His mother presented as the perfect wife and mother. Always dressed and styled to perfection. Doted on Wyatt when eyes were watching ignoring him the rest of the time. He often wondered if she craved more than being arm candy or a facade created for the clans and his father’s advancement. A symbol of perfection that wasn’t even close to the truth.
If he considered his mother cold, then his father was downright frigid. Growing up he didn’t know which was worse their attention or the lack of it when prying eyes were gone. Wyatt always craved something different. Warmth only a loving spirit could bring to his life, something he had yet to find. Something he was starting to hope existed now that some had found true mates and the legends were becoming a reality.
He was starting to think of Peyton for this role in his life. She would understand if he was caught up in a project and ignore basic necessities like showering. He was pretty sure she would even help. Her skills and intelligence only further endeared him to her. The thoughts of the challenges she would present excited him instead of putting him off. He was sure she wouldn’t bow to his will like others, she would stand on her own two feet and fight for what she believed in. She had already done so numerous times when she felt her approach to a project would be better. He liked their dynamic more than he cared to think about only letting those feelings free in his dreams.
Peyton was off limits until this little mission. She was Bas’s sister, and he seemed to want to keep her off limits to the team making her forbidden fruit. The kind you craved to taste, but you knew the consequences could and more than likely would get you killed. Now that he had a face to put along with the person he had been getting to know and crave for so long he didn’t think it was possible to not take a little bite. To explore the feelings that had been building for so long regardless of the consequences. His loyalty was to his team, and his teammates but Peyton was a draw he knew he wouldn’t be able to ignore.
Focusing in on the picture he had yet to put down, he zeroed in on her smile. If was full and wide, her supple lips stretched wide over her tiny white teeth. He imagined their color would be like fresh squeezed berries, a dark pink. He could also see those very same lips stretched even tighter while she sucked on his cock. The color would contrast beautifully with his rigid length. Leaning his head back on the headrest and closing his eyes he could almost feel the warmth of her mouth over the sensitive head of his cock. The glide of her tongue as she played particular attention to the little notch on the underside. The nirvana of the suction as she bobbed her head back and forth, taking him further than any woman before.
Quickly shutting down his phone Wyatt couldn’t help the small growl that escaped. This shit had to stop. He wasn’t some fucking pervert that daydreamed about a woman he had never meet before. Shit, he couldn’t believe he let his reaction over the picture go this far. He was on the side of the road anyone could come by and decide to check out what was going on. How in the hell would he explain that he just laid eye on a woman he couldn’t wait to taste and had to take a little time to himself? So, fucking not happening.
Peyton Carlton was in for a surprise. If he was motivated before to find her, he was even more so now. She called to him before but now actually having a face to put with the rest she was downright yelling for him. She was more than a dream or fantasy now she was a reality she just didn’t know it yet.
Chapter 8
Shit could things get any worse, the facial recognition software finally spit out some names. Both of the men were retired military, and both worked for Davis Defense. Davis was a defense contractor that mainly worked for the government developing weapons and supplies for the military, at least that was what it seemed from the outside. They also had a large biochemical division and ties to some pretty shady companies. Davis Defense was also the company that Peyton had tracked Emma too. Peyton didn’t believe in coincidences. She was pretty sure Bastian and his team were in some type of danger she just didn’t know what kind. She needed to get into that system, but every attempt failed. Davis Defense was locked tighter than the CIA or Pentagon. Which shouldn’t be possible their cyber security seemed airtight something Peyton had never encounter before, and it caused her to worry even more. The CIA & Pentagon systems were a cake walk compared to Davis defense. Peyton should know she had hacked both without any detection. That only brought more questions.
Peyton needed to come up with a plan to help Bastian and his friends if she needed to, figure out what was going on with her mother and the men she was spotted with and then stop her hellish mother in her stripper heels. The only way she could come up to do any of that was to perform a piggyback hack, and she didn’t trust anyone else to help her with that. Bastian was good but even he would have a hard time with that hack. He would have to anticipate not only her movements but watch Davis Systems response as well. There wasn’t anything straight forward or easy about what she was planning. Peyton considered Bastian’s buddy because she knew he had the skill level having worked with him a couple of times. She even flirted with him a bit on messenger, texts, and emails. Peyton liked him a lot. It was all superficial but what she did know was he was a good man.
God, she would be embarrassed when she actually meets the man having built him up to superhero status in her mind. Not to mention the superhero movies of the carnal variety he could perform. Every time she thought of her version of one Wyatt Green she couldn’t help but lick her lips and rush to change her panties. But damn didn’t every girl need a bit of fantasy, didn’t she? It would be such a letdown if the guy was a pocket protector wearing tiny man. Peyton liked geek, spoke it and even understood it she just hoped Wyatt Green was a geek with a twist of rock hard gorgeous man. Her ultimate man. Shaking her head, she got her mind out of the gutter and focused on the man’s real skills, not the blissfully perfect ones Peyton had dreamed about but the tangible ones, the one she knew for certain he really had.
