Andrew [Whitedell Pride: 9]

by Catherine Lievens

  There was one thing Soren didn’t mind while being with Andrew—well, more than one, but the others all rotated around his mate. He loved his friends and the kids, but they were better in small doses, and while Soren couldn’t afford that while living in the mansion, he had it now. He also liked Andrew’s house, and with how proud the man was of it, it was unlikely he would be willing to move, even after they mated. Soren just hoped Dominic didn’t have a problem with him living out of the mansion, because this was his territory, and he could forbid Soren to live in Andrew’s house.

  Soren finally turned on Andrew’s street. The house was completely dark even though Soren was sure they had left at least some of the lights on when they had rushed outside.

  “Andrew, stay in the car,” he growled as he stopped in the driveway.

  “What?” Andrew asked sleepily from the passenger’s seat, but Soren really didn’t have the time to argue with him.

  “Stay in the car. I think someone got in the house while we were gone, so please, stay in the car. I don’t need to worry about you while I search the house. Lock the doors behind me and don’t open them until I come back to get you.” Not that it would stop a shifter determined to get to him, but Soren doubted the bear would take the risk to draw attention, and that would make a lot of noise in the sleepy neighborhood.

  Andrew nodded and gulped, his Adam’s apple visibly moving even in the darkness of the car. Hopefully, he had understood how serious the situation was, because the last thing Soren needed was his mate barging in while he tried to find the stalker in the house.

  Soren got out and waited to hear the noise of the doors locking before moving. From where he was he could see the front door was closed, and when he tried it he found out it was still locked, which meant the stalker had entered the house either from a window or from the kitchen’s back door.

  Soren wanted to catch him if he was still in the house—although he doubted he was—so he kept the front door locked and walked around the house and into the backyard with his tiger snarling in his head. It should have been distracting, but it was actually reassuring to know that the cat would help him if he needed it.

  Oh, yes. The stalker had left the kitchen door wide open when he left. Since it was facing the woods, no one would have seen it and called the cops. Soren had no doubts about the fact that the stalker wanted them to know he had been there as soon as they drove home. That was why he’d turned off the lights and left the door open. From the scent, Soren could tell the stalker had been gone for a while, and with how long they had been at Xavier’s, it wasn’t surprising.

  He carefully stepped in the kitchen and listened, but he could hear nothing apart from the low hum of the appliances and the normal creaks of the house. He followed the scent, and it led him right up the stairs until he reached the hallway. There the scent went both right and left, so Soren followed the weakest trail to the room in which they had slept last night. He quietly entered it, but no one was there.

  Anger rose in Soren when he saw the mess.

  He had left his bag in the room this morning, and the stalker had found it. He had taken the few clothes Soren had brought with him and he had torn them to pieces, leaving bits of cloth all over the floor. It had obviously been done with claws.

  Soren didn’t really care about the clothes, but he was furious anyway. He checked the bathroom before going back in the hallway and checking the office.

  That left Andrew’s room, and Soren wasn’t surprised to find out the scent of the stalker was stronger there and that there was a mess in this room, too.

  The bear had been in Andrew’s bed again, and from the light scent that hung in the air, he had done more than just rolling around this time. Andrew was going to shit purple kittens when he found that out, even if the stalker had at least been a gentleman and had left red roses all over the now dirty comforter.

  Oh, but the masterpiece was the one on the wall, between the two windows. The stalker had left a message for Andrew. The stink of the dark spray paint he had used was so powerful it almost overwhelmed all the others still lingering in the room.

  You’re mine, Andrew. My mate.

  Short, concise, and totally batshit crazy. Hard to be clearer than that, especially with the picture of Soren with a big red cross painted right smack on his face that was on the floor just under the message.

  The stalker might have not discovered that Soren was Andrew’s mate, but he had found out that he was staying in the house with him and sleeping in the same bed, which made him the new target man of this game. Oh joy. Maybe he should try to convince Andrew to stay at the mansion at least for a while, but then who knew what the crazy stalker would invent to get to him. Either way, it was definitely time for a brand new alarm system, and Soren was going to call the company who had done Andrew’s office first thing in the morning. It was situated in another town, but it seemed to be good.

  Soren went through the rest of the house even though the scent was limited to the rooms he’d already checked, but he found nothing else, so he went back up and stripped the sheets off of Andrew’s bed, pushing them into the washing machine and starting it before picking up what remained of his clothes and throwing them away.

  Andrew was about bouncing in his seat when he finally got back to the car, but Soren had needed to do that. He couldn’t make the writing on the wall disappear that easily, but he had pocketed the picture and thrown away the rose petals that had been on the bed.

  “Did you get him?”

  “No, he has been gone for a while.”

  “What...what did he do?” Andrew asked as he climbed out of the car. The adrenaline was obviously leaving him because he was rubbing his eyes with his hands and his eyes were once again sleepy.

