by JoAnna Grace
"It's turning into Oz around here." The other twin laughed and pointed to the lion. "That's got to be Conall! Dang, you're big, dude!" The unusually tall boy nearly looked Conall's monstrous lion in the eyes. Vivian was afraid that he wouldn't take so kindly to the petting, but he just lowered his head fractionally and let Nate run his fingers over his bushy blond mane. Yup, even in this form he was buzzed.
Amilynn's paw reached out and snagged Nate's leg, nearly tripping him. The teen laughed and bent to look at her. "You've got to be Ami. Every time I turn around you're trying to lay me on my ass." Ami nipped at his knee, an obvious scolding for his language. He put his hands up defensively. "Sorry, sorry."
"Boys!" called out Sampson from the other side of the Olympic sized pool. "Come help me with this."
"Yes, sir." They all three said in chorus.
Both the twins got one more rub of Amilynn's head before running off to help their father. Ezekiel give Amilynn a look she couldn't place before he dropped his eyes and turned away to go help his family place pieces of a solid cover over the pool turning it into a big dance floor. The tawny leopard was watching him intently, her teeth barely showing as she hissed.
What the hell?
Amilynn? Vivian asked her mentally, privately.
The leopard snarled.
Alpha instincts took over before Vivian's human brain could process the tiger's actions. She jumped over Conall and sank her teeth in Amilynn's neck, giving her just enough pressure to let her know her attitude and disrespect was not appreciated.
In the house, now. And don't make me have to ask twice, Vivian threatened. The leopard crawled low on her stomach to the back door of the house where she shifted human again and went inside. Vivian shifted and stalked her into the house, pulling her into the pink and black office. "You tell me what the fuck's going on. That was a lot more than sour grapes over a game of basketball."
Amilynn lowered her head at the authority in Vivian's voice. Her blond hair spilled over her face, but she was silent.
"Amilynn!" Vivian growled, putting even more of a command in her tenor.
"It's no big deal." Amilynn shrugged. "While we were playing ball, his wolf decided it wanted some of my cat. He's a horny juvenile, V. It's nothing I can't handle."
"You're sure it wasn't one of the teenagers? You know kids their age can't control the animal's biological responses well."
"No, this was straight from him."
Vivian sat on the edge of the black desk and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Damn it, Ami. That's Kasey's nephew."
Ami got defensive. "It's not like I'm the one trying to bang him, V. He's the one with the damn hormonal problem, not me."
Vivian looked at her. Now that she was mated, she understood the power of an animal's mating claim. Kasey's wolf had claimed her long before she ever wanted to have anything to do with him, and when it came down to it, he would have never given up. The possibility of Ezekiel's wolf making a claim was farfetched, but if he had, there would be no turning back. The man would only follow the desires of the animal. He would hunt Amilynn until he had her.
Vivian huffed. Hadn't they just has this conversation, only the roles were reversed? "Trust me, Ami. It's just as much your problem as it is his."
"Tough shit on his part because this is not happening." Ami shook her head, crossed her arms defensively.
V groaned. "Let's make it through today and we can deal with this later. You keep your ass away from that boy. Do you hear me? Keep your distance and do not do anything that would provoke him."
Ami gave her an innocent, wide-eyed, phony as hell expression. "What makes you think I would ever do something like that?"
Vivian gave her a droll look. "History."
CHAPTER TWENTY
Kasey stood beside the Pride as his Pack members began to arrive. He introduced each family and let them acknowledge the cats. It took nearly half an hour as a steady stream of people came to greet them. The positive comments coming from Kasey's friends and family gave Vivian reassurance. She could tell Kasey felt pretty good about it too. The people gathered over the newly laid dance floor in a congregation of onlookers.
"Wook mama, kiddy." The voice of a beautiful child took her attention. The fearless little girl ran over to Vivian and stood at her feet. She looked up at Vivian with a jovial smile on her face, her almond-shaped eyes showing no fear, no apprehension.
