Peyton spoke up. “Dewi, there’s no way he can locate Tamsin. He has no support.”
“Oh, reeeeally?” She pointed at the floor and circled her finger. “Where this pack is concerned, there’s a lot of shit that’s not supposed to have any possibility of happening and yet, it still happens.”
She pointed at Peyton. “No way a Prime Alpha—the pack’s Alpha—and his mate could be murdered, in their home, in the pack compound, by a rogue wolf.”
She pointed at herself. “I should’ve died in the attack, but I didn’t.” She circled her finger, still pointing at herself. “No other female Prime Alphas.” She pointed to Duncan. “No possible way he can be alive.” She pointed to Ken. “No possible way he can be alive, twice now, or Nami.” She crossed her arms again. “No possible way a human could override a Prime’s order not to pick up a gun, and yet Ken did just that, and used it, against another Prime Alpha.”
She looked at each of them in turn. “So don’t tell me there’s ‘no way’ something can happen when it has anything to do with this pack. Because then we all know that’s just pure bullshit.”
Ken stepped forward and gentled his tone. “Sweetheart, please. I know you don’t like people telling you how to be the Head Enforcer but as your husband, and your mate, and the father of your baby, I’m going to ask you to please take a deep breath and try to see this from our point of view.” He glanced at the other men, who were now edging back a little.
Chickenshits.
Here he was, the only human in the room, and once again the task of calming Dewi down fell to him.
He focused on her. “You gave Tamsin sanctuary. She’s returning to Florida with all of us. That means we need to protect her. And her baby. In Florida. On the off chance the guy makes it to the States, we need you where she is, ready to protect her, and not off on a wild goose chase looking for the dude. Right?”
She looked up at the ceiling, then turned, pacing a slow circle. When one of the men behind him started to speak, Ken held up a hand to shut them the hell up.
He almost had this handled, if they’d just stay quiet.
He felt it in her, knowing they were right. That conflicted with her urge to be proactive, not reactive.
Wanting to hunt down and take out the threat before it ever came anywhere close to home.
It was something she needed to work out in her head and come to grips with in her time and way, not theirs. And come to grips with it she would.
But they had to give her room.
She finally blew out a long breath and turned to him. “I hate it when y’all are right,” she quietly said.
Ken felt the collective relief among the other men as she stepped into Ken’s arms for a hug. He eased her around so he could look at them and motion with a tip of his head for them to get the heck out of there.
She despised being vulnerable under the best of circumstances and was still learning how to be comfortable being vulnerable with Ken. Witnesses to this, even witnesses she was as close to as the other men, wouldn’t help Ken manage her in this case.
The best way for him to keep her focused on him was to get the others out of there.
And then take her back to bed to talk and cuddle.
Or more, maybe.
Hopefully.
Chapter Three
Dewi knew what Ken was doing and didn’t begrudge it. Besides, she understood they were all correct. Her place was here, protecting Tamsin. Their arguments against her going were spot-on.
She just hated admitting it.
She also hated sitting around and not doing something about the situation. From when she was named Head Enforcer by Peyton when she turned twelve, she’d always met every threat, every problem, every issue head-on. She never ran from a fight, she never balked at doing dirty work when necessary, even if it was something as simple as having uncomfortable conversations with people. She handled things.
It was her job.
The only times she hadn’t handled things the correct way from the start were when shit went sideways, and really bad things happened as a result.
Like Endquist almost killing her and Ken.
To be fair, she had no idea Endquist was the same wolf who’d killed their parents, and nearly killed her, too, when she was a baby.
Then, Manuel Segura and his men showed up at the Idaho compound, looking for Joaquin, and nearly killed Ken and Nami in the process.
Okay, so Ken and Nami found Duncan and brought him home as a result of their off-road ordeal, but it could’ve ended badly.
And then Segura escaped the compound, only to show up again months later in Florida, with a far too uncomfortable amount of information about the Targhee Pack.
Granted, it was Carl and Mateo who turned Segura over to Dewi, so she could finally execute the fucker once and for all.
Sure, it was Ken who did the actual killing, but dead was dead.
Didn’t get much deader than a bullet through the brain, followed by a trip through their woodchipper.
Then, they and their pack had gained the Carl and Mateo, and Mateo’s little sister, Brianna, as packmates, so that was a total win.
But still.
Dewi buried her face in the crook of Ken’s neck and deeply inhaled.
Mate.
His scent always calmed her, soothed her.
Grounded her.
Reminded her she was no longer alone, and had someone unquestioningly in her corner.
Someone she knew would never lie to her.
“Promise me I’m doing the right thing,” she quietly said once they were alone again. “Promise me staying here isn’t running away, and that it’s the right thing.”
“It’s the right thing, sweetheart. You know it is. If we were directly under attack, absolutely I’d support you taking up arms to protect us or someone vulnerable. In this case? We need to strike a defensive posture. There’s no shame in that, no fault in the tactics. No cowardice or shirking of duty. It’s what a smart military commander would do. Why divide your forces, unnecessarily, on an uncertain outcome?”
