You're Kitten Me (11 page)

She nibbled her lower lip and nodded, not sure if she could trust that. Could she lean on him? Let him be the one between her and the world?

The wolf said yes. The wolf wanted him. The wolf wanted his bite and wanted to howl and…

Ronnie snapped the trap closed on that thought.

“Veronica?”

“Yeah,” she whispered. She understood and a tendril of hope unfurled. Part of her wanted to believe him, too.

“Good.” He grunted and then quiet surrounded them. The silence comfortable and not oppressive. “I hate that I wasn’t there for you.”

“You didn’t know me.” She pointed out. “But I had my family, the pack.”

“This is why you think it’s a good idea for Claire to go to your mother.”

She nodded. “Yes, she’s… It’s not the same, but my mom knows what it’s like for a young girl to feel so…”

Broken.

Braden’s hands were soft, his touch careful, as he stroked her. “Thank you for sharing this with me. For trusting me.”

Another nod. She did trust him. So much. And that… surprised her. The wolf snorted and told her to catch up already. They’d trusted Braden for a while.

And maybe that was true. That didn’t mean she was ready to push forward with a full mating though. Maybe not ever.

“You’re my mate, Braden.”

“I know.”

“But I don’t know if I can ever fully be your mate. I don’t know that I can let my wolf go that far. I trust you. I don’t trust her.”

“And that’s okay,” he murmured. “Because I don’t trust my traditions, my tiger. I don’t trust what could become of my future if we tried to fully mate like other tigers in the prides.”

Air wheezed from her lungs and her wolf bristled at her words. The truth though… the truth was that from his perspective, it was a valid fear. Ronnie knew her strengths, knew that she was a fierce wolf, but still a wolf. Smaller than a tiger. Not as strong. Some said not as quick.

Wolf still snarled though. “The wolf could take the tiger.”

Braden rubbed his thumb across her lower lip before brushing his lips across hers. “Are you willing to lose me forever to test that belief? You won’t risk losing me to your wolf. I won’t risk losing you to my tiger traditions.”

“Where does that leave us?”

“Exactly where we are. Wherever you want to be. I won’t force this on you. I won’t force a bite on you. They can roar and howl as loud as they want, but it’s up to you—up to us.”

Ronnie nodded, hearing and understanding his words. The future, their future, was in her hands. How far was she willing to go for him?

The ends of the Earth.

“I,” she wet her lips, trying to put her thoughts to words. “I want to be yours. I want you to be mine. I want to share bites so others know you’re mine, but the rest—”

“The part that could tear us apart.”

“Yes, I think we should wait for that.”

Forever.

If they didn’t let him see Veronica soon, he’d kill someone. Or maybe more than one someone. They’d given him some time with his mate, but not enough. Not nearly enough. He’d held her close, dried her tears, and they’d agreed to mate. Then the women descended en masse. They swept in and shoved him out.

If he hadn’t been flying high over getting her agreement, he would have fought harder. But, he was getting his way so he didn’t give a damn.

That was hours ago.

He threw himself back into organizing the men, making calls and setting plans, ensuring everything Walter and Ares planned for the party and coming days were enough. He trusted the two alphas, but… Veronica was his mate.

The party was in full swing, pride members arriving early to try and get a peek at Veronica, but failing since
she wasn’t at his side.

He took a calming breath, releasing it slowly, and then took another sip of his beer, the cold brew sliding down easily and smoothly. There was a little something extra in there, a taste he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Sweet yet savory, and he wondered…

“How you doing?” Ares came to his side and leaned against the porch railing.

“Fine.” Why wouldn’t he be? He had a mate, a protective pride, and a good life. “The question is, how are you doing?” He tipped his head toward the small cluster of women on the other side of the yard—a group of wolves surrounding one tigress. “And are you going to be okay?”

The alpha growled low, drawing the attention of one of the more timid tigers nearby, and the sound was silenced as quickly as it began. “I don’t want her going anywhere. Not with anyone, not with them.”

By “her,” he meant Claire and by “them,” he meant the wolves.

He could relate. The alpha—alpha
s
since it was a surprise to Walter as well— had finally been told about the plan for Claire, about the tigress heading off to the Lakes while they waited to discover if the human transitioned.

