Until last night. Now she knew two things about shifters. Their reputation as the best lovers was entirely true.
Her body still tingled in places she didn’t know she had nerve endings from the thorough loving she’d gotten last night. No wonder women were throwing themselves at shifters left and right. Last night’s sex with her lion had been amazing with all capital letters.
Her lion. Oh, if only that were true, she sighed sadly. But she was a big girl and had learned to face reality head on a long time ago. Bachar would never be her lion.
She smiled when she saw her clothes folded neatly by the bed along with her phone. She ignored them and grabbed Bachar’s shirt from yesterday and pulled it over her head. Looking at the time, she realized it wasn’t that late, still early morning in fact. About the time she usually started her day. She walked to the large bank of windows, taking in the frozen landscape. Sometime during the night, it had stopped snowing—but not before dumping at least a foot of snow. The roads, thankfully, appeared to have been plowed and looked passable.
She wrapped her arms around her, a sense of dread settling on her. She bit her lip, not sure what she should do. Bachar had assured her that her brother was safe, but something inside her told her that he wasn’t. Or wouldn’t be. Ever since Nick had been born, she’d gotten these feelings. It was the same feelings that had led her here yesterday. Her baby brother needed her.
Hurrying to the bathroom, she quickly dressed, pulling on the underwear that, thankfully, was fully dried before donning her jeans. She skipped her bra, not wanting to take off Bachar’s shirt. She pulled the sweater that had gotten wet last night and was once again dry, on top of it before stuffing the rest of her meager belongings into her backpack.
In five minutes she was stepping off the elevator into the lobby of the hotel. At the front desk was an unfamiliar man. “Hello,” she greeted him. “Is Daniel here?”
She wasn’t sure the man from last night would have help her, but she figured he’d have been more willing than this complete stranger. The man looked up, and Sally almost wanted to step back. He reminded her of the hotel clerk in the first hotel she’d stopped at. The one where she’d met Bachar.
“No, he isn’t.” He continued to look at her as if she were wasting his time.
Sally cleared her throat knowing what she was about to do wasn’t wise. “I need a car, please. A four-wheel drive vehicle.” Even if Bachar had allowed her to drive her rental car up the mountain, she was doubtful it could have navigated the road’s current condition.
The man’s lip curled up into a sneer. “And why would I give you a car?”
“Because Bachar—”
At the sound of the alpha’s name, the man seemed to snap to attention—but not in a good way. His eyes narrowed as they raked up and down her frame and she instantly regretted not buttoning up her coat to hide her breasts from his intrusive gaze.
“So, you’re the woman who spent the night with him?” Sally didn’t think there could be any more derogatory inflection in the man’s voice. She realized that the man probably wasn’t a shifter because she knew if any other shifter had heard him, they would have taken him out. One thing she’d learned in her few dealings with shifters was that insubordination and disrespect were not tolerated—especially to an alpha.
She chose to ignore his question. She didn’t think claiming any sort of status with Bachar at the moment would do her any favors. “I was wondering if you could tell me where I might find the Richardson Pack.” Bachar hadn’t shared much information about her brother last night after they had, um, gotten to know each other better, but he had eventually told her the name of the wolf pack that had found him. She felt a little shimmer of guilt at what she was doing. She considered the promise she’d made last night null and void since the sun had come up once again. And, she now knew Nick’s location. It wasn’t as though she were going to traipse up the mountain, heading off into the wild.
If possible, the man’s countenance became even sleazier. “Might have known you’d want to find another one to sleep with.”
“The directions, please?” Sally clenched her hands to keep from slapping the man. She really wished Daniel had been around. Eventually, the man gave her directions which sounded simple enough. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing again, so, the turn off he described should be easy to find. She put a sliver of steel in her spine and stated again. “I’ll need a vehicle.”
He stared at her a few more moments before moving away. At first, she thought he was going to ignore her request. Then, he was handing her a set of keys. “It’s parked out back.”
She frowned when he didn’t give her any paperwork to complete. “How will I know which one?”
He looked at her as if she were two sandwiches short of a picnic. “Push the damn button.” He motioned to the key fob in her hand.
“Oh. Okay.” Sally blushed, suddenly feeling like an idiot for asking. It had been a legitimate question, though. Who sent someone out to find a car in a parking lot without a little more information?
She failed to see the man reach for his cell phone as she walked out of the hotel.
Bachar tried to suppress a yawn as Tarek drove steadily back down the mountain. As much as it had pained him to leave Sally—leave his mate—he had kept his promise to find her brother as quickly as possible. Because of the storm last night, they hadn’t been able to reach the pack. He’d talked to the alpha by phone and had been assured that the young wolf shifter was safe and sound.
This morning he had called Tarek as soon as he’d awaken—well not as soon as he’d first stirred, he thought with a smile. He had tasted his mate again before leaving the warmth of their bed. She had smelled of him, and his lion had wanted nothing more than to stay and rub itself against her. Even after loving her, her eyes and lips had held a slumberous expression that beckoned him on a level he’d never known existed before.
