by Opal Carew
Dad, I’m so sorry, for everything.
“How’d you end up with Leo?” Gabriel asked.
Sighing, she took a sip of her tea before answering. “My mother called to me, just before she was killed.”
Gabriel frowned. “She knew where you were then?”
She shook her head. “I heard her voice in my head, telling me I needed to come home, that I needed to get something and keep it safe.”
Gabriel paused for a few seconds and she couldn’t tell whether he believed her or not. But he didn’t push it. “You got there before Dario?”
“No, they’d already left by the time I arrived.”
His eyebrows shot up. “How’d they miss the kid?”
“My parents put him in an enchanted sleep and hid him in a secret room in the basement. I never would have found him if my mom hadn’t told me where to look.”
And if she’d never shown up, her brother would have remained in that enchanted sleep until his body had withered away and died. She shuddered at the thought.
“After she was dead?”
She nodded.
Gabriel fell silent, staring at her. She didn’t have a clue what he was thinking.
“How’d you find me?” he finally asked.
“Mom left her grimoire and a letter with Leo, telling me how to find you, what to say.”
“But she never said anything about the curse?”
She shook her head, tears starting to gather again. “She must have been pregnant with Leo when I left. Maybe they knew something like this would happen, that I’d be around to care for him if anything happened to them.”
That made sense. What didn’t make sense was why her mom hadn’t told her about the curse. Maybe her mom had been disappointed when the simple fact of her birth hadn’t broken the curse. But why hadn’t she contacted the other streghe and tried to figure it out? Why had they gone into hiding?
“Shea.” Gabriel’s voice cut through her thoughts. “What are you thinking?”
“That none of this makes sense.”
Goddess, that slow smile of his must make women fall at his feet. And she was halfway to the floor.
“Yeah, well, then we’d better start coming up with some answers,” he said.
“And you know someone who should have some?”
“Yeah.”
Gabriel rose and walked to the counter to rinse out his cup, glancing out the window as he did. “We need to get Leo up and—Shit.”
Spinning away from the sink, he ran for the back door.
“What’s wrong,” she called, but he was already outside.
She got to the door just as he walked back into the house, carrying a huge grey wolf in his arms, blood dripping from its back leg.
“Close the door and lock it,” he ordered. “And bring the first-aid kit. Damn it, Quinn. Don’t do this to me, not now.”
Shea grabbed the oversized kit from its spot on the kitchen counter before following Gabriel into the next room. He’d already laid the animal he’d called Quinn on its side on a soft rug by the stone fireplace and was examining the wound, cursing under his breath. Grabbing the kit out of her hands, he tore it open, reaching for a brown bottle.
“I know this is gonna hurt like hell, just don’t bite me, buddy.”
Gabriel ran an unsteady hand through the animal’s fur and she heard the wolf’s low whine. Then he turned to her, a grim look on his face.
“I’ll hold him down. You need to pour this over the wound.” He held out the liquid-filled bottle. “Just do it fast.”
He wrapped his arms around the wolf, holding the animal’s uninjured limbs close to the body. Then he nodded to Shea.
Without stopping to think, she did what he’d said.
The wolf howled loud enough to wake the dead and fought to get away, giving Gabriel nasty scratches on his cheeks, arms and legs. But Gabriel held on until the animal wore itself out.
When the wolf calmed, Gabriel released him and the animal turned toward her, his eyes blue and startlingly human. Then he closed them and went limp.
Gabriel sat there, hands on his thighs, eyes closed. He was working some kind of spell, she realized. She could feel the energy coming off of him, like heat off a stove.
She stayed silent, watching, until Gabriel opened his eyes and snagged her gaze.
“This is Quinn, legatus of the Eastern States Pack. Plans just changed.”
* * *
Gabriel refused to leave Quinn’s side and Shea would not leave him.
Funny thing was, he didn’t mind having her near. She left once to check on Leo and, for the few minutes she was gone, he couldn’t stop worrying. When she returned, the worry lightened and he could almost believe everything would be okay.
