A Mating of Convenience

by Elyce de Reefe

  Glancing at the group, she picked out Lucas’s broad-shouldered form right away. He seemed to be watching her approach with narrowed eyes. She felt a nervous little flutter, wondering how she was going to avoid smelling guilty.

  Boaz gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “Steady,” he said, pulling her to a stop. He turned her so her back was to the porch. “You’re not Pack yet,” he said, his voice low, “so you can’t betray it. You can’t actually break the Law until you’re accepted. You have nothing to feel guilty about.”

  She felt her stomach tighten as his words confirmed that, yes, she did smell guilty.

  “I drugged you,” she whispered.

  “I forgive you.” He stared down at her, his blue eyes crinkling at the corners in a quiet smile that touched both sides of his mouth. His smile dropped away. “Don’t do it again.”

  He turned away abruptly and started for the porch, pulling her along beside him. “You will be an asset to the pack, Nina. And not only for your research into the Sickness.” He glanced down at her, his face serious. “Remember that.”

  And then he propelled her up the stairs in front of him, like a sacrifice to the altar.

  Nina glanced up to meet Lucas’s eyes. He leaned with his elbow resting on the porch railing.

  “Boaz,” he said evenly. “Dr. Evans.”

  “Nina,” she said automatically, and felt her stomach clench as his eyes narrowed.

  He regarded her for one long moment before nodding. “Nina. I trust your day went well?”

  “Um, yes,” she stammered, continuing up the stairs with the assistance of Boaz’s warm hand on the small of her back. “We actually had a bit of a breakthrough. We are pretty sure we’ve identified the DNA strand responsible for causing the disease.” She licked her dry lips and glanced back at Boaz, who stood on the step just below her.

  “Good,” Lucas said, and she snapped her eyes back to him. “That is excellent news.” His gaze flicked briefly to Boaz, who had moved up next to her, before returning to her. “I can see you will be an asset to the pack.”

  “Thank you,” Nina said faintly. She had to fight the urge to sink back against Boaz in relief.

  “This calls for a celebration. Jeffrey?” Lucas turned, and the lanky teen stepped forward. “Can you get Nina and Boaz something to drink? What would you like?” This last was addressed to her.

  “White wine?” The words came out as a question, and Nina hated how unsure she sounded. Pull yourself together. She stood a little straighter.

  “Certainly. Pinot grigio? Sauvignon blanc?”

  There was a slight commotion as the front door opened and Elizabeth stepped out. “Wait a minute. This calls for champagne. Or prosecco, at any rate. Please tell me we have prosecco, Aaron.”

  “We have a case of prosecco, Elizabeth.”

  “Thank God. At least I can count on you. The rest of these oafs…” She shook her head and smiled at Nina. “I’ll be right back, Nina, and we can have a proper toast.” She turned and went back into the house, still talking. “Come on Jeffrey, help me with the glasses. Somebody better have put a few bottles in the fridge to chill…”

  Aaron, standing next to Lucas with Lyla, grinned. “I’ll give her a hand,” he said, sharing a smile with Lyla. The two of them moved past Lucas and his brother Gage as Boaz pulled her a little way down the veranda.

  “Nice to see you, little brother,” Aaron said, laughter dancing in his eyes. “Nina, I’m Boaz’s older brother, Aaron. We haven’t been properly introduced.” He put out his hand and she took it automatically. His big hand engulfed hers entirely and the merriment dropped from his eyes. “You let me know if you need anything.” He gave her hand a brief squeeze and let go.

  “This is my mate, Lyla. She’s a witch, so whatever I can’t do for you, she can.” He winked and turned to enter the house, leaving Nina nonplussed. She blinked at Lyla, who was smiling fondly after him.

  “Why does everyone keep calling you a witch?”

  Lyla turned back to face her and lifted one shoulder. “Well, I am a witch. And traditionally… the People of the Stars—that’s us witches—and the People of the Moon haven’t gotten along all that well. They’re still getting used to the idea of having a witch in the pack.”

  She gave another elegant one-shouldered shrug. “I guess you could call it a mixed marriage.” There was more than a hint of humor in her smile as she said that.

