by Emma Dean
His answering growl as he gripped her hard enough to bruise made every logical and rational thought fly right out of her head. Kenzie had never felt a need like this before. It was ruthless and demanding.
It begged for her to strip off their clothes so she could fuck him right now.
“Kenzie, as charming as this one is I don’t wish to see him deflower you.”
Without warning she dumped Finnick onto the floor, cheeks so red a fire might actually start. “Grandma, you have the worst timing. And you know I’m no virgin so let’s not pretend.”
Edith rolled her eyes. “I’m bored of the other one. Give them the answer they need so they can leave.”
Finnick was laughing so hard he wasn’t even breathing. Kenzie ignored him and how ridiculous he was being and adjusted her shirt before running up the stairs to see what Ash wanted.
“Gram-Gram I think you’re my new favorite person,” she heard Finnick say.
“Get off the floor darling, the maid only comes down here once a week. Kenzie can be so stubborn.”
“I like that about her.”
“As do I, now get off the fucking floor.”
Ash was waiting at the top of the stairs and he had this strange little smile on his face. Then it hit her. He probably heard everything that had happened. And could now smell it. Was that weird?
“When do I get to kiss you?” he asked, looking her up and down like she was a delicious snack.
Her mouth dropped open in shock. That was all he wanted to know? She cleared her throat. “Erm, what is it you wanted to tell me?”
“We’re going to meet with someone Brad has paid off for their silence. But it would probably go better if you were there, another female.” Ash reached out and pulled her towards him slowly.
“Sure,” she said, swallowing hard. “I can go whenever, but not tomorrow. I have a meeting with Selene and Samuel.”
“Yeah that’s fine. We’ll let you know when she agrees to meet with us. And I’m glad you’re still alive.”
Ash bent down and gave her a very chaste kiss on the cheek that was nearly as hot as her kiss with Finnick. What made it so intense was knowing he didn’t give a fuck that she’d just made out with his best friend. He still wanted – wanted her despite her burgeoning relationship with the other one.
Finnick brushed by and they left with those stupid, knowing smiles. She slammed the door behind the two foxes. They liked to fuck with her mind too much.
“I like them,” Gram-Gram said, watching them leave. “They have great musculature.”
“You need a boy toy,” Kenzie said with a sigh, going to find Selene.
“You’re probably right, darling. Would you help me on one of those...what is it called, a tinder?”
As if this day couldn’t get any weirder.
Chapter Thirteen
Kenzie
“So did you kiss him?”
This was a weird conversation to be having with her sister. They didn’t usually talk about boys. Ever. It was a weird unspoken rule. Selene had been engaged since she could walk and there wasn’t really anyone for Kenzie to date so they left the subject alone.
A human would have too many questions. And no male witch would date her – the abomination.
She tugged on the suit jacket Selene had made her wear. “Yes, I kissed him.”
The car they were in was luxury incarnate. Supple leather, ice cold air-conditioning, and a full bar if she wanted. The meeting with Samuel was right smack in the middle of her normal workday, so she’d had to call in sick again.
“Do you like him?” Selene asked, genuinely curious.
Her sister had no ulterior motive. If this was what Kenzie wanted she would support her, but there was also a hint of concern in her voice.
“Does he make you nervous?” Kenzie asked, stretching her legs.
A bodycon dress and a pair of heels were paired with her blazer. The diamonds at her throat and ears were given to her by Selene on her eighteenth birthday. Her hair was in an elegant chignon, hiding the shaved side of her head. And her makeup was perfect. The charms in her ears stayed though she’d just switched them out for the diamond ones.
If Kenzie didn’t think her looks could be a weapon she’d fucking hate every second of this. But she knew what she looked like, she wasn’t blind. Selene had looked stunned when she came up the stairs. That was more than enough of a pat on the back.
“Yes, he makes me very nervous,” Selene told her. “Finnick is barely contained violence.”
“And that’s how I feel about Samuel.”
Selene blushed prettily, but looked out the window instead of at Kenzie. “It’s just a diplomatic meeting, Kenz. I want to know what he wants from us.”
“So you aren’t attracted to him?”
“Are you attracted to your fox?”
The car pulled up to the skyscraper and the driver politely pretended not to listen to what they were saying.
“Very.” Kenzie had never been one to lie to her sister and there was no reason to now. Finnick was red hot sex wrapped up in goofy seduction.
That was part of the problem. She’d kind of agreed to go out on a date with him later that night, but it wasn’t until she’d seen Ash that Kenzie realized it could be a problem with the other two. And they were working together.
Did being mates cancel out that ‘don’t date your coworkers thing?’
The driver opened Selene’s door and then helped her out. Her sister wore a pantsuit that was extremely flattering and feminine on her paired with sky-high designer heels. Her charms were worn differently, but they were still there on a long necklace always tucked underneath her clothes.
“Why do you like him?” Selene asked as they walked up to Samuel’s building. “Do you like the other two? How does that work?”
“Geez, S. Give me a minute to frickin’ answer.” Kenzie gave the security guard her most dazzling smile and tried not to feel so pleased with herself when he openly stared before finally taking her I.D.
