by Kyle, Celia
The large male was an ex-Tracker for the council as well as Maddy’s mate. Between his military experience and dealing with the Sensitive lioness, the man shouldn’t be afraid of anything. And yet he was anxious as hell.
Grayson was the pride’s Second, and the tiger was part of the pride, but Ricker wasn’t afraid of pissing anyone off. The exception was Alex, and that was only because damn near everyone respectfully feared the male’s mate, Maya.
“Thanks for coming to get me.”
Ricker grunted. “We drew straws. I lost.”
“Nice.” Grayson rolled his eyes. “So, why were you drawing straws? Better yet, why the hell did I have to take a commercial flight?” He’d been traveling back and forth between the council’s headquarters in Chicago and Ridgeville for nearly six years.
He wasn’t going to acknowledge the fact that six years ago he’d felt the first inkling Honor Mauer was his mate… and only sixteen. That had been a mind-fuck of monumental proportions.
The cat was equally attracted and disgusted with itself. Yeah, his human half was the same. At least until she’d hit eighteen and suddenly craving his would-be mate was acceptable.
“The plane was needed for someone else.” Ricker shrugged and turned on the blinker.
“Someone else?” He raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t going to be a total dick and tell the tiger there wasn’t anyone more important than him scheduled to fly in. But, really, he was the most important person scheduled to fly in.
“Yup.”
“That’s it? Nothing else?”
“Nope.” The truck slowed as Ricker navigated a turn.
“Who the hell—”
“That is something you can discuss with Alex.” They bounced over uneven ground, the whole vehicle shaking.
Grayson finally realized they weren’t headed toward the pride house. He lived there with Alex and Maya as well as their twins. A handful of other unmated lions whose sole job was to protect the Prime and Prima also resided on-site. Maya had a personal guard as well. Mostly because her awesomesauce ideas tended to land her in trouble.
Before them loomed the expansive field where the pride met for monthly runs in the forests beyond. The vehicle pulled to a stop in the middle of the dirt, hard-packed, faux parking lot created by the pride over the years.
Alex stood dead center, shirtless and shoeless. A pair of shorts clung to his Prime’s hips. Grayson saw they were baggy as hell and easily torn off if the man shifted.
“What the hell, Ricker?”
The tiger shrugged. “I follow my Prime’s orders. I was told to keep my mouth shut and bring you here.” Ricker finally looked to him, the male’s eyes shifted to the gold of his beast. “I also can’t let you leave the area.”
Grayson didn’t like the sound of that, and now he noticed the tiger’s clothing. Baggy shorts, sandals, and a tank top easily shed.
Fuck. What was he walking into? Had he pissed off someone important lately? Was this some kind of punishment?
Whatever it turned out to be, he couldn’t not go to his Prime. With a sigh, he pushed the door open and climbed from the vehicle. He went ahead and tugged his shirt over his head while he slipped free of his shoes. The slacks would be a lost cause.
He heard Ricker do the same, the two of them tossing their discarded clothing onto the truck’s floorboard.
The man’s gaze met his. “You’re really going at it this way? Expecting trouble?”
Grayson shrugged. “It’s obvious the two of you expect to shift and come at my ass. I’m the pride’s Second. I’m not about to let you two beat on me without getting my own.”
Plus, it’d been a while since he’d sparred. His cat constantly wanted to hunt Honor. The only way to keep the lion in check was to exhaust the beast. So, he usually got together with another Tracker or two when in Chicago and worked off his excess energy in the gym.
As long as the males weren’t trying to kill him, he’d enjoy himself a little.
Grayson shoved the door closed with a resounding thunk and strode toward his Prime. Alex stayed in place with his arms crossed over his chest. It wasn’t until a handful of feet separated them that his leader moved. He allowed his arms to relax and rest at his sides. Grayson didn’t miss the way the other lion wiggled his fingers. Alex loosened his muscles and his nails darkened ever so slightly.
Great.
“Prime.” He tilted his head, acknowledging Alex’s dominance and power.
