Yes, he remembered the conversation from that morning. It didn’t mean he had to like it. The three of them knew that even if Dante was able to stay with them—gods willing—they wouldn’t be at each other’s sides every hour of every day. As a succubus, Nadie needed to not only pull life energy through their mating bond, but through sex as well. Just being near one another wouldn’t cut it.
They’d have to get sweaty.
Not that Jace minded.
At. All.
“Hey, I can see that heat in your eyes, Jace Goodwin.” Nadie pressed her hand on his chest and pushed him back a bit.
She could only do that because he let her, but it didn’t matter.
“I’m just thinking,” he said.
“About sex. I might be new to the whole thing, but I’ve been around long enough to know when a man is thinking about sex. So, like I was saying, I’ve never been to another realm before. What do we have to do?”
He grinned down at her but didn’t move to touch her. They were refraining for a day, if he could last, to see if they could actually make it. With the world going to shit around them and the idea that Dante could be gone from their grasps forever, not touching felt like a painful process. The eternity they would have to live if their dragon had to become part of the Conclave was not something he wanted to think about.
His hands fisted as he thought about it. Taking a deep breath, he let his bear bring his control back. As a Mediator, he had more control than most—and not just with the man. If the man within got to be too much, the bear would breathe in the control needed. It was a symbiotic relationship that few held—let alone understood.
“The bear realm isn’t as secret as some of the others. My family lives in a den within the realm itself. That’s why I just call it my den, rather than realm most days. With realms like the angelic one, you have to practically give a blood oath to enter. The demonic realm is even worse. With the bear one, though, you only have to be a bear or be welcomed by bears.”
Nadie shook her head. “Doesn’t that make it hard to protect the realm if anyone welcomed can enter?”
Jace grinned, but it wasn’t a nice one. “While I said it wasn’t a secret, I didn’t mean it wasn’t difficult. To be welcomed by the bears, you must pass their tests, promise their oaths, be their mates, or tie yourselves to the bears’ lives. A bear doesn’t allow entry easily. Also, one does not mess with a bear and live.”
Nadie nodded. “You got really creepy and alpha just then, but I kind of liked it.”
He snorted, surprised at her response.
“He is creepy and alpha,” Dante said as he walked into the kitchen.
Though he smiled as he said it, Jace could see the darkness in the other man’s gaze. The shadows were upon them, and Jace could smell the fight for their lives coming. He just didn’t know how much longer they had.
“I’m not creepy. Alpha, I’ll take, but not creepy.”
Nadie smiled, though she too held a sadness she couldn’t hide worth a damn.
“He just pretends to be this sweet, cuddly bear, but inside, he’s that grizzly,” Dante said as he came to stand beside the counter.
Nadie shifted so her knee was touching his side. The movement was so subtle that Jace wasn’t sure she’d done it consciously. It boded well for their bond, but he knew the human in her still had reservations. He didn’t blame her. The mating bond was only the first step. They still had to ensure she actually liked them beyond what fate had decreed.
Blindly following fate only led to heartache.
Though the main reason they were going to his parents’ home was to discuss the Dante and Conclave situation, he would have taken Nadie there anyway. The world was crashing down around them, but he needed to show Nadie what their future could be like. Scrambling and praying did nothing. They would move on as though they had no worries on one plane but find out how to get Dante out of the commitment he didn’t want to make on the other.
It was the only way Jace could figure out how to not go bear and kill someone.
Jace shook his head, clearing his thoughts. “Let’s get going. We only need to use the clearing to gain access to the realm since it runs parallel to ours. Once we’re there, we can open the gate and get through easily.”
“You know I have no idea what you’re talking about, right?” Nadie asked with a smile. “We’re just winging it here, but I’ll take it. Just show me what to do so I don’t end up with a lost body part or something.”
Jace laughed, thankful he could even do that with the tension riding him.
“You won’t lose an arm or anything, my sprite,” Dante said, laughter in his voice.
