by Tami Lund
Definitely not extinct.
“She’s glowing,” someone else noted. Josh glanced up at the top of the stairs, where Rachel stood, mostly hidden from view. Luckily, humans did not have nearly the exceptional senses shifters did, so she could not hear what would sound like incredibly strange comments coming from the group of awe-struck shifters.
“Look, the Lightbearers are here for a reason,” Matt said, cutting across the murmured questions and general dumbstruck fascination. “Josh’s last text said Kim was fading fast, so let’s get the healer upstairs so she can do her healing mojo and save a mother and pup.”
Before Josh could pull him aside and ask him to take Rachel home, Matt was leading Tanner, Olivia, and Alexa upstairs, right toward his human girlfriend—at least, that’s how he thought of her in his head. She hadn’t refuted his claim when he called her such a short time ago, so he figured he was safe with that title.
If only it could be more.
Shaking off his stupid, frivolous thoughts, he pushed through the crowd now following the Lightbearers up the stairs, trying to reach the top before anyone else did. When he did, Rachel was gone. He knew she was nearby because he could scent her, but she’d obviously decided to hide herself from view. He was glad for the Lightbearers’ presence to distract everyone, otherwise, one of the other shifters might have scented her, too.
The crowd made its way down the hall toward the suite where he’d put up Kim and her mate, but before they could reach their destination, Carmen stepped out of the room where Kim’s pups had spent the night, holding the youngest in her arms and Maddy by the hand. The elder woman’s eyes widened until they threatened to pop out of her head when she spotted Olivia and Alexa.
“What are they?” Carmen asked in a hushed tone.
“They glow,” Maddy pronounced. “Is that our new pup?” She pointed at the baby carrier.
“This is my pup,” Tanner replied.
“These are Kim’s other two pups,” Matt explained, presumably for Tanner and the Lightbearers’ benefits.
“That nice glowing lady is going to fix up your mommy and make sure she and her pup are just fine.” Tanner pointed at Alexa.
“And I’m going to help,” Olivia added, earning herself a glare from her mate.
“How? What are you going to do to my daughter?” Carmen demanded.
“I’m a healer,” Alexa explained. “I helped Olivia birth little Austin, and it was a very complicated, er, whelping. And then he had a hard time breathing, and we couldn’t figure out why, until Olivia finally gave him her magic. Now he’s perfectly fine. Healthy as a, um, lion,” she added with a sly look at Tanner, who smirked in response.
“You mean the old tales are true?”
“No,” Tanner said before anyone could respond. “Killing a Lightbearer does not steal their magic. All that does is kill them. They have to willingly give their magic. It isn’t something that can be forced.”
“And I’m going to give some of my magic to Kim and her pup, if that’s what it takes to save them,” Olivia explained.
“No, you aren’t. That’s why Alexa is here.”
“Alexa has never given her magic to anyone,” Olivia argued with her mate. “She’ll do the healing, and I’ll do the magic-sharing. We already have it all figured out.” She gave him a triumphant smile, but Tanner looked as if he planned to argue further, until Carmen grabbed Olivia’s arm and pulled her down the hall.
“Please hurry, then. My daughter. I was just bringing the children to say their last goodbyes. I did not think there was hope. But now—” She choked on a sob and swiped a tear from her eye.
Josh noticed little Maddy had freed herself from her grandmother’s grip and now stood next to him. “Where is the nice lady with the pretty red hair?”
“Rachel?”
Maddy nodded, looking up at him with big, hopeful eyes. He glanced behind him. “She’s, uh—” An arm waved at him from a partially opened door. “I think she might be right over there.” He pointed at the arm. Maddy hurried toward it, and Josh followed. The little girl pushed on the door and rushed into the room and right into Rachel’s outstretched arms.
“Well, good morning,” Rachel said in greeting, the smile on her face so bright she could be glowing. “I’m so glad I got to see you again before I leave.”
