by Milly Taiden
Oh, she knew that was a definite. She mumbled under her breath about him taking too long.
“You want to come, baby. I know you do.” He increased the speed of his thrusts. “You want my dick deep and far. As far as I can get. You want my mate stamp on you from the inside.” He took a rough breath. “You want me to give you the pups you’ve been secretly wanting, baby girl.” He nibbled on her shoulder. “I want them, too.”
His hand curled around her belly, sliding between her legs to play with her clit. She mewled, wiggling back into his harsh drives. More. More. More. She was so fucking close.
All it took was a few flicks of his finger on her aching pleasure center in combination with his deep plunges and she was gone. The orgasm tore through her like a category five hurricane. It left her breathless, shaking and ready to fall apart. Only with Caleb could she open up enough to lose herself in how he made her feel.
She was still riding the wave when he pressed tightly into her, his cock pulsing inside. He came with a loud howl. Loud enough everyone in the house probably heard, but at that moment, she couldn’t have cared less.
He sat on the grass with her on his lap. It allowed them a brief bonding moment without being with the others. He held her close to him, tilting her face to meet her gaze.
“No matter what happens, know this: I love you. I always have. I always will. I’d die for you.”
She inhaled hard and let her words out slowly. “It is because I love you as much as I do that I would never let you give up your life for me. I’d rather stand by your side and die together. You’re mine, Caleb. And I’m not losing you. Not now. Not ever.”
SIX
Ellie entered the kitchen with Caleb in tow. Her mother was putting rolls into a basket with a red and white checkered towel covering it. Her mother looked at her and Caleb’s joined hands and smiled. “Good, you’re just in time. Wash your hands and come sit.”
Ellie’s face flushed red on her way to the sink. While he’d diverted her attention outside with sex, her mind was set. She was helping him whether he wanted her to or not.
Caleb chuckled and squeezed her hand. “What are you blushing for?”
She turned on him with a “duh” look on her face. “Mom didn’t need to look at our hands to know we’re still together. All she had to do was breathe.” He could only smile. She rolled her eyes. Men. “I’m taking a quick shower. Be right ba—”
“No.” Caleb squeezed her hand tighter. “I want my scent on you.” Her belly fluttered. He held her captive with his dominating gaze. “Besides, it’s just your family.”
“Exactly,” Ellie huffed, “it’s my family. I’d rather be in front of strangers than listen to my brothers’ smart-ass remarks I know will be said.” Despite her words, she loved having his scent on her. Heck, if it were up to her, she’d have him mark her all over. He was hers and she was more than happy for others to know. Others she wasn’t related to.
“Nah, they wouldn’t say anything,” he growled softly, the sound shooting arousal to her pussy. Not good. Not only was she turned on again, but they’d all know she and Caleb were doing a lot more than talking on their walk.
Caleb gave her that grin that turned her knees to melted butter. It wasn’t going to work. She propped a hand on her hip. “Hello? Have you met my brothers? Obviously not, if you think that.”
He kissed her hard and fast and for a second she forgot what they were arguing about. Then he tugged her toward the dining room. “Stop being so worried. I’m hungry. Let’s eat.”
They sat and everyone bowed their heads for grace. When the words let’s dig in were said, hands went flying for dishes filled with mashed potatoes, candied carrots, fried chicken, and hot buttery rolls.
Ellie kept her eyes to her plate, but she noticed the glances and felt the mounting tension as she tried to ignore her shyness. What was she worried about? Sex was a natural part of life. She was married to the man! It was normal to have sex with your husband, dammit! It’s not like her brothers never smelled of it. Since the mating ritual, that’s about the only cologne they wore, Eau de Sex.
Mason looked down at his plate full of steaming food and took a deep breath, blowing it out with a long ahhhhh. “Smells interesting, Ellie. I mean, Mom.” The table erupted with male laughter.
