by Lauren Dane
Her grandmother spoke words older than Latin over their hands where their rings touched. Tegan knew when she changed into her wolf skin, the ring would go somewhere else but be back on her finger when she let her human surface again. Her grandmother explained Ben would feel it when she changed and changed back through the ring on his finger and he’d loved that, knowing he’d have a way to feel her when they weren’t together. She’d also done her thing on the necklace, which had eased Tegan’s worry about losing it.
The pastor had them sign the paperwork after he’d announced them husband and wife, and his grandmother had done her magical mojo and suddenly, they were married under human law and joined in the eyes of the Pack.
The party was lovely. Jillian had outdone herself with the gorgeous little appetizers. The cake was fantastic and plenty of wine and champagne flowed for the guests. They danced under the stars, laughed, kissed and loved.
Ben’s mother even stayed until midnight, which surprised Tegan but made her very happy for Ben’s sake. The woman had been trying in her own way and while Tegan was pretty sure they’d never be very close, she was relieved not to come between him and his family.
Layla pulled her aside later and hugged her tight. “I’m so happy for you. I wondered if I’d ever get you back, if I’d see that look on your face again. The Tegan who belonged to someone. You’re just gorgeous tonight and Ben is spiffy and you both look so good together it makes me almost want to have another baby.”
Sid had approached and put one arm around his wife and another around Tegan. “Ah, my womens. Did you let Ben know he had to share you with me?”
Tegan had to admit the men each one of her sisters had ended up with were pretty amazing and all totally different. Sid was a laid-back rock-and-roll artist type but he adored Layla and had never blinked an eye when Tegan ended up in their guestroom for months after Lucas died.
“As long as it’s in your living room and not your bed, I’m happy to share.” Ben approached and kissed Tegan’s lips quickly.
“If you say so, cop. You’re the one with the gun.” Sid laughed and Ben joined him. Tegan smiled at her sister. Back in those first days after they’d first bonded, Tegan wasn’t sure moments like this were even possible for them. It made the reality all the more sweet.
“Did your parents get out of here okay?” Tegan turned to Ben and snuggled against him.
“Yeah. They were tired but my dad told me to tell you how much he enjoyed the ceremony and he meant that. Jillian of course had a blast and says she’ll talk to you soon. I like that you’re hanging out with my sister.”
“She’s fun and she’s a really good cook. Those meatballs she made? I could have eaten about five hundred of them, like with a giant spoon in front of the television on a Friday night.”
He chuckled. “Even you talking about pigging out is sexy. You’re amazing and I love you so much.”
“Oh you’re so good with that mouth.” She tiptoed up and kissed him. “We should go. Honeymoon suite with our name on it is waiting at the Salish Lodge.”
They said their goodbyes and headed out.
* * *
Their room at the historic lodge was absolutely gorgeous. Rose petals on the bed, a fire in the fireplace, chilled champagne waiting and a lavender-scented bath.
“Wow.” Tegan walked through the room and took it all in. “Swanky. I’m guessing this was Nina’s idea more than Lex’s but it’s a very nice wedding present I must say.”
“Mmm.”
She turned at the catch in his voice, the deepening of the timbre and the thick note of desire there. He leaned against the door, clicking the locks. His eyes never left her and she felt naked there as he devoured her with his gaze.
Her mouth dried up as he slid the tuxedo jacket from his body and casually tossed it on a nearby chair.
“Oh. Well then.”
“Indeed. Come and help me out of these clothes. Then I’ll get in the bath and watch you get out of yours. I’ll tell you what’s next after that.”
A few steps and she met his body with her own, sliding her palms up the expanse of his chest. He was warm, vibrant, his sensuality echoed from him and into her.
She took his hand and undid his cuff, first one and then the other, moving away from him to put the links on the dresser. Moving back to him again, she slid off his cummerbund and tie, then unbuttoned his shirt slowly, kissing each new spot of bare skin as she went.
He relaxed as he stood here, his hands stroking up and down her arms.
When she took his shirt off, she moved to breathe him in, loving the scent of the night on his skin and the smell of Pack. “You smell like Pack now.” She kissed her way across his shoulders as her hands caressed his back before moving around him and over his belly.
“I do?” His voice was lazy, sexy.
“You do. It’s very nice. Sort of wild. It goes well with your natural scent.”
She dropped to her knees in front of him as he stepped out of his shoes and then she took his pants off, followed with his socks and last of all his boxer-briefs.
“While I’m here, mind if I take a little tour?” She looked up at him and caught his smile.
“Who am I to refuse my bride anything she wishes?”
Tegan ran her hands up the muscles of his calves and thighs, loving the way they jumped as she touched him. The skin of his cock was salty as she licked around the crown. She took her time, leisurely kissing and sucking the head the way he liked it as she palmed his balls gently.
His knees locked and the muscles of his thighs bulged. Her body arched as she gasped softly. His desire for her roared into her system as intensely as if it were her own.
“Wow. Is it just me or is this very intense? More than our usual hotter-than-the-sun chemistry?” He drew her up his body as he held her upper arms.
His pupils nearly swallowed all color in his eyes, she tasted his heartbeat in her mouth. Her wolf pressed against her human skin, rolling against him through that metaphysical barrier.
