The Mating (Black on Black, #1)

by BJ Cunningham

  “Well, I don’t joke about these things.” He said honestly, looking at her. He shifted his weight in his seat. He groaned a bit pain shot up his leg. “Fuck.” He growled clenching his jaw.

  She winced for him and put her cup on the bedside table so that she could rise onto her knees to pile pillows behind him. Pushing him back gently, she pulled his legs into her lap as she sat back down. “Neither do I. If you think we should go with it, I’ll do my best to trust that you’re right.” One side of her mouth curled up as she glanced up at him. Sliding one leg of the sweats up to his knee, she gently rubbed and massaged his calf, the way Damion had hers when she was a cub with growing pains.

  He didn’t argue with her when she manhandled him. As she rubbed his leg, he started to purr. “Thank you. If you could give me Damion’s number, that would be great.” He figured he’d start there and see how that went.

  Serra smiled at the purr that rumbled in his chest. Her hands froze for a second, and her heart jackhammered in her chest when he asked for her father’s number. Making her hands move to cover the panic racing through her and making her feel cold, she concentrated on what she was doing. “His number’s in my phone. What does he have to do with this?”

  “I need to talk to him, panther to panther, about all of this,” Jared said honestly. The note of panic in her voice made his brow arch. Maybe she was ashamed of him. Damion wasn’t the type to deal with others outside his circle, well. Just because Jared had saved his mate’s bacon once, didn’t mean that he’d be cool with Jared porking his daughter.

  She snorted and tried to cover her minor heart attack with a laugh. “Gods, do not tell me you need his permission. Which century do we live in now? It’s my body and life. I think I’ll decide if you all don’t mind?” Serra arched a brow and met his hazel eyes. “Besides, I’ve been avoiding seeing Pops for awhile now, and I’m not exactly anxious to have a family reunion, but do what you’ve got to do.” She sighed and switched legs.

  Nodding, Jared understood all too well. He hadn’t told his parents either. “It’s about respect, bottom line.” Jared stretched his legs one at a time. He was starting to feel better. “Hopefully, I’ll get all my powers back so I can stop bothering you.”

  Serra sat back and looked at him. “You’re not bothering me. I would have let it slip, by now, if you were. I’m as subtle as a brick to the face, or so I’m told.” She grinned and shook her hair back. “You’re welcome as long as you want to stay. And I do understand the respect thing. If you call from my phone, he’ll answer.” Her smile faded, and she slid her poker face into place. Knowing that she was hurting Pops by staying away, hurt her and she hated it. “He always does.”

  “Okay. May I have your phone, please?” Jared asked, taking his legs off her and dropping them over the side of the bed. Standing, he wondered where he could go that she wouldn’t hear him.

  “Yeah. Sure.” She crawled over the bed and opened the drawer of the table beside it. Reaching in, she pulled it out and stepped onto the floor to walk around the bed. Holding it out to him, she rolled up on her toes and kissed his cheek, purring as his scent filled her nose. “I need more coffee. Come down if you want, when you’re done?”

  Respecting privacy when Pops had tribunal or business to discuss on the phone was rule number one in the Mangus house. Even Mom didn’t intrude then. Serra had gotten so used to it, that it was her habit to leave any room where someone was using the phone. She didn’t even notice it anymore.

  Taking the phone, Jared smiled as she kissed his cheek. Once she was gone, he looked up Damion’s number and dialed it. He wanted to pace but didn’t think his legs would let him. So instead his mind paced for him while he waited for Damion to pick up.

  “Hey, Munchkin!” Damion said.

  “No, it’s not Serra. It’s Jared Morgan. Umm, do you have a moment to talk?” Jared hoped the elder panther wouldn’t come through the phone and end him.

  Damion sat back in his chair in his office and thinking his daughter was finally calling him. The moment he heard a male’s voice on the other end, his blood pressure spiked. And when found that it was Jared, he was even more annoyed. “Where is my daughter? If you did anything to her, I’ll reach down your throat and grab you by your balls and turn you inside out.” Damion snarled into his phone.

