Claimed by Her Panthers (9 page)

“I
thought this was Owen’s room?” Joel asked as he came into the room with a box
behind her.

She
placed the box on the floor by the bed and turned to Stephan looking for help
to answer. “It was, Joel.”

It
took her brother a moment, and then recognition dawned. “Oh, right.”

Angelica
nodded uncomfortably, Joel’s expression mirroring the way she suddenly felt.

“Well,
it’s a good thing there is all that closet space. Angelica is going to need it.
She used our spare room to store some of her clothes. One thing I will never
understand is why she needs three different types of black jackets and over
eighty pairs of shoes.” If Joel was willing to break the ice by joking, surely
that meant he was coming around … right?

Keeping
with the jovialness, Angelica rolled her eyes at her brother. They’d had this
argument every time she brought home shopping bags with new clothes or shoes.
“I will tell you what I tell you all the time, a woman can never having too
many of one thing or similar. You never know when you may need a spare jacket or
certain type of shoe. Plus I have said this
before,
I
have four different sets of clothes, work, going out, relaxing, and everyday
wear.”

Stephan
laughed and came to her. His arms started to go around her only to pause when
her brother snorted. Angelica tensed, and Stephan dropped his arms and left the
room.

“What’s
wrong?” Her brother studied her, and Angelica made herself relax.

“Nothing, why do you ask?”
 

Joel
looked around the room then back at her. “Why did Stephan look like he was
about to hug you and he stopped? You guys aren’t second guessing this whole
mating thing, are you?”

“No,
we just didn’t want to flaunt it. Come on, we are just standing around. Let’s
get everything,” Angelica said quickly, hoping to distract from the situation
getting awkward again.

Joel
nodded at her before he walked out of the room. She took a deep breath in and
slowly let it out before leaving her new room herself to find that the cars had
been almost all unpacked.

“I
have everything in our back empty spare room. I thought that way you won’t have
boxes everywhere getting in the way while you unpack, and either I or Stephan
can in bring the box you want when you’re ready.”
 

 
Angelica smiled up at Owen. “That’s a great
idea.”
 
Wrapping her arms around him she
hugged him. For a moment she closed her eyes and breathed in his woodsy
masculine smell. When she opened her eyes Angelica stepped back under the
weight of her brother’s gaze. “Thanks for the help, Joel. It’s pretty much all
done.”

“Well,
if that’s the case.” He raised his eyebrow at Owen and Stephan. “I say we leave
her to unpack for a while and we go down to the pub for a beer?”

Angelica
felt her heart rate pick up, and she turned her back on her brother pretending
to have a good look around as she gathered herself. What did he have planned?
What did he have to say to Owen and Stephan that he couldn’t say in front of
her?

“Sounds
good to me,” Owen said, winking at her. “It’s been a long week.”

Angelica
turned back around. Owen’s gaze penetrated her to the core, and she knew as
soon as they got back she’d be naked and riding them until she fell asleep
exhausted.

“I’m
in. Let me just give Angelica her house key in case she decides to head out.”
Stephan went back down the hall and came back seconds later with three keys.
“The gold is the front door. The silver is the back door, and the bronze is the
sliding door. You have our number, cupcake, if you need anything.” Stephan’s
fingers lingered as he dropped the keys into her open palm.
 
  

“Um,
cool. Have fun. I’ll see you next weekend, Joel.” Angelica watched as her
brother, Owen, and Stephan left, leaving her in her new house all alone.
     

****

They
all sat with their beer at the pub they’d been to together a million times, but
Stephan could feel the tension between Joel and them.

“I’m
going to cut to the chase. I miss my sister, and as pissed as I am with you
guys … I
kinda
miss you, too. It’s a lot to take in,
and I feel like we need to clear the air between us separately first, which is
why I didn’t wait for next week’s dinner. I don’t want things to be tense for
Angelica.”

“Neither
do
we
, man.” Stephan sighed. “We never did.”

“I’ve
just spent so long protecting her from all of this.” Joel raked a hand roughly
through his hair. “Now all of a sudden, my sister finds out Shifters are real,
and then she’s moving in with two Shifters who I have been friends with for
almost all of my life. She went from not knowing a thing and being safe, to
fully submerged. Does she know about what else is out there? What she is truly
getting into?”

Owen
groaned. “Yeah, she found out the other day.” He held his hand up to stop Joel
when the man turned red. “No, she wasn’t in any danger. We wouldn’t keep that
from you. She met a Vampire under
controlled
circumstances.”

Joel
glared at them both. “
Which is exactly the kind of thing I
wanted to avoid.
I don’t want her near some damn leech.”

“We
weren’t fond of it either, but, Joel, do you really think that was the first
time she had come into contact with one?” Owen asked. Stephan admitted Owen had
a point. Just because she hadn’t known they existed, didn’t mean she had never
met one before. Hell, he and Owen frequently joked that
Jenika
was suspiciously Siren-like sometimes.

“Okay.
I’ll give you that one,” Joel begrudgingly agreed. “You guys need to understand
though. She is my baby sister. She is the only family I have. But I’m willing
to stand back and see how this all works out.”

“Thanks.
And I hope you know that even before mating your sister … she was never the
only family you had.” Stephan hoped Joel understood that. He was like a brother
to them.

Their
friend nodded but said nothing, and Stephan knew it would just take time. He
could wait. “How was your holiday? You haven’t really spoken about it.” Stephan
hoped the change of the subject would help cool the tension and
get a better conversation
flowing.

“It
went well. It’s taking me time to get back into the flow at work. I’m still on
vacation.”

