by Golden Angel
"We haven't seen anything confirming another lab location with prisoners, but we can't rule it out either," Steele said grimly.
Brady nodded. "We won't kill him if we get to him first." Brock shifted in his chair, but then sighed and nodded when the other three men looked at him.
"Third, you sign the standard contract, which puts you on my team for two years. If after a year you want to change teams or do something else, that's fine, but if we find Dr. Montgomery before that, your job isn't over until the contract is up."
"That's fine," Brady said. He glanced at his brothers. "I don't think any of us will want to get out just because we found the doctor, especially if we can get to his boss. Plus, I don't know what else we'd do."
"You might think of something, now that you have options," Steele said neutrally. Especially once they'd seen some action. It wasn't for everyone.
"When can we start training?" Brock said gruffly, ignoring Steele's comment.
"I can send you out in two days or in about a month," Steele said. "The basic training runs on a circular schedule."
"Can you guarantee we'll come back here?" Brice asked, looking anxious. There was an air of anxiety around his older brothers too, but they hid it a little better. Brady was especially good at a stoic expression, something which Steele admired.
"Definitely," Steele said, nodding firmly. That would be no problem. Each team recruited their own unless they sent out a special call for help, which was rarely done. Even if that hadn't been the case, Steele would make sure that the Bunsons were returned to their sisters, which, in this case, returned them here because there was no way he was letting his mate go anywhere else. His wolf growled at the thought of Bethany even attempting a relocation.
The three bothers exchanged a considering look. "Excuse us," Brady said, giving Steele another glance. "We'll talk about it and get back to you."
"That's fine," Steele said with a smile. He didn't doubt what the brothers would choose, but he understood that they felt the need to weigh their decision.
******
Two days later, Bethany was surprised when she found herself holding back tears as she and Bailey said goodbye to their brothers. After all, she had been the one to tell them they needed to go ASAP - and en masse. The stupid Neanderthals had been considering taking turns going to the training, so that one of them could stay and watch over Bethany and Bailey, but they'd been arguing because none of them wanted to be the one to go to a later training and possibly miss out on finding Dr. Montgomery.
Overhearing their argument, Bethany had stepped in.
One - She could take care of herself.
Two - She could take care of Bailey too.
Three - If all three of them didn't go together, she was going to make whoever stayed miserable.
With that kind of encouragement, it was no surprise when they reluctantly decided that the best course of action was to go together.
Maybe it was naive of them to trust Steele and his people so quickly, but it was hard to do anything but. Most of them seemed incredibly friendly and welcoming, when Bethany actually went somewhere other than the house she and her brothers were staying at or the doctor’s where Bailey was still spending her time. The women were thrilled to meet the Bunson brothers, that was for sure, and her brothers were thrilled to meet them right back. They took turns staying with Bailey and Bethany, so one of them was always on “break.”
More than once she'd heard someone refer to one of her brothers as "going at it like bunnies" and it was all she could do not to snort. If only they knew.
It was amazing how much sex her brothers could pack into two days. It was also amazing how fast a man could run from Bethany when she suggested the same thing.
Nothing personal, of course, it was just that they'd heard Steele had claimed her for his own. All said with a strange, wondering look at the fact that she wasn't falling into line with this whole 'mate' thing.
Well, fine. But she was horny like you wouldn't believe and she was going to get her cherry popped one way or another. To be perfectly honest, she hadn't found a man in the town that she was as attracted to as Steele, so why not him? Not that it meant she was going to be his mate, but hopefully if they got it on and then the others saw that they weren't mates, she could find some more bed partners. Bethany fully intended to enjoy everything her new home had to offer, in the same way her brothers were. This was one itch that needed some serious scratching, in as many different ways possible. Every day of freedom just had her more and more horny as she was denied the release her body was craving. Playing with herself and fantasizing (always about Steele it seemed) just wasn't cutting it anymore.
Plus she didn't want to be all alone every night in the house they'd been given, at least, alone until Bailey was released. The youngest Bunson had been in the infirmary for the past two days, weak but recovering and no longer in pain, which was a huge relief to all of them. Bethany was spending most of her time there too, once it was clear that the men weren’t interested in her. A few of the older women in the pack had been very friendly, but they’d also been making all sorts of hints about an official mating ceremony for her and Steele, so she escaped conversations with them as quickly as she could. They all were very understanding when she explained that she needed to be with her sister.
So far, there were no clear signs about what had been done to Bailey, not even the hint of a shift, which had relieved their brothers. Bethany was pretty sure they were all hoping whatever “different” serum the doctor had given Bailey had somehow failed. Then they could feel less guilty about leaving their sisters in someone else's hands when they went to training, even if they'd deemed those hands trustworthy.
Overprotective, but sweet.
Bethany was selfishly glad that they were finally leaving because she was tired of watching them get their rocks off while she was denied! It was like they knew the other men in town were safe, but the second Steele appeared at her side, suddenly so did one of her brothers. Followed quickly by at least one eager lady. It super sucked that her brothers could get laid so easily with the whole "rescued from captivity" thing whereas she was STILL a virgin.