“It’d be good for her,” he murmured. “No one here has gotten through to her, you know. First time I heard her laugh was this morning with Veronica. I haven’t seen her smile so much since Talia claimed her and has dragged her everywhere. Veronica’s sisters have already brought her into their circle as family.”

“I know,” Ares grumbled. “But I can’t protect her when she’s with the wolves.”

“They can handle it. She’ll be in the alpha’s house, not some random apartment. The beta and several sentinels live with him.”

“She’s so young. What if they—”

Braden snorted. “She’s twenty-two. And a tigress. What happened with the human aside; she’s a strong feline. Stronger since all that happened. I hate what was done to her, but she’s a fierce bitch now. You need to see she can take care of herself physically. She needs emotional help.” He took another sip, savoring the taste and still wondering why the hell it was so good. There really was something extra he couldn’t quite pinpoint.

“We can help her.”

“You’re pouting like a woman.”

“Fine, our cousins can help her.”

“Uh-huh.” Another sip that went down nice and smooth. He generally wasn’t a big drinker, but this…

“Mom’s uniquely qualified to help her, Ares. It’s a good idea and she’ll be safe.” His mate’s voice reached him, and some of his lingering tension fled.

Her footsteps were soft as she approached, and he lifted his arm, inviting her to snuggle against his side. She eased into his embrace without another word, and he tugged her even closer before dropping a kiss on the top of her head.

“Missed you,” he murmured low and breathed in her scent. It went straight to his cock. A mating party organized by her parents seemed like a great idea, and he was behind the event… in a week. Maybe two. It would give him time to sate his need for her.

Unfortunately, thwarting Cadman involved their mating and having it recognized by others.

Hello, mating party.

Veronica chuckled. “You snuck in and saw me this morning.”

Yeah, he had. It’d been painful but he sensed their bond growing stronger after their talk.

“And then your mother kicked me out,” he grumped.

Ares coughed. “Not to interrupt—”

“But you’re doing it anyway.” Braden managed to keep his growl in check. Barely. His body was on fire for his mate, and talking to people just delayed his claiming even more.

“How is she uniquely qualified? What makes you guys think she has any idea what Claire is going through? How can she do something none of us can?”

Veronica nuzzled his chest, hiding her face, but she did answer. “Because someone close to her experienced something similar and my mother managed to keep the girl sane.”

His mate’s pain filled the air, earning more than one confused look, and he glared at his alpha.

“I see.” Ares’s expression told Braden he understood. Or at least could put a few pieces together.

He rubbed her back, tracing her spine in a gentle caress. The three of them remained silent—Braden sipping his beer, Ares enjoying soda, and Veronica clinging to him.

Wait, soda? The alpha enjoyed a good beer as much as Braden did. He flicked his gaze to the male’s cup and then raised an eyebrow, causing Ares to roll his eyes.

“Zoe wants to have cubs soon-ish. Which means she refuses to drink alcohol, and if she can’t drink alcohol…”

Braden snorted and shook his head. “Then you can’t drink alcohol. Can’t believe you agreed.”

A small elbow collided with his side. “Hey, you’re going to deal with the same thing eventually so enjoy that beer while you can.”

He froze, heartbeat stuttering as he imagined Veronica swollen with his cub. Or pup? No matter what she had, she’d be beautiful, and their child would be just as precious. “Really?”

Braden took another sip. If it was going to be outlawed, he wanted to finish his drink first. Maybe more than one.

It was her turn to stiffen in his embrace. The scent of her nervousness slipped free of her pores. “Uh… I dunno. What answer are you looking for?”

He emptied his cup and set it on the railing, freeing up his hand so he could get both of them on her. He cupped her cheeks, encouraging her to meet his gaze. “I want to have a family with you. Today, tomorrow, a year from now. I want that.”

“But our mating…”

“It’ll be what it’ll be. You have your reasons.” At his words, her lips twisted into a grimace. “And I respect and understand them. I have my own, remember?” He still didn’t trust his tiger even though it assured him she’d be a match for them and it would accept her. The animal was convinced she’d prove herself to be a good mate. “But our mating will be just that—ours. No matter what it is or what it becomes, I want to have a family with you when you’re ready.”

Her eyes glistened, moisture filling them for a moment before she blinked it away. “How’d I get so lucky?”

