by T. S. Ryder
"In the kitchen," Eric called.
Moments later, his brother appeared. A mix of anger and worry was on his face, and he stomped over to Eric. "There is a vampire here to see you."
Eric leaped to his feet. His teeth clenched and a growl erupted from deep inside his chest before he could stop himself. Even if he wanted to improve the relationship between Shifters and vampires, it didn't mean he wanted them to just waltz up to his home and invite themselves in for tea! Kayla clutched his hand, her face pale, and he tried to smile reassuringly at her. He didn't want her to worry.
"Let's go see him. Kayla, I'd like you to stay in the house."
"I'll go stay with Mikayla," she muttered. She closed the laptop and scurried off.
Quin fell in step behind Eric as they headed outside. There, a vampire stood in the artificial light of the streetlamps. It wasn't the same one that had attacked him before. This one was taller, with broader shoulders and a look of determination, not frenzy, about him.
"I am the Alpha of these packlands," Eric said. "What are you here for?"
"You are attempting to evict us from our home."
"No, I—"
"I don't want to hear your lies!" The vampire spat at him. "I am the leader of the coven you've attacked. For the sake of my people, I challenge you to a duel. If I win, you will leave the vampires alone."
"And if I win, you'll actually listen to me instead of being an idiot, and let me explain what I want," Eric snapped. He tore off his shirt – it would only get in the way, after all.
The vampire growled in his throat. He removed his own shirt slowly, unbuttoning every button and folding it before setting it aside. Eric was tempted to roll his eyes, but he couldn’t help but notice how shabby the vampire's clothing actually was. It was neat enough, but his pants had been clearly mended a few times, and his shirt was a faded color that spoke to years of being used. Were the vampires worse off than he realized?
Eric fell into a crouch. He would have an advantage if he Shifted, it was true, but the point of this wasn't to kill the vampire – he wanted the blasted thing to listen to him!
Yet, he knew the years of slaughter could not be forgotten, especially for the long-lived vampires. How many times had he been in this same position before only to have his home taken from him and his coven scattered and killed by the people who said they just wanted to help?
The vampire sprang forward silently. He swung at Eric's face, but the Alpha was easily able to avoid the blow. He rolled, putting his weight on his shoulder so he could scissor the vampire with his legs and flip him over. Both fighters pushed themselves back to their feet. The vampire growled and wove back and forth, looking unsteady on his feet.
Eric took a step back, his brow furrowed. He did not pull out of a fighting stance. Instead, he merely watched the vampire. He was panting already, his pallid face taking on a strange yellowish color.
"When was the last time you ate?"
The vampire growled. "What difference does it make to you?"
"Look at yourself. You can hardly stand upright." Eric slowly straightened and held his arms loosely at his sides. "I can't duel a man who is in your condition."
The vampire froze. He stared at the Alpha with wide eyes and a slack jaw. Eric nearly laughed at the expression, only it wasn't all that funny. This vampire was so certain that the Wolves were going to run them out of their home that he was fighting an Alpha while underfed. He gestured Quin over to him.
"Call the blood bank and get something for our guest sent over. We can finish our duel after you've fed," he told the vampire.
The vampire backed up a step. He swallowed hard. "Are you serious? You're not…" He swallowed hard, shoulders slumping. "You really don't mean to run us out, do you?"
"No. I only want to help. Why don't we talk—?"
"I'm not the coven's leader," the vampire interrupted. "He sent me here. He—"
There was a sharp schwing through the air. A streak gleamed in the street lamps' light. The streak buried itself right into the vampire's heart. He staggered back, glancing down at his chest with a surprised expression. Eric started forward, reaching for the vampire.
Another schwing.
Burning pain blossomed from the center of his back. A fire sparked in his blood and quickly streamed up and down his body. The pain was too much. He collapsed onto his knees.
The last thing he thought of before the darkness closed in was Kayla's face.
Chapter Seven – Kayla
From the screams and howls that rang outside the window, Kayla was certain that somebody had died. She blasted nursery rhymes as loud as she could to keep Mikayla from hearing, but it was doing no good. Mikayla pressed her face into her mother's arm, crying and shivering.
When a chorus of howls burst from outside, both mother and daughter jumped. Kayla's head swiveled to the window, and it was only because she was holding Mikayla that she didn't rush to it. What had happened? Was Eric okay?
Moments later, everything went silent. Kayla didn't dare turn down the nursery rhymes, though her heart pounded and her ears strained for anything other than the music.
When there was a knock on the door, Kayla jumped. Mikayla screamed. The door instantly burst open and Quin bounded in. With a single leap, he landed next to them and glanced wildly around the room, fists risen in the air.
"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice deep with a distinctive growl to it.
Kayla pressed a hand to her heart and nodded. "We're both fine. What happened?"
A second Wolf stepped in. She was a strongly-muscled woman with a waist almost as thick as Kayla's herself. Kayla had seen her around a lot, though her name escaped her for the moment.
"Nothing bad," Quin said. "But Eric wants to see you. Daisy here will look after Mikayla until you're back."
