by Jenny May
“Really?” Georgina looked at him confused. “I thought you had a house.”
“Oh, I do. Let’s just say I have a pest problem.” Rogue took a long drink from his beer and her eyes narrowed as she studied him. A pest problem?
Georgina walked to the couch and sat down. “You wouldn’t happen to be talking about your mate, now would you?”
Coughing filled the room as Rogue began choking on his beer. It was so hard to hide her smile while he looked at her panicked.
“Mate? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Right.” Georgina nodded sarcastically. Rogue began to pace and she waved her arms around. “Okay, enough, Rogue, sit down and spill. Everyone but Logan already knows Cooper is your mate. And truthfully, I think our alpha suspects.”
Rogue kept pacing.
“Hey, I said sit.” Georgina stood and crossed her arms over her chest.
Rogue plopped down on the couch. “I thought you were a submissive. You’re pretty direct for that in my opinion.”
“Who said I was a submissive?” Her eyes narrowed and he looked down.
“No one. I just know my brother.”
Georgina laughed. “Well, I’m only a submissive to your brother. I’m a switch. Austin belongs to both of us. He’s the sub.”
The curiosity that washed over Rogue’s face left her wondering what he was thinking. Should she have not said anything to him? Would Damien get upset if he knew? Georgina got quiet as she went over her thoughts. Maybe it was best if she didn’t share their private lives.
“So…” Rogue went to stand, but sat back down once he realized it. “Does it work, though? Y’all’s relationships?” He shook his head. “I mean, obviously it works. I guess I just don’t understand how.”
Georgina took a long drink of her beer. “It works beautifully. Now enough about us. Tell me about Cooper. Why won’t you see him? Have you even talked to him yet?”
The shake that came from Rogue was fast. “No. Every time I get the hair-rising feeling I haul ass. I’ve never even seen him. I can’t.”
“But why? You know what.” Georgina stood and put out her hand. “That’s a stupid question. I was right where you were not a week ago. If Logan wouldn’t have ordered me to stick it out, I would have ran and never looked back.”
“Really?” Rogue moved to the edge of the couch. “I wasn’t aware you were against the mating.”
A laugh burst from her mouth. “Hell yeah, I was. I was scared shitless. My perceptions of mates were way off. I’m so glad Logan ordered me. Rogue.” She gave him a tender smile. “Don’t be scared. I promise you. If Cooper is your mate, he’s going to accept you with open arms. No matter what it is that you’re so afraid of.”
A thought came to Georgina and she laughed. “Would you like to see him? I have a picture of Cooper. He came to Bex’s birthday party.”
Rogue’s mouth parted and she didn’t wait. Georgina rushed into her and her mates’ room and opened the closet. Inside her picture box she found the stack of pictures. She came to sit next to Damien’s brother and started flipping through them. A smile came to her face and she handed him a picture of her and Cooper standing together. “That’s him.”
The shakiness in Rogue’s hand told her she was right. They were indeed mates. He grabbed the picture and stared at it. “He looks young.”
“I think he’s like twenty-seven or so. Not really that much younger than you.”
He turned and looked at her. “I’m thirty-four. That’s a pretty big gap.”
“Bullshit.” Georgina took a drink of her beer and continued flipping through. “Quit making excuses, Rogue. He’s the perfect age for you. Here.” She handed him another one. “He’s got cake smeared on his face thanks to yours truly. Me.”
He laughed and continued to stare.
“And I think this is the last one.” It was of Cooper, alone. He was standing right outside the barn, looking off into the distance. It was a perfect profile shot, and looked like it had been taken by a professional photographer. Rogue handed her the other two and cradled that one like it was a prized possession.
“May I keep this?”
Happiness settled through her. “Of course.” She gathered the pictures and stood. “I really hope you meet him. He’s an amazing guy. Very sweet and caring. Trust me. We’re very good friends. I’ve known him my whole life.”