  “Come on, babe. Let’s get you to bed. We can clean everything up in the morning.” Soren didn’t give Andrew a chance to protest—and he was sure he would have—before reaching down and hauling him up in his arms, bridal style. He could have sworn he heard a giggle coming from Andrew, but he wasn’t about to ask and possibly lose a nut or two. It was cute, though, and as he passed through the doorway, he wondered when they were finally going to mate. God, it had been only a day, but it was so filled with drama that it seemed like a whole year had passed.

  Andrew was practically asleep by the time Soren got upstairs, so he helped him get rid of his clothes and under the covers before he checked all the windows and doors. Only then did he slide in beside his mate and surrender to sleep.

  Chapter Four

  The following days were full of unwanted emails, hang up phone calls and gifts left both at Andrew’s office and at his home. The stalker didn’t enter either of them, but the fact that he was able to avoid detection from the men Dominic had placed around both places was disturbing.

  Andrew had never felt so bad. He was stressed and anxious, and he felt so damn vulnerable that not even Soren’s presence eased it some days. He hated feeling that way, and he hated that he couldn’t go see his parents because he was scared that the stalker would hurt them, and even more that he was pushing his possible mating onto the back burner. He couldn’t concentrate on his work because he kept imagining someone jumping out of bushes or from behind corners and he was always waiting for the phone to ring.

  When it did ring, it was hell.

  Just like now. Andrew was looking at the phone as if the thing was about to bite him. He knew he had to answer, because hell, that was how he made clients. People called and asked for an appointment, and if he didn’t answer, he would rapidly lose both the new clients and the old ones. He just couldn’t bring himself to listen to his stalker breathe on the other side. It made him feel out of control, and the lack of sleep wasn’t helping. He had nightmares in which he woke up in the middle of the night with the stalker leaning over him, touching him. Then he really woke up, tangled in his sheets, thinking that the man had finally gotten to him.

  He couldn’t fathom why on earth the man
thought Andrew was his mate when Andrew didn’t even know who the man was, and while Soren’s presence did help a bit, it still felt as if Andrew was out of control of his own life.

  He was actually thinking about moving. Oh, he had refused to let his stalker influence his life until now, but it was becoming harder. At least the company who had installed the security system in his office was due to do the same in his house the next day. Maybe that way Andrew wouldn’t be afraid to sleep in his own goddamn bed at night.

  “You okay, babe?”

  God, Soren made him feel vulnerable in a whole different kind of way. They might not have done anything more than the aborted blow job in the kitchen that day, but the sexual tension between them was so high Andrew could nearly see sparks in the air when they were close. He desperately wanted to do something about it.

  He had taken to imagining Soren all tied up in his bed. Andrew would do whatever he wanted to the man, and Soren would love it. Black rope would look so pretty against Soren’s pale, pale skin.

  Andrew had to shake his head at the thought. He didn’t even know if Soren was a top or a bottom, although he sure hoped he did both. Andrew might like to have the power and control in bed, and he had mostly been a top in his previous relationships and one-night stands, but he actually loved to bottom. Oh, he was a very pushy, very controlling bottom, but he liked it that way, although he would love to sink his cock into Soren’s tight ass, too. The ass the man flaunted every time he got out of the bathroom after his shower and every time he changed. He was making Andrew crazy, and he damn well knew it.

  Andrew just wasn’t too sure what to do about it. He was scared the stalker would take everything out on Soren, and he couldn’t afford that. He couldn’t think about a life without the tiger shifter, either. They might not have been intimate yet, but the man was burrowing himself right under Andrew’s skin, and Andrew knew it was only a matter of time until he gave in. What would happen then, though? Did he only want it to be sexual, like scratching an itch? Or did he want the big tiger to claim him?

  He guessed he thought like a shifter about that. He really didn’t see why they should wait, apart from the big problem that was his stalker, and that if the man found out Soren had claimed Andrew, it would probably send him into a rage.

  Andrew was starting to think that it might be worth it, though. For white skin and black rope...

  “Andrew?”

  Shit, he had never answered Soren’s question. “Do you like to be tied up in bed?”

  Andrew didn’t even realize what he’d said until he took in Soren’s wide eyes and his stunned expression, and even then, he actually had to think before understanding. “God, sorry. Forget I said anything.” Yeah, he was really losing it.

  “No, it was...interesting. Is that something you’re into?”

  Did Andrew really have to answer that? Sure, Soren was his mate, so in theory they were perfect for each other. And it wasn’t like this was a fling or a crush. If they got together, it would be a forever kind of thing—a long forever, what with how long shifters lived.

  Andrew decided to put on his big girl panties and just be honest. It was weird how he had never had problems talking about this with anyone, but with Soren he was feeling shy about it. Maybe it was because he knew it was a forever kind of thing. “Yeah. I like, umm, I like to take control in the bedroom.”

  Andrew looked up, not knowing what to expect, but he was damn glad to see the lusty look Soren was giving him. “Control as in top, or you’re just pushy?”

  Andrew shrugged, trying to make it look as if what Soren thought didn’t really matter. Oh, but it did matter, a lot. “Both, actually. I don’t mind topping, but I love bottoming, as long as I’m in charge.”

  “All the time?”

  “Well, no, but most of it. It’s not like I never have normal sex.”

