Escher had dropped me off outside Moss’ house after taking me to lunch with Moss but as I walked through the house, I heard voices outside…on the back porch.
“Perfect. She’ll never suspect,” Brandon said. I looked out the back door window to see them both standing on opposite sides of the stairs.
“Yeah, if Escher can keep his mouth shut. He’s always about the truth, even when we don’t want her to know.”
My stomach sank again, like the last time I’d caught them talking about me.
What were they keeping from me?
My heart tried to convince me they wouldn’t be talking about anything bad. My mates loved me. They wanted the best for me.
But my mind. Well, it was running around like a rabid monkey, making up all kids of catastrophic scenarios.
Little bastard.
“And you’ve got all the other stuff ready?” Cash asked. He had low-slung jeans on and no shirt. One of those square-looking pencils was balanced on top of his ear. Reminded me of the first time I’d met him.
I was still in my chair then. Turning, I looked at the closet where it was stashed. I made myself a promise then and there it would not go with us to the new house.
“Yeah. It’s all ready. My mom has the box and you know where the rest of the stuff is.”
Cash nodded and a small smile pulled at his lips.
“We have a few more weeks of keeping this a secret and then we have to tell her.”
“I know,” Brandon answered. “I hope she doesn’t freak out. Is it wrong what I’m worried about all of us not mating right away? I mean, I know we are sure, but is she? What if she runs when she finds out? What if we did all this and it makes her bolt?”
Cash shrugged. “It’s not wrong. It will happen for the other two. You have to chill out about it. Doesn’t mean she doesn’t want this.”
Brandon shrugged. “Yeah, you’re right. I’m nervous. Like, the first time I saw her, nervous.”
“She loves us, don’t worry. It will all be fine.”
“I know.”
It seemed like they were done talking, so I rushed upstairs and grabbed laundry way overdue for washing and as they came inside, I was coming back downstairs.
They each kissed me and I sensed no weirdness. My wolf also didn’t feel anything off.
Still, I felt weird there was something they couldn’t tell me.
I knew the perfect cure. Run myself silly so I had no energy
“Brandon, are you busy today?” I asked, putting the detergent into the wash.
“Not right now. What’s on your mind, mate?”
“I was wondering if you were up for a run.”
He pulled his shirt off right there. “I can think of other ways of working off some extra energy.”
“After the run. We need to be a wolf for a while.”
He closed the distance between us. “Is everything okay, mate?”
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
I stripped right there in the house and then shifted on the porch. I ran ahead of him, letting my wolf take over. She felt more. Thought less.
Exactly what I needed at the moment. My paws hit the cool grass and dirt underneath. Claws clicked on branches and logs as we vaulted off them in order to get further in the forest. Brandon was right behind me all the way. Usually he would keep pace with me, but I thought he was simultaneously on Wendi security detail while we ran.
Shit, I was thinking again.
They love us. Your mind is muddled.
Damned wolf was always right. We were busy arguing back and forth, I lost my footing and tripped over a root sticking out. My wolf tumbled around, flipping head over ass so many times when we landed I didn’t know if I was upside down or I’d broken my own head.
“Wendi, shit, are you okay? That was one hell of a tumble.”
Brandon shifted to two legs and I did so as well. And then I proceeded to double over in laughter.
Even with four legs, I was clumsy as fuck.
“I guess you’re okay,” He said and rolled his eyes.
“I’m fine,” I said, wiping the tears from my face. “Shit, I needed that.”
Brandon sat on the ground next to me, and I put my head on his shoulder. My wolf had erased all the qualms I had. They would rise again, but for now, they were gone.
“I love you, Brandon,” I whispered.
“I love you, too,” he answered. I was sure one day down the road, those words would come out as automatic but for now, each time I heard it, it was special.
“What had you all wound up?” he asked, pulling me onto his lap. I loved how warm his skin always was.
“Just life. But I’m okay now.”
“Wanna go back?” He kissed my neck. I leaned my head back to give him better access.
“Not yet,” I whispered to the heavens. “Make love to me, mate.”
“Gladly,” He responded.
I moved up, positioning my entrance at the head of his hardness but paused there to look in his eyes.
“What are you waiting for, my female? Take what you need from me.”
I lowered myself, spearing my core with him until he cried out my name. I leaned down and kissed him. Our mouths worked together and I found he needed me in that moment as much if not more than I needed him.
When I yelled out in ecstasy, minutes later, he joined me, both of us climaxing at the same time.
“Oh my goddess,” I said, looking at him with wide eyes.
“Yeah, I second that.”
“No,” I said, covering my breasts. “We just…in the open. In the forest.”
He laughed and moved my hands away to take one of my nipples into his mouth. “We did. Remind me having a run with you turns you into a beast. You were incredible, Wendi. You always are though.”
My wolf perked up inside me. We’d had sex exactly twice and he thought I was amazing.
I caught a scent and it raised every hackle. “Something is wrong,” I said, getting off of him and standing up.
“What is it?”
“Listen,” I said, holding onto his arm. “It’s Cash.”
