by Thorne, Elle
“Holy shit,” Rafe hissed.
“No, Veila.” Sophie’s face crumpled.
Veila slipped back into her room, closing the door behind her softly.
For the first time in her life, she felt totally alone. All the siblings and half-siblings she had, and now she felt completely alone. And the most bizarre thing of all was she wished she had someone to talk to. Someone to hold on to. Someone who believed in her. And that someone was a lion with dark hair, charcoal eyes, and a body that was perfectly lickable.
Chapter Nineteen
“Are we going home or not?”
“You can,” Mark told Mason. He pulled a black hoodie over his head. “My reason for being here isn’t over. Actually, it’s changed.”
It certainly had changed. All that long blonde hair, those light eyes, a set of hips a man could hold on to, an ass that filled a pair of pants and then some, and a personality that didn’t quit. That was his new reason for sticking around. He was going to get to know Veila. He was going to help her see she couldn’t live without him.
He left for the Tiero Towers, taking Mason’s lock-picking kit with him. He’d never been as good at it as Mason, but surely he could manage to get in.
* * *
Mark was in his lion skin. It was dark outside, and he was perfectly hidden in the back of the Tiero Towers parking garage. He leaped through the large concrete slats in the garage and landed on the ground. After shifting quickly in the event someone might drive by, he made for the elevator.
A couple of clicks of the tumbler and a deft move with his wrist, and the elevator opened.
Ha. Maybe little brother isn’t the only one with skills.
The doors closed behind him, giving him privacy. He surveyed the panel.
Damn.
Another lock to get to the right floor? He used the kit on that one and was rewarded with the whirring of the elevator as it rose to the 42nd floor where After Dark was located.
The elevator stopped.
A moment too late, Mark noticed it hadn’t reached the 42nd floor.
The red numbers said 36.
Why? What?
The door opened.
Mark never had a chance to escape.
Six tiger shifters, with another six behind them, seized him.
Tiero security.
Chapter Twenty
Veila didn’t answer her door. She didn’t answer her phone. Her siblings quit knocking on the door, and then, a few hours later, they quit calling. It was futile, anyway; she wasn’t going to answer.
Dressed in a pair of shorts and a tank top, she curled up on her couch with the last of the chocolate. Lila had left it on the counter for her before she and Cy left to take Petra back to Chicago.
Veila praised and cursed Lila for leaving her in the lurch, but she couldn’t blame her. Clearly, Lila was the smart one, getting out before things became enflamed.
She flipped through the channels on the TV, but nothing could soothe her.
Her phone vibrated. Her siblings didn’t give up, did they?
It was a text from Gavin. Odd. Why would Gavin text her?
The text read: Need you to come to 36th floor.
Why would Gavin want her to go to there? That floor was dedicated to the security team. It was where they’d detained Mark and his brother. Why would Gavin want her to go there?
She texted him back: Why?
His response was simple, but it answered no questions: Come now.
She cursed out Gavin in her mind then yanked her shorts off and threw on some jeans, shimmying to get into the tight, unforgiving material. Damn. She should cut down on the chocolate.
She would.
As soon as she could cut down on the stress.
Grabbing her keys and nothing else, she made for the elevator. If Gavin thought he was going to talk her into staying…
If her father had coerced Gavin into getting her to go down there so he could talk to her…
She was going to kill Gavin. She’d forget he was one of Vax’s closest friends, and she’d kill him.
Chapter Twenty-One
Mark stalked around the security room on the 36th floor. “What are you waiting for? Go ahead, kill me. I heard about the Tiero. Their views regarding other shifters. Just do it.”
“Shut up, already,” Gavin said. “Killing you isn’t in the plan. Not right now, anyway.”
The door opened, and a short, curvy shifter burst into the room. An arctic fox shifter, Mark realized. She was teeming with excitement.
“Gavin.” Her face was animated. “You won’t believe what—”
She froze as she noticed the dozen Tiero security tiger shifters in the room, and, in their midst, one very angry, very out of place lion.
Her gaze swung back to Gavin, her eyes wide. “What’s going on?” Her voice was a tiny, nervous squeak.
“Nothing to worry about, Layla.” Gavin’s tone changed, his timbre deepening.
Mark eyed Gavin suspiciously. Was there something between him and the arctic fox shifter?
“I’ll find you later,” Gavin told her, then led her toward the door, his hand on her back.
Interesting the Tieros have a fox in their midst, in addition to a bear shifter and two wolf shifters. This wasn’t the Tieros he knew by reputation—not at all.
As soon as Gavin had closed the door behind Layla, he turned toward Mark. “Why did you break into Tiero Towers? Nothing to say?”
As if Mark would admit he’d come to see Veila. That would put a spotlight on her and bring her heat from her tribe. And clearly, with all she was going through, that was the last thing she needed.
“Get in.” Gavin waved Mark toward the cell.
This shit again?
Mark studied the odds. Twelve to one. He sighed and went in, letting Gavin close the cell door behind him with a clang and a click of the key turning.