But now that they were actually going, a part of her was aching and wishing they weren't. They'd been in this together for so long, in the same place even if they were separated, that it felt wrong to know that she wasn't even going to know where they were!
"Aww, Bethy, it's okay," Brock said, squeezing her even more tightly. "We don't all have to go, one of us can stay here with you and-"
"No!" Bethany shook her head even as she squeezed him tightly back. "You're all going, and when you get back, I'm going!"
Behind her, she heard Mr. Soon-To-Get-Lucky-As-Long-As-He-Keeps-His-Mouth-Shut grunt disapprovingly. She rolled her eyes, even though her face was buried in Brock's chest and Steele couldn't see her. Like he'd be able to stop her from going to get the training if she wanted it. The only reason she wasn't insisting on going with her brothers right now was because she did think someone needed to be with Bailey, and - honestly - she was a better choice than the overbearing, overprotective, thickheaded alpha males that were her brothers.
After all three of her brothers had given her back-cracking hugs, accompanied by all sorts of well-meaning advice that she completely ignored (since most of it was common sense anyway and she knew they were just feeling helpless and uncomfortable about leaving her and Bailey), she practically shoved them into the car that was going to take them to the airfield. Kasim was driving them, his white teeth flashing brightly in his dark face as he gave her a salute before pulling out. Damn but he was a handsome man, all ebony skin and muscles, with those really cool long dreads. Unfortunately, he tended to act all big brotherly to her too. Waving at the car, Bethany couldn’t even see if anyone was waving back, but she didn’t stop until it was out of sight.
"They'll be fine." A heavy arm slung around her shoulders as she sniffed away the last couple of tears that were threatening to
fall.
"I know," she said, not looking up at the big, sexy man standing beside her. Now that he was so close, her beast uncurled inside of her a little, as if putting up her head and sniffing the air. Bethany ignored it. Yeah, she got that he smelled good, but seriously, there were other men that smelled good too. Maybe not as good but she still wasn't buying this whole 'mate' thing. Once he'd popped her cherry, she was looking forward to seeing what else was on the menu. "It's just weird... but it's not like we're used to normal."
His hand caressed her upper bicep, making her feel warmly comforted. Bethany mentally gave him points for not just blurting out some kind of lame platitude. She'd heard a lot of those since they'd been rescued, all well-meaning but not exactly helpful.
"It'll take time. We'll take good care of you while we're gone."
"Yeah?" she asked, looking up at him and giving him a brilliant smile. The shock in his face at her flirtatious expression nearly made her laugh out loud. "You can start with dinner. Tonight. Just let me know when and where."
Quickly, she pulled away and trotted back towards the infirmary so that she could visit Bailey and let her little sister know how the send-off had gone. She chuckled as Mr. I-Don't-Know-It-But-We're-Getting-It-On-Tonight called after her.
"My place! Six o'clock!"
Chapter 3
Steele hadn't felt this nervous about going on a date with a girl since... well, ever. Then again, he'd never been on a date with his mate either. His wolf was bounding around inside his head, giddy enough to nearly make his head ache, jumping for joy at how today had turned out.
He'd been planning on taking things slowly once her brothers left, once it had been made clear that he wasn't going to get anywhere while they were around. It didn't seem like they had a personal objection to him, more just that they felt the need to hover and make him work for it. Like they would for any man that was interested in her. The fact that they didn't try to run him off, that they were taking the time to get to know him and make sure that Bethany did the same, was encouraging, but it had been driving his wolf crazy. Not to mention his body.
The stories he'd heard about the biological imperative of the "mating call" hadn't been kidding. The first day hadn't been so bad, the second day he'd only had a hard-on when in her vicinity, but today he was starting to feel the need to always be in her vicinity. And if he'd taken some kind of male enhancer, he would have had to call his doctor over an hour ago because the damn thing didn't know when to quit. He'd been hard ever since Bethany had invited herself over for dinner.
It didn't hurt that the more he got to know her, the more he liked her.
She was funny, incredibly loyal, smart, caring, and not even a little bit afraid of going toe-to-toe with him. That last part might be what he liked best about her.
Which didn't help the situation with his dick.
Bethany didn't care that he was Alpha. She ignored his orders half the time - most of which had to do with telling her to stop flirting with the other men in the pack. Not that any of them were flirting back, which was the only reason his wolf hadn't torn any throats out. Last night he'd had to go for a good long run in the forest to get rid of the pent-up sexual frustration and possessive fury that had built up since her arrival into his life.
He hadn't gotten the impression that she was overly impressed by him. In fact, once her brothers were gone he'd planned a relatively slow seduction. Relatively because as badly as he was feeling the mating call, he knew that she was too. If she was a radio, he was tuned into her station, and he knew that she was just as horny as he was. Steele wasn't above using that. But he hadn't thought she'd be the one to suggest dinner. He hoped it meant the call was working on her the way it was supposed to - wearing down her resistance to the idea of mating him. Even if it was just her body working against her right now, he could use that as a starting point.
Although, he kind of liked that she was resisting, to be perfectly honest. It just showed how strong she was and that she didn't just want him for his position or his looks or because she was horny. Both he and his wolf liked the challenge. Besides, he'd win her in the end. She just needed to get to know him a little better; he had no doubts that they would be good together and neither did his wolf.