And I took off at a sprint.
Chapter Twenty-Three
I smelled the blood before I found him. I ran into the house, naked as could be, calling out his name. “Cash!” I yelled while Brandon went in the other direction, toward the house. He was probably getting the others.
“I’m here,” he called back, but his voice was weak. The smell of pungent metal intensified until it led me upstairs to what would be our master bedroom.
“Cash, what happened?” I asked.
He sat with his back against the floor, cradling his arm in his other hand. His white T-shirt Hanging from his pants pocket was drenched with maroon liquid.
This wasn’t a nail in his hand.
“I think I hit an artery—why are you naked?” It all came out in one run on slur.
“Brandon and I were running. Give me your arm.”
He looked up at me, his face growing more pale by the second as the blood loss took hold. “Heal me, mate. I’ve really done it this time. Everything is getting fuzzy.”
I scanned the area and saw a long handsaw not far from where my mate was sitting. “Cash, I have to see it. Stay with me.”
He slowly pulled his arm back from his chest to reveal an enormous gash spurting blood everywhere, like a damned fountain on the fritz.
Fear rushed through me as the others came into the room and saw what was happening.
No, there was no time for fear. I could do this.
Like before, I closed my eyes and held his arm as gently as I could. I pushed the invisible part of myself toward my mate and reached for the string, the red and pulsing thing, threatening his life.
Except this time was different. My powers found the cut, and Cash’s whole arm glowed blue, the color reaching from me to his arm like a net thrown over us, connecting us. I opened my eyes to watch as the muscles were threaded back together, vein by vein, like fabric bei
ng sewn. As they did, the wound closed and his skin fused back together.
First there was a mark where he had been cut and then there was nothing.
My powers had taken away the pain as well.
“It’s…”
The last thing I remember was the look of awe on his face before I hit the floor.
“It’s been seven hours,” Escher said, and I heard the heaviness of his boots as they hit the floor. He was pacing.
“Just give her time. She took upon herself, the cut and the pain—the whole injury. It takes time to recoup just as it would if you had gone to the hospital. All of you need to calm down. Your calm will be hers when she wakes.”
Mirella Damn, they must’ve been desperate if they called her.
“I’m here,” I said but choked on the words. My throat was dry and I coughed as I tried to sit up.
“Wendi.” Cash was the first to rush to my side, and he offered me water. I accepted the glass and chugged the entire thing in one go.
“You’re okay, Wendi?” Mirella seemed unfazed by the whole thing. Like she expected it. If anyone was well-versed in this stuff, it was her.
“I’m a little weak but okay. I think I need to eat.”
“Good. Needing to eat is good. Vomiting? Not so much. Get your nourishment. Drink water. Rest. Call me tomorrow. I can give you some pointers for the next time.”
Before she left, I called out, “Thanks, Gram.”
She laughed, already descending the stairs. “I’m really starting to like the name.”
“Food for you.” Escher picked me up and carried me downstairs. He put me on the couch and I realized I was dressed.
“Who dressed me?” I asked, pleased to notice my outfit matched. My favorite black lounge pants with a cute white shirt.
“Moss.” Cash came to sit by me with a glass of orange juice. “The others are cooking.”
Goddess, I knew the look on his face. Pure guilt.
“This isn’t your fault, Cash.”
“Yes, it is,” A chorus rang from the kitchen. They were joking, but I knew they were concerned for him. I’d seen the looks on their faces when we went into the house and saw him hurt.
“They’re right. It’s my fault.”
I sat up, almost spilling the juice. “Do you know what I thought when I came into the room with you?”
“Um…look at my dumbass mate, clumsy again.”
My shoulders slumped. Clearly this was going to be an uphill battle. “No. I thought, man, Cash must be exhausted and made a mistake. I love him and don’t want him to hurt.”
I reached for his arm, and he let me inspect the once wound. “You were amazing. We all saw the whole thing. The blue. The way your eyes turned.”
“My eyes turned?” I asked.
“Yeah, the blue glow was along the edges of your irises.”
Well, another piece of news. Mirella left out that little bit of information.
“Why didn’t you tell me, Escher?” I asked, throwing my voice to the kitchen even though he could hear me fine.
“You had your eyes closed both times you healed me, female. Didn’t know.”
I peeked over the back of the couch to see him with his hands on his hips, waiting for something to cook. He was in the feed the female zone.
“We’re so proud of you,” Cash said and hugged me. All of his self-doubt and worry was gone. My wolf detected no trace of it at all.
I’d done it. My chest swelled at the thought. All of this time, my mates had supported me and been there to protect me. Now I could shift and heal them.
My spirit felt renewed.
It was one thing for others to tell you you have value, but to tangibly feel your own value, own it, that was priceless.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“With all due respect, brother, how are you even considering this with our enemies still trying to take our mate?” Brandon was livid, and I couldn’t blame him.
I’d been summoned by the alpha to discuss something, and none of us had a clue what that something was until he announced there were requests from around the country and even some out of the country for permission to come in and be seen by the healer.
