by M. L. Briers
“Mine.”She growled as she leaned in and nuzzled against his neck. Her tongue swept over his skin as her fangs elongated, and the desire to bite swept through her.
“Go for it, sweetheart.”He felt the fire in his own blood to taste her, and the moment she sunk her fangs into his flesh, biting down hard, she tensed with the orgasm that was about to ride through her body, and he sunk his fangs into the vein in her neck and heard her whimper a moment before he took his first real taste of her, sucking hard as her blood swept over his tongue and down his throat as she bucked against him.
Zara released her fangs and roared her release, made sweeter by the mating bond between them and the erotic pull his feeding created inside her. The orgasm ripped through every inch of her and didn’t stop until he released his fangs.
Quinn couldn’t hold back any longer. Her inner muscles were massaging him to within an inch of his damned life, or that’s how it felt, and he released his fangs from her neck and swiped his tongue over the wounds.
He tightened his hold on her hips and thrust into her, finding his own release as his mate curled up on his chest, sated… for now.
Julia hadn’t stopped once she hit the kitchen. She stalked through the room towards the back door and yanked it open, throwing herself out into the coolness of the night and she kept going.
She wasn’t exactly sure where she was going, and she didn’t care, she needed to be away from Alex before she did something they might both regret.
Shaun followed her a short distance behind, letting her walk it off, right up until he heard her sniffle and then he was at her side. His fingers circled her wrist and he brought her to a stop, but he didn’t turn her towards him and she made no move to even look at him.
“I’m trying to leave, damn it.”Julia spat out and heard him sigh.
“I know sweetheart…”Shaun reached out and brushed her hair from around her face and back over her shoulder.
“Don’t call me sweetheart…”
“Sorry, I forgot…”Shaun teased. “Babe.”He offered, and she tried to pull her wrist out of his grasp but he wouldn’t let her go.
“I’m not a pig…”She glared at him and he gave her an easy smile.
“That’s right, you’re a cow, a shrew…”Shaun held off comforting his mate for as long as he could, but when he couldn’t stand it any longer he yanked her towards him and felt her try to pull away.
He wrapped his arms around her and held her against him. “Let it go.”He brushed his lips against her cheek as he whispered beside her ear, and he felt her whole body tense for the briefest of seconds before she melted against him.
“I didn’t mean for Zara to…”He didn’t need to see the tears. He heard the emotion in her voice, felt the guilt and pain in her emotions, and held her tighter.
“I know. And Alex knows, but it’s his job to be Alpha.”He ran his hand down her back, soothing her. It physically hurt him to see his mate like this, the spark gone from within her, vulnerable, hurt, and feeling so very alone.
“I need to…”Julia tried to summon the strength to pull away from him, but she couldn’t find it within her. His arms felt too good about her. For the first time in a very long time she felt safe, as if the world couldn’t bite her in the arse, and she didn’t want to let that feeling go.
“Julia, it’s ok to not be the tough cookie in the room, especially with me. I see you, not the person you’re hiding behind, the show you create, and it’s a damn good show, you play the part well, but I do see you, sweetheart.”Shaun felt her body tense against him again, and he ran his hand down her spine making her shift her thoughts from defensive, and she relaxed against him again.
“You’ll be glad to get rid of me tomorrow…”
“That’s not what I want and you know it.”
This time she did pull back from him, but only so she could look at him. He saw the confusion on her face.
“Even now, after what I’ve done?”The only people in her life who had ever given her second chances were her family, Sofia, Jonathon and Steve were the only people that she had to rely on, and she knew that compared to a lot of people that was a lot more than some had, but she didn’t get to see them that often, they had their own lives and most of the time she felt as if she was alone, standing out there on a tightrope with no net beneath her.
“Did you know that the vampire was going to take Zara? Did you think he would hurt anyone?”
“No, but…”Julia shook her head. It wasn’t the point, she’d acted without engaging her brain and thinking it through again, and it could have ended so badly…
“So you called a friend to come and get you. That friend just happened to be a vampire…”He shrugged his shoulders and she frowned hard at him.
