by Lauren Dane
“Hey, I love you too. Don’t be afraid to love me, Nina. I hope I never make you regret it.” He looked into her face and then blushed. “Oh, well, except for the whole last month or so.” He kissed her. Her lips were gentle and full beneath his. He sipped at her.
“Touch yourself, Nina. Make yourself come around me. I don’t want to put any of my weight on you to move my hand. And I like to watch you do it.”
He leaned down and ran the edge of his teeth over one of her nipples, delighting in the way she mewled and arched into his mouth. Watching her hand slide over her mound, fingers questing toward her clit, he flicked his tongue over her nipples, one and then the other, over and over.
The moment her fingers touched herself she tightened around his cock. He could feel the flesh of her pussy slide around as she moved her fingers over herself. Her breath quickened and caught as she pushed herself toward orgasm with him right behind her.
He loved the way she felt beneath him, around him. Loved the subtle scent of her body that rose from her heated skin. Loved the way her hair felt against his skin, the silk of her inner thighs. Loved the sounds she made as she neared climax. Hell, he even loved her twisted sense of humor.
As the first tremors of her orgasm rippled through her cunt, he began to thrust deeper. Fighting the urge to plunge deeply into her, he settled for slow, deep digs into her and when it broke over her, the spasms and slickness of her climax yanked him in with her and he thought his insides would shoot out the head of his cock, he came so hard.
Panting, he moved to the side so he wouldn’t collapse on her and hurt her. Heart thundering in his chest, he pulled her to him, kissed the top of her head and murmured that he loved her.
Chapter Seven
As dawn broke, Nina’s internal alarm clock woke her for the first time since she’d moved into werewolf mansion. She got out of bed and jumped into the shower quietly. She had to get back to work. She’d managed to get out of Lex that they’d at least called the shop and arranged for her manager to take over while she was gone, but enough was enough. It had been a week and that was too damned long.
She did enjoy the fact that the master closet was off the bathroom and got dressed, dabbed on a bit of makeup and twisted her hair up. She decided to forego the glasses and the prim clothes. They’d burned anyway. What was the point now that she not only had a man but a big bad werewolf who carried a .357 Magnum?
She left Lex sleeping and headed down and thankfully smelled coffee and saw Dave and Megan there in the kitchen, reading the paper.
The truth was, she understood better than Lex thought she would. She understood the importance of sticking to rules to be safe. Understood the cost of taking care of a larger goal—sometimes at the expense of the weakest person.
At the same time, she wasn’t sure how she felt about the rest of the wolves who stood there and watched while she was nearly killed. Her logical mind understood it—certainly understood the compulsion of Pack now that it coursed through her veins. It was like an odd sort of hive-mind—or was that Pack-mind?—connection. Still, the feelings of betrayal were still there like a bitter taste on her tongue and weighed heavy on her heart.
But she lived there and now she was one of them in more than just marriage. And she couldn’t avoid them all forever.
Sighing, she walked into the kitchen and headed for the cabinet to grab a mug.
Dave jumped up and opened the door, pulling a cup out and handing it to her. “Here, let me help you with that.”
Nina took it from him. “Thanks.” She turned and got milk from the fridge and made her cup of coffee.
She popped a bagel in the toaster, rustled through the refrigerator and pulled out a tomato and some cheese and set to slicing them.
“Nina, I’m sorry. I know you probably can’t understand why no one helped you and I... I’m so terribly sorry,” Megan said softly.
Nina turned and looked into her sister-in-law’s eyes and she felt the pain there. Felt the conflict between her loyalty to the Pack, to her Alpha and to doing the right thing and protecting Nina.
But as Nina stood there, remembering that night she had a flash of something. The guards all carried weapons, yes. But they also carried them strapped in thigh holsters, at the small of their backs or underarm holsters. Nina looked down and saw that Megan’s gun was not on her thigh.
“Megan, where do you carry?”
