“What about your father, where is he in all of this?” Bree asked.
Finn looked at Liam who turned back from the window to face them and Bree realized why she thought Finn looked so familiar.
“Finn and Rob are my half-brothers. Our father died years ago.” Liam said.
The family resemblance was so strong she was surprised she hadn’t joined the dots before this.
It was clear that Seann, Garrett and Kandis already knew, but everyone else looked at Liam in shock.
“I have never met Rob or my sister, Alexis and this is the first time I have met Finn. It’s a long story for another time, but we need to get a plan together if we are going to catch him and we need to do it quickly.
“Liam, Finn, Jay, Garrett and I will get a team together to hunt him down” Seann said, “Kandis I need you to ramp up compound security, Kaleb is sending some of his best fighters to assist, so double the guard and have some of the teenagers run the perimeter. Tell them this is not a drill and give them some real responsibility. If he tried once, he could try again and I want him alive. Finn has brought us some of his clothes so that we can pass them around and familiarize ourselves with his scent.”
“You’ll need a tracker,” Bree said.
“Jay is a good tracker and Finn has a good nose, he is also used to his brother's scent. You need to stay here and help guard the compound.”
Bree was pissed, she hated being excluded but then so was India and she was probably a better tracker than even Bree. She knew Seann was keeping them out of the line of fire but she also felt the irresistible weight of her alpha behind his words and she bent to his will.
He walked towards his office, the other men following closely behind him and he called over his shoulder.
“Nate will be here soon, he is going to stay in the compound while we are on the road. He knows what’s going on and will do whatever needs to be done around here.”
Bree thought she heard him snicker as the office door closed behind him and her heart took off on a gallop. There would be no avoiding Nathaniel now.
CHAPTER TWO
Nate
The guard waved him through the gate and he turned his truck in the direction of the Den. Bree would know by now that Seann had asked him to stay indefinitely and he wasn’t sure that she would be particularly happy about it.
Seann had offered him an empty cabin but he preferred to stay at the main house. She couldn’t avoid him completely if they were under the same roof. He knew her sister, Hope, was going to be on the mountain for a couple of weeks, but Imogen and the baby were still at the Den and India and her kids would stay with her sister until the threat was over. He had promised Seann he would protect his family with his life and he was more than capable of doing just that. Even Bree didn’t know about his years in special ops, but somehow Jay Donovan had known. The police chief seemed to be in the know about everything.
He still couldn’t believe he had found her, albeit by accident, but it was going to take an Act of Congress to get Bree to listen to him and give his side of the story. He had thought that finding his mate was something that was never going to happen for him so when he and Renee started dating and had so much in common it seemed that the next logical step would be to get married and have a family with her. She felt the same way he did and wanted to have a baby before it was too late.
Their relationship was no more than a contract between two people who liked and respected each other and he had no doubt that they could have been happy if not for him running into Bree. She breezed into his life with all the force of a freight train and he knew his life would never be the same again. Everything about her seemed to be designed just for him, her quirky personality, her looks, her scent and when she smiled his heart swelled like a balloon in his chest. He wanted her as he had never wanted another woman in his entire life and when he kissed her, he knew he had found his soulmate. Despite her protests to the contrary, he knew Bree had felt it too.
He fully intended to tell her about his fiancé and he had planned to call it off when Renee had beaten him to it and showed up at the restaurant where they were having dinner. Bree hadn’t stuck around for an explanation. He knew he had hurt her deeply and he wasn’t sure how to repair the damage, he just knew he had to find a way. She was still so young and hadn’t spent decades waiting for a mate who hadn’t yet materialized, he had to make her understand somehow.
Bree had a unique skill. She had been avoiding him for weeks now since he had kissed her and followed her as she ran off into the woods on the night of the pack run. She had shut him down swiftly then and he thought if he gave her a little space it would help, but it seemed nothing had changed.
He hadn’t had a night’s sleep since and going back home made no difference either, he could be on the other side of the planet and his soul would still be craving her. So, he was back in the compound for now and in desperation was going to ask for help.
He knew the shit he would take from Seann, Garrett and Liam, but he was going to brave their teasing and ask the men who knew her best. He parked at the back of the Den and went in through the open kitchen door.
Her scent was stronger in here and as he walked toward the living room his wolf whined in recognition. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door. She was standing by the window with her back to him watching the other women and their children on the front porch. She would have seen his truck coming. His well-laid plans to ask the other guys for help flew right out the window when he saw her there instead.
His breath hitched in his chest when she turned to look at him and her pale brown eyes were glowing amber. Her cropped pixie cut was a perfect frame for her delicate features and Nate thought her the most beautiful creature he had ever encountered in his very long life.
Her tongue flicked out to wet her lips and her pupils dilated and he could smell her arousal from here. He childishly wanted to fist pump the air, but he kept his hands by his sides and approached her as you would a skittish colt.