She lifted her head to meet his sweet brown gaze. “I hate this,” she admitted. “Waiting. Not knowing. Not being able to meet the foe head-on. Not being in the middle of the search. I’m not used to this. Do you understand how difficult this is for me?”
He smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I know it is. So do Peyton, Trent, and Badger. I’m reasonably sure Duncan has a clue, too. And they love you for wanting to go, but you know they’re all right. We all can’t be wrong on this.” He brushed a kiss across her lips. “How about we go back to bed for a while?”
For now, his kiss finished dissolving Dewi’s last remnants of irritation over being sidelined. Dewi playfully arched an eyebrow at him. “Not to nap, she asks her mate very hopefully.”
He laughed. “Not to nap, he assures his very gorgeous mate.”
She held her hand out to him. “With pretty words like that, Dr. Ethelbert, I think I could be persuaded.”
“Ooh.” He pulled her in for another hug, this one definitely more bump-and-grind than cuddle. “You are the first person who ever made me feel sexy to hold a PhD. You’re also the first person I ever had sex with at work. You know, I’ve had a lot of firsts with you of the sexy kind.”
She smiled. “I know. And believe me, I’m glad of that.” She led him down the short hallway to the bedroom. They both quickly stripped, then she playfully shoved him back onto the bed and straddled him. “You know, you’re the first guy who ever made me think being kept barefoot and pregnant maybe isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”
Dewi wasn’t prepared for it when Ken gently caught her wrists in his hands and his expression shifted, serious. “Whoa. I told you, Dewi, that’s not what I want for you. I want you to be you. I’m sorry we goofed up and—”
“I get it.” She leaned in to kiss him. “I was joking.”
His gaze narrowed as he studied her. “Didn’t feel like joking,” he quie
tly said. “Talk to me.”
They stared at each other for a long moment, Ken waiting her out before she blinked first. “I don’t like feeling helpless,” she admitted. “You know that.”
“Dewi, there exists a very long list of adjectives I’d use to describe you, and helpless is nowhere on it. Even now, with you pregnant.”
“You want to get laid or not?” she snarked. “I’m fine. It’s an adjustment, is all. Like I don’t drive my Saleen in first gear, except in limited circumstances. I feel like I dropped from fifth gear to first without adequate time to downshift properly, and I’m still…adjusting. I wasn’t prepared for all of this, is all.”
He finally brought her hands to his lips and kissed them before releasing her. “If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.” She leaned in to kiss him. “I should get brownie points for adjusting as well as I have so far.”
He arched an eyebrow at her. “Seriously?”
“What?”
The eyebrow gained more altitude. “Adjusted?”
“Well, I have. Sort of.”
He snorted, which made her snort. Before long, they were both laughing. He rolled them onto their sides with her nestled in his arms. “You almost said that with a straight face,” he noted.
She rubbed noses with him. “I should get a cookie for that, too.”
“Yes, you should. You should get allll the cookies,” he assured her. “I’ll even bake them for you myself.” Then he kissed her, and Dewi finally managed to shut down her brain.
There were far more enjoyable things to do at this moment than grouse about her older brother being an overprotective prick.
Like the feel and taste and scent of Ken kissing her. He always had this way of starting to kiss her, and then practically creating a direct link from his soul straight to hers.
Not a complaint.
Because unlike anyone she’d been with before him, she felt…connected to him.
Her sweet, geeky mate, who had a way of speaking directly to her soul.
Ken was only two years older than her. But his world-weary soul sometimes felt so much older than hers, and that was despite her much greater, and darker, real-world experiences.
Whenever they were together, however, it seemed like the entire world melted away around them.
No one had ever quieted her mind before the way Ken could.
Like perfection was a completely achievable state of being.
He nuzzled and kissed his way along her jaw, down her throat, and her hands threaded in his hair. He worked his way lower, down the valley between the swell of her breasts, to her slightly rounded tummy.
There, he pressed a lingering kiss, nearly bringing her to tears over how sweet and tender he was.
Or maybe that’s pregnancy hormones hitting me again.
When he looked up at her, his playful, sexy smile lit her soul. Then he continued his descent, nudging her thighs apart as he settled there and flicked his tongue along her pussy.
“Mmm!” She closed her eyes and settled in when he hooked his hands under and around her thighs.
He was just getting started.
Her hands caressed his head, his shoulders, her fingers eventually gripping his and holding on.
Another way in which her mate was more than capable—pleasing her in bed. Literally, he’d had very little experience when they met. Which, to be honest, Dewi felt unreasonably happy over. Because it meant there were a lot of firsts she got to check off his list for him.
During their time together, Ken had eagerly absorbed every lesson she’d given him about sex and quickly mastered it, ever an overachiever. He also had the perfect knack for seeming to know exactly what she needed when she needed it.
Like right now.
Of course she knew what he was doing, trying to distract her. Duh. She was pregnant, not stupid.
Truth be told, there were times she wanted him to take charge in bed, take control, and his ability to do that had been growing in leaps and bounds as he grew more comfortable asserting himself with her in all the good ways.
Then, there were times like this. Where she wanted him to slow-burn and take his time.