Her sister-in-law moved her jacket back and showed Nina the underarm rig. “Here. Sometimes on the thigh but not most of the time.”
“Not most of the time.” Nina said this quietly and Megan made a barely perceptible nod. Nina closed her eyes for a moment. Certainly not that night at the Pack house. Nina remembered Megan adjusting herself as they got out of the cars before they’d walked into the house.
Megan had handed her that gun. Had used that moment of confusion when Nina had been thrown into her to get that gun into her hand.
Nina reached up and touched Megan’s face gently. “Thank you.” Understanding passed between them.
“I wish you’d gotten my gun. I was carrying silver ammo and you would have killed that bastard, Carter.” Dave’s voice was vehement.
Nina turned to Dave with a shrug. Dave looked miserable, guilty and red-faced.
“I’m sorry too. I’m glad you shot his ass. I hope it hurt like a motherfucker to get those slugs out of him. I hope Doc Molinari dug in extra hard to get them all. Can you forgive us all?”
“I’m working on it. It’ll be a while before I’ll be ready to deal with the Pack as a whole again.”
Her bagel popped up and she turned, piled it with tomato slices and cheese and took it to the table.
“You’re going to need some more protein to go with it,” Cade said as he came into the room and went to the fridge. He pulled out some roast beef, put it on the table in front of her and went to get himself some coffee.
Suddenly Megan and Dave found that they had things to do in the other room as Cade sat at the table across from Nina.
She said nothing as she put meat on the bagel but she could feel his anguish. And his irritation and confusion at wanting her approval and forgiveness. She softened a bit, but not much. She’d wager that he’d never actually had to work for anyone’s approval before as he’d been groomed to be Alpha from the womb and all.
“So. Am I still Mr. Warden?” Cade asked, watching her as she sipped her coffee.
“I don’t know. Are you?”
“What kind of woman answer is that?”
“What kind of stupid-assed question is that?”
“Did you just call me stupid?”
“No, I called your question stupid. But upon reflection, I should have included you too. But, as you’re the supreme poobah, you can be the most stupid.”
“Look, I don’t apologize for doing what was necessary to keep Pack order.”
“How furry of you to say so.” She got up and went back to the fridge. Annoyed, she pulled out eggs and milk, placing them on the counter.
Nina could feel Cade glaring at her back as she pulled out a bowl and a whisk and set about making scrambled eggs. She took her time just to fuck with him.
“We can’t just keep being mad at each other, Nina. You’re my sister-in-law and I’m your anchor bond as well as your Alpha.”
She turned on the gas below the skillet and put a pat of butter in to melt. “Hmm. Is that an official pronouncement?”
She tipped the bowl, pouring the mixture into the skillet, and put it in the sink before moving back to the stove where she stirred the eggs.
He fumed as the food cooked. Finally she pulled out two plates and halved the eggs and put one plate in front of Cade and sat down with hers.
“Oh. Thanks.”
Nina hid a smirk at his confusion. Cade Warden migh
t be her Alpha and the big cheese, but he and his tool of a brother had to be properly trained as to how to treat a woman. This He-Man routine of theirs had to stop. If she was going to live there, it would be on her terms too, or not at all.
They ate in silence until she stood up and put her plate in the sink.
“So are we okay or what?” Cade asked.
She turned to him. “Eventually I think we will be. On one level, I trust you. As a member of your Pack, I trust you’ll enforce the rules that keep werewolves safe. But that doesn’t mean I trust you, Cade, to protect me, Nina. I would have given my life for you or Lex. But you don’t feel the same and that’s taking some getting used to.”
He stood and went to her. Taking her hands in his, he searched her face as he tried to think of the words to say. “Nina, you can trust me. There is no one more important to me in the world than you and Lex. I love my family but you two are my tri-bond. In many ways, you’re my mate too. It nearly killed me to watch you being attacked. I tried to find you a way out. And no, I don’t think it was your fault. But I also knew that a werewolf could easily kill a human. I had to make the choice that was best for the Pack. But that doesn’t mean you can’t trust me.”