During those long evening hours, he had stopped fighting his cat, destiny, and fate. Holding her in his arms, he realized he could no more deny her as his mate then he could refuse to take his next breath. She was a part of him. A gift he would cherish the rest of his life.
“Late night?” Tarek asked, his gaze darting to Bachar even as he took the mountain curves at a slightly dangerous speed. Not that Bachar was complaining, he wanted to get back to Sally as quickly as possible.
This morning they had indeed found her brother safe and well cared for. After some discussion with the alpha and elders of the pack, Bachar had agreed to let the boy stay with the wolves. All had agreed it would be the best thing for the young shifter. He had made it very clear that his mate would have access to her brother at any even given time.
Her brother, while remorseful to have left and worried his sister unnecessarily, had shown courage in the face of Bachar’s displeasure. He had, in fact, insisted that he was doing what was best for Sally. His concern for his sister’s safety had been one of the driving factors for him to seek out a wolf pack. He’d been afraid he would hurt her during one of his uncontrolled shifts.
“More like no sleep at all.”
“But you’re not complaining?”
Bachar heard the note of confusion in Tarek’s voice and laughed.
“Have I not told you before that you should lose yourself in a woman’s arms for the night, my friend? There is no other feeling like it.” Bachar sighed and allowed himself to sink into the heated leather seats. That warmth would have to suffice until he could wrap himself in Sally’s sweetly, scented arms once again.
Tarek frowned at him. For more reasons than he could ever share with the man he considered his alpha and a friend, Tarek knew he could never risk spending the night in a woman’s arms the way Bachar suggested. Losing his senses in the smell and taste of her, oblivious to everything around him. Too much danger lurked in the shadows as Tarek had discovered more than once during his long life.
But he wondered if his friend was ready to admit just how much Sally actua
lly meant to him. He’d sensed no claiming fever in the alpha this morning, so that meant the man had not bonded with his mate last night. Was the man going to sacrifice his chance at happiness to keep his pride safe? The humans were a threat, but one that could be easily contained if Bachar removed the restraints he’d placed on Tarek on how the pride was to deal with them. Or maybe he needed a small nudge, Tarek thought. “So Sally is just another whore who—”
His alpha let out a loud roar that had Tarek’s hands jerking at the wheel and his wolf clawing to be let out. It was the warning of a predatory male protecting what was his. Even as he brought the vehicle back under control, a large hand closed around his throat, and a rush of heat fanned the side of his face where Bachar’s open mouth—with fully elongated fangs—pressed.
“She. Is. My. Mate.” Bachar’s words were slurred as he forced them out, his animal so near the surface that Tarek actually thought the man would shift. At the speed they were traveling, they would both suffer grave, if not fatal, injuries. If Bachar shifted Tarek would be forced to do the same to defend himself. No doubt their vehicle would plunge over the rocky side of the cliff. He stayed perfectly still, easing his foot from the accelerator. “Alpha.”
Bachar fought through the buzzing in his head; fought to gain control of his lion as the animal threatened to emerge. He heard Tarek call to him. Knew he had to respond. As his senses returned, he realized what he had done—or almost done.
“Well, shit,” he cursed as he eased his hand from around his security chief’s throat and sat back in the leather seat that had provided so much comfort just seconds before. Now, it only added to the heat rushing over his skin.
“Well, shit, indeed.” With any other man, especially Keair, the snarky remark would have been accompanied by a sniggering smile. Not with Tarek. The wolf’s hands were steady as he continued to drive as if a near fatal attack by his alpha had not just occurred.
“Just so we’re clear, Tarek, Sally is my mate, and she will be treated with respect.”
“Of course, Alpha. I meant no disrespect.”
“I know, it’s just—”
“You cannot control the animal.”
“Right. But you’ll realize it someday. When you meet your mate.”
“I don’t think so.”
Bachar grunted. “Let me assure you, your animal will be just as out of control as mine when she comes into your life.”
“I will have no mate.”
“What?” Bachar gave his full attention to the man who was more than just a member of his pride. He considered the lone wolf a friend as well. “Why do you say that?”
Tarek remained silent, and Bachar thought he wasn’t going to answer. Then he heard the low, softly spoken words. Words he would never have thought to hear from the other man. “I am not worthy of a mate.”
“Tarek…” He knew the wolf’s past was riddled with pain. He’d been about to go rogue when Bachar had discovered him living on the mountain all those years ago. But he hadn’t asked about that past. Maybe that had been a mistaken on his part.
“We are here.” Tarek slowed and pulled into the circular area in front of the hotel. He sat with the engine running, his attention focused ahead. Bachar wanted to stay and talk to him, but the call of his mate pulled at his lion. He cursed softly and exited the four wheel drive. He did lean back in before closing the door. “This conversation is not over, my friend.”
He infused his tone with the power of his alpha so that the wolf would know he meant business. As expected, he received no answer. He shut the door and watched for a brief moment as Tarek drove away. Now that he had found his mate, he knew he needed to actively seek mates for those males around him. Maybe, with mated shifters, the humans surrounding them would be more likely to accept them.
