Claim Me (Crimson Pack Trilogy Book 3)

by A Lonergan

  “Oh, I wasn’t interrupting something, was I?”

  Rafe scratched his neck and a laugh burst from his mouth. “Please, continue.” He pulled his phone out. “And I would love to record you eating the rest of that.”

  Tracey’s face fell. “Sicko.”

  Lucas took that opportunity to come in through the backdoor. He looked between his sister and me and his brows pulled together. “I feel like I just missed something.”

  Rafe snorted. “You definitely did.”

  Tracey rolled her eyes and handed me her fork. “Your turn.”

  I shook my head. “No, I prefer to eat my food like a human.”

  Tracey grumbled something under her breath before she tossed the utensil into the sink and marched to her joint bedroom. Lucas’s grin was uncomfortable at best. Rafe simply looked amused as hell. Lucas raised his hand. “I’m gonna go take a shower now.”

  “Have at it, buddy.” I swept my hand toward the hall in a grand gesture. Lucas’s look only became more perturbed as he walked away.

  “Why do both of the women I live with have to be so weird?” he muttered as he walked away.

  “Do you want some casserole?” I finally asked Rafe. There was no way in hell I was going to ask him if he was still hungry.

  He grimaced. “I don’t think so. You should probably put it in the fridge and label it, Tracey’s dinner. So no one else mistakenly eats it after that.”

  I scrunched my nose. “You’re right. Or she can put it away.” I raised my voice on the last part so I knew she heard me.

  “I should probably get going,” He stood up from the couch. I took a step toward him but wondered where we stood and took a step back. In a few long strides, he was by my side. With his look of determination, I expected him to kiss me right on the mouth. I was shocked when instead, he kissed my hairline. “Thanks for the entertainment.”

  Tracey called out from the bedroom. “Oh, I see how it is! You only want to be around her when you can be alonnnnne.”

  Rafe clicked his tongue. “That’s not it, but it kind of is. I was hoping to get her alone in that big new bed.”

  “Barf!” Lucas yelled from the shower.

  “Why have we been spending so much time at my place?” He smiled. “We should do this more often.”

  I shook my head and shoved him out the door. He made kissy faces at me through the window as he disappeared into the darkness. Mav’s head popping up in front of the window conjured a yell out of me. I grabbed his arm and pulled him in before I smacked him. “What is wrong with you?”

  “I’m on Jade duty!”

  I frowned. “Is that what they’re calling it now?”

  He shrugged. “Something like that. Did you and Rafe make up?”

  I hummed deep in my throat. “I’m not really sure.”

  Mav threw himself onto the couch he broke and shrugged. “I’m sure you’ll be back in his house before you know it.”

  I tried to hide my smile. “Not if I can help it.”

  “Rafe is really good about turning things around to benefit himself.”

  “Oh yeah?” I snickered. Mav was probably right.

  “Watch out, you have another nightmare and there’s no way he’s going to let you leave next time!”

  I knew Mav was right. All it took was one more thing and Rafe was going to throw away the key.

  Alice was waiting for me at my desk the next morning. I hadn’t touched my computer or files in a while and I knew I needed to check in on it all. Nerves lit in my stomach but her smile calmed them a bit.

  “Good morning,” she exclaimed cheerfully. “I didn’t expect to see you this morning.”

  I smiled. “I have work I need to look over and make sure everything is still on track.”

  Alice shook her head. “You don’t have to do that. Most of our businesses here on the Pack Lands are closed because of the war. There are only a few in the town and city that will remain open. You don’t have to worry about those. I can handle them. You have a lot on your plate.”

  “Pot meet kettle,” I leaned against the door.

  Alice shook her head. “I’m serious, Rafe needs you more right now. Being the Alpha’s mate comes with a lot of responsibilities. You will get compensated for it.”

  I frowned. I wasn’t sure I understood what was happening. “Am I losing my job?”