“You don’t know that,” Nadie said, her voice very matter-of-fact. “Just because it hasn’t happened before—that you know of—doesn’t mean I won’t be the person who loses a toe or something.”
“A toe?” Jace asked. “Really? A toe?”
Nadie rolled her eyes. “I didn’t want to think of losing something I needed to live. A toe I could probably live without. Maybe. And now I’m becoming the creepy one.” She jumped off the counter before Dante and Jace could help her. She raised a brow at both of their outstretched hands. “Okay, this is another thing. While I love the fact that you both try to care for me in every way possible, you need to learn that it’s okay if I take care of myself. Even though I was a little quieter than the other women in the circle, I’ve never been completely helpless.”
“You were human,” Jace put in and knew he’d said the wrong thing.
Dante winced, and Nadie narrowed her eyes.
“Prejudice much?” she said, her hands fisted on her hips.
“No, no. That’s not what I meant. It’s only that humans are much weaker than paranormals.” He looked to Dante for help, but from the expression on the dragon’s face, Jace was on his own with this one.
“That is true, physically,” Nadie said, her tone not boding well for the rest of the sentence. “But I’m not talking about that. Yes, I know I will need to learn how to use my offensive powers, if I even have them. That’s why we’re going to the succubus realm as soon as they get back to Dante.”
Jace nodded. Dante had put in a formal request to the secretive realm so Nadie could meet the people who might one day be hers, but they hadn’t heard anything back from them yet.
“However,” Nadie continued, “you two are treating me like fine china who can’t even walk on my own. I might not be as strong as you, but I am stronger than you’re giving me credit for. Please don’t forget that.”
Jace frowned, his bear huffing and growling, wanting to pull Nadie into its arms and never let go. He was a predator and alpha. He couldn’t stand back and not help those he cared for…but maybe he was edging along the ways of pushiness.
Dante cupped her face and nodded. “I’ll do my best, Nadie. I’ve never thought you any less than the person you are—strong, beautiful, and mine. But I will do my best to make sure you know that I value you.”
Jace let out a breath. If the damn dragon could act like a reasonable mate, then so could he.
“I’ll do my best too.”
Nadie looked between them and smiled. “We’re a bit crazy right now with the bond and Dante’s…thing…so it’s okay that we’re on edge. Let’s not stay there. And we should go now so we’re not late. It wouldn’t be good to be late the first time I’m meeting your folks.” She bit her lip. “I’ve never met anyone’s parents before. Well, I’ve met parents before, but…damn, you know what I mean.”
Jace grinned at how flustered she was acting. “You’ll be fine. My mom is one big momma bear, and Dad will love you. My brothers and sisters will be there too since they not only want to meet you, they want to see Dante too. They haven’t seen him—or me for that matter—in a while.”
“I love the fact that the two of you have a history together,” she said as they made their way to the clearing behind Dante’s house.
Jace gripped her hand while Dante took t
he other. “As I like that you and Dante have one. You and I are the only real newbies here.”
“We’re making up for lost time.”
He held back a growl, thinking of the ways they were exploring one another—including the tequila and tastes. He didn’t need a hard-on going into the bear realm.
“Ready?” Dante asked, and Jace nodded, Nadie doing the same.
Jace closed his eyes and pictured his realm, the warmth and earth of the land around him, the scents of home, bear, and family. Nadie gasped beside him, and he opened his eyes, smiling down at her. The realm opened up like a small wormhole, encompassing them in light, freedom, and warmth.
They finally stepped through the portal, the wormhole closing behind them quickly. He felt the awe in Nadie by his side and the slight relief in Dante.
The latter made sense to Jace because of the utter acceptance that the Goodwins gave when it came to the black and blue dragon.
After spending thousands upon thousands of years floating from one realm to the next, a royal dragon nomad, Dante had found a home with Jace’s family—even before Jace had been born.