Now that he had his mate—his Sally—his thoughts were rushing to grow his pride where couples—and cubs—could flourish. Not just make money. For years, he realized, he had merely been existing. Surviving.
That, he thought with a smile on his face at the prospect of seeing Sally again, was about to change.
Bachar’s good mood lasted as long as it took him to arrive at his suite and discover that Sally was no longer there. Immediately, his lion began to pace, the animal as agitated as Bachar had ever felt. He rushed back down the stairs, too impatient to wait for the elevator. Daniel was not at the front desk. Instead, there was a man he had never seen before. A human. Bachar frowned. While he left the hiring and firing of personnel within the many pride businesses to the individual managers, he emphasized the importance of having shifters in jobs where discretion and security were important.
“Where’s Daniel?”
The man looked up from the computer, a bored and lazy expression on his face. “I don’t know.” The words and I don’t care, were strongly implied. The man’s attitude infuriated both Bachar and his cat, especially with the worry building inside of him concerning Sally.
He leaned closer planning to rip the man a new one. That’s when he scented her. She had been here, probably stood right where he was standing, and not too long ago.
“Where the hell is my mate?” The roar that left Bachar’s throat would have rivaled his brothers in the wild. The man jumped, startled, and almost fell from the stool on which he had been sitting. It also brought several other employees running from the back. Before they got to them, Bachar was up and over the counter, his hand around the human’s throat, lifting him from the floor. The man clawed at his throat as his air was slowly cut off from the tightening of Bachar’s hand.
“Where is she?” From the fear in the man’s eyes, Bachar knew he didn’t have to explain who he was looking for, nor was Bachar left in any doubt as to this man’s involvement.
“She—I—.” The man gurgled his answer
“You might want to give him enough air to speak.” This came from behind Bachar, and the amused tone told him it wasn’t Tarek. Keair had finally decided to make an appearance. He spared the tiger shifter a brief but telling glance. He would deal with his second-in-command’s notable absence of the day before later.
After he found his mate.
He did as Keair suggested and eased the grip on the man’s throat, even lowering him slightly until his toes touched the floor. “Where?”
“She wanted to borrow a car.” The words were innocently spoken, but the man refused to look him in the eye.
“And where did she go?”
“I didn’t ask.”
At that point, Bachar was torn between throwing the useless human against the nearest wall or shredding his throat with the claws that had appeared at the tips of his fingers.
“Allow me, Alpha. I believe, perhaps, you asked the incorrect question.” Keair held out his hand and Bachar handed the man over. Keair’s fingers closed around the other man’s throat as he leaned in close. “Where did you send her?”
“I, I—.” The man struggled in earnest now, the golden glow in the tiger shifter’s eyes deadly.
“You did send her somewhere, now didn’t you?” Keair opened his mouth to reveal a set of fully distended fangs. They were long and white and wet. His face had also started to morph, his cheekbones elongated as he partially shifted. His long claws cut into the flesh of the man’s throat, and soon rivulets of bright red blood slowly spilled from the man’s throat and coated Keair’s hand.
“They wanted her. Knew she was his.” His eyes darted back to Bachar, a plea written in the beady depths.
“Who?” Bachar’s cat was now under control, easily allowing Keair to gather the information. Both the cat and the man knew the tiger was a formidable presence. When deciding which shifter would lead his security force, it had been a difficult decision. Both Keair and Tarek were more than qualified for the job. However, Tarek had that edge about him that allowed him to complete Bachar’s somewhat harsher commands without question. Keair argued with Bachar over simple matters of business. He’d known the tiger would question his every move should
it involve a matter of life or death.
“The Group.” The man didn’t have to say anything more. The Group was the name the community had given to the humans determined to drive away the shifters. It had been formed when the shifters had first been given the land. Bachar had thought it had mostly disbanded until about three years ago when trouble had started again.
“Fuck.” Bachar scraped his hand through his long strands of hand, tugging on the ends in frustration.
“We’ll find her.”
Bachar knew he was close to completely losing it when he realized he hadn’t noticed Tarek approaching.
“Let me take care of this piece of shit, and we’ll leave.” Tarek motioned a member of the hotel’s security team forward. Keair’s face and voice had returned to normal, but he still dangled the man from his hand. With a laugh, the team member, also a shifter, removed the human.
The three men didn’t say a word as they stripped and quickly shifted. If any humans had happened along at that moment, they would have gotten an eyeful of three very handsome and well-endowed males. Within minutes, a lion, tiger, and wolf stood in the hotel lobby. The three animals moved forward as the doors were held open, running swiftly into the cold air. They had a woman to find. And not just any woman. The alpha’s mate.
Sally cursed as the four wheel drive continued laboriously up the winding stretch of road. For the past half hour, she’d had her doubts that it would even be able to make the treacherous climb. When she’d first seen it, parked in the back of the hotel, next to the dumpsters, she’d almost gone back inside. It had been covered in mud, a large dent on both the front and back driver’s side doors. There was no way this was one of the vehicles Bachar used on a regular basis. His fussiness when it came to the finer things in life would not have allowed him to be seen in what was just a step up from Sally’s beat-up, old compact car back home.
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