His to Protect: Book 1 in the Bound to Him Series

by Sandra Antoni

  His to Protect

  Book 1 in the Bound to Him series

  Sandra Antoni

  Contents

  Title Page

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Chelsea

  Sam and I had broken up. I was okay with that. It was a mutual break up. We had both agreed that we were not getting what we needed from the relationship. I was always working, and he was always going on the road with his weather team. The bigger the tornado or hurricane the better, and he was always so excited to leave. Sometimes, he seemed too excited to leave.

  I thought that I had gotten used to it, but finally realized that I hadn’t. Two days after our breakup, when I saw his pictures online of him and a woman whom I had once called a close friend, I realized then that he was not worth shedding any tears over.

  That had been over four weeks ago, and here I was alone in my bed crying tears over him once again. I was being pathetic, and I knew it, but sometimes, a girl just needed to cry. Actually, what this girl needed was a vacation.

  I had not had a proper vacation since I had lived at home with my parents before I started college, and the thought of taking one now lightened my mood considerably. It would give me something to think about other than Sam.

  Suddenly having a new purpose, I quickly stood from the bed. I pondered where I wanted to go, and I smiled when I realized that I could go wherever I wanted. I was an adult, and it was my money. This was going to be fun. I was not great with flying, so it definitely had to be somewhere in the continental U.S.

  The Midwest got too cold in the winter, and it was the end of November, so maybe I should go somewhere south. I did not mind cold, but a negative windchill was not my idea of fun. I wanted to go somewhere that would have more sun than here, and somewhere that I could spend a lot of time outside.

  With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I would have several weeks before Christmas. I definitely did not want to get stuck with all the holiday travelers, and I wanted to be home for Christmas anyway. My parents would expect me to be at their house bright and early Christmas morning.

  I left my bedroom and walked into the living room. Picking up my laptop from the coffee table in front of the couch, I walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. I had three weeks of vacation time, and I had not used any of it. It would not be feasible at my job to take it all at once, but maybe I could get away for two weeks.

  Checking my planner for appointments in December, I saw that the best time for me to go would be December 3 through the 17th. Putting in the request form for time off, I started researching destinations that were much farther south than Kansas City.

  Thanksgiving was a huge thing with my parents, even though it was just the three of us. There was always enough food to feed a small army, but cooking was one of my mother’s favorite things to do. I had gotten my appreciation of the art from her as well. We stood side by side in the kitchen getting the food ready to take to the table.

  “Mom, I wanted to talk to you about something. I have decided to take a vacation,” I told her, waiting to see what her response would be. She did not say anything for a long time.

  “Is someone going to go with you? Dad and I could go. We haven’t had a family vacation in quite a while,” she said, but I could hear the anxiousness in her voice.

  “No, mom. This time I need some time away. I need to do this on my own, although, I would not mind taking a vacation with you and dad sometime. We always talked about seeing Mount Rushmore, but never got there. However, I wouldn’t want to do that in December,” I replied, and she smiled over at me.

  She might have a smile on her face, but I knew that she was not happy about what I had just said. My parents had always been overprotective of me, however, they had good reasons. It didn’t make it any easier on me though. I just dealt with it. It was easier than having to listen to them.

  Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents. But sometimes, they could be a little much. Or a lot more than just a little. I sighed and turned and looked at my mom. Then I threw my arms around her and hugged her. She squeezed me tightly in return.

  “Mom, I’ll be okay. I’m going to Arizona. I want some sun, and I want to do some hiking. The resort I found had amazing views of the mountains, and I’m excited to visit the desert. It’s just what I need,” I told her gently.

  She leaned back and patted my cheek. I put on a brave face, knowing that she was searching for any signs of doubt. I had told her the truth. This was something that I had to do on my own. I needed to get away, and I needed to go by myself.

  “You will call every day, right? You know that we worry about you, and your father and I love you. If you need this time, then I will try to be happy for you. But you must call every day,” she said adamantly.

  I had expected nothing less and I smiled down at her. I was tall for a woman, but my mother was barely five foot. It had been a long time since my mother had looked down at me, and I smiled as I thought about that. What she didn’t have in stature, she made up for in personality.

  She had a big heart and an even bigger laugh, and her smile was a permanent fixture on her face. But man could she talk your ear off. My friends had all thought I had the “cool” parents…at least, when I was younger. She used to take me and a friend on random day trips, just to get out of the house.

  Neither the friend nor I would know where we were headed. Just mom and the other parent knew. It was always a surprise. One trip was ice skating at Crown Center and then shopping, and one was to Worlds of Fun. I loved amusement parks.

  But the older I got, the more it seemed my parents hovered. Maybe they had always been like that and I just never realized it until I got older. It was like they didn’t want me to spread my wings and fly, but I needed more freedom.

