Claimed by Her Panthers (11 page)

He
nodded and moved her to the front of the trolley and stood behind her to hide
the effect she had on him. Angelica giggled and wiggled her bum against his
erection then took a step, only to freeze as a cute little boy smiled at her
then came running to them.

“Miss
Deven
, I’ve never seen you shop here before. My mummy
and I shopped here every week because she says it has the best eyes candy. I
think it has the same candy as the one my dad takes me to. I’ve never seen you
in here before. Who’s the dark man holding you? I just saw him kiss you. Is he
your boyfriend or husband? That’s what my mum calls my dad. She saw you come in
with him and said something about you having great taste in men and she wished
she got to have chocolate, too. I told her it’s in the next aisle.”

Owen
could barely hold in his laughter. His body shook trying to contain it.

Angelica’s
back straightened against him.
“Hayden, what a nice
surprise.”
Angelica’s head turned from side to side. “Where is your
mother?”

Hayden
shrugged. “She ran into her friend, and she told her about you and the man
that’s behind you. I left them to come find you when they found a man they are
pretending not to follow that they call a cool drink of dark chocolate.”

Owen
couldn’t hold in his chuckle. Angelica elbowed him. “Hayden, your mum will be
worried. You shouldn’t run off on her.”

Hayden
bowed his head, and Angelica held out her hand and he took it. “Come on, we
better find your mum.”

The
three of them walked down the aisle and along the bottom until Angelica groaned,
and Owen couldn’t hold his laughter in any longer as it burst out. Before them
stood Stephan reaching up to the top shelf to a jar of food, and two women
stood behind him pretending not to stare at him.

“Yeah,
that’s the one,” one of the ladies said.

Stephan
got the jar and handed it to the lady. The other lady smiled, and a sigh
escaped her lips.

“I
want the one three down from the one you just gave Linda, please.”

Stephan
turned and did the woman’s bidding, reaching up to get a different jar.

“Mummy,
I found Miss
Deven
.” Hayden ran to the woman called
Linda, who turned pink as Stephan gave the other lady his jar.
 

Stephan
walked straight to Angelica. “Hey, cupcake, I finished earlier than I thought.”

Owen
watched as Angelica was pulled to Stephan, and she shook her head too late as
his mouth came down on hers.

“Mummy,
I thought you said only boyfriends and girlfriends or daddies and mummies did
that. Miss
Deven
kissed the other man, too. I saw
it.”

Owen
groaned as the two woman gasped. Angelica pushed at Stephan, but all he did was
let her mouth go and turn her around and wrapped his arms around her waist.
Owen debated if he should say something or let Angelica and the boy’s mother
handle this. He watched as Angelica rolled her shoulders and stood straight
against Stephan.

“Hayden,
you’re right. Owen and Stephan are my boyfriends.”

Owen
wanted to say they were more than her boyfriends, but he knew now wasn’t the
time.

“It
was nice to see you, Hayden, Mrs. Henderson. Have a good shop. We’d better get
back to it.” Angelica moved to the trolley pushing him out of the way. Stephan
followed behind her. She pushed the trolley past the gawking women. “See you at
school tomorrow, Hayden.”

When
they were back to the aisle they were up to Angelica deflated.
 
“Oh God.
What am I
going to do now? What if she says something to my school? What if what I’ve just
stated gets me fired?”

“Sweetheart,
you can’t worry about what ifs.” Owen could smell her anxiety. He leaned over
to her and brushed his lips against hers as he tucked a loose strand of hair
behind her ear. “We will be here for you no matter what.”

Angelica
sighed, walking down the aisle, grabbing food quicker than before. She paused
as they turned to go down a new food section. “This is all happening so fast. I
wish I’d had more time.”

Owen
glanced to see Stephan’s happiness diminish a little. “I thought after how
we’ve been getting along so far this week she’d know we were meant to be,” Stephan
mumbled.

Owen
followed Angelica.
“Me, too, Stephan.”
He reached
Angelica and held her to him. “This isn’t fast. We have known you all your life
and have waited for you to be ready.”

Angelica
relaxed against him. “I’m sorry.
Knee-jerk reaction.
I
know I have to stop panicking and worrying about what everybody else thinks.
But I might also remind you that you have had time to deal with this, and my
very career could now be on the line. One I have worked hard for. Plus, you may
have known me all my life, but don’t say you’ve waited for me to be ready all
that time, because you only knew I was your mate when I turned twenty-one. Now,
let’s just get this shopping done, okay?” She pushed away and straightened her
back, turning from them and walking away with the trolley.

Stephan
came up beside him. “I hate to say it, but she’s right.”

“I
know. We should have figured it out long before she turned twenty-one and our
panthers shouted it at us.” Owen ran his fingers through his hair and watched
as Angelica turned to go down another aisle. He followed and hoped that things
worked out.

Chapter Six

Stephan
had worried all day Thursday for Angelica. She’d had been so upset at the shop
and thought her being with them and it being known to her students would cause
trouble. She had brooded at home and had gone to bed before them. Stephan woke
to find the bed already empty. Owen was in a foul mood and snapped at everyone
all day. He nagged Stephan to call his parents and help smooth things over that
could arise over with Angelica being with them. Stephan gave in and phoned his
parents. They were friends with the principal at the school, and she was a
tiger Shifter. Stephan’s parents had put in a good word with the school board
on Angelica’s behalf when she’d applied for the job. He and Owen had wanted
Angelica close.
 