  Alice stood from the chair and reached out toward me. “No!” Her head tilted to the side as her shoulders relaxed. “You are more than qualified for the job and if you choose to keep it, you are welcome to it. I just wanted to let you know that you have options. When I hired you, I had no idea you would be the mate for my son. I had my suspicions but I didn’t want to push anything. Especially since you didn’t know anything about it. You had enough going on in your life, the last thing you needed was my duties.”

  “So if I chose to take on the Alpha’s mate responsibilities, you would do this?”

  She nodded. “Yes, I always liked doing this but with Rafe not being mated for so long. I couldn’t add anything else to my growing list. When the kids go back to their covens and things are resolved here… I would love to be able to retire from being the Alpha wife.”

  I couldn’t imagine how much this weighed on her. Everything she did came from her being the past Alpha wife. I couldn’t imagine just how much this hurt her. She had to go on without her mate. Without her beloved husband. Of course, she would want to retire and do something else.

  I nodded. “Yes, I would love to take that on. Would you be showing me the ropes?”

  She beamed. “I would love to show you how it’s done as soon as you’re ready!”

  “There’s no day like today.”

  Chapter 43

  Jade

  Den mother.

  My official title. I didn’t know how much I cared for the title but it was mine for the taking. No wonder Alice had called herself the Alpha wife or the Pack Mom. This Den Mother title was for the birds. I could have gone forever without hearing that. But one little witch named Valentina decided it was her calling in life to make things as difficult as possible on everyone in the pack. Including myself.

  “Ohhhhh, Den Mother,” Valentina called from across the room as I helped Alice cook dinner. Alice shot me a tight-lipped smile as she stirred the beans on the stove. I checked the bread in the oven and tried my hardest to ignore the little shit. Unfortunately, fate had other ideas. “Is that what I’m supposed to call you now?”

  “Jade is fine, really. I’m not officially mated to the Alpha.”

  “Okay, Den Mother, what’s for dinner?” She completely ignored what I said and grinned while she swung her feet at the bar. I bit down on my tongue. She wouldn’t be here that much longer, at least that was what I told myself. I prayed they had a coven lined up for her to go to when all of this was over with. But fate laughed in my face when it came to her.

  Alice was the one that replied back to the little heathen. “Pork chops, mashed potatoes, and baked beans.”

  Valentina didn’t say anything. She hopped down from the barstool and marched out of the room. My shoulders relaxed slightly until one of the little pups decided he could call me Den Mother too. My shoulders immediately straighten back up and I shook my head. It wasn’t that bad, but at the same time, it was. In my head, the Den Mother was a little old lady. I didn’t know if I could be considered old enough to have any of these kids. I was in my early twenties. They were at least ten years old.

  Alice bumped her shoulder into mine. “It gets easier. Your role in this pack is still turbulent to some of the other wolves. They don’t know where they stand with you just yet.”

  “I’m not sure where I stand yet, either.”

  Alice’s face softened. “I promise you it will get better. It’s also incredibly rewarding.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “That’s what my mom told me when she needed me to volunteer at the church.”

  “She was probably right!”

  “I
don’t remember any kind of reward.”

  Alice laughed and my chest ache seemed to ease a little. I would do anything to have both of my parents here to experience this with me. All I wanted was to fall into my mother’s arms and ask her for advice but I could never open her up to this world. She would never understand. She would never accept me. Thankfully, I was dating a man that had an incredible mother.

  Alice wrapped her arm around my shoulder and kissed my temple. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. You are adjusting better than anyone else I know. Mav was a basket case for weeks. He wouldn’t even leave my home. Every little thing made him jump.”

  We laughed together. “Really?” I asked. He didn’t seem to be the type but I knew under all that big burly muscle, he was a big softy.

  “Yes!” She exclaimed. “He stayed huddled under the blankets and when he shifted for the first time, he screamed when his tail whacked his side. His tail was the first part of him that would shift. The rest of his body wouldn’t do what it was supposed to. We struggled to get him to shift properly for months!”

