“Stop making me think this will last. It was what it was.” She kissed his hand before letting go of it and slipping out from under his hold. “Thank you for all of this. It was beautiful. All of it.”
He sighed. “I take it that you want me to pull my magik back now?”
“That would probably be best.”
“Best for who, Deryn?” The last thing he wanted to do on his wedding day was fight with his wife. Of course, the last thing he thought he’d still have ahead of him was the tricky part about telling Deryn they were now officially mated. “I’m sorry.”
He sat up and took in the sight of Deryn’s glorious body. She was breathtaking. “You’re beautiful.”
Snorting, Deryn glanced over her shoulder. The action left her in a pose that screamed ‘come and get me.’ It took everything in him to keep from doing just that. His gaze fell to the tribal looking tattoo on her lower back. It extended almost the entire way across her and was about two inches high. He knew from overhearing her and Ondrea talking that it was Avatarian but he wasn’t sure what it meant. He wanted to ask her but thought it best to let her have time to think.
“It means that I’m an original slayer--a child of the Avatars, created to protect them and others.” She winked. “You were thinking really loud again.”
“Hmm, I guess I’ll need to be more careful of my own thoughts then.” He smiled all the while doing his best to contain his joy. She’d read his thoughts with ease. The mating was a success.
“Oh, Colonel?”
“Yes.”
Deryn gave him a pouty lipped look that left his cock throbbing with need. “Come and get me.”
“My pleasure.”
Chapter Nine
“Feeling better?” Alejandro asked, smiling down at her.
Deryn finished lacing her boot and nodded. “I am. Though, I’ll admit that I still don’t understand how you did what you did with your magik.” She patted the cot and grinned. “I’m really happy you did it. This place sort of lacks the luster of the paradise you created.”
He stroked her cheek. “All you have to do is say the word and I’ll do it again.”
“Okay, Romeo, relax. You can’t tell me that didn’t take it out of you. It’s odd but I could almost feel the drain on you. Does that sound silly?”
“Not in the least. It’s a side effect,” he said, staring down at her with eyes she would miss almost as much as the man when they were all done here and went back to their lives.
“I’d ask you to elaborate on the side effect thing but I’m learning quickly that you only skip getting to the point when you know it will get you in the doghouse ... err ... I mean cathouse with me.”
“Thanks for clarifying that and I do not do that.” No sooner did he sit down next to her then he was shooting up at the sound of a tiny shriek. In an instant, he had her thrust behind him and a clawed hand out. It was too fast not to be instinctive and that meant more to Deryn than she could ever voice.
Running her hands over his broad shoulders, she smiled. “Easy there, killer. It’s just Che.”
“I know. That thing seems to announce the coming of bigger shit that I, for one, am not willing to let have another go at you,” Alejandro said, not backing down.
“Colonel,” she pressed her mouth to his ear, “Alejandro, its okay. I promise.”
The tension in his upper body eased a bit. “Then why is he carrying on like that?”
She snickered. “I think he’s jealous.”
“Jealous?” Alejandro glanced over his shoulder and raised a brow. “So, tell me, Doctor, am I in danger of losing you to a monkey?”
Biting her lower lip, Deryn winked. “I didn’t realize you had me to begin with, Colonel.”
“If you only knew. So,” he smiled, “you’re saying that the monkey is in the lead. I could shift if you prefer that sort of thing.”
“You know, appearances can be deceiving.”
He nodded. “I caught onto that, Bookworm.”
“Then stop underestimating Che.” She held tight to him, enjoying the feel of having her arms wrapped around him. “If you betray me, he will kill you.”
“He’s like a foot tall and,” Alejandro raked his green gaze over her slowly, “I won’t betray you so he’ll have no reason to bite my ankles.”
“Mmm, such confidence. I really hope he does bite you. It would serve you right.” She drew back from him slowly, not really wanting to lose contact but knowing she couldn’t hang on to him forever. “I should get my things packed up.”
“You’re leaving?” he asked, turning to face her.