“Leave us,” Gavin told his team.
Curious turn of events. Why would Gavin want to talk to him alone?
Chapter Twenty-Two
Veila raised her hand and made a fist to knock on the door, but it opened before she could touch it. She almost knocked on Gavin’s forehead.
His little trick of opening the door like that would get him a knot on his head if he wasn’t careful.
“What’s up?” She leaned over and tried to glance around his shoulder, wondering if her father was there.
He wasn’t, but Mark was, and he was in the cage.
“What the fuck?” She looked to Gavin for an answer.
Was this where Mark had been all along? She was beginning to feel bad about the thoughts she’d had.
“I think I should leave you two to talk,” Gavin said. “There was a disturbance in Sanctuary…”
Gavin didn’t have to finish his sentence. Veila knew the disturbance he was trying to allude to—her night of passion with Mark.
A heat rose to her cheeks, heralding the blush she knew was a dead giveaway to her guilty conscience about that night.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, keeping her head low.
Gavin closed the door behind him.
Veila raised her eyes to Mark’s face. A face she’d committed to memory.
* * *
Mark blinked. She wasn’t a hallucination brought on by his wishful thinking. She was really there.
Veila stood, legs shoulder width apart, shoulders squared, ready for battle. Her face was pale, and her long blonde hair had that just-fucked look. Mark couldn’t take his eyes off every inch of her. She had a tank top on. Jesus Christ. His goddamned cock jerked to attention when he zeroed in on the soft swells beneath her tight tank. The tips of her breasts poked out, needing attention, or at least that was how Mark wanted to interpret it. They needed his attention. He hadn’t forgotten the taste of her nipples, of her beautiful pink and red sex when she’d come in his mouth.
“Hey.” Suddenly, Mark was disgusted with himself. Couldn’t he come up with more of a greeting than “Hey?” Like
telling her he’d missed her, or how much she meant to him, or how awesome last night had been?
“You vanished last night.” Her tone seemed to be injected with Freon.
Uh-oh. Shit.
Mark hadn’t even thought about it from her perspective. Damn. “I was worried about creating problems for you, being found there…” He couldn’t even put into words what he was thinking, not with so much of his blood still in his engorged cock.
She shrugged, her brows raised, either not understanding or not buying his explanation, but her eyes traveled the length of his body then centered on his lips.
Mark liked that. His cock did, too, and responded. So did his lion, giving a snarl of appreciation for the woman they loved.
“I know how your kind… your… the Tiero feel about cross-mixing of species and stuff. Plus, I didn’t want to… sully your reputation.”
“What century do you live in, Mark Martinez?” She stormed forward, her face a passionate mask of indignation. Reaching between the bars, she grabbed the collar of his black hoodie and pulled him forward until his face was touching the bars. “That’s bullshit. My reputation? Screw my reputation.” She leaned in and kissed him, her eyes closed. She licked his lower lip, ventured her tongue into his mouth, testing, seeking, and finding.
He let her take what she wanted, giving her what she needed.
When she opened her eyes, there wasn’t a hint of insecurity in them. She knew exactly what she wanted.
He did, too.
“Let’s go.” He reached into his pocket for the lock-picking kit then noticed the key was already in the door. Gavin had left it there.
The head of Tiero security knew a lot more than it seemed.
As soon as the cell was open, he reached for her, running his hands along her sides, her curves, up her bare arms, enjoying the goose bumps he was raising on her flesh.
“I want you in my life. I’m not going to play games or do any other kind of hoop-jumping shit. I want you. I know you want me. Your tigress wants me. Can we just cut through the bullshit and get to the place where we’re together?”
* * *
Veila loved Mark’s straight talk. She loved that he put himself and his emotions on the line and made himself vulnerable.
“I have a few things to sort out.”
“Your father?”
“Yeah.” She nodded, laying her head on his chest.
“I wish I could do all of that for you. Take care of it and let you not be stressed.”
The door creaked open. Gavin walked in.
Veila looked at him. She was willing to bet the timing of his entrance wasn’t coincidental. “You were listening,” she accused Gavin, without sounding critical.
“You act like I can help it. It’s supersensitive, you know, the hearing thing.”
She also knew he was highly rated in the hearing department.
Gavin nodded at Mark. “I had a good feeling about you. Glad I wasn’t wrong.” He turned back to Veila. “I’d like to help with this.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s time for a change. And I think you’re the one who can pull it off,” he told Veila. “I’ll back you.”
Veila was confused. “Why? You’re from the old regime. Why would you want to see the old codes changed?”
“No, my father was. And I’ll tell you a secret.” He lowered his voice. “Vax and Callie are at my place.”
“What?” Joy soared in Veila’s heart. “I thought they left.”
“Nope.”
Veila sat on the barstool in front of the countertop desk. She grabbed a pen and began to doodle, trying to bring things together in her mind. A few seconds later, she began a rhythmic tapping of her nails on the counter.
“Gavin.” She whirled the chair around, her face animated. “Tell everyone a meeting has been called. I don’t care who you have to lie to or what lie you have to tell them, just get them there.”
