by Hazel Gower
“No way! That can’t be his last name. That’s way too obvious.”
Remy’s peel of laughter rebounded around in her head. “My last name is now Wolfen. Trust me, us humans are stupid. I have no idea how we haven’t caught on.”
Nara nodded. She wondered herself why she hadn’t caught on before now of his last name. She’d been in his mind, but maybe because he hadn’t thought about it, she hadn’t seen it. His last name hadn’t been an issue before now, and it really wasn’t one now, it was just strange she didn’t know.
She stared at the card with her first and his last name on it and wondered when he’d done that. She knew they were mated now; did that mean that she had a new last name? Did that mean they were basically married, but without the ceremony? She darted her gaze over to Remy’s left hand and saw her wedding and engagement rings. Nara didn’t have those.
“Did Grayson give you that?” Nara jerked her head toward the card.
Remy shook her head. “Not really. It’s yours though.” Nara studied her sister and saw an image of her getting the card from Grayson’s wallet.
Nara wasn’t sure about that, but nodded. Today was for fun and enjoying time with her sister. And it did have her name on it. “Okay, but only two pairs.”
“No way. How can you even choose? I know you absolutely love four of them.” Remy pouted her lips and put her hands together in a pleading motion.
Nibbling on her bottom lip, Nara studied the shoes, and a deep longing settled in. She couldn’t remember ever feeling it before. Maybe she had when she was a child and had wanted things, but she didn’t like this feeling. Her stomach jumped and her heart felt heavy. Her eyes didn’t want to leave the shoes. If she felt like this and they were only at the first shop, how was she going to get through the rest of their shopping trip?
She started to feel sick. Her shields wobbled at her unease, and her breath became heavy as she got scared. Her body shook as her walls began to crumble. She felt her body tremble as she tried to keep her walls up.
Warmth suddenly surrounded her, and she heard growling. “This was why I didn’t want her out yet in such a large crowd without support.” Grayson circled her waist, and he ran his hands up and down her arms. Her shield became strong at his touch and knowing she had his strength close to her. “Don’t get angry with me, Remy.” She saw an image of him rolling his eyes at Remy. He leaned down and she felt his lips brush her neck and then her ears. She leaned into his touch. He turned her so she faced him. “Get her whatever she wanted. The card has no limit.” Nara watched his lips.
“Are you sure? I can’t pay you back.” They were mates. She knew that to shifters that meant a bond stronger than marriage, but before he’d shown up she’d not wanted to spend that much money, as it wasn’t hers. She didn’t know why he hadn’t given her the card yet and was cautious of spending from it until she knew why.
Grayson stroked her cheek. “I can see your mind spinning. You’re my mate. You don’t have to pay me back. What’s mine is yours. That includes money. The card is yours. I forgot to give it to you.” The tip of his finger touched the end of her nose, before he leaned down and brushed his lips over hers. “Let’s go shopping. Arden and I are ready to be bored out of our brains while we watch you two spend all our money.” He kissed her again quickly, then stepped back and spun her to face Remy, Arden, and the sales lady, who had a smirk on her face.
Nara smiled and watched the lady’s lips. “So, are you taking the six here or four that you pointed out?”
The four please. She signed, but against her back she felt the rumble of Grayson’s chest and knew he was translating. Her whole body relaxed and she knew that today was going to be fun.
* * * *
Nara had known that eventually they would have to join the real world, but she’d been enjoying her small bubble, which contained only her family and a couple of friends. She was comfortable and safe. What she was about to do scared her. She dug her nails into Grayson’s arm as he slowly guided her to where all the military men stood. Remy stood with Arden, and even with the tiny pregnancy belly she looked bad arse as she glared at the men.
“I promise you’re safe. I would never let anything happen to you. You’ve been practicing the moves and have picked them up super quickly. I’m so proud of you.” Grayson placed his hand over hers and squeezed. “This will be a huge help. Use your gift to show the recruits how well you can do with your power. They’re ready for you after seeing Hope.”
Rolling her eyes at his use of the word ‘powers’ when he referred to her ability to read minds, she relaxed a little. “I don’t know about powers, but I’ll use my mind reading and what you’ve taught me of fighting to show them what they could be up against if a war does come.”
Nara didn’t want to think about Hope. She knew Hope was friends with Remy and even Faith and some of the other women, but truthfully Nara wasn’t sure how she felt about the aliens. She’d glimpsed images from Hope—or Pet, as she’d been known to Nara—and she hadn’t liked what she’d seen. Nara knew Hope was a prisoner too, but the information she’d given had helped the demons. Nara had always thought that if war came it would be Hope’s fault. Now they were both free and living and learning, and Nara wasn’t sure what she thought anymore. She knew from the glimpses she’d seen of the demons’ thoughts that they wanted to consume the universe and ravage every planet and rule with their brand of violence.
Grayson nudged her shoulder as he spoke in her head. “It’s time. Just like I showed you.”
Grayson pointed to a young man in leather combat clothes. The man was maybe just under six feet tall. He had a smug smirk on his face, and his arms were crossed over his chest. He was muscular, but no way in the same range as Grayson, although Grayson wasn’t as big as Kane, Rane, and Arden; he was leaner.