  I sighed and looked into the living room at my father. He was my mother’s polar opposite. Quiet and reserved, soft-spoken and laid back. He was the strong one who held this little family together, and he gave the best hugs.

  I could count on him for quiet talks and fatherly advice. When I had a problem that I couldn’t solve, he wouldn’t tell me how to solve it. He would talk me through it until I felt confident in my solution. The two of them were all I had, and if calling them every day on my vacation made them feel better, then that was the least that I could do.

  “Thanks mom. Of course, I will call every day. Besides, I need to hear every day that you love me,” I told her, and she grinned up at me.

  “You mean the world to us. You know that, Chelsea, right?” she asked, and I nodded. “Okay then, help me get this food to the table,” she continued as she grabbed the turkey and turned towards the dining room.

  Ezekiel

  “Hey, Zeke! Give me a hand over here, will ya?” Brady called. I walked around the corner and saw him unloading supplies from his truck. Expanding the master bathroom in my home had been a huge project, but now it was almost done. At least Brady had agreed to help.

  He liked this type of work as much as I did, even though it was my house. Of course, I had just finished helping him build a new deck on the back of h
is place, but that had been a whole lot easier than this project. It helped that I had gotten to use his new hot tub a few times as well.

  “I guess I need to get a truck, just for hauls like this, huh?” I asked him. He grinned back at me. I had been considering it, but Brady had always volunteered his truck when I needed it. Since it was just me, I really didn’t see the need for two vehicles, but the truck would come in handy.

  “Nah, I don’t mind. Especially when you let me borrow your Porsche. Emily is going to love the ride tonight,” Brady replied with a grin.

  Brady and Emily had been together almost a year now, but I knew that she was it for him. They were mates, and that was just how it worked with us shifters. Once we found our mate, it was for life, with or without a ring. Although, the females tended to like the ring. I already knew that Emily would be getting one soon. Brady was planning it for Christmas. What a romantic.

  Working on this bathroom had worked out some of my frustration over the last couple weeks, but maybe after Brady left, I’d let my wolf out for a run. My house backed up to the Santa Catalina Mountains, and that was why I had chosen it. Sure, I could afford it, but the location was everything to me.

  This location was private, and I loved the mountains. My wolf could run free. It was my life blood. Now, if I could only find my mate, my life would finally be complete. I was almost thirty years old, and that was the only thing that was missing.

  Once we got the truck unloaded, we headed back inside with the last of the tile. The tile I had chosen looked like sandstone and matched the landscape around the house. It was just my style, and I could not wait for the bathroom to be finished. I hated having to go upstairs for a shower, and the half bathroom on the first floor was getting a little crowded with toiletries.

  The master bathroom in this house was already huge when I bought it, but I wanted it bigger. The shower was now its own room, and the jetted tub could easily hold four people, although, I was not quite willing to try that out. I had never had a woman in here before. Sure, I’d brought women home in the past, but for some reason, I’d always used one of the upstairs bedrooms.

  Girlfriends usually did not last long because of what I was, and humans could never discover what I was. For that reason, I kept relationships short, a couple months at the most, but I was a man after all. What man did not want a soft female body under him.

  However, my bedroom I had always kept off limits. It kind of seemed like a sacred place to me. It was my personal space, and I did not want to share that with anyone except my mate. Call me old fashioned, but that was how I was.

  Brady and I made good progress on placing the tile before he had to leave. The sun had already been down for over an hour, and I waved goodbye as he drove away in my Porsche. Brady loved that car almost as much as I did, and I grinned as I pushed the button to close the garage door and walked back inside the house.

  This house was definitely much more house than I needed, but when I bought it, I was hoping to have a family in the near future. I would be turning thirty just a few weeks after Christmas, and that thought made me feel old…and alone. The house had never seemed so empty as it did right now. I sighed and headed to the kitchen to fix some dinner.

  As was my usual routine, I sat down at the table with my plate and opened my laptop. It seemed that work was the only mate I would have, at least in the foreseeable future. That was okay. I liked my job, and I was good at it. Private security was something that I, along with several of the other men in my pack, had found that we excelled at. Of course, we did have an advantage.

  The wolf in me was the reason that I was so good at my job, and the other men as well. Our senses were better than a human’s, and our wolves gave us statures and body masses that we did not have to work that hard to maintain. It was like a body builder’s dream.

  We all understood each other, and we worked together with ease. Sure, it was my company, but I trusted every one of my men and they trusted me. As alpha of my pack, I was responsible for them. They were my pack, but they were also like brothers.

  I glanced down at the bottom corner of my screen and saw that it was almost 11:00 p.m. How had so much time passed already? I quickly finished what I was working on and then closed my laptop. Heading out of the dining room, I lifted my t-shirt over my head as I approached the patio doors. Making quick work of my jeans, I dropped the rest of my clothes to the floor and stepped outside into the frigid night air.