  “Oh. So…” Nina wracked her brain, trying to think of something—anything—to say. “You’re married? Not just— mated?” For some reason her voice dropped to a whisper on the last word, and Nina felt her cheeks heat.

  Beside her, Boaz made a soft grunt. Nina was pretty sure it started out as a laugh, and her face went hotter.

  “Oh, no,” Lyla said. “Not officially. Although I do consider myself married. Hard to get more married than this.” She made a graceful gesture that seemed to encompass her very existence. “And who’s going to say otherwise?” She gave a wry smile. “The only time I’ve ever needed a marriage license was for insurance purposes… and somehow I don’t see myself trying to add Aaron to my health insurance any time soon.”

  “Oh. Right. I guess not.” Nina managed a weak smile. She was so totally out of her element. What marriage license? Hadn’t the woman just said she wasn’t married?

  Lyla glanced down, holding out her left hand like she was checking her manicure. “I should really get a ring though, now that I think about it.”

  Beside her, Boaz stirred. Nina had a feeling Aaron was going to get a little hint about a certain someone wanting a ring. From the small, closed-mouth smile on Lyla’s face as she shot him a sideways glance, Lyla seemed to think so too. And was well satisfied with the outcome.

  Huh. What would it be like to live in a world where subtle hints were enough to clue a man in to what you want? In Nina’s admittedly limited experience, you had to practically hit them over the head with it, and sometimes that didn’t even work.

  Just then Elizabeth came out onto the porch with a tray of champagne flutes. The sight of the pale bubbly liquid in those graceful glasses was inexplicably moving. She didn’t even know these women, and here they were rolling out the welcome wagon. Celebrating her inclusion. Aaron and Jeff followed Elizabeth with more champagne and a platter of cheese and crackers, while Cray held the door.

  Elizabeth came right over to Nina and offered her the tray while Aaron served Lucas, Mari and Gage. Jesse, Zeke and Eli stood in a cluster behind them, and Aaron served them next. Once everyone had a glass, Elizabeth raised her flute.

  “I just want to say a quick toast, and offer Nina an official welcome to Rabbit River—the place—” she broke off and shot Lucas a significant look, “and let you know how happy we ladies are to have you here with us. As you can see—” she cast a look around the assembled group, “we have more than enough testosterone around here. More girl power is always welcome.”

  “Hear, hear,” Mari’s bright, cheerful voice echoed immediately from the other side of the porch.

  “I’ll drink to that,” Lyla said.

  “Me too,” said Boaz, clinking first her glass and then the rest of their group, which now included Aaron.

  There was general clinking all around and as Nina took her first sip, she saw that Boaz was actually smiling with both sides of his mouth. Their eyes met. Her stomach gave a funny little flutter, and her mouth smiled back without her permission.

  The prosecco was crisp and light. Glancing around at the gathering on the porch, with the beautiful river valley spread out before them, she had the momentary thought that she could be happy here. Imagining herself part of this group, enjoy this kind of camaraderie every day...

  “I would also like to welcome Nina’s presence among us.” Lucas’s carefully-modulated voice snapped her back to reality, and her eyes shot to his. He stared back at her, his expression serious but not hostile. “And once you accept Boaz, I will be happy to welcome you into the pack.”

 
No pressure, Nina thought, and swallowed. She nodded, unable to say a single thing. She didn’t dare look at Boaz, and glanced down at her champagne glass instead.

  “Well,” Elizabeth said, “that’s about enough of that. Nina, would you like to join Mari, Lyla and me in the kitchen? We need to start marinating things for the barbeque.”

  Before she could answer with a grateful yes, Boaz spoke. “Nina just got here.” He didn’t sound happy, and his hand slid down her arm to grasp hers.

  “Boaz, the rest of you barbarians may not understand female bonding rituals, but that doesn’t mean we’re just going to ignore them.” Elizabeth’s tone was matter-of-fact, but her smile softened the words.

  Boaz nodded thoughtfully at Elizabeth, then glanced down at Nina, that half-smile winking into existence. He gave her hand a quick squeeze. Nina tried to smile back, but it felt more like a grimace.

  She gave him a quick nod, extracted her hand and fled into the kitchen, Elizabeth and Lyla closing in around her, with Mari bringing up the rear.

