Claiming Her Mate (4 page)

Next went his jeans, and then he too was nude. He held his arms open and she didn’t hesitate to step into them. Resting her head against his pectoral muscles, she could hear the strong, steady beat of his heart right beneath her ear. He slowly moved his hands down her arms and gripped her arse, making her moan.

She couldn’t help but press herself against him. His erection pulsed against her belly and she felt wetness slide over her skin from his cockhead. Evan dipped his head to capture her mouth. He kissed her, pulling her more forcibly toward him. They moved as one toward the bed, never breaking the kiss. She felt the mattress hit the back of her legs and let gravity and his body take her down. The silk comforter was like water against her body and she arched her back. Breasts thrust forward, Evan didn’t wait to latch his mouth onto one. Summer gasped as pleasure sizzled through her. “Oh God, Evan. Yes.”

His mouth on her nipple, sucking, drawing the blood to the surface, drove her mad. His teeth tugged at the swollen flesh until it bordered on painful. Her tiger scratched at the surface, Summer speared her hands through his hair and pulled him closer.

When he finally broke away from her, he sat between her legs. He placed his hands on her inner thighs, so close to her heat she could feel the tips of his thumbs tease her lips.

“I can’t believe we’ve waited so long.” He covered her body with his and sucked her bottom lip into his mouth. She felt him reach for something, smiling when he sat back, a condom in hand. While it was true shifters couldn’t catch or transmit any diseases, she was very capable of becoming pregnant, and they weren’t ready for that. Watching him roll on the latex, she laid there, anticipation racing through her. When he finally returned to her, his large, bulking frame covering hers, she sighed.

Summer drew in a shaky breath when the thick head of his cock pressed against her pussy. He gently started to push into her body and her body greedily sucked at the bulbous head, trying to draw it in deeper. He was so big, so thick, Summer could feel him stretching her, filling her. The pain was there, but the agonizing pleasure far outweighed it.

“Fuck, Summer. I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything so tight.” Evan’s coarse language inflamed her and she lifted her hips to take more of him. The movement caused him to slide further into her, her wetness making it easier. He stopped halfway through, and when he swore under his breath, she knew he came against her hymen. “God, honey?”

“Do it, Evan. Please.” He groaned once before he reared back and gripped her hips tight. With one swift move he buried himself to the hilt inside of her. The feeling of his balls slapping against her arse didn’t distract her from the burning pain she felt when he claimed her innocence. Summer squeezed her eyes shut, her pussy clenched tightly around his cock. With every spasm her inner muscles made, Evan moaned in response.

“Are you okay? Tell me you're okay.”

She nodded because she couldn’t find her voice. Summer wrapped her arms around him and kissed his neck. He started to move then, pulling his hips back and then thrusting forward. Every time he thrust back into her she could feel her pussy stretch. It was like nothing she had ever felt before. Faster and faster he went, never relenting no matter how loud she cried out, no matter how hard the bed shook.

Her mate was claiming her so thoroughly, and she loved it.

Another mind-blowing climax approached and she breathed hard against his neck, begging him for it harder, faster, and rougher. She clawed at his back, and continued to cry out because it felt so good.

He pounded into her like a madman, holding her hips so tight she knew if she were human there would be bruises in the morning. The sound of wet sex, of her pussy sucking at his cock, drove her to the brink of madness and she came hard. Wet flesh slapped together and filled her ears.

When she heard him cry out, deep and long, she knew he was about to come. He clutched her to his chest and slipped his hand between them to rub her clit with swift flicks. “One more time, honey. Come for me once more.”

That was all it took, his talented fingers and his gruff, erotic words send her over the edge once more. Summer couldn’t catch her breath, couldn’t think as agony and ecstasy became one. Unable to hold back, she allowed her canine teeth to drop down and pierced them into her mate’s flesh, moaning as she felt their bond snap into place. He tensed above her and let out a long, loud groan before his cock jerked inside of her and he filled the condom with cum. She felt as if sparks were literally flying between them, searing her very soul. His orgasm seemed to go on and on but when he was finally spent, they both collapsed onto the bed, breathing heavily.