Hopefully none of the security would recognize her. Kenzie had no idea how much they’d seen of her, if anything.
Fates, she was nervous someone would figure it out.
Security did Selene’s identification process next and Kenzie tried to figure out how to answer her sister’s questions.
Part of the problem was she had no real answers. Kenzie knew as much about it all as Selene, which wasn’t a whole lot.
Telling her Finnick wasn’t as dangerous as he seemed was a lie. Kenzie didn’t feel like he was dangerous to her. That was very different.
“I like Finnick because he’s not what he seems. He’s much more than the cocky, bad boy he likes to pretend he is,” Kenzie finally said.
They walked together towards the elevator and she contemplated the other two. “Ash…is completely different from him. He’s quiet and intense, but when he does say something it’s always so insightful. Ash is a strange combination of both Hunter and Finnick in terms of personality I think. I don’t know if I like him, but I’m definitely attracted to him.”
The lobby was quiet and she kept her voice soft so it wouldn’t echo in the massive space. Light filtered through the glass and Kenzie stopped in front of the shiny elevators. She pulled down the hem of her dress and sighed. “I’m also attracted to Hunter, even if he does make me the most nervous between the three of them. He’s the one I know the least. The whole thing is weird and confusing and none of us have really talked about it. I have no idea where we stand when it comes to being mates and I’m not ready to know.”
“It’s not weird exactly,” Selene murmured as she pressed the button for the elevator. “But I couldn’t imagine having three mates or what that would be like.”
Kenzie eyed her sister. “You know Samuel doesn’t come alone right? He would be mated to someone with two others. All feline shifters are mated in triads, female in the center of the triangle.”
“I know that,” Selene snapped, stepping into th
e elevator. Kenzie followed her and kept quiet. It must have been something Selene hadn’t been able to stop thinking about for her to sound so annoyed.
When the doors closed she eyed the camera in the corner and tapped the spell on her smartwatch – giving them the privacy they needed to finish the conversation before Samuel and the other shifters could listen in on every word.
“You could take off your charm so he could scent you; find out if you’re mates. Or you could leave it on and date him until one day his mate does come along. Then there’s the smart thing, you could leave him alone and find a nice witch to date, or a hunter for all I care. Maybe even a demon.”
Selene eyed her and then the camera. “It would be easiest to take off the charm and see what happens. The choice will be made for me.”
Kenzie watched her sister pull the charm from under her blazer and tug it off. There was no reason for her to need to hide her scent from Samuel. Selene didn’t go breaking and entering like Kenzie did. The only thing she worried about was if he might be able to tell there was something wrong with her power by scent alone.
She sniffed once, but her sister smelled like she always did. Kenzie wasn’t a shifter. She couldn’t read someone’s emotions or whatever else just from their scent.
Selene handed the charm to her, blushing prettily yet again. This was so strange. Her sister was never openly attracted to anyone.
When she tucked the necklace back under the lace top Kenzie reactivated the cameras and checked the time. They were going to be three minutes late which was annoying.
The doors slid open and they walked out together like they always did when it was just the two of them. Even though Selene was matriarch she never acted like she was better than Kenzie, or worth more. It was probably why they’d managed to stay so close.
“Welcome Matriarch Kavanagh,” a handsome shifter greeted them. “Ms. Kavanagh, Mr. Erikson is waiting for the both of you, please follow me.”
Their heels clicked and clacked on the tile in tandem as they walked through the fancy office. Kenzie tried not to remember what it looked like at night. She tried not to even look too long at anything, wondering if she’d left marks anywhere.
She doubted she had, but some papers had scattered to the floor when she’d fallen. Was there fox fur on the tile? For some reason she doubted it. Where did they get their gear from? That was the real question.
Ironically some of it had been hers. Kenzie couldn’t help but feel a bit flattered. Sketchy mercs thought her tech was good enough to use on missions. That was kind of a big deal in the underground paranormal world.
The secretary knocked on Samuel’s door and all of a sudden Kenzie felt nervous again. She was about to be face to face with the goddamn Alpha of every feline Alpha on the West Coast – one of the most powerful shifters in the United States…who she’d stolen from.
Kenzie doubted the fact that the foxes had stolen from her after she’d gotten the potion would make much of a difference to Samuel, even if it had happened in his building.
Then the door opened and it was too late to matter. Not that she could have run off without looking suspicious. So instead she smiled wide at the Alpha and followed her sister into his office.
“Can you please bring coffee and various sundries for these gorgeous women?” Samuel asked without looking up from his work.
The secretary scurried out and Kenzie narrowed her eyes at the tiger. Selene elbowed her in the ribs, hard. He could give them his full attention since they were there at his invitation.
“Too busy to see us?” Kenzie snapped.
Samuel looked up and his gaze flicked between the two of them. “No, I apologize. This contract can wait. I appreciate…” he trailed off and then his eyes snapped to Selene.
For the first time he could catch her scent and he was instantly aware of the difference.
The Alpha prowled across the room, his massive shoulders making the fitted button down shirt taut as he moved. Kenzie held her breath as he moved like the predator he was, so apparent despite the extremely expensive business-wear.
