by R. E. Butler
The front door opened and Abbie stood in the doorway. “I know why you’re here.”
“Are you psychic?” China asked. She climbed the steps and followed the match-maker inside.
“You know I’m not. Not in the traditional sense, anyway. But although we decided not to tell you about what I saw when I tried to match Benecio, I’m betting that you’re here because someone spilled the beans.”
“Yep.” China sat on the comfortable couch and Abbie sat in an old rocking chair that creaked as it moved. She told Abbie what Demi and her mates had said.
“So you’re here to find out if what they said is true?”
“I know it’s true because Demi wouldn’t lie to me. I guess I’m wondering why you didn’t come tell me yourself.”
“Because I don’t know what’s going to happen when you meet Benecio.”
“I’m not in your mate-match book.”
“No, but it’s not only people in my book that I can mate-match—it’s anyone I’ve come into contact with. You’re an unmated female, which makes you eligible to be matched. I wouldn’t match you without your consent, of course, and I didn’t expect for anyone not in the book to come up in connection with that alpha.”
“So I might die if I meet him? Is that what you saw?”
Abbie let out a deep sigh and rubbed the space between her brows with her thumb. “I don’t know, and that’s the honest truth. Someone is going to die if you meet him. But I can’t say one way or another who it is. It’s just…blood and death with him.”
China shivered, but she hadn’t really changed her mind. “I want to go see him.”
Abbie shook her head. “It’s too dangerous.”
“No, it’s not. What’s dangerous is that he’s trying to force Demi and her mates to fight for their lives. I don’t feel like I’m going to die today. Maybe he dies. But if I can keep Demi safe—if I can keep war from coming to our pride—then it’s worth whatever the cost.”
“You don’t know that for sure. Your life is valuable, China.”
“Well, I am pretty awesome.”
Abbie grunted. “It’s not time to make jokes.”
“I can’t help it. Making jokes at inappropriate times is my love language.”
“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” Abbie arched a brow.
“No. If you won’t take me to him, I’ll go myself.” Which was probably the stupidest idea on the planet, considering how crazy the male was. But still. Demi was her ride-or-die bestie. If China didn’t help her when she could, then she shouldn’t call herself a best friend. “If the situation was reversed, Demi would do it for me.”
“That she would. Fine, but you have to clear it with Alpha Duke, and we need a couple of guards with us for good measure.”
China called Duke and spoke to him about the situation. He agreed, although he didn’t seem to like the idea. While he set up a meeting with Benecio, she called her parents and told them what she was doing.
“Oh honey,” her mom, Vikkie, said. “Why would you put yourself in danger like this?”
“She’s my best friend.”
“I don’t like this one bit,” her dad, Lee said. She could picture him frowning, his brow furrowed and his gray eyes shining with worry. “It seems very foolish.”
“Duke understands and I wouldn’t do something like this without telling you. I wanted you to know that I’m not just doing this to protect Demi, but because I feel like deep down I need to.”
There was a long pause. Then her dad said, “If you’re sure. And you’ll be safe?”
“Yes, I’m sure. And yes, Duke is sending some males with us.”
Lee blew out a breath. “Then okay. Just be careful. Very careful.”
“I will, Dad.”
“Please keep us informed. And for goodness’ sake, be careful.”
“I will, Mom, I promise.” When the goodbyes were said, she ended the call and sighed. Then her phone buzzed with a message from Duke.
Benecio will meet you at the park where we met last night. I’m sending Vale and Reign with you. They know where to go.
Thank you, she texted back.
Be careful. He’s dangerous.
I will.
Twenty minutes later, China was on the way to her destiny, feeling like she was on some kind of mythic quest. If she were a heroine in a romance novel, she’d be the knight-in-shining-armor, not the damsel in distress. Unless Benecio tried to kill her, and then she might need some rescuing. She’d learned how to defend herself in school. It was something that all females were taught in both their shifts and human forms. But she’d never had to put those moves into practice, aside from punching a human once who had gotten handsy at the bar.
Abbie drove and China sat in the front seat; Vale and Reign in the back. China was stressed out, and the closer she got to the park, the more worried she became. What was waiting for her at the park? What was she going to see when she got there? What would he do?
* * *
Abbie stopped the car in the park’s lot and turned off the engine.
“I’m going to scout,” Reign said.
Vale got out as well, but stayed close to the car.
China saw Benecio and a handful of males with him.
Abbie cleared her throat. “Just because I saw you and him in a vision it doesn’t mean that you need to see him. We can still leave.”
“We already called the meeting, though.” China didn’t think that canceling the meeting with Benecio was a good idea. He was an asshole and crazy to boot, which was not a good combination. “Crap.”
“We don’t have to do this. It’s magic, not science.”
With a shudder, China straightened and stared out the window. Benecio was sitting on a concrete bench with a pissed off look on his face, and all the males with him looked disgruntled.
“My destiny is out there, though.” How often had she thought of the word lately? It was on repeat in her brain.
“It is. But it doesn’t mean that you can’t forge another path. Destiny can be changed because of free will. If you don’t go through with meeting Benecio, then your destiny will change paths.”
