by Dana Archer
Knowing better than to ignore the call, he answered. “Hey, love.”
“What’s wrong?”
Royals bred multiples as the norm and as with humans, twins were close, often sensing the other’s emotions. Normally, he was thankful as his tie to Mira allowed him to keep an eye on her. At the moment, he wished he could turn it off.
“Nothing. I’m fine.”
“Don’t you lie to me, Devin. What’s going on? Do you have a woman with you?”
He closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck. “No.”
Mira made a low, derisive sound.
“I mean, yes. I have a human who can lead us to Molly, but she doesn’t trust us. I was hoping to talk to Megan so she can confirm we’re not abusers or anything.”
“And what’s this human’s name?”
His twin sounded pissed off. She hated being lied to and both he and Kade had deceived her.
He cleared his throat. “Lena.”
“Lena, huh? Well, put the human on. I want to talk to her.”
“Mira, leave it alone.”
“I will not.”
Mira had no right to question him, especially about Lena, but he couldn’t tell Mira that without admitting what had happened. He didn’t want to deal with her concern for his mind or her anger over his treatment of Lena.
“We will discuss this later. Do you understand me? I want to talk to Megan. Put. Her. On.”
After a moment, sounds of laughter filled the room.
“Uncle Devin,” Megan squealed. “You’re missing out on all the fun. I’m giving Uncle Rafe a makeover.”
Devin grinned. “How does he look?”
“Gorgeous, of course. I gave him pigtails and hot pink nails.”
Lena chuckled, and Megan asked, “Who’s that?”
He glanced over his shoulder and winked at Lena.
“Lena. She’s Molly’s human sister and—”
“Does she know where Molly is?”
“Yes. Lena’s protected her, and we’re going to bring Molly home to you.”
Megan squealed again. “Lena’s staying too?”
“Yes.” At least, he hoped she would.
“Is she nice?”
“Yes.” He swept his gaze over Lena. “Pretty too.”
“Then she can come live with me, Molly, and Uncle Josh. Maybe he’ll think she’s pretty too and marry her. I want to have a real family with lots of brothers and sisters.”
Lena’s eyes widened and her plump lips formed a perfect ‘O’. He chuckled at the utter look of shock on her face.
“No. Lena’s not going to move in with Josh.”
“Oh…is she going to come live with you and Mira then?” Megan asked.
He tensed. He hadn’t gotten the chance to discuss anything with Lena. Because of the bite on her shoulder, he had the right to invoke mating law which guaranteed him complete control over Lena, from where she lived to who she could associate with. It even gave him the right to pick her meals for her.
Few males took it to that extreme, but many embraced the protective nature of it, guarding their mate twenty-four/seven. It wasn’t a surprise why shifter males clung to the right. A shifter could only take one mate—whether a breeding partner or a soul-bonded partner—but the antiquated practice didn’t take into account whether or not the female chose to be a mate.
And Lena didn’t pick him. She also didn’t do relationships.
“I’m not discussing my plans with you, kiddo. I’ll see you in a couple of days. Okay?”
“Okay. Hurry up and bring Molly home. I’m going to need her real soon,” Megan said, clicking off.
He put the phone on mute so he didn’t have to deal with his twin and faced Lena. She stood stiffly with her hands linked in front of her stomach.
He slid the phone into his back pocket. “Megan likes to talk.”
“Apparently, and so does Mira.”
“That she does. All the females in my life like to talk.” He rubbed at his neck where he still felt warm. “So, do you believe me? Are you going to tell me how to find Molly?”
The irritated look on her face didn’t bode well for him. He studied her, looking for a clue to her sudden mood change, but before he could figure it out, she exhaled roughly. “I’m not exactly sure where she is.”
“Not sure? Then how do you know they’re safe.”
Lena wrapped her arms around her chest. “I told Gwen not to tell me. After seeing what those other shifters were capable of, I decided caution was best.”
