Kane's Mate (Armageddon Mates) (10 page)

He pinched her nipple and nipped her shoulder. She moaned out a laugh.

“So you think I’m stuffy and old? Ha! I’ll show you, us old guys have the best stamina.”

Chapter 8

Kane awoke to Arden yelling, “I’m back. Done with all my babysitting, so stop your fun. Mum and Dad said they could hear you from their house.”

Faith pulled the cover over her head and whispered, “Please tell me he’s joking.”

Kane chuckled and kissed her forehead. “Yes, I think.”

She smacked him on the chest.

Kane tickled her, pulling the covers off. “Come on, princess, the real world calls.”

She crawled out of bed, pulling jeans and a singlet on. He shoved on jeans of his own, then picked her up and took her to the kitchen where he sat her down next to her brother who started talking before he even let his hand fall away.

“Hey sis, Arden took me to the shops. I got lots of things. He said it was better if I went with him so I didn’t get stuck with you two lovebirds.”

Faith smiled, walked over, and kissed Arden’s cheek. “Thanks for taking him. I love you for it.”

Kane growled. “Hey, no kissing anyone but me.”

“I’m starving. What are we going to do for dinner? I would cook, but there’s nothing in the fridge or cupboards until I shop.” Faith glared at Kane whilst she said that.

Arden came to his rescue. “Well, you’re going to love me even more because amongst all that, I bought Indian food.”

She kissed Arden’s cheek again. “Oh, you’re so right, I love you a thousand times more now.”

She sorted through the bags until she found what she was looking for. “Dish me out some while I put all Bengie’s new stuff in the washing machine. Come on, Bengie, tell me all about your day while they heat and dish out.”

As soon as she was out of hearing distance Arden asked, “Did you get to talk to Faith? I gave you plenty of time to talk, not do the nasty the whole time.”

“We talked.”

Arden raised his eyebrow.

“Well, I was going to talk, but she attacked me this morning.”

Arden raised his eyebrow again.

“What! Don’t look at me like that.” Memories of earlier assaulted him as he groaned. “She did attack me. I tried to fight her, but she’s evil.”

Arden laughed. “You’re a grown man who’s scared to talk to his five foot nothing woman. You’re a doctor for Christ’s sake. What do you do at work when one of the nurses come up to you batting her eyelashes and pouts to get you to do something?”

Kane ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “Trust me, if she only did that maybe I could have resisted her, but with her in heat and her being my mate I...”

“She’s in what?”

Kane swore. Fuck, he hadn’t wanted Arden to know. “Yeah, she went into heat, but don’t say anything yet. I haven’t had a chance to tell her. I don’t know how she will react and…”

Faith walked back into hearing distance. Kane glanced at Arden, silently pleading for him to keep quiet. His brother gave a slight nod as an answer. Thinking he was in the clear, at least for now, Kane relaxed.

Halfway through dinner Arden asked, “Faith, what are you going to do about your friend coming to see you in what…five days?”

Faith choked on her food. “Shit, with everything that’s been going on I forgot. We’re just good friends. I’m sure when I tell him what has happened he’ll understand. I’m not the only reason he’s coming.” Kane was ready to rip the guy apart, so he almost missed when Faith whispered softly, “It’s not like we had sex or anything.”

This time Arden choked on his food.

Kane smiled until Bengie piped up. “Arden said you have to go back to work. Who’s going to take care of Faith then?”

Kane was about to answer when Faith glared at him.

“I can take care of you and myself. I don’t need a babysitter.” She rolled her eyes as she said the last bit. “Don’t worry, Bengie, I’m going to be busy tomorrow looking for a job and practicing controlling my visions.”

Kane tried not to frown. He didn’t like her holding off her visions. He knew for a fact she got bad migraines when she tried to do that. He forced a smile. “Princess, you don’t have to hold off your visions. I know that gives you migraines. And I earn plenty of money. Why don’t you just stay home and help the pack?”

“I love my job, and I want to work.”

“I prefer that you didn’t. Actually, I insist you not work right now. It’s too dangerous, and it’s not necessary.”

Arden groaned, deliberately kicking Kane under the table, but it was too late. Faith gave him a death stare.