“Damn, you’re forgiving…”
“It’s not a case of what you did, it’s why you did it. I scare you, I get that…”
“You?”She snorted. “You’re not so tough…”She was slipping back in to defensive mode and he didn’t want that to happen.
“Not me the person, it’s me the mate that scares you doesn’t it?”Shaun wasn’t about to let her climb back behind that wall. He noted that she still hadn’t put up her shields from earlier against him. Whether she knew it or not, she was succumbing to the mating pull, and relaxing around him. He wasn’t about to do anything to let that slip away.
“I didn’t want to be mated…”
“Past tense?” Shaun grinned wolfishly at her and she mentally slapped herself on the forehead.
“I don’t want to be mated.”Julia wasn’t as adamant in her words as she had been before.
“We can work on that…”Shaun teased and she tried to pull further away from him, but again he didn’t release her.
“I don’t…”
“And Julia…”He gave her a teasing smile. “I can be tough, you just haven’t seen my bad side yet, sweetheart.”
“What the hell does it take to get on your bad side? Shave your wolf while it’s sleeping?”
“Don’t even think about it.”Shaun growled down at her as his wolf whimpered within him. Damn, but she was scary sometimes, and he’d only known her a day.
“Step away from her.”The voice in the darkness rang more than a few bells within Julia’s brain, but she found herself spun around and facing Shaun’s back before she could even react.
“I don’t think you’ve thought this through.”Shaun growled into the darkness, and Julia tried to peer around Shaun, but all she could see was the shadow within the darkness of the trees.
Shaun saw everything. He’d pulled his wolf forward the moment he heard the first word from the man and now he could see what he was facing, and he didn’t like it, not one bit.
Julia could get hurt and he couldn’t allow that to happen, this was a judgement call, and one she might not like if push came to shove, but one he would make nonetheless.
“Probably not, but still…”Steve admitted. The gun in his hand was aimed directly at Shaun’s chest, it was just a matter of pulling the trigger if the man went all wolfish, and Steve swallowed down the thought that it might just happen and he would have no other choice but to fire the weapon. God he didn’t want that…
“Steve?”Julia went to walk around Shaun, but his arms dropped down either side of him defensively and he blocked her step for step, whichever way she moved.
“Let her go, she doesn’t want to be here…”Steve felt like laughing at that statement, it was kind of moronic really, as he didn’t want to be here either. He certainly didn’t want to be holding a gun on a damn wolf man…
“I can’t do that…”Shaun wasn’t about to let his mate walk away with an unhinged person who would be stupid enough to pick a fight with a damn wolf for no good reason.
“Steve what are you…?”When Steve shuffled from one foot to the other he was caught in the light from the upstairs window, and Julia’s eyes fixed on the gun in his hand and her jaw dropped open on a gasp. Shaun shoved her back behind him.
“Just walk away man…”Shaun didn’t think the guy was unhinged, but with Julia’s family, who knew?
‘Alex, we have another problem…’ Shaun wasn’t happy about it, but if this guy did gather the guts to pull the trigger then it was better that Alex was here to protect the mates. ‘Sofia’s husbands, boyfriend, life partner type guy, is here with a damn gun.’
‘What the fu…?’ Alex had just about had enough for one night. It was lucky he was in a reasonably good mood or he just might go postal on everybody right now. ‘Coming.’
“I can’t do that.”Steve informed him with a slight tremble in his voice. He knew this was a bad idea, but he was kind of hoping he would find Julia alone and they would be gone before anyone noticed.
“So now what?”Shaun asked, and in truth Steve had no damn idea, but he wasn’t leaving without Julia and Sofia. He needed to keep a rational head about him, he told himself, and felt a small flash of hysterics, how was this rational?
“Julia and Sofia come back with me…”
“Steve, put the damn gun down…”Julia rolled her eyes as she tried to sidestep Shaun, but to no avail.
