Naomi held up her hands in surrender. “I’m just saying.”
“She said she watched people die.”
Naomi’s eyes got wide. “Shit. That could be bad in so many ways.”
“No one’s getting into town right now. The storm will ground all planes. I couldn’t even fly in this if I tried.” Col closed his book and laid it on the table next to his chair. “She is your mate, Kann. We will protect her and support you no matter what.”
“Let me get some clothes for you to take to her. I have some extra sweaters and some sweatpants that should fit. Nothing like only having one pair of underwear and socks. You’ll need to go to the store for her soon.”
Kann nodded, his lion settling now that Naomi had switched to “caregiver mode” instead of “interview mode”. He knew he needed to know more about Penny, but she had to trust him before that would happen. She had to stop pushing him away. Naomi went into her and Col’s bedroom at the back of the cabin and returned with a small pile of clothing.
“If she’s close to my size these should fit okay.” Naomi handed Kann the stack.
He put the clothing into a backpack and slipped the straps over his shoulders. “Thank you, Naomi. Don’t expect me back until lunch tomorrow.”
“Why lunch?”
“She didn’t buy groceries. She bought snacks. I won’t survive longer than that,” he answered with a grin. “Hopefully, she’ll come with me and all of you can meet her then.”
Naomi glanced out the window. “Not if it still looks like this you won’t.”
“One problem at a time, my love.” Col rose from his chair and crossed to stand next to Naomi. “If we don’t see you at lunch, Tor or Saul will bring you some food using one of the snow machines.”
“Thank you, Vraka.” Col had been hesitant at first to step into the leadership role. But the rest of the group had been proud to have the Son of the House of Li’Vhram, a prince of Reylea as their chieftain.
“Vraka,” Naomi hissed menacingly under her breath, biting back a giggle.
“You need to stop that, Naomi.” Col slid an arm around his mate’s waist.
“Nope, it’s too much fun right now. Maybe in a year or so I’ll get used to it.” She nuzzled into Col’s shoulder and smiled up at him. Col kissed her forehead and chuckled.
“Well, good luck with Penny. I would hug you, but we all know where that would get you.” Naomi flashed him a devious smile.
“Eaten by a jealous dragon.” Kann shook his head.
“At least he hasn’t eaten any of the humans that have dared to touch me in town.” Naomi snickered and snuggled even closer to Col’s side.
“Yet,” Kann said.
“I am not that bad,” Col said as Kann turned and headed out the front door.
“You are that bad,” Naomi shot back. “Do you remember how the poor waiter nearly wet his pants when you told him he was standing too close to my chair?”
Kann laughed and closed the door behind him. The whole ‘no touching’ Col’s mate had relaxed the tiniest bit, mostly because Naomi had whined constantly about not wanting to cause accidental deaths every time she touched males. Col had finally relented and said the ban on touching a royal mate was lifted. The rest of them were still very careful and respectful, but at least they didn’t have to fear for their lives every time Col’s mate bumped into one of them. Which was good, because Naomi had trouble not touching people. Hugging people. Showering everyone with affection. Poor Vraka.
The arctic air blew through Kann’s loose hair. He wore it down most of the time now, like Saul. Neither of them was willing to quit with all the braids, but he got too many strange looks if he wore it up on his head. Naomi said he looked like a sexy Viking warrior with it up, but the people in town stared. A lot. Mostly the women.
He preferred to stay a little further under the radar. Naomi had laughed at him for that too. She’d said no man as beautiful as her Reyleans would ever be able to stay under the radar. He was pretty sure they’d all blushed as red as a Reylean sky after that comment and Col of course had gotten all growly. Which had ultimately been Naomi’s goal from the start. She was always riling him up.
He clomped down the steps from the cabin into the snow and released the hold he had on his lion, allowing the animal spirit to come forward. The charm he wore around his arm—created by a Reylean magick-bender—allowed any inanimate object he was carrying or wearing to be absorbed in the transformation.
