by Zoey Indiana
Her fingers dug into my ass cheeks. This woman was over the top. I had to fight back the noise I wanted to scare her off with. I couldn't fuck this up and get banned. Snatching her hands, I spun her around until her arms were pinned by mine. She pressed her back against my chest while grinding her ass into me. I jutted my top half forward while pulling my hips back. Jaden would lose his shit laughing if he saw me like this. I bet the lion shifters were getting quite the show.
After the fifteen excruciating minutes were up, I sighed in relief when the door opened. I heard the deep chuckle of another male and assumed the lion shifter guarding the door watched the entire thing. Bastard.
Blindly shuffled into the next room, I held my breath for a reaction from the unknown woman hoping she wouldn't accost me like the last one. Her soft breathing met my ears, but she wasn't moving. A soft clicking noise, ticking four times in a row, started. Was she tapping her fingers on a table? Why wasn't she saying anything?
I wanted to take a step forward, to get closer so we could decide if she was our mate, but I didn't want to trip. I clicked my tongue, hoping to get an idea of the room's design, but the faint echoes of the noise were distorted. All I could hear was the corny spooky noises on the soundtrack playing. Aside from the clear path in front of me, I didn't know anything else. I'd never been good at human echolocation anyway.
Awkwardness built as neither of us spoke. Was she waiting for me to speak first? I took a step forward and waved in the direction I thought she was. "Hi, I'm…" I remembered at the last second names were off limits. "It's nice to meet you."
"How can you know if it's nice to meet me or not? You don't know anything about me."
I mentally groaned at her confrontational nature. This wasn't going well.
"That's true. Tell me a bit about yourself."
"I graduated top of my class from Harvard University with a PhD in Psychology. I focused on Psychophysiology and have my own successful practice. In layman’s terms, I'm a doctor of how the mind and body interact, and I have my own profitable business. What are your qualifications?" Impressive, if not condescending… though my inner beast wasn't interested. He'd already dismissed her as our mate.
"I research and develop classified technology for the Army."
"So no formal education?" The haughtiness of her voice pricked at me.
"I received my education while fighting side by side with some of the best men this country has while our brothers in arms died around us." My snappy retort hadn't helped the staleness of the room. I crossed my arms, and we remained silent until the lion shifter opened the door after the longest fifteen minutes of my life.
After those two, I was ready to give up on this blindfolded speed dating, but my beast protested. She's here, I can feel it. A few minutes later, I was locked into a new room with another unknown human female. Heat flushed through me the moment I inhaled her sweet scent.
"Oh, uh, hi." The voice soothed all my irritation and called for me to get closer. Then my beast roared to life. This female was our mate.
4
Like a vampire bat?
Every instinct shouted to rip off my blindfold, go to her, and claim her as mine, but I couldn't. Removing the fabric would bring the lion guards in, and I didn't want them anywhere near our mate. I chided myself for not saying anything back to her. The only way I could claim her was to win her over.
"Hi." Damn, I was a fucking idiot. She was my fated mate and all I could say to her was that? I took a step before I stopped my beast from getting closer. I didn't want to scare or intimidate her.
"Right, you can't see. Let me help you." At first I balked, but then I realized she'd have to touch me.
I heard a chair scoot, then she made a squeaking noise. Worried she was falling, I reached out to grab her, but felt nothing. The smacking sound told me I'd missed, and she'd fallen on the floor. Anger and frustration burned through me. I'd let my mate get hurt because of this damn blindfold, but I couldn't remove it. The unfairness of the situation burned through me. I'd find a way to make it up to her.
"Are you okay?" Sliding my feet forward, I let them drag across the floor so I wouldn't step on her.
A long groan was her response. I moved closer until my toe bumped something. "I'm okay." Her voice wasn't enough to reassure me. "I just wasn't paying enough attention and, and this room is too dark. I told Sharla it wasn't a good idea, but no. She insisted it would match the Halloween theme."
I squatted down, trying to reach out for her, needing to ensure she was okay. Pain exploded in my nose as something hard crashed into it.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" Her hands roamed over my face and nose, instantly making me forget about the pain. Her fingers ignited something deeper in me, leaving my inner beast demanding I claim her right here and now. I shoved him down and turned my attention back to my mate.
"Are you sure you're okay?" I had to know if she was injured.
"I may have broken your nose and you're still asking about me first?"
"Of course. You know what I am and how quickly we heal. It's you I'm more concerned about."
She was quiet for a moment. "I think I twisted my ankle. It's pretty sore and I can't put weight on it to get up. Can you help?"
I reached out for her arm, but my hand grasped something soft and warm. Gently, I tensed my fingers around it, and I heard her soft gasp. It filled my entire hand and then some. Realization crashed into me. Shit, I was holding her breast. I immediately let go, hoping she wouldn't shout for the lions to save her from my idiocy. She was my mate, and I'd fight anyone who tried to get between us. Mine.
"How about I grab your hands this time and we go from there?" Her soft voice didn't have an ounce of blame or anger.
"Sounds good to me." Her hands grabbed mine, then I slid them up to her arms. Standing with her, I supported her weight until it felt like she was at the right height. When she felt steady, I loosened my grip. When she hissed and started to drop, I swept her up into my arms. "How about we try this?"