“Grayson.” Alex held Grayson’s gaze, not blinking, not releasing him. Damn cats were the best at staring someone down. How often had he done that to others at the council headquarters?
“Is there a reason I’m here instead of home?” Might as well plow ahead. The Prime’s gaze flicked to Ricker and then the male’s claw-tipped fingers gripped Grayson’s upper arms. He tugged against the tiger’s grip, testing the ex-Tracker. “Not much of a fair fight, is it, Alex?”
“I need you to remain calm and I don’t want this to get bloody.”
Shit. Gray opened his mouth a fraction and pulled in the afternoon air. Heat flowed over his tongue and with it came the scents surrounding him.
Ricker was resigned; his smells indicated he did as he was told, and he didn’t feel passionately one way or the other. Yes, now that they were with Alex, he was calm.
But Alex… Unease, worry, and concern with a hint of anxiety.
“Whatever it is, just say it, Alex.” He narrowed his eyes at his Prime. “We’ve been through too much together for you to turn into a pussy on me now.”
Alex glared at him, and his leader flexed his hands again. Fur slid free of the man’s skin, telling Grayson without words that the male was ready for the coming fight.
Grayson tugged on Ricker’s hold, but the massive tiger didn’t release him.
Dick.
“I’m putting a three-mile air and land ban surrounding the pride house.”
He furrowed his brow. “Okay.” He tugged on his captive’s grip. “What does that have to do with me?”
“Everyone, Grayson.”
“Okay.” Confusion still plagued him. “Why? If there’s someone at the pride house who’s so important, why don’t you want the guards at the house? Did they bring their own protection?”
Alex approached him, and Ricker’s grasp tightened. His Prime cupped his face, blackened nails digging into his skin near his ears. A reminder he was at his leader’s mercy. “They don’t have any protection. Right now, I’m what’s standing between her and whatever demons are after her. She needs everyone,” the dominant lion shook him slightly, “everyone to stay away.”
She…
“Who is it? Why?” the cat growled, knowing the answer already.
Bright amber eyes bored into him. “Honor. I don’t know what happened to her, but it’s enough for her to quit school and come home. She refuses her parents, her brother, everyone. Right now, the only thing between her and insanity is me.” Those deadly claws dug into his flesh, and the ache slid into him. “You will not ruin that.”
“But she’s mine. Mine.” Fur burst from Grayson’s pores, shoving beyond his skin and coating his arms. It slithered over his flesh, moving to his shoulders, skating over his neck and traveling to his jaw. “What happened to her?” He yanked against Ricker, but the tiger was unmovable. “Mine.”
“Listen to me, Grayson.” His Prime’s voice was commanding and cold. “I don’t know, but I’ll never find out if you don’t stay away. The entire pride is banished from the house.”
A rolling growl formed in his chest. There was no way he could have suppressed the sound if he’d tried. Then again, he hadn’t tried to quiet the beast. The two males were keeping him from his mate. If she was hurt, she needed him.
“Grayson, listen to me.” Alex gripped harder and more of his blood flowed from the wounds. “Do you think she quit school for no reason? Do you think she abandoned her master’s degree on a whim? Something sent her running with her tail between her legs. I can’
t find out what that is if I have to worry about you. You need to stay away.”
Away? Away from his mate? True, he hadn’t scented her after she’d gone through her first heat—without him—but it had to have happened by now and there was no doubt she belonged to him. Even before her heat she’d carried the flavors that told the cat she was theirs. She just hadn’t ripened. That’s when he’d begun spending more time outside Ridgeville than in it.
The cat pushed against its mental cage, pounding the steel bars with its body, and reached between them to claw and scratch Grayson’s mind. The lion wanted to be free, to burst from their holds and race to Honor’s side. Alex was wrong. She needed him, his protection. He’d kill whatever frightened her, and then she would come to him, stay with him.
Grayson merely had to get through Alex first.
He tried tugging against Ricker while jerking his head away from his Prime. Neither male moved though the action did force his leader to sink his claws deeper into his flesh. He imagined a good bit of blood would be spilled by the time all was said and done.