“Not for good but I have a meeting back on Earth with my uncle and several other key players later today. If I miss it or do anything out of the ordinary they might get a little suspicious.”
Alejandro tipped his head back and sighed. “Shit, it’s been three days already? Is it wrong that I’m torn between wanting you to go so I know you’re safe and wanting you to stay for purely selfish reasons?”
“No, but you need to stop trying to ‘protect me’ and let me live and work among you. Trust goes both ways, Alejandro.”
“You can’t ask me not to worry about you.” He cupped her cheek the action was so sweet that it caught Deryn off guard. “It goes against my very nature to let my mate be in harm’s way.”
“Your what?” she asked, sure she’d heard him wrong. There was no way Alejandro could have referred to her as his mate. Che pounded on his chest and began carrying on like a crazed maniac. As Che’s shenanigans registered Deryn’s eyes widened. “He is not my keeper!”
“What’s the monkey saying now?” Alejandro asked with a shit ass grin on his face.
Taking a tiny step backwards, Deryn forced out a laugh. “He says that you’re ... umm ... never mind. It’s silly.”
Che thumped his hands on the floor and made a series of odd noises. Deryn couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The blood of the beast masters ran through her veins, allowing her to understand animals regardless if they could form real thoughts or not. What she was picking up from Che was more than she wanted to know. She stared down at the tiny creature and put her hand on her hip. “That will be enough of that. He did not do that.”
“I didn’t do what?”
Deryn chuckled. “Tell him that you didn’t announce to the rest of the gang that I’m your rightful mate and that you didn’t officially claim me. I think living in the jungle all these centuries has affected Che’s hearing.”
Alejandro stilled. “Centuries?”
Waving her hand in the air, Deryn did her best to get his attention. “Hello, talking to you here. Tell Che that you didn’t....”
“You are my rightful mate. I did tell the gang all about it. I also made it official by marking you while we were making love, so it’s official. You’re my wife now. Oh, and those dreams that you find yourself pregnant in ... that’s my baby you’re carrying. My mother was apparently coming to you for help because she knew you’re my mate. She wanted us together. She’s been after me for grandbabies for fifteen years. Since a little after I first met you. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. I’m also hoping that one of those rounds we just had left my seed planted in you. I can’t wait to see you singing nursery rhymes with our children. I love you, Deryn. Now, about this monkey’s age. Is it really centuries old?”
Something crashed and Alejandro grabbed her by the hand and pulled her through the cell doors. He didn’t give her time to protest or focus on what he’d just said. Instead, he yanked her behind him and then came to a grinding halt at the end of the hallway.
“What’s wrong?” Deryn asked, staring at a tray of food that lay scattered on the floor.
“I asked Vonni to bring you some breakfast.”
Deryn glanced at the food and back at Alejandro. “I wouldn’t put it past her to poison me or put a head in a bag.” She still couldn’t figure out what she’d done to set Vonni off. Whatever it was, the woman hated her. The feeling was mutua
l so Deryn didn’t really mind.
“Come on,” Alejandro gave her a slight tug, “let’s go get you something to eat. You haven’t had a whole meal since you got here.”
Thinking back, Deryn realized he was right. She hadn’t eaten anything substantial since she arrived. At times, her serum suppressed her appetite but never to this point. Something was off that much was clear. “I’m not really that hungry.”
“Deryn, you need to eat and you need an injection,” Alejandro said, wrapping his arm around her in a protective manner. “I’ll clean this up. You handle what you need to. Unless you need me there. Is it painful every time you inject yourself?”
“How did you know that in my dreams I’m pregnant?” she asked, her face reddening from embarrassment.
“I held you in my arms when Issac was with you.” He offered her a comforting smile. She refused to accept it.
“Why in the world would you think the child is yours?” It came out harsher than she wanted it to but she couldn’t help herself.
He glanced back at the cell and smacked his lips together. “Hmm, no idea.”
“Smartass.”
“I do try.” He opened the door and someone yelped. Alejandro sighed. “I told you not to sit there.”