“How are you supposed to know where to meet them?”
“Gwen is supposed to text me.”
He groaned as he remembered the mangled cell. “Your phone’s dead.”
“Not that one. Do you think I’m stupid?” She huffed. “Gwen is texting my work phone. That one is at my house.”
Great. “Okay. Get showered. I’ll make us breakfast to eat on the way, and we’ll get out of here.”
He waited until she was close to him before pulling her stiff body into his arms. Instead of relaxing into his embrace as she’d done earlier, she tensed more. He didn’t like her body language.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” The single word landed between them with the force of a sledgehammer.
Living with Mira had warned him of the dangers of that particular response. Nothing often meant something big and if you didn’t figure it out, you were in trouble.
“I’m going to protect you and your sisters.”
“Okay.”
And that was another word that signaled trouble.
“I meant what I said earlier. You and I aren’t done. I want you.”
Her eyes narrowed, her only response. She pushed away from him. The bathroom door slammed in his face. He stared at it wondering what he’d done to put that angry look on her face and what it would take to turn it into lust.
Chapter 9
Gwen stood in front of Molly, grateful her little sister couldn’t see the expression on her face. It probably showed a mix of desire, awe, and wariness. The sight of the raven-haired man striding across the dock, left her mind riddled with a slew of inappropriate thoughts, all involving him worshiping Gwen and taking her to heights she’d never known. She couldn’t help it. The man was a walking sex god.
He had a body to drool for—tall, built, and deliciously tan—but it was the outfit he wore that sparked the naughty fantasies playing in her head. A white T-shirt with a black widow spider gracing the front of it clung to his chest, showcasing the muscles packed on to his frame. While most men would’ve added a well-fitting pair of jeans to draw a woman’s gaze to his backside, he’d chosen a kilt. A black kilt with a silver chain as a belt, to be exact. Black socks and boots completed the outfit that she was sure had fried a few of her brain cells.
Molly had scented him, recognizing him as a shifter, the moment he’d gotten out of his car. A Royal. That was what she’d called him. Gwen had never heard the term before, but she knew what she’d call him.
Trouble with a capital T.
She swept her gaze over him. He might be a shifter, but he was striking, the type of man that dominated any room he was in yet didn’t care if all eyes were on him.
She knew another man like that—Vader. They looked similar too, with the harsh cut to their cheekbones.
Although she didn’t want the guy in the kilt to find them, part of her wished he’d look at her. She’d bet money a single glance from him would send her up in flames.
She groaned inwardly. Wrong time, wrong place, and wrong man for those thoughts. She blew out a rough breath. The man stopped mid-step. Slowly, he turned his head in a predatory survey of the area. Gwen dropped to her knees, pulling Molly with her, so the side of the boat they’d been hiding on blocked them from view.
Her heart raced. Sweat dampened her palms. She wiped them on her legs and tried to ignore the flush that left her body sensitized and on fire. Deep breaths cooled the burn but not the confusion.
Another shifter, another case of instant lust. She had to have some masochistic tendencies. It was the only explanation for her crazy reaction to men she couldn’t have.
She pressed a finger to her lips, urging Molly to stay quiet. There was no need for the warning. Her adopted sister hadn’t said anything to her since before those other shifters showed up at their parent’s house.
Molly smoothed out the picture she’d been drawing. Under the word ‘Royal’, she wrote something and handed the sheet to Gwen.
Gwen took the paper from Molly’s hand and read it.
Run, Gwen, run. Don’t let him catch you.
Gwen glanced from the words written in perfect cursive to her sister’s face. Five years old but sometimes Molly acted so much older. In the time Molly had lived with them, they’d tried to give her the childhood she’d missed out on. Although hesitant at first, as if she hadn’t known how to act, she’d slipped into many of the behaviors expected of a preschooler, but there were times when Gwen couldn’t help wondering if Molly had only been acting.
