by Dara Fraser
“Yes, Granny.”
Leo walked over and kissed Samantha on the cheek before she was tugged out the back door by her granny-in-law. Was that such a thing? Eh, Samantha didn’t care, she was claiming his whole family as hers either which way.
The sun began to set by the time Sybil, who now insisted she be called Granny, called it quits. Time and time again, she pushed Samantha until her powers surfaced. By the twenty-some-odd time, Samantha was exhausted but could feel herself starting to own her power. She could find it at will and pull it back with ease. Unfortunately, she still wasn’t sure how much control she had over it when she let her emotions get the best of her, and that was her real worry. She never wanted her power to be used in anger or frustration.
“You did amazing today, dear. Better than most alphas do in months, and you have only been at it for hours.” Granny led them back into the house and from the smell, the coffee was brewing, which was perfect because she needed it. Training with Granny had been exhausting.
“Why didn’t I know I had this power? It is so strong running through me now, yet I had no clue before.” That had been bugging her from the moment she saw Granny cower, but controlling things took priority. Her lack of control scared her more than her curiosity was piqued.
“I was in my sixties before I first felt my power. Somehow it shows itself when we need it and that was when I needed mine.”
“Didn’t Leo say you had a knack for helping make that happen?”
“I do, but if you weren’t ready, nothing I would have done would have made a difference. Come, you are wanted inside.”
“Thanks. Will you help me again tomorrow?”
“No, tomorrow is for other things.” Granny opened the door. “Your mate will need you tomorrow.”
“That sounds ominous.” The last thing Samantha wanted was more surprises.
“Not ominous, just eavesdropping. I heard Leo telling the men they were training with you tomorrow.”
“Missed that,” Samantha mumbled as she walked into the kitchen to be greeted by a hot mug of coffee handed to her by an even hotter man.
“Thanks.”
“Thought you could use it. Granny was training you pretty hard.”
“She did, but I think I’m getting the hang of it.” She took a sip of the coffee and it was twice as good as it smelled.
“You have a very powerful and wise mate, Grandson. You should be very proud.”
“I am.” His arm wrapped around her from behind. She was home. Now if only they could defeat the Theron and help Mindy’s family, all would be perfect.
“Good.” Granny gathered up the rabbit she had prepared earlier. “I was hoping for a lift to Zara’s on the way to your meeting. I’ll meet you at the truck.”
Samantha put her coffee down on the counter to the side of her and turned in her mate’s arms until she could see his face. “What time is the meeting?”
“About five minutes ago.”
“Why are we still here? You could’ve gotten me sooner.” He bent down and kissed her before she could continue. She knew what he was doing but didn’t care. His lips on hers made all things right, if only for a moment.
“Because you needed time with Granny, the elders need to learn patience, and because I needed to kiss you. Do you have any idea how hard it was to be in here with you so close but not touching you?” He kissed her again, the question apparently rhetorical.
They were only twenty minutes late when they finally arrived. The term “elder” had led her to believe she would be in a room of old men. Instead, she was greeted by men and women of all ages. If her senses were correct, there were at least ten different kinds of shifters present and one vampire.
As they walked to the front of the room, hand in hand, each person lowered their head as they passed. She hadn’t noticed them doing that to Leo while they were in town, with the exception of Mindy.
“I would like to introduce you to my mate, Samantha.” Smiles filled the room and while their welcome was a silent one, it was warm and put her at ease. She gave a little wave, unsure of the protocol in such situations.
“Alpha, may I?” An older gentleman in the front row was speaking. If she were to guess, he was one of the lions Leo had mentioned earlier.
“Richard.”
“Your mate, she is more.” The way he said more left a bitter taste in her mouth.
“She is.” Leo simply agreed with him and ignored the intonation. “She is much more. The fates looked favorable upon me and this pack when they sent her to me.”
Richard didn’t seem to like that answer. Whatever trouble he was trying to rile up would have to wait for another day however. While officially introducing was nice and all, she knew the real reason for this meeting had to do with the Aldric pack.
“As amazing a gift as Samantha is, she is not why I called a meeting of the elders. On Thursday we will come face-to-face with the Aldric pack under less than ideal circumstances and we need to be prepared. I already called the protectors and am meeting with them tomorrow to go over a plan of action.”
Samantha looked around the room, the tension strong. The Aldric pack must be even worse than she had imagined. And paired with seeing Mindy be, well Mindy, they seemed pretty awful.
“I am asking the female elders to be prepared to help at least two women. There might also be a mate and young so best be prepared for that as well.” Leo turned toward a motherly figure who Samantha sensed wolf from. “Martha, can you arrange that?”
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Thank you. I will give you more details as I have them. For right now, I know very little.” Leo turned towards Richard, who Samantha now called Dick in her mind because, well, she could. “Any questions?” It was directed at all, but Samantha knew that Leo looked at Dick because he was going to be a pest about things.
“Why are we acting if we are in the dark?” Asshat. Something about him rubbed her the wrong way.
“Because it is the right thing to do.”
Dick raised his hand.
“Yes?”
“How do you know?” Dick needed a slap and she needed to calm down. Why was he ruffling her feathers so?