“Why are you leaving? Grandma is helping Mommy now. I need you to stay here with me.”
“I...” Rachel’s gaze lifted to look at Josh. He stared back, feeling helpless. He still hadn’t figured out how he was going to get her home, aside from calling a cab.
“I could call in sick. And stay here and watch the kids. I don’t mind. Honestly.”
*
Rachel held her breath, waiting for his answer. The part of her with a healthy fear of The Prick knew she should leave, which would potentially leave Josh in a lurch that would further deteriorate his standing within his family or association or whatever the hell it was. But the part of her that was falling for him wanted to help, wanted to be there, to support him, to do what she could to make this difficult time a little easier to bear.
“I don’t want to get you in trouble.”
Rachel laughed. To her ears, the noise contained a slight edge of hysteria. “I won’t get into trouble. I never use my time off. I can’t afford to go on vacation, and sitting at home staring at the four walls of my apartment is way less entertaining than just going in to work every day.”
He reached out and cupped her cheek. “I want to take you on a vacation. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?”
Rachel forced another laugh. None of her marks had ever gone quite as far as to offer to take her away someplace. They understood the rules of the game as well as she did. Josh, of course, did not even realize it was a game. And despite their differences, despite the way they’d met—despite the fact that this relationship was not even technically real—all she really cared about at the moment was helping him.
“Why don’t you go grab Teddy and bring him back here? I’ll babysit while you all save their mother. Then we can talk vacations, okay?”
He hesitated, and she suspected he wanted to kiss her, but his gaze flicked to the little girl standing at her side, and he stepped away with a curt nod instead. “I’ll be right back.”
A short time later, Rachel was ensconced in Teddy and Maddy’s bedroom with two hungry children. “Okay, um...” She had little experience with children. She had no idea what to feed them. Hell, she didn’t even know where the kitchen was in this monstrosity of a house.
But Maddy did. “Come on. I’ll show you,” the precocious little girl insisted.
With Teddy in her arms and Maddy clinging to her hand leading the way, they hurried along thickly carpeted halls, down a narrow, polished wood staircase, through another maze of halls, until they finally reached a swinging restaurant-style door. When she pushed it open, Rachel was greeted with the largest kitchen she had ever seen. It was also one of the cleanest. The surfaces sparkled so much she almost wished for sunglasses.
“Wow.”
“Grandma says Jeanine is an awesome housekeeper.”
“Jeanine?” Rachel gave the little girl a questioning look. Maddy nodded solemnly.
“She cleans the house and cooks sometimes.”
Of course Josh would have a housekeeper. When Rachel first saw the house, she’d figured he had an army of them.
“Well, let’s see what we can rustle up.” She walked through the empty kitchen, the tile cool on her bare feet. Snagging a stool from under the island, she positioned it next to the fridge. With Teddy on her hip and Maddy perched on the stool, they stood in front of the double refrigerator and inspected the contents.
“Bacon or sausage?” she asked.
“Sausage!” Even little Teddy seemed eager to eat the processed meat. She handed a package to Maddy and instructed her to place it on the counter.
“Eggs?”
“Scrambled,” Maddy announced.
“What about your brother? Can he eat eggs?”
“Yep.”
“Eggs it is.” She placed the carton on the counter next to the package of sausage links. “How about something healthy to go along with it?” She pulled open drawers, shifting items around. “There’s an abundance of meat in here, but not much else.” Her gaze swept the counter and she spotted a basket filled with apples. “Apples it is.”
“We don’t eat much fruit and vegetables,” Maddy said so solemnly, Rachel had to laugh.
“Well, this morning, you’re under my supervision, so you’re eating apples. Okay?”
“And sausage?”
Rachel ruffled the little girl’s hair. “And sausage,” she promised.
* * * *
Rachel and Maddy sat side by side at the kitchen island, with Teddy perched on the counter in front of Rachel, while she fed him like a baby bird—minus the regurgitation, of course. The kid was a bottomless pit. He ate every bite she offered him, including the apples. And still wanted more.