“I can do what, Dr. Wolfen? Stay home, be a good little mate, help the pack, live off your plenty of money,
really
.” The last word was screeched.

Arden stood up quickly. “Hey Ben, how about we go show my mum all we got today? She was asking me to bring you round.”

Bengie didn’t get a chance to respond before Arden dragged him out of the house.

As soon as they were out of the door Faith turned on Kane and glared at him.

“So, Kane, is that what you want in a mate? Is that what you think you need, what you think I need, or are you just making a suggestion?”

Fuck, what was he supposed to say? “The other women I’ve been with just wanted to stay at home, spend money, go out to fundraisers, and have fancy parties.”

Faith gaped opened-mouthed at him by the time he ended. She pulled herself up straight to her full height of five foot three, shut her mouth, turned, and started to walk away.

“Why are you walking away?”

She whirled around, her fists clenched, giving Kane a look that if looks could kill he would be dead.

“I didn’t realize I’m one of your ‘other women’. I really thought you knew a little bit about me. I may not have spoken to you in four years, but for ten years you were in my life, you would save me from the dragon, get Jamie and Devlin to scare the boys who picked on me, you let me cry on your shoulder, you knew most of my secrets. For Christ’s sake, you even let me trick you into being my dance partner for ballroom dancing. My God, even in the four years we didn’t talk I know you asked about me. Sometimes I felt, knew, you were outside the front door, listening. Waiting, knowing I would leave as soon as you came in. Now all of a sudden you don’t know me at all. No wonder I left the frigging country to get over you. Well, that’s how it started out. Then I started to enjoy myself, my independence, I guess that’s why I stayed so long. The last two months before I came home I was having fewer visions. I had heard you were with a woman and it was serious. There was even talk you were going to mate her, so I thought it was safe to come home.” She smiled a bitter smile. “Stupid me, I haven’t even asked where this woman is that your brothers talked about. You would think with me being a psychic I would know, but no, anything to do with you I rarely got a glimpse or feeling of.”

Kane winced. He debated whether he should tell her everything. “We lied, made her up. We all thought if you thought I was settled, distracted with a mate, you would come home. Everyone started to worry when you started dating.” He growled. “Then you started talking about Brett.”

“Brad,” Faith corrected.

“How you really liked him, that there could be something between you and him, so that’s when my brothers told you I was going to mate the woman. You booked your flight home right after you were told that.”

He looked down at her now. Tears streamed down her face, and he used his thumb to wipe them away.

“I could never have another mate because there has always, is always going to be you. I’m so sorry we deceived you, but we…
I
needed you home with me. I couldn’t stand the emptiness anymore. I missed when you would call me just to tell me what one of my goofball brothers had done or what you had done that day.” He moved her over to the lounge and placed her on his lap. “Do you know my brothers stopped calling me when they figured out I was the reason you weren’t coming home? Please don’t be angry, you don’t have to come to the parties or functions. I love you, I want you to be happy.” Kane kissed her lips lightly, hugging her close.

* * * *

Faith couldn’t believe all she had just been told. She should be angry that they had tricked her into coming home, but how could she be anything but filled with love after that confession?

“I don’t mind going to some parties or fundraisers. I love you. I want you to be happy too. I’m not thrilled you all tricked me, but I know it was done with good intentions.”

They sat for a while just hugging, snuggling, and talking about old times.

Bengie came in later yelling, “Arden’s in the car. He said Jamie’s going to come around tomorrow to play video games with me and help you find a job.” He stopped yelling when he came upon them. He smiled. “I got a new game, Star Wars.” He ran to his room saying, “I’m going to go play it.”

Kane kissed her. “He’s so big I’m scared to think what’s going to happen when he hits puberty.”

Faith laughed.

* * * *

The next morning came way too early. At six o’clock the alarm went off, and Faith groaned. “Noooo, don’t take away my heater, the best pillow ever.”

Kane chuckled. “I’m glad to know I’m needed for something.”

Faith snuggled into his chest.

“Princess, I would love to spend another day with you, but we’re swamped at work. I already had five days off, people pulling doubles for me, I’m going to owe some favors.”

