Claiming Emma [Novikov Clan 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (7 page)

Rinsing her off, he picked her up and wrapped her in a towel. It was hard to maneuver her body and a towel, but Chayton managed to do just that, and get her tucked into bed without any problems. He stared down at her plump lips and leaned down, brushing his against hers just once before shutting the lights off.

His phone started to buzz on the counter, and Chayton took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself for the conversation with his brothers. They called almost every night, wanting him to bring her back. So far, he had refused, making up plenty of excuses. He was running out of time. Soon they would lose patience and come searching for them. At that point, he was going to be screwed. The two of them would barge in and probably take her back.

Closing the bedroom door behind him on a soft click, he grabbed his phone. “Yeah.” It was hard to be irritated with his brothers when he had just had the most amazing experience of his life.

“Chayton, it’s been two weeks. How much longer?”

“I don’t know.” He wasn’t ready to take her home. He wanted to keep her all to himself, at least for a little while longer.

“We finished the background check. We know that you want to protect her, but it’s time to bring her home.” Mahkah sounded irritated.

“What do you mean? Protect her from what?” Chayton paced around the living room, wondering if he had missed something. Was Emma in danger?

“You don’t know?”

“Know what?”

“Emma was in a car accident on her twenty-first birthday. There were three women in the car, Emma, Beth, and Lindsey Steele. They had all been drinking heavily, and her cousin got a DUI. Emma’s dad is a judge, and it was reported that he wouldn’t be elected to serve another term because of Emma. She left Seattle shortly after that.”

“Oh, poor Emma. Her family turned their backs on her when she needed them most. I can’t imagine how she must’ve felt.”

“She tried to change her image by working at different places, but the damage was done. After a year, she moved to Anchorage, probably to create some distance for her family’s sake.”

“That explains a lot. I couldn’t figure out why she was in Anchorage alone, when she had family in Seattle.”

“When are you bringing her home?” Takoda asked this time. He seemed a bit calmer than Mahkah.

“When she’s ready.” He didn’t know when she would be ready, but he certainly wasn’t. He had finally claimed their mate and although he shouldn’t have done it without his brothers, he didn’t feel guilty.

“You’re acting a bit too territorial Chayton. What’s going on? Did you claim her?” Takoda lowered his voice, and Chayton had no doubt Mahkah was listening closely, waiting for an answer.

“Yes,” he said, holding his breath.

“What! Chayton, what have you done?” Chayton could hear a chair being thrown across the room. As the youngest, his job was to bring their mate home. The oldest brother, Mahkah, got the honor of claiming their mate first. “I’ve given you time, and you do this to us? Takoda and I have been waiting. She belongs to us as well.” He listened as his brother stomped out of the room.

“I know. I’m not…” He was going to say he wasn’t keeping her from them, but the truth was obvious. He was trying to keep her all to himself. He didn’t want to share her, not yet. “I’ll bring her home when she’s ready.”

“She is ready. It’s you, Chayton, that isn’t ready. If we have to drive to Anchorage, we will,” Takoda threatened. “We’re giving you time, and I’ll hold Mahkah back as long as I can, but we want to meet her. She belongs to us as well.” Takoda’s tone changed, becoming calmer, like he understood what Chayton was feeling.

Rolling his shoulders back, Chayton tried to find the right words. The last thing he wanted was a battle with his brothers. He didn’t want them driving to Anchorage. The idea infuriated him.
Why am I keeping Emma to myself?
The three of them had been waiting for their mate, and now he had her. Chayton tried to figure out what he was feeling, possessive, territorial, and the need to take care of her and protect her. He shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. All these emotions were so foreign and new.

Chayton ran a hand down his face and exhaled loudly. “I’ll talk to you later.” Clicking the
end
button, he threw his cell phone on the counter before walking back to the bedroom.

