The Alpha's Mate (Werewolf Romance) (17 page)

I held them close. “Hey girls.”

“Chloe, you’re okay.” Mara touched my hair as if she didn’t quite believe I was real.

“We thought you went
gone for good, that the rogue got you,” Sara said with a sniff.

“I would never leave you girls.”  I kissed them both on the forehead. “I saw your parents by the way.”

“You did?” Mara’s eyes went wide.

“They helped me tak
e down the rogue alpha. They’re heroes.”

“I wish th
ey would come back,” whispered Sara.

“Me too, sweetheart, but
, until then, I promised I would take care of you.”

“What about Grammy? She can’t be alone. She needs us.”
Sara’s brow furrowed with concern.

“Then I’ll keep an eye on her too, but you girls aren’t alone anymore. You have
me.”

“And
me,” said Jackson, his arms folding us into one big group hug. “Actually, I think you should both live here.”

“Really?” asked Mara, her voice spiraling up into an excited
squea. Tears shone bright in both girls’ eyes.

“That sounds like a great idea, doesn’t it? Welcome home, girls.
” I gave them both a big squeeze. A lightness filled my heart, like helium in a balloon, the levity a welcome change in mood after the last few days. I released the girls after one last squeeze. “Now, let me go get cleaned up.”

“I’ll make pancakes while you take a shower,” offered Jackson.

Sara clapped her hands with delight. “He makes the best pancakes,
Miss Chloe.”

“I bet he does.” I felt a brief twinge of jealous
y at being usurped in the pancake making department, but a more practical relief quickly came to the fore. If Jackson could cook, that meant I didn’t have to. Plus, he washed dishes, too. I was a lucky woman.

In the shower, I closed my eyes and let the hot water cover me. My whole body ached. My wolf stared at me with golden eyes
, silent and still. I tried to reach out to her, but couldn’t make the connection. She was there, but we’d been separated by science I didn’t understand. I didn’t know how to make it right, either.

“Damn it,” I said quietly, not wa
nting to be overheard. This was the last thing I needed. Being without my wolf would call everything into question no matter how strong I’d felt in that moment after I’d killed Ronnie. My place in the pack and my mate would be lost just because of one measly injection.

Hard as I tried to sniff them back, tears burned their way down my cheeks at the thought of going back to square one. I didn’t want to be that girl again, the nobody to no one. Weak with fear, I leaned against the shower tile and let it hold me up.

A second later, Jackson poked his head into the bathroom. I quickly straightened up and made a show of washing my hair, hoping he wouldn’t see or smell my distress.

“The pancakes are done, babe. You hungry?”

My stomach growled at the mention of food. It’d been a lifetime since I’d eaten. “I’ll be right there.” I tried to sound cheerful, but couldn’t keep a small warble out of my voice.

If Jackson noticed, he didn’t let on. Maybe he was giving me space. Maybe I’d earned a small breakdown.

“Don’t take too long or the girls will eat your share.” He shut the door and left me alone.

I quickly finished my shower
, stubbornly refusing to cry anymore. I was strong, I reminded myself. Even if I never shifted again, I was no weakling. I’d done right by my pack and my mate. That would have to be enough.
That might be all you have
, said a small voice in my head, one I swiftly told to shut up.

Wearing
a pair of yoga pants and one of Jackson’s t-shirts, I padded, barefoot, out to the dining room and joined everyone at the table. They’d started eating without me, but I caught up in no time. Jackson really did make awesome pancakes. They practically melted on my tongue.

We passed the rest of the evening playing charades, purposely avoiding serious topics until the girls went to bed.
I was grateful for the reprieve anyway, I needed a break from all the drama. Once they were tucked in, Jackson poured us both a shot of whiskey and we snuggled on the couch.

“How are you doing?” He asked.

“I don’t know, Jacks.” I rested my head on his shoulder. “It’s been a hell of a day. How are you?”

“Numb, I think.” He kissed the top of my head. “I can’t believe Kelsey would do that.”

“I know.”

“My pack will be so ashamed.”

“They won’t be mad that we killed her?” From what I understood, execution of wolves from other packs had to be approved by their home pack alpha first.

“No, not in this case. She’d made her bed, there’s no question she deserved to die.”

“She was like a sister to you.”

He snorted. “Apparently one I never really knew.”

“I’m sorry.” I threaded my fingers through his and gave a little squeeze.

“How’s your wolf?”

I closed my eyes and we stared at each other. She seemed to be moving more freely now, but I couldn’t feel her fur prickling under my skin or the rush of her trying to jump through. “I don’t know.” I gave a sharp almost panicked laugh. All my earlier ‘I am woman, I am strong’ resolve had begun to crumble in the face of my wolf’s continued impairment. “In the end, Vicki may be right, I might end up an Omega. A wolf too weak to shift.”

Jackson rocked me in his arms.
“Sh. Don’t say that. It’ll be okay. You just need some time to rest and recover. You might be in shock.”

“You think so?” I looked up at him and he kissed me.

“Yeah, I do.” His hand gripped my hair tight against my scalp and he buried his nose in my neck. “Chloe. Oh God. Chloe.” He almost sounded like he was crying. “I thought you were gone. I failed you. I didn’t protect you. I ignored your instincts about Kelsey. Can you ever forgive me?” He let me go and slid off the couch to kneel in front of me, head bowed.

I pulled on his hands trying to get him to come back up next to me, but he was a dead weight. “Jacks, it’s not your fau
lt. You couldn’t have known.”

“You’re my mate. If I can’t keep you safe, I wouldn’t blame you for walking away.”

