Amelia followed the SUVs in front of her and replayed her mate’s rejection over and over again in her mind. Even if he didn’t recognize her, fae could identify their mates by their aura. Was hers broken? Finally, after what seemed like forever, the cars turned onto a side road. She watched as Aiden pulled over and got out of the lead car. He walked back to the main road.
She slowly came to a stop next to him and rolled down her passenger side window.
He pointed forward. ‘Lycaonia is about ten minutes down this road. You’ll have to park at the garage and walk into the city. Did you need someone to show you around?’ She was touched at the look of concern on his face.
She shook her head. ‘That’s okay. I can figure it out. Thanks for the escort in.’
He smiled wide. ‘Anytime. If you need anything while you’re visiting, here’s my cell phone number.’ He handed her a small piece of paper with a number scrawled almost illegibly on it. ‘Normally, we have visitors go through the council, but your brothers are my unit leaders in Storm Keep. We take care of our own.’
Amelia felt her chest swell with pride. Not every paranormal could be a unit warrior. It took dedication and discipline. The fact that all three of her brothers not only served, but were also unit leaders spoke volumes about her family.
‘Thank you. My brothers speak very highly of you.’ She smiled at him and his cheeks tinted pink.
Adorable!
Aiden cleared his throat. ‘I never have to worry about the units in Storm Keep; Caiden runs a great program out there.’
Amelia had to fight to keep the smile off her face. If the Unit Commander knew of the shenanigans that went on, pretty much on a daily basis, she bet he wouldn’t think that. ‘It was an amazing way to grow up.’
Aiden laughed loudly. ‘I bet.’ He looked up at the sky. ‘Well, I better get going. We have a few more hours of daylight left, and I want to join the other units for afternoon drills. Drive safe.’
‘Thank you, I will.’ Amelia waved as he walked back to the SUV. She waited until they were moving forward before she started her car. When the two SUVs disappeared around the bend, she backed her car up and turned down the side road. She moved forward slowly in case the Alpha estate was closer than she realized.
After a couple minutes, she saw the road opening up. She pulled her car over to the side as close to the tree line as possible.
‘Sure, I’ll go to Lycaonia, right after I claim my mate,’ she muttered to herself. She opened her car door and got out. She reached into the back seat and grabbed her tote bag and eased the door closed, trying to make as little noise as possible. She walked until she could see a large estate house. Next to the house was an open field where men were performing various drill exercises. Smiling to herself, she looked around. When she spotted a tall oak tree, she did a happy dance. She hoisted herself up, climbed as high as the branches allowed, then got comfortable leaning against the large trunk. Praying that the spell didn’t blow her up, she whispered an incantation she’d learned from Sederick in the Omicron Unit. Seconds later, she could hear the men’s coarse banter clearly.
Even though it was still January, the men were starting to remove jackets and shirts. She had never appreciated shifter’s high body temperature more.
‘Yum,’ she sighed happily and reached into her tote bag. She grabbed a small bag of chips and her bottle of diet Mountain Dew, her favorite road trip snacks.
‘Okay mate of mine, where are you?’ She popped a Dorito in her mouth and watched the door to the Alpha estate carefully.
She was just finishing her snack when the door opened and the men she had met in the street walked out. From the direction of the road, another group of men walked up, the man in front was tall, very built, and had snow-white hair.
‘How’d it go with the humans, Sascha?’ she heard Aiden ask.
Sascha growled. ‘The bastard was screaming how he was going to sue, well, he was until I convinced him otherwise.’ He gave an evil grin. The men laughed.
‘Thanks for the help.’ Aiden turned to the other men assembled. ‘We’re doing obstacle course runs until we run out of daylight.’
‘Again?’ the blond to his right complained.
Aiden raised an eyebrow. ‘Everyone is doing regular obstacle course runs except Colton; he will be doing them backwards.’ He grinned at the blond. ‘Different enough for you?’
Colton’s mouth dropped. ‘Seriously?’