Mikayla buried her face into her mother's shoulder and whimpered. Kayla's own heart sank. She could tell by the look in Quin's eye and the way he had burst into the room that it was bad. Really bad. He was lying for Mikayla's sake when he said it wasn't.
Almost robotically, Kayla shifted her daughter to Daisy's hold. Her heart hammered. Mikayla curled into a ball, still whimpering. Light gray fur began to sprout along her arms and legs.
"Hurry," Quin urged.
It was only halfway down the stairs that Kayla found her voice again. "How bad is it?"
"Bad. It was all a ruse. The vampire that was fighting started to tell us what was really happening, and he was killed. Eric was shot with a silver arrow. We're lucky that it went through a lung rather than his heart, but he might not make it."
"And I need to say goodbye."
"No."
Kayla shivered, not knowing what else Eric would need from her.
"They say if a Wolf's mate calls him three times, he can come back from the brink of death."
"But I'm not his mate," Kayla whispered. Tears blurred her vision.
"Yes, you are. You might have fought against it, Kayla, but the fact is there has never been another woman for him. And I think you feel the same way." Quin's voice was grim. "You still love him. It's obvious to everybody."
Kayla couldn’t deny that. She had never stopped loving him, despite the years and silence between them. If she could change the past, she never would have listened to his parents.
She was silent as Quin, with a healthy guard of Wolves surrounding them both, led her to a building that was equivalent to a hospital in human centers. There, in an underground room lit with various sizes of Himalayan rock salt lamps, was Eric. Even the golden-pink glow from the lamps couldn't hide how pale his normally dark olive skin was. A sheen of sweat covered his face.
Quin squeezed her shoulder once before he left her there alone.
"Eric," she whispered.
He didn't stir. Kayla wanted to rush to his side but found herself moving slowly, like she was stuck in the mud. There was no chair to sit on, so she climbed into the bed next to him and wrapped an arm around his chest.
> "Eric," she whispered again. "Eric. Eric."
No change. What if Quin was wrong? What if they weren't mates? What if what Quin saw was just a tangle of emotions? Or maybe they were mates, but the old tale about Wolf's mate that brought him back from the brink of death was just a tale. She couldn’t see how saying his name would heal a wound created by silver, the most deadly poison known to Shifters. Tears dripped down her face.
Kayla touched his lips. "Come back to me."
Eric stirred. His lips parted slightly.
"Eric?" Kayla pushed herself to her elbow, heart jumping to her throat. "Eric, can you hear me?"
No movement.
"Eric come back to me."
He sighed, a hand reaching weakly for her.
"Come back to me," she whispered again.
Eric's eyes fluttered open. His eyes focused on her face and a smile spread over his face. His fingers brushed against her cheek, and then he sank back with a sigh. Kayla clutched his hand tightly. The rise and fall of his chest was more regular, and the pallor of his face faded slightly.
"I love you." Kayla kissed his forehead gently. "I love you."
***
Several days later, Kayla slipped out of Mikayla's room, grateful her daughter was finally asleep. Since the vampire attack, things had been noticeably more tense within the pack. Mikayla was still nervous and jumpy, but as long as Kayla or Eric – or sometimes both – stayed with her until she fell asleep, she usually slept through the night.
There had been no incidents with the vampires since their attempted assassination, either. It took Eric a day to regain consciousness and, in that time, Quin had withdrawn the pack from direct contact with the vampire coven. After Eric woke up, he agreed that they needed to formulate a new plan to deal with them, though both brothers were still against any sort of violence. It was amazing to Kayla that they still wanted a peaceful solution. If it were up to her…
But then, that was probably why she wasn't an Alpha.
Kayla padded down the hallway to Eric's room. He was sitting up in bed, looking none the worse for wear except for the scar on his chest. He grinned when he saw her.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, sitting on the bed next to him.
"Like I could run a marathon. And I'm tired of the healers insisting that I take extra rest. I don't need it. We Wolves heal like that." He snapped his fingers.
Kayla frowned. "Listen to the healers. They know what they're talking about. You went through something traumatic—"
"And you brought me back. That counts for something, doesn't it?" He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tightly against him. "I am supposed to do some vigorous exercise every day, though, to help increase my lung capacity."
Kayla knew what he meant. Instantly her face was on fire, but then so was the rest of her. It was something she had been fighting since she first saw him again, her desire for him. And being this close to him certainly didn't help matters. The warmth from his bare chest seeped through her top onto her skin. She shivered with anticipation.
"Well? Feel up to some cardio?" Eric raised a single brow, a wicked smile on his face.
She chewed her lip. "I don't think it's a good idea. Not when you're still recovering."
Eric nestled his face into her neck, making tingles shoot down her spine. She repressed a moan as the heat built higher in her core.
"Ah, but you're forgetting that endorphins help people heal faster…" The Alpha growled in a way that made her stomach tighten. "And I think, after all this, you might be in need of a good dose of endorphins as well…"
He nipped at her neck, making her gasp, and she knew he had won. Her whole body ached for his. Her arms threw themselves around him, and the next thing she knew, she was pressing him into the headboard while she straddled him. She ground her hips to his, feeling his arousal through the many layers that separated them.
