by Elle Boon
“This side doesn’t have an opening directly to the outside, but there’s a courtyard above where we get together and grill for parties. I’m sure some of the ladies will be by to see if you were up to that kind of get together before they plan it. If not, I can show you where everything is. Although we’re safe here, I don’t want you or the girls leaving the property until the danger has been eliminated.” He didn’t tell her the danger wouldn’t be over until her mother is taken care of.
“My mother isn’t going to just let us go without a fight, especially not Rebel. She’s her last link to Sarah.” Hurt laced Sheila’s tone.
Arynn wondered if she was going to invite him inside, but didn’t push, staying in the relaxed position he’d taken while talking to Romie. “Why is Rebel more important to her than Romie? Both girls are important.” The fact he wanted to wring the old woman’s neck for not thinking the other child wasn’t as precious as his own daughter had him pausing. Each girl was special, no matter who the biological mother and father were.
“Why aren’t you coming inside?” Sheila asked.
He shifted to stand. “I wasn’t invited.”
Rebel came to a stop next to Sheila. “Are you like a vampire or something?” she gasped then shook her head on a laugh. “No, you were out in the daylight, and you weren’t all sparkly or turning to ash. I’m thinking he has manners, mom.”
“Why yes, I do. My mama even taught me to wipe my feet before entering a home and to say please and thank you,” he joked, grinning at his daughter.
“Sounds like your mom is a good mom.” Was that wistfulness he heard in her voice.
“She is, and she can’t wait to meet you and Romie. I told her about you three. My brother Torq is with another pack, but he sends his love and welcome.”
“We have another grandma?” Rebel looked at him then her mom. “Is she like old and grandmotherly?”
Oh, he so wished his mother was here to hear that description. “I hate to disabuse you of that visual, but the only thing you got right is the grandmotherly in training. You see, as our kind, which is what you are as well, we don’t age like normal humans. I think this is a conversation best had while sitting, though.” He indicated the ladies lead the way.
Sheila nodded. “I wasn’t sure what to say or how to explain. Heck, I don’t even know what to expect myself.”
The anxiety flowing off her had his Omega abilities reaching out to soothe her, yet it was the man who pulled her into his arms. He tucked her head onto his chest, feeling the beast inside him purr like a damned contented cat. “You’re doing great, stellina. Let’s get something to drink and all of us sit down together. I’ll explain everything and answer any question you or the girls have.”
Her deep sigh pressed her full breasts into his chest. Although their embrace wasn’t sexual, his cock hardened beneath his fly. It took a little move of his lower body to keep her from feeling the blatant show of his need, but he didn’t push her away.
“In case I haven’t said it, thank you, Arynn.” Through his flannel shirt, he felt her press a kiss, the contact made his body jerk in reaction.
“You don’t need to thank me. You’re family, Sheila,” he said much gruffer than he’d meant.
Sheila pulled back, wondering why he sounded strange. His blue eyes glowed, the eerie reminder should’ve scared her, but instead, it turned her on. Everything about Arynn Dunn turned her on, making her wish for things she shouldn’t. Her own sister had claimed the man holding her, telling Sheila he’d been the best lover she’d ever had, and Sarah had a lot of lovers before she’d settled down with Dan. Sheila couldn’t be sure Sarah would’ve been faithful to her husband, more than likely, had they lived, neither of them would’ve kept to their vows. A shudder wracked her frame at the thought of Dan. She shoved the memory of the man who fathered her precious Romie to the back of her mind, locking it behind so many doors even she couldn’t get to unless she wanted. Never did she want the truth to come out as to how Romie was conceived.
“What’s wrong?” Arynn asked, his hands tightening on her arms, steadying her.
“Nothing, I’m worried about how the girls will take all the upheavals in their lives.” It wasn’t a complete lie, she knew Rebel and Romie were resilient, yet too many punches could drop even the staunchest fighters.
“I’m gonna let you get by with that, for now,” Arynn said with a growl.
