by DJ Bryce
“Complaints of violence and r-a-p-e,” he spelled out, and I gasped.
“What? Who?” I asked, my heart racing at the thought of my packmates being hurt by one of our own.
“I’ll give you guys the specifics later,” Bane said, looking again at his sweet little girl.
Gray and I both nodded that we understood, but my mind was going a mile a minute.
“Has he been brought in?” Grayson asked.
“No one’s been able to find him. He must have gotten wind that the people were going to Nathan.”
Grayson dipped his head and I could tell he was troubled.
He put down his sandwich and pushed the plate away, the stood up from the table.
“I need some air,” he said, and headed toward the door.
I looked at Bane and Katja and told them, “I’m gonna go with him,” and they both nodded, Bane giving me a small smile.
I caught up with Grayson as he was stepping off the deck onto the ground below.
“You okay?” I asked, hurrying to him and taking his arm in mine.
“Yeah, it just, brings stuff back, you know. Violence in the pack… It’s so rarely an issue. I wonder how Nathan’s handling it.”
“I wonder who his victims are,” I mused as we walked.
“You know, a couple months back, Bane told me that Arch was asking about me, and even threatened to come out here… what if he tries to come this way?” Grayson asked, stopping and pulling me to him. “Maybe you should leave with Bane and Katja in the morning when they head out, at least until we know where Arch is.”
I tilted my head back to look into his face.
“We don’t know that Arch is coming here, he could be hiding out in town. I think I’m safer here with you, then on my own back in my apartment,” I told him, my heart clenching at the thought of leaving him. “Besides, I don’t want to leave you.”
Grayson’s lips tipped up and the corners of his eyes crinkled.
He looked perfect.
“I don’t want you to leave either, but if anything happened to you, I wouldn’t be able to live with it.”
“Well, I feel exactly the same way about you, so how about I stay here, and we’ll have each other’s backs?” I asked, praying he’d say yes and wouldn’t ship me off.
Gray lowered his head and brushed his lips against mine.
“Okay,” he agreed, and I let out the breath I’d been holding.
“Okay,” I repeated softly.
“I’m gonna pull Bane into my office to talk. Will you be okay with Sloane and Katja?”
I nodded.
“Of course, we’ll be fine. But, I expect a full report later. Don’t try and shield me from the truth, okay?”
“You got it,” Grayson replied, and we walked back inside.
Grayson
“So, tell me what’s going on,” I told Bane as we sat down in my office.
I’d pulled him aside, poured us both some scotch, and moved toward the leather chairs in the center of the room.
“It’s crazy, Gray,” Bane began, taking a sip. “First, one guy approached Nathan about some threats Arch was making, then another, and the other day, two girls came forward together to say that Arch had raped them last summer.”
“Drugs?” I asked, thinking something must be behind this strange behavior.
Although Arch had always been an asshole, to my knowledge he’d never acted so abhorrently before.
Bane shook his head.
“We don’t know. Like I said, Arch has disappeared. Nathan went to talk to him after the first complaint, but he wasn’t home or at work. Haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since.”
“Shit, I wonder where he is… after what you told me about him threatening to come here… do you think he would?” I asked, trying to gather my thoughts and put them into coherent sentences.
This information had me rattled.
“I don’t know why he would,” Bane replied. “But then, I don’t know why he made the threat in the first place, or what the fuck is going on to make him do the things he’s doing, so I really can’t tell you for sure. I’d be on the lookout and be prepared, just in case.”
“I will be,” I agreed, wondering again if I should send Shonda away.
But no, she was right. She was safer with me than on her own back in her apartment. Plus, the thought of her leaving brought me actual, physical pain.
“Do you guys want to stay here?” I asked, wanting to keep my brother and his family safe, even if the timing wasn’t great.
“Thanks, but no,” my brother replied. “We need to get back. Katja has work, Sloane has school… I don’t want to disrupt their lives when we don’t even know for sure what’s going on. I’ll keep them safe, just make sure you do the same for you and Shonda.”
“Will do,” I promised, knocking back the contents of my glass before looking at my brother and asking, “So, how are you doing with the pregnancy?”
Bane sighed and stood up.
He crossed to get the scotch and poured us each another glass before returning to his seat.
“I’m not gonna lie, I’m fucking terrified,” my brother said after taking a long drink. “After Sarah, I never thought I’d be with anyone again, let alone find Katja. Now, I can’t bear the thought of losing her like I did Sarah, in childbirth. I was lucky Sloane survived, and we had you to help us out in the beginning, but Gray, if the same thing happened with Katja, or something happened to the baby… I don’t know if I’d be able to go through that again.”
I faced my brother, knowing there was nothing I could say to waylay his fears. He’d lived the worst possibly scenario already once in his life, of course he was afraid to be faced with it again.
“I won’t try and promise you that everything will be fine, because I don’t have that power,” I began. “But, I can promise you that no matter what, I’ll always be here to help you, and you are one of the strongest men I know. You can handle whatever comes your way, because you have to, not just for you, but for your family.”
