Of Gods and Wolves (34 page)

Oooh cake. I hadn't eaten in like, forever.

“How many Intare are there?” Thor moved into the seat Persephone vacated, distracting me from my hunger.

“
There are seventy-eight of us,” Fallon answered after looking to me for permission. Okay, so I was off by two in my estimation, still pretty close.

“
And you all live in Nyavirezi’s home?” Thor's eyes had a calculating gleam.

“
It’s now Vervain’s home but yes,” Darius took over the answering. “It’s more than large enough to house all of us.”

“
Do you all sleep in that room?” I didn’t think one giant room with everyone crashing on the floor would be very comfortable.

“
No, Tima,” Darius’ eyes went soft when he looked at me. “Don’t worry, we each have our own room. It’s a very luxurious home actually. The room she kept you in was the common room, where we gather for leisure. You have the master suite now of course but in all there are over one-hundred-twenty rooms in the palace. That doesn’t include the common room, the numerous bathrooms, the kitchen, the dining room, the fitness room, the laundry, the inner courtyard, the music room, the armory, the wine cellar, the theater, the library, the larder, and the ballroom. Outside the palace, the grasslands are ringed by mountains, nourished by a central lake, and well stocked with wild game for our hunting needs. We are very self sufficient. I hope you will lead us in a hunt soon, Tima.”

“
I don’t like the idea of hunting but I have a feeling the lioness inside me will need it,” I sighed, “So I guess I’ll take you up on that sometime.” I couldn’t stifle my yawn, what a day. Did I eat first or go straight to bed?

“
Okay, I think that’s enough for tonight,” Trevor declared. Have I mentioned how much I love that wolf? “We’ve gone over everything we need to and we’ll notify you all if anything changes. As for you two,” he turned to Darius and Fallon, “Vervain will see you tomorrow, thank you for coming.”

I nearly choked when I heard Trevor's acceptance. The boys seemed a little shocked by it too but they just nodded and came over to kiss my hand before leaving. Of course it was more of a face rub combination kiss but Trevor didn’t say anything, so neither did I. The rest of the God Squad all got up and we made our goodbyes before I raced Trevor down the hallway to our bed.

“
I really don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go alone,” Trevor watched me from the doorway as I finished applying my lipstick.

“
And I don’t think it’s a good idea to bring my werewolf boyfriend to the first meeting of Vervain’s Werelions Anonymous.” I walked past him into the bedroom and slung my purse over my shoulder.

“
You’re literally going into the lion’s den without me.” Trevor followed me out to the living room.

“
I’m safer than Daniel,” I smiled at him. “I don’t just have God on my side, I am God, or rather
their
God, er… Goddess.”

“
Great,” he sighed, “good job, you see what happens when a witch tries to reference the Bible?”

“
Hey,” I pointed my finger at him. “You got the point, and there’s nothing wrong with a witch referring to the Bible. You of all people should know that, wolf.”

“
Fine,” he grumbled, “but if you’re not home in time for supper, I’m coming after you and the fur is going to fly. Do you understand me, young lady?”

“
Yes, papa wolf,” I kissed him on the cheek and waved as I traced out.

It didn’t take me too long to find my lions. They were roaming the halls freely now that the evil lioness was dead. The lioness is dead! Long live the lioness! I approached the first guy I came across, a buff babe with dark hair cut short and dark eyes. I had to hand it to Nyavirezi; she had good taste in men.

“Hey you,” I called in my most friendly,
I’m the new boss but I’m totally cool
voice. “Do you know where Darius is?”

His eyes widened a second before he dropped to his knees and lowered his forehead to the floor. I guess my cool voice needed some work.

“Stop that,” I bent over and tapped him on the head. “Get up now, it’s a new regime in the lion kingdom… er, queendom… lionessdom. Now I'm sounding dumb.” Before I could go on, the love magic took over, flowing down the link it had already established between us and calming his anxieties.

“
Tima?” His voice was low and just as sexy as his body. He raised his eyes and met mine with a hesitant smile as he got to his feet.

Holy hot lions, Batman, didn’t I have enough temptation as it was?

“You can call me Vervain,” I patted him reassuringly. “And you are?” I know, you'd think having a magical connection would at least supply me with all of their names but it didn't seem to work like that.

“
Lucian,” he tilted his head and regarded me intently. Waiting for my next trick, looked like.

“
Do you know where Darius is, Lucian?” What the hell, did they all have names straight out of a bodice ripper novel? I guess it matched their hot physiques. Then I remembered Alfred.

