by M. D. Butler
It is, but I still slept later than usual. It won’t be hard to get out of the old habits with you guys here. I turn my head to the left, sensing that he’s the one on that side of me.
He kisses me on my forehead and says, We’ll always be here, pixie. Now, sleep.
I snuggle down into my little hole in the huge bed, my four mates surrounding me as I fall into another peaceful sleep.
***
The feeling of fingers in hair wakes me up a while later, but I feign sleep so that whoever it is doesn’t stop. I subtly take a deep breath, and the fresh scent of the forest cues me in to who my stylist is.
“I know you’re awake, babe. Come on. Time to get up. Den wants to up and dressed in twenty minutes so you have plenty of time to eat. The beast is turning into a mother hen!”
I smile, and roll over to my back so I can lift my head to see him still laying at the top of the bed. Neither of us makes a move to get up.
“Did you have a good night’s sleep up there?”
“Sure did! I don’t even think I moved. Sorry if I pulled your hair last night. I fell asleep with my hand in your hair.”
“No, you didn’t pull it.” That’s all I say. I’m too focused on his lips.
“Stop looking at me like that, babe. You’re going to start something, and I don’t think you’re ready for another bonding session yet.”
“Don’t tell me what I’m ready for,” I growl just as I allow my wolf to take control. Within a second, I’ve flipped him over and climbed on top. I’m aware enough to give him a chance to push me away. Harder than it sounds because my wolf isn’t taking no for an answer.
“Do it.”
That’s all the permission that I need before my teeth are in his neck. I’m able to pay attention this time, so I know exactly when the bond snaps into place. It happens the second his teeth sink into my shoulder, on the opposite side of Denny’s mark. Straight euphoria sizzles through the newly formed link.
“You’re supposed to be getting dressed, pixie. No bonding on an empty stomach.”
I tear my teeth from Cash’s neck just in time to see Denny’s back as he leaves the room. He must’ve felt what happened through our link.
The marks scar with a silver color.
“What?” I look back down at Cash when I hear his voice in my head. I notice his neck, and gently lick the mark I made, taking the time to watch it heal. I kind of tore it a little when Den startled me.
“The mate marks. When they heel, they don’t disappear. They scar with a silver sheen. I’ve never noticed that before.”
He’s staring at the mark he just made on the juncture of my neck and shoulder. I look at my mark on him to see it’s completely healed, but he’s right. It’s scarred and silvery. I run my finger over the smooth skin, and he shudders below me.
“That’s sensitive, babe. Don’t do that unless you’re ready for what’ll follow.”
“Noted.” I give him a quick kiss to the lips before climbing off him and the bed. “Come on before Daddy Den comes looking for us again.”
“Bet he’d love to hear you call him that.”
“Don’t you dare Cashel O’Neill!”
He just laughs at my use of his name. “Your secret’s safe with me, babe. Let’s go.”
Krix
I’m sitting on a stool at the island when Jahla’s scent draws near. I can already smell the subtle hint of Den and know that Cash’s will soon be added as well. At this rate, we’ll all be bonded to her by the end of the day, and I can’t fucking wait.
“Morning, angel,” I say as she climbs onto the beside me.
“Good morning,” she whispers. She’s watching me with a predatory look in her eyes, and my wolf stirs in my chest at the challenge.
“Jahla, are you okay?” Mavrin has paused in the door, noticing the stare off between us.
“I don’t want to go back into that hellhole without the bond. My wolf doesn’t like not being linked to all of you. I know this shit is moving fast, but I don’t care. Tell me now if you want to wait because she’s getting too strong for me to control.”
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Mav says as he moves to stand on her other side. “Your wolf is starting to become unbound, and she knows what she wants. You’ve both been alone long enough, and she doesn’t want to waste another second. Neither do we if that’s what you want. Mark us, Jahla.”
Mav say the last part with a growl, and she lunges at him. He catches her, and they both bite down at the same time. They hold on to each other for about a minute, both enjoying the moment before they lick to marks to close them.
Then she turns to me.
I stand and lift her up on the counter. I’m settling between her legs as she punctures the skin on the left side of my neck. I immediately follow, and it’s like my life before this moment was meaningless. Like I never knew pleasure and satisfaction before now. He is now my center, and it feels so right. Sealing the mark, I pull back to look at it.
Huh.
She’s wearing a loose V-neck long-sleeved shirt so I pull the collar a little to get a better look at both sides of her neck. I must’ve instinctively bitten in a specific spot. My wolf was in control, so I wasn’t even paying attention. She has two marks on each side of her neck. One side is the mirror image of the other, completely even and symmetrical.
Amazing.
Everyone here?
Her voice in my head has me relaxing as I sit back on my stool.
Present!
Here, sweetheart.
I can hear you, angel.
Good, we all linked now. Sit back on your stool so you can eat, pixie. We have a long day ahead of us.
Being linked to you guys is going to make it amazing.
Agreed. I can tell you jokes when you’re with the others.
“No, Cash. You’re not going to be bothering her all day. She still has to focus on school. She means it’ll be good because it’ll be easier to make plans without worrying about others listening in. right, angel?”