He
and Owen arrived home later than they’d wanted to. Stephan was grateful he
didn’t have to work. He and Owen had swapped shifts with family members, so
they had tonight and tomorrow off to spend time with Angelica.

Stephan’s
mother had begged him to bring Angelica over, but he wanted to settle things
with Joel and Angelica to be sure they were permanent before they all went over
to his parents’. His mother was excited about one of her boys having a mate. She
already loved Angelica, so he didn’t have to worry about what his mother would
think.

As
soon as Stephan walked through the door he could see changes. Furniture had
been moved around, pictures put up, and bright throw pillows and girly
ornaments were scattered around.
 

“What
the fuck happened? We have only been gone for five or so hours max.” Owen
growled beside him.

Giggling
sounds came from the lounge room, and Stephan cringed and paused as
Jenika
spoke.

“I
say we do a purple feature wall, and when we go late night shopping on Thursday
let’s get the pink handles on stuff for the kitchen utensils.”

Angelica
laughed. “I have a feeling that wouldn’t go down well. I don’t even know how
happy they’re going to be with the changes I’ve already made.”

“It
would be funny to see them use bright girly stuff. I think they’re the most
macho men, besides your brother, I’ve ever met. I still can’t believe you’re
with them, and not one of them but both. I thought when you told me at first it
was only going to be a onetime thing. Angie, you just took a massive step
moving in with two men you’re having a relationship with. Men
that only weeks
ago you saw as friends and not even your
friends, your brother’s friends. Your brother is going to flip when you tell
him.”

Angelica
sighed. “He already knows. Joel was pissed and I think I really hurt him, but
he is slowly coming around. He helped me moved in here, but I don’t know if
this will work out. I’m not good with relationships. I never feel anything for
the men. Before Owen and Stephan I never really felt any attraction to any man.
I thought something was wrong with me. I still find it hard to believe now that
when I look at Stephan or Owen that I missed how hot they are.”

“Aha,
they’re controlling
arseholes
, but they are gorgeous
ones.”

“I
really don’t get why you think they’re
arseholes
,
Jenika
? What have they done, besides kept men away from
me?”

Owen
winked at him. “I think we’ve heard enough, and I want to see
Jenika’s
face when she answers this.”

Stephan
walked into the lounge room with Owen beside him.
“Hi, cupcake.”
He walked to Angelica, who sat on one edge of the sofa, and leaned down
brushing his lips over hers. “I see you’ve made some changes. I’m happy you’ve
made yourself at home.”

Angelica
beamed up at him, and he knew he’d given the right answer. He stepped away as
Owen took his place and kissed her before he turned to
Jenika
with a smirk on his face.

“Hi,
Jenika
, I believe you were just about to answer why
you think Stephan and I are
arseholes
.”

“Owen,
were you and Stephan listening to our conversation?” Angelica turned a pretty
shade of pink.

Instead
of admitted they’d been listening, Stephan answered, saving Owen from the evil
stare
Jenika
was giving him. “We heard what was said
when we came in. One thing about this house the walls are thin, and sound
carries.” That wasn’t true, but since he couldn’t say to
Jenika
that his and Owen’s Shifter hearing had helped them hear every word, he thought
what he said was better.

Jenika
gaze narrowed
on him. “Well, I think keeping men away from you is a big factor. It’s reason
enough, but I also have a feeling they were the reason you didn’t get to go on
some of our big girlie trips. I think we could have convinced your brother, and
once or twice we did, remember? And then he changed his mind, and I think those
two had something to do with it. Remember
Schoolies
?
We thought it was cool that we had a private plane to ourselves. You didn’t
even care that you only got to stay the weekend, but I think these guys had do
with that, too. It’s
kinda
creepy.”

Yep,
Jenika
was right. He and Owen had talked to Joel.
Schoolies
week was a hub for the wrong kind of supernatural
people. Stephan knew the Queensland Shifters were flat out all over
Schoolies
. He and Owen had wanted Angelica safe. They’d
watched over her that weekend.
 

Stephan
looked down at Angelica, and he could see a light dawning. She knew what
Jenika
was saying was true.

“If
that makes us
arseholes
for keeping Angelica safe,
then so be it, we are
arseholes
.” Owen shrugged,
unconcerned about the trouble he was getting them into.

“You
two were the reason why I only went for the weekend at
Schoolies
?”

“Yeah,
it had to do with what you and Owen spoke about the other night.” Stephan
watched as Angelica’s forehead crinkled and her eyes narrowed on Owen. Angelica
paled when she caught on to what he meant.

They
were all quiet for a moment.
Jenika
looked among the
three of them. “I’m missing something?”

“How
could you not have said anything then? What if something had happened to one of
my friends?” Angelica stood now, and she didn’t look happy as she glared at him
and Owen.

“We
weren’t worried about them. You are ours to protect, not them.” Stephan
shouldn’t have said it, but it just came out.

“But
you didn’t know I was your mate then.”

Stephan
ran his fingers through his hair. “No. But we knew you were important to us.”

“What
are you three talking about?”
Jenika
stood with her
hands on her hips.

Angelica
chewed on her lip and looked at them unsure of what to say.

“We
have had a thing for Angelica for a while, and in our business we see all types
of nasty people.” Stephan saw
Jenika
take in his
answer and relax a bit.

“Okay,
I’ll take that … for now.”
Jenika
reached down and
grabbed her handbag.
 
“I’m going to go
home now. I’ll talk to you later, Angie. See you Friday. Don’t follow me out. I
know the way.” She hugged Angelica and walked out.