“Maybe I will. I just need some time to think things over.” Rogue finished off his beer and walked over to throw it away. Out of everything she’d heard from Damien, she really liked Rogue. He wasn’t quiet. He talked to her just fine. It had to be the whole brother thing as to why they didn’t quite get along. That, accompanied with their wolves, she could see how there’d be tension at times. Rogue’s wolf was definitely every bit as powerful as Damien’s. He’d said his father was an alpha. That only meant that they were meant to be, too.
Georgina headed to the room and put the pictures back in their box. At the sight of her childhood photos, she hesitated, but reached for them. Pain stabbed into her heart. How had things turned out so bad? Her childhood had been amazing. Her parents were loving and always engaged in her and her brother’s lives. When they both passed it had been hard on Georgina.
She picked up a picture of her and Michael taken shortly after high school, and her parent’s deaths. They were both holding on to each other, and smiling. Michael had definitely taken it harder than her. Even looking back at the picture when they were that young, she could see the emptiness in his eyes. Georgina lifted one of them that had been taken months before their father’s death. The difference was drastic. He’d changed so much.
Tears streamed down her cheeks. Why hadn’t she seen or done anything? God, she knew it wasn’t her fault how things had ended up, but she couldn’t help think there was something she could have done. Was there anything to bring her brother back? No. She knew the answer to that. His wolf had taken him over. There was no return once a person had gotten that far. A sob echoed off the closer walls and Georgina rested her head back against the wall.
“Georgina, you in here?” Rogue peeked his head in, and she quickly wiped her tears. “I’m sorry.” He paused and looked down at her hand.
“It’s fine.” She followed his gaze and lifted the picture. “My brother, Michael. I’m sure Damien told you all about him.”
Rogue nodded and looked at the Polaroid. “Yeah. I’m sorry to hear what happened. I really am. My brothers and I might not get along all the time, but I couldn’t imagine losing either one of them. Even if it was to their wolf. Sometimes that’s worse.”
She nodded and stood, wiping the new tears. “Yeah. Definitely. Uh.” She laughed. “Enough of these waterworks. I need another beer.”
“Georgina.” Rogue gently grabbed her arm as she passed him. “If there was something I could do to help you, I would. You’re my sister now. That means more to me than you know.”
“Thank you, Rogue.” She lifted his hand from her arm and kissed the top of it. “It means a lot to me, too. You, Damien, and Austin are the only family I practically have now. I know you both have another brother, but I mean, here. Around me.” She smiled and let his hand go. “I’m glad you came to stay with me. You have a home here whenever you need one.”
Georgina walked into the kitchen and grabbed another beer. Rogue met her on the couch. “Georgina, may I ask you a question?”
“Shoot.” She sniffled, trying to push away her sorrowful mood.
“Do you love my brother and Austin? I know it hasn’t been very long at all since you’ve all been mated, but is that the kind of feelings you have? Like one day you can love him?”
The question wasn’t what she was expecting. “Oh…well.” She searched what she felt on the inside. It was ridiculous when deep down she already knew the answer. “I can tell you that what I do feel for him is definitely categorized with love. I’m not sure there’s really a time limit on how long you have to be with someone to say you love
them, so I guess I do, in a way.”
That didn’t sound right. “Let me tell you what I do know.” She turned more into Rogue’s direction. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for either of them. I feel that in the deepest recesses of my heart. All they have to do is look at me and I melt. One brush of their skin against mine and a yearning so profound takes over my very soul.” Georgina closed her eyes. “One look, and I’m lost to them. They’re all I know. All I ever want to know.”
“Wow.” Rogue’s voice brought her eyes open and Georgina felt herself blush. “If that’s not love, then I don’t know what is.” He took a drink and looked at the picture of Cooper he had in his hand. “I want that more than anything. I’m just not sure I’m ready.”