His voice had her stomach flipping, her nipples tightening. Lord, she’d never had such a visceral reaction to a man, any man, in real life before. Before he could question her more, she turned and led the way into the large room that was separated into sections by its furniture. It was more like a huge loft, with the kitchen on the industrial side, while the living and dining room was a mix of modern and contemporary combined. The furniture was done in a mixture of greys, blacks, and creams with pops of turquoise and yellow, giving it a warm feeling. She led the way into the living area where Rebel and Romie were lying on each side of the sectional, leaving a two-person chair and two recliners side-by-side. She opted for the huge chair, wanting to curl up in it with one of the throws that had been placed over the corner.
“This is really nice,” Arynn commented, standing with his feet apart as he looked around.
She let her eyes take in his muscular frame. He’d changed into a pair of black jeans, a black T-shirt that fit him like a glove and the red and black flannel. There was a chain going from one of the loops in front around to the back, making her think naughty thoughts of him chaining her up. Dang, she’d never had those type of fantasies and blamed the latest Fifty Shades movie. “I really love the décor. These blankets are soft and look easy to make, but they’re not.” She inhaled, licking her dry lips.
“A friend of a couple of the girls’ is a designer. She’s still in school but was able to do all the apartments by looking at pictures, since she’s not one of us she wasn’t allowed to come down here. I don’t know much about designing, but Nene clearly does. She’s one of Lyric’s and Syn’s friends. You’ll meet those two crazy shewolves sooner rather than later.”
At the mention of shewolves, Rebel and Romie sat their phones down, perking up. “Let’s start with that. I think maybe explain exactly what we’ve come into and if we’re safe here.”
Arynn sat down across from Sheila, his gaze locked on hers, then turned to Rebel and Romie. “I think its safe to say that you all have figured out there’s more than humans running around. Yes?” He waited for them to nod. “I’m a natural born shifter, as well as the men you met upstairs. You, Rebel, are half shifter and half other. Without me getting inside your head, or having Jenna here to tell me exactly what, I’m not sure. As for you, Sheila and Romie, you’re both also other as well as human. I’d only sensed human on all of you when I first arrived, except Rebel. Her wolf is close. I don’t know if it’s because she’s hitting puberty.” He winced.
Rebel groaned. “Oh, God, so I not only have to go through my monthly crap, I’m also going to get furry? What about shaving and shedding?”
The gorgeous man laughed and continued until he fell back against the leather cushions. “That’s a good one. You’re most assuredly my child.” He wiped at his eyes, clearly trying to get his laughter under control.
Her daughter jumped up, her finger pointing at Arynn. “You think this is funny? Have you ever been sitting in class and felt like ants were crawling all over you? How about when you were in PE and the legs you’d shaved that morning, all the sudden looked like you hadn’t shaved in like forever? Do you know how humiliating that is, especially when Carrie points and laughs and gets everyone else to do the same?”
The huge man got up, taking the angry girl into his arms. Sheila moved to stand but sat back as he pulled Rebel into his arms. “I’m sorry, Rebel. I didn’t mean to make light of anything you’ve gone through. I was hoping to ease some of your fears. If you want, I can see if Jenna will pay this Carrie a visit. I’d bet your allowance for a year, that girl wou
ld think twice before she ever made fun of anyone ever again.”
“I’m sorry, too. It’s not your fault she’s a jackholette. I heard she’s the town bicycle anyway, so more than likely she has to keep her legs shaved just in case,” Rebel sniffed.
“Rebel Brianne, that’s not nice.” Sheila felt her face flame as Arynn looked over at her, mouthing the words town bike with a raise of his dark brows.
“I think we got off topic. How about we take a seat and you ask me anything.” Arynn leaned back, brushing the hair back from Rebel’s forehead.
Sheila got up and sat next to Romie, seeing something akin to jealousy in her daughter’s eyes. Rebel nodded then came and sat next to her. Arynn, instead of taking the chair he’d been in originally, planted himself on the huge square ottoman in front of them.
“Alright, fire away. What’s your burning questions?”
Romie raised her hand. “You said mom and I were other. What does that mean, exactly?