  Chapter 15

  Once inside, Elizabeth went straight to the fridge and started pulling things out. She and Lyla shared a glance, and Nina had the feeling something was being communicated.

  Elizabeth handed Lyla a bag of new potatoes. “What do you think, potato salad, or parsley and butter?”

  “Oh, let’s do potato salad. We are having barbecued chicken, right?”

  “Barbecued chicken, salmon and steak. And salad. Here, Nina,” she said, handing her a beautiful bunch of romaine lettuce. “Do you want to make the salad?”

  “Definitely potato salad. We have time, right?”

  “Sure. We can just put the potatoes in the freezer for a little while to cool if we have to. Mari, what do you think about biscuits?”

  “Definitely biscuits,” Mari said, giving Nina a smile before heading for the pantry.

  “Mari makes absolutely the best biscuits, Nina. You’re in for a treat.”

  “Oh, that sounds wonderful,” she said, trying not to feel awkward, standing there with a big head of lettuce. “Um… are we making potato salad with romaine?”

  The three women looked at each other and then there was a burst of laughter.

  “No. No, sorry,” Elizabeth said. “That’s for the green salad.”

  “Oh,” Nina said, feeling more confident. “Good.” Green salad she could handle.

  “Here, let me get you a colander and a cutting board,” Lyla said, motioning her over to a spot between the sink and the stove and pulling a large wooden cutting board from a cabinet below.

  “Great,” Nina said. “Thanks.”

  She felt her shoulders start to relax as she settled into the familiar task of washing the lettuce. Activity continued on around her, the women moving in easy coordination as if they had done this hundreds of times. After a few moments, Lyla cleared her throat.

  “So, I just want to say… I was in kind of the same position you’re in when Aaron first brought me to the pack. Except I’m a witch—the ancient enemy of the People—” She broke off and made dramatic jazz hands, opening her eyes wide in mock horror. “And poor Aaron had no idea. But he stuck by me. Still, the choice was mine. I couldn’t have left of course, but I didn’t have to choose him.”

  She paused a moment, as if gathering her thoughts. “I think Boaz is a pretty upstanding guy, and he is Aaron’s brother, but it’s up to you. If he’s not your type, you do not have to accept him. The fact that he’s claimed you—that’s basically like declaring his intentions—so the other guys have to back off. It doesn’t mean you have to pick him. You can choose whoever you want. As long as they’re not mated, anyway. And, you know, they’re interested. But with the severe shortage of mates these days, I don’t think that’s a problem.”

  Nina’s mind reeled. She wasn’t sure what to say. What to think. The idea of being with someone other than Boaz shot a spurt of fear through her. At least Boaz she knew a little, trusted to a certain extent. Liked quite a bit more than she wanted to admit. Kind, thoughtful, dependable Boaz, who understood her desperate need to help her sister. The idea of considering someone else was just too weird to contemplate.

  “You know,” Elizabeth said, breaking into her confusion, “I was in pretty much the exact same situation as you. Cray kidnapped me. Well, they all did, actually, when I accidentally saw them shift. But Cray claimed me. Even so, the choice was mine.”

  She glanced over at Lyla and then Mari, her voice going wistful. “And do you know— he was so worried I wouldn’t choose him?” She smiled softly, shaking her head. “I didn’t find out until afterwords, and it just about melted my heart.”

  “That man loves you to pieces, Elizabeth,” Mari said. “It’s annoyingly adorable. At least Aaron has some dignity.”

  “Cray has dignity!”

  Mari rolled her eyes. “Sure he does.”

  “Hey!” Elizabeth reached over to Lyla’s cutting board and launched a piece of potato at Mari, who ducked aside, laughing.

  Lyla chuckled. “Mari, you little troublemaker. She’s just trying to get a rise out of you, Elizabeth.”

  Mari’s peal of bubbly laughter had even Nina smiling. The younger woman pointed her batter-coated whisk at Elizabeth. “You should have seen your face. That was priceless. Did you see her, Lyla? Getting all defensive for her man?”

  “Okay, little miss smarty, you want to talk about men? What about Lucas? And his, “Oh, Mari,” she said in a terrible imitation of Lucas’s deep, accented voice. “Do you need butter on your toast, ma cherie?”

