by Becca Van
“See that small garden shed over there?”
“Yes.”
“Well, when we were just kids, my brothers and I were right into that cartoon show with the ninja turtles.” Gabe smiled down at her. “Lucien always knew he would be Alpha one day and after watching that show must have decided he was invincible. Anyway he decided that he was an all-powerful ninja Alpha and decided to test his theory. He and Rafe climbed up onto the top of that shed and started egging each other to jump off.”
“Oh my God.” Tessa gasped and covered her mouth but Gabe could see the twinkle in her eyes. He turned to face her again, reached up, and took her free hand into his and nearly groaned with desire when he saw the way her beautiful lips were curved up. “Did he jump?”
Gabe nodded. “I think he was going to back out though. He looked like his legs were shaking and his face was as pale as a sheet. But he never could refuse a challenge and when Rafe called him a chicken, Lucien backed up a couple of steps and then ran off the edge of the roof with an almighty yell. And do you know what?”
“What?”
Gabe started chuckling. “I think he would have been fine and landed on his feet, except for the fact that Rafe decided to give him a push just as he reached the edge of the roof. Lucien went hurtling down real fast, at least that was what it looked like to me, but I was only real little at the time. If it wasn’t for my dad being a werewolf and having quick reflexes he probably would have ended up breaking his arm, but my dad caught him and then told Rafe to jump down into his arms, too.
“They both ended up getting a smack on the ass and sent to their room for the rest of the day. Neither of them was allowed out until they explained to our parents why what they had done was so dangerous.”
Tessa giggled. “I can’t imagine Lucien and Rafe doing anything like that, especially Lucien. He seems so serious all the time.”
Gabe nodded and smiled. “He was only eight when he tried to be a ninja wolf. He hadn’t even gone through his first shift yet. He has a lot of responsibilities now that he’s Alpha. Maybe you and I should lighten things up around here.”
“We’ll see,” Tessa said. “Tell me more.”
Gabe tried to think of something else to make her laugh and remembered the story he’d caught his mom and dad laughing over.
“As kids we really liked hot chocolate.”
“What child wouldn’t?” Tessa said.
“Lucien decided to make him and Rafe some hot chocolate since all the adults were busy and couldn’t wait for someone to help him. I was only a baby, but I heard the parents reminiscing one night. Anyway, Lucien was all of five years old and he managed to climb up the shelves in the pantry and get the drinking chocolate and sugar down. He then mixed the ingredients in a bowl with a small amount of water and then he and Rafe ate the chocolate paste they’d made.
“Apparently they had chocolate from the top of their heads to the tip of their toes and everywhere in between, but they also had sugar and chocolate powder all over the bench and the floor.
“My mom walked in and asked who was going to clean up the mess they’d made. There was an advertisement being shown on the TV a lot about then showing a kid making a mess and blaming their pet so, quick as a wink, Lucien turned around and said ‘the cat.’ My mom was having a hard time not laughing and couldn’t even speak. She turned right around and went outside where she laughed so hard she said she nearly peed her pants.”
Tessa burst out laughing. Gabe smiled at the light feminine sound and vowed to make her laugh more often. Her whole face lit up and her eyes sparkled. When she bent over to hold her stomach and tears ran down her face he knew he’d never seen a more beautiful sight. She was absolutely stunning and hopefully she would stay and be his and his brothers’ mate for the rest of their lives. Gabe knew his life wouldn’t be worth living if he didn’t have his mate by his side. He loved her so much and wanted to tell her, but he hesitated. He didn’t want Tessa to feel pressured and just hoped that by the time the month was done she felt the same way about them.
She finally stopped laughing, straightened up, and wiped the tears from her face, but the smile and sparkle stayed. She reached out and took his hand and they started walking again.
He guided her through the vegetable garden and then down a path amongst the trees. There were quite a few cabins nestled within the trees at the back of the house approximately one hundred meters from the garden shed.
