Witch's Mate

by Alicia Montgomery

  “I’m sorry, I don’t know what got into me.” He turned around and rubbed his hand down his face. “Who the fuck was that man?”

  “Shhh…Liam,” she soothed, running a hand down his back. She slipped her arms around his waist and pressed her cheek against his warm skin. “No one. No one you need to know.”

  “But he hurt you.” The simmering rage began to boil over again.

  Her arms tightened around him. “I’m yours, Liam, only yours.”

  The words subdued the anger in him. He turned around and looked down at her beautiful face. Without another word, he lifted her in his arms and carried her to bed.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Jade stayed under observation for another 24 hours, but seeing as her Lycan abilities had basically healed her completely, there was no reason to keep her at the Medical Wing. Despite Lara’s protests, Jade went to work immediately. It took Jade a day or two to get the lab up to speed in her absence, but soon she had everything running the way she wanted it. She immediately put all their resources into figuring out how the mages were using blood magic to control humans, and also completing the power suppressing bracelet. It was a Friday afternoon, and Lara couldn’t wait to get out of work. The time seemed to tick by slowly, and she gave the clock another impatient look, willing it to go faster.

  “This is fascinating!” Jade declared as she perused the old books spread all over the table in her lab. “Plus, with what we know about how the mage controlled all those humans, it’ll be easier to find out what we need. Hey, don’t touch that!”

  Meredith pulled her hand away from one of the leather bound books. “I was just curious! I’m so bored in here! I can’t even get any WiFi!”

  Jade rolled her eyes. “These volumes are old and priceless!” She tossed a glove at the other Lycan. “If you want to touch them, put these on. But I’d rather you not. I’m trying to catalogue them to make them easier to reference.”

  “So I can play with them?” Meredith’s eyes glinted.

  “You can help.”

  Lara shook her head. Meredith and Jade were complete opposites, with the latter being so brainy and serious, and the former never taking anything seriously. At first they quarreled like siblings. Jade felt resentful at being under close guard, and Meredith took every chance to poke and needle the scientist. Yet, to give them some credit, the two were slowly getting along.

  “Can we get any more information from our mage prisoner?” Jade asked Lara.

  “You mean that guy who kidnapped you, kept you drugged, controlled three dozen humans, and attacked your friends?” Meredith said sweetly.

  OK, so maybe they weren’t getting along that well, Lara thought to herself.

  Jade ignored her words. “I would think he’d be able to tell us more about the process.”

  Lara shook her head. “According to Alynna, he’s been silent as a stone. Refuses to talk to anyone.”

  “How about the humans there?”

  “Apparently, they don’t remember anything either. It’s like their memories had been wiped away.”

  “Who were those guys anyway?” Meredith asked. “They all seemed well-trained.”

  “Strange, right?” Lara said. “They’re from all over. Special forces, Marines, Navy SEALs, private bodyguards.”

  Meredith gasped. “So the mages somehow kidnapped some of the best soldiers in the world and used their magic to control them? Man, these mages sound like dicks!”

  Lara nodded. “That seems to be the case. Grant and Nick are working to make sure they all get back to where they need to be. Cady’s working overtime to smooth things over with the human authorities and fabricating stories to explain what happened. It’s a big mess.” She did not envy her cousin right now.

  “And the other humans? The Creed crew, I mean.”

  Lara shrugged. “I don’t know. They don’t seem to be suspicious about anything, and so there’s no need to make them take the confusion potion.” She hated the stuff. Not only was it difficult to make, but it was also unstable. The Lycans who bought it from the witches thought it was expensive to obtain because the witches were spiteful, but that was far from the truth. Confusion potions were necessary to keep the humans in the dark about the existence of both witches and Lycans. One dose and it made memories unreliable. But in the wrong hands, human hands in particular, it was a dangerous potion.

  “Maybe I can make sure, interview them and stuff…I swear I’d pounce on any of those guys! At least they’d be taller than me in heels!” Meredith gave a lascivious smile. “Oh, that Sebastian Creed! He has to be single! Don’t you think he was a tall drink of water on a hot day, Jade?” She elbowed the scientist.

