maybe the man had hidden strengths. Cam knew only too well that you should never judge a book by its cover. There was a look of sadness about Phillip though, that Cam wished he could take away.

  When everyone was sitting down, two small men, subs if the clothing was anything to go by, came into the office with coffee and food. Cam wasn’t introduced to them, although they both looked at him curiously and one of them flashed a saucy wink at Roger. Cam resisted giving out a warning growl, but only just. Roger must have picked up on his jealous tension though, because, in front of the little twink and everyone else, Roger gave him a solid kiss and a smirk.

  “I’ve not been a virgin, precious, but I belong to you now. Only you,” he whispered in Cam’s ear. Cam felt himself settle, the way he always did when Roger gave him any attention. But that didn’t stop him from keeping a sharp eye on the small blond until the sexy sub had left the office with his friend.

  Devin came over, with two plates of food, offering them to Roger and Cam. With a quick glance at his mate, Cam accepted it and smiled gratefully at Devin. He’d spent his whole life hungry and never turned down the opportunity for food. Devin plopped down on the seat next to theirs, and said, “So I hear your ex is a vampire?”

  Cam frowned. He didn’t think that Donoghue was anything more than a sick, sick man. He shrugged, eating a mouthful of eggs, before saying, “I wouldn’t know. I don’t know what a vampire smells like. It’s not as though he ever bit me or anything. Surely I would have noticed the fangs.”

  The room went dead silent and Cam looked up, wondering what was wrong. Every eye in the room was on him and Cam felt distinctly uncomfortable.

  “Roger, what did I say wrong?” Cam whispered, even though he knew all of the other shifters could hear him. Roger put down his plate of food, and shook his head, tightening his grip around Cam’s waist.

  “You haven’t said anything wrong, little one,” Roger assured him. “But it seems like someone has.” He looked over at Pearson and actually glared at his Alpha.

  Chapter Twelve

  Roger wasn’t used to being on the roller coaster ride of emotions that he’d been on since before the pack had rescued Cam. At the moment he was high on the feelings of anger, and he figured he would be staying that way for a while, unless some explaining started. Roger had felt absolute dread when Pearson had told him that Donoghue wanted Cam back because he was the vampire’s primary food source. He had known that the Paranormal Council could have ordered him and his mate to relocate to a place of Donoghue’s choosing, if Donoghue had made a strong enough case. But now, to hear that Donoghue had never had his fangs near any of Cam’s veins – what was the psychotic man up to? Roger didn’t know, didn’t like not knowing and figured he would stick with feeling angry until he knew a lot more than he did right now.

  Pearson looked just as confused. “Cameron,” he said softly. “I know you said it to Devin, but I need you to confirm for me. You didn’t know Donoghue was a vampire, and he has never fed from you?”

  Cam fidgeted and a wave of uneasiness wafted off of the boy, making Roger’s wolf edgy. Surely it was a simple enough question – either Donoghue had put his fangs into Cam or he hadn’t.

  “I never saw his fangs, didn’t know he had any,” Cam said. “He never bit me as such, but he did have a thing for blood play.”

  Roger’s relaxed a little bit. “There are men here that indulge in blood play, precious. It can be an erotic part of the lifestyle for those who want to do it. Doesn’t mean we go around licking up the spilt blood though.”

  “Donoghue did,” Cam said, burying his face in Roger’s chest as though he wanted to hide. Roger couldn’t blame him. He wanted to get out of his Alpha’s office as well. Donoghue knew where Cam was, and had fed from him before.No fangs, but the man had taken Cam’s blood. Every muscle in Roger’s body screamed at him to take Cam to safety.

  “Cameron, this is really important,” Pearson was talking again and Roger knew that whatever the man had to say wasn’t going to be easy to hear. “How often did Donoghue indulge in blood play?”

  Cam shrugged. “Every four or five days, I suppose. Depended on how well I healed.”

  “Did he ever do the same kind of blood play with any of his other subs?”

  “No, he said the other boys didn’t heal up as fast as me.”

  Roger ran his hands up and down Cam’s arms, trying to keep him calm. He couldn’t imagine what his mate was going through – having to relive a nightmare and contend with the fact that he might have to go back to it. Looking around the office, Roger could see that the other men were thinking the same thing. If Cam was Donoghue’s primary food source, then he could make a very good case for at least gaining access to his little mate. No matter what Roger did, Cam would be at the mercy of a cruel master and his evil friends. Wait. That was it.

