Show No Fear (Rising Goddess Book 1)

by Tamara White

"I should fucking kill you. You call yourself her mate, yet you put her through that?! What the fuck is wrong with you?" Colby's voice is growing louder with each word, an animalistic growl rising in his throat.

  “What are you on about? She was fine when we got in the car, then she just seemed to shut down for some reason. She didn't tell me to stop the car or anything. I figured she was just tired and resting on our way back here. But if you know so goddamn much, then why don't you enlighten me as to what the hell is wrong?!"

  Drew's voice is filled with just as much anger as Colby’s, and I immediately feel guilty. I should have told him about the car situation. If I had, maybe he would of driven a little slower and we wouldn’t be in this mess.

  I turn in Kaden's arm, just in time to see Colby's fist swing out and hit Drew square in the jaw. Both guys are growling at this point and I know I have to interfere, to stop this from escalating further.

  "Kaden, let me go please.” He immediately does as I ask, but keeps a hand on my back as I approach the two men about to brawl in the middle of the street. Bas and Alex aren’t far behind us and I see Kyle and Dwayne hovering near Colby and Drew, as if they could break up their fight if it came to it.

  "Colby, Drew, stop it right now. We're in the middle of the street for fuck’s sake. Someone could see you two."

  Neither of them move, still glaring at each other and I growl in frustration. Stupid Alpha males, and I have two of them for true mates. Yay me!

  I position myself between the two of them, placing a hand on each of their chests so they take notice of me. "Colby, it’s not Drew's fault he didn't know about my fear of riding in the car. I never told him about it and since he came back, we haven't exactly had time to sit down for coffee and chat about everything that’s happened in the last year."

  I turn my attention to Drew, a sad smile on my face. “I should have told you, Drew. That's on me. But you should know, ever since the accident, I can't be in a car without having a little meltdown. If we drive slowly, or if I'm in a car that feels indestructible, then I’m fine. Other than that, well you saw."

  Drew's eyes are glassy with unshed tears and he takes hold of my hand on his chest, pulling me to him and embracing me tightly. He buries his nose my hair and holds me to his chest firmly. Even though my arms are squished between our chests, I don't pull away, relishing in his comfort.

  When he finally has a hold of himself, he pulls away and presses a soft kiss to my cheek. "I'm sorry, Katie. I will drive carefully next time, I promise. I remember how you used to love my fast driving, but I guess there are a lot of things we need to relearn about each other."

  I cup his cheek gently, my heart filled with love for this male. "I know, but we have all the time in the world to learn everything about each other again."

  I step out of his arms and move over to Colby, who still looks pissed beyond reason. It isn't until I twine my hands around his neck and force him to look down at me that his gaze softens. "And you, my true mate, need to stop being all Alpha when it comes to me. You know my history with Drew, fine. But it isn’t fair for you to use that against him. You are both my true mates, and if you expect this to work, you all need to let me deal with you individually. If there is a problem with one of my mates, trust me to handle it. You interfering in the others’ relationships with me is just going to make things harder. Okay?"

  He stares into my eyes, as if searching for something. I’m not sure what he finds, but it has him relaxing slowly. "You’re right. If I ever upset you, I would want you to talk to me, not one of the others. So I will try to stay out of it, but I make no promises. There are going to be times when we all want to beat the ever-loving crap out of anyone who hurts you, whether they’re your mate or not."

  I grin at that. "I would expect nothing less." I turn to look at the rest of the males who are surrounding me. "Can we go get food now? I'm starving."

  My words are met with chuckles and Bas steps forward, grabbing me around the waist. He guides me away from the guys and towards a diner a few doors down from where we parked. It’s lucky the place Drew parked was in front of an unoccupied building, because I can just imagine how our little encounter would have been received by any humans who might have seen.

  "Come on, little she wolf. Let’s get those babies fed," Bas coos, rubbing my belly with a massive grin on his face. I shove his arm playfully and stick my tongue out at him. "It isn't just these little wolves that are hungry, but the she wolf herself. Now come, slave. Feed your lover," I say with an air of haughtiness to my tone.

