The Beta's Heart (Wilde Creek Book 8)

by R. E. Butler

“Fairy roses?” he asked as he stopped next to the blooms.

  “Yeah. I don’t know where the name came from, but they’re one of my favorites.”

  A pixie made a little squeaking noise from high above the tree and Kismet looked up until she spotted the sparkling little creature.

  “Hello there,” she said.

  “Who are you talking to?” Ren asked.

  She pointed to the pixie. The little creature was no bigger than Kismet’s hand and had a blue sheen to her skin and hair. “That’s a pixie.”

  He squinted and then said, “Oh. Hi.”

  The pixie made another squeaking noise and flew off. Kismet laughed. “I think you frightened her. She knows you’re not fae, but she wasn’t sure what type of creature you are.”

  “Does she live here?”

  “Pixies live in groups in the woods, so she has a home somewhere but probably stopped here for some nectar from the honeysuckle,” she said, pointing to the blossoms. “They’re like bees and move around from flower to flower.”

  “Huh.”

  She elbowed him in the side. “Now you can say you’ve seen a pixie. Not a lot of people from your realm can say that.”

  “I’m not sure anyone would believe me, honestly,” he said.

  “What? You don’t think your friends would believe that you saw a tiny winged creature staring at us from the trees?” She pshawed and he laughed.

  They left her yard and walked down the road toward town. The market was bustling, with fae buying and selling their wares from wooden booths. Beyond the market was the military training compound, where her father worked.

  She and Ren walked up to the compound. The ten-foot walls that surrounded the compound were made of smooth, gray stone with a set of wrought-iron gates. They were open, allowing anyone to come and go as they pleased. They walked through the gates and she pointed to a square building off to the right.

  “The unmated males in the military live in the barracks. When a military male finds his mate, he’ll be given a small home outside of the compound for as long as he’s in the military.”

  “Your father is still in the service, though, and his house is hardly small,” Ren said.

  “Well, he’s high ranked, so he’s allowed to live where he wants.”

  A training area sat in the center of the compound, a large square of dirt and sand where males whacked at each other with wooden swords. Around the perimeter, the trainers watched the males and shouted out corrections. She and Ren stopped and watched the training. Wooden swords thudded onto shields as the soldiers shouted playful banter at each other.

  “Is military service mandatory?”

  “Yes. At sixteen, males enter what we call a ‘pre-service,’ where they spend two years learning how to control their power and wings. They’re tested at age eighteen, and those with special skills or more power than usual are fast tracked into officer training and the others join the ranks of what you’d call the infantry, or the general army.”

  “What would be special skills?”

  “Some fae have more than one power base. Like my father can control fire, but he can also work with plants, which is where I get my plant power from. His mother was a whiz with plants, and his father was a fae of legend because of his control over fire. Although not usual, my father inherited both powers, which put him on the path to leadership in the military.”

  “See, I think our young will be fae and shifter. Because his parents are both awesome.”

  She smiled up at him. “So sure we’ll have a boy?”

  “Either way, our young will be very loved.”

  She couldn’t agree more.

  A soldier lifted his sword high and slashed downward toward his opponent, who stumbled as he tried to spin out of the way of the wooden implement. The sword hit the top of his wing and the male shouted as he dropped to his knees. There was a visible bruise on the wing, dark red and spreading.

  “Damn,” she said, watching as the trainers hurried to the injured male.

  “What?” Ren asked.

  “Injury to the wings is pretty serious. When a wing is injured, the magic inside of them becomes toxic to the fae. Depending on the severity of the injury, and how quickly it can be tended to, something like a broken wing, where the bones are actually cracked, can lead to paralysis of the fae and even loss of the wing.”

  “Sounds serious.”

  “It can be.” She peered toward the male who was hustled off the training ground and toward the infirmary. “It doesn’t look like a break, so they’ll put a poultice on it and cast a healing spell and it will be fine in a little while.”

  “How can you tell?”

  “If it was broken, the wing would look more damaged.”

  “Have you ever hurt your wing?”

  “I fell out of a tree when I was twelve and part of my wing scraped against the rough bark. It hurt like hell but I was able to get help quickly.”

  “Why don’t the soldiers train without their wings if the risk is so great?”

  “The power that they wield is stronger when the wings are out. And it’s better if they train with the wings so they can know how to defend themselves in actual battle.”

  He kissed her temple and gave her a hug. “Promise to be extra careful whenever you have your wings out.”

  “I promise.”

  They found her father in his office. She knocked on the open door and he lifted his head and smiled. Standing, he motioned for them to come in, giving her a hug and kiss on the cheek and shaking Ren’s hand.

  “Welcome,” he said. “Have a seat.”

  “How are things?” she asked as she and Ren sat across from his desk in high-backed chairs.

  “Very well. We have a new batch of recruits, so it’s busier than usual.”

  “Kismet told me about the mandatory military service,” Ren said.

  “I take it military service isn’t mandatory in your realm?”

  “No, and the pack doesn’t have a military per se. We do have training for the young males, so they learn how to control their shift and fight in either form, but it’s not quite as serious as what you have going on out in the compound.”