“What’s a better time than now?” Rogue glanced up at her. “Seriously. Think about it, my brother. Tomorrow isn’t promised. Let this enter your mind.” Georgina knew she probably shouldn’t take this route, but she felt the need to stress the importance of a mate to him. “What if you lost him? What if you woke up tomorrow and Cooper wasn’t a possibility for you anymore. Could you live with yourself knowing that he’s searching for you, and you didn’t give him the love he’s so desperately seeking?” She swallowed hard. “Rogue, think about the pain and rejection he feels knowing that you’re running from him. He’s got to know, deep down.”
A shuddering breath left him. “You really do know how to”—he made a gesture with his hand—“drive the point home.”
“Rogue.” Georgina leaned forward and grabbed his hand. “I have his number. Maybe you should call him. I’m not saying run off to meet him. Just let him know that you’re aware of him and that you need time. Maybe start off by talking to him on the phone. Get to know him. Let him know how hard it is for you. At least he’ll see that you’re trying and not feel like he’s unwanted.”
The picture came to rest against his forehead as his head lowered. “I’ve never been scared of anything. At least, not since I was a child.” His dark eyes came to rest on her. “This petrifies me.”
“Call him. You’ll thank me in the long run.” Georgina grabbed her phone and hit her contacts. At Cooper’s number she turned it around and showed him. “If you don’t want to call him right now, at least program the number into your phone so you’ll have it for when the moment feels right.”
He nodded and entered it into his phone. Georgina grinned, and went back to the home screen. A picture of her, Damien, and Austin sat as her background. It was a silly picture, really. Austin was making a goofy face, and Damien was actually smiling. Georgina laughed and saw Rogue lean forward.
“I’ve never seen my brother so happy. He’s a lucky man, Georgina. Fate did right by pairing him up with you. I haven’t really met Austin, but I’m sure I’ll like him.”
“You’d love him. And thank you. I feel like the lucky one.” Georgina looked at the time. “I should be getting to bed. Gotta work in the morning. Are you going to the Dark Days? We could ride together.”
Rogue opened his mouth, and paused. “I’m not sure I’m ready for that yet. If I go Cooper will definitely run into me. Our pull is getting stronger. It won’t be long before he’ll be able to track me all the way out here.” He laughed. “Hell, he found my house already. I do live close to town though. Anyway, I’ll probably just stay here. I have a lot of thinking to do.”
“All right.” Georgina stood. “Make yourself at home. Night, Rogue.” She headed for the room and shut the door behind her. The moment she saw the large bed, she groaned. It was going to be weird sleeping in that huge thing alone. It was going to be a long night and she so wasn’t looking forward to it.
Chapter 10
The stars overhead were bright as Damien stared up into the night’s sky. They’d been gone for eight days. For him and Austin, it was the longest eight days of their life. All they did was talk about Georgie this, and Georgie that. They had been doing it so much that every time her name was mentioned now they’d both groan and start laughing.
“Do you think Georgie’s sleeping right now?” Austin turned to him, in the darkness. They were camped out at the border of The Big C, and their job was making sure no one crossed the territory, and to survey the land to see if they noticed anything worth noting on their rival’s side.
“It’s one in the morning, Austin. Of course she’s sleeping.”
“But what if she’s not? I can’t stand that we haven’t got to call her. I want to. She’d be so happy to hear from us.”
Damien groaned and sat up. “It’s too dangerous. Someone could easily get a signal from one of our phones if we turn them on this close to the border.”
“I know. It’s just driving me crazy. What if she’s not okay? What if—”
“Austin, for crying out loud. Zip it. Do you not think I’m wondering the same thing? Plus, if anything was wrong Rogue would have left a message on my phone. I turned it on this morning when I went surveying through the hills and there was nothing. Plus, he knows where we are. He’d be here in a heartbeat if something happened.”
Silence enveloped them again, and Damien couldn’t shake the questions. He was dying to call her, too. Just to hear her voice. It would make things so much better if he could hear her laugh.
Hills were a good few hundred feet away and Damien looked at the dark outline in the distance. It was the only safe place to hide their signal. It was far enough back that it wouldn’t trigger any sensors the Big C might have. He stood and Austin immediately came to his feet.
