by JL Madore
They looked at each other and shrugged. "No, we're good."
"Okay, so humans don't seem to be affected and I'm guessing I'm not affected because I'm bonded to Mika not because I'm a Were."
"What makes you say that?" I asked.
Bruin chuckled and pointed across the room. "Because Cowboy looks like he's about to hump the sofa—"
Another assault struck. Aust stumbled into a recliner and dropped his head between his knees. Tham's knuckles were white from the death-grip he'd taken on the edge of the bar. I couldn't help but giggle when he slid his hand to his leathers then moaned as he rubbed himself with the heel of his palm.
Iadon? Well, he was not to be disturbed. I averted my gaze, thankful that Ella slept and that Iadon's thigh-length, suede dinner-jacket hid everything going on.
"What is happening?" Tham groaned.
The scent of apple blossoms on a warm spring breeze filled the room. Jade sauntered through the doorway wearing a slip of silk. Her hair, long to her waist, swayed with her loose limbs. Tousled and mussed like she'd spent the afternoon being pleasured. Her lips, pink and swollen, highlighted the remarkable glow of her skin. No wonder we hadn't seen her and Galan at dinner.
Bruin cleared his throat. "Love the look, Blaze, but not the best time to be half-naked in front of this crowd."
As she drew closer, the hair on the back of my neck stood. Something was off. All male eyes locked on her. She was the magnet and their poles were pointing due north. The pull of desire seemed to grow as she approached, every step nearer brought more fidgeting.
"Bruin, it's Jade," I said. "I think the sexual energy is radiating off her."
His eyes widened. Slipping off the white linen, button-down he wore loose over his T, he started for his sister. "Hey honey, let's slip this on you."
While he buttoned her up, Jade's piercing emerald eyes locked on Cowboy. Lust flared.
Brushing past Bruin, she backed Haven's lone wolf onto the arm of the sofa and slid between his thighs. Running her hands up both sides of his neck she scrubbed her nails into his caramel coloured hair. "You smell good, Wolf."
Cowboy's eyes hazed over as he leaned back.
"Jade, how about you step away—" Bruin reached to grab her shoulder, but pulled his hand back just as Cowboy snapped, his canines long and sharp. "Shit. What's she doing to him?"
Jade whispered something into Cowboy's ear and Bruin cursed.
The wolf's arms wrapped tighter around her and they fell as one onto the couch. Cowboy covered her body, his thigh holding her down as his hand slid to cup her ass. Her very bare ass.
Bruin didn't move. Didn't seem to be tracking.
I rushed to the sofa but stayed out of reach of Cowboy's teeth. "Jade, where's Galan?"
"Sleeping." Jade mumbled against Cowboy's neck, nipping his collarbone.
I nodded to Nash and he bolted from the room.
Jade's hand disappeared between their bodies and Cowboy growled. "I claim you as my consort, Wolf. You have untapped skills I need to explore."
Cowboy's hands locked into her deep red curls and pulled her mouth to his.
"Okay, blossom." Galan's deep tenor sounded weary but not angry. I tried not to notice how the lounge pants he wore hung low on his hips. But damn, Highbornes really were hot.
He reached for his wife and Cowboy snarled, baring his teeth.
Bruin snapped out of it then and when he spoke, his voice rang with that Alpha command he'd used on me earlier. "Weylyn, come here to me."
Cowboy growled. I couldn't tell if it was because Bruin used what I guessed was Cowboy's proper name, the Alpha command in his voice or that he was forcing him to give up his hold on Jade. Whatever the reason, Cowboy's lips curled and a dangerous rumble vibrated in my chest.
"Mine," he growled.
"No. She's not." Bruin's gaze narrowed. "Wolf. Come. To. Me."
He didn't speak loudly, but somehow his voice spread through the space. It rolled like distant thunder. Threatening. Powerful. I wasn't immune. I stepped forward.
Cowboy obeyed too. He rolled off the couch with predatory grace and dropped to his knee before his Alpha.
Bruin patted the guy's back and pulled him close and then nodded that it was safe.