Fulk got to his feet and shrugged. “And I told you that I wasn’t leaving until she was out. I just, umm, sort of fell asleep. Vonni woke me up running like a bitch out of hell a second ago. I didn’t realize you’d be chasing her. You better not be thinking about starting anything up with Vonni. Bookworm’s good people and I’ve never called you a stupid son-of-a-bitch before but you are one ... umm ... sir.”
Alejandro stood, blocking Deryn’s path to Fulk. “And why, exactly am I a stupid SOB?”
“Because you know as well as I do that you only locked Bookworm up in there because you were worried that they’d attack again. I mean, you slept on her cell floor, Colonel. You wouldn’t do that with someone you suspected of being dangerous to you or us.”
He slept on my cell floor?
Touched by Alejandro’s thoughtfulness, Deryn planted a kiss on the back of his shoulder. That man was teddy bear. A lethal one but one all the same. Alejandro shifted as if he were embarrassed.
“If I say you’re right, will you shut-up?” he asked, groaning. “I’m picking up that I’m apparently a lethal teddy bear. I’d like to stop there.”
Fulk seemed to think about a minute. “What about Bookworm?”
“What about me?” Deryn asked.
A huge smile broke out over Fulk’s face. “You’ve been sprung!”
In an instant, Deryn found herself being lifted into the air by a rather affectionate big guy with a gun. Fulk spun her in a circle before drawing in a deep breath and coming to a dead stop. Under normal circumstances, she’d have taken that as a sign of a hygiene issues. Having just heard the confession of a lifetime, she knew better.
“He did it, didn’t he?” she asked, eyeing Fulk closely.
His jaw dropped. Fulk stared from Deryn to Alejandro and then back again. “I’m confused. Does this make you Mrs. Colonel, Dr. Vargas or just plain old Mrs. Vargas?”
Deryn’s chest tightened and her gaze instantly went to Alejandro. He acted as if it were no big deal. The cocky way he leaned against the doorway made her want to smack him. The sexy way the sun made his black hair have purple highlights made her want to kiss him. For the sake of maintaining what little sanity she had left, Deryn decided to just glare at him. “You could have told me.”
“I did tell you.”
“I mean before you did it.”
He shrugged. “Nah, you’d have said no and tried to beat me up. It was better for all involved that I made what everyone else around here seemed to figure out long before we did official. Now, about this meeting. I’m scheduled to be at it. I need your honest opinion on whether or not you think they’ll lock the place down once we set foot through the portal.”
Deryn patted Fulk’s shoulders and he set her down slowly. She kept her eyes on Alejandro, positive that if she dared to even blink he’d drop another bombshell on her. “Are you crazy? I mean it, are you insane?”
“Not according to my last psychiatric evaluation. You know, those mandatory ones they make us do randomly.” He gave her a sly smile. “Why do you ask? Was it something I said?”
She launched at him only to find Fulk picking her up as if she weighed nothing. He lifted her high into the air and smiled at her struggles. “Hey, Bookworm, your little healing trick left me with a bit more strength than I’m used to. It’s also helping me keep you from killing the colonel.”
Deryn stared at Alejandro with wide eyes. “Why in the hell would you just take it upon yourself to fulfill a prophetic dream? Did you ever stop and think about the fact you die in it? Do you want to die? Is that why you tied yourself to me, because you think it’s better to go out with a wife than alone?”
“Deryn, you know better than that,” Alejandro said softly.
Kicking out, she tried and failed to break free of Fulk’s grasp. “How dare you make me love you and then do your best to fulfill something that leaves you dead? It leaves me grieving over your dead body, Alejandro.”
“Aww,” Fulk flipped her over his shoulder and patted her rear, “you love the SOB, Bookworm. Now, what do you say we go meet Kane? He’s with Ondrea gathering notes for the meeting you all have today.”
Ohmygods, I just told Alejandro that I love him.