  The crisp air sent a chill through my body, but I quickly shifted to my wolf. He would have no problem staying warm in these cool temperatures. There were no lights on out here, and as I ran towards the mountains, I looked back at the house. The inside lights illuminated some of the property around the house, but I knew that I was alone. No one could see my wolf in the darkness of night.

  I ran for about an hour before returning to the house, always conscious to make sure that no one was around. Watching the house intently, and sniffing the air around me as I approached, I quickly shifted and made my way back inside, picking up my clothes where I had left them on the floor. Then I headed upstairs for a shower. I really could not wait for my bathroom to be finished.

  Chapter 1

  Chelsea

  I had survived Thanksgiving with my parents, along with the rest of the days leading up to this trip. Sure, they had tried to talk me out of it without openly asking me not to go, but I had held firm. I needed this time away. I’d had to promise them multiple times that I would call them every day. They didn’t like it, but I was going.

  My best friend dropped me off at the airport that morning. Well, my closest best friend, considering one of my close ex-best friends was sleeping with my ex-boyfriend. I rolled my eyes at that thought and felt a hand on my arm. I turned and looked at Jessica.

  “What’s the eye roll for? I didn’t know I was boring you,” she said with a chuckle. I just grinned at her. Jessica and I had known each other our whole lives.

  “Sorry, was just thinking of Sam again. Man, I really need to get him out of my head. He isn’t worth the frustration of thinking about,” I told her.

  “You got that right. This is what real friends are like. We take friends like you to the airport and encourage you to find a hot hunk and get laid on your vacation,” she replied. I snorted at that and then giggled.

  “I assure you that I am not looking for a man. Had enough of that recently with Sam, and now I just need some time for myself,” I exclaimed. This time, she rolled her eyes.

  “Girl, please tell me that if the opportunity presents itself that you will not turn it down. I have known you way too long, and right now, I know that you need to loosen up. The best way to do that, and to forget about Sam, is to find a hot hunk of male flesh and fuck him,” she said in an exasperated tone. I giggled again.

  “You’re right,” I told her, putting my arm around her shoulder. “This is definitely what best friends are for, and no, if some hot hunk decides he needs some of this, I sure won’t turn him down. But don’t get your hopes up,” I told her. She grinned at me, but thankfully, let the conversation drop. However, I was not holding out hope.

  I guess I was just as attractive as any other girl, and I’d had my share of boyfriends in the past, but I had never found anyone who seemed like a keeper. I did not necessary believe in soul mates, but the guys I had dated had been more like soul-less. Somehow, I just did not seem able to find a genuinely decent guy.

  The guys I had dated in the past had all been so self-centered. Not that I felt I needed their complete attention. Everyone liked a bit of time to themselves. But for once, it would be nice to find a man who was interested in finding out what my needs were.

  None of the guys who I had dated had bothered learning who I really was. Some actual conversation would be nice as well. And while I’m thinking about it, how about an orgasm every time I had sex. Men were so damn selfish in bed, at least, the ones I had been with were.

  I sighed in exasperation. Obviously, there were no
men out there like that. At least, I sure hadn’t found one yet. But that was not what I was looking for on this trip. This trip was about finding myself. I had been so lonely of late, and it always felt like there was a piece of me missing. Maybe this trip would help. At least, I hoped that it would.

  There was no way that I was telling Jessica that a one night stand was not happening. Finding a man to fuck was not the reason that I was heading to Arizona. I did not want to explain to her that I was going to find myself either. I was afraid she might laugh.

  Something was just missing in my life, and I needed time alone to figure out what that was. Time alone and a change of scenery was all that I was looking for. A man was not on the list of things I needed right now.

  I had been adopted when I was just a baby, and though I loved my adoptive parents as though they were my biological parents, there was still something missing. Sure, I had tried to find my birth parents, but after numerous dead ends, I finally had discovered that my biological mother was dead. There was no record of who my father was, and I now knew that I would never get those answers.

  Giving Jessica a hug and a sincere thank you for driving me here, I headed towards the security check. Flying was not my favorite thing, but I did have to admit, I was excited about this vacation. I had never done anything like this before, and I thought it was kind of sad considering that I had just turned twenty-eight.

  My life hadn’t been boring, but when I was with Sam, he had just been too busy with work. He would have never made time to take a vacation with me. He traveled so often with his job, and it had always made me kind of jealous that he had gotten to see so much while I was left sitting at home.

  When it was finally time to board the plane, I looked around at the other passengers who I would be sharing the flight with. There were people of all ages, from old to just toddlers. I watched the couples who were together. Some held hands, others stood in line with their heads close together, carrying on a private conversation.