The mother gasped in horror, fearful the five hundred plus pound tiger would harm her child. Slowly, Vivian lowered her entire body until she was on the ground at the child's feet. She rested her head on her paws, putting the child in the dominant position. The entire Pride followed. Kasey grinned as the cats bowed to the toddler, who threw herself at the cat and wrapped her tiny arms around Vivian's head. The girl's body blocked Vivian's line of sight. Vivian bounced her head twice and the child squealed with glee. She could hear Pack members laughing. Then she sat patiently until Kasey, who was chuckling as well, picked the girl up and held her in his arms.
"No, Muncle Ka-dee! My wanna kiddy. My wide it, my wide it!"
Vivian opened her eyes to see a relieved and happy mother taking the pup into her arms.
"Sorry, Natasha, you can't ride the kitty cat right now."
She is a beautiful baby, Vivian told him. Kasey relayed the message to the mother.
"Thank you, Vivian. You honor us with your submission."
"Wook at me!" The black-headed child closed her eyes tight, her hands fisted in concentration. She turned into a wolf pup with like coloring.
Beside Vivian, Melissa stirred. Her sister wanted babies so badly she could barely contain her maternal need. She let out a cat's mew and lifted a paw towards the pup.
Kasey took the hint. "I'm sure Melissa would be more than happy to keep an eye on the pup for a moment."
"Are you sure? Natasha can be a handful." Even as she said the words, she sat the wolf pup down. Natasha scurried over to Melissa and began to paw at her nose. Melissa licked the pup and buried her head in the soft fluff. When she started purring, everyone smiled and the girl's mother backed away to join the rest of the onlookers.
When they all gathered, Kasey addressed the crowd. He was every bit as confident and authoritative as an alpha should be. It awed her. Trace had never addressed the entire populace in such a manner with the suave power of Kasey Blackburn. Of course, Kasey's Pack respected him. It was clear by the way every eye turned the minute he began to speak.
"Friends, family, Pack, Clan, and Pride members, we gather together today to celebrate the merging and union of our races. For decades we have lived as a mixed kinship and thrived, our matings producing wolf pups and bear cubs alike and the unity of our family grows stronger every year. Now we embrace a new addition. The Blake Pride has agreed to merge with us, becoming part of the Blackburn umbrella of families. My mate, Vivian Blake, comes to present her Pride as I take her for my own." The crowd applauded. "We would like to now continue a tradition of our people. Will the council members please step forward?" Kasey requested as he went to stand by Sampson.
Beside Kasey lined up three other men and two women. The people morphed into animals: a solid black wolf, a brown and black wolf with a dark muzzle, a snow-white wolf, a gargantuan grizzly, a petite black bear, and a polar bear. Only the grizzly was larger than Kasey's wolf. He would give even Vivian's tiger a run for its money. After a moment, their animals satisfied at seeing each other, they all shifted back to human form. Formal introductions were made.
"I'd like to introduce Alias, who was also in the service of my father before his passing. Alias is grumpy, but we love him anyway." Kasey patted the silent older man on the shoulder. He had been the black wolf. Vivian shook his hand and noticed there was no acceptance for her in his eyes.
They went down the line of people. The white wolf was Helena, Kasey's aunt. Next was the grizzly. In both man and beast, Clayton was nearly seven feet tall and just about as wide. He had a predator's smile and that stuck in Vivian's
mind more than his size. The small black bear was a woman named Nina.
"She will talk you ear off if you give her the chance," Kasey warned, teasing, but Vivian didn't miss the look of jealousy Nina gave her, nor the adoring smile she gave Kasey. Great.
The polar bear was a man named Ian. He was tall and had the same white hair as his beast. "Ian is the bears' alpha. He worked with me to merge the bears and wolves in one Pack."
"And it gives me great pleasure to be a part of this history-making day as well. My family and I want to welcome you, Vivian, and your Pride into the family. We pray you will be happy with us."
"I have no doubt, Ian. Thank you so much." Vivian blushed as he kissed the back of her hand.
