And I have a bad feeling. It’s not like paranoia, it’s more like an assurance that something bad is about to go down.
When I turn around, there’s a wolf standing in front of me.
For a second, I think it’s Aaron. Except I know Aaron’s wolf by now. There’s no mistaking those glittering ocean eyes. This wolf is brown. I see his coloring as he steps into the light cast by one very dim street lamp.
The wolf looks just like the one that tried to attack me other other night.
“Come with me quietly,” a man says behind me. “Or the wolf attacks.”
I’ve never really been one to come quietly. But now I regret not buying pepper spray like Luna keeps telling me too.
I scream and try to run, and the wolf darts forward, clamping my ankle in his jaws. The pain is electric. Something sharp sticks in my arm and I thrash and fight, but he’s stabbing me.
That’s what it feels like and I can’t think, can’t move.
He’s stabbing me, I think hysterically. He’ll hurt the baby, he’ll-
I’m thrown to the ground and manage to break my fall with my hands. I roll to my back and crab-walk away to crouch against the brick wall of a small office building just in time to see Aaron’s wolf bounding towards us. Those blue eyes flash as he leaps toward the man who was stabbing me with a needle. I see blood. Aaron has gone for the throat and the violence of his attack is startling. The needle that was stabbing me has fallen to the ground. I see that it’s a syringe full of some fluid but as it looks mostly full, I don’t think he managed to inject me with anything. I find myself transfixed by it as if the surreal image of a syringe sitting there on the pavement can actually ground me. The alternative is that my boyfriend is a wolf and he’s about to tear another wolf’s throat out. The stabbing man lunges towards me, shifting mid leap and I scream, scuttling back, but Aaron gets to him first, tearing at him with claws and teeth. I hide my eyes and curl in on myself, clutching my stomach. The howls and the growling and whines of surrender sound brutal and my hands are shaking.
“What pack are you with?” Aaron is human again, and I peek through my fingers. His voice sounds almost frighteningly calm considering.The other two are still wolves, lying on the ground, conscious but bloodied. They look half dead but now they shift and become two men, one of them pressing a hand to his bleeding throat. Aaron is looming over them and as the light from a passing car strikes him, I see the fierce look in his eye, and the way his chest heaves as he catches his breath. He kicks the one who had the needle. “What pack are you with? Do you want me to ask again? I won’t be so friendly.”
“Screw you,” the shifter with the bleeding throat manages to rasp.
The other one is more agreeable even as he’s in less danger of dying on the ground, although I’m pretty sure the bone of his forearm is visible as he holds it tight to his chest. He inches forward and in a shaky voice says, “Jack Didion hired us.”
“Asshole!” the other shifter hisses.
“Jack…” Aaron looks shocked by that and breathes a puff of steam into the chill air. He looks to me and swallows. “What were you doing?”
“We were supposed to knock her out, take her to Jack,” the shifter with the wounded arm says. “We were just told to take her anyway we could, okay? For what, I don’t know. We got no part in that.”
“No,” Aaron says, sneering. “You’re just mercenary lone wolves kidnapping a pregnant woman in the street. I’m sending paramedics. You keep your mouths shut and then you leave Washington, assuming you both live. If I hear you’ve talked to Jack Didion, if I hear a goddamn thing-”
“We won’t do nothin’.”
“Then I will unleash the full force of the Tremblay pack on you idiots. And you won’t be so lucky as you were tonight.”
They don’t respond to that, perhaps thinking themselves lucky not to have been killed outright. I stagger to my feet and Aaron dashes over to me, slinging an arm around my waist as he helps me down the sidewalk back to my place while he calls 911.
“Are you alright?” Aaron says. He’s practically carrying me.
“Why would you call 911?” My voice is shaking. I’m still a little nuts from the adrenaline rush, and I can’t help but lean into Aaron, clinging to the strong body holding me up. “Aren’t you afraid they’ll turn you in for, I don’t know, assault or…? I mean you were defending me but… I don’t know, aren’t you…” I sound so confused, I give up talking and Aaron looks pained, leaning down to kiss me on the temple. We’re a good two blocks away and coming up on the stoop of my building by the time we hear ambulance sirens coming for the two shifters.