  “Poor Mav,” I said between giggles.

  “Poor me, what?” Mav said behind us. Alice and I both straightened up immediately. I put my hand over my mouth and shook my head.

  “Nothing!”

  Mav’s eyes looked between the both of us. “I don’t believe either of you. Women cooking in the kitchen together are dangerous creatures.”

  Alice leaned into my shoulder as Mav walked away and we both fell into a fit of giggles. I didn’t know how it started or how it ended but it was everything I never knew I needed. My heart felt lighter and my head didn’t hurt anymore.

  “What about Mav’s family?” I finally asked once the giggles were out of our system.

  “Mav was in foster care. He hasn’t shared his story with anyone else. Rafe found him wandering the streets after that psycho girl changed him.”

  “How long has it been?” I asked as I swiped a warm roll off of the counter.

  Alice chewed on the inside of her lip. “Probably six years.”

  “He’s adjusted well,” I commented.

  Alice nodded. “Mav is special. He has this way of lighting up the room he walks into. When he is serious, you know it’s bad. Mav has always been one of my favorites out of Rafe’s friends. He always cared about Rafe in a different way. He was never one to get into trouble either. Archer and Knox were always the troublemakers. You could count on them to sniff out the party anywhere. Rafe would go along with it unless Mav wasn’t cool with it. When the need for Guardians arose, Mav was the first to pledge. He cared about Rafe more than any of the others it seemed. Seeing them as Guardians now… It’s hard to choose who cares about Rafe more.”

  “Did Rafe’s father have Guardians?” I asked timidly.

  Alice rubbed my shoulder. “Don’t ever be afraid to ask questions. We are family and I want you to feel comfortable here. I can’t imagine how it feels to not be able to share this life with your parents.” She grabbed a roll off of the counter and tore it into a few pieces. “No, he didn’t have Guardians. He wasn’t approached with the seat of the Pack Law until right before he died. He hadn’t told many people about it. When Rafe challenged him for his Alpha spot and won. The Pack Law came in and informed everyone that once Rafe was established as Alpha here, he would also need a headquarters home where Pack Law is established.”

  “Where is Pack Law established?”

  Alice shrugged. “I couldn’t tell you. That’s information only Pack Law members know and their wives that travel with them there. But it’s highly classified, I’ve heard. I started to reach out to the other Alpha mates that had seats with the Pack Law but they were elusive. All I wanted to do was prepare my son.”

  This entire world was cryptic. There were too many secrets.

  Chapter 44

  Rafe

  Mav threw his body into mine and at the last second, I was able to avoid it. My wolf practically yawned in my head. He was bored of this and wanted more of a challenge. But today wasn’t about a challenge. It was about teaching and having fun. I spun around the big brute and landed a kick to the back of his knee. He fell forward but recovered quickly. We panted as we circled each other. I could vaguely hear Ford cheering for me over the blood pounding in my ears. This was my second opponent today. My sock slid on the tile and down I went. Mav landed a bruising blow to my shoulder and my breath whooshed right out of me. I lost. Mav reached his huge hand down and helped me off of the floor.

  “Why on earth would you think socks would be a good idea when sparring?” Gabriel chuckled from the couch. I rolled my sore shoulder.

  “We aren’t supposed to be sparring down here,” I waved my hands around the in-home gym. We had a sparring arena, this was just us messing around. I cracked my neck and faced Mav. “Again.”

  He shook his head. “I won’t fight you again.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’m scared I’m going to really hurt you.”

  I groaned. “In all of the years we have known each other and sparred together. Have you ever actually managed to really hurt me?”

  Mav looked uncertain as he watched the other guys. “No, but you’ve been off of your game.”