Aiden turned to the men. ‘Are you waiting for engraved invitations? Get moving!’ he barked walking onto the course. The men scrambled to get started.
Colton stayed by Aiden’s side. ‘No, really, Aiden, backwards?’ he asked.
Aiden smiled. ‘Think of how proud Penny will be.’
Colton scowled. ‘Dirty pool, old man.’
‘Quit being a baby, and get out there.’ Aiden pointed to the course.
‘Dammit!’ Colton growled and jogged backward toward the starting line.
A dark-haired man who exuded power shook his head. ‘One of these days he will get even,’ he warned.
Aiden shrugged. ‘Then I’ll get him back, it’s how our relationship has worked for centuries.’
She watched as her mate approached the Unit Commander. ‘Where’s Keelan?’
‘In his workshop. He said he was working on a project for Meryn.’ Aiden answered keeping his eyes on the men.
Darian shrugged and pulled off his long-sleeve black tee. ‘Gods forbid we interrupt anything for Meryn.’ He walked over to the starting line.
Aiden nodded. ‘Exactly.’
Amelia felt her mouth go dry. She scooted forward on her branch. Her mate was so close yet out of reach. In her childhood dreams, he had worn an expensive, cream silk robe accented in jewel tones that shimmered in the light. That was nothing compared to the sight of the large expanse of exposed golden skin and low slung, black combat pants.
When Darian shot away from the starting line, she clutched at her chest. He was poetry in motion. Sighing heavily, she went to lean back and miscalculated where she was on the tree limb. One moment she was fantasizing about her mate, and the next, she was falling backwards.
She let out a yelp as her descent was halted abruptly. The zipper of her jacket dug into her chin as she hung precariously from a jagged tree branch five feet off the ground. She tried to unzip her jacket, but couldn’t get the zipper to budge.
Approaching footsteps caused her to look up. It was the white-haired unit leader. Frowning, he stopped in front of her.
She smiled brightly at him. ‘Hello.’
He smiled back. ‘Hello. What are you doing?’
‘Oh, you know, hanging out. You?’
‘Doing drills with the guys.’ He sniffed the air. ‘Witch?’
‘Sort of, I’m half witch.’
‘Can’t you float yourself down?’ he asked, pointing to the tree.
‘So I’m terrible at being a witch. Can you help me down now?’
‘That depends. Why are you hanging out, right outside the Alpha estate?’ he asked.
‘I’m looking for this blond guy. He’s about seven feet tall with long, golden hair.’
Sascha frowned. ‘Which one?’
She blinked. ‘How many are there?’
Sascha looked up at the sky, his lips moving as he silently counted. He looked at her and answered. ‘Well, six active fae unit members, plus trainees. Then there is Elder Vi’Ailean, and his personal guard at his estate. So I would say around twenty.’
Amelia laughed at herself. ‘I guess that’s true. I’ve spent too much time among humans lately. I should have remembered the unit warriors. I am looking for Darian, the one with lavender eyes.’
‘Why?’ Sascha asked, suspiciously.
‘He’s my mate.’
Sascha stared at her. She stared back. He blinked. She blinked.
Shaking his head, he lifted her off the branch. ‘You know, before Meryn, this would have seemed impossible to believe. But now? Not so much.’ He set her down on her feet.
‘Thank you. My name is Amelia Ironwood.’ She thrust out her hand.
Smiling, he shook it firmly. ‘I know your brothers.’
‘They are hard to miss.’
‘True. Let’s walk back to the estate and get this sorted.’ Sascha pointed to the obstacle course.
‘Can’t I just watch for a bit longer?’ She batted her eyes at him.
Sascha sighed heavily. ‘Oh yeah, you’ll fit right in. Come on Peeping Tomasina, time to face your mate.’
Amelia pointed to her tree branch. ‘Can you get my bag?’ Her colorful tote was propped against the tree trunk, right where she’d left it.