“You can’t have it both ways, Cade.” She gently took her hands back and kissed his cheek. “I’ll get over it in time. But I don’t think things between us will ever be the same and maybe that’s a good thing anyway.”
“What are you doing up so early?” Lex asked as he came into the kitchen.
Nina stepped away from Cade and went to Lex. She kissed his chin. “I have to get to my shop today. It’s been a week. I’ll need a car. Oh, and I suppose a bodyguard too.” She sighed.
“You what? Jesus, Nina! You. Almost. Died! People are trying to kill you. They burned down your house. What does it take to make you stay home and be safe?” Lex yelled this so loud that the bass of it vibrated her spine.
She idly waved a hand in his direction. “Indoor voice! Knock it off tantrum-boy.”
“Tantrum-boy? Nina, Lex is right. You need to stay here where we can protect you.”
She narrowed her eyes at Cade. “Oh yeah, well, let me see...nope, you’re not the boss of me. And I’d like to point out a very important point—this entire ball of shit originated with werewolves. The murder attempts? You people. Hell, right in front of you in one situation. So, fuck off, won’t you? Because I’ve got a business to run and we still need to find my brother’s killer.”
She moved to walk out of the room and Lex’s arm shot out to stop her. Only she turned and growled at him and everyone got very quiet for a moment.
“Nina, your wolf is surfacing.” Cade’s voice was calm and low.
“Don’t poke at it with a stick, then.” She turned back to Lex. “I’m going to work. Period. End of discussion. I’m going to wait downstairs for five minutes and then I’m taking one of the Mercs and leaving. You can roll with that and give me a bodyguard. Or sit here and wring your hands all day. It’s all the same to me.”
With that pronouncement, she breezed out of the room.
Lex slammed a fist into the wall and let out a frustrated groan. “Are you in the field today or here?”
“Here. Go with her, Lex, and take Megan with you. It’s time you let Dave take over being my chief bodyguard and you do Enforcement full time. Right now, she’s our biggest priority. She’s under threat and she’s right, we do need to find that murderer.”
“Carter is a part of it. I can taste it.”
“I think so too. I’ve never doubted your senses about stuff like this anyway.”
Lex sighed and turned to his brother. “I’m going to bring two more men onto your personal detail.”
“Do it. Now get down there before she takes off without you.”
Lex grinned and held up a small black cube. “Not without the electronic key she doesn’t. The engine won’t turn over without it.”
Cade laughed. “Living with the two of you is going to be really interesting.”
“Something like that,” Lex called out as he left the room. He motioned for Megan to follow him and they headed downstairs to the garage.
* * *
Nina was sitting in the car, talking on her cell phone when they got inside with her. She shot him an annoyed look when he touched the cube to a spot on the dash near the ignition and started the car. He made sure she saw him pocket the cube where he could keep custody of it too.
“Who were you talking to?”
“My assistant manager. He’s going to Pike Place Market this morning to pick up some supplies and...oh, not like you need to know the details.”
“Yeah. Well, here’s how it’s going to go.” Lex kept his eyes on the road as he drove. “One of us, more probably, two of us, will be with you at all times while you are at the shop. I will drive you daily. This is not negotiable. You will not leave the shop without one of us accompanying you. You will not enter the shop until we have done a sweep and ensured everything is clear.”
“Yeah, yeah. Okay, Principal McGruff.”
Megan snorted laughter in the backseat and Lex cut his eyes to her in the rearview mirror but she studiously avoided looking up.
“I mean it, Nina. Now that we’re mated it’s going to be even more difficult for me to let go of you. I’ll be more protective. It’s biology. If we work together, we can make it easier. Come on, you seriously can’t...oh shit!”
Nina’s head came up and she saw the smoking ruin of her shop. Automatically her hand went for the door but Lex was quicker, hitting the automatic locks.