“Because Frank left us a message.”
Dick’s hand went up again.
“Will you quit second-guessing your alpha already?” Her power flowed and she reigned it back in but not before he bared his neck to her and begged forgiveness. Her training was clearly not over if she couldn’t handle a meeting. Samantha looked to Leo, hoping she didn’t manage to screw this whole thing up.
His eyes sparkled. “I may have forgotten to mention, Samantha is a Unicorn. The last of the Emmerich line, as a matter of fact.”
There were gasps followed by the oldest of the group, including Dick, lowering their heads. She may have grown up in the dark about all things political, but they seemed to know exactly who she was.
“So I’m thinking we’re done here. I will call another meeting when the time is right. As for now, we are off to get pie.”
He led her out the door before anyone had a chance to ask a question or even move.
“Pie?”
“Why yes, I was hankering for a piece of pie and they want to get to know you, so pie it is.”
“So, is this like our mating reception?” They were already approaching the diner. Small towns were great that way.
“I hadn’t thought of it that way but maybe.”
“So much for the wooing.” She leaned into him as they continued to walk the short distance.
“Eh, I got the girl already.” He ribbed just as well as she did. Life was good.
“Sorry I got all bitchy on Dick at your meeting.” She wasn’t sorry for putting him in his place, but losing control and showing her power in that way was not ideal.
“Dick?”
“Well he is.” Truth.
“That he is, and no need to apologize. It was a handy way for them to know who you are and to cut the meeting short. I really d
o want pie.”
“That’s not what I was hoping for my dessert.” She so did enjoy flirting with her mate. Probably too much because now all she could think about was them…alone…naked.
She heard a roar forming in his chest before he pushed it back down. It looked like his thoughts went to the same exact place.
“I was hoping for both.” His voice was laced with lust. They were never going to make it to the diner at this rate. She was going to ravish him out here, on the main street for all the elders to see. Pheromones, it turned out, didn’t get better after mating. At least in her case. They seemed to multiply and steal her willpower simultaneously.
“At the same time?” She was back to full-on flirting.
She was now flush against a building, her mate pressed against her his lips ever so close to hers.
“You’re killin’ me.”
She closed the distance between their lips, and all of the heat she had felt during their mating hit her head-on. If it weren’t for the bell of the diner door and the sound of the people walking out, she probably would have tried to strip him bare for all the world to see.
“One piece,” Leo said as he pushed himself back from the wall. He looked her up and down, allowing his gaze to stop at her breasts. “Screw it, a half piece and not a bite more.” He walked into the diner, leaving her there. Thank goodness, because if he had looked at her that way one second longer, she would have been begging for him to take her home that instant. Not that they would have made it all the way home first.
“Samantha?” She turned to see Dick. Well, there went her lust.
“Yes.” She put on her sweetest voice, but she stunk at hiding her emotions. He had to know she was still not a fan of his.
“So the stories, they are true?” He seemed less dick-like and more childlike in that question.
“Which stories?”
“The ones about the Lion and the Unicorn, ma’am…Alpha…what do I call you?”
“Samantha, please and yes, it looks like they are.” His eyes lit with something she couldn’t quite place.
“I apologize for questioning your mate.”
“And I apologize for calling you Dick.” She felt guilty for her childlike internal monologue after his apology. It sounded sincere and gave her none of the rotten taste in her mouth he had when speaking at the meeting. Granny had told her she could taste a lie, but it wasn’t a lie she was tasting, it was his own bitterness. He was probably more to be pitied than scorned.
“I must have missed that.” He looked a bit confused. “I can see why you would call me that. I have been acting that way.”
“To be fair, I was saying it in my head.” He nodded in understanding. “Why were you acting like that?”
“That is a long story and one I will be happy to share with you one day.” She wanted to know more but now saw frailty in him. “Let’s just leave it as I’m a bitter old man who lost his mate to the Theron and took it out on the clan, especially the alpha.”
“What has changed?”
“You. You are here and that means the stories are true, and while it will never bring my mate back, it will give me peace.”
She put her hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Pie, Richard?” she offered as they walked toward the diner.
“Pie sounds perfect.”
The diner was packed. In her lust, followed by her encounter with Richard, she missed how many people had showed up. At least sixty people were packed into this tiny restaurant. The waitresses were not frazzled as she would have expected. Instead, they had just slapped the pies on the counters with plates and pitchers of water and iced tea, creating a serve-yourself counter.
“You did great out there.” Leo handed her a piece of pie. “I snagged you a banana before it was all gone.”
“Thanks. So it looks like the wooing is still on.” She took a bite of pie. It was just as good as she had remembered.
“Oh yeah. There will be wooing aplenty.”
“People seem happy.” She had prepared herself to be swarmed by people, but instead, everyone was just standing around, eating pie, chatting, and from the looks of it, having an amazing time.
“They are. They have been wanting me to find my mate and then when I did, I hit the jackpot. Plus, there is pie.”
“Can’t forget the pie.” She looked down at her plate. One more bite should do it. “Oh no, look at this. My pie, it is half gone. I think we have to go.” She put on her best faux pout.