She turned back to the window and he had the urge to run his hands over the soft curve of her hip. Her jeans were slung low and she hooked her thumbs into the thick leather belt threaded through the loops. He could see the tension in her shoulders and he wanted to hold her so badly, but he forced his hands into his pockets before he did something he knew she wouldn’t appreciate.
“I think we need to talk, Bree,” he said softly.
She stiffened but didn’t reply.
“I should have told you about Renee and I was going to when we were at dinner that night, but she arrived before I had a chance to explain. We got engaged because we had both given up hope of ever finding our mates and time was running out for Renee to have a family. I wasn’t in love with her and didn’t pretend to be, nor she with me. I thought we could have made a real go of it until I met you and then I realized how foolish I had been. My feelings for you are stronger than anything I have ever felt in my life and your absence from my life didn’t diminish those feelings, just the opposite.”
She turned to face him and he saw the hurt in her eyes. She crossed her arms protectively across her chest and he thought he saw her bottom lip quiver.
“I think you are mistaking feelings for pure sexual attraction, Nathaniel.” she bit out. “You had plans to get me into your bed and your fiancé turning up just spoiled them.”
His eyes flashed with anger and he grabbed her hands and held them tightly as she struggled to free them.
‘If that were true then there is one sure way to find out.” his gray eyes were glowing like two beacons and she shivered as he cupped her hips and pulled her against his body and she gasped as his arousal pressed on her belly.
“Let me go, Nathaniel!” she gasped.
He lowered his head and kissed her and she moaned as her arms snaked around his neck with a will of their own and she buried her hands in his dark hair. He was drowning in her taste and when he lifted her, she wrapped her legs around him and her tongue
probed his. Her hands tore at the buttons on his shirt and when she gained access she whined as she touched bare skin.
Taken aback by her reaction to him, his heart took off like a train. He had expected another slapped face at the very least from her but he sensed she was sick of fighting their attraction and he wasn’t going to argue the point with her, not now.
“Bree, I need you.” he groaned as she explored him with her hands. “You need to tell me to stop if you don’t want this to go any further, baby. I am almost at the point of no return already.” he ground out.
She tightened her hold on him and pulled his mouth back to hers and as her tongue explored his mouth he caught the scent of her heightened arousal and he never missed a single step as he carried her quickly to his room, his lips still locked with hers.
He put her on her feet and she whimpered at the disconnect as he quickly removed her t-shirt and jeans and she helped him out of his. She looked so vulnerable and he took her hand and climbed onto the bed beside her. Her chest heaved under the delicate lace bra she wore and he knew he needed to take it slowly with her, not make it all about sex. His wolf grumbled in complaint, but he tamped him down and pulled her into his arms, loving the feel of her bare skin on his. She straddled him and Nate knew she was more than ready for him as her tiny fangs punched out over her bottom lip, but still, he held back. Bree needed to be in the driving seat, at least this time.
She took his hands, pulling them to cup her breasts and he felt his fangs lengthen as she unclipped her bra and he groaned as her nipples hardened at his touch. They fit perfectly into his hands and when he tweaked the hard nub between his thumb and finger, his lips closed around the other peak and she ground her body into him. A thin sheen of sweat covered her skin and she was already building towards her release. He had to force himself to hold back and not bite her as he sucked and teased. Biting was normal foreplay for wolves but he had no idea how experienced she was and he didn’t want to hurt or spook her.
She pulled anxiously at her panties and Nate ripped them in two and discarded them and rolled her onto her back. It was his turn to be in control and she gave herself over to him and wrapped her legs around him, urging him inside her. He scraped his teeth along the length of her slim neck, the urge to bite her was almost unbearable, but he was nothing if not in control.
“Nathaniel, please, I need you,” she ground out.
His fingers slipped inside her folds as his thumb massaged the sensitive bundle of nerves and she cried out in desperation as the pressure built instantly.
“Bree, look at me,” he commanded and she forced her eyes open as she felt his hard length against her opening. His glowing blue eyes were glazed over, he was barely holding on and she tightened her hold on him, urging him forward.
He entered her swiftly and she cried out, wanting more and more. He could feel the claw marks on his back as they rolled around the bed with wild abandon until they ended up on the floor. He couldn’t hold back any longer as he held her tightly and pounded into her and she cried out louder and louder, urging him faster and harder.
Fuck, she was a spitfire!
When her orgasm hit her, she cried out his name and buried her face into his neck, he felt the sharp sting on his collarbone from her fangs and his wolf crowed with delight.
Bree had bitten him, claimed him.
He roared as he reached his peak and he bit down on the soft skin, tasting her blood like the finest red wine. He spilled his seed inside her at the same time and she tightened around him to welcome it. There was no going back for either of them now, they were mated. He wanted to do it all over again, slowly. Their coupling had been fierce and swift and he wanted time to savor her but for now, he scooped her up and climbed into bed with her. He closed his eyes and listened to her heartbeat slowly return to normal.
