OmegaMine (19 page)

“I want an explanation from the vampire and your word that
if the shit hits the fan you’ll take care of Emory. He’s on the brink, Trey. I
can’t risk having a crazed wolf in the city.”

“Done.”

Trey’s eyes shifted to the area behind his shoulder,
alerting him into the fact that they were no longer alone. Diskant knew the
breeds of those approaching by the various beasts inside him who answered the
call, all of which were four-footed, feline predators, which he expected. When
it came to shifter breeds, two species were prominent—feline and canine. Those
were the two that held most sway in things, including snafus such as this.
Taking that into account, it was too dangerous for the birds of prey, reptiles
or scavengers to show themselves. In a hand-to-hand scuffle they didn’t bring
much to the table, and things could quickly become deadly. More than likely
they’d make an appearance later in the evening, when the crowds died down, or
appeal for a private audience.

Trey sat back and Diskant turned, keeping Pinkie seated
firmly on his lap, his hand possessively placed across the vulnerable softness
of her stomach. She fidgeted for a moment before she settled against him, so
tiny in his embrace that her head was nestled comfortably beneath his chin.

The Alpha and Betas for the New York prides entered—jaguar,
leopard, cheetah, lion, tiger, panther and lynx—identifiable by their sleek,
elegant gaits. Unlike humans, their hair wasn’t simple blonds, browns, or
blacks. They retained the same hair color as the cat they shifted into, and the
best dye job in the world could only hide their natural tresses until their
next shift. Unlike the wolves, they weren’t loud or brash. The cat shifters were
refined, cunning and arrogant. Their expensive, tailored clothing was rich and
lush, the materials intentionally chosen to allow range of movement.

One broke away from the group, taller and more distinct than
the rest and, if the feline Alphas in the vicinity were being honest, the most
powerful.

Kinsley MacGregor, a sixth-generation black panther, or if
one wanted to be technical, one of the rarest breeds of puma in the world. Of
all the feline shifters, Kinsley was the one Diskant knew and trusted most. He
was always honest, fair, and managed to keep the rest of the Alphas in line.
His raven black hair fell to his shoulders, offsetting his bright, emerald
green eyes. For a second those jeweled irises flicked to Pinkie, but very
smartly, and respectfully, turned the fuck away. Like the other cats, he was
swathed in leather from hip to toe—his being black instead of tan or
white—although his shirt was of the casual, white button-down variety.

“What news do you bring, Omega?” His accent, though faded by
the years spent in the States, was heavy. His thick, twin brows came together
as he stopped a foot away from the table, blocking out the roomful of shifters
behind him.

No sense in delaying the inevitable
.

“Shepherds are in town. They’re responsible for the missing
shifters. The bodies are down in a warehouse in Red Hook.”

Kinsley didn’t mince words or waste time. “Who’s to blame
for their visit?”

“It’s not necessary to reveal that.” Diskant kept Ava where
she was when she wriggled her lush little ass against him and tried to move.
Like this—seated in a bar amongst his pack, with his mate in his lap—he
appeared at ease with his decision. Placing her where he wanted her most—in
another, safer location—would only send out warning signals. “I’m asking you to
take my word that it’s under control.”

“Which is a roundabout way of saying it’s a wolf matter,”
Kinsley retorted wryly and nailed Emory with a seething glare. “Considering
he’s
back in town, why am I not surprised?”

“I need your backing on this,” Diskant continued as the
remaining pride members came to the table, the implication clear. All of the
cats trusted and supported Kinsley, who was older than most of them by several
hundred years. If he supported Diskant’s decision, they would quickly fall in
line. Cats weren’t as nitpicky about who got the job done, so long as it was
done to their satisfaction.

“If I give you that, I’ll expect you explain everything to
me privately.”

“I figured you would.”

Kinsley’s attention drifted to Pinkie, his appreciation
evident. The puma breed loved smaller females, the more delicate and lithe the
better. “Is this the wee lass I’ve been searching for?”

“Aye,” Diskant mocked and shifted his body, rotating Ava in
his lap until her legs dangled outside of the booth and she was gazing up at
his face with lips parted and eyes wide.