Summer retracted her teeth, giving a long, slow lick across the puncture marks to close them. Her head dropped back to the pillow and she couldn’t keep her eyes open, but she was still aware that Evan was buried in her. She fell asleep that way, her mate inside her, his arms wrapped around her. The last thing she heard before she fell into the void of sleep, was something she had never thought she would hear. “I love you, Summer.”

Evan jerked awake, frowning as he wondered what had woken him. A loud thumping at his front door answered his unasked question.

Careful not to jostle a sleeping Summer, he slipped out from beneath the sheets and searched for some pants. Not bothering with a shirt, he quickly made his way toward the sound of the pounding, cursing under his breath. Summer needed her sleep. Between what had happened just after the party, and then their following mating, the last thing she needed was to be awoken by someone who didn’t know proper etiquette.

He reached for the knob, almost tripping over Ally who was pacing in front of the door. “Who the hel—”

Evan came to an abrupt stop when after opening up, he was faced with not just one of Summer’s brothers, but two, and their father. Not for the first time he was taken aback by how similar they all were. Dark chocolate hair, honey-gold eyes, and frigging huge. Built like linebackers, these men oozed power, and their fair share of danger. Evan was in no way small, but these men had a way of making him feel as if he a little house cat compared to them. Summer and Ella on the other hand, had the same hair and eyes as the male members of their family, yet there was always something tamer, gentler about them. With these men, he wasn’t sure who he found more intimidating, their father, Richard, or the Alpha, Sage.

“Ah, gentlemen?”
Nice way to impress the in-laws
,
dumbarse
.

He flinched when Sage noticeably sniffed the air and let out a fierce growl. “Where is she?”

Straightening his spine, Evan cleared his throat. “I assume you’re talking about Summer, and she is asleep.”

“In your bed?” Sage sneered.

Richard stood behind his son, his face expressionless, however it was Chase’s that annoyed him the most. The smirk that played openly on his lips made Evan want to launch forward and smack it off.

“Yes, in my bed,” Evan answered, meeting the Alpha’s gaze head on. He wasn’t about to let this man think he could treat the little human anyway he wanted. If Evan wanted a place at Summer’s side, he had to at least stand up to her family, right?

Sage simply raised a brow. “We need to speak to her.”

“Like I said, she is sleeping,” he said as calmly as possible. “If you want to come in and wait for her to wake, then you’re welcome to.”

Sage took the invitation by sidestepping him and entering his house. Sighing, Evan gestured for the other two men to follow as he led them to the kitchen. If he was up, he may as well make coffee.

On the counter still sat the coffees he had made the night before. He smiled when he remembered why they hadn’t been finished. Hell, they had barely been touched. Pouring them down the sink, he set about preparing new ones for them and their unexpected guests.

Grabbing the milk from the fridge, he was taken by surprise when a hand clamped down on his arm and wrenched him around. “What the hell?”

“What the hell is right,” Sage snarled. “Why do you have a mating bite?”

Evan’s mouth opened and closed as he tried to find the words to tell the Alpha that he had mated his younger sister, but he was saved by a deep growl. “Because he’s my mate, and brother or not—Alpha or not, I will hurt you if you don’t let go.”

Summer stood only meters away from them in a pair of his old sweats and a t-shirt, looking ready to pounce. Damn, she looked hot in his clothes. A very basic, primal part of him wanted to prowl over there and stake his claim so her brothers and father knew exactly who she belonged to now. He had never felt anything like it. Maybe that was all part and a parcel of mating a tiger shifter.

“Summer?” Sage frowned in confusion. “How the hell could he be your mate? You’ve known him since you were a bloody child. Surely you would have sensed it when you turned eighteen.”

Her eyes darted from her brother to Evan and back again. He could see the emotions warring inside of her. Tugging his arm out of a stunned Sage’s hold, he walked over to Summer, wrapping her in his arms.

“It’s my fault,” he murmured as he held her tighter.

“Explain,” Sage demanded.

Evan knew he wasn’t ordering him as the Alpha, but as a concerned older brother. He stared down into the bottomless honey-gold orbs that belonged to his mate, his heart skipping a beat at the realization that Summer was actually his. “My actions led her to believe that if I knew I was her mate, then I would feel obligated to mate with her. I fought my attraction to her so hard, that she thought I wouldn't willing choose her.”