Looking up, she found her husband watching her from the doorway. He gave her a tiny salute and a wink before turning to head back into the building they’d just left. Part of her wanted to call out and beg him to come with her. The other part still wanted to strangle him.
“Why, exactly do you have Dr. Murray over your shoulder?” Issac asked.
Deryn couldn’t see him from her vantage point but she knew he was close. Fulk laughed. “Nope, she’s not Dr. Murray anymore. She’s ... umm ... what are you now? Something Vargas. The colonel made it official and now Bookworm wants to kill him.”
“I see. Carry on then.”
“What? Issac, tell him to put me down!”
A chuckle was the only response she got.
Chapter Ten
“So,” Senator Wilcox said, from the other end of the long boardroom table. “Your findings, to date, are that this planet or realm is suitable for human life?”
Every ounce of Deryn wanted to impale the man with the ballpoint pen she was holding but she held back. After having spent the greater portion of the past two hours in what could only be described as a debriefing, she was not only sick of the repetitive line of questioning but seeing clearly through the governments lies.
Kane nodded. “Yes, Senator. We’ve found that....”
He put his hand up and cut Kane off. It was easy to see that Kane shared her thoughts on impaling the man. The senator stared at Deryn. “Dr. Murray, again, I’ll ask what your....”
Having had more than enough and seeing no end in sight, Deryn stood. Her uncle, who sat at the head of the table, stood as well. “Dr. Murray?”
“I’m sorry, I need to stretch my legs. I hope you don’t mind if I walk and talk at the same time.” She cast him an ‘I dare you to tell me I can’t’ look.
He smiled. “Of course. We have been at this for a long time now.”
She set her sights on the middle-aged senator. He seemed to be the trigger-happy one. Her money was on him being behind the removal of the men and women associated with the projects from the NHD. It would take his kind of pull and connections, under normal circumstances. She glanced towards the clock on the wall and wondered how Fulk and Issac were coming with the project she’d given them.
“Senator, to answer your question, again, yes, it’s suitable for human life. I’m sure you knew that already since our military has had men stationed there for seven months now.” She let out a tiny laugh as she strolled across the boardroom to stand directly behind him. “Those men and women do count as human
s, right?”
He shifted awkwardly in his chair and adjusted his tie. “Most certainly and I can’t tell you how happy the higher ups will be to learn that you agree with their original assessments, Doctor. Any luck on dating the artifacts found there or accessing one of the realm’s multiple temples?”
Arching a brow, Deryn cast him a friendly smile. “I’ve started a series of tests but have no results as of yet. My lab at the university is assisting in the matter. I can tell you that whatever is there predates carbon readings. How far,” she put her hands up, “I couldn’t honestly tell you. It’s an amazing find. Though, I wasn’t aware that there were multiple temples.”
The senator shifted and cleared his throat. “Yes, with all the paperwork we sent you at the last minute to get you up to speed, it would be easy to miss that.”
She smiled. “Interesting, I guess my photographic memory is slipping on me. I’ll have to pay more attention next time. Tell me, did you remember your anniversary this year? Your wife certainly deserves the best. This is your thirtieth, correct?”
“How did you know that our anniversary is coming up?”
She folded her arms and shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. It stuck in my mind from the last time you were in for a visit. When you were touring the campus with your daughter. I do miss having her as my teaching assistant. Becca is such a bright girl. Loves learning.”
“Ah, yes, Rebecca still raves about you and your class, Dr. Murray. Though, I wasn’t aware that we visited campus around our anniversary.”
Deryn winked. “You didn’t. You were in a hurry to get through. Got a call on your cell phone, motioned for Becca to continue on, dropped your planner and I handed it back to you. It had fallen open to this month. You were taking your wife to dinner at seven-thirty and had tickets to a ten o’clock show. That was quite a time crunch for you since you had meetings scheduled down to the wire three states away and were catching the three o’clock out of Detroit that same day.”
Shocked was an understatement. The senator looked dumbfounded. “That was like six years ago. How would you remember that?”
Shifter Fated Mates: Boxed Set Page 76