“Say hello to Kinsley MacGregor.” He lifted his hand and
cupped her jaw, brushing his thumb along her lower lip. “He spent a lot of time
trying to help me find you.”

“H-hello,” she stuttered but didn’t sever eye contact,
gazing into Diskant’s face as the heady scent of her arousal engulfed his nose.

Naturally, he reacted to the fragrant spice, cock growing
firm against her plush bottom, filling out the lush line between her rounded
cheeks until she inhaled raggedly and her eyes clouded. She pressed her head
into his hand, turning until her lips were flush against his palm. A warm, wet
lick caressed his skin, followed by another, longer swipe of her tongue.

Sexy little minx
.

He considered lifting her up, spreading her across the table
and returning the favor. What would she do if he swiped the drinks off the
surface, ripped away her clothes and went to his knees before her in front of
the entire room? Would she allow him to pleasure her in front of them? To lap away
the succulent cream of her cunt as everyone watched? Public displays cemented
the union among shifters, reinforcing the strength of their bond. The pack
would accept her with open arms at such a display, welcoming her among them as
a sister kind.

Nothing would please him more.

As if she knew exactly what he was thinking, she met his
lust-filled stare and, after a hesitation, fucking winked as if daring him to
do it.

“Pinkie,” he growled a low warning and tightened his hold.
Her breath caught and her beautiful, heavily lashed lids dipped as her pupils
flared wide, until a rim of midnight blue was all he could see.

Damn the second mark
.

Already the fire in his blood refused to abate. He could
taste her need, feel it all the way to his bones. From here on in there’d be no
stopping them. He wanted to bury his dick from crown to hilt inside her, over
and over again until neither could differentiate between the hot satin walls of
her pussy and the unrelenting slickness of his cock.

“I hate to break up your fun,” a crass and unwelcome voice
intruded, “but we didn’t come here to watch you fuck your mate.”

The luscious expression on Ava’s face evaporated, along with
the scent of her desire. She blinked rapidly as if catching herself before a
committing a serious and unforgivable fall. Her pupils readjusted until they
were tiny pinpoints and she ripped free of his palm. Turning her head, she
brought her arms to her midsection and tried to pull herself into a ball.

Diskant slowly turned away from her, furious at the embarrassment
that now blanketed eagerness. Shifters wouldn’t have taken the words so
harshly—sex was something they had a natural an itch for. His mate, however,
was human and a stranger to all of this, and the son of a bitch responsible for
her discomfort was more than conscious of that.

What Diskant wanted to do was place Ava in the seat, climb
out of the booth and put the snobby and elitist lynx in his place. None of the
shifters in the room would have done fuck-all to stop it, and it was exactly
what the rotten little prick deserved. Instead, he called on the lynx beneath
his skin, met Donovan Wright’s conceited stare and waited as their beasts
battled it out.

The flicker of indecision across the playboy’s face quickly
changed, creating a scent that every person with a keen sense of smell
recognized—fear. There were only a half-dozen lynx in New York and though
Diskant didn’t fancy himself an Alpha, he was sorely tempted to stake a claim
to the title to just to put the condescending pussy in his place.

He waited until Donovan lowered his eyes, bowed his
shoulders and assumed a submissive position before he ordered, “Apologize.”

It was a double insult, asking Donovan to apologize to a
female and a human, which made it a suitable punishment. He would be the talk
of the town once this mess with the Shepherds died down. Everyone would know
Diskant had put him in his place, and the only females who would willingly give
him a piece of ass would be those outside his pride.

There was a heavy pause before Donovan complied. “Forgive
me.”

Technically it wasn’t an apology but Ava took the higher
ground and nodded tersely.

“I realize you’re newly mated but we need answers.” Jackson,
the Alpha of the tiger pride stepped forward. His red-gold hair was offset by
strands of blond and large portions of black, each color distinctive and
vibrant. “If Shepherds are in the area, we need to be on full alert until
they’re gone.”