Gabriel wasn’t worried that someone had followed Quinn. It was possible but unlikely. Quinn would have let himself die on the side of the road before he’d lead anyone here.
Quinn must have been hit by a car. At least that’s what the damage looked like. It would’ve been funny if it hadn’t been so damn bad. Both back legs were injured, one definitely broken. He’d lost a lot of blood, if the amount on his fur was any indication. Gabriel didn’t know how long he’d spent dragging himself here.
He couldn’t shift back to his human body, the damage was too great. He’d heal at a faster rate than a human or wolf, but until then…shit.
If anything happened to Quinn, he’d… Hell, he didn’t have a clue.
Serena would be devastated.
He sat there staring at the beautiful fur he’d teased Quinn about endlessly as a teenager. They didn’t need this. Not now.
“Your legs are going to cramp,” Shea said. “Why don’t you sit up here for a while?”
He turned to find Shea watching him from the leather couch that faced the fireplace, her eyes wide and concerned.
With good reason. This screwed up everything.
He rose, grimacing a little as his leg muscles protested the movement, and sat next to her on the couch.
“Is he going to be okay?”
“Yeah.” Gabriel would make sure of that, even if he had to carry the damn mongrel to a vet to have him stitched up. There had to be a versipelli vet around here somewhere. “He should heal pretty quickly. But he can’t change until he’s healed more.”
“He’s lucani.”
“Yeah.” Something in her tone drew his gaze away from Quinn.
“He’s gorgeous.”
Jealousy bit into his ass with sharp teeth. Idiot.
“Quinn will love to hear you say that. Just wait until he’s awake. We can’t leave until he’s healed, though.”
Another day, maybe two. It shouldn’t be a problem, but he’d wanted to have Shea and Leo at the compound by tomorrow. Shit.
“Hey, tell me about Quinn. What does legatus mean?”
He heard her question but ignored it. Gods-be-damned, how the hell had Quinn gotten hurt?
“Gabriel?”
Shea’s soft tone cut through his thoughts and he turned his gaze toward her.
“What’s a legatus?”
He answered without thinking. “Legion commander. He’s in charge of the Eastern Pack’s soldiers.”
“Like in the ancient Roman army?”
“Yeah. The lucani base their command structure on the old Roman legion.”
“How did you and Quinn meet?”
“We were raised together after his mother tried to kill him when he was twelve.” He nodded at Shea’s gasp. “Barb was always a little unstable, but when he shifted the first time after he hit puberty, she locked him in his room and tried to burn the house down around him. She’s got a padded cell at Wernersville State Hospital. He hasn’t seen her since. His father was my dad’s second cousin, so they came to live with us.”
“Where?”
“About an hour outside of Philadelphia.”
“What about your mom?”
“She didn’t live with us.”
“And you won�
�t tell me who she is?”
He shook his head, his gaze drawn back to Quinn. If anything happened to Quinn, it might be the final straw that broke Serena’s heart. “Can’t. There’s a difference.”
“So you grew up in an all-male household. I can see how that warped your little mind.”
He smiled, though it was weak. She was trying to take his mind off the situation, and he appreciated it. But he had too much to think about to be distracted.
They could stay here indefinitely. In the nearly two hundred years since it’d been built, this house had never been discovered. They were safe, unless Dario’s men could somehow track Leo through the shields on the property. He wasn’t ruling it out, which was why he’d wanted to head out today. But there was no way he’d leave Quinn behind.
And, truth be told, he didn’t want to give Shea and Leo to another grigorio.
There were only three grigori he’d even consider, anyway. Franco was in Europe at the moment. Donal had his hands full with Furia and Madrona in Louisiana. And Matt...
Shit, he should have called Matt the second Shea had told him who she was. Matt deserved to know what was going on.
But Gabriel honestly hadn’t thought about the guy until right now.