When Sascha bent his knees and jumped, Amelia felt her mouth drop open. He had jumped vertically fifteen feet, landed on her branch, snagged her tote bag, and hopped down. She remembered hopping up and down in her kitchen in her old apartment trying to knock down her last box of Pop Tarts. After twenty minutes and two kitchen utensils later, she ended up getting her step stool, which had been five feet away in the closet the whole time.
He handed her the tote bag, and she glared at him. ‘Tall people suck.’
Sascha grinned. ‘You better hope they do.’ He turned and started walking back.
She was grumbling under her breath about her Pop Tarts when it hit her what he meant. Her mate was one of the tallest men on the obstacle course. She stopped in her tracks and stared. When he turned around and raised an eyebrow, she broke out into giggles.
‘That was bad.’ She jogged to catch up to him when he started walking again.
‘I don’t have a mate to keep me in line yet.’
They walked up to the training course, and Aiden’s eyebrows shot up. ‘You? I thought you were heading to the city.’
Amelia smiled. ‘I took a tiny little detour.’
Behind them, they heard cursing. ‘What is she doing here?’ Darian demanded, walking up to them.
‘I’ve come to convince you we’re mates,’ she said.
‘Not gonna happen.’ Darian turned and went into the house.
Amelia looked at Sascha and Aiden. ‘That went very well, didn’t it?’
‘Are you sure he’s your mate?’ Aiden asked, looking unconvinced.
Amelia nodded. ‘I’m sure. I’ve been dreaming of him since I was six.’
Aiden stared. ‘Wait. Since you were six? Not recently?’
‘Nope.’ She shook her head.
Sascha looked at Aiden. ‘He never said anything.’
Aiden frowned. ‘Go see if he’ll talk to you. If you are his mate, then this is something he can’t avoid.’
‘Wish me luck,’ Amelia said and turned toward the house.
‘She’ll need more than luck. Darian is a stubborn sonofabitch,’ she heard Sascha mutter.
I can be even more stubborn.
Amelia opened the door and poked her head inside. ‘Helllloooo?’ she called out in her best Tim Curry impersonation.
She heard footsteps on hardwood before Elizabeth, Meryn, and a man in butler attire appeared from a hallway.
‘Oh, it’s Bubbles,’ Meryn remarked, before popping something in her mouth.
Elizabeth turned to her. ‘Bubbles?’
Meryn shrugged. ‘She’s bubbly.’
Elizabeth just sighed and turned to her. ‘Looking for Darian?’
Amelia nodded. ‘He just came in.’
Meryn laughed. ‘That’s what that was? I thought one of the walls had caved in. He sure was loud.’
The man in the crisply pressed butler outfit stepped forward and placed his right hand over his heart before bowing at the waist. ‘Welcome to the Alpha estate. My name is Ryuu; I am the squire here. If you would like, I can show you to Darian’s room.’
‘That would be great.’
‘I am assuming you will be staying for the evening meal. May I inquire about your lodging arrangements for tonight?’ Ryuu asked.
Amelia hesitated. She didn’t know.
‘She’s staying here. She’s Darian’s mate,’ Meryn answered for her.
Amelia turned to the small woman and pulled her into a hug.
‘She’s doing it again,’ Meryn protested.
‘And you’re still alive,’ Elizabeth teased.
Amelia gave a final squeeze and stepped back. ‘Thank you for believing me.’ She felt better knowing that at least someone else believed her story.
‘Of course, we believe you. Why would you lie about being his mate?’ Meryn asked, reaching into a bag and popping a small piece of beef jerky into her mouth.
‘Why would he?’ Amelia asked softly.
Elizabeth pushed her toward the stairs and Ryuu stepped in beside her. Elizabeth winked. ‘Why don’t you find out?’
‘Remember, if he gets growly, hit him with the back of his toilet.’ Meryn called after them.
Amelia waved at her and kept walking up the stairs beside Ryuu. ‘Does that work?’ she asked the squire softly.
‘Evidently bear shifters are susceptible to toilet decks,’ Ryuu explained.
‘Ahh.’ Amelia had a feeling there was more to the story, but was too nervous about confronting her mate to learn about bear shifters.
