Taken: True Mates Book 2 (BBW Wolf Shifter Romance) (A Craggstone Paranormal Romance) (7 page)

I felt sick. It was like I couldn’t get the stench of him out of my nose, my vivid memories coming equipped with full sensory detail.

“I can protect her,” my brother stated quietly, but firmly, from his lounging position in the chair. He had been quiet up until now. I knew it wasn’t through deference, or being overwhelmed by the company — no, Luis liked to watch, get a feel for things and assess. Luis was easily underestimated by those who didn’t know him. But, he was next in line to be the Alpha of our pride — that is, if our father ever accepted him for who he is.

“No offense, Luis — I know you
will
protect your sister, but she was taken from my land —
from my own damn house
— so I want one of my lieutenants to ensure that does not happen again.” James ended on a growl, anger vibrating through him. “And Sean, you are the best qualified. The most
invested
. Do
not
let anything happen to her.” He shot Sean a warning glance, his voice carrying the power of an Alpha.

Sean stiffened. “
Nothing
will happen to her—”

I’d had enough. “Hey! I’m right here! And, I can look after myself.” I shot a sideways glance at Sean. Nope, still not looking at me.

Kara laughed, flashing me a friendly grin from her place on James’s lap. “Don’t take offense — they’re always like this. All alpha-male-I’ve-gotta-take-care-of-the-little-woman—” she smirked when James opened his mouth to object, “—well, you are! But, I know your heart’s in the right place, so I let it be.” Her words were muffled as James silenced her with a kiss.

Not wanting to stare, I looked over at Luis. He shrugged, his expression seeming to say ‘what you gonna do?’

Claire, Macey, and Cole had left the room at some point during the conversation, and Amanda and Tarq were in a corner, locked in what looked to be a heated debate. That just left Oliver, who had not spoken since I had first met him. The strong, silent type, he seemed to blend into the background, so much so that you sometimes forgot he was there.

“What about Oliver?” I blurted out. Maybe some distance would do Sean and me some good? Make the heart grow fonder?

“No way.” Sean vehemently ground out.

Oliver just smiled, obviously taking no offense. He looked at me, his brows raised in question. He was a good-looking man, tall and muscular, with a wide upper body that looked like he could bench-press small cars. Long blonde hair, secured at the nape of his neck, and close cut stubble on his square jaw. The ‘biker-crossed-with-a-surfer-dude’ look was completed with a pair of piercing blue eyes. Yup, he was a looker, that’s for sure. But my heart didn’t skip, didn’t go pitter-patter, when I looked at him.

I flicked my eyes to Sean, who was watching my perusal of Oliver silently.
Thud!
My heart lurched in my chest. That was that, then.

“Okay…Sean, then,” I said slowly, watching as Sean’s expression changed from one of satisfaction, to one of delightful confusion, as he tried to figure out how the hell he had volunteered for the job. Gotcha, I thought smugly. Round one to me.

“Right,” James said slowly, unsuccessfully trying to hide his smirk. “Oliver, you stay here, guard the pack and the house. Kara and I will go with Amanda and Tarq to secure Smithrock, we’ll return as soon as they are in place. Macey and Cole have already set off to find our missing coyote pup. Lisa, Sean and Luis will guard you—” he held a hand off to stave off any outcries, “—until this is all resolved — you are in danger, Lisa. So, put up with it.”

“It won’t be for long, Lisa,” Kara added, regret on her face. “Then, we can catch up properly. Maybe have a night out!”

It was James’s turn to stiffen, as he turned to Kara. “Night out?” he muttered, terror on his face.

“Yeah, silly. Just because we’re mated doesn’t mean…”

“Maybe you need reminding of just
why
it’s a good reason to stay at home…”

“Well, if you’re twisting my arm…” She shrieked as James jumped to his feet. Carrying her easily in his arms, he strode out of the room, lustful determination on his face.

Her shrieks trailed off, leaving the room in silence. Oliver, his studious expression blank, gestured that he was leaving and followed them out.