Galan lifted Jade off the couch. "Back to our suite, Blossom."
"But Galan . . . you're tired and I'm running hot. I'm recruiting reinforcements."
"I see that, darling, but a Were may not be the best choice to join us in private. They don't understand our mating laws. Plus, I am certain if you were thinking clearly, a sexual encounter with one of your fellow warriors might be awkward for you moving forward."
Her head fell back as she laughed. "Awkward? Have you seen him naked?"
"No, love." He sighed and offered us an apologetic smile. "How about we keep your consorts to the Highbornes, shall we?"
"Killjoy," she muttered.
Galan set her on her feet and kissed her glistening forehead. "I know, mela mir."
"What the fuck is going on, Galan?" Bruin asked.
The look in Galan's eyes was a mixture of worry and exhaustion. "Castian said she's in a traditional Fae procreation cycle."
"She's in Yearning?" Tham gasped. "That's Fae myth."
"Apparently not. Castian is her father and as Fae as one could be." Galan tightened his grip around Jade's wrist as she reached into his lounge pants. "The only way to keep her fever from raging dangerously high is to keep her sexual appetite sated. I am a mere nine hours in, fell asleep for a moment and look what happened. Jade is right. We need assistance."
"How long will it last?" Bruin asked, scrubbing his face.
"Castian said anywhere from three days to a week depending on if she conceives."
Another wave of Jade's yearning rippled through the lounge. The Elves and Cowboy moaned and steadied themselves.
"By the gods, you need more than a consort," Tham chuckled. "A week nonstop? It is going to take several of us."
Galan nodded. "Lexi, have you any objection to Tham being Jade's consort?"
I hadn't noticed Lexi standing next to Nash. "To save my sister's life? Hells no."
Aust cleared his throat. "I shall teach her Herbology classes for the week and talk to Maximus about the rest of her schedule?"
Galan glanced to where Iadon was still very distracted under the layers of Nyssa's skirt. "When the opportunity presents itself, could one of you ask Iadon and Nyssa to come to our suite? And could someone take care of Ella when they do?"
"I've got her," Bruin said. "You take care of my girl and I'll take care of yours."
Galan nodded. "Very well, Blossom, how about Tham and I take you back to our suite?"
"Mhmm. This is hot."
Jade giggled as Galan threw her over his shoulder and headed for the door. "Yes love, I am certain it feels that way to you."
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
I stirred to life the next morning with Orville snoring his little rumbled wheezes into my ear. After fighting my way free from sheets strangling my legs, I reached for the fallen quilt on the floor and heaved it back onto the bed. Long, slow blinking brought the alarm clock into focus.
5:23 am. Good god, that's obscene.
My bleary gaze shifted to the closed door connecting my room with Bruin's and I couldn't help but revisit the death spiral of the previous night. After the drama in the lounge, Bruin totally shut down. He had gathered Ella's carrier and gone straight to his room to studiously ignore the awkwardness of Jade, Galan and almost every Highborne in the house participating in the sextathalon of the century.
He'd obsessively organized his closet, arranged the cologne bottles on his dresser in order of height and colour, and alphabetized a massive CD collection and then sorted by year of release. Ella waking up settled him a bit. He'd doted on her for an hour or so, but all too soon Nyssa came to pick her up, gave us an update and Bruin was lost again.
"Are you all right?" I'd asked.
He stepped around me and l
aid his daggers out to clean.
"Can you talk to me?"
His jaw clenched tight as he sat his cleaning oil and rag side by side, then adjusted the label so it faced perfectly to the front. He wasn't listening and I didn't seem to be helping. He hadn't even looked up when I made my way to the door. It hit home then, Bruin and I were strangers. Mind-blowing, life-altering sex aside, if I evaluated our compatibility, we didn't have anything to check in the boxes for relationship or communication.
Moaning at the futility of it all, I rolled over and grabbed my laptop from the bedside table. Julian said in the lounge last night that I had Internet, and though I couldn't upload anything, I could download. Surely reconnecting with the real world would ground me and reinforce that I didn't belong here.