Wyatt Green starred in many of Peyton’s X-rated late night fantasies at least the version of him she created. She imagined he looked the like guy that played Thor only better. Bigger, darker more animalistic and wild. Peyton had never been a fan of Ken doll beauty in a man. Blond, hair blue eyes with a runner’s body and perfect tan. She always tended to like more ethnic-looking men, darker naturally tanned skin, who were body builder big without the extreme arrogance to go with their outer appearance. She also likes a man with a bit of an edge. She didn’t have the time or the patience to deal with a man that expected her to take charge and lead the way in or out of the bedroom. Laughing to herself because of what she was thinking about she sounded like a doormat. A man that took charge, that was rich, she sounded like some kind of doormat but the truth was it was something that she craved.
Her life was often chaotic, and she wanted a balance. She wanted someone that care that she ate, took a shower or was getting enough sleep. She also wanted a man that would think about her pleasure instead of taking just his own. Peyton didn’t mind giving pleasure she just wanted it reciprocated occasionally, was that really too much to ask? Apparently for the men she had been with it was. Maybe that was one of the reasons she created this dream version of a man she never thought that she would meet. He could be everything she ever wanted without any of the work. Sometimes dreams were better than reality.
She had a whole scenario worked up in her head. He would see her and instantly fall madly in love or lust. He would be so taken he couldn’t keep his hands off of her, and they would live happily ever after. They would spend their nights making love, soft and slow and rough and fast. Their days would be spent working together, helping his team and the many woman and children NAC saved. It would be a full life.
The reality was she had no idea what Wyatt Green or Wy as her brother like to call him looked like or even if he was the happily ever type of man. What she did know was that he was just as good as she was with a computer if not better and she needed that right now. Not the made-up version. Sex was great, but it only helped for a littl
e while at least that was what she kept on telling herself when the days and nights by herself became a little too long.
The real question was could she trust him. Would he be willing to check things out with her without letting his Team or her brother know? Should she or could she even put the man in that position. Was it wrong of her to even consider asking? Yeah, she knew it was, but she was starting to think she didn’t have any other choice. She needed to know Judy’s endgame. Maybe it was time to just come clean. Bastian and NAC had a lot more resources than she did, but she hated bringing Judy’s taint into their world. That was her cross to bear no one else.
Bas hated Judy as much as she did but if this just another one of her cons Peyton wanted to keep him out of it. She didn’t want to go through all the what ifs again. Peyton knew Bastian suspected more about how Judy came to have her they had discussed it at length but she needed to focus on the here and now not the past. When she finally decided to deal with the past, she would do it on her own terms. Bastian needed to accept that.
Peyton knew he meant well, but he only had six months of living with Judy. Peyton had paid the price for much longer. She might be stupid for holding off telling Bastian and his team, but Judy was a fucking wild card for all Peyton knew the men worked for Davis Defense but whatever her mother was involved in could have absolutely nothing to do with the company. Shit, it was always a crap shoot dealing with her so called mother your damned if you do and your damned if you don’t. Peyton didn’t like playing the odds, but she didn’t really have much of a choice.
All she could do right now is pump some fellow hackers for information about Davis Defense. Determine if the men were working for the company or on their own and track Judy’s movements. She would have to be subtle no one in the dark web wanted to be found including herself and asking questions that could possibly lead to detection wasn’t an option. So, for the next four days, Peyton hide out in her safe house. Working as fast and with as much subtlety as possible putting out feelers hoping to get the information she needed and moving on to the next source. It was a pain in the butt way to work, but her options were limited.
Chapter 9
Wyatt had finally tracked Bas’s sister down to a general area. He was tired, dirty and just a tad bit pissed. Not to mention horney, frustrated and suffering from one of the worst cases of blue balls he had ever had in his life. It should have been easy to track one little woman down, but she proved to be skilled. After getting the picture, his misery increased exponentially. She made him want. Peyton consumed his every thought in the last 48 hours and every minute that passed just ticked him off further.
He knew his goal was finding her and ultimately reuniting her with Bas, so he tried to rationalize that he should in some sense be consumed with thoughts of her, generally where to find her. The problem was that wasn’t the objective his mind often wondered too, he wanted to know if her skin felt as soft as it looked and so many other things.
He had spent the past two days chasing his tail. Every trace he found of Peyton lead to one dead end after another. He finally had to investigate the old-fashioned way showing her picture around in an area that he was able to track her to. It had taken hours on his computer hacking into various video feeds, and even then, the glimpses he found were few and far between never once did he get a full view. Peyton knew how to avoid being found. That only increased his desire to get to know the woman.
He had shown her picture to several people each time he did so his bear scratched him from the inside out. The beast didn’t want to share even that little part of the woman truth be told neither did Wyatt, but he was running out of time and options. He was becoming consumed with Peyton, and he didn’t know if it was a good thing or a bad one. Peyton intrigued him before with her wit and skills now she was becoming a downright obsession.
After making contact with one of the other NAC Teams in the area. He was finally able to get to his current location. A vague set of coordinates was all it really was, he was able to drive in but only so far. The area was a nature preserve. Untouched land that would remain that way for years to come. There was only one property in this area that was individually own, and that was where Wyatt was headed. He was pretty sure that one Lily Andover would indeed be his true target, Peyton.