That left just Luis, Sean, and me. Awkward! I shuffled in my seat. I hadn’t engineered this — well, not much anyway, but I didn’t have the first clue how to go about fixing things. I sighed heavily. Why couldn’t life be simple? Fun?

“Well, this is great and all, but I think I’ll take second shift. See you guys in a few hours,” Luis called, hightailing it out of the door with a wink.

Traitor! I growled at his retreating back.

Just me and Sean now. I took a deep breath.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Lisa

“Why didn’t you say?” His low voice shocked me so much I wobbled on my perch.

“S—Say what? Which thing?” I muttered the last under my breath.

He huffed, marching over to the couch and throwing himself onto it. The delicate frame creaked ominously, but held under his weight. “Doesn’t matter. Now, if you’re going to continue to sit there, I think I’ll get a little shut-eye.” His tone was bored as he shut his eyes, linking his hands behind his head for a pillow.

His t-shirt had crept up with the stretch, revealing a strip of mouthwatering ripped abs. My eyes drank in the sight, widening as he shuffled in the seat, trying to get more comfortable on the ridiculously small piece of furniture, and his jeans rode lower… A thin line of dark hair trailed down his lower stomach, dragging my eyes past his hip bones, past the perfect ‘V’ and halting at his waistband. This was the area on a man that made women go weak at the knees, the soft flesh framed by hips, where the abs joined and curved in, leading down…my eyes flicked past his waistband…

“See something you like?”

At his low growl, my eyes darted back to his face. His eyes were closed, but his face was tense, strain bracketing his lips.

I wet my dry lips, my breathing harsh and ragged in the silent room. Was he guessing?

“Why’d you stop?”

Huh, wasn’t guessing then.

“I’ve been thinking,” he continued on a growl, eyes still closed, “this whole you’re-already-mated thing…If it doesn’t bother you, then maybe it shouldn’t bother me.”

Hallelujah! A breakthrough. My pulse skyrocketed as I rapidly searched my mind for what to say. I was never lost for words — this was a new one for me.

“I mean, why not fuck? Your mate obviously doesn’t mean shit to you, and if I’ve got to protect you, why not reap some benefit?”

What the fuck? I felt like I had just been slapped, and hard. My mouth fell open in shock as what he was implying registered.

His eyes flicked open, pinning me with a dark stare. “So, what do you say? Shall we fuck?” he growled. His gaze roamed over me, devouring me.

Outrage erupting inside of me, I leapt off the window sill, marching over to where he reclined, relaxed and regarding me with an amused expression on his smug, handsome face. “I do
not
want to fuck—”

“Yes. You do.”

He had me there. I could lie, but I didn’t lie — not if I could help it. I threw my arms in the air in frustration. “Okay…I do. But, not like
this!”

He lurched to sitting, closing the gap between us, his long torso bringing him nearly to my height, his legs swinging around to encase mine. “Like what? Like two people who want each other so badly, it’s driving them crazy? What would happen? Why would it be so bad?” he demanded, his face inches away from my chest, puffs of breath scorching against my skin.

“Because…” my resolve wavered, the sight of him sitting there, inches away, looking up at me with lust etched on to his face. It
would
be—

“Because—?” he echoed, tilting his head in question.

At that angle all I had to do was lean down a fraction. I hesitated, every cell in my body screaming for him, the warmth that I had felt.

“Because—?”
he prompted again, his hands coming up and cupping my hips, then reaching around and cupping my behind. Strong fingers smoothed my skin, molding and caressing. “Why would it be so bad? We’d both get what we want—”

The lust induced fog lifted. That was it —
what I wanted
. Not this, a mindless fuck with no consequences, no sharing beyond that of the flesh. I wanted this man. But, I wanted it all. Every last piece of him — heart, body and soul.

“Not what I want.” I murmured, capturing his face in my hands, forcing him to look at me.
Really
look at me. “I want you—”

“You can have me—” he interrupted.