Her father, who had been unusually quiet up until that point, finally spoke. “So what’s changed, son?”

He felt the tension running through Summer. “Dad—”

Richard cut his daughter off. “It’s an honest question, sweetheart. I mean nothing behind it, I am just curious, as are your brothers. Up until last night he barely acknowledged you, and now, today you are mated.”

“That’s not true.”

All eyes turned to Chase, and he scoffed. “Oh, for the love of God, are you all that dense? I mean, I love you, Dad, Sage. There are no two people I respect more in the world, but that respect is taking a canning right now. Can you honestly tell me you never saw the way he looked at her? Could you not smell the lust, desire, even love he felt for her? Because I could, every damn time I was around him.” Chase grinned at him and chuckled. “Don’t get me wrong, at first I wanted to ring your neck, dude. That was my little sister you were eyeballing. Then I noticed the way she looked at you...with so much longing, it actually broke my heart.”

“Chase?” Summer whispered softly.

“I knew what he was to you.” He gave her a sad smile. “I knew he would eventually pull his head out of his arse. You just had to be patient. When I saw how jealous he was last night I thought, finally.”

“Why do you seem so sad about that?” Summer frowned at her brother.

“Because I was having fun poking at him last night,” Chase said, dipping his head in Evan’s direction. “Instead of paying attention to that slime ball, or letting Evan race after you like he wanted to, I took the time to have a little fun with him. If I had just had you cut straight to the point, or had been paying more attention to Brad’s behaviour…”

“No, Chase. Don’t,” Summer whispered. “Brad barely touched me. Yes, he drugged me, and the fact there are drugs out there that can affect shifters like it did to me, scares the hell out of me. But the worst of it came from him pushing me down the stairs.” Evan’s heart sped up when she turned her gaze on him. So much trust and love shone back it was nearly enough to bring him to his knees. “Besides, my mate came for me. Evan stopped Brad from following through with whatever he had planned.”

“Do you understand what that plan must have been?” Sage asked her, his jaw clenching with the fear and fury he obviously felt. “Christ, he’s still out there, Summer. Do you know what he had planned for you?”

“I can guess,” she said calmly, her eyes never leaving his. “I just don’t want to focus on that.”

“Ah Christ,” Sage muttered, pushing a hand roughly through his hair. “Well, Brad is still out there. We lost his scent just near the border of our territory.”

The dark look that crossed the Alpha’s features set off alarm bells for Evan. “What does that mean?”

“Aidan.”

That one word held a lot of meaning if you were to go by the reactions of the other people in the room. All it did for Evan was serve as a reminder that he wasn’t part of their world, not really. How was he supposed to protect Summer against something, if he didn’t even fully understand it?

“Who the hell is Aidan?” he asked when Sage didn’t continue.

“He’s the Alpha of the neighboring Pine Cove Pride,” Summer answered, her tone grave. “The man is trouble. Always trying to invade our territory, launching sneak attacks. He was behind an incident a few years ago that ended with the death of two of our members.”

“I remember that.” Evan had been the one to handle the victims' wills and the placement of their young children. That had been the hardest part. Being there when they had told the children their mum and dad weren’t coming home. Thankfully Sage and the Pride had stepped in and had a couple take the children in. With no family, things could have gone bad, but he supposed that was the whole point behind a Pride. Summer had said earlier, when that girl, Tessa, arrives she won’t be alone. Perhaps if he hadn’t been so pigheaded, they would have helped him with caring for Amber too.

“What’s wrong?” Summer asked, a small frown of concern on her face.

“Nothing,” he said, giving her a smile. “Just realizing how stubborn I am.”

Three snorts registered from the other men in the room. Evan glared at them. “What?”

“You only just working that out, are you?” Chase drawled, the irritating smirk back on his features.

Arse.
“Well, we have more pressing issues to deal with than my personality flaws,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. “How do we find Bradley? What are we going to do about this other Alpha’s possible involvement? And more importantly, how am I going to protect Summer from a shifter who is clearly more powerful than me?”

“We’re searching for him. The fact he went running straight to Aidan's territory after the attack suggests he’s been in contact with the other Alpha before now, otherwise he wouldn’t have risked it,” Richard surmised, his gaze darting between Evan and Summer. “We need to find out the connection and move from there. Your brother has called for a meeting tonight. Every member of the Pride will be there. Including the two of you.”