“He’s going to be six feet tall. A football player,” she predicted, smiling warmly at the eager toddler.
A noise caught her attention, and she lifted her gaze to see an older woman, probably in her sixties, standing in the doorway to the kitchen. She had dark hair streaked with gray, dark eyes, and an olive complexion. Another member of the so-called family.
The look on the woman’s face was one Rachel would expect to see on someone who was looking down at a cesspool full of bugs and slimy creatures. And maybe a zombie or two.
“Er, hello.” Rachel cleared her throat and offered a smile.
“Hello, Ms. Jeanine,” Maddy said, her arm waggling as she waved at the newcomer.
“Who are you?” the woman—Jeanine, apparently—asked, ignoring Maddy’s greeting. “And why are you with Carmen’s grandpups?”
What was it with everyone in this house referring to children as pups? Although, strangely enough, Rachel was already warming to the curious endearment. Pups. It had a certain ring to it.
“I offered to watch them so she could be with her daughter.”
“But why are you here at all? You’re—you don’t belong here. Who even let you in? Does Josh know?”
Rachel fought the blush she could feel creeping up her neck. What business was it of this woman’s if she spent the night last night in Josh’s bed? She wasn’t his mother, as he’d told her his parents were dead. Although, given the resemblance between practically everyone she’d seen thus far, Rachel supposed the woman could be some relation to Josh. Still, that did not give her the right to judge.
“Josh is the one who let me in. And invited me to stay.”
There. She’d said it. And, given the look on the woman’s face, she’d inadvertently furthered The Prick’s goal of ruining Josh. Stabs of guilt shot through her system, despite the reality that her own life could quite possibly hang in the balance, if she did not continue to distract him.
“That’s impossible. He wouldn’t do such a thing. He knows better. He’s the pa—you aren’t good enough for him.” The woman ended on a sneer. Rachel wondered what she’d done to this person she’d only met five minutes ago. Hell, they hadn’t even been formally introduced. She had never met such an inclusive group of people in her life. She glanced down at Maddy and wondered how long it would take for people like this woman to turn the children against outsiders as well.
“I like her,” Maddy announced, as if to prove Rachel’s thoughts wrong. Rachel wanted to hug her, but she resorted to squeezing the little girl’s hand instead.
“You are a pup. You don’t understand. But you will. Our kind do not associate with this kind.”
“Look, lady, I’m getting real tired of people insinuating certain things about my character. You don’t know jack shit about me, so you have no right to—”
“What’s going on in here?”
Both women turned as Matt strode into the room, brow furrowed over his dark eyes. Rachel watched as Jeanine smoothed the anger from her features and offered him a pleasant smile.
“Good morning, Matt. I received your text about coming in early to make breakfast. How’s Kim? Is the whelping progressing?”
Matt’s gaze darted to Rachel for a moment before he responded. “It is, finally. The Light—er—Alexa is an amazing healer. Your new sister or brother should be born any time now, kids.”
Maddy clapped enthusiastically and her little brother immediately followed suit. “When can we see Mama?” Maddy asked.
“Soon, kiddo. In the meantime, you need to stay with Miss Rachel and listen to everything she says, do you understand?”
Maddy nodded solemnly, and her brother watched her before mimicking her actions. Jeanine opened her mouth as if she meant to protest, but at a quelling look from Matt, she closed it again. His gaze fell to the used plates sitting on the kitchen island.
“Are you guys done?”
“I think so,” Rachel answered.
“Good. Let’s go. I’ll take you up to the pu—kids’ room.”
“Okay, let me clean up our mess—”
“Jeanine will get it. Let’s go.”
Rachel could almost feel the weight of Jeanine’s stare as she helped Maddy off the high stool and followed Matt from the room. And she again wondered at the elitism of this association. And it would only get worse if The Prick was successful at toppling Josh off his proverbial throne.
