by Kyle, Celia
Joy suffused him right alongside agony. He’d know she was theirs just as he lost what tied them together.
“Mine.” Aidan snarled. “No matter what, she’s mine.”
The same word burst to his lips, and he swallowed it. He had no right to make a claim. But then Rebecca turned her head and met his eyes. Hers overflowed with tears, pain, and longing. He couldn’t have remained still had he tried. Instead, he reached out and cupped her cheek, catching the moisture with his thumb. The tears were like a stab to his heart, the agony rising with each breath until he mouthed the word filling his mind.
“Mine.”
Rebecca nodded and turned back to the crouching Scarlet. “Okay.”
“Okay.” Scarlet grinned. “It’s kinda neat, but boring. You stand there, and they stare at you a lot.”
The Ruling Alpha Mate rolled her eyes and then stepped aside. When Rebecca rose, Aidan at her side, Carson was quick to round the loveseat and stand at her left. That earned him a glare from Aidan, but Rebecca clutched his hand.
He’d take her affection over Aidan’s anger any day of the week.
Then it was as Scarlet described. Miles and Holden approached, and while Holden glared at him, Miles looked wary. Good, they should both fear him.
“Okay, just relax,” the idiot Warden murmured and then there was a lot of standing and staring before they both turned and stared at each other.
That lasted for a second or two and Carson imagined the two males were speaking telepathically before they became intent on their trio once again.
Holden stared at Miles and the man shook his head. “Hell no, I’m not doing it, you do it.”
“Damn it, you just have to point,” Holden growled.
“I’m not pointing. You point.” Miles was still shaking his head.
“Miles.”
“Holden. You were not the one being choked.”
Holden dropped his head back to stare at the ceiling. “If you weren’t such an ass, that wouldn’t have happened.”
Miles shrugged. “I am who I am.”
Carson would have been happier if the man at least apologized for being a dick. Instead of waiting for them to see who’d grow a set of balls first, he growled. “Just say it already.”
Miles glared and stepped closer, extending his hand and pointing at Rebecca’s right hip. Her skin glowed under the fabric, pulsing with the golden light. “Her Mark is there. We can feel it just beneath the skin. Someone tried to get rid of it.”
Carson realized someone had tried to burn it from his mate’s skin, and that had his blood boiling while his wolf pushed gray fur from his pores. His rolling growl rose in volume and encompassed the space. Someone hurt her in order to hide her from them. Before this moment, she’d felt like theirs, but knowing she was one of the Marked solidified the draw they both sensed.
Miles took a hasty step back. “Someone tried to get rid of it, but it’s not something you can remove. The Mark is merely a physical sign that identifies a woman meant for Alphas.”
Rebecca trembled and leaned into Aidan, but Carson wouldn’t let her pull away from him. Instead, he eased closer and rested his front against her side. She needed to know he was there, too. No matter how much he’d fucked things up, they belonged together. It’d take time for him to prove it to them both.
“You can do that with anyone? Warden Born and Marked?” Rebecca’s words were low, but he picked them up thanks to his wolf.
“Yes,” Miles nodded.
The move was echoed by Holden. “We can determine if they’re destined for a wolf. Warden Born are trickier since we have to fool the magic into thinking we’re meant for her instead of her true pair, but it’s possible.”
Rebecca drew in a ragged breath and released on a hiccupping sob. “I wasn’t the only one in that fire. I wasn’t the only one hurt. We were in a treehouse when it happened and… I don’t think they were meant to be caught in it, but… The three of us… Grandma Twynham had this homemade sunscreen she used on me right there. It burned so hot… That’s what did it. It was almost like it called to the fire. But she didn’t put it on them. Maybe that means they don’t have a mark. They were just caught…”
Her words penetrated his mind, and his heart shattered for her, for her family. Ignoring the tension that lived between the three of them, he wrapped himself around Rebecca while anchoring himself to Aidan with one hand.
Nothing penetrated her cries, her clutching hands, and emotional trembles.