  Soren kept on looking at him from where he was sitting in the armchair. They were watching TV after a long, unproductive day at work. Well, unproductive for Andrew. Soren had done exactly what he had to—being a bodyguard for Andrew.

  “Want to try it?”

  Andrew wasn’t sure he had heard that right. Was Soren really suggesting... “You like being tied up?”

  “Sure. I also like it when someone else takes the lead. It doesn’t happen often though, because everyone assumes I’m a top all the way through.”

  Andrew could see why. The man was big and radiated power and strength, and Andrew just knew he would love to have all of that under his command. “Shouldn’t we talk about what it would mean for us first?”

  “Like what? I’m not asking you to mate with me. Well, I would love to mate with you, but I understand why humans need more time to do it than shifters. It can be just a normal relationship between two men until you decide what you want. Because let me tell you, I’ve dreamed of getting in your pants since day one.”

  Oh, the way Soren’s eyes caressed Andrew’s body was definitely a big clue to that. Andrew shivered just at the thought of finally having Soren’s hands on him. “You know I grew up with Dominic basically being an uncle or a brother, right?”

  “Yeah, you’re going to have to tell me all about that sometime, but not now.”

  “Well, it means I’ve always known about shifters and mates, so I’m not wary about it like humans would normally be.”

  “Are you telling me you want to mate with me now?” The hope in Soren’s eyes shot straight to Andrew’s heart. Was it was he was saying?

  He took a minute to analyze his feelings. Did he love Soren? Not yet, but he knew he would get there real quick. The man was sweet and endearing yet strong and protective. Andrew liked the fact that Soren wasn’t ashamed of the fact that he liked romance books and girly movies, and that he didn’t see it as him being less manly. He liked how Soren could take Andrew’s sarcasm and answer without missing a beat, and how he wasn’t offended by it. He liked that he had laughed more during these few days with Soren than in the last months.

  “Yeah. I want to mate with you. Right now.”

  * * * *

  Soren’s heart jumped in his chest. He could see that Andrew was absolutely certain about this, and he couldn’t believe his luck. “First I have to tell you something about tiger shifters.”

  “Okay.”

  “You see, tigers are different from other shifters when they mate. I don’t know why exactly, but once a human, shifter or whatever drinks the blood of a tiger shifter and mates him or her, the tiger has to claim his mate regularly if the mate doesn’t want to be sick.”

  “You mean that we would have to mate every so often?”

  “About once a week, although I’m not too sure about the time frame. I could ask Denver and Jeremy to know for sure.”

  “What happens if we don’t?”

  “You’ll be fine for a while, then you’ll start getting headaches. They will slowly get worse, then your muscles will start to ache and stuff like that.”

  “Could I die from it? If you stop claiming me?”

  “In the end, yeah, but it would take a long time.”

  Andrew stayed silent for a while and Soren was about sure the man was going to change his mind. He wished things were different, but he was a tiger shifter, and there was nothing he could do about it.

  “Can mates really stay apart anyway? I mean, why should they? It’s not like normal human couples stay apart a lot either, except for particular situations.”

  “Yeah, but you would depend on me to stay healthy.”

  Andrew seemed to reflect on that for another few minutes, but Soren could see from the determined look in his eyes that he had already decided, and Soren couldn’t wait to find out what he had decided. He was both scared and excited, and when Andrew got up from the couch he knew he was about to find out.

  Andrew’s expression shifted to one of absolute authority, sending a shudder of delight along Soren’s spine. “Come on, tiger. Time to get you in bed.” Oh, y
eah. Andrew had definitely made a decision. He could see in his mate’s eyes that he wouldn’t be taking no for an answer, so he just followed him up the stairs and into the guest room. It struck him as the wrong room, though.

  “Babe, I think we should do this in your room.” Andrew hesitated, and Soren knew he was still thinking about how the stalker had violated his private place. “It’s a way of taking back your room and your bed.”

  Andrew smiled. “You mean our bed. I know we haven’t talked about it—”

  “We will, just not now. But I wouldn’t mind moving in with you.”

  So he just walked past Andrew and into the master bedroom. He stopped at the foot of the bed, unsure of what to do. Did he undress? Did he wait for Andrew to tell him what to do?

  “Clothes off, tiger, but stay right where you are. I’ll be right back.”

  Soren undressed quickly. He wasn’t exactly nervous, well, not for the mating part at least, but the fact that Andrew was being all mysterious like that didn’t help. He knew his mate wouldn’t hurt him, but he was a little scared that if something happened while he was tied down he wouldn’t be able to help. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea after all.

  “Relax. I’m not going to tie you up completely.” Soren jumped when he heard Andrew’s voice behind him, but before he could turn around to face him he felt a hand stroking down his spine. He arched his back like the cat he was, and yeah, if that put his ass even more in view, it wasn’t his fault.

  Andrew chuckled but didn’t stop stroking Soren’s back until he reached between Soren’s ass cheeks and skimmed a finger on his hole, making him arch even more. If he would move that finger just a tiny bit inside...