He cracked the door on the lion’s pen, allowing it to ease through the doorway. First its dark nose emerged quickly followed by its muzzle. Then shoulders and the cat’s body burst free in a rush.
The transformation from human to beast was just as fast. The remainder of his skin was replaced by fur and his animal’s form forced him to four feet. The speed of his shift tore him from Ricker’s and Alex’s grasps. Deep furrows were carved into his flesh as he ripped out of their hold, but they were inconsequential.
Grayson took two massive strides and burst past them, putting distance between him and Ricker and Alex. He’d run, race into the forest and straight to the pride house, but he couldn’t turn his back on those two. They’d pounce the moment he bolted for the tree line.
He had to subdue them first.
“Damn it, Grayson,” his Prime snarled, and his name ended with a giant lion’s roar as Alex’s shift rippled through him.
Like Grayson’s clothing, the lion’s shorts were now tatters. Movement to his right drew his attention, and he noted Ricker’s shift. The large tiger quickly dropped from two legs to four as orange and black stripes replaced skin.
Grayson flexed his claws, digging them into the soft soil, and then he spread his toes, stretching the tendons. He hadn’t had many opportunities to shift when he traveled to Chicago—sparring had been in human form—and his lion gloried in the freedom.
Alex shook his head, golden mane fluffing with the action. Grayson acknowledged the lion was stronger and larger than him. He let his attention drift to his other opponent. The tiger was bigger than them both, but its expression wavered between annoyance and boredom. With that attitude, he wouldn’t be a fierce adversary, not like the Prime.
Grayson’s lion didn’t understand Alex’s motivation.
Honor needed her mate. Her mate could keep her safe and put her at ease.
His Prime was keeping him from her.
That couldn’t happen.
As futile as the fight may be, Grayson refused to cease. He needed to get to Honor, and these two males blocked his path.
Grayson circled left, internally smiling when Alex matched his steps. Grayson was left-handed and more comfortable with that direction while it was uneasy for his right-handed leader. He’d take any advantage he could.
A groaning chuff reminded him of the tiger, but the animal remained still, not joining the impending fight. Good, it’d be even for a little while.
Grayson spied two vehicles in the distance, only Alex’s SUV and Ricker’s truck occupying spaces in the lot. Maybe he could simply make a run for it. Dash across the few hundred feet and slide behind the wheel before either man could stop him. He’d race to Honor’s side without interference.
Alex leapt at him, forcing him to focus on the fight at hand. One moment the lion was twenty feet away and then he was atop Grayson, Alex’s massive weight holding him down. Those deadly claw-tipped paws were solid on the ground, nails digging into the dirt. He hadn’t hurt Grayson. Not yet, anyway.
His Prime brought his muzzle to Grayson’s ear, releasing a deep, threatening growl. He recognized the warning, but refused to acknowledge it. He had something to fight for. Honor wouldn’t be safe if he wasn’t with her.
He pulled his lips back, exposing his fangs, and released his own snarl.
When that didn’t cease Alex’s sounds, he bunched his muscles, flexing and tightening. In one great heave, he exploded into a mass of motion. He threw off his leader, roaring with the effort of shoving aside hundreds of pounds of muscle and fur.
The Prime flew left while Grayson rushed right, skidding over the grass. Alex rolled back to his feet, shaking off bits of the lawn and dirt. The male roared, exposing every lethal tooth in his mouth.
Grayson could be just as fatal.
His Prime rushed forward, rising to his back legs, and Grayson did the same. In the middle, they clashed. Fangs and claws reached for the other, hunting and searching for a bit of flesh to tear and damage. If he hurt Alex badly enough, he could get away. He had to leave, had to get to Honor. That thought had him fighting harder, had him turning from angered to raging.
The scent of blood filled the clearing, his and Alex’s combined, while Ricker had yet to enter the battle of fur and claw. Smart tiger.