Ryuu stopped in front of large door. Amelia turned to him. ‘Could you take this?’ she handed him her large tote bag and coat.
Smiling, he gently took them from her. ‘If it is permissible, I could arrange for someone to get your vehicle.’
‘That would be great. I left it parked on the side of the road leading up to the estate. The keys are in my coat pocket.’
‘Remember, we’re just downstairs if you need us.’ He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder before he turned and walked back to the stairs.
Amelia took a deep breath. She didn’t bother knocking and turned the handle. Finding it unlocked, she walked right in and stopped. Darian stood in the middle of the room, a towel wrapped low around his waist. He hadn’t noticed she had opened the door yet, since he was using a smaller towel to dry his long hair. She felt electricity race through her body.
Bad hormones!
It was only after she tore her eyes away from her mate’s mesmerizing form did she notice his room. She had to cut herself some slack. The only reason she hadn’t seen the jungle in front of her was because her mate was practically naked.
Everywhere she turned, live plants bloomed and seemed to sway with their own magic. She felt like she had stepped into a dense forest instead of a bedroom. Vines climbed the walls and cradled a large four-poster bed. The furniture was made from the plants themselves, and she could have sworn she heard live birds. When she looked up, she was shocked to see a canopy of treetops and open sky beyond that. She couldn’t even fathom the amount of magic it had taken to create this paradise.
She shook her head to break free of the magic that sustained his oasis and steeled herself to face her mate. She shut the door behind her. His head whipped in her direction, and he immediately scowled. ‘Get out.’
‘No. I want to know why you are denying that I am your mate.’ She crossed her arms over her chest.
‘Because you’re not.’ He shook out his hair.
‘I am your mate. I dreamt of you.’
He shook his head. ‘That’s just a byproduct of the council spell gone wrong,’ he argued.
‘I dreamt of you before they cast that spell. I first dreamt of you when I was six years old,’ she whispered softly.
He turned, and for a moment, he had gentle look on his face, exactly like her prince from her dream. Quickly, his features changed into a mocking expression, his lips turned up in a sneer. ‘I think I would remember dreaming of my own mate.’
‘Evidently not,’ she rebutted.
He turned his back to her. ‘Just go. Even if you are my mate, it’s too late for me now.’ He walked over to the bed and picked up the pair of grey slacks that had been laid out. He glowered at her. ‘Do you mind?’
‘No, I don’t mind,’ she grinned at him. He shrugged and dropped both towels.
‘Oh. My. Goddess,’ she gasped. She had grown up with three brothers and had spent more time at the training field at Storm Keep than was probably healthy for a small child. She had seen the unit warriors in various states of undress, but those brief stolen glimpses were nothing compared to the side view of her mate’s sculpted back and firm ass. It felt like her heart would beat out of her chest as his manhood seemed to be playing a torturous version of peekaboo with her as he turned and lifted his legs getting dressed. His golden skin was flawless and was just begging to be touched. Just when she was about to throw dignity out the window and jump the man, she heard a masculine chuckle.
‘What?’ she demanded, her voice cracking.
‘You amuse me; that’s a rare thing nowadays. We could have some fun before you leave the city.’ He pulled on a royal blue sweater and turned to face her.
She stuck her nose in the air. ‘As if I’d cheapen our mating with a booty call.’
His eyes hardened. ‘It wouldn’t be a booty call. It would be a pity fuck.’
She felt tears spring to her eyes. Clearing her mind, she stared at his chest. Slowly, she envisioned the mental trunk that housed her gift opening.
Her power caught her off guard and flared out of control. She quickly reined in her abilities and focused on her mate.
He frowned. ‘What are you doing?’ He rubbed his hands up and down his arms.
She had always been able to feel other’s emotions. She was the only one in her family who was an empath. Growing up, she had hated it, but now she was counting on it to show her what her mate was really feeling.