  Jade wrinkled her brow. “Who?”

  The blonde Lycan gave an exasperated sigh. “You know. Your knight in shining Kevlar. The guy who found you and freed you from your chains. Literally. Tell me, when he carried you off into the sunrise, could you tell if he was carrying a big gun in his pocket?”

  Jade looked at Lara, a confused look on her face. “Who is she talking about?”

  “Who am I talking about?!” Meredith waved her hands in an exaggerated manner.

  “Meredith,” Lara warned. “Jade was drugged and unconscious until she woke up in the Medical Wing.”

  “Oh, man!” Meredith gave Jade a pitying look. “I’m so sorry.” She shook her head. “I’m so sorry you missed the hotness that was Sebastian Creed.”

  “Hmm.” Jade tapped her chin with her finger. “I need to check on something with Milly. I’ll be back.”

  As soon as Jade left the inner lab, Lara turned to Meredith. “Why do you keep doing that?”

  “Doing what?” The Lycan’s face was blank.

  “Goading her and prodding her like that! You need to leave her alone. She doesn’t need any more reminders of what she went through!” Fury rose in her, but she kept her hands fisted at her sides.

  “I’m giving her exactly what she needs,” Meredith countered. “Can’t you see how she’s keeping everything inside? How it’s hurting her? What she needs is to let it out before she ends up hurting herself or someone else.”

  Lara went slack jawed. “What do you mean?”

  Meredith tsked. “Ah, I forgot how dull your senses are.” She shook her head. “Look, in polite Lycan society, they don’t make observations like this out loud. But lucky for you, I wasn’t raised in polite society. You see, Jade doesn’t feel like other Lycans I’ve met.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Meredith lowered her voice. “Her wolf…it feels so…repressed.”

  “Huh? What do you mean by repressed?”

  “Well, when we’re young, we’re taught to control our inner wolf, master it, and most of all, keep it obedient to our human side. But you’re never supposed to ignore it or try to inhibit it. But something about Jade…I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it’s like she’s walking around with this tightly capped bottle inside her. I’m just scared she’ll explode one day.”

  “And you think this was because of her kidnapping?”

  The Lycan shook her head. “Frankly, I don’t know.”

  Lara went quiet. Shit, how could she miss the signs? God, she’d been walking around in a fog. A sex fog, an inner voice snickered.

  Things with Liam had gotten hot and heavy. Or way past that. The sex was out of this world, and they spent each night tangled up in each other. And they weren’t even limited to evenings. Yesterday, she got back from getting lunch for Jade and the other people in the lab when she saw Liam across the lobby in Fenrir. He gave her that handsome, wolfish smile of his and caught up to her as she was getting into the private elevator. As soon as he got in, he slammed his palm on the emergency brake and they finished what they had started weeks ago. He fucked her from behind, hard and fast, skirt around her waist, her body pressed up agains the cold metal wall. They finished in record time, and by the time the security crew called them from the intercom, Liam was already zipping up his pants an
d she was fixing her makeup.

  “Earth to Lara?” Meredith waved a hand in front of face, shaking her out to her reverie.

  “Yeah, uhm…you’re right.” She straightened her shoulders. “I’ll talk to Jade. Maybe she’ll open up to me.”

  ***

  By the end of the work day, she still hadn’t gotten through to Jade. The Lycan seemed determined to ignore her questions about what happened. She let out a frustrated breath. She was an awful friend, letting Jade bear the pain alone while she was fooling around with Liam.

  But what exactly were they doing? Just fooling around? She spent every free moment with Liam, not just in bed, but laughing and talking with him, too. That ache in her heart eased, but the fear in the pit of her stomach only grew. Jonathan. Falling.

  She shook her head mentally. No. Jonathan’s death was a coincidence. Maybe in the catatonic daze she was in, her mind made it all up. A way to rationalize his death. Still, that didn’t give her permission to fall in love with Liam. He was still an Alpha, and she was still a witch. Scandal from such a pairing aside, they also had a duty to their kind. She had to be practical, even if it felt like her soul was ripping apart. They would have to stop this now, before it was too late.