  “Cam,” he said urgently, catching Pearson’s eye. “This blood play stuff – did any of Donoghue’s friends do the same thing? Did any of them lick your blood in the same way?”

  “All of them, sometimes all together,” Cam said, his voice still sullen and upset. “It was like I was a freaking buffet or something. Gave me the creeps.”

  “And you never saw any fangs, no one ever said anything about being vampires? Donoghue never mentioned that he knew that you were a wolf shifter?” Roger asked, starting to feel some hope. From the look in Pearson’s eyes, the Alpha was thinking the same thing as he was.

  “No,” Cam yelled out. “Roger, what’s going on? I don’t understand.” Soothing his mate as best he could Roger looked at Pearson, who in turn looked over to Devin who was still sitting next to them both. It was Devin who spoke up.

  “Cameron, for a vampire to claim you as a primary food source, if you are not his amatus, there are three main conditions. Firstly, the donor has to know they are feeding a vampire – and the vampire has to ask for permission from the donor before making them a primary food source. It is a very privileged position, a contract, usually reserved for mates, which can last a lifetime if the two people are close enough to each other.”

  Cam snorted and Roger could totally understand why given the little he knew of his mate’s history, but inside his hope was rising. Surely Donoghue didn’t have a leg to stand on.

  “The second thing,” Devin continued. “Is that if the donor is another paranormal that has to be talked about as well. Most shifters have ties to packs, herds or prides. Permission has to be sought from any Alpha type before that type of contract can be entered into. Vampires keep their donors close by at all times, which can cause problems if a shifter has ties to a pack, or other type of group.”

  “Donoghue would have known that he didn’t have to ask anybody. He found me homeless on the streets,” Cam said, sniffing back his tears. Devin’s eyes swam with sympathy, but he kept talking.

  “The third thing, and the most important thing of all, is that once a donor is named as a primary food source, his blood is never shared with another vampire, or any person. Most people can only handle supplying enough blood for one vampire, let alone a group of them. Even as a shifter, you would have found that difficult.”

  Devin threw a cheeky look at his mate, Ace, who grinned and blushed. Roger had seen Devin feeding from Ace before, and it had always looked like the big enforcer had enjoyed himself. Unfortunately it didn’t sound like Cam had enjoyed any of the same pleasure when feeding Donoghue.

  “So this means, there is no way Donoghue can claim that Cam is his primary food source. Just a donor, in which case, no claim on him if the donor doesn’t want to feed him anymore?” Roger asked.

  “No way at all,” Devin said firmly. “Your mate has never been bitten, he didn’t even k
now that Donoghue was a vampire, his permission was never asked and his blood and his body were shared. I don’t see how he could have a case.”

  “With your permission Alpha, I’ll get onto the Council,” Teric said from the other side of the room. “Update them on the situation and let them know that the Omega is now a mated pack member, and will protected by the pack if Donoghue pushes this any further.”

  “Do it,” Pearson said firmly. Teric gave his mate a kiss on the head, and sauntered out of the office.

  “You other men,” Pearson continued, “I want you all staying at the club for a while. Increase security around the building, advise all pack members to travel in at least pairs outside of the club, more if possible. If Donoghue is hanging around then he might pull in another wolf, if he thinks it’s too hard to get Cam back. Anything suspicious, report it immediately.”

  “Yes, Alpha.” One by one the men all filed out of the office until only the Alpha, his mate, Roger and Cam remained. Roger was just as keen to leave the office as the rest of them. He had a perfectly good suite of rooms at the club, and although he didn’t use them very often, he would make sure his mate was warm, fed and safe. But he had one more question for his Alpha.

  “Pearson, how the hell did Donoghue know where Cam was? I thought Steel and Levi took care of all of the security measures when we rescued him.”

  “Yeah, well, Steel thought we were dealing with a human club. His operative never caught a whiff of vampire when he first noticed Cam. Hugh noticed Cam’s wolf and focused in on that. Maybe Donoghue hides his scent or something, maybe there were just too many scents for Hugh to notice, but he didn’t know at the time. Steel has since found out there was an infrared camera in Cam’s room, and another one in the corridor between the sub’s rooms that Steel didn’t notice, and that were wired on a different system to the club’s main security.”