“There are many different species, ones we are only learning about ourselves. Jenna, the one you met earlier, she’s the Fey Queen. She’s one hundred percent Fey. Her mates are vampire wolf hybrids.”
Sheila and her girls all three gasped at his announcement. Vampires and shifters? What next? Dragons and demons? She took a deep breath. “I’m assuming the vampire shifter guys are on the good guy side?” She felt kinda stupid asking, but a girl really needed to get some verification on these things. Wow, did she need to get some holy water and start carrying a wooden stake?
Arynn leaned forward, taking first Romie’s hand, then Rebel’s and finally hers in between his much larger ones. “Yes, the Cordell’s are very much on the good guy side. There are some who go to the dark side, which we were unaware of until recently. Luckily, we’re trained to deal with them now. There’s also the Dark Fae, but I don’t know much about them, other than they are power hungry and not to be trusted. From the Fey Realm, that’s where Jenna is from, there’s other types of shifters, but I’ve only met one other type of shifter, which were cats. We don’t really mingle with the others as we try to keep to ourselves.”
“How do you afford all this? I mean, your Cadillac wasn’t a cheap vehicle, nor were any of the ones I saw in the lot when we came in.” Sheila barely kept herself from turning her hand in his so their palms touched.
“That’s why the Iron Wolves MC was created years ago by Kellen’s father. He was the alpha and knew that humans tended to steer clear of motorcycle clubs, thinking they were bad. It’s worked in our favor. We’ve diversified in order to make money legally to support our growing families and pack, becoming one of the most sought after custom vehicle shops in the country. We all have very specific talents when it comes to the business.”
“That’s all cool and stuff, but how about me. Am I going to become a wolf or something else?” Fear edged into Rebel’s tone; the tough as nails little girl she’d raised was trying to keep her cool, but Sheila could see how both she and Romie were holding on by a thread.
“You’re something that’s different than anything I, or any of us, have come across. I have a feeling your grandmother suppressed your wolf when you were born in order to keep me from sensing her. She convinced me it was in your best interest to allow you to be raised by Sarah and Dan. I now wonder if she didn’t fuck—I mean mess with my head. It’s what Jenna and Kellen think as well. There was no way I would’ve left you, wolf or no. If I had to guess, I would say that your wolf is waking up because of your body changes. Sorry, I know you don’t want to discuss that, but we wolves don’t really find anything off limits.” He grinned sheepishly, making him appear younger.
“Will you help me unsuppress her? She doesn’t like it. I can tell,” Rebel said, glancing toward Sheila then back at Arynn.
He nodded, letting go of the hand in his. “Of course, I can. Jocelyn is a new shifter as well. Her wolf was suppressed, but not because of something done to her, but because of her ancestors or something. I’m not sure exactly, but I can see if she’ll come and help us. Her mate will also want to come, since he can’t seem to let her out of his sight for long.”
When he’d first mentioned the other woman’s name, an instant denial hit her until he’d mentioned mate. Shit, she was becoming one of those women, becoming territorial on a man who was only trying to help them. Sheila needed to remember she was only here because she’d become the mother of his child, not because he wanted her.
Chapter Seven
Arynn could see Sheila trying to draw away from him and wasn’t going to allow it. Romie sat in stony silence, making him realize the other girl also had began retreating. “You realize you’re all mine, right? Not just Rebel, but you Romie and you Sheila? You may not understand what that means yet, but you will. Romie, you may not be flesh of my flesh, but you’re mine the same as Rebel. I’ve claimed you. My wolf has claimed you. You’re my daughter of my heart. It’ll take you time to believe me, but I’d lay my life down for the three of you equally. You too, Sheila. I have a feeling things were meant to be different twelve years ago, but somehow your sister manipulated me and you. I can’t regret that night because Rebel was created, but I do regret that we’ve lost twelve years. Starting right now, I’ll do as I should’ve done all those years ago. Girls’ close your eyes. I’m going to kiss your mother.”