He climbed in bed with Emma and pulled her into his arms. She stirred but didn’t wake. He kissed the top of her head before closing his eyes. Things were getting too tense with his brothers. He would have to make a decision soon, or face the consequences of his actions. He wouldn’t worry about that tonight. He pulled Emma closer and breathed her in. In minutes, he was asleep.

One Month Later

Chayton had become Emma’s addiction, and she was glad that he’d moved in and embraced their relationship so easily. It was odd, though. He seemed to have a few secrets. She could tell that he was holding back, but she couldn’t say anything because she hadn’t told him all of her secrets either. When his cell phone rang late at night, her heart would stop beating. So many questions. Who were the calls from?

Every night like clockwork, they would make love and he would hold her until she fell asleep. Afterward, he would roll out of bed and tiptoe into the other room. She would wake up and wait, her heart in her throat when the phone rang. She held her breath and tried to listen as he whispered fiercely to whomever was on the other end. Emma didn’t suspect another woman. She trusted him, but the questions still remained. Who was calling and why the secrets?

Emma climbed out of bed and tiptoed to the bedroom door to lean against it, hoping to hear what Chayton was saying. She felt guilty for a minute, knowing that spying on him was wrong, but she wanted to know. The tingling feeling grew worse. Taking a deep breath, she exhaled silently, closed her eyes and listened intently.

“It’s not time. She’s not ready to come home yet.” He sounded irritated, and Emma wondered what the hell he was talking about. Was he talking to his family about her? Did they want to meet her?

“I know you’ve given me a lot of time with her.” She hated only hearing one side of the conversation. It made things so confusing. “No, don’t come here.” He sighed loudly, sounding upset, and Emma bit her lip. Maybe he didn’t want his family meeting her?

Chayton was quiet for a few minutes, and Emma wondered what her next move should be. Get back into bed and pretend to be asleep, or would it be better to just walk out of the room and confront the situation? The last thing she wanted was for Chayton to ignore his family’s wishes. Her family…Emma shook her head and stopped that thought from finishing. She wouldn’t keep him from his life. Her mind made up, Emma walked out of the room. Chayton appeared momentarily surprised but recovered quickly.

“I’ve got to go,” he said, clicking the
end
button. He placed the phone on the counter. “Did I wake you?”

“I usually wake up when you leave the room,” she whispered before sitting on the couch. Emma rubbed her arms, attempting to fight off the sudden chill she felt. Her stomach was in knots. She began folding the hem of her pajama top in an effort not to look at him.

“Every night?” he asked, and she nodded. Something flickered in his eyes for a brief second. It was gone so quickly she wondered if she’d imagined it. “I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

“Who were you talking to?”

Exhaling loudly, he shoved his fingers through his long black hair. “My brothers.”

“They want you to go back home?” He nodded but didn’t say anything. “Maybe it’s time for you to go home then.” It killed her to say that to him, but she didn’t want him ending up resenting her for it.

“I’m not going anywhere without you.” Chayton knelt down in front of her, and Emma smiled sadly.

“If you stay here, they’re just going to hate me.”

“It’s not you,” he scoffed, laughing a little. “It’s me. Trust me on this. They want you to come home with me. In fact, they would probably prefer you over me.”

“Why?”

“I’ve told you about my family. I have two dads.” She nodded. He’d told her tons of stories. Most of them were quite magical. “Those stories…they aren’t just
stories,
ciqala
.” Grabbing her hands, he stared at her, and she felt he wanted to tell her something. The look on his face was unmistakable. She saw fear in his eyes.

“Chayton, what’s wrong?” Leaning forward on the couch, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close.

“I don’t know how to tell you…” He took a deep breath and pulled her off the couch and onto his lap. “Emma, I love you.”

Her heart stuttered, and she felt his words wash over and through her like a great wave. Her nose tingled, and her eyes filled with tears. It took her a minute to form words past the lump in her throat. “I love you, too, Chayton, so much.”

* * * *

Chayton held her close, loving the way her slight weight felt cuddled on his lap. She was everything he’d hoped for his whole life. He was aware they were running out of time. Mahkah and Takoda would head to Anchorage soon, and neither would stop until they had Emma in their possession. He didn’t have many options left.