  “Then help me get back on track,” I ripped the socks off of my feet and bounced on my toes. I wouldn’t be going down again. He set his shoulders and prepared for my attack. I immediately went for his weak spot. He didn’t block his right side very well. He was left-handed. I had picked it up the first time we ever fought together. Everyone had a weak spot but usually they were harder to find if they were as good of fighters as we were. There was also the part where he had been gone training to be a Guardian. His weak spot wasn’t as weak as it had been. I landed a few punches to his side before he could recover. He came at me even quicker and I blinked in surprise. He was a massive dude and I thought I had speed on my side. Usually the bigger the guy, the slower they were. I should have known Mav was holding out on me. He was afraid he would injure me after all.

  I ducked out of the way as his fist swung toward my temple. He smiled as I landed a few more blows to him but he blocked each one. Where was his weakness now? He had been expecting me to use that. His toes dipped slightly and I saw it, his knee was bothering him. I faked kicking his leg out from beneath him and jumped up to land a blow to the side of his head. He stepped out of the way at the last minute and my hand flew past him and right into the sheetrock. I winced as I pulled my hand free from the wall. Sheetrock dust sprinkled down to the floor like snow.

  Knox was up immediately from the couch. “You’re lucky you didn’t hit a stud.”

  Mav cracked a smile. “He was close. Too slow.”

  Knox’s nostrils flared in annoyance. “I meant the wood in the wall.”

  “Of course you did,” Mav nodded in an over exaggerated manner.

  My pocket knife slipped free from my pocket and I flicked it open. The oddly-shaped hole would be hard to patch if it wasn’t even. I sawed away the uneven patches and was about to walk away to get supplies when something shiny caught my eye. I hadn’t been the one to put sheetrock up in the house, not even down here in the basement. My father had this place remodeled several times while he lived here. I simply made it my own. I took walls out where I saw fit upstairs, but I hadn’t touched the walls or anything else down here. I had simply put up mirrors and the equipment. I had painted. I vaguely remembered that my father had a study down here but I hadn’t lived in this home for a while. The manor had been my home after I had turned eighteen. Between my father’s wolf and my own, we couldn’t be under the same roof together. He came down here when he wanted to be alone. There had been a little computer and desk. Where? Here? The layout was so different now. What else could be hiding in these walls?

  As quickly as I could manage I cut away more of the wall until I could see what was hidden there. Waiting right below my fist hole was a small metal box. It wasn’t much bigger than a toolbox. Red and orange rust
coated it. I was almost afraid to pull it free but I knew it belonged to my father. Right now I needed answers more than ever. The box groaned as I pulled it free from the studs holding it upright on either side.

  Mav was by my side in seconds. “What did you find?”

  I shook my head. “I have no idea. A toolbox maybe?”

  “Your old man hid that here?” Gabriel peeked over Mav’s shoulder.

  I shrugged.

  The latch on the front of it looked rusted beyond repair. It made me want to rethink this. Maybe the secrets hidden in the walls were meant to stay there. My hands grew sweaty as I decided against my better judgment and yanked the latch clean off. The hinges squeaked as I lifted the lid.

  Surprisingly enough, the inside of the box was immaculate. There wasn’t any rust or discoloration to the metal at all. How it had managed to stay in such pristine condition was beyond me. In the center of the box, there were a few envelopes. The paper was worn so much that I couldn’t read who they were from. Under the stack of letters was a little leather book.

  Knox clapped me on the shoulder. “This is probably something you should do alone. I’m as curious and nosey as anyone else but this was your old man. If you need us, we will be upstairs.”

  Archer looked ready to protest but Mav picked him up around the waist and carried him away from me and my discovery. The door at the top of the stairs clicked shut.

  Carefully, I peeled back the cover of the journal and looked inside. Was it wrong of me to not tell my mother about this? Maybe she needed to be here as I read it. This was her mate. There could be gross things in here about my mother. But the book looked dated far beyond their marriage. I could always give it to her later.

  The first few pages weren’t anything interesting. They were things about the pack, what it was like to be an Alpha and be single. The war between witches.