Tessa looked up at Gabe. “Do you guys let these cabins out for holidays or do people live in them?”
“The cabins belong to the pack, honey. Nearly every one of them is occupied by pack members. We all live close together, not in the same house but in close proximity. That’s what a pack does. We live together, some of us work together, and we play together.”
“What exactly do you mean by play?” Tessa pulled her hand from his, crossed her arms over her chest, arched her brow and then frowned at him.
“Now don’t go getting all uptight, honey. We had a life before we met you. We are healthy sexual males and we’ve not been celibate. We have fucked women from our pack and humans as well, but it didn’t mean anything, Tessa. If we had an urge for release we found a biddable woman, but we always made sure to tell the woman we only wanted sex and nothing more, before anything happened. You are our mate and know I speak for Lucien and Rafe as well. After having you we don’t want another woman. You are the only woman we will ever want to make love with. It’s not just sex with you, honey.”
Tess stood on tip toe and placed a chaste kiss on the point of his chin. “Okay. I can accept you had a life before me. Thank you for being honest with me.”
Gabe chuckled because he knew she had been aiming for his mouth but was too short to reach it. Placing his hands at her waist he bent down and gave her a kiss, hoping that all the love he felt for her showed in his kiss. When her breath hitched in her throat he knew she had felt what he was trying to portray. Gabe heard the side door opening and closing and then smelled Brett, one of the Sigmas from the pack.
“Oh, isn’t that sweet. One of the Alphas has a little human to play with.”
As soon as Gabe heard the tone of Brett’s voice he broke the kiss and turned to face him. He didn’t like the sneering look he was directing at Tessa and gently placed a hand on her hip and pushed her behind him. Taking a step forward he grabbed Brett by the neck of his shirt and got right into his face. “You will not fucking talk about my mate that way,” he snarled. “You should have more respect for your queen.”
When Brett dropped his head in submissiveness Gabe let him go. “Sorry, Gabe. I did not realize she was your mate. Otherwise I would not have spoken out of turn. Forgive me, my queen?”
Gabe pulled Tess to his side, introducing his Sigma. “This ignorant bastard is Brett. Kneel to your queen, Brett, and prove she has your respect. Her name is Tessa.”
“Please, Queen Tessa, forgive me? I didn’t realize my Alphas had taken a mate, my humblest apologies.”
Tessa cleared her throat and looked at Gabe. When he gave her a nod she looked back at Brett. “No problem, Brett.” Tessa extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You too, Queen Tessa,” Brett replied in a cool voice.
Chapter Eight
“Oh, please, just call me, Tessa. I don’t need the title of queen.”
“As you wish, Tessa, Beta.” Brett bowed his head again and then walked away.
“Well, that was interesting,” Tess stated.
“I don’t trust him, Tessa. I don’t want you anywhere near him unless you have someone else with you. He’s up to something but I can’t figure it out what it is. But I will eventually.” Gabe took her hand in his again and they walked amongst the trees and cabins, stopping every now and then for Gabe to introduce her to more pack members.
“I’ll never remember everyone’s names, Gabe. I’ve forgotten most of them already.”
“Don’t sweat it, honey. It’s just going to take some tim
e. You’ll get used to them and before you know it you will know everyone. Come on, let’s go back to the house and get some lunch. I’m starving.”
Back in the kitchen Gabe introduced Tessa to more people. “Tessa, you haven’t met Alice yet. Alice is our cook and housekeeper. Alice, this is our mate, Tessa.”
Tessa held and shook hands with the woman. “Nice to meet you, Alice.”
“Nice to meet you, too, my Queen.” Alice bowed her head.
“Please, don’t bow to me, Alice, and my name is Tessa, not ‘my queen.’ As far as I’m concerned you should be demanding respect from me, not the other way around. You are my elder.”
“Ooh, I like this one, Gabe.” Alice took Tessa’s face between her hands and kissed her cheek. “If you ever want anything, anything at all, you just ask me, honey. Now I expect you will be wanting some lunch, so sit yourselves down while I prepare it for you.”