  “Fae are famous for liking to be prepared for battles, although there hasn’t been an actual war in a decade.”

  “We have some news, Dad,” she said.

  He leaned forward, resting his hands on the desk. “Do tell.”

  She glanced at Ren and smiled. “I’m pregnant.”

  Her father’s brows rose and then he smiled broadly. He rose to his feet and came around the desk with his arms out. She stood and met him in a hug. “Congratulations,” he said. “What wonderful news!”

  “Mom said she could tell because I’m glowing.”

  He pushed her gently to arm’s length. “I’d say she’s right.”

  “She also said it was because we used the oil for our mating night. Did you know that it encouraged pregnancy?”

  He hummed. “I did, but I didn’t think it worked if both parties weren’t fae.”

  “I guess it does,” she said.

  Ren stood and shook her father’s extended hand as he said congratulations a second time.

  “Thanks,” Ren said.

  “Have you decided where you’re going to live?” he asked.

  They all returned to their seats and Kismet took Ren’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “We’re going to live full time in his realm, but I’ll keep the house here and we’ll visit.”

  “I figured as much,” he said. “I’m glad that you’re planning to keep your home here, though. I’ll be sure to keep an eye on it.”

  “Speaking of keeping an eye on things…” she said. “Do you know how to do protection spells?”

  “Are you in danger?” he demanded, his eyes narrowing.

  “No,” she said. She quickly explained about Ren’s ex and how she’d planted a tracking device on his truck without their knowledge.

  “To be fair,” Ren said, “she cou
ld have planted it at any time, anywhere, not necessarily at the house. But Kismet thought she could cast a protection spell around the house as a safeguard.”

  Her father let out a growling sigh. “I understand.” He stood and walked to a bookshelf, sliding his finger along the spines of the books until he stopped on one and pulled it out. He handed the book to Kismet. “The ingredients are fairly simple, and you first enchant them and then speak the incantation as you walk the perimeter of the place you wish to protect.”

  “What will happen after she does that?” Ren asked.

  “Generally, if someone has evil intentions toward the residents of the dwelling, they’ll have difficulty getting past the barrier. It’s not to say they can’t get through it at all, but they’d have to be very determined. I’ve always looked at the spell as a way to be alerted if the safety of a home is compromised. You’ll have time to react if someone does try to broach the boundary.”

  “Cool,” Ren said.

  “You’ll need sparkling salt,” he said. “Do you have any?”

  “Ah, no.”

  “There’s some in the supply room,” he said. “You know where it is.”

  “I’ll be right back,” she said, pecking Ren on the cheek and darting out of the room. Once she got the ingredients for the spell, she and Ren could head back to her home and enjoy the day. She couldn’t wait to share her realm with him.

  Chapter 13

  Ren watched Kismet hurry from the room, and then he turned to face her father.

  “I wanted to speak to you privately while Kismet’s gone.” His nerves suddenly acted up, his wolf wondering if her father did approve of their mating.

  “Of course,” E’lahn said as he turned to face Ren.

  Although Ren hadn’t told Kismet he loved her, he was crazy about her. Because they were truemates, their bond was strong from the beginning, but he was head over heels for his sexy fairy.

  “I love your daughter, E’lahn. I want to ask your permission to marry her.”

  E’lahn said nothing for a long moment and then he smiled broadly. “Of course you have my permission. I couldn’t imagine a better-suited male for my only daughter. Do you have a ring for her yet?”

  Ren shook his head. “I was going to buy one when we get home from our week here.”

  “If you’d like, I can take you to the royal jeweler so you can choose a ring for her. It would be my honor to escort you.”

  “That would be awesome, but how will we get to the jeweler without Kismet knowing what we’re up to? I’d like to surprise her with the proposal.”

  E’lahn hummed in thought. “I’ll contact her friend Keyarielle to ask her to pull Kismet away for a bit this afternoon. I’m certain she’ll be willing to help.”

  He moved to the desk and picked up his phone, as Ren turned his attention to the wall of books. A lot of the spines had a strange language written on them.

  “Excellent, thank you,” E’lahn said as he ended the call. Ren turned to face him. “She’ll get Kismet out of the house this afternoon, and I’ll come pick you up at two. We’ll portal to the jeweler.”

  “Thank you for this,” Ren said.

  “It’s my pleasure to help.”

  “Do you think they’ll mind that this is the last jar of sparkling salt in the compound?” Kismet asked as she walked back into the room. The jar contained pink salt, sparkling as if someone had mixed it with glitter.

  “I’ll have one of the quarter masters order more,” E’lahn said.

  Kismet’s phone buzzed and she handed the book and jar to Ren and answered her phone. “Hi, Key. Yes, we’re here for a week. What? We just got here. Can it wait until tomorrow? Okay, okay. I’ll see you at two. And you owe me.”

  Ren glanced at a smiling E’lahn. Ren said, “What’s up, sweetheart?”

  “Key asked if I’d help her put together a gift for her mother’s birthday. It apparently has to be done today.”

  “I’m sure I can find something to amuse myself with while you’re busy,” Ren said.

  “You can come with me.”