“Will do.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Veila waited in the executive boardroom. She sat at her usual spot, across from Vax’s seat at the long table.
Mark sat on her right. Next to him were Mae and Doc. The Nielsen twins, Rory and Reese, sat across from Mae and Doc.
Lézare was to the left of Vax’s spot. His sisters, Alexa and Evie had returned to their home in New Orleans, and he’d conveyed their apologies. Veila knew it had something to do with Mark’s brother. She would ask him about that, one day. But today was dedicated to other matters, chiefly her brother and the rest of her family.
Lila and Cy had finally returned and were seated next to Lézare. Cy’s sister, Petra, had been settled back in Chicago, and they’d been brought up to speed on the events they’d missed.
Veila felt like she was holding her breath. Would he come? She had no way of knowing for sure.
The door opened a crack. She tried to see who it was, but until it was opened farther, she had no way of knowing. Her lungs burned from holding her breath. Why weren’t they opening the damn door?
Finally, it swung open all the way.
Vax.
She was so happy to see him, she wanted to get up and dance.
He looked around the room, making eye contact with each shifter, his gaze finally resting on Veila. “I didn’t know everyone would be here. Gavin said you wanted to talk.”
“I do. Have a seat.” She waved him toward his usual spot.
Vax eyed the chair suspiciously, as if there might be a rattlesnake in it. He stepped forward into the room.
Callie was behind him. “You’re next to him.” Veila indicated the empty chair to the right of Vax’s chair.
Vax closed the door behind Callie and glanced at Gavin. “So you’re party to this, too?”
Leaning against the wall, Gavin raised a brow but said nothing.
Vax took his seat, nodding at Lézare and Mae then the rest of the table. “Greetings, all.” His voice was low.
The door opened again, and Rafe strode in.
He saw Vax and smiled. Then he noticed Callie, and the smile vanished, replaced by confusion for a moment until he composed himself. Rafe glanced at Veila as if he couldn’t believe she’d put him in this position.
She tried to convey her apology with her eyes. She had no wish to hurt her baby brother, even though he and Vax had spent so many years at odds with one another.
Rafe looked away, choosing instead to keep his gaze on the windows and the Dallas skyline.
They didn’t have long to wait for the final step in her plan to fall into place.
The door opened again, this time to reveal her father and her uncles Tito and Federico, all of whom wore their business suits, including crisply knotted neckties. Her father’s face was grim.
Giovanni strode into the room, letting Tito close the door behind him. His bearing was straight and proud. “You said you needed a short time to think. It’s been much more than a short time.”
Shit. He’d called Rafe in. He had no intention of waiting to hear what she had to say. He’d bypassed her completely. In all the craziness that had ensued, Veila had forgotten the way she’d left things.
Giovanni greeted Rafe with a hug then waved his hand around the room, indicating those who had gathered, clearly frustrated by the other species and the human.
Finally, he turned to Veila. “I see the lesson I’ve taught your brother Vittorio hasn’t taken seed in your mind yet. I’m glad I called your brother Raphael.”
Veila took a deep breath and rose from her seated position. “I’m done with this. The old codes, the old ways, and the old feuds are over.”
“You do not determine what is over and what is not. This is Tiero territory. I determine that. Give me the keys. You are fired.” Next to her, Mark rose to his feet. She felt him bristling, his lion ready to rampage to protect his mate. He took her hand, put his arm around her.
Heads snapped in their direction. The only one not shocked by Mark’s actions was Gavin.
Veila put her other hand on Mark’s. “I’ve got this,” she whispered close to his ear, leaving a gentle, silent kiss on his cheek beneath his temple.
Giovanni scoffed. “A Martinez is going to assist a Tiero? Don’t make me laugh. Raphael, it is your show. You run this continent, and I will run Europe.”
Rafe stood. He turned glittering indigo eyes toward Vax then looked at his father. “No.”
Giovanni sputtered briefly. “Fine, then I will handle this continent, and you can run all of Europe.”
Rafe looked at Veila then at their father again. “No.” His voice was more firm than the first time he’d said it.
Red-faced, Giovanni began to shift, stripes showing through his skin. Tito and Federico both put their hands on his arms.
“Gio, no!” Federico exclaimed.
Giovanni paused his shift. “What the hell is wrong with you, Raphael?” His voice was inhuman in his mid-shifted state. He gave Rafe a look of disdain then turned to Gavin. “You and your men need to seize—”
“No, sir,” Gavin told Gio then looked at Veila. “Do you want them removed?” He indicated Giovanni, Tito, and Federico.
Giovanni’s face became splotchy and red. His features distorted into a scowl, eyebrows drawn down. “Removed? Me? Do you forget who I am?” he roared.
Vax stepped forward. “Who you are? You’re an old man who has made some bad decisions and is losing more than his children. So much more.” He took Callie’s hand in his.
Giovanni looked at his brothers. “Can you believe this?”
Tito cleared his throat, adjusted his tie. “Maybe the young ones have a point.”