“Do you want some help, Alice?” Tessa asked.
“My but you’re lovely. No thank you, child. I already have everything prepared. I’ll be serving in just a moment.”
Tess and Gabe sat at the massive table, talking companionably until more pack members started filing into the dining room. One of the women to take a seat at the table was Stephanie. She had two other women with her and as the bitch sat down she glared at Tessa.
Tessa’s heart stuttered in her chest and the urge to tell Gabe what had happened nearly overwhelmed her, but she remembered what she’d said about the other werewolves not believing a human. She was in a quandary and had no idea what to do, but she didn’t want to let Stephanie see how upset she was. So she tried to keep her face an expressionless mask.
“Honey, I’d like to introduce you to Stephanie, Megan, and Cherry. This is our mate Tessa.”
The two women to Stephanie’s left bowed their heads and murmured polite greetings. Stephanie just glared at Tessa before turning her back on her and went back to conversing with her friends.
“’She doesn’t like me,” Tess whispered. And then nearly moaned when she realized what she’d said. She hadn’t meant to say anything but the words had popped out.
“Don’t worry about Stephanie, honey. I think she’s just jealous. Don’t let her get to you.”
More people entered the dining room until the table was filled to capacity. Lucien entered the room with Rafe behind him and they sat across from her and Gabe. As Alice served the food, conversations flowed around the room, creating quite a din of chatter. Lucien introduced Tessa to the pack members she didn’t know yet and they all bowed their heads in respect.
Tessa squirmed in her chair, not used to people treating her with deference. She had met Darren Smythe and being in a vulnerable state, grieving for her lost parents, she had latched onto him as he wined and dined her. Believing she was in love with him, she’d told him so after only six months. When he’d asked her to marry him five months later, she had accepted. Thinking back now, Tessa realized that she had been lonely. Being an only child of only children parents with no surviving grandparents, she had fallen for Darren’s false suave sophistication. Tess believed he was really only after the small inheritance her deceased mother had left her and did not really care for her at all.
As soon as they were engaged, he had wanted to move into her house. Tessa, thinking it was too soon, had not relented on that. They had started a physical relationship but only after becoming engaged. She’d been a virgin and had not liked the first time they had made love. It had hurt too much. Darren had told her that the physical aspect of their relationship would be better the second time round, but that had been a total lie. It had been worse, a lot worse. Darren had begun to call her frigid because she wasn’t gaining any pleasure from the act, but he had only cared about his own needs. Now that she had experienced what lovemaking was supposed to be like she knew Darren was the one lacking and was glad that she had finally escaped him. With a sigh she tried to push those horrible thoughts aside.
* * * *
Rafe noticed Tessa’s glazed eyes and the frown on her face. “Tessa, what’s wrong?” Not getting a response, he looked at Gabe worriedly.
“Tess, are you okay?” Gabe asked in a soft voice. When she still did not respond Lucien took over.
“Tessa.” His voice boomed around the room.
She frowned at Lucien and must have taken exception to his brothers’ tone of voice because she snapped back. “What?”
Shit! Rafe mentally cursed when the noise in the room diminished to nothing until you could have heard a pin drop.
“You will not speak to me that way, Tessa,” Lucien said in a firm voice. “Rafe and Gabe have been trying to get your attention. When you didn’t answer I raised my voice so you would respond. We were worried about you.”
Rafe wanted to stare everyone down when Tess noticed them all looking at her and her cheeks turned pink, but sighed with relief when she responded to Lucien.
“Sorry, I was miles away. Please forgive me, Alpha,” she said through gritted teeth and looked down at the table, lowering her head in submission.
“Apology accepted, my mate.” Lucien smiled wryly. “Care to share your thoughts with us, little bird?”
Clearing her throat before speaking she looked up at Lucien, “Not at the moment, but thank you for asking.”