“Thanks, Gray, and I know I can always count on you. I don’t know why I didn’t even consider Katja getting pregnant. I was so content with her and Sloane and the family we’ve become, that I never imagined adding another baby to the mix.”
“Katja’s excited?” I asked.
“Over the moon,” Bane said with a chuckle. “She loves kids and is excited about everything. The pregnancy, the birth, decorating the room. It’s exhausting, actually.”
I laughed and settled back in my seat.
“You know, it wasn’t until Shonda that I ever allowed myself to envision myself becoming a father…”
“Really? So, it’s serious then?” Bane asked, sitting up and resting his forearms on his knees.
“She’s it, Bane. The one. My mate. I think I always wondered when we were younger, we always had that thing, that spark. But, before I could work up the nerve to pursue her, Travis was killed and I left. Even when she got here… or rather, you dropped her and ran,” I shot him a look, but he just grinned, unrepentant, “I was certain that because she was a shifter, she could never be my mate. I couldn’t risk it… won’t risk her safety by allowing our wolves to shift and mate… but, at least we can still be together.”
“Not a hundred percent, though.”
I shook my head.
“No, I don’t trust my wolf enough… But, the second I touched her, I knew, and when we mated and claimed each other, there’s no doubt in my mind that she was my missing piece.”
“You’d already claimed each other? Both of you?” Bane asked, his eyes wide with surprise.
“Yes.”
“Wow, how long was I gone?” he asked dryly, then grinned. “I’m ecstatic for you, man.”
“Thanks, I’m pretty ecstatic myself.”
“Probably because you finally got your dick wet again after a decade of making love to your hand.”
“Fuck off,” I said with a chuckle. “It’s different w
ith Shonda. Unlike anything I’ve experienced, even when I did have women.”
“Being with your mate makes all the difference,” Bane agreed then stood. “Speaking of which, it’s time we join the ladies and enjoy the rest of our evening.”
I stood and set down my glass, then turned to embrace my brother.
“Congratulations on the baby, Bane, I know things are going to work out just fine.”
“Thanks, Gray.”
Shonda
“You know, when these two were young and had just figured out how to shift, they were always getting in trouble,” I told Katja and Sloane, who were watching me with excited interest.
“What did Daddy and Uncle Gray do?” Sloane asked, putting down her doll to climb up into my lap.
“Well, they’d shift when they weren’t supposed to, like during council meetings, or in the middle of school.”
Sloane giggled and Katja laughed as she threw an arm around Bane, who was giving me the evil eye.
“If I remember correctly, you weren’t so graceful when you learned you could shift either,” Gray said with a cocky grin.
Damn, I wanted to jump up, climb his body, and lick that grin off his face.
I mentally chastised myself for thinking dirty thoughts while entertaining his family, but the way Gray’s eyes got heavy, told me he knew exactly what I was thinking.
I hoped he’d punish me for it later… Stop it.
Gray’s grin widened as Katja asked, “What did she do?”
“She kept shifting and peeing all over everything, trying to mark her territory,” Gray said with a laugh. “One time she shifted and peed right in the supermarket.”
I felt my cheeks heat.
“Hey, I couldn’t help it. You know what a difficult time that was. I was only eight,” I protested with a huff.
“Daddy, when I’m eight will I shift?” Sloane asked, sliding off my lap to amble to her father.
“We don’t know yet, baby girl. But, whether you do shift or not doesn’t really matter, you’ll always be the best thing your mommy and I ever did.”
Being born to a shifter didn’t necessarily mean that you’d carry the gene yourself. It was more likely with two shifters as parents, but if one parent was human, you had about a twenty-five percent chance.
“I know, Daddy, but I wanna be a wolf like you, Uncle Gray, and Shonda,” she whined, rubbing her eyes.
“Hey, it wouldn’t be so bad if you were like me, would it?” Katja asked, pulling Sloane in for a hug.
Sloane shrugged and squirmed.
“I think someone’s ready for a bedtime story,” Gray said, moving to take his niece from Katja. “What do you say I read to you?”
Sloane nodded and went into his arms willingly.
I bit back a sigh and goofy smile at the sight of Gray cradling Sloane tenderly to him. Something about that picture had my ovaries getting excited.
The thought of Gray and I having cubs caused a tingle around my heart.
“You sure you won’t come back with us?” Katja asked once they were gone.
I shook my head.
“No, I’m perfectly safe here with Gray. It’s unlikely that Arch would come here anyway, it’s not like he and Gray were ever friends, and there is certainly no love lost between us,” I assured her. “Plus, we’re just getting to know each other, I wouldn’t want to mess that up.”
“I’m so happy things worked out between you two,” Katja began. “After Bane got that phone call from Gray, we were worried you were going to be in misery for two weeks.”
I chuckled.
“Yeah, it didn’t look good at first.”
“My brother can be a bear at times, but he has a good heart. I knew he’d come around, although I didn’t know he’d come around as much as he did,” Bane said with a wink, and I felt myself flush again.