His lion chuffed at the snow and pawed at a large mound near the front path. He shook out his mane and let a low roar rumble from his chest. Then he sprang into a quick lope and headed back the way he’d come, charging up the hill and through the trees.
More snow had fallen in the time he’d been inside. Not enough to completely cover his previous tracks, but enough to make him hurry. Especially now that sunset was during the five o’clock hour and he would only have light for maybe the next twenty minutes.
8
“Penny?” Kann’s voice called, deeper than it’d been a moment ago in her dream. Closer.
She remembered trying to call out to him and the wind swallowing her voice. But that’d been a dream. His voice was a dream. He’d left her. She’d made him leave.
“Penny?”
Not a dream? She opened one eye and peered at the red-hot embers inside the woodstove in front of her. The air in the cabin was warm now. She was cuddled up and cozy on the loveseat, under two blankets.
“Penny, are you okay?” Kann’s voice through the cabin door was followed by a soft knock.
Her other eye opened, and she sat up on the loveseat and stared at the door. Her heart clenched in her chest and refused to beat.
He’d come back.
Kann had come back.
Her heart leapt in her chest, starting up again like an engine that’d just been jumped. She gulped in a breath of air.
“Coming,” she squeaked out. She reached for her jeans. Her hand touched them, and she hissed. They were cold and still damp. She tried the sweatshirt. Same. Both had been soaked by her stupid outing earlier. How long had she slept? She glanced at the window. The sky was losing light. Sunset was rapidly approaching. An hour or two? She’d left her watch at home. The damn thing was a smart watch and connected to Wi-Fi. There probably wasn’t Wi-Fi out here, but she wasn’t taking the chance she could be tracked with it.
She unfolded her legs and stood, stretching a little before wrapping the blankets tightly around her body and hobbling over to the door. Penny turned the deadbolt and then opened the door.
Kann filled the doorway with his massive shoulders and tall frame. He was all man and all she needed right now. He pulled off his knit hat and his mane of blond hair fell to his shoulders, giving him the appearance of being even larger. Stronger.
She needed him. Wanted him.
“I know you sent me away, but—”
Penny couldn’t stop the sob that escaped her chest. She leaned forward, touching her head to Kann’s chest. “I’m stupid. I told you I’m not good at this.” He was tense for half a second, probably waiting to see if she changed her mind on him again. She didn’t blame him. But then when he relaxed, his arms went around her, blankets and all, and pulled her whole body firmly against his.
“Let’s not stand in the doorway, hmmm?” His voice was deep and warm and she just wanted to curl up in his lap and stay there forever. His arms tightened, and she felt her feet come off the floor. Kann moved with her, closing the door behind him, shutting out the icy cold air that burned her face. It got cold in Anchorage too, but the wind just wasn’t the same. He carried her all the way over to the couch and pushed it back a foot or so before sitting down with her.
She tried to move off his lap, but his arms tightened again.
“I’m going to hold you. You sent me away and for two hours I worried about all the things that could’ve happened to you. So now that you let me back in, I’m holding you. No discussion.”
She opened her
mouth to protest, but snapped it shut again. He’d worried about her. He wasn’t mad, or angry. He hadn’t called her a tease or anything. He’d come in, picked her up, and now wanted to hold her. He wasn’t trying to pull the blankets off or get anything else.
Penny sniffed a little and tried to breathe through the sobs that had started over by the door. One of his hands was tucked around her hip and the other was behind her back, rubbing ever so gently in small circles.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“You don’t have to be sorry, beautiful. You got spooked. You were scared. I moved too fast. You changed your mind. Whatever it was, it was real. No need to apologize.”
“After I calmed down, I went after you. I thought…I wanted you to come back. I’m such a mess, Kann.” She shuddered through another breath and pressed her head firmly against his chest, breathing in his pleasant earthy scent. She’d never really been held by a man before, at least not by one that wasn’t trying to undress her. It was nice. Safe. Warm. Maybe she wanted more from him, but not at this moment. Right now, this was enough. She was glad he’d insisted and not let her squirm away.