  “He does not say that.” Mari muttered. She had turned her attention back to her mixing bowl, but a slight pink flush touched her cheeks.

  Lyla was half bent over, she was laughing so hard, and her eyes were still dancing when she straightened.

  “But you’re under his protection,” Elizabeth persisted.

  “That’s a formality. Let it go, Elizabeth.”

  “Oh, sure, a formality. But I think you-like-him,” she sing-songed.

  Mari rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t quite hide her smile as she ducked her head to her task. Elizabeth and Lyla shared a smile.

  Nina felt a little pang at the tight bond the three women obviously shared. She took a deep breath and tried to get her bearings. She needed to get whatever information she could. Only one more day, and then she had to decide. One way or the other.

  “So, um, can I ask you? Are you two really happy?” She looked from Lyla to Elizabeth and back. She was pretty sure she knew the answer, but… “I mean, isn’t it weird to know you had to choose them, or someone from the pack, just to get your freedom back?”

  “Not for me,” Lyla said immediately. “Aaron is the kind of man I’ve always wanted. Devoted and caring, always trying to make me happy. He is adorably earnest about it.” She smiled fondly.

  “What about this bond thing? Boaz said it would physically prevent me from betraying the pack. How is that even possible? Isn’t it kind of spooky? I mean, you don’t have control of your actions?”

  “Well,” Elizabeth said. “I guess it could be, but I haven’t noticed anything like that. It might be different if I had any interest in doing something to hurt the pack, but really, who would want to do that? These guys are the nicest group of people you will ever find.” She kept her gaze intently on Nina, and she knew Elizabeth wanted her to agree.

  “Aside from the whole abduction thing, and Lucas threatening to kill me, I have nothing against these guys at all,” she said evenly.

  Elizabeth had the grace to grimace. “Yes, well… there is that. And believe me, no one is suggesting you throw your life away on someone who doesn’t interest you just to gain your freedom. It may seem like that’s what we did, but it’s not. I fell in love with Cray, and I couldn’t be happier. The same for Lyla. But take your time. Look at Mari. She’s not mated, and no one is pressuring her to choose someone. I’m sure there would be a problem if she tried to leave...”

  Mari made a fa
ce. “Lucas made me promise to stay here, where he could keep me safe. For such a soft-spoken man, he can be very… persuasive.” She shrugged and started greasing a biscuit tin. “Not that I’d want to leave, what with that horrible Marten running around. Although—”

  She turned to Elizabeth, her eyes alight with mischief. “Now that he’s mated, maybe I should go visit my sister.”

  Elizabeth put a hand on her hip. “Mari Jo Johnson, you just stop. Our poor Alpha has had enough to worry about.” She shook her finger. “Don’t you go starting trouble, young lady.”

  Mari giggled. “Oh, but it’s sooo tempting. Can you just imagine the look on his face?”

  “I’d rather not,” she muttered, but she was smiling. “Lauren is coming for your birthday. If you start talking about going to visit her, Lucas will organize an expedition. Is that what you want?”

  Mari sighed. “No, I guess not.” She rolled her eyes. “You take all the fun out of things, Elizabeth.”

  Elizabeth grinned. “Sure I do.”

  Mari rolled her eyes again, but didn’t say anything further.

  Nina took the opportunity to follow up on something Mari had said. “Did you say something about Marten?”

  Mari’s head popped up. “Oh, that’s right. You know him.” She shuddered. “I hope you didn’t let him get too close. He tried to capture Lyla and force her to be his mate. Same with Aster. The man has no morals.”

  Nina’s mouth dropped open. “Marten? My Marten?”

  “The very same,” Mari answered.

  At the same time Elizabeth said, “Wait a minute. Your Marten? Have we missed something here? Because I have to tell you, honey, that ship has sailed.”

  Nina blinked at her. “Ship?”

  “He’s mated,” she said gently, as if trying to soften the blow.

  “Oh. No, we never had that kind of relationship. But I just can’t believe—” She tried to imagine Marten kidnapping one of them. “I mean, he was always pretty… intense, but he never tried to…” She trailed off, remembering that night in the clinic, his offhand comment about her infertility.