“Who, Rebecca?” Scarlet whispered.
His mate sniffled, and her pain wrapped around him in a viselike grip.
“My sisters, Lorelei and Paisley. They’re older than me by a couple of years.” Rebecca shuddered. “If they haven’t been brought here in the past, then they aren’t Marked. Maybe…”
Holden’s shaking head followed Rebecca’s trailing voice. “It doesn’t mean anything. Not if they’re Warden Born. Any female who is single, Warden Born, and thirty or older was summoned to the Gathering.” His words softened. “It doesn’t mean they’re here, but they might be, and we’ll do our best to find them.”
Miles took a tentative step forward. “We need a drop of Rebecca’s blood and then—”
Carson caught Rebecca as Aidan shoved her into his arms so he could launch himself at the Warden. Carson was tempted to stop his partner, but when the man’s actions meant he got to hold his mate, he figured he’d wait a minute or two.
Chapter Nine
Their new suite looked exactly like the previous one with one exception: there were two bedrooms instead of three. Two when there were three people, which meant at least two of them would have to share one space.
Because, after all was said and done in the Ruling Alpha suite, Rebecca, Aidan, and Carson retreated to their accommodations one floor beneath the powerful rulers. It was restricted access, and they now had two guards outside their door at all times. Until the threat was eliminated, the duo would be their constant shadows.
The question now was whether security shadowed a werewolf and a human, or two werewolves and their mate. At the moment, it seemed like a combination since Carson followed them.
Rebecca wasn’t sure if she was prepared to face any further drama, and Aidan seemed to know because he suddenly swung her into his arms and strode toward the bedroom on the right. The double doors were spread wide, revealing a tastefully appointed bedroom decorated in deep soothing colors. But what most appealed to her was the massive bed that occupied the center.
Sleep. Sleep would be so awesome.
Aidan strode to the side of the bed and carefully lowered her legs to the floor, her side pressed against his front and her thigh brushing the hard ridge of his cock. She shuddered and slumped against him. The pink bits of her were willing, but she was simply too exhausted to do anything.
Aidan shushed her and simply tugged at her robe, untying the belt and nudging it to pool at her feet. Then he pulled aside the blankets and sheets covering the bed. “In you go.”
“I’m naked.” She wasn’t sure if she cared, but it seemed like she should. Weren’t women supposed to be all timid and unsure and shy?
“I know. Get in anyway,” he murmured.
She glanced at the welcoming mattress and figured, fuck it, and crawled onto the surface. The coolness welcomed her and the moment she settled, he dropped the comforter into place.
Aidan leaned across the bed and swept a soft kiss across her lips. He brushed aside her hair, fingertips stroking her face as he stared into her eyes. It was a searching glance, one that silently asked her if she was okay. Just as quietly, she petted him in return, feeling the rough scruff of his growing beard.
She was fine. Well, fine-ish. It wasn’t every day a girl found out her family purposefully gave her the scars that had shaped and formed her life. They’d made her who she was today. Strong. Fierce. Timid. Self-conscious. What would she have been had they not tried to destroy her destiny?
Destiny… One that involved
two males. Aidan and— She didn’t want to go there. Yes, she was destroyed by the man’s behavior, but the emotions were more an extension of Aidan’s feelings than entirely her own. She let her attention flick to the doorway, to the dejected male hovering outside the bedroom. He appeared as exhausted as she was, but his seemed to go beyond the physical and even emotional. His soul hurt and beckoned to hers. She wanted to react to his unspoken call.
He belonged to her just as much as Aidan.
Aidan turned his head and followed her line of sight before returning his attention to her once again. He eased forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. “Give me a second and I’ll come to bed.”
Rebecca nodded. Maybe the two men would talk and settle things between them. Aidan would either return with Carson or come back alone. She wasn’t sure which she preferred.
Who was she kidding? She wanted them to reappear together. He was her other Alpha, and she wanted him at her side, protecting and loving her.
When Aidan moved as if to rise, she grabbed his forearm.