  Jared fought the urge to snap back at him, but he knew that wouldn’t do any good. “She’s fine. Look I’m only using her phone because mine broke. We need to talk. There is some stuff going on, and I think we need to be face to face for it. How soon can you be at your daughter’s home in NOLA, but without her knowing?” Jared asked.

  Listening, Damion wondered what they could possibly need to talk about. When Jared asked him to come to his daughter's place without her knowing, his curiosity spiked. “I’ll be outside, behind it in a few minutes. Meet me there.” Damion hung up the phone and told his mate he was going to check on some business, not wanting to upset Monica. He vanished from her sight into the backyard of his daughter’s new home.

  Jared hung up the phone and headed downstairs carefully and walked into the kitchen. He found Serra pouring herself a large mug of coffee. “Here’s your phone. Thank you for letting me use it. I’m going to step outside for a moment, for some air.” he said leaving the phone on the kitchen table. Although his feet were bare, he opened the back door, stepped outside and looked around for Damion.

  She glanced up when she heard Jared’s uneven shuffle on the stairs. His legs were bothering him more than he was admitting, but Panthers were like that. She smiled over her shoulder when he left her phone on the table and stepped outside. She watched the door close and took a long sip from her cup only to realize that she hadn’t added cream. Making a face, she opened the fridge and fixed the problem, purring her contentment on the second sip of the perfect cup.

  Gods, when it rained it poured. She had an unofficial mate, and now Pops knew where she was. Pushing the hair back from her face, she walked into the living room and picked up the remote to turn on the television, flipping through channels until she found a bad old B horror movie that didn’t require her to pay attention. Sinking onto the sofa, she smirked at the broken arm and let her mind cycle through the last few months. No scratch that. For her it had been a few months, but for her father it had been a decade.

  He was going to kick her ass. She scrubbed her face with her hand and tried not to get emotional about it. She missed him so much, but his being disappointed in her, that cut deep. That was what she couldn’t face.

  Jared limped out to the backyard and looked around for Damion. Spotting him, he made his way over to one of the most dangerous males on the planet. “Thank you for coming,” Jared said. The moment Damion looked at him, he could tell the elder panther was angry. Jared pushed his hands through his hair.

  Damion watched Jared limp out of the house and as he got closer his eyes gave him away. The sunbursts in them were the same color as Serra’s eyes. Rage started to boil in him. He wanted to grab Jared by the throat, choke and slam him to the ground. Instead, he stared at him. “You’re welcome. So what do you need to tell me other than you and my daughter are mates or could be?”

  Jared’s mouth fell open and then he closed it, quick.

  “I meant what I said about turning you inside out. If you think I’ll let anyone hurt her or ruin her life, you’re sorely mistaken.” Damion growled out at him.

  Jared’s mouth opened and closed when Damion spoke and when he threatened him, he let a growl roll up his throat. “Look, I don’t give two shits and a fuck if you like me. Serra is a big girl, and she can make up her own mind about things. And having sex with males is something that she decided she wanted to do.” Before Jared could say any more, Damion’s rage snapped, and Jared’s clothes started to go up in flames. Roaring, he threw himself on the ground, rolling to put them out.

  Damion couldn’t believe the panther had the balls to speak to him like that or talk about his daughter that way! Like some common s
lut? Before he could stop himself, he had set fire to Jared or tried to. As Jared rolled around on the ground, he heard the asshole’s thoughts the real reason he had asked Damion here. Some other Panthers were after his position with the clan. They had threatened his family, and they wanted to start with Serra. Damion’s blood ran cold with the thought of anyone trying to kill or use his family against him. Then his blood began to boil over with rage. He waved his hand and put Jared out. Before Jared could get to his feet, or say anything else, Damion vanished.