The man relaxed his stance and moved his fingers in the ‘come here’ motion. She went to him and he made the first move, coming for her. She opened her mind and read his every move, using this information to block him and hit him with a couple of her own moves. The man stared at her with a shocked expression at how good she was.
Before she got puffed out, Grayson stepped between them, stopping their fighting. She sank against his chest as he turned them to face everyone, and she felt the vibration as he spoke. “My mate is a mind reader. She read your every move. This is what you could be up against. We try our best to save as many people and beings as we can, but we don’t always know who and how many the demons have held captive.” His arms came around her, and he gave a gentle squeeze. “You did so well. I’m so proud of you. Let me wrap up here as quickly as I can so I can take you home and show you just how happy I am.”
She groaned as she saw images of him throwing her over his shoulder and rushing home, so he could strip her, throw her on the bed, settle between her legs, and feast on her. Nara shivered as pure need pulsed through her and shot tingles straight to her core. Her pussy throbbed, and she smiled when she heard his growl rebound around in her head. She giggled when a moment later he did just what she’d seen, picking her up and placing her over his shoulder, his hand on her back as he ran toward the car.
Chapter 5
Nara
It had been a quiet morning. Nara and Remy were at Faith’s house. Nara was enjoying baby snuggles with Braydon, while her brother Emmett visited with Bengie, Faith’s brother who was half-demon like Emmett. The men were at the army base.
They were baking cookies, eating more of the dough than they should, when Faith went into a trance. Remy had told Nara about Faith’s visions and how she got them, so Nara wasn’t surprised. Faith didn’t stay in it for very long, five minutes at the most. When her trance stopped, she blinked and came alive with a panicked look.
Nara opened her mind, because she had a feeling she would have a hard time following otherwise. Images of humans that didn’t look like they had it all together in the head worked with minions to attack women and children and try to grab them and take the
m away. Nara saw images of Faith, Remy, and other women fighting to kill the humans—zombies, that was what Faith was calling them—and the minions. They were on the beach; women were holding children and some were in the water. The minions swooped down at the kids, and the women in the water did their best to protect them. The demons were making a stand. They were trying to cripple them by getting the young, women, and the vulnerable.
Faith started rushing around grabbing weapons. She was babbling now, and Nara was glad she was in her mind. The demons were attacking from the entrances into town, and the minions and zombies were suppose to capture or kill them. If they did succeed in killing the women or taking them, the shifters would go crazy without their mates.
“Remy, get on the phone and tell all the shifters the info I just gave you.” Nara knew Faith said the last comment out loud as she projected it to Nara.
Faith picked up her baby bag and a backpack, and Remy took them from Faith. Nara still held Braydon, and Faith grabbed her shirt to guide her and rushed them out of the house while Faith picked up things and threw them at Remy, Bengie, and Emmett. Faith let her go, but Nara got images of the path to the beach, and she knew Faith was deliberately making the information easy for her to get.
When they reached the beach Faith got their attention. She signed and projected her thoughts into Nara’s mind at the same time. “Get into the water knee level or more, and stay low when the minions come. I and the other women will kill the zombies and as many minions as we can. I’m going to gather more women, children, and help the elderly before the fighting starts. When I send them down, help them.”
Nara gave a sharp jerk of her head and glanced around to see the others following.
Faith nodded at them before she turned, starting up the beach, but she paused and looked over her shoulder at Nara. “Protect Braydon. I trust you.” She returned her gaze back to the front of her and ran up toward the entrance.
Nara looked down at the baby she held in her arms, and he smiled a gummy grin. He was a happy little baby. He clung to her shirt, and Nara placed her hand on his back to help him stay steady. “Looks like your mum is entrusting me to look after you, Braydon.”
He squealed and giggled as Nara spoke into his head. Braydon sent back images of the love he had for his mum, him staring up at her with wonder, Faith and he cuddling, and him giggling with joy at his mum pulling faces at him.
Lost in the images, she missed Remy nudging her until she did it hard along with projecting a shout. “Stop giving goo-goo eyes to the baby. I know he’s adorable, but we need you in the game, ready to fight. Look up, I can see the minions flying down.”
Nara gazed up and saw the gray, pig-like creatures with bat-like wings and sharp claws coming for them. She darted her eyes around to see women, children, and the elderly either in the water or rushing to get to it.
“I’m going to go help. You need to stay here with Bengie, Emmett, and Braydon. Protect them.”
Nara nodded and watched as Remy ran out of the knee-deep water and toward the women dragging children, some with babies in their arms. Remy scooped up the kids and dropped them at the water’s edge before she bolted back to the other women with children.
Nara wanted to help, but she knew protecting Braydon, her brother, and Bengie was important too. She felt helpless as the minions swooped down and attacked the women, who were shielding the children, but there were just too many. A couple of minions came toward Nara, and she knew she had to protect the children.
She shoved Braydon at Bengie and did something she hadn’t even attempted with her brother as he was part demon and it was hard to stay in their heads. “Protect my brother and Braydon.”