Kasey had told her it was wolf tradition for the alpha pair to stand at the beginning of the eating line and greet the people as they went through. This was slightly repetitive since she had just done so in her tiger form, but who was she to buck wolf traditions. The Pride was allowed to go first along with the council members and their family. Conall had really taken to Sampson and they stood in line together, no doubt talking about cars. Bianca and Melissa were talking as well while the twins flanked Amilynn, flirting shamelessly. Vivian noticed that Ezekiel was with a group of his friends closer to the back of the line. That was for the best. He was watching Ami and his brothers like a hawk even from a distance.
Once everyone had gone through the line, Kasey and Vivian made their plates and sat down. The conversations at the tables were interesting. She listened to the various topics: politics, the Pride, sports, the children's school, the weather, the Pride, whispers about the unmated members of the Pride possibly mating with the Pack.
This community of people was as varied as any other place in the world. There were older people who sat long after the meal and visited, watching their legacy of children and grandchildren running around. Bianca, Nina and Helena had set up the juveniles to run games in a field below the house. It was a perfect day for such activities. It was cool and breezy, the meadow behind the mansion lush with green grass.
Vivian conjured up some sandals and ditched the boots so she and Kasey could walk down the hill to the game areas. There was everything from archery and a firing range to ring toss and a bounce house—no claws allowed. It was no surprise to find Amilynn had already discovered the firing range. She and Ty were trying to show each other up. The person managing that area had to get out a ruler to see who was more on target. She found Melissa helping out with the kids' booths. Conall was in the parking lot looking in the hood of a hot rod; he had made a new friend and she was just as involved with the car as he was.
"What would you like to do, kitty cat?" Kasey pulled her in his arms.
"Is there a kissing booth? I think I'd like to get you in it."
"You want other women to kiss me?"
"I'd monopolize you." She grinned.
"You know, now that you mention it, I think there is a kissing booth over there in the woods." Kasey smiled seductively.
"Really? Maybe we should find it?" Vivian and Kasey slipped off through the trees unnoticed. They went deep into the woods until they could barely hear the crowd of people.
"Here it is." Kasey pointed to a downed tree and he sat on it. He pulled Vivian down on his lap. He was the happiest she had seen him and his eyes were lit from within. "Have I told you how beautiful you are, how happy I am that you're here with me?"
"You can't tell me that enough."
Kasey took her mouth, unable to resist her lips anymore. He grabbed a handful of her hair, bringing her closer. Heat surged to her core and all Vivian wanted to do was make love to him. But responsibility reared its head and she knew that if they indulged right now, everyone would scent it when they went back. "You need to behave, punk," she mumbled as he licked her ear and took it between his teeth.
"Stay with me tonight. I want you in my bed." His hand went under her skirt and cupped her bottom. "I want to make love to you and not worry about anything but how you feel on top of me."
His husky words spoken against her pulse made her close her eyes, self-control fading under his lips. "Kasey, you aren't supposed to be against me on this. It's your Pack that might object to us smelling of sex, not my Pride."
Kasey's head popped up. "We can shift on the way back and take care of that."
Vivian looked into his eyes as she thought it over. Kasey was right, shifting made certain scents go away. "Why the hell didn't we think of that earlier?" Hunger burned in her belly and she all but attacked Kasey. Clothing was shredded and they fell to the forest floor. Vivian thought she might go up in flames before she could get her shirt off. Her hands fumbled with his pants until her claws emerged and she sliced through the belt and buttons.
"Easy there, kitty cat, there's a prized asset beneath that zipper." He swallowed hard, his eyes wide. He had pushed her leather skirt over her hips and thrust his fingers under her thin lace panties to find her wet and ready. He growled, his arousal growing harder. He ripped the panties off and helped her with his pants.
Vivian nearly screamed out as he pressed at her entrance and she settled on top of him, taking him in. He stretched her to the limits, inch by inch of perfection. Groans of pleasure slipped over his lips and he closed his eyes reveling in the heat of her body.
"Baby, I've been needing this so bad." He thrust his hips to meet her body as she rode him furiously.
Vivian moved on him until they went up in flames, climaxing together and laughing at their quick but steamy rendezvous in the woods.
"Uh-oh," Kasey said getting to his feet. Vivian tilted her head in inquiry. He pointed to his temple. "I'm being paged, it seems Tyrone and Amilynn have become a spectacle with their shooting skills. People are looking for us."