  A scream that didn’t sound human or animal cut through the air. Serra could feel the air vibrating with malice and then her gut churned and she knew Jared was in pain. Dropping her mug, she ghosted into the back yard, just in time to see Damion wave his hand, extinguish whatever was rolling on the ground at his feet and disappear. Serra’s jaw dropped open and her eyes closed for a second. Her father had just tried to burn her soon to be mate, alive. Running to Jared, she dropped to her knees and stopped just short of touching him, afraid that doing it would bring him more pain, particularly where there were burns. “For fuck sake, Pops!” She growled even though she knew he couldn’t hear her. “It’s going to be alright, Baby,” She purred, stroking an unburned spot on his head. “I’ve got you, and then I’m going to commit patricide.” Looking him over, full of worry, she ghosted him back inside.

  Once Jared was sure that the Cubs were still okay with Daniel, he offered Serra his hand and ghosted them to The Pit. His calves still ached, and the healing burns weren’t improving his mood. When was he going to learn? Trying to help anyone never paid off and the messenger always was the one that felt the hurt.

  Ozzy had given him time off to adjust to having the twins, but time was running out. It was the theme of his life. Jared swore that he could hear the second hand of doom ticking away, counting down to his own personal apocalypse. He should be handling shit not babysitting Serra, and he was here for the nanny interview that he’d scheduled last week.

  Serra pulled her hand from his and looked around. The air buzzed with chatter, even this early in the day and the scent of gumbo blanketed everything, making her stomach grumble. “Go do what you need to. I’ll mingle.” She tried to smile as worry that the scent from the motorcycle the other day, was in here chewed at her gut, killing her appetite.

  Jared didn’t like it. He couldn’t watch out for her if she was hidden in the crowd. Although after his run in with Damion, he didn’t know why he cared. Nodding, he tucked the blonde hair behind her ear and inhaled her scent discreetly, hating the way his panther stirred and burned to have her. It hadn’t been like that with his other mates and the hope it gave him that maybe, this time, wasn’t a cruel joke pissed him off. “Stay close, where I can see you.” He arched a warning brow before tempering the demand. “Please?”

  Nodding and stuffing her hands into her back pockets, she bristled and turned away, biting back a stream of ’don’t tell me what to do.’ They hadn’t fought since the last time they were here and with the decisions they had to make, she didn’t want to break the fragile peace between them. Besides, she felt guilty as hell for Pops setting him on fire. She glanced over her shoulder to apologize again, but he was already at the bar talking to a young girl.

  After talking to Paula’s friend Whitney about everything he would need her to do for the Cubs, he sat at the bar thinking it over. She seemed nice enough, for a human. He didn’t trust any of them. Humans were so flakey and fragile. Trusting his Cubs to someone that he didn’t know well, was some scary shit. Not that he had a choice. Jared knew that he couldn’t assume that Daniel would always take time out of his days off to be there for them, and it wasn’t fair of Jared to ask that of the boy. He had his life to get on with and live. As Jared lowered his beer to the bar, the hair on the back of his neck stood up. He could feel eyes on him and then her scent hit him. How could he forget that Serra was here waiting for him? To be honest, he wouldn’t be surprised if she decided that he had no say and left his sorry ass here, alone. But she’d kept her promise, and Jared could sense that she was somewhere in the bar.

  Serra sat in a booth with her feet kicked up on the bench seat, people watching as she sipped a beer. It was quiet and not as entertaining as she’d hoped. She could scent the panther. Without her meaning to her eyes found him. Tilting her head down and looking over the top of her Oakleys, her chest tightened, and her palms began to sweat. She should go and talk to him so that they could get this settled. She didn’t want to. She blew out her breath and finished the rest of her beer. She should never have left the Mountain.

  She rubbed her eyes under the dark glasses and tried not to stare at him. His wide shoulders bunched as he leaned against the wooden bar top and his longish dark hair brushed the top of his collar. She watched his back stiffen and had a sinking feeling that he knew that she was ogling him. Damn his panther senses. How could any of this be her destiny? The answer sat across the room. Sighing, Serra considered sneaking out before Jared came to find her if he bothered. Groaning she picked her phone up off the table and typed a text, [Booth in the back corner. Bring more beer.]

  His phone went off on the bar. Looking down, he touched the screen and read the message. Jared ordered a bucket of beer, and when Brock brought it, he gathered up his stuff and went to join her in the booth. “You know I should be pissed at you.” He said, sliding into the booth and taking a beer from the bucket.