Her history was sketchy. Her adoptive parents were murdered nearly a year ago, and Molly’s kidnappers had sent her to an illegal experimental center that exploited shifters.
Shifter Affairs had raided the place six months prior and retrieved her, but Molly’s unresponsive state had left the counselors wary. They’d recommended she be placed in a shifter-run center for evaluation, a death sentence for many.
Lena had taken the little girl home with her for the night, and the next day Molly had shown up with a blue crayon, a coloring book, and a smile on her face. Gwen didn’t know how Lena did it, but she’d likely saved Molly’s life.
Shifter Affairs had allowed Molly to live with them on one condition—if Molly regressed, she’d be admitted to the holding center immediately. The government couldn’t take the chance the general shifter population would learn about Molly’s unexplainable…peculiarities. Or at least, that was the reasoning for their harsh order.
As much as Gwen hated to admit it, the picture in her hands of three, highly detailed wolf pups—one black, one gray, and one white—lying by a fire shouldn’t have come from a child who hadn’t known how to write when she was brought to their home a few months ago.
Gwen wished she would’ve cornered Vader to find out what had been done to Molly, but Gwen could never form coherent sentences around the man. His scent fried her brain and left her in a state of arousal.
And shame.
She shoved away the thoughts of Lena’s ex-boyfriend, the one who still tried to rekindle his relationship with Lena whenever he got the chance, and forced a smile for Molly.
Gwen scribbled her reply.
As far and as fast as I can.
Molly inclined her head slightly as if pleased with Gwen’s answer, then walked down the steps leading to the rooms below the deck.
Gwen peeked over the side and easily picked the shifter’s broad back out of the throng of people milling around the waterfront.
She pressed a hand against the ache in her chest and whispered, “As far and as fast as I can.”
Chapter 10
Devin finally understood the expression ‘if looks could kill’. He’d only been locked in the car with Lena for five minutes, and the tension was too much to ignore. She stared out the window with a scowl on her face and fire in her eyes. Every so often she’d work her jaw as she ground her teeth, and her nostrils would flare.
Yep, she was angry. But about what?
“What’s wrong, Lena?”
She smiled—well, bared her teeth. “Nothing.”
That word again.
He pulled into the parking lot of a defunct store and turned off the car. “Don’t give me that. You’re angry. Tell me why.”
She blew out an exaggerated breath, stirring tendrils of her hair. “Oh, where to start.” She paused as she tapped one slender finger against her chin. “Maybe it has something to do with learning that a shifter plans to move me into his house without my permission. Or now, let’s see…”
More of that finger tapping had him gripping the steering wheel as his cats paced, upset by her mood.
“Maybe I don’t like being played!”
He stared at her for a moment, then frowned. “How did I play you?”
“You fed me those lines about us having a connection.”
“We do have a connection.”
“Lust is not a connection.”
He leaned over her and pressed his parted lips to hers but didn’t kiss her. He shared air with her, an intimate show of affection only the closest of lovers engaged in. Desire built, but it wasn’t the only emotion settling over him. The rightness only his mate could offer him gripped him too.
“It is more. Can’t you feel it?”
Brows turned down and confusion in her eyes, she turned her head. “Stop. I don’t want to hear any more lines.”
“Fine, don’t listen. Feel.”
He kissed her.
Lena resisted for only a moment before she twined her tongue with his, welcoming the raw kiss with abandon. He’d always considered kissing a waste of time when there were other things he could be doing to a woman. Lena, though? He couldn’t get enough of her. She tasted of sin and candy, her flavor bordering on ambrosia, and one he feared he’d already become addicted to.
With one hand holding her head, he delved deeper. He needed to be a part of her life, not just hover in the shadows. He wanted her to call him mate. He refused to lose the one female who’d succeeded in picking up the pieces of his shattered mind and building them up around her.
He pulled back and stared into her soft brown eyes. Peace settled over him. His breaths slowed. A different kind of hunger rose, one that made him want to worship Lena, his gift, forever.