Bengie’s eyes widened and his mouth opened and shut for a moment or two before he gazed down at the baby, shut his mouth, and gave a sharp nod.
“Okay. I promise they’ll be safe.” He said it slowly, facing Nara so she watched his lips. He reached to his leather sheath and pulled out a long knife with an iced edge and gave it to her.
As soon she had the knife in her grip she ran to help as zombies started to come down the beach entrance. Minions flew at her, and she used the training Grayson had taught her. She jumped as she stabbed up with the knife. She screamed as the minion’s claws raked her arms. She cut off a wing and grabbed the body, stabbing the minion and letting out all her anger. When she knew the minion was dead she yanked at another one that was scratching at her back and let out more of her built-up fury, thrashing and ripping the creature apart.
Nara was dragged up by a zombie pulling her hair. She spun, wincing when her hair was yanked out. She reached up and swung, using all the moves Grayson had taught her, and she was grateful that he had. She was a victim no more.
* * * *
Grayson
Exhaustion. Grayson didn’t know he could feel it to this extent. He was damn happy when the help arrived from the other shifters. Muscles that hadn’t been this worked out for so long pulsed and ached, but he ignored them as he made his way in leopard form to the beach. The women, children, and elderly were there, and he was eager to see with his own eyes that they were all okay, especially his mate.
When the grass thinned beneath his paws and sand replaced it, he shifted forms as the crashing waves came into view and his targets got closer. There were other shifters surrounding his loved ones, and he was happy they were being helped.
He didn’t have to search for Nara, because within moments of shifting to his human form, her body slammed into him. Her arms circled his waist, and she climbed up his body. He ran his hands over her body, feeling the bandages. He was beyond happy she was okay.
She projected with clear joy in her voice. “I did it. We did it. I fought, and we won. I kicked butt.”
She gyrated against him, and he barely held back a groan. Her mind was linked to his though, and she caught his thoughts. Even in pain her body against his awoke his primal need for her. His body was still high on adrenaline, and her touch had a different kind spiking within him.
Nara’s mouth slammed down on his, and she rubbed herself against him. He was shocked when he heard, “Let’s go home now. Remy and Arden will be here for a little while longer helping the injured. Mum and Emmett are staying to help too, so let’s utilize our alone time.” Her voice sounded almost like a purr as she finished talking.
His energy renewed, he gripped Nara’s arse and ran to the house. Her scent intensified. Nara shocked him further when she unhooked her arms and started tugging at her clothes, pulling her top off. Her legs tightened on him, and his cock strained against the tights she wore.
His head clouded with images of Nara pushing him down, climbing on top of him, and taking what she wanted. The next flashes were of him throwing her down and bringing her up on all fours, then claiming his mate with the primal need his leopard craved. The scent of her need almost overwhelmed him as he ran as fast as he could, eager for his woman.
Nara’s lips slid along his neck as her chest rubbed against his. This was so unlike Nara. This was the first time she’d initiated sex. He took a deep breath and stumbled, happy when he leaned against the house’s entry, but as he touched the cold brick, he became aware of what was happening—Nara was in heat.
He gently placed her down and opened the door. Before he could pick her up again she jumped on him, grabbed his face in her hands, and guided his lips down to her own. Grayson used all his concentration to keep the kiss going as he shut the door and carried her to their room. As soon as he entered Nara tore her mouth from his and wiggled down, shut her bedroom door, and stripped out of her bra, tights, and undies.
“Now we’re both naked.” She looked him up and down and licked her lips.
His leopard purred, and his human agreed—he was ready for his mate and her heat.
Nara’s mind was open and sending him everything. Her body was on fire. She loved sex with him just like she loved him. At hearing this he backed away from her a couple of steps to gather his own thoughts, s
hocked that she loved him so easily. He loved her, but he thought he would have to wait a little longer for her to fall so hard for him.
Nara stalked toward him, her thoughts heightening his arousal. She’d never felt this all-consuming need for him. She’d been attracted to him from the very start and liked everything they did in the bedroom, but right now she felt like if she didn’t kiss him and have him inside her she’d explode. When her body came against his, her thoughts went to her new friends and the talk they’d had about a need like this. Nara’s moan rebounded in his head as she realized what was going on. Joy overwhelmed her for a moment when thoughts of her getting pregnant and her stomach expanding as she grew life within her filled her mind. He didn’t say a word or project into her mind as he enjoyed seeing everything she was thinking.
Nara’s thoughts flicked back to the building need between them and the heat rising. Her gaze caught his and she rose on tiptoes, pressing her lips to his. He licked her lips before seeking entry. She opened and his tongue met hers, and he kissed her with all the love and passion he felt. Grayson could never get enough of Nara. But the intensity he felt right now was almost maddening.
Wanting—no, needing to taste more, he backed them to the bed. Ripping his mouth from hers, he placed her on the bed and settled between her legs. His thighs knocked her legs further apart as he stared down at her, her beautiful body ready for him. Grayson leaned down and trailed kisses on her neck, nibbling on her ears. She arched up as his mouth made its way to her nipples, sucking on one and circling the tip with his tongue before moving to the other so it didn’t feel neglected.