She was bombarded by the swirling depths of anger, but they weren’t directed at her. He was filled with self-loathing. He hated himself for his words, for deliberately hurting her. But deeper down, past the anger, was an overwhelming, urgent sense of fear. He was drowning in an ocean of dread. He honestly felt that he was beyond redemption and would do anything to keep her away from him, even break her heart.
‘You’re afraid,’ she whispered, looking up at him.
His eyes widened in shock. ‘You’re an empath?’
She nodded. ‘You’re afraid of hurting me. You’re afraid that our mating will destroy me.’ She took a step closer, and he took a step back.
‘Stay away. I don’t want to hurt you.’
‘You won’t hurt me. The fact that you have a mate means that you’re not lost.’
‘Men with mates have turned feral before.’
‘You’re my prince, and you won’t hurt me. I can prove it.’
Darian froze. ‘What did you say?’
‘I said, I can prove you won’t hurt me.’ She walked up to him.
‘No about being a prince…’
She didn’t get to hear the rest of his question; she was already in motion. She brought her leg up and kneed him solidly in the groin. She smiled down at her mate as he hunched over taking gasping breaths.
‘See, if you were really lost, you’d have hit me.’
Darian tried to talk but words didn’t come out. He shook his head. He tried again. ‘Do you know why I haven’t hit you?’ He choked the words out still bent over.
‘Because I’m your mate,’ she said smugly.
He turned his face up and she stepped back. Maybe kneeing her seven-foot plus mate in the groin hadn’t been such a good idea.
‘No, because I can’t move. When I can…’ His eyes darkened.
‘Shit.’ She took a step backward.
‘Run,’ he growled.
She turned and bolted for the door. As she raced down the stairs, she screeched at the top of her lungs. ‘Ryuu! Aiden! Help!’ She hit the foyer as Ryuu came racing from the back of the house as Aiden and the others came out of the front room. Behind her, she heard the heavy footsteps of her mate as he chased her.
Aiden stepped in front of her, a concerned expression on his face. ‘What happened?’
She scrambled up his back and held on for dear life.
Darian stalked toward them. ‘Give her to me.’
Aiden stepped back and held up his hands, keeping Darian at bay.
‘Maybe you should calm down first,’ Sascha suggested from the front room doorway.
‘Calm down? She kneed me in the balls. I can still barely feel my legs, it’s a miracle I’m standing!’ he roared.
Aiden turned his head to her. ‘Why’d you do that?’
Amelia grimaced. ‘I was trying to convince him that he wouldn’t hurt me.’
Aiden’s eyes widened. ‘So you kneed him?’
‘Well, I figured if he didn’t hurt me after I hit him in the balls, he’d know I’d be safe around him.’ She paused. ‘Not a good idea?’ she asked.
Aiden shook his head. ‘No.’
The three of them turned at the sound of laughter beside them. Sascha was leaning against the doorway, his arms wrapped around his stomach. He was laughing so hard tears were streaming down his cheeks. ‘Why is it that the Alpha females are crazy?’
Meryn shrugged. ‘She made sense to me.’
Colton turned to Meryn. ‘You also set Aiden’s car on fire when he ignored you.’
Amelia looked at Meryn. ‘Sounds reasonable.’
Meryn grinned. ‘I know, right?’
Her comment sent Sascha into more convulsed laughter. He straightened and wiped his eyes. ‘So Darian ended up with a witch version of Meryn.’
Darian looked at her. ‘Witch?’
Amelia thought about it for a second. ‘Sort of.’
Darian sighed and walked around Aiden to pluck her from his back. ‘How can you ‘sort of’ be a witch?’ He set her down between them.
Amelia beamed up at him. ‘See, I knew you wouldn’t hurt me.’
He glared down at her, his expression unchanged.
She stuck her tongue out at him and crossed her eyes. He blinked in surprise. Smiling she answered. ‘I’m half a witch, my mother is human.’
Aiden turned to her. ‘But Caiden, Kyran, and Tristan are full blooded witches.’