As I opened up my browser I thought about Aust. I may not belong here, but I would miss him and Faolan.
My inbox downloaded twenty-nine email messages in the past week, seven since yesterday: four notices that my Facebook page had been updated by friends, one email from ACA Brantfield's office, politely reminding me of my appointment today, one from the World Wildlife Foundation about membership renewal and two from Paige, sent from her home email account, marked urgent. Weird.
I opened the first one from Paige:
Hey Chicklette, Where the hell are you? Tried to call...
Something happened today. Something bad. Your cubicle and my office were broken into. I'm assuming you have your laptop with you because it wasn't here. Right? Well, mine's been stolen along with some of your files from the main cabinet and a couple more from your ped.
Call me as soon as you get this.
P.
I read it over a second time. What the hell was going on with my life? Why would Bruin's enemies want Paige's computer? My computer I could see. It could have personal info and tons of ways to get to me, but Paige's?
I moved my mouse over the second message and inhaled deep before clicking on it.
Me again.
Haven't heard from you and have been trying your home and cell all day. Listen. There was more to tell you this morning about the robbery. I didn't want to do it in an email, but I have no idea how to reach you. Meg's hurt. She came in early and had the horrendous luck of walking in on the break in. She's at Vancouver General in ICU. She hasn't woken up yet and the doctors say they won't know what they're dealing with until she does.
Anyway. Call me. I'm losing my shit and it's not like you to be unreachable.
P.
I lunged to the nightstand and fumbled my phone out of the charger. Orville grumbled, squinting his tiny black eyes at me. "Sorry, baby, but this is important."
After scrolling through my contacts, I pressed SEND. Nothing. End call. I tried again.
Nothing.
I jogged to the connecting door to Bruin's room and clicked on a lamp in his suite. He wasn't there and his bed hadn't been slept in. Fine, I'll figure this out on my own.
Barefoot, I ghosted through the maze of corridors and down the main staircase. The marble mosaic of the foyer was cold on my feet as I headed towards the kitchen. One thing I knew for certain—in my world or this one—if anyone was awake, there would be coffee.
Scuttling down the corridor, I rounded the corner and smacked into a seven-foot linebacker. There is no graceful way to land on your ass, so I took comfort that at least no one but the two of us had seen my back dive and sprawl.
Extra points for sticking the landing. Hard.
"Mika?" Strong hands closed around my upper arms and lifted me to my feet. Even this early, Maximus Reign looked like someone on the cover of Esquire magazine. Somehow, he managed to pull off incredibly dapper, yet frighteningly intimidating, at the same time. "Where are you going in such a rush?"
I looked up and shivered. "I . . . uh, need someone to help me make a phone call."
A crease formed in Reign's brow as he looked down to me. "Didn't we set you up yesterday?"
"You did, but I'm not getting signal this morning."
Reign held out his hand and took my phone. After opening the back and raising a brow he closed it up and sighed. "Who do you need to call?"
I explained my emails and how Meg had been admitted to hospital because of something Bruin and I started. "I have to help figure this out and make sure my friends are okay."
By the scowl on his face, he didn't seem moved.
"Please," I said, "You don't know me, but these are more than my co-workers, they are my family. I'll just find out what's going on and then maybe Bruin and I can check on them when we're there this afternoon."
Again with the brow lifting. "When you are where this afternoon?"
"In Vancouver." A sick feeling twisted in my stomach. "He didn't get permission to take me to my meeting with the Crown Attorney's office, did he? He said last night he'd take care of it."
Reign spun a massive silver ring on his finger. "I'm sure his requisition is on my desk somewhere. A lot happened last night. I probably overlooked it."
Yeah, I'm sure. "Well, I need to make this appointment. My career and my reputation are on the line, not to mention putting some very bad men behind bars."
Aust's mother, Elora, came up the hall carrying a large tray. Like all the Highbornes, she moved with an elegance and grace that seemed unreal. Her long blonde hair was plaited in an intricate braid and fell to one side of her face and reached the silk bodice of her dress. She wore the same wide black choker around her neck that Aust wore around his.