He could take Emma someplace else and start over, or he could just come clean and tell her the whole truth. Over the last month, he’d told her tons of stories, preparing her for her new life. Even though a small part wanted to keep Emma all to himself, he knew the damage would be great. His decision made, Chayton said a quick prayer hoping that Emma would understand.

Chayton pulled away and cupped her face. He could see the worry in her eyes. “Emma, my
ciqala
, you were meant to be with me and my brothers.” Her eyes widened slightly, and her mouth opened, but no words came out, so he kept talking. “As the youngest brother, my job is to find a mate and bring her home. I’ve been selfish, keeping you.”

She stared at him as if he’d lost his mind, and Chayton wasn’t sure if he should keep going. Did he tell her about being a shifter? Would that be going too far? They sat there in silence for a few minutes, and he waited to hear what she was thinking.

“I’m trying to figure out what to say to you right now without freaking out.” Her words were quiet, and he could feel his heart rate kick up. He felt shaky and sick to his stomach. “I want to understand, I really do.” Pushing away from him, she stood up, and he let her go, watching as she paced around the room. “Your job is to find a woman to share with your brothers? Do I understand that right?”

“Yes.”

“Any woman would do? That night I walked into the bar, you had decided that you wanted me to be the one to share? Why? Men don’t tell women they love them and then turn around and tell them they want her to fuck their brothers.” She looked at him, her face blank, but he could feel the hurt and anger rolling off her in waves.

“No, not any woman. You, our mate, you don’t just belong to me.”

“You keep saying
mate
. What does that even mean? I thought that was our thing, something kind of sexy, like when you call me
ciqala
.” She looked so confused, Chayton’s heart clenched. He wrapped his fingers around her biceps until she winced. His hold gentled. He didn’t realize his own strength sometimes. He had to get through to her. He refused to lose her now.

“I want to show you something. Do you trust me?” She nodded slightly, but he didn’t feel it completely. “I would never hurt you. I’ve been completely honest with you, and all the stories are true. They weren’t fairy tales to help you fall asleep.” He stood up and took off his flimsy pajama pants, and Emma arched a brow.

“I need your trust, Emma. I’m going to show you something, and I really need for you to stay calm.” She gave him a funny look but nodded.

“Okay. What do you want to show me?”

“Please, sit on the couch and don’t scream. Okay?” Again she gave him a weird look, but in the end she moved to the couch slowly and sat down, never once taking her eyes off of him.

Taking a deep breath, Chayton connected with his inner beast. As slowly as he could, he shifted right before her eyes. His eyes never left her face. Emma threw her hand over her mouth, climbing up further on the couch, backing against the wall. Her eyes were wide, full of fear, and Chayton felt his heart shatter. He couldn’t take her being afraid of him.

* * * *

Emma held in her shrieks the best she could, biting down hard on her hand. Chayton, her beautiful man was changing right before her eyes. Dark-brown hairs spread out all over his body, growing and lengthening slowly. Emma’s entire body was shaking uncontrollably. She never once looked away, even though every survival instinct she had screamed, “Run!” This couldn’t be happening. She couldn’t stop shaking her head. Denial in its purest form. How could this be? She had to be losing her mind. Maybe she was dreaming. It sure didn’t feel like a dream to Emma. It was too real and standing in her living room in the form of something other than her Chayton.

Going to the ground in front of her, Chayton’s body began to change. His bones seemed to stretch, and his skin thickened. What seemed like only seconds passed, and a giant brown bear stood still in her living room. She had no idea how big he was, but his body filled the small space, making her feel tiny. He didn’t move, didn’t approach her, and for that she was grateful. Emma stayed on top of the couch, rubbed her forehead, and wondered if she was still asleep in bed. Maybe she hadn’t woken up? That had to be it. Emma pinched herself and winced. This was no dream.