  He shook his head. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Oh, okay. I shouldn’t be long anyway. But we can go get lunch first and then spend time in the house.”

  “Sounds good,” Ren said. He silently breathed a sigh of relief. His mate was strong-willed and she could have put her friend off for another time. He was glad she had a good heart and was willing to help.

  “We’re going to eat in the market,” Kismet said. “Do you want to join us, Dad?”

  “I have some work to finish up, so thank you but no,” he said. “You can come over for dinner tonight.”

  “Okay. Is six good?”

  “Perfect. See you soon,” E’lahn said.

  They said goodbye and headed out of the building. “This is pretty neat-looking salt,” he said, lifting the jar to watch it sparkle in the sunlight.

  “It’s mined from underneath a magical lake on the far side of the realm. It’s used in protection spells the way that a witch would use regular salt in protection spells. But sparkling salt is more magical and therefore more powerful.”

  They picked up lunch from a food stall in the market and carried it back to her home, where they sat on a blanket under a willow tree with purple leaves and ate braised pork sandwiches and something that resembled french fries but tasted like carrots. He settled on his back and stared up at the tree, the purple leaves rustling in the breeze.

  Kismet straddled his waist and smiled at him, lifting her hands. The branches of the tree grew swiftly until they touched the ground, creating a dense curtain around them.

  She leaned forward and kissed him. “You’re amazing,” he said, cupping her face.

  Their lips met and parted, their tongues sliding together. His wolf practically purred at the scent of her arousal that deepened as their tongues touched. He loved kissing her and touching her. He thought he’d never get enough of the way she felt in his arms.

  She broke the kiss with a groan and sucked on his bottom lip for a moment before she fisted his shirt and pulled it up his body.

  “You’re mine,” she said, her voice all sultry vixen, her eyes blazing with arousal.

  “Forever,” he promised.

  She kissed down his chest, nipping and licking a path of fire on his skin. She reached the waistband of his jeans and unfastened them, tugging them down his hips until his cock was free. She tilted her head and licked the base of his cock, smiling at him. His cock twitched at the silky feel of her tongue and the sexy gleam in her eyes.

  She kissed up his cock, her tongue tracing aimless patterns on his flesh, until she reached the head. She straightened her arms and took him into her mouth, her tongue rubbing along the underside of his length. Her hair fell forward, blocking his view, and he grasped it in one hand so he could watch her. She bobbed on him, slowly up and down, the wet heat of her mouth driving him insane.

  “You’re so fucking sexy,” he said, growling the words.

  She swiped her tongue around the head and then pushed down on his length, until he bumped the back of her throat and his world went white-hot for a moment at the sheer pleasure that arced through him.

  “Fuck,” he groaned, drawling out the word.

  She sucked him deeply, her cheeks hollowing with the motion, and then she rose up onto her knees as she straddled his legs. She lifted her dress, pulling it over her head and dropping it to the ground. She pulled her panties to the side to expose her pussy, and he grasped the outside of her thighs as she positioned herself over him, rubbing his cock along her soaked folds before she slowly lowered herself onto him.

  He could have come on the spot. She felt so good. So hot. So perfect.

  He gritted his teeth and focused on her, as she dropped her head back and exhaled when their bodies touched. He was fully enveloped by her, fisted tightly by her heat. She lifted her head and smiled at him, tugging on the cups of her bra until her breasts were freed. Planting her hands on eith
er side of his head, she lifted and lowered herself on his cock with a swift rhythm. He guided her motions with his hands and lifted his head to nip at her chin and neck, finding her nipples and sucking on them in turn. She writhed on top of him with a moan, and he pushed one of his hands to her clit, rubbing her tight nub as she bounced on his cock.

  Her back arched and she cried out, her pussy locking down on him as she moved faster, her motions wild as she prolonged her orgasm until he followed her into bliss, his wolf breaking out into a happy howl that reverberated in the air. She slumped over him and shivered, and he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

  “That was wonderful,” she whispered.

  “It always is,” he promised. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Kismet.”

  “For me, too.”

  * * *

  After they’d rested, her splayed over top of him like a warm blanket, they dressed and she set the tree back to normal. He was always amazed at her powers. Maybe because his only power was taking an animal form, and she could create things with hers.

  “I’ll be back in an hour, tops,” Kismet said. “I really should just tell Key this can wait.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he said, glancing at the clock. It was nearly two. “It’s not as if I didn’t go to work last week and you were in our house by yourself.”

  “I know, but it’s our first day here. I wanted to spend it together.”

  “We have been and we still will. Now go before she calls, wondering where you are.”

  Kismet smiled and kissed him. “Okay, okay. Don’t miss me too much.”

  “I’ll be pining away for you, I promise,” he said with a laugh.

  She opened a portal and he could see a small home beyond, with a young female standing on the porch. Kismet blew Ren a kiss as the portal closed and he sighed in relief. A minute later, her father opened a portal. “I was wondering if she would actually leave.”

  “Me, too,” Ren said.

  “Key promised to keep her there until I text to say we’re done.”

  “Good. Thanks for this.”

  “My pleasure.”