He’d should—
Shea’s slender hand cupped his cheek, her skin soft against his two-day growth. His eyelids fell and he let the warmth of her skin soak into his. Damn it, he shouldn’t like her touch this much. It was dangerous.
“Shea—”
“Shh. Just be quiet, Gabriel.”
She sealed her mouth over his and he let her kiss him. Let her lips caress his until all he wanted was more of her mouth, hot and wet, her tongue slick against his.
He settled his hands on her waist and lifted her until she straddled his lap. She settled in, knees sinking into the cushions at his hips, bringing the heat between her legs closer to his aching cock. He wanted to press against her, rub against her softness, but that would require too much energy.
Goddess, he was tired. Too tired to move her away like he should. She was the one in charge. When she lifted her lips, he forced his eyes open to stare into hers.
“Did you get any sleep last night?” she whispered.
His eyelids felt so heavy. No, he hadn’t slept last night, and he wouldn’t get any tonight either…
“You need to rest, Gabriel. You’re no good to us if you’re not thinking straight.”
Damn, she was working a spell, felt it brush against his arus, whispering to him to sleep. He couldn’t afford to sleep now. He struggled against the sleeping spell she’d woven but he couldn’t fight it and the world went dark.
* * *
When Gabriel’s head dropped onto her shoulder, Shea let it stay there.
She could tell he’d been exhausted but wouldn’t give in to natural sleep. So she’d woven one of the simple spells her mother had taught her so many years ago.
He’d be pissed when he woke, but he’d be rested. And since Quinn couldn’t be moved immediately, he could afford the downtime.
Otherwise, he would have sat here and worried about…everything. About her, about Leo, and mostly about the gorgeous wolf lying on the floor.
She sat there another minute, enjoying the feel of him against her. His hair felt like silk against her cheek and before she could stop herself, she slid one hand into the black strands.
It took her a few minutes to realize the voices weren’t buzzing any louder than normal. Whenever anyone except Leo touched her, the voices reacted. As if they were warning them away. They’d nearly screamed when Gabriel had grabbed her in the car but now, even though she was so close to Gabriel, they were almost quiet. Maybe they were getting used to him.
She didn’t know how long she sat there, letting her fingers drift through his hair, winding it around her fingers. Turning her head, she let her lips brush against it, breathing in the spicy warm scent of him. Goddess, she would love to stay right here…
The wolf whined and she turned to find pale blue eyes staring up at her, pain evident in his gaze.
Careful not to jostle Gabriel, she got off the couch and knelt on the floor, unable to resist stroking Quinn’s beautiful fur.
“I can help with the pain, if you want,” she offered. “And with the healing. I didn’t offer earlier because I wasn’t sure how Gabriel would react to what I’m going to do. Just nod for okay.”
The wolf snorted and shook his head.
“I’ll take that as a yes. Okay, I haven’t done this for a while, but I know what I’m doing.”
She hoped. She took a deep breath and lifted her dress over her head.
* * *
Shea regained consciousness with a burning ache in her right leg that she knew would get worse before it got better and the feel of warm flesh against hers. Shifting, she tried to get more comfortable. And realized she was on the floor, her head pillowed on an equally naked, firmly muscled chest.
“Well, darlin’,” a deep voice drawled in her ear. “This certainly beats the doggie doctor any—Holy shit, your eyes.”
She bent her elbow to support her head and stared at the tawny-haired stranger gaping at her. Despite her nudity, his gaze stayed locked on her eyes.
“Jesus, who are you?”
“Shea Tedaldi.”
His mouth opened and closed twice before he smiled and said, “Well, honey, I’m Quinn, and I’m damn glad to meet you.”
Those blue, blue eyes would not look away.
“Nice to meet you, too. How are you feeling?”
“Well, now, I guess that depends.”
She couldn’t maintain that gaze anymore so she sat up and ran her fingers through her tangled hair. “On what?”
“On whether or not Gabriel’s going to kick my ass when he wakes up.”