And that’s exactly what she needed right now to take her mind off her troubles.
Not troubles, exactly. Her distractions.
Her…irritations.
Feeling unsettled because there was little she could do about an obvious and dangerous potential threat to their pack.
Ken’s slow-burn always focused her on him, and pleasure, and remembering exactly what was good and pure about her world.
That would be Ken.
And their baby.
The pack.
Everyone and everything she put ahead of herself.
But especially Ken.
As pleasure built within her, it forced all other thoughts out of her mind except for the delicious sensation of her mate’s tongue and lips on her, and the ferocity of his love and passion for her. It swirled around them, like an invisible plasma field she could feel binding them together.
It always humbled her that he felt like this about her. That someone knew what she was and what she did for a living—what she’d done in her life to protect their pack—, what she was capable of, and still loved her so selflessly.
Hell, within minutes after meeting Ken, she’d shot and killed a guy.
Fucker deserved killing, but it wasn’t exactly the best first date, or her finest hour.
When she hit the tipping point and her orgasm broke free, she didn’t bother stifling her moans. It drove Ken to keep going, keep her climax rolling through her, a nonstop river of pleasure whose source had no end. Finally, she patted him on the head and he eased up, lifting his mouth from her to kiss the insides of her thighs before smiling up at her.
So pleased with himself. She couldn’t deny his playful smile a reply, either.
Then she crooked a finger at him. “Your turn.”
* * * *
Ken clambered up the bed, where Dewi rolled him onto his back. She straddled him, leaning in to kiss him as she impaled herself on his cock.
Okay, so, yeah, he felt more than a reasonable amount of pride that the reason she was so hot and slick right now had more than a little to do with what he’d just done to her.
“Never doubt what you do to me,” she whispered against his lips. Her hips slowly rolled as she rode him.
He stared up into her mocha gaze. Sometimes, he still found it difficult to believe he’d get to spend the rest of his life with this amazing woman. “I love you so much, baby.”
“I love you, too.” She nuzzled her nose against his. “You have no idea how much.”
“Oh, I think I do.” He gently fisted her hair and held her in place for another kiss, loving the sweet moans she made as he did. His other hand skimmed down her back and came to rest on her ass, urging her to ride him faster, harder.
Her taste reminded him of salted caramel, rich and complex and all the better for it. She sometimes terrified him, in good ways, even if he found himself reeling her in on occasion, like now.
As she rode him, his climax built, quickly taking over his focus and silencing his self-doubts, his anxiety.
His guilt over accidentally getting her pregnant before she’d been ready.
Every beat of her pulse throbbed in time with his, with one sweet thought echoing through his soul.
Mate.
My mate.
Mine. Mate.
She absolutely loved him—of that he had no doubts. It echoed from deep within her.
He took control of their rhythm and thrust up into her, hard, deep, until his climax hit and he spilled into her, Dewi’s kisses swallowing his groan and adding her own as she came one last time with him.
Thus sated and exhausted, they lay sprawled together, Dewi on top of him and his fingers tracing abstract patterns across her back and shoulders. He didn’t want to move until they had to get up and get ready for dinner. This was a sweet perfec
tion, this moment.
One which might be too fleeting, and one which he wanted to savor.
“Are you going to run later tonight?” he remembered to mumble before he was too far asleep to even speak.
“No.” She snuggled against him, practically wearing the same skin as him now. “I want to stay right here with you tonight and catch up on sleep.”
She wasn’t just saying that, either. Such a blessing their mate bond was, because he didn’t have to worry if she was simply saying something to spare his feelings.
She really meant it.
Warm satisfaction flooded his soul—his own, and feeling hers through their mate bond. “Thank you, sweetheart. I appreciate that. I love you.”
She lightly, playfully nipped the side of his neck. “Love you, too.”
Chapter Four
Dewi and Ken finally crawled out of bed about an hour before dinner, grabbed a shower, and headed to the main house. Whenever she had to visit the pack’s compound in Idaho, Dewi stayed in one of the guest cabins behind Peyton’s house, not in the main house.
Because she wasn’t three.
She’d grown up a loner, knowing she was different than the other shifter kids her age, and not just because she was the baby sister of the pack Alpha and his second.
But because she was the only female Prime Alpha they knew of.
In the main house, they found Nami, Malyah, and Lu’ana already in the kitchen with Brianna, Asia, and Gillian, and working to get dinner ready. Ken kissed Dewi and shooed her into the living room while he stayed behind to help cook.
He was a damned good cook. He and Nami had really bonded over cooking, too, which had pleased Dewi. Dewi been a loaner more by choice growing up, because she’d been surrounded by a huge extended family she’d kept at arm’s length.
Ken had no family. None he wanted to claim. His father died when Ken was four. His mother remarried, and he gained an older stepbrother, who was an abusive ass. Ken’s stepfather murdered his mom the day after Ken graduated from high school.
Because she’d told the man she was leaving him.
By mating with Dewi, Ken had gained an insta-family, with more being added all the time, it felt like.
Geek-Speak (Bleacke Shifters Book 6) Page 3