“Not like this. I’m your mate — I want you,
all
of you.”

He froze, his hands hovering over my behind, eyes beseeching me to stop.

“You wouldn’t want me…not if you knew,” he murmured, his voice rough with emotion.

“I would. I do,” I whispered, my thumb tracing the scar on his cheek, the roughness jarring in contrast with his smooth skin.

“But, you don’t know. And, you belong to another. Let’s not forget that.” His voice was bitter, his eyes accusing.

“I was given to another—”

“Given?”

I nodded, sending thanks to the Mother that he was listening — for once.

“My father, the Alpha, arranged my mating when I was young — to align two prides and stop the fighting.”

Sean reluctantly nodded his understanding. “Old fashioned, but some packs — sorry, prides — still hold to the old ways.”

“I didn’t mind at first, it was what I had been brought up believing was right.” I tried for a light hearted shrug, failing miserably. “It would have been okay. I didn’t need Ian to love me. Just like and respect — that’s all I wanted.”

“What happened? What did he do?” Sean growled protectively, his hands resuming their position on my backside, and pulling me closer.

I could feel his protectiveness weakly through the bond. “He had already found his mate. He only went through with the arrangement for the good of his pride. That was okay too, she was nice…”

A rumbling in Sean’s chest spurred me on.

“…but, it didn’t work out. He…threw me out.” Not quite the full story, but enough.
For now.

“What about you? Why don’t you like your wolf?”

His eyes flashed liquid gold, his wolf peering out at me, before being forced back under control. Sean swallowed visibly. “There’s nothing to say. Nothing that can be changed. I wish things were different, but I don’t have it in me to offer you. I thought I did. Before I met you, all I ever wanted was to find my mate. But…I can’t. I know that now.”

I could see regret on his face, resignation to a fate that didn’t include me.

“I don’t understand. Whatever it is, we can figure it out. Find a way to make it work. Just give us a chance!” I pleaded. I reached for the bond again, nearly stumbling when I felt his raw pain thrumming through the fragile link.

He flinched from me, his jaw set. “You just don’t get it — I’m broken. Destroyed, ruined, dangerous — however you want to call it. You can’t fix me. How could you?
You
are part of the problem!”

“
Me
?” I whispered.

“Yeah, you. Don’t talk about fixing me, not when you’ve got some fixing of yourself to do first.” He never raised his voice, keeping it tightly under control.

He liked to keep everything under control. Including me, I realized with a start. He had neatly put me in a box labeled ‘untouchable’, allowing him to step back and pretend he was being honorable.

“Yeah, I get it, sugar. Coming through loud and clear…” I whispered, now knowing what I had to do. Step one — fix my little problem of being mated, step two — force Sean to confront his. And, he
was
going to share with me whatever the hell was up with him. No excuses — even if I had to pin him down and tickle it out of him. I choked back a giggle, finding it hard to imagine in-control-Sean ever allowing something as fun and frivolous as tickling.

Well, he obviously hadn’t met a
real
woman on a mission before. Expecting me to lie down, roll over, and do his bidding. Jeez, caveman much?

“Lisa…” he warned, a ‘man-this-is-too-good-to-be-true-what-the-hell-is-she-playing-at’ expression on his face. My favorite I decided, one he would be wearing often, once we were mated. I smothered another giggle. Time to run rings around my dark-bad-boy-beta, keep him on his toes and guessing. Wear down those impenetrable walls of his.

“I’m going upstairs. I think I need…” I wracked my brain, “…another shower.” I looked down at his hands that were still wrapped around my ass, cocking an eyebrow in question.

Flushing, he quickly dropped his hands as though they had been burned.

I continued, lacing my words with a honeyed drawl, “You might want to knock before you enter — since I’ll be all…naked…wet…slippery…from the shower.”

‘Shower’
he mouthed silently with me, his mouth dropping open slightly. He blinked as his eyes lost focus, a shudder rippling through him.