  His eyes heat up and he leans closer, his breath caressing my ear. "Lover, huh? Pretty sure we have to be fucking for that title to apply. But if you feel like changing that, just tell me when and where, little she wolf. I will be more than happy to oblige."

  Then he lets go of me and walks into the diner with a cocky smirk. I pause, taking a deep breath. My heart is no longer racing with fear from my ride in the car, but a different kind of fear entirely. The fear of taking the next step with someone.

  With Kaden and Alex, hell even Drew, it was all hormones. I let my body lead the way and my heart followed after. But Colby and Bas are different, much like my connection with Seth. They took the time to get to know me before telling me their feelings. We've built a solid foundation and for some reason, taking that next step when we know each other so deeply is a scary thought.

  As I peek through the diner window, watching as Bas follows the waitress to one of the larger booths in the back, I realize that I'm ready to take that next step with him and Colby. Ready for both of them to claim me as mates.

  "You ready?" Colby asks me after the others all walk inside the diner, leaving just the two of us standing at the door.

  I turn and smile, taking his hand in mine. "I am."

  And never have those words been truer.

  I smile around the table as I look at each of the guys in turn. I know this is the calm before the storm. Soon we’ll have to discuss everything, including the situation with the witches. But at least for this moment, I can pretend everything is fine and that I'm not some reincarnated goddess, that my life is normal.

  On my left sits Alex, wearing a proud grin on his face. Then there’s Colby, who looks sullen and Dwayne, who’s sitting on the outer edge of the seat, a wide smirk on his face as he looks at the other two.

  Then to my right is Drew, followed by Bas, then Kyle and Kaden. It was hilarious watching them all argue among themselves over who would get to sit next to me. I’ll admit, I enjoyed every second of it. Finally they decided on a game of rock, paper, scissors to determine where they would sit.

  The waitress, a pretty blond girl that I've seen around campus, comes sashaying over to the table with a flirty smile. She pulls a pad and pen from the breast pocket of her white and red striped uniform. She looks at Drew first, fluttering her eyelashes seductively. "What can I get you?"

  I stare at her, a little annoyed. She only has eyes for Drew right now and my anger is quickly rising. What, am I fucking invisible or something?

  Drew reaches down to take hold my hand under the table, unclenching my fist as he does. I immediately relax at his touch. He ignores the waitress and instead turns to me with an innocent look on his face, but I see the twitch of his lips. "Ladies first, love. What would you like?"

  "A chocolate milkshake, burger and fries, then a chocolate sundae." I list off my request, not even looking up at the waitress, my gaze firmly fixed on Drew, who finally grins at me.

  "I'll have the same," he says simply, his focus still solely on me. I relax, all of the tension draining out of me.

  The others all place their orders and then the waitress disappears, her heels clicking on the tile floor as she does. Who wears heels to work at a diner? Wouldn't her feet be killing her by the end of the day?

  I look around the table at the guys, the easy mood instantly dropping. "So I guess we should probably have that talk before the food comes. I don't know about you guys, but I am tired of bein
g in the dark."

  All of them nod, looking just as eager to be free of all the secrets as I am.

  Drew straightens in his seat, the Alpha in him rising to the surface. "I know there is much to discuss about your visit to Colby's old pack, but I think it might be best for us to tell Colby what we discovered first."

  My gaze swings to Colby and even though I suspect what’s coming, his reaction still surprises me.

  "What do you mean tell me what you've discovered? Have you all been keeping things from me?" he demands, his voice low and dangerous as he looks around the table at each of the guys in turn. The only ones who look to have no idea of what is going on are Alex and Kaden, mainly because they were left in the dark on purpose.

  When Colby's gaze gets to mine, I give Drew's hand a squeeze, needing to be the one to tell him. I take in a breath, but keep my eyes on Colby, determined to give him my full attention. "Emily is a witch. At least we're pretty certain she is, and we think she's been manipulating you since the day the two of you met. None of us knew until that day we went to the steak house. The two of you somehow went from being tense to making out in the back. Then when you came out, I smelled something like ash and sulphur mixed together. We were worried, so Bas, Dwayne and Kyle called your Alpha, Drew."