“Uh, yeah. Exactly.”
I know that’s not what she meant, but I need to remind everyone that we have roles to prepare for. We have to start training her on how to use the elements and help her control her wolf. I can sense her just below the surface, and she’s fucking strong. I’ll give Jahla a chance to finish eating before I teach her how to tamp down her dominance.
Even with the to-do list forming in my mind, I can’t keep the smile from my face. The others are in the same boat. We’ve bonded with our mate, so we all just want to savor this moment.
Chapter 13
Jahla
School has been uneventful so far, but I still have my guard up. I no longer walk with my head held down, and everyone has taken notice. Even the teachers have done a double take when I’ve made eye contact with them as I answered their questions.
I know something is going to go down, though. Peace never lasts long in my world, and the fact that none of the hellhounds have done anything to me today has me extremely apprehensive. The thought of going into the cafeteria for lunch is only making it worse.
“You need to relax, babe. You’re going to give me an ulcer!”
“Sorry, Cash. I just know they’re going to come after me for the diner thing, and I want to be ready.” Blythe won’t let that shit go. She has to be planning something.
“Those girls won’t do shit. You embarrassed the fuck out of them last night. They’re not dumb enough to take you on at school in front of the people. Now, calm down. You’re giving us all anxiety, and I don’t like the feeling.”
Well, okay then. Damn, Den is such an encouraging asshole at times. “Fine, if it’ll make you guys feel better, I’ll hide my issues.” If they can feel my anxiety, they should be able to feel how pissed off I am now.
“Damn it, Den! Babe, he didn’t mean it like that.”
I ignore them as I walk towards the double doors. Getting mad has me not caring about the people staring at me as I walk towards
our table in the back. They’ve been staring at me all day, so fuck them. I know the guys will get me some food. Despite me being frustrated with Denahi, he’d never let my stomach even get close to growling.
I’m so focused on getting to the table and ignoring the eyes on me that I don’t notice him until it’s too late.
Benson.
“Where were you this morning?”
I freeze and look in the direction of his voice. He’s standing to my left, and I almost jump at how close he is. How the hell did I not smell him? Damn you, Denahi, for distracting me.
“Why do you care about my whereabouts?” I have to keep reminding myself that I’m not a doormat. Won’t be taking his shit, either.
“I didn’t get my breakfast, bitch”
“Seems like a personal problem.”
“Where the fuck were you?!” Okay, now he’s causing a scene. One that I know the guys won’t tolerate. I can feel their collective anger through the link, and I know someone will be on their way any second now.
“I don’t have to deal with your shit anymore, Benson. Where I was is of no concern to you!”
“Problem, Huntington?” How did I know it would be Krix? The others probably have to hold Denny back, or he’d have rearranged Benson’s face already.
“Mind your fucking business!”
“She is my business. Maybe we should take this discussion outside so you can get all the answer to your questions without causing more of a scene.”
Benson pauses to look around the room, suddenly seeing all the human and wolf eyes on him.
“The parking lot after school. You better have your ass there, you worthless mutt. Blythe is feeling especially keen to have this conversation.” He walks away, and Krix takes my hand as he guides me to our table.
I’m going to kill him.
We’re not killing anyone, Denny. Are you coming with some food? I’m getting a little hungry. I know that’ll get his mind off of murder.
On my way, pixie.
Are we meeting up with them after school?
Krix must’ve told them what was said. I need to learn how to talk to individual people through the link.
We don’t have a choice, Mav. We don’t need the attention right now, and they’ll keep fucking with us until we settle it.
Told you we had a long day, pixie. We still have to do that meeting with your alpha.
The other two arrive at our table with two trays each, but Cash turns around to go get more. I snatch the plate that Den places in front of me. I wasn’t lying earlier when I said I was getting hungry.
I’m starting to feel like a regular shifter already.
“Someone’s hungry. Is the stroganoff that good, babe?”
“Everything is good right now,” I say around a mouth full of food.
The conversation flow around mundane things, but I can’t shake the encounter with Benson from my mind. Why didn’t his father tell him about the deal? He knew I wasn’t going to be there to cook breakfast because of the agreement between him and the guys’ alpha. Why would he keep that from his family?
He thinks it’s only temporary. I don’t look at Krix as I hear his voice in my head. It feels like he’d just talking to me. Your thoughts were leaking into the link a little.
I have to get better at this shit, pronto.
What do you mean, he thinks it’s temporary? Didn’t your alpha tell him that we’re mates?
He doesn’t believe it, angel. You’re the one who told us that they don’t value you. The fact that you’ve never shifted makes them think that you won’t have a mate.
So, what? I just walk in there with the four of you. Be all, “What’s up, bitches?” How are we going to do this?
I won’t lie, I’d love to walk in the room full of attitude and sass. It would be an epic way to announce to the world that the new Jahla Hardnett is a badass.
At least, I hope she is. I’m might be getting ahead of myself.
No, angel. We have to save the attitude for special circumstances. The alphas will do most of the talking. We’re not telling them that you have four mates, though. I’ll be the only one you claim.