Rafe nearly burst out laughing as he saw the fire in his mate’s eyes, but was thankful when the noise in the room exploded again as everyone started conversing, realizing the show was over, for now. After Alice placed the food onto the table, the plates were passed around and everyone began eating.
“Are you okay, honey?” Gabe asked quietly. Rafe was glad for his wolf hearing and was able to hear her response.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little overwhelmed.”
Gabe put his arm around her shoulders and rubbed his palm up and down her arm in a soothing manner. Tessa leaned into him for a moment and then sighed as she sat up straight again. She placed food on her plate when it was passed around and Rafe was pleased to see when she began to eat. He’d been worried there for a moment and hadn’t liked the look on Tessa’s face. Hopefully in time she would open up and share everything with them. She was beginning to care for him and his brothers, he could see it in her eyes, and she was already winning members of their pack over. He knew without a doubt that Tessa would fit in well with everyone. She was such a loving, caring person, and he couldn’t help but fall a little more in love with her.
* * * *
Tessa put some of the delicious food on her plate and picked at it. The roast beef, chicken and lamb along with the potatoes and other vegetables were delicious but she didn’t seem to have an appetite at the moment. She took a few mouthfuls when she saw Lucien watching her because she knew he would be on her back if it didn’t look like she was eating.
She noticed Stephanie talking to Gabe with an attempt at a sultry smile on her face. Tessa snorted to herself when Stephanie placed her hand on Gabe’s shoulder and he immediately shrugged it off. Stephanie had been trying to monopolize her mate’s time and attention throughout the whole meal and, finally deciding she’d had enough, she pushed her plate away and rose to her feet.
“Please excuse me. I’m not feeling very well at the moment. I think I will go lay down for a while.” She left the room without a backward glance but she knew her mates watched her until she was out of sight. Goose bumps had risen all over her skin and her nipples had hardened and her pussy was aching.
* * * *
Lucien watched Tessa leave the room through narrowed eyes, trying to figure out what had upset her.
“Any idea what that was about?” Luc asked his brothers using their mental link.
“No idea,” Rafe replied.
“I think she’s jealous of Stephanie,” Gabe answered.
“She has nothing to be jealous about. We weren’t even in a relationship with her when we had sex with her,” Lucien replied with exasperation.
“I know that. You know that and ev
en though I tried to tell Tessa she had nothing to worry about, I don’t think she really listened.”
“You told her we fucked Stephanie? What in the hell did you do that for?” Rafe roared.
“Well, I didn’t actually tell her. We were walking near the cabins and she asked me who lived in them. She eventually got around to asking me if we had fucked any of our female pack members. I couldn’t very well deny it, since it was true, but I told her it was only sex.”
“I’ll go talk to her and see if I can find out what has her so worried.” Lucien hurried from the room.
Lucien found Tessa staring out the bedroom window. She didn’t turn around when he entered, even though she knew he was there by the stiffening of her shoulders. Coming to stand behind her, he breathed in her delicious scent. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her back against him until she was leaning against his chest.
“Why are you so sad, little bird? What has you so upset?”
“I don’t know if I can do this, Luc. I don’t fit in here. You have women adoring you with their eyes, vying to get the attention of all three of you. How can I compete with that? I’m not a werewolf like the rest of you. I’m not strong in the eyes of everyone else. As far as they are concerned I am a weak human.” Tessa turned to face him and his heart nearly broke when he saw her tears.
Lucien gently wiped the tears from her face with his thumbs. “Tessa, don’t you understand, you don’t need to compete with the women of our pack. You will never have to compete with a woman for our attentions. You are our mate, little bird, we can never look at another woman with love or desire in our eyes. You are the one and only woman who exists for us.”
“I just don’t know if I can be what you all need me to be for you. I am not as strong as the other women of the pack. I can’t change and become a wolf like you all do. I’m human, Lucien. How is a weak human female ever going to fit into your lives?” Tessa sobbed.