Would her sister end up mated as well, or did the Alpha have something else in mind?
Then Samuel paused right in front of Selene and held out his hand. “Do you mind? It’s been difficult finding my mate and I may need to resort to a witch’s help if I don’t find her soon.”
Selene nodded and he pulled her forward gently. This was so awkward to watch. Kenzie wanted to turn around and give them privacy, but she also didn’t trust him with her sister so she crossed her arms over her chest and glared while his hand skimmed the back of her neck as he lifted her hair.
Then he leaned down like he was going to kiss her throat, but Samuel didn’t actually touch her. Kenzie had to respect him a little for that. At least he was a polite creep.
“Thank you,” Samuel said. Selene’s entire body tensed as she waited for the answer. “I apologize; it doesn’t seem the Fates have given us the bond.”
Kenzie’s eyes narrowed even farther. Now he was using the Fates to let down her sister? No one knew where the magic from the mate bonds really came from, but invoking the Fates was tacky.
Selene just smiled though like she always did. “I didn’t think we were.”
Oh, Selene. Kenzie glanced at her sister and wished she could help her, but they still had to get through this meeting and figure out what it was that Samuel wanted from them.
Then the big Alpha turned to her. “Do you mind?”
Kenzie backed up, alarmed. “Yes, I fucking mind.”
“Kenzie!”
“Selene! I’m not letting him sniff me!”
This was not going as planned. Not at all.
“This isn’t why we’re here,” she reminded Samuel. “What do you want from us? That way I can say no and we can be on our way.”
She also wanted to give Selene the space she needed to process this and sitting through a meeting wouldn’t allow her to do that.
Then Samuel smirked at her. He actually smirked.
Well fuck.
Then his secretary came in with a tray of coffee and croissants. He must have sensed something in the air because his hands shook as he served them. Samuel walked back to his chair behind his desk, the position of power. It made his secretary even more nervous, but not one drop of coffee spilled. The nameless shifter set the cups down on the table between the two guest chairs and then skedaddled out of there so fast he blurred.
When the door clicked closed Samuel smiled at her, all white teeth against his perfect tan. “I don’t think you’re going to say no,” he said. He indicated they should sit in the two chairs before him, the ones Kenzie had jumped over while running away from Ash a few nights ago.
“And why is that?” Selene asked stiffly. They both sat though there was something about Samuel’s presence that made it hard to refuse.
“Because I know you stole from me, Mackenzie.”
Chapter Fourteen
Kenzie
How had he found out she’d stolen the stupid potion? There was nothing she’d left behind, she was sure of it.
Kenzie’s heart raced and she suddenly felt cold. This was very, very bad.
But on the outside she kept her face calm and smiled at the Alpha. “There’s no way I could have stolen from you. Are you missing something?”
Samuel chuckled. “You’re very good, I’ll give you that. We wouldn’t have even known you were here if it wasn’t for the mercenaries tripping the wire which prompted a bit of digging.”
Fucking hell. Those damn bastards were going to hear it from her later.
“I didn’t even know it was you until I heard a triad of foxes was recently mated to a fiery redhead. It’s rare enough that it gets around through certain channels. Tell me, have they claimed you yet? Do you think that their rules are strange enough I could be your mate as well?”
It was difficult not to rip his face off with her bare hands. “Doubtful. You’re creepy.”
�
��The foxes are shifters as well.”
Kenzie actually laughed at that. “Oh, it has nothing to do with the fact that you’re a shifter. You’re just creepy.”
Selene sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation.
The Alpha laughed though. “I don’t believe we are either as that would upset the balance of three the universe seems to favor. But I was curious how far you’d let me play the game. Though I am truly disappointed you’re not my mate, Matriarch Kavanagh. I was hoping you were.”
Her sister gave him a polite smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Not being his mate had really messed with her. “We don’t have your potion.”
“Goddammit, S.” Kenzie crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Samuel. The stupid shifter hadn’t said anything about what was stolen, and now Selene had just confirmed they knew what had been taken.
Selene’s face turned white as she realized her mistake. It made the bruising under her eyes even more apparent. The makeup wasn’t helping anymore.
“I assumed you don’t have it because I haven’t been struck down by magic. The foxes took it from you then, their mate? That’s quite funny.” He drummed his fingers on the desk as he considered it, a stupid smirk at the corners of his mouth.
“They didn’t know I was their mate when they took it,” Kenzie snarled, jumping to her feet.
“Already protective of them, are we? Well, it seems you two have gotten the shit end of the stick here. You’re going to have to pay for taking that potion, with nothing to show for it.” The way he looked at her, and Selene, it was cold and calculating. Their situation didn’t matter to him, only his own.
“I thought you cared about my sister,” Kenzie spat at him.
At that Samuel’s face softened slightly. “I do, but I don’t have the recipe for the potion, and she’s dealt with having a powerless witch in the family for a long time. I’m sure she can wait a little longer.”
Kenzie blinked and she felt her anger dissipate. He didn’t know. He didn’t know why she’d stolen the potion.