“
Sure,” he fully smiled. “I’ll escort you to him if it pleases you.”

“
It would do much pleasing of the me,” I laughed but he just smiled politely and held out his arm. “Whoa, you really meant escort, huh? Okay.”

I took his arm and the boy puffed his chest out so far I was afraid he might float away. My lion balloon led me through the hallways and I was promptly lost. I hoped they didn’t turn into scary possessive lions because I wasn’t sure I could make it back to the tracing point on my own.

As we walked, we passed other lions, who dropped to the ground upon seeing me. I spent a great deal of time picking them up and telling them to lay off on the scary cult worship crap. From now on, Kool-Aid was off the menu for these boys.

By the time we found Darius, my back was starting to ache from bending over so much and I was hating Niyarvirezi all over again. Thankfully Darius didn't try to bow to me, he just waved an arm toward the patiently waiting Intare. I found myself standing on a raised dais about to address a room full of werelions.

“Okay,” I cleared my throat and looked out over the crowd.

They were all there and they were all straight out of a Chippendale review. At least they were wearing shirts with their jeans this time, some of what I’d said before must’ve sunk in. The shirts did nothing to hide their hotness though. In fact I think it actually added to it. They looked less like love slaves and more like real men. It was a little intimidating. It was a little exciting. I wanted to jump up and down and shout,
Mine, mine, mine
but that was probably highly inappropriate. And wrong, of course, very wrong.

“
Well, I guess I’m your new Tima,” I swallowed hard. They were all watching me expectantly. “I’ll try to lead you to the best of my abilities and I hope it will be good enough but I want you all to know that if for any reason, you’re not happy or there’s something I’m doing wrong, then you can come to me and we’ll work it out together. We’re supposed to be a pride right? That means we're a family now. So I want you all to think of yourselves as my brothers,” insert inward sigh here at the mass amounts of maleness that will never be mine.

There was a restless shifting as the men looked at each other in concern. The murmuring reached Darius who finally approached me.

“Tima,” he bowed at the waist and before he could say anything else, I interrupted.

“
That’s another thing actually,” I smiled brightly. “No more bowing okay? Family don’t bow to each other.” There were a couple of gasps at my announcement. “Okay, sorry Darius, go on.”

“
Tima,” he shook his head a little but he was also smiling. “If we are to consider you family, does that mean you won’t be mating with us? I'm asking on behalf of the others,” he gave me a conspiratorial wink.

I sputtered, coughed, and cleared my throat. “Yes, I thought I was pretty clear when I said I had a boyfriend, Darius. There will be no… mating going on. At least not with me.”

“So what you said the other day stands? We may take our own mates?” He had a half hidden smile but the rest of the men stared at me like… well like lions.

“
Of course,” I said firmly. “I try not to go back on my word. You may all sleep with whomever you please. As long as they’re willing,” I waved my finger at them and the murmuring turned into shouted questions. I felt like a new celebrity at my first press conference. “Whoa, whoa,” I held up my hands, “one at a time, guys.”

“
Tima, there are no lionesses in our pride,” Darius was obviously the spokesperson. “Are you saying we may mate with humans?”

“
As long as those humans want to mate with you, then yeah. Mate with whomever you like, humans, goddesses, gods, I don't judge. Do your thing.” What the hell was the big deal?

A loud cheering filled the room and I didn’t know whether to be pleased or insulted. Were they happy because they didn’t have to sleep with me? Okay, admittedly, that was a stupid thought. Damn those insecurities. How many hot gods did I need to hit on me before I got some self-confidence? I blamed it on Barbie dolls and fashion magazines as I did my best to smile at the Intare.

“You like that, huh?” I laughed a little when the cheering got louder. Then they fell to the ground all at once. Let me tell you, standing on a dais while a room full of gorgeous men fall to their knees to worship you, is not half bad. I highly recommend it. “Okay now, what did I say about that?” I waved at them futilely. “Come on you guys, get up, please.”

They slowly got to their feet and they all had similar looks of disbelief. Shit they
were
abused children, and they were expecting me to pull the rug out from under them at any second. Get abused long enough and everyone starts looking like a rug-pulling Bogeyman. Even my connection to them through the love magic couldn't erase the ingrained behavior that all those years of abuse had wrought.

“
I’m not Nyavirezi,” I said clearly, addressing them without a hint of uncertainty for the first time.

The love magic may not be able to burn away their memories but it
was
able to guide me. It knew exactly what they needed, exactly what needed to be said and done for their well-being. I didn't have to know how to lead them, the magic would show me the way.