My jaw dropped. Yes, I had my doubts at our moving-at-the-speed-of-light mating, but the last thing I wanted was to be alone again. “You’re my mate. No matter what. Nothing that’s happened has changed that. I love you.” I paused in shock then. I’d never said those words before.

“I love you
, too.” He returned to the couch and we resumed cuddling.

I rubbed his nose with mine. “Our first I love
yous.”

“Yeah.”

We both smiled stupidly at each other and then Jackson leaned in for a kiss so deep, I thought he would swallow me whole.

Breaking our kiss,
he stood and said, “Wait here. I have something I want to show you.”

He disappeared into our bedroom and returned a second later, hands hidden behind his back.

I raised my eyebrows. “What is it?”

Jackson didn’t answer, but came to kneel in front of me.

“Jackson? What’s going on?”

“This.” He showed me a fist and then opened it to reveal a black velvet box.

I touched the box, finger skimming the soft velvet. “Is that what I think it is?”

“Open it and see.”

Taking the box, I opened it and gasped at the beautiful ring inside. A square cut diamond flanked by sapphires twinkled at me. “It’s gorgeous.”

He grinned. “You like it.”

I nodded. “Very much.”

“I ordered it weeks ago and it just arrived.
It killed me not to tell you.” He took the box from me, and clearing his throat said, “So, Chloe Weiss, will you marry me?”

All the doubts and worries from
the last few weeks tumbled through my mind and I dismissed them one by one. Even if I never shifted again, I was wolf enough to be the alpha’s mate. Our bond could not be broken and I wanted Jackson more than ever. I belonged at his side and no place else. Sniffing back tears, I said, “Yes.”

He slipped the ring on my finger and we both looked at it for a moment.

“Wow,” I said, turning my hand this way and that and watching the diamond catch the light. “I love it.”

“It was always you, Chloe. You’
re my wolf, my love, my life.” He moved to sit beside me on the couch again and gave me scorching kiss that seemed to sear my soul. His hands traced my curves through the t-shirt I wore.

He paused, lips lifting off mine to say,
“Hey, is this my shirt?”

I nodded.
Wanting to keep his scent close, I’d picked one of his shirts to wear. It made me feel safe, like I wasn’t alone.

“I like it on you, but I like you even better without it.”
He lifted it off me and covered me himself, the heat of his chest burning into mine.

I stopped him then, thinking of the girls. “We should go
to bed.” I’d noticed the girls slept like their batteries had been removed, but, on the off chance anyone woke up, I didn’t want them to find us going at it like wererabbits. The last thing I needed after everything else, was to explain the birds-and-bees to kids who still believed in Santa.

Jackson didn’t say anything, just scooped me up and
carried me there. He set me gently on the bed.

“I won’t break,” I said.

“I know. You’re not fragile, you’re precious.” He sank into bed beside me. “You’re my heart, Clo. I can’t live without you.”

I swallowed hard as tears
pricked my eyes. That was probably the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me. “Jacks.”

He put a finger to my lips. “
Shh. Just let me love you.”

“Forever.” I sighed into
his hand. I was home. I had a mate. It finally felt real.

To start,
Jackson gave me a nice massage, using a scented oil that smelled of lavender and oranges. He rubbed the kinks out of my legs and the soreness out of my arms. Then he rolled me over and straddled my hips as he turned my back into putty. His hands touched me everywhere, imparting warmth, relaxation and, most of all, love. His feelings for me poured out through his fingers, a palpable thing that I soaked up with the massage oil.

“Oh, that feels so good,” I moaned.

“That’s what I’m aiming for.” He flipped me back over and then sank to his knees at the end of the bed. His hands wrapped around each of my feet in turn.

I was a puddle by the time he started kissing his way up my legs. He parted my legs with a gentle hand. His fingers spread my inner lips wide, exposing the sensitive nub underneath. I didn’t really pay much attention to his finger, being too lost in a massage induced
coma, but when his tongue flicked over my core, my eyes flew open.

“Oh,” I said.

He paused. “Oh, give me more or oh, stop?”

I gave a throaty laugh.
“Give me more, naturally. When have I ever said stop?”

“There’s always a first time.”
  His tongue resumed its merciless circling around my core.

My breath came out in a gasp
and my hips bounced up and down. “Well it won’t be tonight.”

I felt rather than saw the
slow grin that split his lips. “Does that mean I can have my way with you?”

I spread my legs wider.
“Please.”

His head dipped down and his tongue worked me with the precision of a machine. My hips circled and danced under him. When he latched on and sucked as he worked the tip of his tongue back and forth across the very tip of my most sensitive spot, I lost it. With a soft cry, I came.

Jackson kept his tongue firmly in place no matter how wildly I bucked. Slipping a few fingers into my wet passage, he pressed against other, more sensitive places hidden in my body. Before I knew it, a second orgasm chased the first, shuddering through me in a crashing tide.

After that
, he gave me minute to recover. Climbing up my body, he kissed me, his tongue a mix of flavors, both his and mine. His scent filled my mind and I opened my mouth wider, wanting more of him than he’d already given.

He moved to kiss and nibble
my neck with both hard and soft bites. Some would probably leave marks, but I didn’t care. My breasts, he scooped up and slowly teased the nipples into stiff points with his tongue. Once they stood at attention, he bite them too, not hard enough to mark, but hard enough to make me gasp and for my stomach to tighten.

“Jacks,” I moaned, my hands tracing his shoulders en route to bury themselves in his hair. “Oh, please.”

“Please what, baby?”

“I need you.”

“I’m going to give you everything you need and more.” He clamped his teeth around a nipple and used his tongue to thrash the tip.

I writhed underneath him, feeling empty inside.
“I want you, Jacks. Don’t make me wait.”