I felt every muscle tense in her body as I held her close to my chest. "You're blindfolded, you can't see where anything is."
Then take it off. My beast begged, but I knew better than to say that out loud. It wasn't the only thing I wanted to take off either. My cock was rock hard from having her this close. Her scent was even stronger, and I couldn't wait to taste her sweet nectar. Every atom in my body wanted me to tell her she was my mate, instead I said, "you can be my eyes while I'll be your feet."
After a bit of direction, she guided us over to a loveseat on the other side of the room. I didn't want to let go of her yet, so I sat on the couch with her still in my arms. My grip loosened until she could easily move away from me, but she didn't budge.
"Earlier, you said I knew what you were, but that's not exactly true. I know you're a shifter, but not what your animal form is." She settled into my lap with her head resting on my shoulder. My fingers played in her long silky smooth hair that went halfway down her back.
I paused before answering her. Never in my life had I felt bad about my other half. My beast was part of me as he'd always been, but she had the chance to pick anyone here. Even if they weren't her fated mate, she could still pick them. Fated mates had a special bond that gave the couple a level of intimacy other mates could never have. It also came with a much higher level of fertility. That was enough for most males to keep hunting for the one, but not all.
"I'm a flying fox." There, I'd said it. Wishing I could see her facial expression, anxiety drove me to insanity.
"A… what?"
"It's a type of bat."
"Oh, like a vampire bat?"
"What? No. We're fruit bats." I'd known bats weren't the most common shifter animal, but didn't realize humans didn't know that much about them.
"So you don't suck blood?"
"Nope. The only thing I suck is sweet nectar out of flowers." She made a strangled noise, then shifted in my lap. Her hip brushed against my rock hard cock,
and I barely held back the moan.
"So you're telling me I went on a blind date with a bat shifter, and it just so happens to be Halloween?"
"It appears so."
There was a long silence before she spoke again. "I uh, work as a late night radio DJ." From the way she blurted it out, I knew she'd had the same response I did. She wanted me, felt the draw of the mating bond calling to her. "What do you do for work?"
"I research and develop classified technology for the Army." Her scent lured me closer to her. Since she was no longer leaning against me, I inched closer. On instinct, I nuzzled her neck. I needed to mark her with my own scent so other males knew she was my mate. Her fingers trailed up my chest until they played in my beard. My lips left little butterfly kisses along her jaw. Just when I brushed her lips, the door opened.
My beast roared in anger. She hadn't claimed me yet, not in a way the lions would recognize. A deep rumble started in my chest. I couldn't lose her. Not after how Arric's death had almost destroyed me. Pain paralyzed me as images of his lifeless eyes flashed through my mind. I hadn't been able to save him.
"No!" I felt her spin in my lap until she was straddling my waist. My blindfold was ripped off before I could react to the lion entering the room. "I claim him as my mate!"
5
Who said I want to behave?
I couldn't believe my ears. She'd claimed me. My mate. Mine. This beautiful female sitting on my lap who stole my breath at first sight was my mate.
The lion shifter grumbled and slammed the door closed.
My attention refocused on the… my gorgeous female straddling my hips. She was still glaring at the door, her hands dug into my shoulders like she didn't want to ever let me go. A pale tunic hung halfway down her thighs, and she wore a red wig. On the table in the corner was a long wooden bow. My hands went to her hips, pulling her closer. She turned to me, her eyes molten as she released a smile across her lips.
"Now that I'm yours, what are you going to do with me, Artemis?" A smirk slipped out as I asked the playful question.
She nibbled on her lip for a second before her fingers dug into my hair, then her lips crushed against mine. I pulled her hips closer to me until she had to sit up on her knees. Tilting my head back, I groaned as her breasts slid up my chest until they teased my beard. I wanted to slip my fingers under her pants, strip off her clothes, and part her legs so I could lick her sweetness until she screamed my name.
A pounding on the door sent us both backward a few inches. Her eyes were heavy with desire as she stared at my lips.
"As much as I want to turn that look of need to a sexier one of satiation, I don't think they're going to let us stay much longer."
"I think you're right." She dropped down until she was sitting in my lap again. "Though, if we behave and just talk, we can stay until the event is over."
"Ah, but who said I want to behave?" I caressed her hips, watching with delight as a shiver went through her. "I'm Felix, nice to finally meet you."
Her laugh sent waves of pleasure through me. I needed to hear more of that. "I'm Luna. Nice to meet you, mate." I laughed at her words, I couldn't help myself. She rolled her eyes. "Yes, I totally get it. My name is Luna and we have a spooky Halloween themed dating event where I dressed as my namesake. I thought it was dumb too."
"It's perfect, just like you. Though I did want to ask… why are human females organizing a dating event for shifters? How do you even know about us?"
Luna's hands slid along my arms, taking a few seconds to pause on my biceps. "This is going to sound lame, but I couldn't stand waiting anymore. My sister met her mate, and eventually I walked in at the wrong time. He was halfway between lion and man form. After some time and lots of talking, I learned about shifters and fated mates. All the women here are like that. We all accidentally learned about your world, but don't have mates of our own. So we formed a group to come up with ways to find them."