“And he’ll want to fight Demi’s mates for her. I can’t allow that, not when I could maybe do something about it. I feel like I have to be here.”
There was a knock on China’s window and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Vale leaned down as China lowered it.
“You almost gave me a heart attack,” she said.
“Sorry. They’re getting anxious. We should either get this over with or leave.”
“It’s up to you,” Abbie said, putting her hand on China’s shoulder.
“Let’s do this. Before I lose my nerve or barf all over my favorite tennis shoes.”
China opened the car door and climbed out. Her nerves were jangling like bells, so she inhaled deeply to try to calm herself.
Something smelled amazing and it caught her attention. Her lioness sat up in her mind, curious and interested.
“Do you smell that?” she asked. “It’s like really good cologne.”
Vale inhaled. “Nope. I just smell lions and grass.”
China hummed and looked at Abbie, who was looking at her curiously but didn’t say anything. Reign joined them and said, “There are several other males around in the woods. I don’t think the whole contingent of his people is here like when we came with Demi and everyone last night, but he’s got a good group.”
China squared her shoulders. “Let’s go.”
“As you wish,” Abbie said.
Their small group walked toward the males. As she drew closer to them, China’s lioness started to fuss, clawing at her insides and yowling complaints.
“What the hell?” She rubbed the space over her heart and whispered to herself, “Calm down.”
“Who are you talking to?” Reign asked.
“My cat.”
“What’s she doing?” Abbie asked.
“Going crazy.”
They reached the open area where Benecio and his people were. He rose to his feet, his face turning red. “What is the meaning of this meeting?”
Their group stopped. China inhaled, wondering if the good smell had been coming from Benecio or someone around him, but she didn’t smell it anymore. Her lion snarled at the loss of the scent, even though China couldn’t figure out what it was from. One thing she did know was that Benecio was not her heart-match, and the good smell hadn’t come from him.
Benecio the bastard growled impatiently.
China cleared her throat. “I came to see you because Abbie said we were destined to meet.”
“I told her already that I wasn’t interested in anything she had to say. I will have Demi or I will slaughter the pride to get to her.”
“You’re an ass,” China said, throwing up her hands. “I’m fucking glad you’re not my heart-match, that’s for damn sure. Why are you so closed minded? Why are you insisting on Demi? She’s mated! She’s not going to give them up for anyone, especially not you.”
“Shut up, female,” a male next to Benecio said, flashing his fangs at her.
“Butt out,” she said, her ire rising. She couldn’t figure out if she was more pissed about losing whatever smelled so good or Benecio’s behavior.
Another male advanced with a growl toward them and China took a step back. She realized that all the males’ eyes had turned gold, which meant their beasts were close to the surface.
Shit.
“We’re leaving,” Vale said. He put his arm in front of China to push her behind him.
Benecio’s eyes flashed brightly, his fangs elongating. “I have a message for you to take back to your alpha. If you survive.”
His claws erupted from his fingertips, and he swiped at her with a furious growl.
She shrieked and ducked her head, covering herself with her hands and waiting for the blow to come.
But it didn’t. The delicious scent filled her nose as she peeked between her arms and saw a huge male standing between her and Benecio. The male held Benecio’s wrists and kicked out, knocking him in the leg and forcing him to his knees.
“You’re going to strike my female? I’ll kill you!”
“Stand down, Oz,” one of the males said.
Vale and Reign stepped in front of China and Abbie and moved them away.
“Don’t leave,” Oz said to China. “I have to take out the trash, but then we’re going to talk.”
“Okay,” China said.
As they moved to safety, the fight blew up when Benecio tried to shift. Oz didn’t let him. He broke his wrists and swiped at his throat with his claws. Benecio pressed his injured hands to his throat as blood sprayed like a macabre fountain.
Oz roared, his claws dripping with blood. Benecio fell over with a gurgle, his body flopping a bit and then going very still.
The males around him fell to their knees and tilted their heads.
“What’s going on?” China asked.
“He just killed the alpha,” Reign said. “That makes him the interim alpha.”
“He’s a fucking badass. He took him out with one swipe,” Vale said.
“Did you know this would happen?” China asked Abbie.
“I only knew that your destiny was here. I didn’t know exactly what would happen.”
“Holy shit, I have a heart-match and he’s incredible.”
Oz turned slowly and faced them. “Mate.”
Be still her freaking beating heart. He could call her mate anytime.
“What should we tell Duke?” Vale asked.
“Tell him that the threat is gone and Demi and her guys are safe. Because I’m the bestest best friend who ever lived.” She stepped from the small group and then hugged Abbie. “Thanks for coming with me.”
“You’re welcome.”
China strode across the grassy area to Oz, whose eyes were shining like gold coins. He was damn spectacular, and she was supremely lucky. He’d saved her life and saved Demi and her mates in the process.
“I’m China,” she said. He was a foot taller than her, broad shouldered and muscular. And so freaking hot she wanted to kiss every inch of him.