They
both left work early in the hopes to find out how Angelica’s day had gone.
Stephan was eager to see if his parents had helped or made it worse. However,
by the time she arrived home, it seemed all of his fears were for nothing as
Angelica had come home smiling and apologized for her cranky reaction. They’d
ordered takeout and watched a bunch of movies as though it were any other
night, and Stephan found himself, not for the first time, wondering if anything
in a mating were simple. At least things had calmed down.

It
wasn’t more than a few hours later that Stephan was cursing himself though. He
just had to go and jinx them.

The
phone rang, and he got up to answer it. Seeing it was his father, he grinned.
“Hey Dad, what’s up?”

“We
have a situation here, son.” Stephan groaned at the serious tone his father
spoke with. “I’m afraid I need you and Owen to come to the Elders immediately.”

“What?
Why?” Even as he asked, he motioned Owen over.

“I’ll
explain when you get here. Whatever you do, though, don’t bring Angelica.”

He
knew Owen had heard his father’s words because they growled at the same time.
“Is she in danger?”

“No, son.
Just get here
now,” his father growled before hanging up.

Whatever
it was, Stephan knew it couldn’t be good. His father had seemed furious about
something, and it had something to do with their mate. He cast a quick glance
over at Angelica to see her still absorbed in the movie. A shared look with
Owen,
and they both moved towards the lounge trying to
maintain an air of calm.

“Hey, cupcake.
There has been
an emergency at work, and we have to head in. Are you going to be all right
until we get back?”

Angelica
smiled. “Somehow I think I’ll manage. Is everything okay?”

“It
will be,” Owen assured her.

Thirty
minutes later Stephan found himself less than calm. In fact, he was downright
pissed. Snarling at the Elders, his father, and the fucking Vampire in front of
him, Stephan’s voice lowered in a threatening tone. “You so much as go near our
mate and I will kill you, leech!”

The
Vampire Owen had given a ride to town hissed at them, his eyes glowing red. “I
could scent her for myself. She is my mate, not yours. I demand that she be
brought here at once.”

Stephan
was going out of his mind. This filthy bloodsucker thought he could come here
and try to claim their mate. They would shred him before he even thought he had
a chance.

“We
aren’t letting you anywhere near her,” Owen bit out.

“Enough!”
shouted one of their Elders. When he was assured that he had their attention,
he continued. “Gentlemen, this will be easy enough to sort out. Owen, Stephan,
you will bring the young woman in question to the Elder council where, under
our supervision, she will be allowed to interact with all of you.”

“No,”
Owen growled.

“It
is not your choice. Not until your claim is either proved, or disproved, cub.”
The Elder sent them a censoring look. Refusing an Elder’s judgment was not
something one did lightly.

“Then
I guess we will see then,”
Draken
said smugly.

Oh,
that leech was going down.

****

The
trip home was silent between them as both he and Owen absorbed what had just
taken place. A Vampire had attempted to lay claim to their mate, and now the
Elders were forcing them to bring her to the bastard to find out the truth.
There had been words thrown around like fairness and maintaining the treaty,
but Stephan didn’t care. They would follow the Elders’ edict, and if that vamp
still tried to take what was theirs, he wouldn’t live for very long.

Letting
themselves in, they headed straight for the bedroom, knowing that was where
they would find their mate. Stephan knew the need to stake their claim ran
through his best friend as well. His breath caught at the sight of Angelica,
spread out in their bed. She looked like a fallen angel.

He
lifted the sheet and got in the bed naked and felt that Angelica had on only a
silk slip of a nighty, no panties. “Fuck, Owen, she’s only got a slip on.”
Stephan ran his hands up and down her legs and massaged her arse.

Angelica
moaned. “
Mmm
, you’re back. Did the emergency at work
get sorted out?”

Stephan
nibbled at her neck sucking on the tip of her earlobe. Angelica shivered, and
he moved from her so he could stare into her eyes. “Not really, the Vampire you
and Owen brought here the other day still hasn’t left and is refusing to. He
says his mate is here. He thinks it’s you, but we told him it couldn’t be.”

Angelica
pushed him away and sat up. “What do you mean he thinks it’s me? It can’t be
me. I have you two, and frankly you two are a lot to keep up with. I don’t want
or need anyone else.”

“No
one but Stephan or I will touch you, sweetheart.” Owen growled.
 

Stephan
felt the same. He wouldn’t let anyone take Angelica from them. The council of
Elders wanted to meet with Angelica and the Vampire,
Draken
.
They wanted to see how Angelica reacted to
Draken
.
Fine
.
Let them
have their proof. He and Owen didn’t need any.

“Cupcake,
don’t worry about him. We will never let anything happen to you. Tomorrow night
we’re going to take you to the council meeting area, and this will all get
straightened out.”

Angelica
nodded. “I don’t want to be with him or anyone else. From what I remember of
him the other day, he wasn’t someone I want to have anything to do with. He was
so rude and racist.”

Owen
turned her so she faced him. He kissed her and pulled away resting his forehead
against hers. “I promise you will have nothing to worry about.” Owen pulled
Angelica onto him so she straddled him. “How about Stephan and I prove why
we’re not worried. We are plenty for you.”

Stephan
grinned. He knew exactly what Owen had in mind. He turned and opened the bed
side drawers, getting the lube out. Coming back and kissing his way up Angelica’s
back he nibbled on her neck and hovered over her ear. “Owen and I are going to
take you at the same time. He’s going to fuck your pussy while I pump into your
arse. It’s going to feel so good.”

“Oh God.”
Angelica leaned
back against him, and Owen was sucking on her breast and his fingers were
playing with her pussy.

Stephan
got the lube putting a generous amount on his fingers. Spreading the lube
around her puckered hole, he circled her and inched his index finger into her,
slowly easing the lube inside her and getting her used to his invasion. “Has
anyone ever taken you here?”