Jace’s grandmother lived today because of the man who was now his mate. It was because of that moment in time that Dante was family through and through. Now Jace was bringing the dragon home as his bonded mate. Jace couldn’t wait to see the look on his mother’s face, the look when she gazed upon the bonded dragon…the look when she would meet Nadie for the first time.
While they did have to discuss their plan of attack with the Conclave, coming home where he could re-collect himself was what he needed. He hadn’t realized just how much he’d missed home and needed his family until he scented the pine and oak of home.
Nor had he until he scented a certain family of bears who didn’t understand the concept of personal space.
“Brace yourself,” Jace murmured. Dante chuckled, and Nadie looked up at him, her brow scrunched.
“Huh?” she asked.
Before Jace would warn her further, she was in the arms of a very large man who just happened to shift into a bear every time he felt like it. The other man squeezed Nadie to his chest and twisted her around like a cherished ragdoll. Nadie’s feet had to be at least a foot or more off the ground.
“Torrent, put Nadie down,” Jace ordered, laughter in his tone. “She’s smaller than you and not a toy. Don’t break her.”
His baby brother had Nadie in a very comfy looking bear hug, that constant smile on his face never wavering.
“But she’s so fluffy!” Torrent said with a laugh. He set Nadie down, and she stared up at him, blinking. The half-dazed, half-amused expression on her face made Jace smile.
No one could be angry at Torrent. It just didn’t happen. Confused by him, yes, but never angry. Torrent was the epitome of a teddy bear—one who could fight with knives like no other.
“Nadie, this is baby brother, Torrent.”
Nadie raised a brow at him then looked up—way up—at the man in front of her. “Baby?”
Torrent grinned, that piece of hair their mom still tucked away when she saw him falling over his forehead. “I’m the youngest boy in a family of overprotective grizzly bears. Of course I’m the baby. It’s good to finally meet you, Nadie. Our brother has been talking about you for sixty years. Well, not you, but who you could be. It’s nice to see the woman who can wrangle not only a bear but a dragon too is as strong as you are.”
Nadie grinned, her face brightening, then looked at Jace and Dante. “I think I’m going to like your brother, Jace.”
Jace growled. “As long as you like me more.”
Nadie rolled her eyes. “Alpha much?”
“You bet your ass,” Jace said.
Torrent snorted then took two steps toward Dante, his arms wide open. Dante held out his own arm, blocking the bear, but the twitch of the dragon’s lips told Jace his mate was enjoying himself.
“You can hug me but don’t lift me,” Dante warned, a small tendril of smoke escaping his nostril.
Very intimidating.
“You’re family, you deserve a bear hug,” Torrent explained.
Dante lifted a lip and bared fang.
“But since you’re our Dante, I’ll restrain myself,” Torrent said solemnly, and then he grinned. “Maybe.”
By the time Torrent finished his bear hugs and let them start walking the short distance to their folks’ place, Jace’s sides hurt with laughter. If he hadn’t loved his brother before, he would have right then because, with Torrent’s gentle and not-so-gentle care, the tension had all dissipated. Nadie and Dante actually looked ready to see the rest of the Goodwins—rather than nervous or worried about the other things on their agenda.
Those things would come, of course, but the fact that they could smile made Jace want to bring Torrent into a bear hug of his own.
Jace’s family home came into view, and his bear relaxed, at peace. The three-story log cabin-like home had to be big enough for all eight of the Goodwin grizzlies and any friends who stopped along the way. Plus both sets of grandparents often stayed for long visits.
The bear realm did not consist of perfect royal houses. Rather they ruled by brute force when needed and lived on their own during times of peace. Jace’s family was stronger than most and ruled in times of war and great peril. However, during times of peace, each den remained separate, the members free to live as they liked. If a bear crossed borders and went out of control, the other families dealt justice.
It was the way of the bears, and it worked for them.
Nadie froze beside him and looked up at him wide-eyed.
“Feel like Goldilocks, baby?” he teased.
She snorted, and Dante punched his shoulder.