“I only called an ambulance,” Aaron says, rubbing my arm. “Trust me, those guys aren’t going to say a word about me or what they were doing. Mostly to hide their identity as shifters. I’m not worried about that.” He stops me on the first step up to my apartment and turns me to look at him. He’s disheveled from the fight, but he doesn’t look hurt. “Are you okay? I smelled your fear, I’m sorry. I was close by, I wasn’t going to bother you, Michelle, but-”
“It’s okay,” I whisper. “I was about to call you anyway. Just come upstairs and hold me, Aaron.”
Chapter Eighteen: Aaron
It’s my fault. I can’t stop thinking it, even as I hold Michelle tightly against me. In her apartment, I reluctantly let her go, at least long enough for her to take off her coat. I hover in her little living room while she sighs and goes to her bedroom to change.
It’s my fault, it’s my fault…
When she comes back, I’m still just standing there. When I smelled her overwhelming fear from blocks away, I was sure for a moment that I was about to lose her.
I let myself get distracted by the question of Michelle’s shifter gene. I should’ve let one of my brother’s handle that and focused on Michelle’s safety. While I’m surprised that the Didions went so far, I should’ve been more cognizant of other packs as a potential threat. A human with a shifter gene might not mean much to me beyond what it means for my relationship with Michelle, but it could mean something to a pack who’d like to exploit it. I have to think that’s why they were going to take her. God knows what they would have done to her.
Michelle comes out in yoga pants and a sweater. I could swear she already has a little bump visible on her tummy. Shifter pregnancies do gestate differently from human ones, so it’s possible.
“I’m sorry,” I say, and everything within me relaxes a little as she comes to me and takes my hands in hers.
“For what?” She mutters, and she brings my hands to her lips, kissing my knuckles.
“For everything,” I say. “For lying, for not keeping you safe, for-“
“Shut up,” she says softly. She leans into me, wrapping her arms around my waist and I embrace her, resting my chin on the top of her head. I haven’t felt so calm since she sent me away. “I know why you lied. I understand it. I was just overwhelmed. It’s not everyday you find out the man you love is a wolf as much as he is a man.”
“Do you love me, Michelle?” Part of me is sure she does. She is my mate, I have no doubt of it. But I need to hear it.
“Of course, I love you, Aaron,” Michelle says, and turns her head to kiss my cheek. “I love you so much. I’m sorry if you ever doubted that. God, this feels so much better.”
“For me too,” I say. I lean back and marvel at my beautiful mate; her hair is silky, her complexion practically glowing. Even coming from that terrifying run-in, she’s gorgeous. Her hands, though… “Your hands are all scraped up!” I’m not really upset, but I raise my eyebrows. “C’mon, let’s take care of that.”
“It’s not bad,” she murmurs. But she lets me lead her to the bathroom. “Just a little bloody.”
“I have good news actually,” I say, breaking out the peroxide and cotton balls and Band-Aids as she directs me. “Lots of it. You do have the shifter gene.”
“I’m a shifter,” Michelle says, breathing in as she takes a seat on
the edge of the tub. “Wow. I guess I can’t turn into a wolf though?”
“No,” I say, squatting down to take care of her. I try to sound neutral about that. But Michelle doesn’t look particularly upset about it. “But you can bear our children.”
“Thank God for that,” she says, and tugs me by the collar to kiss me.
“There’s more…” I take her hand in mine and dab at her scraped up palms, taking the time to kiss each fingertip. “My mother is exactly the same. She’s human with the shifter gene just like you. She and my father kept it a secret all this time.”
“No!” Michelle blurts a laugh at that. “Holy crap... Well, I guess that explains why she liked me so much.”
“She would’ve liked you anyway,” I say, tossing her a wink.
“So…does that mean we’re okay?” she asks. I bandage up the worst scraped parts of her hands, and help her to her feet. “With the clan and everything?”
“I still don’t know how my brother is going to vote,” I say, sighing. “He’s going to be shocked when mom talks to him… We don’t have to worry about the Didions at least. In fact, their plot against you will help our case. I should call Xander about that actually…”
In the living room, I whip out my phone, about to call, but Michelle stops me. “Wait. Aaron, if you call him right now you’ll be on the phone forever. Can you just…?”