"Elora, I've told you before. You have staff to do the heavy work." In three long strides Reign met her and relieved her of her burden. He moved with more grace than I imagined possible for a man of his size.
"Maximus, I am well and capable," she said, seemingly unaffected by his censure or his tone. With straight shoulders, she smiled up at him and then at me. As she looked me over, I realized for the second morning in a row, I'd run from my room in my pajamas. "Merry meet, Mika. Are you well?"
"Uh, yes, thank you."
Reign studied the contents of the tray he was holding. "Is this for me?"
She nodded. "I was preparing first repast for Aust and knew you would be heading to your office soon. I took the liberty."
"You're spoiling me."
Elora dropped her gaze, folding her hands in front of her. "I shall leave you to your day."
The hem of her delicate gown flowed and swirled over the hardwood like smoke in a breeze. When she turned the corner, Reign headed across the open foyer in the other direction.
Was I supposed to follow?
"If you want to make that phone call, you'll need to come to my office."
I jogged after him, his long legs increasing the distance between us with every stride.
On the other end of the house, he entered a large room with a bay window and a view of the front lawn. The grounds were beautiful at dawn. They almost made you forget this place was a fortress. The stone wall surrounding Jade's compound was of the two-foot thick and twenty-foot high, 'piss-off-or-die' kind of design, even before Julian added his laser security measures and Aust brought in the attacking wolves.
"I'll allow your communication, but it's imperative you say nothing to expose our realm."
I nodded and stepped further inside. The room didn't suit my impression of him. It was elegant, decorated with fine antiques, books and collectibles from around the world. He set the tray on a pristine walnut sideboard and leered at me. His charcoal eyes were almost black today.
"Do you understand the consequences for exposure, Mika? Has Bruin explained how our enforcement of justice works?"
"If I spill . . . you kill. Yeah I heard."
"Good, then we understand each other." He pointed toward the phone on his desk and picked up a piece of cinnamon bread from his plate. Leaning back against the cabinet, he crossed his ankles and took a bite. Privacy didn't seem to be an option, so I dialed Paige's number.
"Hello?" Her whispered muffle had me looking at the clock on the mantle.
Damn. It wasn't even six yet.
"Shit, Paige, I'm sorry. I just got your emails and forgot what time it was."
"Mika!" A low ruffle of sheets was followed by what I assumed was the click of a lamp. "Thank god, where the hell have you been?"
A shadow of severity darkened Reign's eyes as he slowly shook his head. Could they all hear things from across the frickin’ room? "I'm staying with friends out of town and just checked my messages, sorry. How's Meg?"
Paige sighed. "Better. She woke up late last night and the doctors gave her a once over. She's got a nasty concussion, but they think everything is intact . . . or at least as intact as it ever was for Meg. They're keeping her for a day or two for observation."
I fought the burning in my eyes. "Good. I'll try to go see her this afternoon."
"Are you home?"
"No, but I have an appointment with ACA Brantfield about the Nimithic trial today."
"Listen, Mika, is everything okay? It's not like you to be out of touch. I would have swung by your house to make sure you weren't dead, if I hadn't been stuck at the hospital and talking to cops all day yesterday."
I thought about the shape we left my home in. Paige would freak if she went there. "No, I'm good. I, uh . . . I just took your advice and spent the week relaxing with the sexy guy from the bar Saturday night."
"You're still with him? Man, I need details."
I laughed how my sex life sidetracked her. "I'll fill you in as soon as I can, but for now, we're kind of working on something. Any chance I can take a bit more time off?"
"Mika, honey, you're freelance, not a staffer. You're supposed to set your own schedule. You run yourself ragged. Take as much time as you need, on two conditions."
"And what are they?"
"I get dibs on any print rights and you don't fall off the face of the Earth again. Ever."
"Done. Forgiven?"
"Forgiven." She yawned into the receiver. "Okay, I'm going to get another forty-five minutes before my shower. So, we'll talk soon?"