Chapter 8
Josh knew he shouldn’t leave, but he didn’t care. Not this time.
Kim had whelped her pup—a plump, healthy little girl—and Alexa and Olivia had fixed her up so well, one wouldn’t believe she’d been on the brink of death a few hours prior. After watching the Lightbearers use magic to clean the room of all signs of childbirth, Carmen had left the suite to retrieve her grandpups, returning a few minutes later with Maddy and Teddy. They greeted mother, father, and newborn sibling with enough enthusiasm to bring tears to even Josh’s eyes.
Olivia and Tanner and their pup had been escorted to a guest suite to relax, and Alexa had gone to her own suite to sleep off the effects of depleting her magic to keep Kim and her pup alive. Matt disappeared, too, ready to catch some shuteye after flying up to the coterie in the middle of the night and then driving back with the Lightbearers and Tanner in tow.
Shifters came and went, stopping by to see Kim and the newborn. Jeanine and a few of her relatives had pulled together a brunch buffet that was set up in the dining room, and everyone helped themselves in between checking on Kim and gossiping about the Lightbearers.
When Josh finally slipped away to collect Rachel, he was as desperate to couple with her as a shifter was when his mate had been in danger, or they had been separated for a great length of time. Not good, but at the moment, he couldn’t—didn’t want to— consider the implications. He just wanted to be with her. Alone. Naked. Which he couldn’t do while they were at his house. He couldn’t run the risk of someone walking in on them, which, unfortunately, was entirely possible, given the number of shifters milling about today.
Not to mention the danger of Rachel discovering she wasn’t surrounded by humans, but by a group of beings who could change their physical form at will. She was a pretty damn open individual, but he doubted discovering that fact about the man she’d been sleeping with would work in his favor. Besides, if she did discover their secret, his pack would never forgive him. They’d probably demand he step down as pack leader.
He considered that thought.
If he wasn’t pack master, he could leave. He could be with Rachel, live like a human. They could get married, have pups, and spend the rest of their lives, just the two of them and their little family.
The idea was damned tempting.
But he couldn’t. If he stepped down, Kent Pantera would move into the role. Josh doubted there would even be any other challengers for the position. Many times in the past, Josh had suspected Pantera of getting his way through less than moral or legal
means, but he’d never been able to prove it. Since Josh was a pup, Pantera had tried numerous times to unseat first Josh’s grandfather and then his father from the position, and only one time had it been an outright challenge. Pantera had lost soundly, Josh’s grandfather had spared his life, and the pack had gone back to business as usual, save Pantera’s ever-growing resentment.
Stepping down as pack master would have dire consequences for the rest of the pack, and as selfish as Josh had been lately, he couldn’t be that selfish. But he could slip away for a few hours, lose himself in Rachel’s warmth and affection.
So he grabbed his keys and guided her out to the garage and into his Escalade, and soon, they were headed out of his neighborhood and down the road toward her apartment. He cupped her thigh as he drove, needing to touch her. When she placed her hand on his arm and shifted it higher, until his fingers skimmed her panties, he nearly drove off the road. She smiled demurely.
“I missed sleeping with you last night.”
“I missed doing something other than sleeping last night.”
She laughed, and he could practically see the stress fade away from her face the farther they drove away from his house, and his pack.
He parked the Escalade, hopped out, and hurried around to open Rachel’s door. She stepped into his embrace and he pushed her back against the side of the black vehicle, cupping her face and slamming his lips against hers, kissing her with a fevered urgency he could neither deny nor stop. She wrapped her arms around his back and clung to him, seemingly as hungry for him as he was for her.
“Upstairs,” she said on a gasp, breaking the kiss. “Let’s not give the neighbors a show.”
She snagged his hand and led him toward her apartment building. His gaze was riveted on her ass, and he imagined draping her over the arm of her sofa, flipping up her skirt and pumping into her, claiming her.