He brushed his thumb over her lower lip. “Let me love you.”
She turned her head. “Back off. I do not sleep with men who are already involved with someone else.”
Her rebuttal didn’t make sense to his foggy brain. He picked apart each word and considered its meaning before finally stringing them back together. Then it clicked, but he couldn’t understand why she’d accuse him of cheating. He’d have to be in a relationship before he could sneak around.
“I’m not involved with anyone.”
“Then who’s Mira?”
He laughed and sat back, relieved he could put her mind at ease. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through the photo album until he found the picture he wanted. He handed the cell to her. “That’s Mira.”
Lena’s brows scrunched. She glanced from the photo to him. “Mira’s your twin?”
“Yeah, she’s really pretty too. Don’t you think?”
With the phone in hand, Lena studied the picture intently. “She’s beautiful.”
She scrolled through a few more photos of them at Rafe’s mating celebration. “Your friends are all very tall.”
He shrugged. “Shifters generally are.”
She paused on a picture of him with the wolf sisters, Anne and Jill. They’d become his lovers over the past month, and their shared intimacy was obvious from the photo. Anne had her hands in his hair while she kissed him. Jill’s were down his pants.
He’d forgotten Kade had taken the photo. They’d both enjoyed the wolves that night. He hadn’t deleted the photo because it had reminded him of an extremely enjoyable encounter. No longer. Guilt landed hard in his gut. He shouldn’t feel bad for what he’d done. He’d just met Lena. But, yeah, he felt dirty.
Cheap.
Lena handed the phone back without saying another word. He wasn’t sure what to make of her dismissal. Although he’d scented her anger, she’d smelled agitated since Mira’s phone call earlier.
He focused on Lena’s profile. No expression to judge her mood, but a tic had developed along her jaw. He rubbed his.
“Anne and Jill are just friends.”
She folded her arms. “Okay.”
The word slashed him. He straightened in hi
s seat.
“They don’t mean anything to me.” He grimaced at how cold that sounded. “I mean, they’re my friends. Well, technically they’re my lovers, but the sex doesn’t mean anything.” And yeah, that made him sound like a jerk. “I mean…”
Lena tilted her head and peered at him from under spiky lashes. “You don’t owe me an explanation. I don’t care who you sleep with.”
And why did that sound like a blow-off? “Anne and Jill are wolf shifters who like to have a little fun. They—”
“Seriously, I don’t care. There’s nothing wrong with having a few friends with benefits.” She looked out the side window. “Can we just go? We’re wasting time.”
While he didn’t want to drop the conversation when he didn’t think Lena understood him, she was right. Finding Molly and Gwen had to be their main priority. After that…well, he’d make sure she understood his intentions because his decision was made.
He wasn’t giving up on them. That meant more than just Lena finding something about him to love. He would prove he was worthy of her.
Only problem—he wasn’t.
Wasn’t going to stop him. He’d find a way to be the male she needed. Lena wasn’t going to leave him.
Chapter 11
Jealousy was an emotion Lena had never felt before—even when she’d been engaged. Still, she knew that was what made her stomach churn. Wasn’t that ironic? She was jealous over a shifter—not a man—who’d nearly killed her and refused to allow her to leave him.
Crazy or not, she hated thinking of Devin with another woman, let alone two.
What was it about him that sparked the uncharacteristic reaction?
She stole another glance at Devin as he drove. He’d dyed his hair black and wore dark brown contacts. He’d said they were specially made for those individuals who needed a little extra camouflage. The getup did make him look human, only it accomplished that by hiding his fantasy-worthy traits.
Maybe if she hadn’t seen his true form, she wouldn’t be as bothered by the contacts or his plain hair. The man was deliciously hot with or without the ugly disguise. It was only that with the alterations he’d made, he looked…wrong. She didn’t know how else to put it.