Amelia nodded. ‘Our father evidently didn’t want to wait to meet his mate before having children. He wanted to secure his bloodline, so he and another powerful witch got together and had my brothers. It worked out for the both of them to produce three strong male witches. Then about thirty-seven years ago, my father met my mother, they mated, and I was born.’
Ryuu cleared his throat. ‘Since we’re past the imminent attempted murder, maybe we should adjourn to the dining room for dinner?’
‘Tacos! Tacos! Tacos!’ Meryn high-fived a smaller blond man and another young man in a wheelchair.
Ryuu looked at Meryn with a hint of a smile. ‘I don’t know why you’re acting so surprised; you all but threatened my life this morning if I didn’t make them.’
Meryn rolled her eyes. ‘I didn’t want tacos. Meryn two-point-oh wanted tacos.’
Ryuu nodded, his expression serious. ‘Of course, that’s a completely different story then.’
Sascha pushed away from the wall. ‘I’ll head out. Gamma is off duty tonight so Beta will be patrolling around the estate.’
Aiden clapped a hand on Sascha’s back and walked him to the door. ‘Thanks.’
Sascha sniffed the air. ‘Tacos,’ he pouted, mournfully.
Aiden opened the door. ‘You’ll live.’
Sascha sighed dramatically and walked through the door. Aiden closed it behind him. He pinched the bridge of his nose. ‘Toddlers, every single one of them, toddlers.’
Elizabeth stepped forward. ‘I don’t know about all of you, but I’m starving. Come on, Amelia, you’re in for a treat. Ryuu doesn’t know how to make a bad meal.’ She turned and had only taken a few steps toward the dining room when she suddenly tripped and fell face first on the unforgiving marble.
‘Beth!’ The dark-haired man yelled and was at her side before Amelia could blink. Rheia moved away from her blond mate and helped the frantic man get Elizabeth upright.
‘Sugar! I hate this damn floor!’ Elizabeth exclaimed.
Rheia knelt in front of Elizabeth. Wincing, she sat back on her heels. ‘It’s broken.’ Rheia reached up and placed her thumbs on either side of the bridge of Elizabeth’s nose. ‘On three. One… two…’ With a quick jerk, she snapped Elizabeth’s nose back in place. A darling little girl next to Rheia winced in sympathy.
Gavriel handed her a handkerchief to stem the bleeding. Elizabeth held it to her nose. ‘I thought you said three!’ Her voice was muffled and sounded nasal.
Rheia shrugged as her mate helped her to stand. ‘You should be used to this by now, Beth. I’ve had to snap your nose back in place three times since moving in. Thank God you’re a shifter; otherwise, you’d be falling apart by now.’ She took the little girl’s hand.
The dark-haired man scooped Elizabeth up, his face a mask of worry. She patted at his chest. ‘I’m fine now.’
He shook his head. ‘I’m taking you upstairs to lie down.’
‘Like hell! It’s taco night. Dining room, please.’ Elizabeth pointed down the hall.
Amelia looked up at Darian. ‘So, this happens often?’
Darian grimaced. ‘Unfortunately. Beth has a tendency to almost die every week. She keeps us on our toes.’ He looked down, laughing for a moment. Then it was as if he remembered he had to keep his distance. He stepped away from her and walked toward the dining room.
Amelia watched him as he walked away. Knowing what he felt didn’t change anything. How could she convince him that they were meant to be together?
An arm looped around her elbow. She looked to her left, Meryn stood beside her. ‘Come on, Bubbles, no matter what is wrong with the world, it’s nothing taco night can’t fix.’
Amelia couldn’t help but smile. Meryn might be prickly and skittish, but she had a good heart. Even though she wasn’t comfortable being around new people, Meryn did what she could to make her feel better.
‘Thanks Meryn, I think I needed that,’ Amelia admitted as they started walking.
‘Any time, Bubbles,’ Meryn replied before turning to her. ‘So, what do you know about explosives?’
‘Meryn!’ Aiden growled behind them.
Amelia couldn’t help it; she began to giggle. Meryn was too cute!