She lay contentedly in his arms, a smile on her face and he was afraid to move, waiting for the fallout. He had never experienced anything like it, the connection was instant, she was the other half of his soul and he knew he would lay down his life for her.
“Nathaniel,” she whispered and his body stiffened as he waited for her words of remorse as they came floating down from their high.
He turned his head to face her and his breath caught in his throat as her amber eyes watched him, still glowing. She was so damn beautiful.
“Nathaniel.” She said again, her lips curved up into a smile, “Can we do that again?”
He rolled her under him, his heart bursting with relief and something else that he had denied himself until he knew she would truly be his.
Love. His heart was bursting with love for this woman he had craved incessantly for the last two years. He had fallen asleep with her name on his lips and her lovely face in his dreams, every single night. They had a lot of lost time to make up for.
He pressed his lips to hers and she wrapped herself around him and they made love slowly and he kissed away her tears as her emotions overwhelmed her.
Nate wondered if he would ever be as happy again as he was at this moment.
CHAPTER THREE
Bree
She sat on the roof, dressed only in Nathaniel's discarded t-shirt, her knees pulled up to her chin and contemplated her life. She had been so determined to punish him for something that seemed so silly now and she wondered if he thought her behavior immature, because she did. She was a grown woman with a stellar education, but she was also forty years younger than him and in wolf terms, she was still a baby, especially in terms of relationships.
They had moved into her bedroom last night and as she turned and watched him sleeping, splayed out across her bed, her wolf grumbled contentedly. He filled the space entirely and she knew they would soon be moving on to a place of their own and a much bigger bed.
He stirred and she swung her legs inside and crawled back into bed with him, needing to feel him close. They had sex more times in the last two days than she had in her entire life before him and she was a little sore from their acrobatics. Who would have guessed that little Bree Donovan loved to play rough!
Seann had checked in last night to say they had a lead on Rob Danvers and were following up. She knew her brother was as tough as nails but she still worried about him when he was going after a man they thought was capable of just about anything. Sometimes his judgment was clouded when it came to his family and his temper was legendary. She was grateful Liam and Garrett were with him.
She couldn’t believe how alike Finn and Liam were and Kandis said he had mixed feelings about his newfound family. It wasn’t Finn’s fault that their father had deserted Liam and his mother and by all accounts, neither Finn nor his sister, had any affinity with the man. Rob or Robert Hamilton Danvers, had been the apple of his father's eye and just as rotten to his privileged core.
She closed her eyes and fell asleep, tucked into Nathaniel's side and dreamed of gray-eyed, raven-haired babies as her wolf mewed contentedly like a kitten. She had never envied other women their penchant for small children but feeling herself swell with the product of Nathaniel's seed was something else entirely, her wolf craved to reproduce with her mate and the notion of children that had once been foreign to her seemed to have a brand new appeal.
She smelled the raspberry scent as she woke and Nathaniel scooped her up into his arms and carried her to the bathroom. He lowered her into the bubbles and climbed in beside her and she closed her eyes and leaned against him as he washed her hair and soaped her body all over.
“There is a good chance you could be a little bruised, Bree, you pack a lot of energy into such a small package.”
“Are you complaining?” she grinned.
“No, ma’am, zero complaints here.” he kissed her neck and she shivered with delight. The water was beginning to cool a little and he stood up and grabbed a towel from the rack and wrapped it around his waist.
“I need to go over some stuff with Kandis today. There are another two houses that have become vacant and she has a few pot
ential buyers from the compound, it all seems to be coming together fairly quickly, we could have the entire compound out there by the end of the year.
“Do you have an apartment already or should we look for our own cabin?” she asked him.
“I have a small townhouse with my offices attached, but I think I would like to buy something on the mountain or out at the farm. Something with a little more privacy now that I have a mate and hopefully we will have a few kids in the future.”
“I have some money. I never spent a penny of the money our parents left us and I inherited some from my Grandmother too.”
“Bree, I am sixty-four years old, I have amassed quite a bit of money in that time, we won’t starve.” he smiled and she sank back into the water with a contented sigh.
“Wow! That’s pretty old.” she teased him.
“You’re just a baby in comparison, darlin.”
“I wouldn’t care if we were penniless and lived in a tent, Nathaniel. As long as I get at least one toe-curling orgasm each day.” she grinned.
He threw back his head and laughed and then scooped her out of the water and carried her back to bed, soaking wet.
“Your wish is my command, my love!”
He buried his face between her legs and she gasped as his tongue sought out her more sensitive spot. He was good!
In the last few hours, her life had changed irrevocably and she knew there was no point in fighting it any longer. They were destined to be together and she now understood that he would never want to be with another woman now that they were mated, because she felt the very same way.
“Sorry, we’re late,” Bree said, slipping into the empty chair beside Imogen and Nate took the one on her other side. “We overslept.”
“Sure, you did!” Kandis rolled her eyes and Bree blushed like a teenager.
Children of the Moon: Book Four Page 2