She knew it! She launched a piece of her roll at Mason. “Shut it, Mase.” She tore off another piece of bread to throw at Caleb for laughing along with them. She was ready to tell him she told him so, but when she chucked the butter-covered goodness at him, he looked up and caught it in his mouth, ruining her comeback while the males applauded and cheered. And somehow all he had to do was give her a single look that told her he loved her and she turned into a teenager all over again.
Her mother smacked her dad in the arm and he covered his laugh with his napkin and cleared his throat. “Mason, apologize to your sister. You know not to tease her.”
Mason dropped his fork in his pile of mashed potatoes. “But, Dad—”
Her dad gave Mason the look. “Don’t but Dad me.”
“Ellie knows we’re laughing with great respect for her.” He glanced down the table at her unbelieving face. “Why should I apologize?”
Their father put his napkin on his lap. “Because I want the same thing your sister got when I go upstairs with your mother later.” The room flooded with “ewww, Dad,” “TMI, Dad,” “I can’t handle that image, Dad,” “I think I might be sick, Dad.”
Ellie couldn’t believe he said that, but had a hard time not laughing along with the other women. Her parents were priceless.
Desperate to change the topic, Ellie asked if any plans had been made concerning Caleb’s uncle. With the serious issue, the room quieted.
Her mother added her bit. “I think that discussion can wait until after dinner. I think the boys would be more interested in knowing their little sister is now a married woman.” Ellie didn’t think the room could’ve been quieter. The proverbial pin drop had nothing on this.
Aric cocked his head and looked at their mother. “Our little sister, here?”
Their mother settled her eyes on him. “No, your little sister who lives with the neighbors.”
Jake gasped. “We have another sister?” Nicole tagged his arm.
“No, idiot. She’s being facetious.”
He looked around at the staring faces. “I knew that. I was trying to be funny.”
Nate snorted. “I agree with your mate. Idiot.”
“Hey,” Jake puffed up his chest, “my mate is always right, but I’m not an idiot.”
Mason coughed up a sliced carrot. “Dude, you can’t have it both ways.”
“I disagree,” his mother added with authority. “He got it right. And you boys would do good to learn what he just got away with.” She grinned at the faces her sons made. “Interesting that your mates didn’t tell you anything about it.”
Every man turned to look at his mate, but the women continued eating as if nothing had happened. The smiles the women shared with Ellie told her they were more than happy to deal with the questions that would come their way.
An hour later, Ellie and the other women put away the last of the dishes from dinner. Karla, Jordan, and Emma each held a bottle for one of the triplets in their arms.
Ellie looked toward the doorway, then to Karla feeding one of her babies. “Karla, may I ask a personal question that’s plagued me forever?”
Karla made a fish face at the baby. “Sure.”
“I thought you were on the pill before you got pregnant.”
“I was. Have been since graduating.” She bent down and kissed the baby’s forehead.
Ellie frowned. “Doesn’t that make you wonder how you got pregnant? And on top of that, you had three.”
Karla snorted. “Yeah, I wondered about that starting the day Jordan and I did the double dip.”
Ellie glanced at Jordan. “You what? Went for ice cream?”
Jordan laughed. “No, silly. After thinki
ng about the symptoms she’d been going through, I thought she could be pregnant. Heck, I knew she’d freak if I told her to take a test. So I said I’d do it, too. She came to the house with about ten different tests.”
Everyone at the table laughed.
Karla scoffed. “It’s not like I’d done it before. I didn’t know which one worked the best. The boxes all said they were the number one choice. Besides, I was wound up tighter than a rubber band at the time.”
“Ha! I knew you would be.” She grinned. “I’d do a happy dance if I didn’t have the little one here. Woohoo.” Jordan bounced in her seat, making her arm load giggle.
“That tells me,” Barbara started, “my grandchildren were destined to be born and they thought now was a great time to do it. They’ll make great alphas, if the packs survive.”
Ellie jerked her head sideways to stare at her mother. “Mom, what do you mean by that? You sound as if the end of the world is coming.”