  The look of betrayal in Colby's eyes cuts me deeply. All I want right now is to reach across and hug him, but I doubt he would let me touch him now, if ever again.

  "You suspected the woman I was with was a witch? And none of you said anything? What the hell, guys? Why would you hide this from me? What if she had spelled me to hurt one of you? Or worse?" Colby glares at Bas and Kyle across from him, even going so far as to throw a nasty glare at Dwayne, who looks nervous about sitting next to him right now. I think if Colby had been sitting on the outside edge of the booth, he probably would have stormed off by now.

  "Colby, enough,” Drew says sternly. “I know you're angry, but I ordered them not to tell you. From what they told me, they thought she may have actually been your mate. We know your history with witches and if she was one, you would have thrown her away without even asking for her side of things.

  “So I told them to watch from the sidelines, to make sure you weren't the only one affected because for all we knew, there could have been someone else manipulating both of you. They only found concrete evidence that Emily was the one spelling you when you left to take Katie to her doctor’s appointment." Drew lets go of my hand to dig around in his pants pocket. After a moment, he pulls out a Ziploc bag that contains some kind of charm that looks very much like a pentagram.

  Drew slides it across the table to Colby and as it gets closer to him, the charm changes from bronze to a silver color. Then when Colby picks up the bag, it flares bright silver.

  "That is a witch’s charm, used to control someone's emotions. It’s a very powerful spell and is pretty much impossible to break," Drew explains.

  Colby sets the bag back on the table, pushing it back towards Drew. "If it's impossible to break, then why isn't it working on me anymore?" he asks, his anger deflating as he looks to his Alpha for answers.

  The rest of us remain silent as we watch their discussion, and I imagine the others are learning just as much about witches as I am. Even if it is weird to see Drew, a man only a year older than me, talking to Colby as if he is nothing more than a pup when that is definitely not the case.

  Drew grins broadly at Colby's question. "I said nearly impossible, Colby. Only one thing can beat a spell affecting one’s emotions, and that is Love. And luckily for you, you have the reincarnated Goddess of Love on your side, who would die to protect you. At some point after the spell was placed, Katie must have felt an urge of possessiveness or protectiveness towards you and her powers reacted instinctively. I haven't been around, so I don’t know when it could have happened. That’s just what the priests in Africa told me."

  I wonder if...

  A light dawns in Colby's eyes. "In the café, when you held my hand! You zapped me and then everything became so much more clear. All my feelings for Emily kind of just fizzled out. It didn't even feel like she was my mate anymore..." He trails off, looking down at the table, gritting his teeth in anger.

  "That's why Emily looked so frightened when she left." Bas chuckles, winking at me. "She knew you had something to do with breaking the spell, but had no idea how you did it. I have to say that's probably a good thing. It means Emily has no idea what our girl really is, just that she's fucking powerful."

  I stick my tongue out at Bas over the table. "And don't you forget it," I tell him smugly.

  "So what do we do about Emily then?" Kaden asks, drawing my gaze. He smiles at me and I can't help the flutter in my chest at the look of desire in his eyes. How the hell am I going to handle having so many males in my life?

  “What if we keep doing what these three have?” Alex suggests, gesturing at Dwayne, Kyle and Bas. “There are a fair few members in the pack who have classes with her, so nobody would notice if we discreetly kept an eye on her. And we could always make sure to go in pairs so none of us would be alone near her.”

  Drew nods his head slowly and opens his mouth to respond, but then the waitress arrives at our table with our drinks. She sets them down in front of each of the guys, at least the ones she can reach. Then after she’s served everyone else, she slams my milkshake down. There’s a cruel smirk on her face as some of the liquid spills from the glass and onto the table. All the guys bristle, but I just smile up at her. "Thank you," I say in a polite tone.