I grinned at her. When her mate didn't find her, she'd refused to wait around for me to stumble along. I loved a female who took charge when she wanted something. "How many of these events have you been to?" The question ignited a spark of jealousy in me at the thought of other males trying to claim her as theirs.
"This is actually our first event like this. We tried hosting parties and inviting all our shifter friends and families, but nothing happened." Luna looked down as she drew circles on my chest. "I can't believe this is real."
"Did your sister tell you about the mate bond?" Even though she knew about the bond, it didn't mean she realized everything that came along with it. She might not be prepared for all the emotions.
"Not at first, but eventually. After a while, I couldn't get it out of my mind. The idea of a soul created at the beginning of time to fit to mine perfectly… why wouldn't I want that?"
I didn't have a good rebuttal, but then again, I was biased. "I can't imagine a reason." Now that all of this was clear, I wondered how slowly she wanted to take things. From my few friends who'd found human mates, I knew it took a while for them to open up to the idea. Did Luna need time, or was she ready for the claiming ceremony?
An alarm blared through the room seconds before the lights flared to full brightness. My eyes burned at the sudden change.
"What in the hell?" She jumped off my lap, but her ankle gave out.
I caught her before she fell. Swooping her up into my arms, my beast beamed at holding our mate. Striding over to the door, I carried Luna so she wouldn't hurt herself again. She seemed content in my arms. Once out of the room, I watched as the lions and bears in human form rushed the males out of the rooms.
"What's going on?" Luna asked before I could.
A pissed off female bear stomped over to us. "I just found out this wasn't sanctioned by the shifter council. The last thing I wanted today was a call from Georgie, screaming at me about how we had human females in our bar. I'm not sure how this happened, but if we don't shut this down immediately, they'll close us down permanently. You're lucky I'm not banning you as well. Now get the fuck out."
White hot rage burned through me. No one talked to my mate like that. I took a step forward, ready to confront her, but Luna pressed her hand to my chest. When I looked down, the small shake of her head kept me still. She didn't want me to stand up for her. A wisp of pride flitted through me, but it wasn't coming from me. It came from her. Happiness filled me when I realized what I was feeling. Luna's emotions. Giving her a quick kiss, I felt another hint of emotion. They were slight, but already our mate bond was forming.
"Come on mate, let's make this official." She nodded, and I turned to carry her to my car, except four human females blocked the door. Their attention focused on Luna in my arms, then they descended on us.
"Oh my god, it worked!"
"Luna! Tell us every detail."
Seemed I'd have to wait a bit longer to finally claim my mate.
6
Puppy dog eyes.
Five hours later, I dropped onto my couch with a bowl of cantaloupe, alone. The other women from Luna's group, Mateless Mates, had dragged us off to a late night diner for interrogation. The questions started out with wanting to know every single second of what happened after I walked into the room until the alarms went off. They'd talked for so long that Luna was almost late for work.
Reluctantly, I kissed her goodnight after we swapped phone numbers, then watched the beautiful but sad sight of her ass walking away from me. I'd have to wait a few more hours for her shift to end before she'd come over to my house.
Two hours in my flying fox form hadn't relieved the stress either. I'd even looked over the preliminary reports from the sonar testing earlier, and I'd been too distracted to focus. I stared at the display case on the wall holding the metals from when I was active duty, then my gaze drifted over to the case next to it. A deep ache formed in my chest. Even since my twin died, I'd felt different. I knew I obsessed over my job as a distraction for the empty cavity where my happiness used to be.
The world seemed so much darker with Arric.
My beast and I wanted Luna to be with us, instead of at her human job. I grabbed an old radio out of the garage and turned it to the station she worked at. Maybe hearing her voice would help soothe us until we could finish claiming her later tonight. Several songs played before a voice came over the station.
"If you're just tuning in, welcome to The Night Shift with Luna and Apollo." The deep masculine voice sparked a primal jealousy in me. My beast pushed at me, begging to be released and find Luna. We couldn't trust this Apollo male to respect Luna's space. I knew I should have talked her into skipping her shift tonight. Or just quit her job. I made more than enough money to support her and any pups we might have. "Hey Luna, let's tell them what's coming up next."
"Well Apollo, we're keeping it creepy with 'I've Put a Spell on You', 'Hells Bells', and 'Monster Mash'. Then tune in for a spooky surprise on this hair-raising Halloween night."
An uneasy feeling settled into my gut. That wasn't Luna's voice. Even using manipulation software, there was no way Luna was talking. Her cadence was different. Why would another woman pretend to be her on the radio?
I rinsed out my bowl and set it in the sink while I tried to talk myself out of going to the station to make sure she was okay. Halfway to my office, my phone vibrated in my pocket. Pulling it out, I looked at the screen. Luna was calling.
"Hey." I barely held back my urge to make sure she was okay.
"I need your help. I'm on a short break, so I came out to grab my phone, but somehow locked myself out." There was a hint in her voice that she was upset. What did she think I could do to help her?
"I don't mind coming by, but wouldn't your boss be able to get a key to you?"