Her expression is so heartbreaking. She looks up at me with big, sweet eyes. “Can you just lie down with me? Hold me until I fall asleep?”
My mate. My love.
“Of course, darling.” I cradle her cheeks in my hands and kiss each one, vowing to never take this for granted.
In bed, I spoon behind Michelle and hold her close to me. She takes my hand in hers, clutching it to her chest, and kisses my palm.
“Thank you for keeping me safe,” she whispers, and my heart swells. I still feel guilty that I wasn’t more on the ball, but it’s nice to hear her appreciate me. “Do you know what I like to think about Aaron?”
“What’s that, sweet?”
“What a wonderful father you’re going to be,” she says. I can hear the smile in her voice. I feel as if everything is coming together finally. I even feel more confident that my brother will stand with me. My mother told me to have faith in family and I feel a rush of affection for all of them suddenly. Michelle and my pup, my new family. And my pack, who taught me everything I know and who would die for me.
“I’m sure as hell gonna try to be a good father,” I say. “And a good mate to you.”
“Mate,” Michelle repeats, and she giggles. I feel the vibration of it in my chest. “That’ll take getting used to.”
“You know…” I clear my throat, rubbing circles on her hand with my thumb. “Shifters mark their mates. Traditionally. It’s not a law but… Well, I don’t know if it would be expected in your cause your not…” I’m babbling now. The truth is I’ve fantasized a lot about marking Michelle. I’ve never been able to decide if she’d be okay with it or not. It’s the most possessive part of having a mate and Michelle is nothing if not her own woman.
“Oh, do they?” She says, sounding almost impish. “And what exactly is a mark? I doubt you’re going to draw on me with a Sharpie?”
“No,” I say dryly. “Drawing on mates with a Sharpie is shockingly not a wolf shifter tradition. No, I’d bite you.”
Michelle gasps dramatically but she sounds amused when she says, “You’d bite me? Good Lord. That’s awfully…hmmm…”
“It’s awfully what?” I kiss her shoulder.
“I think it’s kinda sexy,” she says.
“Yeah?”
“Do you want to mark me?” she offers. I’m still not sure she’s into it but my heart is thudding at the mere thought.
“I’ve dreamed of it,” I say quietly. I press my fingers to the spot just under her ear. “If I were going to mark you, I’d mark you right here. It’s sort of like a hickey but not as dark and showy. It would just heal to a little red mark that says you’re mine.”
“I am yours,” Michelle says, and kisses my palm again. “I’ll always be yours. And I want you to do it.”
I could swear my heart threatens to leap from my chest. “Are you sure? It’s okay if you don’t-“
“I want your mark on me,” Michelle whispers. “I want it, I want something that says you love me and that I belong to you. And you belong to me.”
“God, you make me so happy,” I mutter.
“Will it hurt?”
“It’ll hurt a little.” I kiss the back of her neck softly. “If I do it right, it shouldn’t hurt much. There’ll just be a tiny bit of blood.”
“Oh, do it now, Aaron,” Michelle says, reaching up to squeeze my hand. “Do it, please?”
I take a deep breath and sit up a little, moving her hair out of the way. Michelle is curled up on her side, a serene smile on her face as she waits. I feel a primal love for her course through my body as I crouch down and sink my canines into that precious little spot under hear ear. There’s a specific way to bite for a mark. Us shifters like to pretend it’s nothing like a vampire’s bite except that it definitely is, only we’re not sucking any blood. My canines descend a little as they sink into Michelle’s skin and this part hurts me likely more than it hurts her, the shifting of my gums and teeth an intense ache, but it’s coupled with the beating of my heart, and the erection swelling up as I hold her and make her mine for the rest of our lives. She takes it as well as I’ve ever heard a mate taking a mark, clutching my hand in hers and only whimpering softly. In fact, when she gasps, I think she might like it. When I’ve left a good bite, I concentrate and allow my canines to retract again. I lick away the few drips of Michelle’s blood and lay tender kisses over the bite that’s turning a nice dark red, though it will fade to a little pink blotch by tomorrow.