  She tossed her bag on the kitchen counter as soon as she got home. A nice, hot bath should help relax her. Before she could run to the bathroom, however, her phone started ringing.

  “Hello?” she answered.

  “Lara, it’s me.”

  “Liam,” she greeted.

  “Sweetheart, I’m sorry, I’ve been trying to get to you the whole day. I’m back in San Francisco.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, I couldn’t stay away any longer. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you.”

  “It’s fine,” she said, trying to sound casual. Maybe this was what she needed. A break from him, physically.

  “So, I need a favor.”

  “Hmm?”

  “I had to go quickly, and I had to leave Hugo behind at the hotel.”

  “Oh no!” Poor Hugo must have been going crazy, cooped up alone in Liam’s suite. “What can I do? Do you want me to take care of him while you’re gone?”

  “Well…sort of. I’ve chartered another jet, it’s getting ready to leave.”

  “I’ll make sure he’s on it,” she replied, thinking about how she would get the giant beast to the private airstrip.

  “I want you to go with him. I mean, I want you to come here to San Francisco. Stay here with me, I don’t want to be without you.”

  She should say no. Too busy working with Jade all weekend. “Sure.” Oh, fuck.

  “Great!” Liam’s voice sounded bright. “I’ll text you the details. I’ll see you soon, sweetheart.”

  Crap.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  She was falling again. The wind rushed around her, the ground just beyond her vision.

  “Lara!”

  Liam’s fingertips brushed against her. If only she could move faster, fall faster. She could touch him, grab his hand.

  She tried to scream, but she couldn’t open her mouth. The wind was too strong, and her vocal chords wouldn’t work.

  No! Liam!

  But he fell faster, farther from her fingertips.

  Lara woke up with a start, her breathing heavy. “Liam.” Her throat was so dry, she could barely say his name. God, that awful dream again. It brought chills to her.

  No, this can’t be happening again! She wracked her brain, trying to remember the dream in detail. It was so vivid and life-like, but unlike Jonathan’s dream, there weren’t any details to tell her what would kill Liam. She stretched and sat up in bed, then wrapped her arms around her legs. Maybe it was just a dream. Yes, that was it. Just a dream.

  Lara yawned, stretched again, and went to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She and Hugo had arrived in San Francisco the night before, not too late thanks to the time difference. A car had picked them both up but dropped her off at The Mark Hopkins Hotel in Nob Hill. There was a valet waiting for her as soon as she arrived and she was whisked off to the top suite.

  It was an amazing suite and had a fantastic view of San Francisco from the enclosed terrace. She was hoping that she wouldn’t have to wait too long for Liam, her body already thrumming with the need for his touch. When he arrived in the suite, she didn’t even wait for him to talk, dragging him inside the suite so he could make love to her on the couch in the terrace.

  After she was done freshening up, she put on the fluffy hotel bathrobe and went back out.

  “Coffee and breakfast,” Liam announced as he rolled the room service cart into the bedroom.

  “Great! I’m starving!” she said. She was famished, and her stomach gurgled at the thought of food.

  “I didn’t know what you wanted,” he said. “So I ordered one of everything.”

  The cart was heaping with all kinds of breakfast foods, from pancakes and bacon to delicate steamed dim sum.

  “Good choice.” She giggled as she grabbed a plate and piled the food onto her plate. “Oh God.” She closed her eyes as she took a bite of the eggs Benedict. “This is amazing.”

  “Glad you approve,” he said with humor in his voice. “Wow, you really are hungry.”

  “You wore me out,” she said through a mouthful of bacon.

  “If I recall, you were the one who woke me up in the middle of the night with your mouth.”

  She raised a brow at him. “Are you complaining?”

  “Not at all, sweetheart.”

  Lara polished off most of the breakfast, though she didn’t eat as much as she wanted to.

  “Do you have to work today?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “No, I was hoping you’d come and do some sightseeing with me.”