After one more long, sultry kiss the couple shifted and made their way back to the party. Kasey had been correct; the shifting took away the scent of their lovemaking. But their smiles were plastered on their faces as they moved through the crowd to see Amilynn with a rifle on her shoulder pointing behind her back. She was using a compact mirror to help align the gun like some sort of modern day Annie Oakley. As the crowd held their breath, Amilynn pulled the trigger and fired the gun. The bullet went right to the bull's eye. And a cheer erupted through the crowd. Amilynn smiled and took a bow.
Vivian searched the crowd. If Ezekiel had really claimed her, he would be nearby, especially with Amilynn's young male fan club. Vivian spotted him in the middle of some teenagers, arms crossed, eyes locked on Ami. His lips were curved into a controlled smile. Or was he growling? Vivian's eyes went back to Amilynn. There was a blond haired, muscled up cutie with a killer smile leaning in close and she was in no way brushing him off. Vivian vaguely remembered him from the club.
"Not good," Vivian mumbled.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Reading her mind, Kasey looked at Amilynn flirting with Martin and then through the crowd. Amilynn and Martin had been dancing around each other since the first time she sat in his office. He was worried about Conall, but that didn't seem to be the problem. He kept his eyes moving around. Nathaniel and Thomas, who had taken an instant liking to Amilynn, were happily laughing with her. It wasn't them.
Then his eyes landed on Ezekiel. Shit.
Z was about to blow a gasket right in the middle of everything. His arms were at his sides, hands balled up in fists. The deep breaths he was taking to calm himself moved his broad chest up and down. Kasey's young nephew was no longer a teenager, but a predatory male. One of his pals asked him a question and Z pushed him out of the way and moved toward the house.
Kasey looked over at Vivian. "What did I miss? Does this have to do with why you and Amilynn left earlier?"
Vivian nodded. Amilynn told me that while they were playing ball today Ezekiel's wolf surfaced, she said.
Damn.
She wouldn't say much. Tried to make light of it. Clearly, he's not blowing it off so easily.
Kasey furrowed his brow, nodded, and t
hen slipped off to the house. Ezekiel released a strong scent and undeniably not some twenty-year-old's version of lust. His wolf had sensed his mate and was not being coy about it. Poor kid, thought Kasey.
Ezekiel had gone down to the basement while Amilynn and Tyrone took turns at knife throwing. Z was beating the crap out of a punching bag. Kasey surveyed him for a moment.
Z was going through the kickboxing routine that all the dominant males go through in training. And damn, was he good at it. How had Kasey missed his nephew turning into this skilled fighter?
With a sigh, he realized exactly how. He still looked at Z as a kid, the easygoing, mischievous pup who played creative but haphazard tricks on his parents. But the wolf battering the hanging bag in the gym was an unmated male burning off animal frustration just as Kasey had been not a month earlier.
Ezekiel jumped and swung his leg around, kicking the bag with enough force to send it crashing into the wall, breaking off the steel chain that was bolted to the ceiling.
"Wow," Kasey said. Ezekiel turned to face him, his eyes burning. "That's some impressive stuff there, Z."
"I'm not really in the mood for company, Uncle Kasey. And I'm sorry about the bag. I'll fix it." He rubbed the back of his neck and shied away from his alpha. It only took a second for him to gain control again.
Kasey walked over and examined the damaged bag. "You know, nephew of mine, it's been a long time since I've knocked down a punching bag."
"You talk like you're so old Uncle Kasey. You're only like, what, thirty? Prime of your life, man." He unintentionally mirrored Kasey's stance: both men shoving their hands in their pockets and rocking back on their heels. "Why aren't you with your new lady?"
"Believe it or not, we aren't attached at the hip." Kasey grinned, his mind going to a few moments ago when they were most definitely attached at the hip.
"Vivian's hot, man. I bet you guys get attached all the time." Ezekiel laughed mischievously. This was the side of Z that Kasey knew well. It was the side of him that took out the punching bag that he worried about.