“Really?” Dante asked. “A three bears joke? I expected better from you.”
“What? It’s not like I made a knight and windmill joke when I met you.”
Dante and Nadie chuckled. “Actually, you did, but I let that pass,” Dante said with a smile.
“Well, don’t just stand out there. Come in and let me meet the girl. Oh, and, Dante, you better move those buns to greet me proper. It’s been too damn long.”
Jace smiled at the blonde woman who stood at a petite six feet. “Nadie, I would like you to meet my mother, Sydney.”
His mother smiled, pure delight in her eyes. While generally any stranger would have been offered cool eyes and a stare down until they were measured, Nadie was his mate and, therefore, family.
“Hello, Mrs. Goodwin,” Nadie said politely.
His mom wrinkled her nose. “Nadie darling, you call me Sidney, Sid, Mom, Momma, or Ma. Mrs. Goodwin is my mother-in-law. Now come in so I can dote on you properly.”
Soon they were surrounded by bears and warmth. They towered over Nadie, but his little mate took it in stride. He introduced her to his father, Gordon, his sisters, Sasha and Lorena, and his other two brothers, Ivan and Red.
“Red, you’re the mechanic,” Nadie said, smiling when she was introduced.
Red, the quietest of their group, nodded. “That’s me. Your car should be fixed soon.”
Nadie’s eyes widened. “Oh! Thank you. Just let me know about the bill. I’m so happy you had time to take care of it.”
Red’s eyes narrowed. “You’re family. You don’t pay.”
Nadie blushed. “But then how do you make any money? You seem to have a lot of family.”
The room broke out into laughter and Jace pulled her to his side. She fit just right against him, tiny in a field of giants.
“Red makes money from others outside the family,” his father said once they all quieted down. “With family, we barter our services. So you can pay Red back with something he needs and you can provide easily.”
Jace growled, low, deep.
His father scowled. “Get your mind out of the gutter, boy. You said Nadie was a teacher? Maybe she could help teach something, huh? You’re lucky I don’t beat you senseless for that.”
Jace ducked
his head, heat crawling up his neck. He felt Dante’s hand on his shoulder and Nadie’s arm on his waist.
“We’re all a little stressed right now, and Jace just wasn’t thinking,” Nadie explained.
“Hmph,” his father said. “Let’s eat the food your momma’s spent all morning cooking and talk about how stressed you seem to be.”
Jace relaxed and led his mates to the dining room where a feast containing every one of Jace’s and Dante’s favorite foods was served. Damn, he loved his mom. Seriously, there had to be at least eight honey dishes—come on, he was a bear—and seven roasted meats. His dragon loved the stuff—though back in the day Dante would have preferred to do his own roasting.
Times changed, but dragons didn’t change as quickly.
“I didn’t know what Nadie liked, so there’s a bit of everything,” his mom explained. “I’ll know better for next time so she gets exactly what she wants.”
Nadie put her hand on his mom’s arm and smiled. “Everything looks amazing, Sydney. I don’t see a single thing I wouldn’t eat. Plus, these two guys here make sure I never go wanting, so I’m taken care of. Thank you so much for doing all of this.”
If Nadie did nothing else to show her worth and love in his mother’s eyes, she’d be golden for the rest of her life. Right then he knew his mother had fallen in love with his mate like a caring mother would. As soon as she found Nadie was also planning to learn to use her new powers to protect herself, Nadie could do no wrong. After all, in a maternal bear’s eyes, someone who cared for others and knew how to fight back and protect her cubs was the perfect mate.
Nadie—and Dante as well—were perfect for not only him, but for his family as well.
Fate, it seemed, had gotten something right.
If only they could keep it.
At that dark thought, everyone sat down and began eating. He served Nadie and then himself, with Dante doing the same on the other side. She just rolled her eyes as they took care of her. She’d get them back later and force them to sit down and relax, but right then, he just wanted to pamper her.
Tangled Innocence Page 13