  “That sounds awesome. Now how about a shower before we go?” She gave him a cheeky grin before she stripped off her robe.

  ***

  After breakfast and their ridiculously long shower, Liam and Lara got dressed and went down to the lobby. They drove around in his sporty little BMW with the top down, enjoying the unusually sunny San Francisco weather. Lara wanted to do all the touristy things, so he took her to Fisherman’s Wharf, walked the Golden Gate Bridge, and even rode the Cable Car with her. They went to lunch in the Mission District, and after a quick afternoon nap, they got ready for dinner in Little Italy. They sat in a corner booth of a lovely little Italian restaurant on Mason St.

  “This is divine,” Lara said as she took a bite of the veal scaloppini.

  “I’m glad you like it,” he said. Seeing Lara so happy and content put him in a good mood, and his inner wolf was very pleased. She looked especially gorgeous tonight, her golden red curls swept to one side and her makeup minimal. Since she didn’t have a lot of time to pack for the trip, Liam insisted on taking her shopping and bought her a dress for tonight. The short purple dress looked stunning on her and the black stiletto heels made her legs look sexy. As he sipped his wine, he imagined pushing her down on the bed, getting between her legs, and those spiky shoes digging into his back.

  “Liam? Are you OK?” she asked. “What are you thinking of?”

  He said nothing, but he gave her a heated look, his eyes dipping down to her luscious lips and then to her breasts. Her blush indicated she knew exactly what he was thinking of.

  “Stop it,” she said, glaring at him.

  “What?” He gave her an innocent look. “I’m not doing anything.”

  “You know…when you look at me like that…”

  “What?”

  “You make me think of naughty things,” she confessed.

  “Just think of naughty things?” Underneath the table, he laid his hand on her thigh. Slowly, his hand inched up. Oh, he was going to do more than just make her think of naughty things.

  ***

  The dream came faster this time. It was like a movie being rewound to the beginning. The action went backwards, going by too quickly for her to see. Then everything froze and s
tarted playing again.

  They were standing in a large, circular room with tall windows. It was dawn, the sun peeking just behind the mountains. There was something wrong, though. Broken glass everywhere. And there was chaos all around. Shouting and screaming. Ripping and growling.

  A figure in a black robe approached Liam from behind.

  “No!” she tried to scream, but it was like she was just a member of the audience, unable to participate in the action.

  The figure lunged at Liam. The Lycan didn’t see him at all, and they struggled, then fell over one of the open windows.

  The movie sped up again, and this time she was falling too. Liam’s face looking up to her, reaching out to her. Their fingers were barely touching. The ground was approaching way too fast, and then…

  Darkness. Empty. Cold.

  Lara shot up from the bed, letting out a cry as she awoke from her dream.

  “Sweetheart,” Liam cooed. He was up, his arms hugging her to him. “Lara…it was just a dream…”

  “I…I….” She choked. Was it just a dream? Her heart was thudding wildly, and as hard as she tried, she couldn’t calm herself. She felt sick, her stomach tying up in knots.

  Liam pulled her down, wrapping his long, lean body around her. “Try to get some sleep, sweetheart. It’ll be better by morning.”

  Lara lay in his arms, staying as still as possible. When Liam’s breathing finally evened, she relaxed a little bit. No, she wouldn’t sleep tonight. She couldn’t.

  She lay awake for what seemed like hours, sometimes drifting into a shallow sleep but always waking up before the dreams took over. And by the time the clock on the bedside table told her it was morning, she was exhausted. Liam remained wrapped around her all night, and she had to disentangle herself from his limbs so she could go to the bathroom.

  God, she looked awful, she thought as she stared at herself in the mirror. There were dark bags under her eyes, her skin was dull and lifeless.

  The dream…no, it couldn’t be. But she couldn’t deny it any longer. She was in love with Liam. Despite all her efforts, all the warnings, she fell head over heels in love with him. The dream last night was different. More vivid. Could she stop it from happening? Try to figure out the details and make sure he didn’t go anywhere near that place where he would meet his doom? Or should she just run away now, even though it would rip her heart apart, but keep him safe?