“I want what you want, Aidan.” She pulled in a breath and released it slowly. “If that’s…”
“Hush. You need sleep.”
She tried again. “But I want you to know that—”
He quieted her with a quick kiss. “I know what you mean and your acceptance makes me want to crawl into this bed with you and make love to you until the sun rises. But we can’t. So you need to sleep, and I need to settle things with Carson.”
“Okay,” she sighed. “But you’ll come back soon?” She raised her eyebrows, hopeful he’d tell her yes.
“Of course. I can’t stay away from you for long, not now that I know you’re mine.” His seductive grin gave her body ideas, but instead of exploring them, he stepped away. “Sleep.”
Rebecca glanced at Carson, still hanging around the doorway. She looked at him and noted the hope and need in his gaze. Yes, she hoped the two men worked things out between them so they could begin their mated lives.
Her attention was snared by Aidan as he paced through the room, first ducking his head down to look under the bed and striding toward other doors. He pulled them aside to check behind them and then he entered the bathroom. It wasn’t long before he reappeared.
“Thank you.” She gave him a small smile.
“For what?” Aidan raised his eyebrows high.
“For making sure I’m safe.”
His eyes softened, sweet and gentle emotions filling his gaze. “I’ll always fight to keep you safe, Rebecca. You’re the most important thing in my world, and I refuse to lose you again.”
The rustle of clothing drew their attention to Carson and his expression told her he felt the same.
They were so different, yet very much the same. Their intentions were good. Their hearts were in the right place, and it was only her appearance that had derailed their partnership. She hoped it hadn’t permanently ended it.
Maybe it was the urge to mate the men or the fact they both looked at her like she was a juicy steak—which said a lot since they were wolves—but she wanted them to work out their difficulties and come to her.
Aidan strode to the bedroom doors and snagged the handle of one, tugging it closed behind him. He reached for the other, giving it the same treatment. The last thing she saw was the grim expression on Aidan’s face and the restrained hope on Carson’s.
* * *
Aidan paused a moment and stared at the closed double doors. His mate—his mate—lay beyond the wood panels, safe and sound in the comfortable bed. He wished he was there, cuddled against her and breathing in her sweet scent. Movement to his left reminded him why he wasn’t currently wrapping Rebecca in his arms.
“Let’s sit.” Aidan turned from the bedroom door and strode to the sitting area that occupied the space between the two rooms. He dropped into one of the plush chairs, letting the seat welcome him, and he allowed some of the tensions of the day to drain away.
Carson eased on the seat opposite him, gingerly lowering himself to perch on the edge. The man tried to hide his nervousness but after fourteen years, Aidan saw past the attempt. There were no secrets between the two of them and they’d long ago learned to read one another.
No secrets… There was one, wasn’t there? One that stretched their entire relationship.
Relationship. He sounded like a fucking girl.
Well, he wasn’t going to act like one.
“What do you want, Carson?”
His friend—ex-friend?—released a mirthless laugh. “God, what don’t I want?” Carson shook his head. “I fucked up. There. I fucked up fourteen years ago, and I’ve been fucking up ever since, but it’s…” He breathed deep and met Aidan’s gaze. “It wasn’t like that.”
Aidan snorted. “It was exactly like that.” He leaned forward, placing elbows on his knees. “Was I a pity partner? Did you see the poor kid without a family? The boy whose stepmother tore him to shreds with nothing but her claws?”
“It wasn’t like that.”
He rolled his eyes, deflecting instead of thinking about his past. It wasn’t pretty, it was downright fugly, and he didn’t want to go there. “It was exactly like that. I don’t need anyone’s pity. I didn’t need it then. I don’t need it now.”
“Aidan…”
Aidan pushed to his feet. “I don’t need to hear anymore.”
Carson mirrored him but while Aidan adopted an uncaring attitude, the male was angrier than Aidan had ever seen. “Sit the fuck down, asshole.”
“Fuck you, I don’t need this.” Trying to go there had been a mistake.