“What a pity.” He had the plate out of her hand and on the counter before he finished the sentence. “Sorry, we need to go everyone. Tomorrow is a busy day and all.” The door was not even shut before they heard the chuckles from the crowd. Everyone knew why they were leaving and she was oddly fine with that.
“Samantha, I want you to know upfront, you can say no to this.” From the lust dancing in his eyes, she knew that was not going to be an issue, but she nodded anyway. “I want to stash our stuff in the car and run home.”
“Fine by me.” He grabbed her hand and practically jogged back to the truck. “Umm, Leo. I feel like I am missing a piece of the puzzle here.”
He kissed her cheek. She threw her bag and shoes into the car and began to take off her shirt. It made sense that he parked in the back by the woods now. He had this planned all along.
“You better get undressed quickly because the second you transform, you need to step lively.”
“Oh, I see the game, mate oh mine. You want a chase.” She stood on her toes and gave him a kiss that would probably be considered X-rated by most. She knew she wasn’t playing fair, but a chase is a chase. As she took a step back and he caught his breath, she transformed and ran with all that she had. She could get new clothes tomorrow. Tonight she needed the edge. The laughter behind her turned into a roar. It was on.
Unlike Leo, she didn’t plan on any fancy false leads. She hoped her ability to maintain her speed over long distances paired with her head start would be enough. She loved to run, and she hit the river in much better time than she had hoped for. If she were to guess, there was only a mile left before she made it to the house. She hadn’t felt him yet, but knowing her mate, he was probably masking himself from her. As she hit the clearing behind the house, she saw her lion waiting to pounce and gave up, transforming back into her human form.
“You know, that was a bit like cheating.” He was still a lion, but his voice was loud and clear. “Getting me…” He was now human and very naked, stalking in her direction. “All worked up with a kiss before running off like that.”
“It was, but I outran you, so my guess is you used a shortcut to your advantage.”
“I may have.” They were now a hare’s breath apart and it was too far, if you asked her opinion.
“So who won?”
“I’m thinking we both did.” He leaned in and kissed her, beginning his night-long proof that they had in fact both won.
Chapter Twenty-One
Escape plans
Samantha wasn’t sure what all she expected when they arrived at town hall for their planning meeting with the protectors. Town Hall was the first part that shocked her. In her mind, they were all going to meet in a clearing in the wood and train, like in far too many novels she had devoured over the years. Her overprotective childhood held many wonderful memories and she wouldn’t trade it for anything, but in many ways it left her feeling unprepared for the life that was now ahead of her.
The crowd in the room was chatty when they entered, very unlike the meeting of the elders. A quick survey of the room told that things had changed since the meeting they had with the elders the night before. Instead of a room full of protectors, it was packed with what appeared to be mated pairs, including her very pregnant sister-in-law with her mate Dylan standing at the front of the room.
“Not what I was expecting.” She squeezed her mate’s hand, needing the connection. They had spent until the wee hours of the morning “connecting,” but it wasn’t enough an
d she wasn’t sure it ever would be. Not that Samantha was complaining.
Me, neither. This time, when he spoke, she knew it was in her head. It was very different than when he “talked” in his lion form, and she put it on her to-do list to see if she could manage to make the communication two way. Just play along, though, because if I’m reading things right, this has Zara written all over it, and I don’t want to deal with her defiance in front of others today. Imagine her retaliation on that.
He wasn’t wrong. Zara had just as strong an alpha gene as her brother. Not to mention, messing with a pregnant lion could never be listed as a good idea.
“Beta.” They had reached the front of the room and Leo’s alpha voice came through loud and clear. It was showtime.
“Alpha.” Dylan gave a quick sideways glance to his mate that she doubted anyone else but she and Leo would have noticed. He was quick to give up his mate, and as overprotective as he was, Samantha figured it was either in good ribbing fun or pride.
“Sister.”
Zara met Leo’s eyes and held them. Oh, this was going to be fun. “Alpha.” Her voice was formal but cracked just the tiniest bit. “All has been arranged as you asked.”
Samantha could taste the lie and assumed Leo could as well.
“A full report, then.” Leo gave her the rope, but it felt more like he was giving it to her to help pull her out of a mess than to hang herself.
“You were right that bringing all of our protectors into a quilt show would cause the humans to be uncomfortable, and we really don’t want the Aldric pack to suspect we were up to something. When I talked to the woman who helped create the town’s quilt, they immediately agreed, as you knew they would, to bring their mates to serve as protectors for the day.” Damn, Zara was more than a syrup-drinking, mischief-causing, computer genius.
Looking around the room, that accounted for most but not all of the people there. There were a few elderly women and some twenty-something-year-old men. “Some of the quilters don’t have mates, so their ‘grandsons’”—Zara made air quotes and pointed to the younger group of men—“who, coincidentally, are your strongest protectors, volunteered to take their ‘grannies’ to the show.” Zara’s eyes sparkled and Samantha couldn’t quite tell if it was a dare for her brother to call her out or an “I told you so,” but either way, Leo’s shoulders stood a bit firmer. He was proud.