Steve motioned with the weapon in his hand, waving it around in the air.
“Move out of the way and let her through…”
“Could you stop waving that thing around? If it goes off it might hit Julia…”Shaun growled and Steve balked.
“It’s not going to go off…”
“Accidents happen.”Shaun informed him as Alex came through the backdoor, madder than hell for being interrupted again.
“Not when the damn safety is on…”Steve spat out.
“What the hell do you want?”Alex stalked towards him. His eyes were black with anger and Steve flinched with the menace in his voice. His finger twitched on the trigger and one shot rang out into the night.
CHAPTER NINE
Alex sensed the bullet whizz past him. The sound of the air displacement took his attention for one heartbeat, but it was the sound of the shocked cry just over his shoulder that had him turning on his heels.
Alex took everything in as if somehow time had slowed down. His eyes connected with Sofia’s and he saw an instant of shock or her face, her eyes flared and she drew in a startled breath. Her body folded inwards at the waist as she was propelled backwards by the bullet that tore through her body…
In that forever moment that would haunt Alex until the day he died, he willed his legs to move, but nothing happened. His wolf howled out within him as he roared his denial of the facts that his eyes took in, and everything around him faded away leaving only his mate as she hit the decking.
“Sofia…”Many voices chimed out in horror together.
Alex came back to the reality of the moment, propelling his body forwards, he dropped to his knees beside his mate and reached for the wound in her stomach. Her eyes found him for only a moment as he looked at her face, the pain etched deeply in twisted lines, as her lashes fluttered downwards.
“Sofia, no…”He reached for her, gathering her to him as the sound of his beta’s roar echoed into the night.
Julia was in shock. She couldn’t think of anything but one word. No. She tried to move, wanted to, needed to get to her, but Shaun’s roar of rage sent her head in the other direction as her mate launched himself towards Steve.
“No…”Julia screamed the word that had longed to escape her mind. On instinct she raised her hands and pushed with everything that she had inside her. But it wasn’t an attack on her mate that she launched, it was on Steve and he was propelled backwards, away from Shaun, to end up sprawled on his back on the grass some twenty feet from where Shaun stood, claws and fangs out, causing him to stop and turn towards his mate.
“He would never deliberately hurt Sofia.”Julia spat out. She was ready to stop Shaun, if she could, from attacking Steve.
Shaun was torn between revenge for one of his pack and his mates words. His eyes dropped to the ground in front of him and he bent to pick up the gun that Steve had been holding.
“Please Shaun, Sofia wouldn’t want this…”Julia begged her mate not to hurt him, but she also needed to get to Sofia. She saw Shaun nod, even thought the rage was still engulfing him, his wolf still so close to the surface, but she turned and ran towards Sofia.
Alex growled towards her, warning her not to come near his injured mate, but she didn’t stop. Alex’s arm came out in a protective swipe and took her backwards off her feet, and Shaun reacted immediately to his mates attack, turning he stalked with intent towards Alex.
“No!”Julia screamed out, scrambling to her feet and getting in between them. Alex was still on his knees with Sofia lying in his arms, but Julia could see that the Alpha was prepared to fight if challenged, or if his mate was threatened. “What the hell is wrong with you people?”Julia shouted, looking first to her mate, who had stopped in his tracks, and then down at Alex who was glaring at her, still growling a menacing warning.
“I need to get to Julia to see if I can help her, Alex… Please…”She begged, knowing that his wolf was close to the surface, but praying that the man could be persuaded with the rationality of it.
Alex nodded once and Julia raced to Sofia’s side. Dropping down on her knees, her eyes searched for Sofia’s breathing. Her chest still rose and fell, she was still alive, but when her eyes fell on the bloodied top, ripped by the bullet’s path, she didn’t know what she could do for her.
“Quinn… Quinn can heal her. I can only stem the blood.”Julia spat out and she raised her hands over the wound and closed her eyes, drawing on the power of the white healing light within her to try to buy them some time.