Her mom’s features appeared strained. “Of course not. But with all the corruption and killing for power and money, I’m not sure how much longer the hierarchy tradition will remain as one alpha to one pack. Who knows? Fifty years from now, all could be united under one leader.”
Ellie shook her head and dismissed that idea. “I doubt that, Mom. But I do see a pack that keeps up with the times to finally let a female be the main alpha and not the husband.”
Nicole snorted. “That’ll be the day. Men are so arrogant; they’ll never give up their ‘right’ to lead to a female. I’d like to see that.”
Michael’s bottle bounced on the floor. “Hey, little baby man.” Karla looked down at the baby’s innocent eyes staring back with a toothless smile thrown in for fun. “Guess you’re done, then.”
Ellie picked up the breast milk container that had rolled against a counter. She handed it back to Karla after washing the nipple. “Did you lose your grip on the bottle?”
Karla propped Michael over her shoulder and patted against his back. “I’m not sure. His little arms started flailing and I guess he got his hands on the plastic and flung it away. I’ve never seen that before.”
Barbara joined the ladies at the table. “Looks like he’s going to be a strong alpha already.” A loud burp came from the infant.
“That’s a good boy.” Two other burps soon followed.
Ellie stood at the table. “Are you guys ready to meet with the men to talk about what we’re going to do?”
Karla set the bottle on the table. “Go ahead and gather the men. We’ll put the babies down, Matthew’s already asleep. Then we’ll join you all.”
SEVEN
Ellie glanced around the living room as each couple took a chair. These people were her family. She would die trying to protect them. She wondered at the thought that her best friends, those she met at different places at different times in her life, ended up being her brothers’ mates. Like her mom said about the babies, this was destined.
Caleb wrapped his arms around her and she leaned against his chest, she on his lap. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, fine. I was just thinking about the past and how things turned out for us.” He frowned and turned her around to face him.
“Ellie, I know we haven’t fully mated, and we agreed on that reason, but you’re my life. Don’t forget that in the crazy mess going on.” The fear for her was real in his eyes and she hated it was there to begin with. “I would walk away from the Rahound pack and become a Wolfe if I didn’t know the atrocities my uncle is submitting the pack to. You know I can’t let them suffer.”
She didn’t expect him to and that’s what bothered her most. She didn’t want him to fight this alone, not when he had her to lean on.
He paused and noticed everyone had taken a seat. “We’ll talk about this later.” He kissed her like he wasn’t afraid to show his feelings anymore. When he suggested they secretly get married, she was all over that in a heartbeat.
She knew her mother was upset with their decision, but she kept her feelings to herself. Her mom had spoken several times about what a grand event it would be when the alpha princess wed. She even had her wedding gown preserved so Ellie could wear it. When she was little, they went through magazines to cut out pictures of things they liked and stored them in a shoebox. She wondered if her mom still had it.
When the room quieted, Ellie pushed away from Caleb’s chest. “To be continued later.”
She turned to her dad. “You’re in charge, unless you want me or Aric to talk.” To her surprise, he didn’t reply right away. He looked between Caleb and her.
“Being alpha for the Wolfe pack, I will make the final decisions concerning our pack.” He paused again. “You, my little princess, are now a Rahound and should join with your mate to care for your people.”
Ellie froze with his words. After their impromptu wedding, nothing felt different for her. She slept at the home she grew up in. Still had dinner most nights at home. Still did the same chores she’d been doing since ten years old. They didn’t even wear the rings they exchanged, trying to keep the bond a secret.
But now, the reality of their decision hit her in the face. She was glad she and Caleb married, she wouldn’t have it any other way, but knowing now her life consisted of different responsibilities and a different role, she no longer felt like Daddy’s little girl. She was Daddy’s little kick-ass alpha mate. She should get a cape with that on it.
Her father clapped his hands and sat forward in his recliner, bringing her out of her thoughts. “All right. We have several things we need to talk about as a family. A lot of things are coming to a head or lingering closely behind.” Jake raised his hand. “Yeah, Jake. What is it?”