Faith groaned again, clinging to him harder for a second. “Go.” She clung to him a moment or two longer, then reluctantly let him go.

Kane kissed her lips. “I love waking up to you on top of me. I think I found my little piece of heaven.”

Faith smiled and pushed Kane away. “Go to work.”

Faith fell back to sleep and woke a couple of hours later to loud whispers.

“She’s had a busy couple of days, let her sleep.”

“But she wanted to be up early so she could call about jobs.”

Faith put the pillow over her face, moaning. She pulled it off and yelled, “I’m up. Give me ten to fifteen minutes.”

Twenty-five minutes later, she was ringing around for a job and faxing resumes. She practiced calling up a vision then later calling up one and holding it off. By late afternoon she had a job at the after school care she’d worked at for six months before she left the country. They wanted her to start tomorrow. Faith was so excited about getting a job she went out to get groceries so she could cook a celebration dinner—roast chicken, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, and pumpkin. She was even going to make a chocolate cake.

Jamie came in as she was putting the chicken in the oven.

“Are we celebrating something?”

“Several things, actually, like Kane and I becoming mates, me having a brother, and me getting a job.”

Jamie grinned. “That’s great, but I still think I would have made a better mate for you.”

Faith smiled. “You know I love you, Jamie, but I’m not in love with you. That kiss we had was nice but nothing sparked. Trust me, you’re going to love your mate, all my werewolves are.”

Jamie stared at her as she walked away.

* * * *

Kane loved his job, but today had felt like a whole week of days rolled into one. He couldn’t wait to get home to Faith. He’d had to take off his watch so he stopped counting down the hour, minutes, and seconds before he could go home. He’d even turned down a double shift, which he never did. His work mates were shocked, but Kane was determined to be home by six o’clock at the latest. As he was getting ready to leave a close friend and colleague, Dr. Jerome Stark, came up behind him.

“I just heard the funniest thing—you’re not pulling a double. Are you sick?” He made a show of touching Kane’s forehead.

Kane chuckled. “No, I just want to get home.”

Jerome’s brows furrowed as he shook his head. “The nurses said you’ve been acting weird. What’s up? You hate going home. To quote what you said last week, ‘to a big, empty house’.”

Kane grinned. “It’s not empty anymore.”

Jerome sighed. “Please don’t tell me you sold that ginormous, beautiful house, because I know for a fact you built that house for someone you call princess.”

Kane frowned, he didn’t know he had mentioned Faith. “I said that?”

“A couple of times, although after saying it you shook your head and corrected yourself by saying you’d built it for your future wife.”

Kane was shocked. “Oh, I didn’t sell it. My princess is in it. I mat...married her.”

Jerome nodded, then yelled when the last of what he’d said sunk in. “What! You married the princess, the one you’re always talking about?”

Kane suppressed a growl at Jerome. “I do not always talk about her. In fact, I didn’t even know I did talk about her.”

Jerome laughed. “Well, you do. It’s odd, I don’t even think you realize you’re doing it.”

“She came back from overseas. I kind of didn’t give her a chance to say no to me.”

Jerome smiled. “Go home, I’ll cover you if they need you for anything.”

“Thanks, buddy. I owe you one.”

“Yeah, yeah. You know, one of these days I’m going to find out her real name.”

Kane laughed as he headed for his car.

* * * *

As soon as Kane opened his car door, the sweet aroma of a roast dinner hit him. He rushed inside to find Jamie and Bengie playing video games. He walked to the kitchen to see the most delectable sight—Faith’s lush arse sticking out of the oven as she turned potatoes and added garlic bread.

Without saying a word, she shut the oven, turned, and jumped up on him, wrapping her legs around him. She bit his earlobe and whispered, “You’re early.”

He groaned as she sealed her lips over his. Her hands came up to tug on his hair, and he moved his hands down to cup her arse, kneading it. Faith moaned into his mouth, kissing him like she hadn’t seen him in days. They broke away, panting, when the oven timer went off.

She whispered in his ear what she had on underneath her clothes. “I have a matching black lace set on. Wanna guess if it’s got bows?”

He growled through clenched teeth as she moved away from his arms back to the oven.