“
I’m Vervain Lavine,” I continued and I saw the whole assemblage grow still. “There will be no fear between us, no humiliation, no abuse. Instead, I will do my best to protect you from those who would harm you. I promise to guide you and help you, if you promise to guide and help me as well. Together we can become a true pride, a real family. We can make this gift into something great, something powerful. What do you say?”

They cheered again and I found myself blinking back the tears. For the first time, I felt a sense of fate, of destiny. I wasn't struggling in the shadows anymore. I was exactly where I needed to be. No confusion, no fear, no indecision. This was something that was all mine. I would lead the Intare on my own and I wouldn’t have to worry about werewolf father-in-laws or hurting the feelings of an old boyfriend who happened to be the God of Thunder. If I made mistakes, my lions would help me through them. We would be strong together. We would be a family. No matter what else came or went, we would stand side by side through it.

We were Intare.

I stepped down from the dais and they stalked forward to surround me. They didn’t flow like the Froekn but they had their own form of grace, or rather beauty. They moved like confidant hunters, muscles bunching and limbs moving in motions you only see in cats. A rolling in the shoulders. Hips lifting at strange but sexy angles. It was graceful in the way that martial arts can be graceful. Beautiful but with an deadly undercurrent.

Lucian came forward. He took my hands in his and lifted them to his lips as he lowered his forehead to mine. It felt very formal, almost like a ritual, and a part of me recognized it instantly. Then his scent washed over me, through me really, as if it melded into my cells from where our foreheads met. The smell of him was unique, like nothing I'd ever smelled before, and I knew I could recognize him anywhere by his scent alone. I could pick him out of a crowded room blindfolded.

I realized then that he wasn't truly mine until that moment. This last step was integral. This was our true bonding. The love magic didn't hold a candle to the magic of the Intare. This was truly knowing someone on a depth that even love couldn't go. Love is a risk, an action of faith in what you believe someone to be, this was the actual knowing. I didn't need faith. From the top of his head to the soles of his feet, I knew Lucian like I knew myself, and I wondered if this was what Trevor felt, how he knew me.

As soon as I had the thought, I knew this was a different connection than what I had with Trevor, a different kind of knowing. Trevor may know me as intimately but he didn't know the way my blood flowed, my heart pumped, or my muscles clenched. He couldn't see the layers of skin, tissues, bones, and organs or stop them with a thought. I gave a small gasp and Lucian backed away so another could take his place.

I swallowed hard, my mind racing. I'd been told I could kill them but to have it displayed so clearly to me right after I committed myself to protecting them, was distressing. I pushed the thought away for a better one. If I could hurt them, maybe I could help them as well. It was worth looking into. Later. Right now I had to focus on the rest of my lions.

By the time I got to Aidan, I was riding high on a cloud of kitty pheromones. I smiled at him brightly and placed my hands in his. Our foreheads met and my scent index made a new entry labeled: Aidan. Instead of pulling away though, he angled his face so we connected one more time.

I heard the lions make a low warning growl and knew Aidan was pushing things. Like his lips to mine. I felt his hands slide up my back as his tongue slid against my mouth. I reacted automatically; I pulled back and slapped him.

Aidan barely moved, he even continued to hold me, but his eyes heated. Not with anger but with lust. I guess it’s true, you never forget the first woman who slaps you. I raised an eyebrow and he smiled seductively. When I tried to pull away, he held tight and dropped to his knees.

“
My apologies, Tima,” he bowed his head but quickly looked back up at me. The lions settled a little as power was reestablished and part of me wondered if it had been a test. “I just wanted a taste.”

“
No tasting the Tima,” I wagged my finger at him as I finally extricated myself from his grip. “You’re a free lion now,” I motioned with my hand. “Go find yourself another woman to taste.”

“
I have a feeling,” he said as he stood, “that none will be quite as sweet.”

“
I’m sure you can find plenty of sweet women,” Darius growled from my left, and Fallon took a place on my right. Aidan moved away as the pair took my hands and I was immediately comforted by their gallantry.

I knew I could trust them all, that every single one of those men would die for me in a heartbeat. I knew what kind of men they were, who was honorable and who was playful but there is a difference between getting to know someone and instantly knowing them through magic.

I knew the type of men they were but I didn't know what their pasts were, the things that had made them into those men. I didn't have the history with them that would make us friends. That would take time. For now though, it was enough to know them by blood and by magic. It was enough to be able to feel their hearts connected to mine, beating in time with mine.