“Holy shit,” he gasped. “What was that?”
“I think the bonding ceremony made us as close as if you were a wolf too. We were already bound through the claiming but whatever my grandmother did, your blood mixing with mine, the whatever she said over the rings, it’s made us very linked.” Tegan closed her eyes for a moment and her head lolled back as she rubbed against him. “My wolf likes it as much as my human does.”
“Good God, I’ve got to have you now,” he whispered, his voice taut.
He shoved the bodice of her dress to the side, freeing her barely held breasts, lowering his mouth to her nipples. Fire licked at her senses as he nibbled and sucked on them.
“Get the sleeves unbuttoned or I’m going to rip it.”
She fumbled with the sleeves as he continued his plunder, finally getting loose.
“Zipper on the side. Hurry!”
He let her go long enough to get the zipper down so she could struggle out of the dress. He helped her pull it over her head and there was a flash of green as he tossed it with his jacket.
“Damn it, those shoes.” He shook his head as he stalked to her. Her shoes were pretty mules with peekaboo toes in a green satin that matched the dress. She’d had a pedicure that morning so her toes were a bright, shiny red. “And Tegan, you naughty, naughty girl. No undies?”
“Well, we don’t do the garter thing so my skirt wouldn’t be up in front of a room full of people. The only person who’d see my pussy would be you.” She hadn’t meant it to come out a squeak but it did as he grabbed her to him.
“If I’d known, I’d have shoved you behind a tree and tossed your dress up, fucked you senseless under the stars.” He marched her backwards into the room until she felt the cool glass of the windows at her bare back. “Turn around.”
She did and started to reach to close the curtains but he caught her arms, bringing them behind her back, holding her wrists in one hand. “Uh-uh-uh. I think we should leave them open, don’t you? No one is out there, it’s late. But what if there were? Hmm? They’d be standing in the dark at the edge of the forest watching as my hand cupped your beautiful breast.”
He spoke softly in her ear as he circled his fingertip around one of her nipples.
Her head fell back against his shoulder and he moved his hand, pressing her breasts against the glass while he spread her legs, tested her readiness and guided himself inside.
She was caught between the cool of the window and the heat of his body at her back. He held her wrists tight as he fucked deeply into her body, the height of her heels making her fit with him perfectly.
Everywhere he touched her sang with their connection as their mutual pleasure ebbed and flowed back and forth between them. She’d never had such a powerful experience, not even with Lucas. It was as if everything the two of them had held back over the years welled up and up until it finally crashed over them when he barely brushed a fingertip over her clit. Her climax brought his as the reverberations of sensation fed back and forth until Tegan’s teeth tingled from clenching them so tight.
“Holy shit,” he gasped as they both folded to the ground, laughing.
They got around to the champagne but had to run the bathwater again to heat it up. Nice big tub, big enough for two. Tegan and Ben left two days later with plenty of memories to go with sore muscles and a permanent grin.
Chapter Fifteen
Ben staked out the building his wife would shortly arrive at with the rest of the team from Cascadia. His heart lodged in his throat as he watched the muscle from National move around the area. He hoped like hell they’d be all right.
Lex had promised him Tegan could handle herself and Gabe had assured him Jack had the situation under control on the inside. But Pellini was a freaking crazy man and who could trust that?
“She’s going to be just fine, Ben.” Benoit chuckled from his chair beside him. Benoit watched the video from the room feeding from the pinhole camera Jack had placed while Ben watched the comings and goings from the building.
“Easy for you to say.”
“Sure it is. But I like Tegan a lot and I’ve been working with Cascadia for nearly as long as you have and I don’t want anyone hurt either. She’s a hard-assed woman. Strong, smart. She’s not going to go down without a fight. It’s why she ranks where she does as a female. And she would be pissed off if she knew you didn’t trust her to take care of herself.”
“Shut up. Did I ask you to be all FBI rational guy over there? Just watch the monitor and let me worry about my wife.”
Benoit laughed again as he continued to watch the screen.
“There she is. Damn that wolf-in-charge thing is hot,” Ben murmured as he watched Tegan get out of the dark-windowed SUV. She was tall and lethal in black, her hair a fiery rope down her back. She even had the earbud in.
Two beefy werewolves approached and Tegan handed them something, conversing with them as she did. He could feel her through the link that bound the two of them. She radiated calm assurance as she stood, feet apart, waiting to get clearance.
With a nod, one of the large National guards stood back and Tegan spoke into the mic near her mouth and she opened the door to the car. Melissa, Cascadia’s Third, and Eric, the Fourth, stepped out along with Dave, another guard.
They hustled toward the side door and for a brief moment, Tegan turned and looked up, right at where they were. Just a fleeting glance as she continued to sweep the area before disappearing inside but Ben felt it to his toes, knew she knew he was there.
* * *
Tegan felt Ben’s presence in the condo building across the street as she turned to scan the area. She took in everything, every window, whether it was open or closed, where the trees obscured doors or entries, points of ingress and egress.
Plenty of wolves in the area and when she walked inside, Melissa and Eric between her and Dave, the scent of Pack from all across the country slammed into her. It rankled her even as it comforted her. That was the nature of family she supposed.