“I’m not going to argue with that statement.” A hint of amusement danced in his voice.
She tipped her head up and met his gaze looking down at her. Penny shook her head slowly and sighed. All the things that had freaked her out before and made her send him away were still valid. Jake would target anyone she interacted with. Why was she reconsidering now?
I’m being selfish. Another stream of tears flowed down her cheeks. She sniffed again and used the blanket to wipe them away.
“Why don’t you tell me what has you crying again?”
“I don’t know where to start.”
“The beginning tends to be the most popular when telling stories. But, how about you tell me why you got into Carl’s plane?”
“If I talk about it, you’ll know things and then he’ll want you dead too. I can’t involve anyone without putting them in danger. He might decide to kill you just because you met me. I don’t know.” She was barely holding her tone steady.
“Well then, if I’m dead because I already met you, then it seems to me, you can tell me everything there is to know without any further consequences.”
Another sob tore through her chest. “I was just trying to hide. I didn’t mean to—”
“Hey, do I look upset? Or worried for that matter?”
She gulped a breath and studied his face. His blue eyes stared at her, like he could see deep inside, past all the shields she’d learned to put up over the years. But he didn’t look angry, or disappointed, or worried. She only saw strength and confidence and overwhelming desire. The kind of desire that made her belly tremble with need and throb with anticipation. “But you should be. You should hate me for putting you in this position. I should’ve known better. I should still know better. But—”
He smiled and kissed her forehead. “Finish that ‘but’,” he said, his tone firm, but heavy with authority.
“But I want to be near you. I feel better with you close. I feel safe with you. It’s just that—”
He put two fingers over her lips and shook his head. “The rest are all excuses. I’ve already told you Fate brought you to me. I will thank Her for the rest of my life, however long it is. She gave me a chance to win your heart and your soul. You are mine Penny and I am yours if you’ll let me.”
“I don’t know how.” That was it. That was the problem. She was terrified of making a mistake. Of doing something that would send Kann away from her again.
“Then we’ll go very slow. And you will have to give me clear verbal instructions along the way.”
Penny swallowed and felt warmth flood her cheeks.
“But before that, you need to tell me why you got into Carl’s plane.”
The excitement that’d been building inside of her died, like a stalled car on the onramp of a highway. Just done. She didn’t want to talk about Jake. She didn’t want to relive any of the horror that she’d seen that morning. But he wasn’t going to let up. The look in his eye said she wasn’t going to find a way around this barrier.
“I work for a weapons manufacturer. I design guns, rifles, and other military grade hardware.”
“Ahh, the scent I couldn’t pin down…Gunpowder.”
She looked up at him and scrunched her nose. How could he possibly smell gunpowder on her? She hadn’t fired a weapon in several days. There had been showers. Lotion. Perfume. There was no way… “How?”
“I have a very keen sense of smell. You have a gun in your purse too, don’t you?”
She nodded. “It’s my personal weapon. I always have it.”
“It’s good to be able to protect yourself. It’s not like you have teeth and claws.” A smile curved the corners of his lips, like a cat who knew a secret. “Go on.”
“Wait, I’m serious. How could you smell that on me?” She lifted her hands out from beneath the blanket to her nose and sniffed. Nothing. There was no way.
His smile broadened. “You’re sharing your secrets first.” He tucked her hands back inside the blanket and fixed it so that no skin was showing.
Crap! She was only wearing a bra and panties. He met her gaze again and she could’ve sworn his blue eyes glittered with gold and a hint of lust. She’d seen it before in the truck. There was something…she just didn’t know what. Gold certainly wasn’t a natural eye color and it didn’t stay. Just flashed through and then disappeared again.
“Penny.” His voice was almost a purr. “You’re very slow at telling stories.”
She couldn’t help it. She laughed out loud at that. “No one ever asks me to talk about anything besides guns and artillery. Or explosives. Sometimes they do want to hear about those tests as well.”