“No! Nina, I know you’re upset but you can’t charge out there.” Megan leaned forward and rubbed Nina’s shoulders, murmuring softly to her.
“I have to talk to the police.” Nina’s voice was flat. “Pull over here, there are plenty here now.”
Lex started to argue but met his sister’s eyes. Megan shook her head once, staying his actions. With a sigh, he pulled over in the parking lot of the bookstore next to the shop.
“Stay here until I get your door.” Lex slid out and surveyed the area as he walked around to let her out of the car.
He led her to the firefighters on scene, trying to stifle his alarm at how limp and lifeless she felt as she let him lead her around.
“Officers, my fiancée, Nina Reyes is the owner of this shop. What’s happened?” Lex asked as they got to the police line.
“Ma’am,” one of the firefighters said as he pulled off some of his smoke-stained gear, “it doesn’t look accidental.”
“Arson? Oh, of course! Because it wasn’t enough to burn down my house. Oh! Everyone is okay? Oh god! There was no one here yet? You see, for early deliveries on Thursdays, we’re often here at five. None of my employees was ins...” her voice broke and Lex pulled her to his side.
Megan stood discreet but alert at their back.
“No, ma’am, the place was empty. Can you wait over there please?” The firefighter pointed at the corner. “I’m sure the police and the investigators will want to talk to you.”
Numb, Nina let Lex guide her to the corner to wait. She had to let the grief wash over her so she could get to the mad. Instinctively, she knew the mad would save her, help her get through.
Lex stood next to her, rubbing small circles over her back. She’d noticed that the wolves liked to touch at times of stress. She also realized that she’d have to stop thinking of it as things that happened to them because she was one of them too.
“When this is all over, I’m going to check myself into a hospital and have a heart attack,” she said tiredly.
“I’m so sorry, beautiful. We’re going to find who did this, I promise you.”
“Carter did this, Lex. Come on! You know it and I know it,” she hissed as she saw someone come over from the scene. It was the man who
was investigating the fire at her house.
“Ms. Reyes. I wish I could say I was happy to see you. Do you happen to know anything about this?” Detective Stoner came to a stop in front of them.
“I wish I did. I was coming to my shop for the first time in a week.” Nina felt the anger and the frustration at not being able to tell this man the whole story. Lex had asked her to leave the details to the Pack and she’d agreed. She had serious misgivings at that point in letting the Pack handle it all, but she’d given her word so she kept the details to a minimum.
“No? No enemies? Someone you may have offended back in Ohio?” The detective asked the question with forced casualness but Nina had dealt with enough social workers and cops to know fishing when she saw it. She could also smell something acrid about him.
While Nina felt Lex’s arm tense slightly, she knew he’d not appear any different to the man questioning her.
“My crimes were stupid and petty and are over a decade old. I’m sure you also saw that other than juvenile records, I’ve been clean. Someone I cheated in some street dice game back when I was seventeen is not going to burn down my house and shop.
“Pardon me for doing your job and all—” because you’re not was the unspoken part “—but this is something a hell of a lot bigger than some crap I did a stint in juvie for a decade ago.”
“Hey, no need to get defensive. I was just trying to figure out who did this and why. Obviously whoever did this knows you or has some personal issue with you. It’s only logical to ask you if you had any information.”
“Do you think I would hide information for fun? That it’s so enjoyable having my entire life burn down around my ears, threatening my employees? You’ve done your homework so you know I came from nothing. I worked hard to build my business up, I want to catch who did this more than you do—I promise you that.”
Stoner held his hands up in surrender in the face of her anger. “I’ll be in touch. I take it you’re still staying with Mr. Warden here?” He nodded his chin toward Lex.
“Yes. Ms. Reyes and I are engaged to be married. Our home is her permanent address. You can reach us there day or night. You also have my cell phone number. As you can see, Nina is stressed out and upset. May I take her home or is there anything else you need?”