Tobias, the Enforcer for Charlie Team, had caught the scent of a woman in the general area. He had checked it out and determined her not to be a threat so went on his way. He observed her moving in supplies from a ratty old truck. Tobias was able to confirm that the person he saw resembled Peyton. Charlie Team consisted of all Wolf- Shifters and Wyatt’s bear didn’t like the idea of the mangy mutt anywhere near Peyton.
Looking around the area Liam’s man had directed him to, he had to wonder if the wolf was just pulling his fucking leg. There wasn’t anything here, shit he had to check his phone several times just to make sure he had service. Why would Peyton decide to go so far off the grid? He was surrounded by trees, bushes and wildlife but nothing else. Reaching out with his keen animal senses he didn’t detect any human presences. He hoped like hell this wasn’t another wild goose chase and a waste of his time. He had passed the truck Tobias had mentioned about a mile down the road. Not wanting to raise any suspicion should there happen to be anyone watching he chose to travel further down and backtrack. He was eager to get this hunt over with and confront his prey once and for all but, all good things would have to wait.
Looking down at his clock in the console in his car he knew that the guys would be calling soon. He needed to get his gear set up and wait for that call. Once that happened Peyton better hope she was in these woods because if she wasn’t he was going to spank her ass. Well not really but hey the possibilities were endless.
Right on cue, his phone rang. Looked like this day was going to get way worse before it got better. For the team to risk this type of communication Wyatt knew a bunch of bad shit was about to go down. Deciding to get out of the car so he wouldn’t feel so stifled if the bear started to get agitated. He leaned back taking a couple of deep calming breaths before answering the call.
He had been expecting the call, Jacks had warned him saying it was imperative he secured the line. He had just hoped he would be making it from his safe house with Peyton Carlton in hand not standing in the middle of some freakin forest. Wyatt knew the basics about what the call was about, and it was about damn time for it too. Jacks was going to finally come clean with all the details he had been holding back.
Wyatt had kept in touch but being out on a mission with Echo Team had severely limited him. He felt completely out of the loop, and it was really starting to piss him off. He was the information guy and right now he had less than nothing. It wasn’t sitting well with him. The Alpha Team now had two more members, Dalton’s mate Emma and a little girl named McKenna. It also seemed that Jacks wasn’t the only one to have a fated mate, Dalton and Emma had bonded, mated and the fates had blessed them as well. That was incredible even if it remained with just the two couples it was still a miracle in Wyatt’s book.
He also knew those two brothers would also be safe. Once a Shifter met their fated female the man and beast united as one. Irrevocably binding the three calming the animal and cementing their future together. Shifters didn’t love often, but they loved hard at least that was what the stories said. Seeing Jacks and Ryleigh he wanted to believe in the fairy tales. But sometimes things that were too good to be true often were just that. He didn’t doubt their connection anyone with eyes could see the love they shared for each other. What he did doubt was the forever part. Shifters weren’t much on monogamy.
Answering the call like he would if he was still in the military.
"Green..."
Cash was on the line, they made the usual pleasantries but his Second was short and clipped with his answers indicating what he was about to hear would hold a significant impact on all of their lives. Cash said," I’m going to put you on speaker Wy, Jacks is ready to start." Wyatt’s only reply was
a quick "Roger that." He then pressed a series of buttons on his handheld and waited for the meeting to start.
"Okay everybody listen up this sit-rep is going to be quick and to the point." Jacks said addressing the group. Wyatt could tell by his tone that he was pissed but mostly stressed. He wasn’t looking forward to what he was about to hear." I will answer all your questions, but right now you just need to listen. Wyatt can only secure his line for thirty minutes. First and foremost, I want you to know that Rye and I and Dalton and Emma aren’t the only mated pairs. It seems coming into contact with the Holly Group has created a domino effect. Two other Alphas have already mated, and several of their men have also found their fated mates as a result of tracking down Franklin's children." Wyatt could hear movement, but without a visual, he could only assume Jacks was trying to calm the rest of his team. Shit, he was pacing himself. This was big, bigger than Wyatt thought.
Franklins original six seem to all be Alpha mates. We don’t know all the details yet, but several Alpha’s have already met their mates or experienced the mating draw when coming in contact with one of The Holly Group women. You need to be aware that if you come into contact with your mate and you choose to ignore the draw going rogue will be the worst of your worries. We have reports coming in that the guys who ignored the draw experienced extreme psychosis. As well as other physical problems one of them being uncontrolled shifts."
"Zulu lost Zoran to this, I want you guys to be aware and open minded. I realize our very beliefs are being shaken but if you even think you are experiencing the mating draw you need to explore it. Zoran had told some of his teammates what he was feeling. I realize this is pretty crappy information, but I will forward you all the symptoms. We also have no idea if it will affect everyone in the same manner."
Wyatt: NAC & The Holly Group (Alpha Team Book 3) Page 8