He didn’t speak, just waited for her to gather her thoughts.
She took a deep breath. “I saw my boss execute three people in the warehouse below my office. I wasn’t supposed to be in the office. It was lunchtime and no one eats in the labs above the warehouse. He thought the building was empty. I forgot my purse and went back. I don’t think he saw me, but even if he didn’t, he’ll see the security badge check-in on the computer. He’ll know I was there and he’ll see that I left right after he shot them. In the head. All of them,” she said, gasping through the memory of seeing the blood and gore all over the floor. And their bodies crumpled in an unnatural way. There had been so much blood. “It was so horrible. Out of everywhere I could’ve worked…I picked that asshole. I’m terrible at reading people. I know I am, but I work…worked for a murderer.”
“And you were smart, and you got out of there fast,” Kann added with a shudder. It was strange seeing someone else so worried for her. She’d been alone too long. “I can’t imagine what would’ve happened had you stayed. I would have lost you before I met you.”
“He’s going to come after me. This guy…the company is one of the major gun manufacturers in the world. He has connections everywhere. I ditched my cell, my watch, anything that could possibly be traced to me. I cut up my credit cards. I can’t go to the bank again, so I have to make the money I brought last.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you Penny.” Kann leaned down to kiss her forehead again. She tipped her chin and instead of her head, his lips met hers. The contact sent a spark of energy through her whole body. He started soft and gentle, but before she knew it the kiss had turned demanding. Fulfilling. She could spend her entire life being kissed like this. By this man who promised to protect her. She wanted to believe that he could. That she would be safe in this tiny little corner of Alaska.
She could hope, right?
She tasted like heaven. A salty sweet dessert. And she had asked for the kiss. He wasn’t about to deny his mate what she asked for. He pressed her harder, pushing his tongue between her soft lips. This was all he’d wanted since he saw her in the grocery store. This was all he would ever want.
Her. To taste her. To b
reathe the same air for as long as they both breathed. To feel her body against his. Forever.
She moaned beneath his mouth and Kann smiled against her mouth, knowing full well there was no way she was missing the full erection wedged beneath her luscious round bottom. The moaning continued as he stroked and slashed his tongue against hers. Every sound sent fire into his veins. It made the pulsing in his cock even harder. His lion roared on the inside, wanting more. Needing more. But she was the dictator here, and he wouldn’t take a step without her direction. The last thing he wanted was for her to send him away.
Because although he would respect her wishes and not touch her, he wouldn’t leave the cabin. Not again. Not in this storm.
Her hands emerged from the blanket as they kissed, stroking the side of his neck, then up into his loose hair. Her fingers rubbed back and forth on the shaved sides, making every hair stand on end. It sent a shiver through his body and a rumble started in his chest. He couldn’t quiet his lion. Not now. Not with his mate’s hands stroking him. Gliding ever so gently. Tracing his ear.
“Are you okay?” she murmured against his mouth. “Y-you’re vibrating.”
“Just pleased,” he answered, sliding his hand into the tangle of her brown hair and fisting it tightly. She gasped and lost her focus as he renewed his onslaught of her mouth. Such plump delicious lips. He’d never be able to get enough.
Mate.
She made his heart hammer in his chest and his lion purr and his cock throb. He was barely clinging to his control. “I need to touch you, Penny.” He growled against her whimpering lips, struggling with every shred of willpower he had left to keep his fangs sheathed.
She moaned and arched in his lap.
“I need you to say yes, Penny.” He held back his lion, but just barely.
She wanted him. He could smell her arousal through the folds of the blanket. The sounds she was making threatened to make him spill in his pants like a youngling. “You have to speak. You decide.”
“Yes, please, Kann. I need you.” She panted in his arms. Then pulled away and met his gaze. “Your eyes are gold again. Are you going to tell me why they change?”
I'm Not Lion To You_Soulmate Shifters World Page 7