He grinned. “You haven’t gotten lucky yet.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Wanna?”

His joke had the desired effect, his mate snorting and then laughing aloud. “Dork.”

“Hard as hell dork.” He flexed his hips, making sure he rubbed himself against her softness.

Fuck, but he was hot for her. His mind wouldn’t let go of thoughts of her spread beneath him, body welcoming his possession as he thrust in and out of her wet pussy. His dick twitched with the thought, and he swallowed the groan threatening to burst free. He burned for her, and his tiger roared, demanding he snatch her to him and carry her to their den. He could lock her in the room. Or rather, lock others out. Then he could strip her bare, lick, taste, and bite her until they were as tied as they could be.

She’d be his then. As bound as they could be without pushing his mate further than she wanted to go.

Veronica licked her lips, gaze dropping to his mouth, and he smiled. Soon the flavors of her nervousness vanished only to be replaced the musky scent of her arousal. Her nipples hardened and pressed against his chest, the fabric between them doing little to blunt the sensations. His mate was aroused, her body preparing for him, and he wanted nothing more than to strip her bare and fill her pussy. First he’d lap at her cream and savor each delicate morsel. She’d be so sweet on his tongue, a flavor he could quickly become addicted to.

Braden lowered his head, anxious to capture her lips since he couldn’t exactly rip her clothes off and mount her with everyone nearby. Well, really, it was because her family was around. When it came to the pride, his tiger was more than happy to take Veronica in front of the crowd. The animal wanted every shifter to know she was
his
.

He didn’t think her father wanted to see.

“Really? Can you, I don’t know, keep your naughty thoughts to yourselves? We’re in
public
.” Zoe’s words cut through his growing arousal.

He wanted to growl at the tigress but managed to suppress the sound. Veronica had no such compunction and snarled at her best friend.

“Like you two haven’t been humping each other’s legs.”

“Touchy, touchy.” Zoe held out two cups, one nearly overflowing with beer while the other was filled with some sort of dark liquid on ice. “Here, Daddy Walter wants to start the toasts soon. He’s got a video camera guy hanging around too because he needs some good tape to send to the press in the morning. You know, us being human.”

Veronica wrinkled her nose. “Black Wolf on ice?” He raised his eyebrows in question. “Sambuca, Green Chartreuse, and a little Tabasco. Wolves are sorta a fan of anise the way catnip gets feline motors running.”

Catnip? Braden took a sip of his beer and turned his questioning expression on Zoe. That savory sweet he’d tasted in his last drink was present in this one as well. His tiger was tempted to get angry at being drugged, but the catnip was already doing its job. The cat told him they’d bitch about the catnip tomorrow. They felt too good right now.

The tigress shrugged and didn’t apologize. “You two need to be friendly and act like newlyweds but you’re both a little growly. Being the helpful, wonderful, amazingful alpha fem I am, I came bearing gifts.”

“So you drugged us?” Veronica growled.

Zoe grinned. “You being pleasant is a sure thing now. Besides,” she smirked. “You’ll really enjoy yourselves now instead of just pretending.”

“Zoe?” Walter’s raised voice reached across the yard and the tigress nodded.

“C’mon. He hates waiting. Talia promised you just have to play nice through a few speeches, and then you can run off and do newlywed things.”

Ares followed Zoe across the yard, leaving them a little space, and sank into his mate. Her scent, the musky sweetness, enveloped him. He breathed it in, loving and cursing the flavors at the same time. She made his dick rock hard, but she… made his dick hard. It was real damn difficult to move when his cock was being strangled by his pants.

“
Veronica!
” The alpha wolf’s bellow reached them and they both winced. Apparently the wolf was done being ignored.

“Grab your drink. A few toasts and then we can find some privacy,” Veronica murmured.

Braden glanced at the house, knowing all of the guest rooms were filled and then raised his eyebrows. “And that will happen how?”

“Privacy that may involve the forest,” his mate chuckled. “Now, come on. The quicker we’re done, the quicker we’ll both get what we want.” They took two steps and then she stopped, reaching out to squeeze his hand and grab his attention. “I… I’ve never felt this good. Not since…” she shook her head. “Not ever, actually. Like I can breathe. Thank you for that. For being you. For helping me be me.”