  Her brow arched. Was the truce over? “For what? I haven’t done anything yet!” She forced a smile and eyed the aluminum bucket of ice and beer onto the table. “You brought the beer. How mad can you be?” She pulled her knees to her chest and tried to look small and cute, pushing her glasses into place with a finger.

  He drank his beer as the jukebox started to blast Attila. “Because I told you to stay where I could see you, and you’re hiding in a dark corner. I’d be offended if I didn’t know you needed me.” He took a long drink of his beer, eyeing her.

  Serra sighed and stopped bobbing her head to the music. “I don’t like crowds.” She smiled tightly, not feeling the need to explain why she wanted to see anything coming at her and not sneaking up behind. She pulled a beer from the bucket and popped the top, hoping he wouldn’t realize what a crock of shit all of that was.

  “I didn’t take you for a wussy.” He said with a smirk over his bottle. “Then again I’ve been wrong about chicks before. It’s a skill of mine.”

  “Ouch! And he comes out swinging!” She laughed, raising her bottle in silent salute, trying hard not to be offended or let it get under her skin. “There was more to it, but I’m not sure that I want to bring it up.” She sipped the beer, watching him over the bottle.

  Jared put his beer down and looked at her. “Bring up what?” He arched a brow.

  Serra shook her head no.

  “What are you hiding? I don’t like lies and games. I’ve been fucked over enough.” He sat back in the booth, looking at her.

  Her brows rose as he went all dominant male on her, and bitchy comments rolled to the tip of her tongue before she bit it to keep it quiet. Taking a deep breath, she pushed her dark glasses up to the top of her head, exposing her eyes and looked at him levelly. “Not playing games Jared. No offense, future mate or not, I don’t know you. I don’t know if I can trust you, so please forgive me if I keep my personal shit to myself.” She couldn’t help it, being called a wussy after all of the shit that she’d dragged herself through, pissed her off.

  He arched his brow yet again. Taking off his shades, he tossed them on the table, the pissed off, burning brightly in his blue tinged hazel eyes. “Trust me? Why the fuck should I trust you?”

  She glared at him, her molars grinding so hard that it hurt her jaw.

  “Come now, Kitten. How long do you think we can play this game? If you want to lop my balls off, just fucking do it and get it over with. And between us? This doesn't mean shit to me. I’ve been down this road a few times. For all I know, this ain’t even real. It could be a
fated dose of herpes that likes to flare up on me.” His voice was cold.

  Serra growled. “Fuck you. Okay? I didn’t make this shit happen and if you think you’re going to act like I did? Then, fuck you.” Her voice turned just as cold as his and she was so livid that she was shaking. How fucking dare he! “Maybe you’ve been here before, but it’s my first time, asshole. Maybe you’re too jaded to give a fuck, but this still means something to me. Or I thought it did. My mistake, but don’t worry. I won’t make it again.” She finished her beer, slammed the bottle down and shoved the table into his chest when she stood up to leave. “I would never have fucked you over in this, not that you’ll believe that, or at this point will ever fucking know. I don’t need you. You need me, but fuck it and fuck you. I’m out.”

  Jared grabbed her arm and growled. “You ain’t getting off that easy. If you leave without finishing this, it’ll totally fuck me. You come here, and this happens. How do you want me to act?”

  She arched a brow looking from his hand on her arm to his eyes with a look that said a toe tag was in his near future. “Let. Go.”

  He saw the look on her face and let go of her arm. “I’m sorry.” He let his voice soften. “I’ve been through a lot, and you don’t know the history of my shit pit of a life. I shouldn’t assume you’re out to hurt me like everyone has. I know this shit isn’t easy. And for a male, it’s a lot harder. Being at the mercy of a female again? That fucking terrifies me.” Growling at himself, he should have known better than to give into his urges. If he were smart, he would have cut his shit off and be happy as a unic. The last thing he wanted to do was fuck her life up. Jared looked away as the pain of the past hit him.