Again, he wondered exactly what kind of animal Bethany was. Neither she nor her siblings had shifted. Which wasn't that unusual, everyone did it differently. Steele shifted about once or twice a week, while Jordan usually indulged his bear every other week and Jacqueline had to shift every couple of days to keep her honey-badger happy. It all depended on the individual and, sometimes, the animal. One of the other bears in the pack spent about half her time in animal form and thought Jordan was crazy for his long stints as a human. Maybe he could convince Bethany go for a run after dinner tonight.
Before he could think about it too much, the doorbell rang, and he practically tripped over himself getting to it. Gritting his teeth, he told his damned wolf to calm down - he was trying to go for cool, collected, and charming. Not a bumbling, overeager lummox. Panting happily, his wolf obediently laid down. Or whatever the mental equivalent was.
Straightening, Steele took a deep breath and opened the door. Bethany was standing there, looking absolutely gorgeous, with her blonde hair down from its usual ponytail and wearing a blue sundress that brought out the bright blue of her eyes. She looked up at him, seemingly nervous, which immediately made him feel more centered and together for some reason.
"Hello, sweetheart," he said, nearly growling as her sweet scent hit him and his cock throbbed against the front of his jeans, much more painfully than before. Fucking mating call. It seemed like he was having a similar effect on her though, as her pupils dilated and her nipples hardened - which he could easily see through the thin fabric of her dress. The sweet scent of her arousal wafted off her skin, enveloping her like a cloud of perfume. Proving that he was a gentleman, he stepped back so that she could come through the door, gesturing her in and ignoring the demands of his body. "You look gorgeous."
"Thanks," she said, plucking at the dress' skirt as she walked past him, peering curiously into his house rather than looking directly at him. Maybe it should bother him more that she was looking at his home rather than him, but it didn't. He'd spent half the afternoon trying to make it look good after all. "This is a really nice house."
"It's basically the same as yours," he said, since he'd put her family practically next to him. The open floor plan that all the houses had meant that she could see pretty much the entire first floor except for the guest room and the bathroom, so it was clear that the layout was the same. He'd made sure to clean up any clutter, vacuumed and dusted. His momma would be proud if she could see it right now.
"Yeah, but you've made it look homey. Ours still feels like a guesthouse."
"Well, yours is just temporary anyway," Steele said apologetically. "I'm sure we'll have a more permanent home for you all soon." His wolf made a little whining sound - he wanted Bethany's permanent home to be their home. Steele shoved his animal's presence back in his mind - I'm working on it!
"Hopefully by the time my brothers get back," she responded with a smile. "They managed for two days, but I don't think any of them were happy sharing a room."
Steele coughed. Yeah, okay, so he'd put the Bunson family in a house two doors down from him and lied his ass off when they'd asked if there were bigger accommodations available anywhere else. Everyone in the town knew better than to rat him out. He hadn't been able to let Bethany go that far away from him. Not that the brothers had spent either night in their shared room - as far as he could tell, they'd been busy living up to their bunny genes. Not that any of the ladies were complaining; apparently being cooped up in captivity had given the Bunson brothers some serious pent-up stamina. Steele shuddered a little bit at the thought of going so long without any sex during his hormonal adolescence.
Not that he was any better off now. His cock was raging hard, practically throbbing in Bethany's pres
ence. But he was determined to court his mate appropriately.
"Dinner's almost ready," he said, closing the door and almost groaning as the enclosed space made her scent seem twice as strong. Maybe he should open some windows or something... but he knew that wouldn't really help his enhanced sensitivity when it came to her. "I hope you don't mind, but I kept it simple. Steak, potatoes and salad."
Everything was ready except the potatoes, which were still baking in the oven. The meat was resting, the salad was done and just needed to be dressed, he'd already poured out glasses of water for both of them and opened a bottle of red wine to breathe. It was a simple meal, but he'd tried to make it as romantic as possible by actually using a tablecloth that had never seen the light of day before, place settings, and candles.
But then Bethany went and ruined all his good intentions.
"That's great," she said, giving him a kind of lopsided smile. "But that's not what I'm hungry for."
And then she jumped him.
******
Pleasure zinged through Bethany's body as she plastered herself against Mr. Tall-Strong-and-PACKING. She'd noticed the bulge at the front of his pants, but somehow his jeans had managed to diminish the reality - and the bulge hadn't looked small to begin with. Bethany had a very fleeting moment of worry, considering that she'd never done this before, but she figured what the hell - vaginas stretch, right? She might have been a virgin when she and her brothers had been taken, but at eighteen years old she'd had plenty of theoretical knowledge between sex-ed, her friends, movies, and books.
She moaned against his lips as she slid her tongue into his shocked mouth, feeling his hands automatically grasping at her ass to keep her from sliding down his front. Her breasts were mashed against his chest, her pussy was pressed against his dick through his pants, and it felt like she'd died and gone to heaven. With his strong hands gripping her ass and holding her hips, she was practically rubbing herself all over his body.