Because this was a National Council, the First and Second of National were in attendance. Jack Meyers stood as they entered the large boardroom. Tegan inclined her head exactly as much as he deserved and not a millimeter more. She stepped to the side to allow Melissa to move forward.
“Melissa, National welcomes Cascadia. Please, come in and sit down. We were all just having a drink. Can I get you something?”
Eric stood next to Melissa and a bunch of posturing took place. Tegan kept her eyes shifting around the room, taking in every possible threat, watching the way everyone stood or sat. Body language was a big tell with wolves. Some of them were definitely with Cascadia on repelling Pellini but others, not so much.
“Tegan, so good to see you. I hear congratulations are in order.”
Tegan couldn’t help but smile as Templeton Mancini strolled toward her, ignoring all protocol by addressing her first instead of the other higher-ranked wolves all around the room.
He chuckled and looked around at everyone. “What? You tell me what man can resist such a lovely woman? I have a thing for redheads, just ask Carla.” Tegan shook her head, Carla Mancini was a lovely woman who’d rip the throat out of any female who had designs on her man. She’d also written one of the kindest condolence notes Tegan received after Lucas had died, she’d never forget that.
Tegan inclined her head and tilted it to the side, baring her neck to him. “Alpha, it’s an honor.”
He kissed her forehead. “So, come and talk with me. Jack will be networking and I’m totally bored. Everyone else here is so uptight they look like they have a stick up their ass, don’t they?”
He held out his arm and she took it. It wouldn’t do to seek permission from Melissa. This was the National Alpha and if she refused for safety reasons, she’d be insulting his promise of safe passage.
“You’re a very naughty Alpha, Mr. Mancini,” Tegan murmured as he led her away.
“Why, ’cause these wolves expect me to let them paw at me and slobber on my shoes?” He snorted. “Carla’s down the hall, I promised her I’d bring you by,” he said in an undertone.
He opened a door and Carla Mancini stood up with a big smile. “Come in here! Let me hear all about your new husband. I hear he’s quite handsome.”
Tegan let herself be enveloped into a hug and put on the couch next to the female Alpha.
“Carla, before you start in on the girl, let me say my bit and then you can natter on.” Templeton patted his wife’s hand and she waved him off with an annoyed look.
“Go on then.”
“He’s here and he’s been seen last night with some of the Siskiyou wolves. Great Lakes is a no, Granite are with you as well. I need to get back out there. Carla, bring this fine young girl back when you’re finished interrogating her about her mate. And Tegan, I sure am glad you got another chance. Does my heart good to see you happy. The last time I saw you, you had heartbreak written all over your face.”
Choking back emotion, she nodded, trying not to blush. He actually came to the funeral at the military cemetery, bringing Jack with him. A great honor but he hadn’t made a big deal of it at all. He just did what an Alpha did.
Carla saw and hugged her around her shoulders. “It’s very cute isn’t it? When they get all sweet? He’s a great big teddy bear sometimes. Now, tell me all about Ben. I’ve seen his picture, I do like the salt-and-pepper thing at his temples. Is he as gruff as he looks?”
Tegan laughed and visited with Carla for several minutes more and then Carla took her back to the others with a kiss on the cheek. It made it look as if they had attempted to work Cascadia on behalf of Pellini so she e
xpected they’d get some looks.
* * *
“Let’s get this party started then, shall we?” Jack addressed the group. The guards moved back to flank the room while the various Inner Circle members sat.
“First I want to note Gina Sorrano’s presence here. It is not normally our way to have Enforcers attend but Great Lakes’ Third is just about ready to give birth so she received a special dispensation to attend in her place. For the purposes of this Council, Gina will have the rank of Third.”
Tegan took note and mentally shrugged. Great Lakes had a lot of power, they got to bend the rules and that’s how their world worked. Templeton wouldn’t have chatted up just any wolf in that room either. But she was a Warden and a Cascadia wolf and she got to break the rules too.
“The Council was called to bring to the table the matter of replacing the National Pack’s Mediator. Gabe Murphy has recommended one of his staff, a very strong, very able wolf with great experience. Naturally, as Gabe held the position of Third in this Pack for so long and as he was the Mediator, his opinion holds high value with us.”
Melissa shifted in her seat and the tension in the air began to build as the real issue surfaced.
“At the same time, we have another candidate, William Reed. He’s not currently in the area but he’s got strong backing. He’s currently Sixth in Memphis and he’s got a law degree. We’re here to decide the issue between the two.” Jack smiled benevolently at the group.
“Ah, here everyone is.”
A cold finger drew down Tegan’s spine as none other than Warren Pellini strolled into the room. She growled, as did many others. It was a violation of the rules of the National Council for any Alphas other than the National to attend. It was also only open to attendance from the top five Packs who made up the National Inner Circle.
“Now, now, it’s not polite to growl at me, is it, Tegan Warden?” Pellini turned to her and she stood tall. He wasn’t a power like Cade or any of the other Alphas who commanded the Packs in the room. She had no reason to act subservient to him. He wasn’t even part of a recognized Pack.
