Thomas (6 page)

He disappeared just as Thomas was
reaching for his mother again to have her please hurry. Her mother
and father came into the room just as his mom entered by the door.
Thomas had to hold tightly onto his temper when her mother started
barking orders at everyone, including him. Finally, it was Hannah
who took control as soon as she entered the room. Misha just stood
back and let her take charge.

“
Sit down and shut the
fuck up. I don’t know what planet you’re from, but here we do not
tell a man what to do in his own home.” Linyah’s father stood up,
and Misha moved to stand behind Hannah. As soon as he sat back
down, Hannah spoke again. “Now. We’re going to be calm and cool
here. If you think you can add something to help, then we’ll
listen. Otherwise, it might go faster if you let us take care of
what we need to do. These men are professionals and they can do
things you can only dream of. Now. What the hell happened to
her?”

“
She was out bringing in a
rogue. And so you know, I’d very much like to hit you but I’m
fearful you’ll hit me back. But I must say, I’m impressed, young
lady. My daughter and you will get along well, I think.” Hannah
thanked Sina. “She and Nic had gone after one of our own. A rogue.
I never heard the entire thing, only that he’d managed to hurt her
and nearly got away. We had no idea that the damage was this
extensive. I was informed that other than a few scratches she was
going to be fine.”

“
The doctor stitched the
wounds closed without cleaning them out.” His mom handed a small
slither of something to Sina. “I just took that out of the first
wound we opened. I’m afraid that you’ll all need to leave so that I
can take care of the rest of them. I can’t think when there are
this many people arguing. Hannah will see to you as well as that
nice cook, Mike.”

“
I’ll help you.” Sina
stood up and rolled up her sleeves. “I used to doctor my own troops
when they fell on the battle ground. My daughter…Kendra is our
older daughter…I just heard from her, and she is making sure that
the doctor is taken care of. But I’d very much like to stay and
help in any way that I can.”

Thomas wasn’t sure his mom was going
to let her, but her short nod had him letting out a breath he’d not
realized he’d been holding. As soon as the rest of the occupants
were out, his mom ordered him to get clean rags, water, and for him
to shift. He had Mike get what they needed, and he stripped down
and shifted in the bathroom. Thomas had a long talk with himself
before going back to the bedroom. His cat seemed pleased with the
turn of events; Thomas wanted to strangle him.

She’s your mate, you
moron. Get a grip. So what if she’s a slob? You can pick up after
her
. He nodded to his reflection in the
mirror.
Even if you have to hire a person
to follow her around, she’s your mate and she needs you to help
her
.

Moving down off the counter, he moved
into the bedroom to find her mother holding her down while his was
pulling stitches out. Linyah wasn’t screaming, but her moans of
pain tore through him. As he leapt up on the bed, Sina stared at
him. She didn’t look terrified, but she did look extremely
uncomfortable.

“
He won’t hurt you.” Sina
nodded at his mom without taking her eyes from him. “He can calm
her maybe. Back away a little and see if she’ll accept him. It
might go easier for her if he can get her to calm down.”

Thomas moved closer to Linyah’s hot
body. She was burning up with fever and his cat wanted to lick the
wounds closed for her. But his mom cautioned him to wait until they
were cleaned. As soon as he was snuggled near her, her arm wrapped
around him and she pulled him to her. He looked at his mom when she
nodded.

“
It’ll go better now, I
think.” Thomas hoped so. His cat wanted revenge for what had
happened to his mate, and Thomas wanted to exact his own sort of
punishment. As they worked on her, he felt Misha touch his
mind.

Nic has put the doctor in
a cell. She was leaving town when she found out that Linyah had
fallen ill so quickly.
Thomas asked him
what that meant.
She thought it would be a
good deal longer before the infection took its toll on her. She was
under the impression that if Linyah fell ill, then her brother, the
rogue they captured, would be set free. The doctor didn’t care so
much for her brother being the target of a manhunt when there were
other people still running around. She thinks it was him being
chased by the authorities that made him go wrong. Nic told her, and
not at all nicely, that they wouldn’t have been chasing his ass had
he not killed anyone in the first place. Idiot. How is your
mate?

She’s a slob.
Misha laughed.
I kid you
not. Her room looked like she’d torn everything out of the closet,
then tossed it about the room during a windstorm. I had to…Christ,
she’s my mate.

That she is. And a hell of
a one too. Her brother said that she’s been working as a hunter for
a great many years. By the way, you’re much younger than her. By
thousands of years. Apparently, and this is from her father, Genjar
royalty live forever unless they have their head removed. It’s
apparently the only way to kill them. I had to go and look up about
their race. They’d been considered long gone for longer than most
people have been alive.
Her fingers
tightened in Thomas’s fur and he moved closer to her as Misha
continued.
Thomas, we have to go on a
mission. I don’t think you should go with us this time. We might be
gone a while.

I can’t leave her.
Misha said he understood more than he could
say
. I’ll catch up if she gets better, but
right now, I can’t leave her.

You do what you have to
do. I know that this is much more important. I’d stay too, but this
one…there are children involved. And Hannah is breeding.
Thomas asked him if she knew.
Not yet. I didn’t want to freak her out. She’s terrified of
being a parent. I didn’t even realize she was in heat until it was
too late. And all she has talked about for weeks now is that she
might go and get fixed. I had to ask her what “fixed” meant. You
don’t think she’s serious, do you? Anyway….

Misha told him where they were headed
and that he’d appreciate hearing from him about his mate. He even
asked him if he’d keep an eye on Hannah as well. She was worried
about her grandparents showing up. Thomas told him he’d take care
of it.