Nails dragged down Grayson’s shoulder and along his right foreleg. He snarled in response and did the same to Alex, slicing through flesh like butter. Their mouths collided, fang against fang, and neither managed to land a strike. Not that it mattered; their claws were still engaged, still attacking.
A swipe to Alex earned one in return. A scrape along his belly and then he repeated on his Prime. They remained even in their damage, the blessing and curse of being the Prime’s Second.
He went after his leader with fangs again, fighting to find an opening to injure the other male. He spied an opportunity, a chance to sink his teeth into the lion’s shoulder. He opened wider, intent on his goal, and then…
Ice cold water descended, drenching him in freezing liquid. It clung to his fur, burrowed beneath the protective layer and coated his skin. It flooded his wounds, washing away dirt and blood and forcing the chilly fluid even deeper. He broke away from Alex with an echoing roar. His Prime did the same, and they focused their wrath on the source of the frosty liquid.
At the sight of their watery attacker, Grayson calmed, shutting off every sound escaping him.
Alex, on the other hand, did not. No, he actually approached the attacker, his fangs fully exposed as he neared… the Prima. With each step, more of his Prime’s human body was revealed and wounds healed. The lion slowly went from walking on four legs to two, his body straightening further, until he resembled a fur-coated man once again.
Maya stood still, clutching the handle of a cooler, the orange and white container dangling from one hand. Her free hand was propped on her hip and for the first time, Grayson realized Maya was pissed. Thankfully, her glare remained centered on Alex.
The Prime stopped when he neared his mate. “Maya?”
“Uh-huh?”
Alex cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. “Is there a reason you interrupted a fight between two males? Males who could have injured you since they were engaged in battle.”
The Prima snorted. “I thought you were having a rather bloody pissing contest.”
“Maya… What did you think you were doing?”
She rolled her eyes and lifted the cooler. “You make me watch football all the time.”
Alex raised his eyebrows, and Grayson found he was as confused as his leader. Then again, considering Maya tended to have most of a conversation inside her head, it was a pretty standard feeling.
“God,” she huffed. “Well, depending on the reason for that lovely display, I was either celebrating Grayson’s return a la the end of a kick-ass football game where they empty a cooler on the coach’s head—best part of a game, by the way, with a
ll that wet hotness—or breaking up a cat fight. I, however, vote for a celebratory water dumping. Really, wet man is pretty sexy.” She grinned, and Alex’s shoulders slumped.
The woman completely ruled that male.
Alex tried again. “Maya—”
“Of course, you’re celebrating, right? Fighting Grayson and keeping him from his mate is so wrong, and you would never do that.” She shook her head. “It’s illegal, even.”
“Maya…” More of the Prime’s fur receded until he was fully human and totally annoyed.
Grayson scented the frustration and anger pouring off the male, and the longer Maya smiled, the more those emotions emanated from his leader.
“Alex, it’s not right.” Maya dropped the cooler, and she stroked the Prime’s chest.
Suddenly Grayson felt he was intruding; this was a conversation meant to happen behind closed doors. Especially when Alex shuddered, and the tension he’d held since Grayson stepped into the clearing fled.
He wanted that with Honor, the closeness and trust, the way a simple touch would brush away his day.
“I have to adhere to her wishes. I vowed to keep her safe and keep others away. You know that.” Alex’s voice was low, but he easily picked up the words.
“I know, but…”
Grayson realized he no longer wanted to be a passive, nonverbal observer. He prodded the lion, and it immediately stepped back, allowing his human body to reform. It knew that since the battle was at an end, they couldn’t get what they desired when shifted.
It took a handful of seconds, and all conversation ended as he transformed. Out of the corner of his eye, he noted Ricker followed his lead.
“I won’t pressure her, Alex. I won’t even speak to her. But if she’s this upset, if she’s as afraid as you make it sound, then I have to be there to protect her.” Everything in him demanded he rush to Honor’s side. If she denied him, he could at least reside in her shadow.
“I promised her a three-mile ban on the area.”
“What protections did you put into place to enforce it?”
Alex raised a single brow. “My word is law.”