What? Why? That’s not fair to the others, Krix.
They already know, Jahla. We can’t let people know that you’re the Lunar Child. It’s not safe.
So, we should only act like friends in public? No kisses and stuff?
No, angel. Unfortunately, we can’t kiss outside of the way friends would.
That confirmation makes me pout.
We tune back in to the conversation still flowing around the table. I’ve only had a couple of kisses in my life, and they’ve all been from my guys. I’m fucking addicted to the taste of their lips now. How the hell am I supposed to hold off on kissing them now that I’ve had a taste?
Krix
Besides the little incident with Huntington in the lunchroom, school was pretty uneventful. Sure, Jahla was stared at more than anything, along with hate filled glares from the shifters that she calls the hellhounds, but nothing exciting other than all of that.
We stand at Cash’s locker as we wait for him to finish trying to talk his way out of a detention for making one of the girls from Blythe’s crew run from the room in tears.
Apparently, she was making snide comments to him about Jahla. He calmly, and rather loudly, told her that she must’ve peaked early because her skin was dull and dry-looking as fuck, extensions were thin and stringy, and that her makeup was so caked on that it would take a jackhammer just to get to her face.
He was mighty proud of that, so of course he told us. Word for fucking word.
So, here we are. Waiting for his dumbass. If he doesn’t come out within the next two minutes, we’ll have to leave him. The last thing we need is Benson and his crew coming inside to look for us.
“I’m here! I’m here! Took longer than I thought.” The idiot comes running down the hall, grabbing Jahla’s hand as he breezes by us on his way to the front doors.
“Slow down, Cash! You’re going to make her fucking trip! There’s snow out there!”
“I wouldn’t let that happen, Den. Man, you’re turning into such a mom!”
There they go, bickering like an old married couple again. I’d pop them both on the back of the head if Jahla wasn’t giggling at their antics. I think this was Cash’s plan anyway, to take her mind off of what’s about to go down.
We get to the parking lot to see the gang surrounding Den’s truck. He lets out a low growl when he sees a couple of them actually leaning on it. Dude does not fuck around about his baby.
“Where the fuck were you this morning, freak?”
“We didn’t get breakfast, and Mom’s pissed. I told my dad about how you suddenly grew balls last night. I have permission to drag your ass. Not that I would care if he told me no.”
The twins are standing side by side like a united front. Blythe is vibrating with aggression, but Benson looks calm. I think he’s the one we need to keep our eyes on.
“I don’t have to cook for you anymore. I’m no longer obligated to perform any pack duties.”
Jahla’s voice is strong as she speaks. The guys and I automatically flank her on either side. It’s instinctual, like a glimpse into what the future will be like. Her taking the lead, and us standing at her sides to help her with whatever she needs.
“Bullshit! Dad said that alpha was lying. He just wants you for his pack so you can slave around for them. Seems like that’s all you’re good for.”
“That makes no sense, Blythe. Why would he send four guys to come steal a shiftless wolf from someone else’s pack just to cook and clean for him? You’re sounding real dumb right now.”
She has a point.
“Fuck you, bitch!” she makes a move towards us, but Benson puts his arm out to stop her.
“You’re not leaving the pack.”
“You have no say in the matter, Benson. Do you even know why I’m joining their pack?”
“Doesn’t ma
tter. You belong to the Lunar Mills pack, and you will until the day we get tired of you. I have plans for you, so you haven’t even come close to living up to your usefulness.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Now, I’m curious. I thought it was just the alpha that was holding onto her. The pack showed signs of wanting her gone, so the fact that the alpha’s own son is resisting baffles me.
“None of your fucking business. This is between us and the bitch. Stay out of it.”
“Oh, did Daddy not tell you? Krix told you at lunch that I am his business. Did you even stop to think about what that meant?”
“It doesn’t matter what it means. You’re not going anywhere with them, so you might want to let go of this new attitude before it gets you killed!”
“It matters, Blythe. Because, you see… he’s my mate.”
There’s absolute silence from the wolves gathered around them. The twins are staring at Jahla, and then me with shock. Then it morphs into pure rage, but not from Blythe like I’d expected.
“Bull fucking shit! You’re nothing! No one wants you! You can’t have a mate because you don’t have a wolf! You’re a defective cunt that’s only good as a hole for someone to stick their dick in, and no one gets to do that but me!”
So, that’s what it is. The real reason why the alpha won’t let anyone kill her.
I know it happens when an alpha’s son is set to take part in a political mating. The alpha will grant his son one female of his choosing to have as a mistress. Doesn’t matter if she’s mated or not, but most try to encourage their sons to choose a girl who hasn’t found her mate yet. Once the arrangement has started, she is periodically injected with high levels of wolfsbane to keep the wolf subdued in case she ever encounters her true mate, essentially keeping her pliant and unable to bond with another wolf. She then becomes solely reliant of the alpha’s son for companionship. She’s a prisoner to his will for the rest of her life.
“Not going to happen.” We’d agreed to let Jahla handle this, but there’s no way Den could’ve stayed quiet after that.
“You shut the fuck up! I picked her! She mine! She’s not going any fucking where!”