"We have to be quiet," Kayla whispered. "And quick. I don't want to chance Mikayla finding us. That's not something I want to explain to her when she's only three years old."
"Understood," Eric grunted.
He quickly pulled off her shirt and pulled her back tightly against his naked chest, her bra the only thing between them. Kayla groaned, her head falling back as he dove into her neck again. He had always known that was the move that would get her screaming for more. His mouth on her neck was the best feeling in the world. She moved the blankets out of the way and reached into his pants. He was already ready for her, and feeling his size against her palm again after so many years made her groan.
"How do you want to do this?" Eric asked, pulling back to help her remove her pants. "Like old days or something new?"
"Hmm…" Kayla's face went red. "Well, I've done research, and there is a position I want to try."
Eric's eyes brightened and his grip on her tightened even as one hand slid between her thighs. A shiver went down her spine; her head fell back once more. The Alpha kissed along the top of her lacy bra. "What sort of 'research?'"
She clung to him, panting as her arousal built. It was difficult to keep her mind straight. "Not telling. But maybe this time we should go back to old days… It's been years. I don't want to assume things are going to be the same. We have to learn each other's bodies all over again."
Eric beamed. "You mean it?"
Kayla smiled uncertainly. "Mean what?"
"This isn't going to be a one-time thing."
He made a swirling motion with his finger and everything went black. "No. I mean yes," she managed to gasp out. "I mean this will be the first of many, many—"
His mouth captured hers. Their movements became more frenzied until neither could stand it again. Eric laid her down, parting her thighs with his hips, and entered in one motion. They fell back into a familiar rhythm quickly, as though it had been hours and not years since they had last done this.
Kayla clung to her Alpha, her face reddening as her body got hotter and tighter, every inch of her screaming in delight and crying for mercy at the same time. As she looked into Eric's eyes, she knew that this was what they were always destined for. This moment of connection.
And she was never going to give it up again.
Chapter Eight – Eric
Eric growled playfully as Mikayla bounced around him. He batted his paws at her, making sure that he never actually made contact, or when he did it was just a gentle tap. She darted in and sunk her little needle-like teeth into the back of his leg, growling fiercely as she shook her whole body. Eric's eyes watered and he nipped gently at her. She let go and jumped up, grabbing at his ear while her little tail wagged.
He yelped exaggeratedly as his daughter got hold of his ear, then shook her off and started running. She chased after him, clearly giving it everything she had. Eric paced himself so he wasn't completely outrunning her. After a few moments, however, there was a sharp twinge in his lung, and he had to stop. He might be mostly recovered, but there had been damage to his lung. That would take a little longer to fully heal.
After a few more days he'd be right as rain, though.
Mikayla collapsed at his feet, panting. Eric smiled down at his little daughter. He had begun to lose hope that he'd ever find a mate and have children. But now that Kayla was back in his life, he was getting closer to Mikayla, and hoped to have more children in the future. It was everything he wanted, and even if it was a long time coming, he didn't really care. The important thing was that he had them both now.
There was still this vampire problem to deal with, though. Eric didn't know what to do about them. The level of hostility they had shown clearly indicated a need for action, but he wasn't sure what he could do to avoid inviting more violence. They were frightened, and there was that disturbing confession that the vampire that challenged him to a duel had come close to giving.
The leader of the vampire coven was clearly looking for violence. He had tried to assassinate Eric and had killed one of his own coven. Could there be any sort of reasoning w
ith a man like that? And could Eric remove him without causing the rest of the vampires to attack?
Maybe Kayla would have some ideas.
Nearby giggling caught his attention. Quin and Donna were sitting on a blanket under a tree, playing a card game. Or at least, pretending to while they made goo-goo eyes at each other. He Shifted and reached for Mikayla.
"Go play with Uncle Quin for a bit, okay?"
She yipped and wriggled out of his grasp before charging towards Quin. Eric waited a moment to make sure his brother would accept the small, fuzzy intruder on his date. After a number of times Quin had interrupted the Alpha and his mate, it seemed appropriate. When Quin started throwing twigs up in the air for Mikayla to catch, Eric slipped away in search of Kayla.
He found her on the porch, squinting at the computer as she typed rapidly. Eric brushed up behind her and kissed her neck. Kayla let her head fall to the side and sighed.
"Working again?"
"Unfortunately. Where's Mikayla?"
"With Quin and Donna. I thought I might be able to distract you for a while."
"I would love that. But I'm almost done, and then I'd like to go for a walk with Mikayla before snack and nap time," she said, brow furrowing. "I'm glad you're here. I hate not being able to spend as much time with Mikayla as she'd like, but at least she can be with her father… Are you busy?"
"Not at the moment." Eric sat beside her. "What are you working on? I thought you just got all your currents projects done. Except for mine, but that's going to have to wait."
Kayla turned towards him with a grin. "My marketing specializes in information dispersal. I had an idea to use for the vampires – to get them to see you're not trying to attack them and they have no reason to try to kill you again. I was just typing up the proposal. I'm not quite finished, but as soon as I am, I'll let you take a look at it to see if it's at all viable."