“Oz.” His harsh, nearly shifted features eased back to normal and he exhaled. “Let’s talk, China.”
“You got it.”
They walked a few feet from the bloody corpse. She only looked at Benecio long enough to make sure he was dead. His chest wasn’t rising and falling, and his eyes were wide open and glassy. Good. He was a bastard.
Her heart was pounding, and her hands were clammy. She wasn’t sure if it was exhilaration from finding her heart-match or because she’d nearly been killed by Benecio, but either way, she was thankful for Oz.
What a freaking sexy name.
He turned to her and cupped her face. “Are you hurt?”
“Nope. You?”
He blew out a breath. “No. I… I’m not the kind of male who would go on the attack like that normally, but my lion was pissed that he was going after you. I did what I needed to do to keep you safe, I really didn’t think about what I was doing at the time.”
She frowned. “Okay?”
“I mean,” he said, and cleared his throat, “that I’m not some alpha-aggressive male that you need to worry about. I’m just a regular male, except apparently I’ll go batshit crazy when my heart-match is threatened.”
She couldn’t help but smile—a huge smile that made her cheeks ache. “I believe you. Thank you for intervening. He was definitely going to hurt me or even kill me. I’ve never made someone that mad before.”
“Well, you did a great job,” he said with a wry smile. “I’m just glad I was there to stop him before he got his claws on you.”
“Oz,” a male said from behind them.
“I’m busy,” he said.
“Yes, I can see that, but there are things to discuss. You killed the alpha. You know what that means.”
China looked to the male who had been standing by Benecio. She realized that the males had been kneeling and showing their necks to Oz in deference to what he’d done. But they were all standing now, near her and Oz, and watching them intently. There were a dozen males around them, so the ones that had been in the woods out of sight had joined them.
“Are you in trouble?” she whispered to Oz.
“Only if you think being the interim alpha is troublesome,” the male said. He rocked back on his heels and said, “I’m Gio, the alpha’s number two, which means I need to speak to Oz. You can be with us since you’re his heart-match. It’s just a matter of Oz giving our people some direction. And we need to get on the road.”
“You have to leave already?” China asked.
Oz exhaled and it sounded like a growl. “Damn it, yes. But I want you to come with us. I won’t leave without you.”
She wasn’t the most impulsive person on the planet, but she was not about to let her mate leave the state without her. It was fast, but destiny often packed a punch. “I’ll go with you, but I’d like to pack a bag.”
“Of course. But first, let’s meet my people and discuss what we need to, then we can go to your place. I’ll need to speak to your alpha and make sure it’s okay for us to be in the territory.”
She nodded and then went onto her toes and brushed her lips over his. “I just wanted to kiss you quick before you get caught up with other things.”
He wrapped an arm around her waist and drew her against the hard planes of his body. “I will never be too busy for that.”
Lowering his head, he kissed her deeply, making her feel like it was only the two of them and they had all the time in the world.
They didn’t, of course, but it sure felt that way.
As far as first kisses went, Oz knocked it out of the park.
Chapter Four
Oz didn’t want to deal with anything but his beautiful new mate. They’d only had one kiss.
A fantastic one, one that put all other kisses to shame. His lion was on
e hundred percent digging on the beautiful brunette who looked like his best wet dream come to life and smelled like home.
But he’d killed Benecio, and that meant he was interim alpha. He was in charge of their pride until the full moon, when a battle would ensue and a new alpha would be chosen. Just because he’d taken out the alpha didn’t mean he was alpha forever—he’d have to prove himself to the pride in battle. The alpha battle needed six challengers and Oz was sure that with Benecio out of the picture, plenty of males would step up.
Which he one thousand percent didn’t want to do. He was content to give up his alphaship without a fight and focus on his mate and his furniture business—mate first, of course. But he still had to deal with the elephant in the room. Or the dead lion, as it was.
“I know I’m interim alpha,” Oz said, addressing the group, “and that means we should head home and link up with the elders and plan the battle. The full moon is in seven days. We need to get on the road as soon as possible, but I need to take my mate to her home so she can pack and come with us. I’m going to reach out to her alpha first and set up a meeting time. Angel, you can come with me as my interim second.”
“Rock on,” Angel said, coming to stand by him and holding out his fist for a bump, which Oz gave him.
“Hold on,” Drager said, his eyes flashing to the gold of his lion. “He’s not the second.”
“He is in the interim. I know the laws”—Oz thought so anyway—“and as interim alpha I can appoint an interim second until the battle, and I pick Angel.”
When Drager looked like he might argue, Oz took a threatening step toward him and the male backed down.
Certain no one else was going to object, Oz dismissed the group to return to their campsite, with several males put in charge of wrapping Benecio’s body in a tarp and taking it with them. As alpha he needed to be cremated—his ashes put in a ceremonial urn and kept in the alpha’s house, a large mansion in the center of town. All the previous alphas’ ashes were in urns in the mansion’s library, and now Benecio would be added to their ranks.
“Angel, this is my mate, China. This is Angel, my best friend.”
China fist bumped him with a smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”