‘Zara, bring your mate, Sofia is dying, we need his help.’ Shaun growled out over and over within his mind. Tossing it out into the pack collective.
“Already here, we heard a shot…”Zara called out as she dropped down from Quinn’s back where he had been carrying her.
Alex growled out in rage as the scent of the vampire fired up his natural instincts to defend against an attack, and Quinn stalked forwards, his hands held out in front of him to show he was no threat.
“Let me heal your mate, Alpha.”Quinn wasn’t suicidal, and he wasn’t about to get too close without the Alpha’s agreement. He could see the rage boiling within the man. The wolf was so close to the surface, that one wrong move could cause him to shift.
“Alex, please…”Julia ground out between clenched teeth. It was taking everything she had within her just to keep the wound from bleeding, Sofia had lost too much blood already…
“Alex, she’s your mate, you have to let him get close…”Shaun growled out, even though his whole stance said he was ready to rip the vampire apart should he make one wrong move.
Alex nodded and Quinn eased forwards. His fangs elongated and he heard the Alpha growl out another warning. “Easy there, I can rip my own flesh thanks…”Quinn made a show of biting down on his own wrist, slashing the vein and causing his blood to spill out down his skin. “Tip her head back and open her mouth.”Quinn nodded to Julia and she moved fast, even though she was more than aware that Alex was keeping an eye on her movements.
Quinn edged forwards, moving his wrist towards Sofia when Alex’s hand shot out and wrapped around his arm, just above the vein. “She needs this man…”Quinn could have forced the issue. He was stronger than the Alpha, but he had mated with Zara and that made Alex his alpha now.
Alex growled long and hard at Quinn as he moved his arm into place over Sofia’s open mouth. The pressure that Alex was putting on the vein had stopped the flow of blood and he slowly released his hold, allowing the blood to run freely again, down his wrist and into her mouth.
Julia’s whole body was shaking as she waited for what seemed like a never ending time for the blood to run down into Sofia’s throat.
The sound of the liquid gurgling in her friend’s throat made her stomach churn within her, but she held her breath without even realising it, until Quinn nodded to th
e alpha.
“That should do it. Massage her throat so she keeps swallowing it.”Alex let go of Quinn’s arm and the Vampire licked over his own wound, sealing the cut as he slowly backed away.
“Quinn?”Julia spat out on the breath she had been holding, and Quinn reached out and touched her arm soothingly as Shaun growled his own warning for the vampire.
“She’s going to be fine, Julia. I promise you.”Quinn informed her as he removed his hand and turned towards the Beta with a small grin of devilment. “I’m mated to your sister, wolf, so what’s your problem?”Quinn bit out as his eyes noted the movement of the human on the grass and he narrowed his eyes on Steve as he dragged himself to his knees.
“No problem, vampire, just a gut reaction.”Shaun informed him, flicking his gaze over his shoulder to where Steve was sitting, dazed and shocked by what had happened.
“You need someone to kill him?”Quinn asked and Julia hissed her disapproval.
“Don’t you dare. It was an accident…”Julia warned, and Quinn scented the air in the general direction of the human and snorted.
“Isn’t that your brother’s…”He waved a hand absently.
“Yes. I guess he came to rescue me and Sofia…”Julia’s words were cut off by the gasp that was sucked into Sofia’s lips and her eyes snapped down as her friend stirred, coughing against the blood in her throat, and her eyes opening. “Nap times over little sister…”Julia could have done cartwheels across the damn lawn, if she knew how.
“Sofia.”Alex growled down reverently at his mate. Gently he stroked her hair from her face and soothed her back to him.
“What the hell…?”Sofia tried to move, but the pain tore through her.
“Not yet, Sofia, let my blood fully heal you…”Quinn cautioned and he saw the look of disgust on Sofia’s face.
“Your blood?”She spat out. Her eyes showing the true horror of what was going on in her mind. “Who the hell told him to give me his blood?”Sofia growled out, disgusted with the image that it created in her mind.