His bed had to be stripped down and
changed when they were finished cleaning her up. One of his shirts,
something soft and clean, was put on her when they declared they’d
gotten the infection out as best they could. While his mom and Sina
cleaned up, he held Linyah in his arms after shifting back and
pulling on a pair of soft pants. His mom asked him if he needed
help giving her a quick shower.

“
She’s soaked through with
blood and sweat. And her hair is matted. She might feel better; I
know I would.” Thomas said he’d do it, and soon after they left
him. He was holding her, trying to figure out what to do about a
shower, when he realized something. He’d never taken a shower with
a woman before, much less one that was unconscious.

Laying her on the bed, he decided that
he’d get everything ready before he took her in. As the room warmed
up, he pulled out towels, another one of his shirts, as well as
some of his old socks. Going back in to get her, he decided to stay
dressed so if she did wake up, he’d not piss her off too much. And
he was reasonably sure that finding them both naked in the shower
would do just that. It was time to do what he could to make her
feel better.

Lifting her up, he took her into the
large shower. He was glad now that he’d had this place renovated
first and all the rooms enlarged. He was trying to figure out how
to wash her hair when she opened her eyes. He didn’t move as she
looked at him.

“
You’re going to be better
now.” She nodded but still hadn’t moved. “My mom said you’d feel
better if you were cleaned up. I was trying to figure out how to
wash your hair without getting soap in your eyes.”

He was babbling. Thomas wanted to
stand up and let her finish her bath by herself, but he was
reluctant to let her go. Instead, he pulled her to his chest and
sat her on his lap on the smallish seat that had been installed
when the shower had been replaced. While holding one arm around her
waist, he finished with her hair and even got it rinsed out before
she leaned back to him.

“
I feel like I’ve been
beaten up and left for dead.” Thomas simply held her, not sure what
he should do now. He wanted her, there was no doubt of that, but he
knew that she was too weak to try to do much more than she was
right now. “I was hurting so badly. That’s why I came back when you
were in my room. I was going to see the doctor again. She did this
to me, didn’t she?”

“
Yes. She stitched your
wounds closed without cleaning them properly. She’s been arrested.
Her plan was to make you very ill so that her brother, the man you
and Nic had captured, could be freed.” Linyah nodded and when she
did, her breast brushed against his hand. “You should try to stand
up. I’m not…I can’t hold you this way for much longer.”

“
You want me.” For an
answer he moved her wet hair from her shoulder and kissed her
shoulder before moving down to her spine. Her moan had him nipping
at her again and again until he knew that he was going to take her
if they continued. “I’ve never had sex before. I mean, I say I have
because who gets this old without experimenting it at least once or
twice, right? But it never interested me before. I’d very much like
to have sex with you. Today. Now.”

“
I’m glad to know that it
interests you now. Because I have to tell you, it interests me a
great deal. Christ, I hope so.” His cock was so hard it was
painful. Adjusting her so that he could reach his cock and adjust
himself, she lifted his hand to her breast and he cupped her
tightly in his hand. “We’re not in any position to have sex right
now.”

“
Why not?” Why not indeed,
his mind screamed at him. “I mean, I’m naked, you’re nearly so. And
very hard. Are you as hard and thick as you feel right
now?”

She moved on his lap, and he had to
still her with his hand at her hip. But touching her warm, wet skin
only made him want more, and he slid his hand to between her
thighs. Christ, she was hot. He slid his fingers just over her
curls and wanted to dig into her just this one time. But he knew,
as surely as he was sitting there, that there would never be just
this one time.

“
I’m not going to make
love to you while you’re still hurting.” He stood up, pressed her
against the shower wall, and rocked into her ass. “Do you have any
idea how badly I want you? How much I want to drink from your pussy
until you come down my throat? I want to fuck you. I want to bend
you over this seat and slam my cock as deep into you as I can
go.”

“
Make me come, Thomas.
Please?” He rocked again and then slid his fingers into her heat.
He’d been wrong, she wasn’t hot. She was fucking molten. “Please. I
need this. Help me.”

Thomas could feel the sweat bead on
his back. Even with the hot water slushing down over him, he was
still sweating, and kicked off his pants. Touching his finger to
her hard nubbin, he spread her legs wider as she rocked into his
touch. As badly as he wanted to bury himself deep inside of her, he
wanted her to come for him even more. Pinching her clit again, he
tugged at her nipple and bit into her flesh at her shoulder when
she cried out. His cock, full and aching, released all over her as
she cried out again and again. He knew the mistake he’d made, but
could find no reason right then to regret it. Christ, he wanted
more. But what he’d done had sealed the deal for them.

Thomas had just marked his
mate.

Chapter 4

Linyah wasn’t sure how she felt about
her male. He was quiet and she could tell that he was upset about
something, but instead of just telling her what was going on, he
simply moved about the room as if he had the weight of the world on
his shoulders. Finally she told him to sit down. He only stood
there looking at her for a long time.

“
You’re very bossy. Has
anyone ever told you that before?” He didn’t sit down but continued
to move about the room, driving her insane. “And I don’t take well
to orders. You want me to do something, then you ask. Politely. I’m
not any more an animal than you are. Not right now, at any
rate.”

“
You won’t do it anyway,
so I might as well get something out of this. I want to know what
happened.” He cocked a brow at her, and she felt her face heat up.
“I mean with Zin, the surgeon. She said that she healed me. Why did
she change her mind? She had to know that her brother was going to
die for his actions. Why on earth did she think that me being sick
would make anyone set him free? I just don’t understand how her
mind was working in this. If it was at all.”

“
I don’t know what she
said to your brother, but he told me what I told you. And I agree.
There had to be more than her just wanting him released. And to
keep you from healing makes no sense either. Nic said she refuses
to talk until she’s released. Will that happen, you
think?”