Jake cleared his throat and adjusted Nicole on his lap. “Dad, we haven’t talked about this and I’m starting to trip because of it.” He paused.
Dad pulled his chin in, confusion clearly on his face. “Well, son, whatever it is, I’m sure we can move it out of your way. No need to injure yourself over a trip hazard.” Giggles and suppressed smiles broke out. Dad looked at Mom. “What did I say?”
She didn’t hide her big smile and loving eyes from him. “Dear, in this case, ‘trip’ means to freak out.”
His brow rose. “I don’t get the correlation: trip, freak out. How do you get one from the other?”
She patted his knee and winked at him. “You don’t, dear. It’s part of the younger generation. It’s okay, though, darling. You’re not expected to know every term out there.”
He sat back, relief on his face. “That explains that.” He turned to Jake. “Okay, Jake. What are you tripping over?”
Jake grinned, clearly ready to mess with their dad, but before he did, their mom answered.
“It’s trip out, dear.”
With an angry huff, Dad crossed his arms over his chest. “How do you know this and I don’t? I thought I kept up with the young ones’ jargon.”
“The boys aren’t teens anymore, dear.” Her mom patted his thick bicep. “Don’t worry. I’ll always be here to translate for you.”
“Dad, forget about it. What’s bothering me is that we haven’t heard anything from the Las Vegas pack. We killed their alpha, for crying out loud. They can’t just let that go, can they? What about the law on whomever kills an alpha takes their place?”
Aric sat forward and looked at his father. “Dad, if I may?” His father nodded. “I talked extensively with Jaxon about this yesterday. I haven’t had time to talk with you all yet.”
“Who’s Jaxon?” Karla asked.
“Jaxon Gold. He’s the alpha for the Golden Falls pack in Vegas. He and his pack were at Nicole’s parents’ house to help us when Harris attacked. He loaned us some guys to fight the rogues coming here. Great guy. Anyway, he said Grady Harris had just taken the alpha spot. His father’s death certificate listed the cause of death as unknown.”
Ellie remembered that fight quite well. Poor Nicole had to fight for her life.
Jake snorted. “I be
t it should say cause of death: son.”
Aric nodded. “That’s how Jaxon felt, too. Harris’s pack has a lot of money, not him personally, though. Jaxon thinks Harris offed his dad because they found out he’d been dipping into the community fund for his own purchases. How? I don’t know. It’s all hearsay. But Jaxon did say after Harris took control, the petitions to join the Golden Falls pack tripled in a matter of days.”
“Everybody suddenly wanted out,” Nate thought out loud.
“Yeah, Jaxon said the reason on most apps was irreconcilable difference or of that nature. I guarantee something was going on, and Harris was the start of it. Jaxon said stay as far away as possible from them. Several of his cronies are still around.”
The sound of two car doors closing snagged their attention. Nicole was closest to the window overlooking the front of the house. Moving the curtain a touch, she frowned. “I don’t recognize the two guys. They look pretty big. And from the expression on their faces, they’re not happy campers.”
Shit, what now? Ellie’s stomach churned. She had a bad feeling about this.
The men were out of their seats and at the front door in the matter of seconds. Tristan opened the door before the strangers climbed the porch stairs.
“I’m Alpha Tristan Wolfe. What can I do for you, boys?” His sons and Caleb gathered behind him, arms crossed over their chests.
The two men didn’t flinch at the aggressive stance. One of the men placed a foot on the bottom step and stopped. “We’re from the Las Vegas pack here to talk to you about the death of our most recent alpha.”
Jake’s mouth dropped open. “Oh, fuck.”
EIGHT
Nicole watched Barbara set a tray of drinks and crackers on the coffee table in front of the two visitors on the sofa. “There we go. Please, help yourselves.”
“Thank you, ma’am. The flight here was delayed a couple hours and we came straight here, hoping to finish in time to catch the last plane out this evening.”