And he was thinking about it. That’s what he said. Like I had no say in it whatsoever.
It was pissing me off more by the minute.
“She has a gift, Brandon. And I said I’m still thinking about it. I wanted to let you know what was going on. I haven’t decided what’s going to happen.”
I stewed, absolutely almost boiled over while the five of them, my mates and the alpha, argued back and forth. Moss took my hand, but it was Escher who finally came over, picked me up, and sat me in his lap. He put his arms around my waist and pulled me against him.
He must’ve known I was about to lunge for one of these suckers very soon.
Still, even their touch wasn’t enough. This female was about to explode.
“What’s wrong, Wendi?” Brandon stopped his debate to ask me, and it took a second for me to compose myself enough to talk.
I pushed Escher’s hold away, stood, and looked each one in the eye in turn while I spoke. “Did anyone in this room stop to think about asking the healer what she was ready for? If she was ready for lines of people to heal and meeting all these new people from packs? Maybe she’s still coming into her powers and this mating and the house and school and work, and maybe she needs a fucking second before the five of you decide what is going to happen next!”
“Wendi…” The alpha spoke low and slow to me.
Shaking my head, I began to walk away. “Alpha, I need to take a second to go outside and breathe. Then I will be back. Is that okay with everyone?”
They all nodded. I really didn’t care if they agreed or not.
I stomped down the hallway and all the way out of the house and descended the front porch stairs. I balled my fists and walked the perimeter of the parking lot, well aware my mates were watching me from the window. I didn’t care. Yes, I was the healer but that didn’t mean I was going to live the rest of my life on their schedule.
I was in charge of my powers. I was in charge of how my life would be lived.
“What’s got you in a fuss?” Mirella’s voice tore through my thoughts and grounded me, so much so I stopped in my tracks, skidding dirt underneath me. “I could feel your anger all the way at my house. Not a good interruption to my teatime, I must say.”
I deadpanned her. Her teatime? Seriously? “Well, I’m sorry, but pissed off is kind of just the tip of the iceberg here.”
She smiled. “A stroll is always good. Come on, talk while we walk around this parking lot for some godforsaken reason. What did they do?”
“Who?” I swore she was psychic.
“I’m assuming you are angry with your mates. I mean, they are males, and they are looking through the window. It’s bound to happen. And as gorgeous as they are, they still have testosterone, and that’s like a match next to gasoline.”
She called me gasoline, but I got the gist.
“We were in the alpha’s office and they are all talking about other packs coming here and lining up for me to heal them and arguing about if it’s a good idea. Like I’m some kind of tractor everyone gets to share. No one thought to ask me. Not once. Not until I threw a fit and told them I needed a minute.”
“You need to set them straight once and for all, Wendi. I mean it. Don’t let the alpha or anyone else tell you when, on whom, or how to use your powers. If you don’t draw a line in the sand, the alpha is going to think he can control you. Powers or not, no one owns you. Period. Trust me. They tried that bullshit when I was a young girl, too.”
I growled and stopped walking. “Well, they should’ve known better.”
The older woman smiled. “Want me to help you kick their ass? I’ve still got some fight in me.”
Gram pretending to be a boxer while dancing around me was the water to my fire. I bent over laughing, and she did the same.
It wa
s a shame I hadn’t known her all my life.
She was the grandma you got into trouble with.
“This is my fight. I’ve got to handle this,” I said, looking up at the window. Moss, in particular, looked afflicted. The others were almost as bad, grimaces twisting all those handsome faces.
She gave a short nod. “Okay, but I’m coming with you. I’ve got to see this.”
“And I could use backup,” I whispered.
“Hey, I’m nobody’s Robin, Granddaughter.”
We had another laugh before going inside. When I entered the alpha’s office, they were all seated again, each one looking like a wounded puppy.
The alpha planted his palms on his desk. I’d learned this was the thing he did before attempting to be diplomatic. “Wendi, I…”
I put up my hands for him to stop, because this was my show. “Let me speak my peace, please.”
They all nodded.
“I have a lot going on in my life. Some things will be more…solidified in the next month, but I’m a little overwhelmed and I apologize if I disrespected you, alpha. However, I think it’s completely wrong and unfair to discuss my powers and what I will and won’t do without asking me. I’m the healer, yes, but I’m also a person and a student and a mate to four males. And while I value my abilities, those other things will always be my first priority. I have decided I will see others for healing, but it will be on my timetable and on my terms since it’s my body and my abilities being used—no one else’s. If I feel like anyone who is brought in is dangerous or they creep me out, then I have the last decision. I expect to be backed up on these decisions or I won’t use my powers at all.”
“And I don’t want them back, for the record,” Mirella chimed in from the corner where she stood acting like the condition of her fingernails was more important than this meeting.
The alpha looked at his desk like it was the most interesting thing in the world. “You are absolutely right. We were out of line and completely disrespectful to you. Why don’t you think about it some more and let me know how you would like to proceed.”
“Good,” I said and whirled, grabbing Mirella’s hand to drag her out of there with me.
Triumph Page 9