I knew finding a mate and having a healthy sex life was a great thing, and not something to be embarrassed about, but still… Bane was Gray’s brother. And someone I’d known all my life. I couldn’t help but feel a little shy about discussing it with him.
“Yup, it all worked out in the end, although, I do feel bad about putting you in the position I did. I shouldn’t have asked you to trick your brother.”
“Like I said before, don’t worry about it,” Bane replied easily. “I’m always ready to give my brother a hard time… but, seriously, I’ve never seen him this happy, so it all worked out in the end, right? I’m glad you’ve found each other again and have claimed each other. It’s feels right.”
“Wait, you’ve claimed each other?” Katja asked, jumping up from her seat.
“Yeah,” I admitted.
Katja squealed and bounced over to me, bending down to give me a big squeeze.
“That’s amazing, I’m so excited for you guys. This is exactly what I’d hoped would happen when I told you join the app and catfish Gray.”
“Wait… what?” Bane asked, his gaze swinging to his wife.
Katja’s eyes widened as she stood to face him.
“What?” she asked innocently.
“It was your idea for Shonda to lie to Gray on the app and come here for the trial?”
I couldn’t tell by his expression or his tone if Bane was upset or not, but I stood and took Katja’s hand in mine in a show of solidarity, just in case.
“Maybe,” Katja said cautiously.
Bane just grinned and shook his head.
“I should have known.”
Katja and I both let out a breath a relief.
“Now we’ve got to find a way to get Gray to leave this land on occasion and rejoin the pack,” Bane said.
“That’s never going to happen,” Gray said quietly, and we all turned to see him standing in the entrance scowling at his brother.
Grayson
“You know your brother wasn’t trying to make you mad, right, he just misses you,” Shonda said as we got ready for bed.
“Yeah, I know,” I replied as I pulled off my shirt. “It’s a conversation we’ve had many times over the years, I just wish he’d let it go.”
Shonda pulled on a nightgown and crossed to the bed.
We’d officially moved her things into my room, so Katja and Bane could have the one she’d been originally going to stay in. Sloane was in her bedroom, which I’d decorated for her when she was born.
I undressed until I was just in boxers, then joined her in bed.
As soon as I was under the covers, Shonda slid over to rest her head on my chest and throw her leg over mind. Her fingers ran lightly over my stomach and my body instantly tightened in response.
“It won’t bother you if I occasionally go into town or meet up with the pack, will it?” she asked.
“Mmmm, no,” I managed to say, even though it seemed like my entire being was focused on her hand and its current descent.
She reached my cock, which was hard. Ready. Slowly she began to caress the length. Up and down. Over and over. Until my vision blurred and it took every ounce of my control not to take over.
My hips bucked reflexively and Shonda tightened her grip on my dick through the shorts.
I wanted to feel that hand on my bare skin so badly, but didn’t want her to stop what she was doing. So, I bit my lip and remained silent.
Closing my eyes, I focused on the rapid sound of her breathing, on the glorious way her touch made me feel… I was about to tear my boxers off of my body when my ears picked up on another sound.
Moaning.
Male and female.
Obviously in the throes of passion.
I placed my hand on Shonda’s to still her movements.
“You okay?” she asked, her voice husky.
Fuck, just that sound made me want to come in my shorts.
“Listen,” I choked out and Shonda cocked her head to the side.
She looked puzzled at first, then her lips tipped up and a laugh escaped her lips.
“Bane and Katja?” Shonda whispered, even thoug
h it couldn’t be anyone else.
“Yup,” I replied, my disgruntledness evident in my tone.
“Wow, they’re really going at it,” she said when we heard a shout, then a loud banging sound.
I moved to get up.
“Sorry, I can’t be here while my brother gets it on in the next room,” I said “It creeps me out.”
Shonda got out of the bed and asked, “Do you want to go outside?”
Rather than replying with words, I grabbed her by the hand and dragged her with me. Out of the bedroom, down the hall, and out the front door.
“Come on,” I said, and started jogging.
Not fast, she easily kept up with me, but quick enough that we were at my barn in less than a minute.
We slid inside the barn and walked into the dark.
The smell of leather and oil filled the air as I pulled a large blanket off the shelf and laid it out on the floor.
I found Shonda’s lips in the dark and pulled her close, her body rubbing against my aching cock and our arms wrapped around each other. I nudged her legs open as I delved between her parted lips.
I could feel her heat on my bare leg, and knew I wasn’t going to last long, so I eased us both down onto the soft material and laid out on my back, pulling her on top of me so I’d be on the hard floor, rather than her.
Shonda’s hand eased inside my boxers and pulled my cock free, stroking it and running her thumb over the tip before I felt the wet heat of her mouth close around me.
“Ride me,” I urged, needing to be inside of her.
She deep throated my cock, gave it a good suck, then complied.
She moved for a moment, then came back over me, her nightgown still on, but her panties removed.
Shonda held my cock in her hand and ran it over her clit and through her wet pussy a few times, making herself moan in delight, before taking my head slowly inside and easing down until she was fully seated on top of me.
We both took a second to enjoy the moment. The feeling of being joined together. Then, she began to move.