He stood, pulling Sheila to her feet. With the girls looking on, he bent and put his lips to Sheila’s taking her breath into his lungs as she exhaled on a gasp. He held her head in place with one palm on the back of her head, the other he wrapped around her waist, pulling her in tight to his body, lifting her off her feet. His tongue licked along Sheila’s, tasting the sweet flavor of strawberries. Slowly, he eased her back to her feet, not wanting to molest his mate in front of the two tween girls. At the last second, he bent Sheila back, winking at Romie and Rebel and rubbed his nose against Sheila’s then gave her a peck on her lips. “Sweet,” he murmured low.
Sheila’s breathing was rapid, her eyes glassy as they stared up at him. “Wow, that was—that was something.”
“Oh my, mom, really. I think we need to excuse ourselves while mom figures out how to stand on her own two feet,” Romie snickered.
The young girl’s words brought a blush to Sheila’s face, making him wish they were alone and wanting to know if that same rosy hue went all over her when she was aroused. Her scent was driving him wild. Before he did something stupid, like drag Sheila out of the living area and into the closest bedroom where the two impressionable teens would surely know, and hear, what was going on, he made sure Sheila could stand. “I need to check on a few things. If you need anything, holler. Oh, I forgot to give you this.” He pulled a new phone out of his back pocket. “I’ve programmed my number in. Just hit the favorites icon. I’m number one, by the way. I’ve also put a few of the others numbers in there, just in case.”
Rebel nudged Sheila with her elbow. “Say okay.”
“Oh, right. Thank you. Um, do you have the number?” She slapped her hand to her forehead. “Stupid question, of course you do. When will you be back?”
He liked that she seemed as fazed as he was by their kiss. “I’ll be back in a couple hours, then we can go and cook some dinner up at the courtyard.”
When Sheila licked her lips, he had to reign his wolf back. They’d claim her once she agreed to be theirs. She’d heard him tell her she was his, but she’d not said a word. Did she understand what he was saying? Fuck, he’d never thought to have a mate who wasn’t part of the pack. Truth be known, he’d thought he’d never mate with a woman, wolf or other. Now, he not only had a woman he knew was his chosen mate, but one the fates had created just for him.
“I’ll see you three in a couple hours. If you need me or need anything, just give me a ring.” He didn’t wait for a reply, turning on his heel and beat feet to the door.
Once he was back in the hallway, he let out the breath he’d been holding, coming to a hard stop at the sight of Lyric and little Harlow. “He
y there, little lady. Where’s your daddy?” He held his finger out to the little girl who had eyes that looked too intelligent for a child.
“Rowan is doing some recon of the perimeter. He said he felt the hair on the back of his neck rising or itching. When he gets that way, we know to let him run it off.”
Arynn smiled at the description. Rowan had been a Navy SEAL but had retired, presumably to start his own security business when he’d met Lyric walking out of a bar. The big human hadn’t realized what walking outside the club that night would do to his life, but he’d stepped in to save what he’d thought was a human woman getting attacked by several men. When those men had shifted and bit Rowan, leaving him to die, Lyric had decided to save him as she and her wolf had recognized their mate. Now, he was a valued member of the pack, although Xan, the second and her big brother, sometimes liked to think his baby sister was still innocent. She still looked like she was just out of college, but with a baby on her hip, and usually the big ex-SEAL next to her, Lyric was a force to be reckoned with.
“I thought I’d introduce us to your girls, if they’re up for a little company?” Lyric asked while Harlow gripped his finger tighter.
“Dang, she’s got a lot of power in those hands,” he remarked.
Lyric laughed. “She sure does. I think she’s preparing for when Kellen’s boys try to boss her around. Or maybe it’s for when Syn and Bodhi’s boy is born,” she gasped, slapping her hand over her mouth.
“I won’t tell, but you better not tell Wyck. That man can’t keep a secret and his mate is even worse.” He leaned down and nuzzled Harlow’s neck, making her giggle and grab his hair. “Kid, you’re definitely going to be a force to be reckoned with just like your mama.”
“Sssh, I’m trying to convince Rowan that it’s time for another one. Ain’t that right Harlow? Don’t you want a baby brother or sister?” Lyric tickled Harlow’s belly, while the little girl giggled and nodded.