Evan tried to hide the panic that spiked through him when he thought of having to confront the Pride. While he had dealt with members on a one-on-one basis, that in no way prepared him for the judgement he would be facing tonight.

A growl from the Alpha abruptly pulled Evan out of those negative thoughts.

“I feel like there is something we’re missing though.” The signs of frustration showed clearly on Sage’s face. “I can’t help feeling like it has something to do with that damn prophesy that has been hang over our heads.”

“Ah, the prophesy?” Now he was really lost.

Groans erupted through the room, but it was Summer who answered. “Thousands of years ago, a Seer foretold of a time where our kind, White Tigers, would be near extinction. Which is now. We are it, those of us in the room.”

He could practically feel the tension vibrating in the air. “I’m guessing that’s not all she said?”

“No.” Summer looked to her family and then back to him. “That was the moment she announced that fate was changing her rules, which paranormals would be finding their mates outside of their species. It was also when she told everyone that children would be born to the last of the White Tigers. Half-breed children who would be more powerful than anything the world had ever seen. Extraordinary in their talents and abilities.”

“But?” Because there was always a but.

“But...there would be a great evil that would seek to stop that from happening. A power that gains its strength from the ignorance of humans and the separation of the paranormals. And they’ll stop at nothing to prevent the birth and survival of these children.”

“Christ,” he breathed. “Is this for real? I mean, I know shifters and all kinds of paranormals exist, but is there any stock in this prophesy?”

“We honestly don’t know.” The grim expression Sage wore didn’t fill Evan with much confidence. “But if it is, then our children will be hunted.”

An odd look flitted over Summer’s features. “What?” His nerves were frayed even further when Summer bit her lip, her gaze darting to her family and then back to him. “Summer. Honey?”

“I don’t really know how to bring this up, except to just say it,” she mumbled. “But you’re not entirely human.”

“What?” Chase choked out. “Since when?”

“He didn’t know, I swear.” Summer stared at Sage, and Evan could see the begging, pleading in her eyes. “I saw the mark last night, but he had no idea what it was...and still doesn’t.”

None of this made any sense to him, and his frustration began to build. “Know what? What do you mean I’m not human, and what mark are you talking about?”

Even as he said the words, images filtered in from the night before. Summer’s reaction to his weird birthmark on his hip, the strange questions she asked. What had she said?

That mark, Evan, there on your hip
.
Have you always had it?

“What am I?” his voice shook at the end, the birthmark suddenly feeling like a brand on his skin.

The silence was deafening, Evan could hear the blood pumping through his veins, his heart picking up pace. If someone didn’t answer him soon, he may just lose it.

Evan jumped when Richard stood and walked over to him. Ever so slowly, the older man laid a hand gently on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, son. I always assumed you knew.”

“Knew what?” Evan bit out.

Richard sighed. “Your maternal grandmother was a witch, your mother a half-breed.”

Spots began to fill Evan’s vision, the edges dimming slightly. His panting was loud to his own ears when solid arms wrapped around his waist and he felt himself being dragged somewhere.

“Evan. Please, Evan. I need you to breathe slowly,” Summer begged.

Her hands, so warm and soft on him drew him back, the sound of her voice like a light at the end of the tunnel.

“I’m okay.” Evan dropped his head into his hands, elbows resting on his thighs. “Well, not really, but I’ll be okay.”

“I’m so sorry. I was going to say something, and then things got carried away so—”

Evan pressed his finger to her lips, silencing her babbling. “I know. You tried, I just wasn’t paying attention.”

“Are you okay, son?”

Evan peered up at Richard. “Why was I never told? What does this mean for us? I have so many questions I don’t even really know where to start.”

Richard nodded in understanding. “We honestly thought you knew, Evan. Your parents knew, even though it seemed to have skipped yours and your mother’s generations.” He held up his hand before Evan could speak. “Before you ask, no, we don’t know why, but it sometimes happens when human DNA is added to the mix. Your mother carried the gene, as do you, you just lack the abilities that go with it. I must say, I am a little concerned that you knew none of this.”