“Yeah, you fucking do. Because fourteen years ago I didn’t see a fucking kid whose mother was a raging cunt. I saw a man who’d fucking survived. He took all of her shit. He’d been captured by his stepmother’s brother and the two of them carved his skin with their nails.”
Aidan didn’t want a recap. The memories, nightmares, still plagued him all these years later. “I don’t need the highlight reel.”
“Listen. For once, just listen.” His friend stared at him with begging eyes, and Aidan kept his mouth shut when Carson continued. “Then, when he got free, he managed to restrain himself. He didn’t let his rage overtake him when he was no longer tied to that table. Yes, he slaughtered the male, but he restrained himself with her.”
Aidan shrugged and refused to examine why he’d let her live. He had the right. By the law, he could have slit her throat as easily as he had the male’s. Emotion, their history, stayed his hand.
“Instead, he healed and called the Territory Alpha to haul her ass in. He led that pack until I found him, and we became one of the most powerful Alpha Pairs in the fucking Midwest.” Carson deflated a little, his chest heaving after roaring those words. “And it’s not because of me, Aidan. It’s you. I’m along for the ride. I attached myself to you out of some misplaced belief I could help you, that someone like you needed me, but—” Carson shook his head. “It’s the other way around. It has been for more years than I want to think about.”
Aidan furrowed his brow. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying”—Carson slumped onto the couch—“I’m saying that fourteen years ago I was a douche and an asshole, but I haven’t been that douche and that asshole for a long time.”
Aidan retook his seat, but remained perched on the edge and a hint of hope reentered his gaze.
“I’m a dick, Aidan. You know that. And back then, I did see myself as your savior. I was older and ‘wiser’ and thought I knew better. Yeah, I may have gotten you laid the first few times, but after that…” Carson sighed. “Then women wanted both of us. Sure, sometimes your scars are hard to look at.”
Aidan’s wolf bristled at his friend’s words. They were earned in battle, damn it. It’d been a fight for his life, and he’d survived.
“I mean, you see them and all you can think is pain. Like, holy fuck pain. And yeah, I was pissed she shied away from me. I know you want to look scary as
fuck to people. It’s what you do because you’re all emotionally fucked—”
“Fuck you.” Aidan’s words didn’t have any heat. He couldn’t exactly get too pissed when he knew he was emotionally fucked.
“You push everyone away. Except her. She clung to you, and I thought she pulled away from me, and I love you, man, but you’re not pretty like me. You’re rough, and you don’t give a shit what people say. I’m the smooth talker, and you wanna bend a girl over and fuck her ’til she screams. It pissed me off and then—” Carson waved a hand. “It all got fucked up.”
Yeah, it did. Fucked up beyond all recognition. FUBAR.
Aidan pushed to his feet once again and stared down at Carson, his friend and his partner. The man looked so damned beaten and emotionally bruised. Fuck, now the guy had him sounding all sweet and shit.
“You done?”
“Yeah.” Carson slumped further. “Does ‘I’m sorry’ help?”
“I dunno.” Aidan shrugged. “You done acting like a big vagina?”
A low click preceded the opening of their bedroom door, panel swinging wide to expose a sheet-clad Rebecca.
“Sweetheart?” Aidan stepped toward her, avoiding the coffee table and loveseat.
“You were yelling,” she murmured, her attention leaving him—probably landing on Carson—and then returned.
“Yeah, well, your mates tend to do that,” he murmured and tugged her close. She smelled so damned sweet and clean and purely his. No, he let his gaze go to Carson. Theirs. “You’ll get used to it.”
Rebecca stiffened in his embrace, and he rubbed her back, trying to soothe the sudden tension. “Mates? With an ‘s’? As in plural?”
If Carson got any more hopeful, he’d burst, and Aidan didn’t leave the man in suspense. “Yeah, plural. If you can forgive him for being an idiot.”
She stroked his chest, drawing his attention from the other man. “The better question is whether you can.”
“Yeah. I guess I better. The wolf got pissed at the idea of anyone but him inside you. We’re stuck with him.”