“I know what they want and I’m going to arrange a meeting to
give it to them.” Diskant spoke with a confidence that conflicted with his true
feelings regarding the situation. “They don’t have an interest in our city or
in saving the populace. When they have what they want, they’ll leave.”

“How certain are you of this?” Zeitgeist asked, coming in to
stand beside Jackson to create a semicircle with Donovan. The cheetah shifter’s
chin-length hair was a mixture of brown, black and blond—an odd coloring that
all the members of his pride shared.

Diskant started moving from the booth as he answered,
“Certain enough that I’m going to leave Trey to answer your questions and offer
you all a drink while I take my mate upstairs.”

Kinsley was the only obstacle in their path and didn’t move
out of the way, standing before them with his arms folded over his chest.

Diskant stopped in front of him. “I’ll be back to talk as
soon as she’s settled.”

Kinsley grinned and the look on his face screamed “lucky
fucking bastard”. He nodded and moved aside. “Don’t keep me waiting long.”

“Don’t worry.” Diskant carried Ava past the Alphas and
called over his shoulder, “It’ll be sometime before the sun comes up.”

Chapter Thirteen

Diskant made one stop to retrieve Pinkie’s belongings before
he took her to the top floor—to his own private apartment. He didn’t use it
often, only when the shit hit the fan and the pack wanted to grant him a place
he could rest and call home. That meant there were all the amenities he could
ask for and then some—including a large plasma television, a couch, loveseat,
recliner that allowed him to stretch out and a large hot tub in the bathroom.

The door wasn’t locked when he barged inside but he
rectified that problem as soon as he closed the door and tossed the bag onto
the floor. His dick hadn’t gone soft since Ava’s display at the bar and it
wouldn’t until he released inside her. This was the danger of being second
marked and wouldn’t go away until he took the final step and brought her wholly
into the bloodbond. It was a biological instinct, instilled so that mates
couldn’t put off the process for overly long.

“Wait,” Ava said as she realized his intention. “I need to
talk to you—”

He whipped her around and claimed her lips, silencing her
effectively as he started removing her clothing. The apartment was a simple and
modest layout—large living room, small kitchen and an enormous bedroom with a
king-sized bed. As he guided her past the coffee table, around a large leather
sofa, and she breached the entranceway of the bedroom, he caressed her skin,
massaging her breasts. By then her sweater was gone, her pants were unbuttoned
and she’d managed to undo the fastenings to his leathers, pop the fly to his
jeans and bare his cock.

Her hand wrapped around the turgid length and she whispered,
“I don’t understand why I want you so much.”

“It’s natural.” He forced her to let go when he bent to
remove her shoes and socks.

“For you, maybe. I’ve never been like this before.”

He slipped her socks off and lifted his head, staring up at
her. “There is no reason to be ashamed of this. Among shifters it’s entirely
natural.”

She blushed. “I know that but—”

“But nothing.” He clasped her hips, drawing her into his
lap. “What we’re feeling is special. Some unlucky bastards go lifetimes without
ever knowing what it means to share what we have together.”

“That’s just it.” She met his gaze with eyes that were
tortured and uncertain. “I don’t know anything about you really. I don’t know
who your parents are—”

“Elizabeth and Martin Black.”

“Where they live—”

“Alaska.”

“If you have brothers or sisters—”

“I have a younger brother who lives with my mother and
father.”

She shook her head. “I don’t even know how old you are.”

“Two hundred and thirty-seven.”

She gasped at the revelation but quickly recovered. “What
your likes and dislikes are. What you want in life.”

“Pinkie.” He placed the pad of his index finger over her
mouth. “There is nothing more important in this world to me than you and there
never will be. Not our children. Not the any of the packs or prides. O
nly
you
.”

She placed her hand against his cheek and her beautiful,
brushstroke brows came together. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“You can tell me anything.”

Her frown deepened and she took a deep breath, as if
building her courage.

“I can read you.” When he gave her a questioning look she
said, “In the office, after…after whatever it was that happened between us…”
She lowered her eyes. “I could feel your emotions first. I thought it was just
another side effect of what occurred that I couldn’t explain. Then I heard your
thoughts.”