Reaching for her dress, she pulled it over her head before Quinn noticed the huge bruise on her leg. “And why would he do that?”
“Well, considering you and I just spent the better part of two hours naked and pressed together, I’d say he’s gonna be pissed.”
“Then you don’t know shit,” came a growl from the couch. “Vaffanculo, Shea. What the hell’d you do to me?”
Turning, she saw Gabriel rub a hand over his face as he sat up, a look on his face that could only be described as royally pissed off.
Time to pay the piper.
“You needed the rest.” Standing, she shook the dress down her legs as she walked carefully to the couch, trying not to limp. “How do you feel?”
Gabriel shook his head, hair brushing his shoulders. Her fingers actually clenched with the desire to touch it, even through the increasing pain in her leg.
He looked up at her, his gaze hot. “Like I got run over by a truck.”
She lifted her chin. No way would she apologize. “No, apparently that was Quinn. The disorientation will pass in a minute. You could have used a few more hours.”
He scowled at her. “Yeah, well, I’ll decide when I have them.” He looked like he wanted to say more, his lips tightening. Finally, though, he looked down at Quinn. “What the hell are you doing in your skin already?”
“Your girl here worked some powerful mojo.”
“She’s not my girl.”
“I’m not his girl.”
Shea shot Gabriel a look, but Quinn stood, blocking her glare with his long, lean, naked body.
“Oh, yeah.” Quinn laughed. “This is gonna be real fun.”
“Don’t be an asshole.” Gabriel stood and got right in Quinn’s face.
Jeez, she did not want to have to break up a fight. Then Gabriel smiled, and her breath caught in her chest. Damn him, he was way too handsome when he smiled.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Gabriel said.
Quinn nodded, his expression softening, as he reached out to grab Gabriel in a bear hug. “Me, too. Looks like you’ve got a tale to tell.”
Gabriel hugged him back then held put his hands on his shoulders and nodded. “Yeah, w
e do. But first tell me how the hell you got hit?”
Quinn sighed. “Food first.” His gaze shifted to Shea. “And maybe some clothes.”
Gabriel shook his head, a wry smile on his face. “Shea’ll tell you not to bother with the clothes, but you’re so damn gorgeous, you’re distracting me.”
“Vaffanculo, Gabe.” Quinn smacked Gabriel’s shoulder so hard, it had to hurt. “I’ve missed you, ceffo.”
Gabriel nodded his head and returned the affection. “Yeah, well, I missed you, too, Lassie.” He shoved Quinn away. “Now get dressed and I’ll make you a couple of steaks.”
Quinn turned to her and flashed a playboy smile that surely made women’s panties fall to their knees.
“Thanks again, honey.” Then he wrapped his arms around her, lifted her off her feet and planted a kiss on her mouth.
And oh, could the man kiss. Funny, though, that he didn’t make her burn like Gabriel.
When he gently placed her back on her feet and turned to walk through the door, she couldn’t help as her gaze slipped to his naked backside. He had one of the finest butts she’d ever seen on a man. Almost as nice as Gabriel’s. Almost.
“After you put your tongue back in your mouth, you can tell me what the hell you did.”
Shea turned and caught Gabriel’s unamused gaze. With his arms crossed over his broad chest and his black boots spread, he looked like a pissed-off Hell’s Angel.
She mirrored his stance, ignoring the pain in her leg, and lifted her eyebrows. “He’s going to be fine.”
“Explain.”
She huffed. “I inherited my mother’s Gift for healing. Quinn needed help and I healed him. End of story.”
She didn’t add that she knew Gabriel had been so worried about Quinn he couldn’t think straight. She tried but couldn’t hold his gaze, especially when he stared at her with such intensity. She nodded toward the kitchen. “Why don’t we get the food started? I’m starving.”
She had to walk around him to get to the kitchen. She steeled herself against the pain. As she passed, he caught her arm, stopping her, but she refused to look up at him.
“Shea.”
She tried to ease away but he had a firm grip on her. “I’m fine.”