“Did you hear something?”
Damien looked over at him. “No. I just thought if we headed over there then maybe we could call her real quick. But we have to make it fast.” He narrowed his eyes at Austin trying to drive the point across.
“Okay, fast. I promise. Let’s go. I’ll race you.” Austin broke out into a full sprint and Damien growled and let his wolf explode into his body. The power stretched through his limbs and he felt himself become happy for the first time since they left their mate. He smiled as he gained on Austin.
“You can’t beat me, pet. I can run a mile in under three minutes. What’s your time?”
Austin looked over at him like he was crazy. “Out of all the packs I’ve been to, we’ve never timed ourselves. I can’t believe you’re gaining on me.” His breathing wasn’t right at all. Damien laughed.
“You work for Dark Days. You’ll be getting timed, too. You think military standards are hard. We’re elite here. There’s nothing we can’t do, or don’t learn. Better start working out. Faster, pet.” The hills were almost upon them and Damien hurdled over rocks. Austin was doing a great job with keeping up. He was actually impressed for someone never going through the training like he’d been through.
They reached the top of the hills and Damien laughed as Austin tried to catch his breath. “That shit was fun. We’re going to have to do that again, sometime.”
Damien grabbed his phone from his pocket. “Any time you’re ready.” He turned it on and hit Georgina’s number. His eyes narrowed when loud music filled the speaker.
“Damien!” Georgina’s voice was slightly slurred.
“Doll, where are you?”
“I’m out here with Marley, Logan, Ty, and Rogue. Knox is visiting and we’re at the bar. Your brothers are amazing.”
Pain raced through Damien’s heart. She was with his brothers and he wasn’t there to show her off. Damn. He would have been so proud to introduce her to Knox for the first time. “I’m glad you and my brothers are getting along.” He paused. “Austin and I have missed you.”
The music died down and he could tell she was walking outside. “I’ve missed you both so much, too. I can’t stand y’all being gone.” Her voice lowered and he could hear her sadness. “How much longer?”
Damien sighed. “I’m not sure. Logan wanted me to call him in the morning. Hopefully it won’t be but another few days.” Austin was pacing around in front of him. He motioned for him to stop and he did. “I can’t talk long.
I really shouldn’t have even called at all, but Austin and I couldn’t wait another day.”
“Thank you for calling me, Damien. You don’t know how much it means to me that you did.” Georgina sniffled and Damien felt himself collapse down to the boulder next to him. Tightening clutched at his chest at the sound.
Voices from the background entered through the phone. “Damien.”
“Yes, my doll?”
More noises broke through, but she remained quiet. Her lack of words spoke volumes. The amount that she missed them was equivalent to how much he and Austin missed her. Now he understood the reason behind mated males being out for surveillance a lot shorter than unmated ones. It was literally painful to be separated.
“I just can’t wait for you both to come home. That’s all.”
“I know, Georgie. Trust me, we’re dying to be able to have you lying between us again.” He sighed. “You better talk to Austin real quick. We’re going to have to go soon.”
“All right. Stay safe.”
Damien laughed. “Always. I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you more.” More sniffling had him swallowing past the urge to head to the car to head home now. He handed the phone to Austin and rubbed his hand against the growth on his face. Damn, he was hoping Logan gave him the go, tomorrow. They’d learned nothing new since they’d been here, and hadn’t seen a damn soul trying to cross. Sometimes it was months before anything ever happened. But with The Big C up for grabs, concerning an alpha, anything could be possible.
Austin’s voice as he talked to Georgina was just as sad as Damien’s had been. Lots of “I miss yous,” sounds as if he was agreeing or listening to her. He was past the point of being able to focus on what they were talking about. He wanted to go home worse than ever. It was a big mistake to call her. Although he felt better that he got to hear her voice, the craving to smell her and taste her was literally excruciating.
“All right. We will. I’ll miss you, too. Bye, Georgina.” Austin hung up the phone and tossed it to him. “This sucks. I want to go home.”