“Okay, my love?” I say softly.
Michelle sits up to looks at me and there are tears in her eyes as she tugs me to her. She rests her forehead against mine and kisses my cheek. “I’m always okay if I’m with you.”
I kiss her deeply and then she’s tugging at my shirt. We make love slowly and sweetly and when it’s over I hold her again, letting her fall asleep in my arms and thanking any god that can hear me for my good fortune in finding this woman.
Once Michelle falls asleep, I extricate myself from her as carefully as possible so as not to wake her again. Xander’s already going to be annoyed that I hadn’t told him yet about Michelle’s attack, so I might as well get this over with now.
I go to Michelle’s kitchen and call my brother. I realize that now I don’t have the impatience I used to have when I had to call Xander about anything. I suppose it’s because I no longer feel like the ‘youngest pup’ anymore. I’m simply one of the four, another member of our beloved pack. Xander answers quickly and I give him a rundown of everything I can remember about my run-ins with Didion’s hired wolves.
Xander is livid. But not at me. In fact, I can’t remember ever hearing him quite this angry. And that’s saying something.
“Jack Didion is dead,” Xander says slowly, his voice low and dark. “I will destroy their entire pack. I will bring down destruction on them like they’ve never seen-“
“Xander,” I say, interrupting his tirade, “you gotta calm down.”
“Calm down! They attacked my brother’s mate!” Xander explodes. “That’s the same as attacking my own brother! I’ll rip out their throats!”
I actually get a lump in my throat. I cough to cover it. “It’s good to hear you say that but you cannot start a war with the Didions over this. You know that, brother. You’re angry right now. So was I. It’s getting in the way of your usual wisdom about this sort of thing. We’ll take what we know about the Didions to the rest of the clan. Take it from there. Can’t just go declaring war on the Didions. They’ve got allies. There’d be too much bloodshed.”
I hear Xander take a couple breaths, calming himself down. “You’re mu
ch more reasonable about this then I would’ve thought,” Xander says.
“I think it’s because I’m near Michelle,” I say, laughing softly. “Also, I um…just gave her my mark.” I feel my cheeks burn when I say it.
“Aaron!” Xander says. He laughs, sounding completely different now. “Congratulations, brother.”
“So I take it you’ll be voting in our favor?”
Xander sighs heavily. “I talked to mom-“
“Ah.”
“You know…I let myself get so caught up in following these supposed laws of the clan, I nearly let it come between us. I’m sorry for that, Aaron. I owe you more than that.”
“You had the good of the clan in mind,” I point out. “Because you’re a good alpha. And I know you would’ve come around at the last second, even without mom’s bombshell.”
“I can’t believe we never saw her shift our whole lives and we were just like…ok.” Xander sounds like a teenager again when he says that and it makes me laugh.
“Yeah well, we were always so caught up in our own little world,” I say.
“The Tremblay brothers,” Xander says fondly.
“Yep. The Tremblay brothers.”
In the morning, I have to go to work. I get up as early as I can manage, pained to kiss Michelle goodbye after she casts me a sleepy smile. We plan to meet back at my place once I’m home from work. She promises me she’ll let Luna drive her, rolling her eyes. In any other scenario, I’d know I was going too far in how protective I’m being, but after that attack last night, I’m not leaving anything to chance.
I find myself dreading the eight hours away from Michelle. I’ve even got a box of jasmine tea ready, having followed my mother’s advice. But once I get to work, I feel…okay. I suspect it’s because I’ve now reconciled with Michelle, and spent the night with her. I’ve somehow stored up enough energy with my mate, that I’m not feeling as anxious. It might even be because I’ve given her my mark. Whatever it is, I’m grateful that at work I feel focused and able to concentrate on my accounts. Though I’m still not happy that Michelle felt forced to resign. With everything going on, that’s been sidetracked, and I know she might be happy not to work until my pups’s a settled infant. Although we haven’t talked about it. Whether she’d like to work or stay home is fine with me. I know that if we need childcare, I’d have to fight my mother off with a stick before she’d let anyone else babysit.
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