  She scoffs and turns on her heel, walking away. I can't help but chuckle. "That girl is so not getting a tip."

  Dwayne grins at me across the table. "Maybe I should play a little game with Miss Uppity over there. Show her what happens when she messes with someone in my pack."

  "No, don't. She's just jealous. She wants one of you, but you are all so focused on me that it pisses her off. I guess it’s just one of the many things I’ll have to get used to if I take more than one of you out at a time."

  Alex wraps an arm around my shoulders, his hand brushing Drew's shoulder in the process because of how close we’re sitting. "Katie, you don't ever have to worry about that. Girls can look all they want, but they will never get to touch what's yours. Nothing will ever change that. Although, I wouldn't be opposed to seeing you defend my honor." He waggles his eyebrows teasingly.

  I shove him away. His laugh echoes around us, drawing the gaze of a few girls nearby. Hell, I really can’t blame them. His laugh is utterly sinful.

  "Back on topic please," Drew says softly, but I can tell he too is enjoying the others’ antics. "You still need to tell us what happened at Sarah's pack. Colby gave us the Cliff Notes version, but I would like a little more of an explanation as to what happened."

  I hesitate for a moment, unsure how exactly to explain everything. But before I have a chance to gather my thoughts, a new waitress appears at our table and hands out our food. She has to make three trips back to the kitchen to get all of our orders, but she does it all with a smile and a spring in her step. My guess is our first waitress either complained and requested not to deal with us, or the manager was watching her behavior and forced her to switch tables.

  The moment she's gone, I dip a hot salty fry into my sundae and pop it into my mouth with an eager moan. Oh, sweet and salty goodness.

  I repeat the move a few more times, totally oblivious to the fact that the guys are all staring at me until my gaze flicks up. "What?" I ask, completely confused by their intense, hungry expressions.

  Kaden clears his throat and the others all drop their gazes to their plates, focusing a little too intently on their food. I shrug, deciding not to worry about it, and dig into my food happily. When I start to feel fuller than is comfortable, I pause and lean back in my seat. Damn, either I ate extremely fast, or they are just going really slow. Oh well, may as well tell them now while they’re still eating.

  "I was out in the woods with Jack and Dylan when I s
melled them. Witches. We ran with the boys back to the pack, but something happened when I was running, making me fall behind.

  “I had to put Jack down and told him to keep running. I’m glad he listened because there was no way I could have run while such intense pain was spreading up my back. At the time, I just assumed the witches had struck me with some kind of magic.

  “By the time I finally made it back to Colby, he had gathered the wolves that were capable of defending the pack and had them stand guard to prevent the witches from going further than the edge of the forest."

  I pause to steal the pickle Drew pulled off his burger and pop it in my mouth. "Anyway, Colby and I were standing side by side when the witches started talking about some reincarnated Goddess of Love, aka me apparently. I'm not sure exactly what happened next. Well, that’s not true, but what happened just isn’t possible. I felt this urge to grab onto Colby, but also that I needed to wait for the right moment. Then, out of nowhere, I heard Seth's voice in my head and I knew it was time."

  I hear Drew give a soft gasp, but I keep going, intent on getting this over with. "I grabbed Colby’s hand and a golden glow transferred from me to encase him. I used the distraction to sneak up behind the witches and grabbed the leader of the group. I put my arm around his neck, my new magic preventing him from using his own. When the other four witches realized what had happened, they went on the offensive. But before they could even touch me, Colby killed them all with a massive sword, one that appeared out of nowhere I might add." I turn to stare at Colby, curiosity burning in my gaze. "Where did the sword come from?"

  "I don't know.” He gives a slight shrug of his shoulders. "One second you grabbed hold of my hand and it felt like my blood was on fire. Then the next, I saw you with your arm around that bastard’s neck and it just sort of appeared in my hand. As I started to move, it felt so natural, like the sword had been a part of me all along. After all of the witches were disposed of, I had to catch you before you fainted. When I did, the sword just disappeared into thin air. But I know if I ever need it again, it will come to my call as your Guardian."