We are rounding the corner when I walk right into someone. I stumble back, but luckily Lucian was there otherwise I would have fallen.
“Watch where the hell you’re going.” I look up to see a pair of angry green eyes glaring at me.
“Hey man, it’s not her fault. Maybe you should watch where you’re going,” Zeke interjects.
“Whatever, I don’t have time for this.” He makes a move to go around me, but purposely bumps his shoulder into mine causing me to take a step back.
“Touch her again, and we’re going to have problems,” Lucian growls.
“Yeah, you and what army?”
A laugh that I never heard from Lucian comes out.
“I don’t need one. I can hurt you all on my own, but just in case that isn’t enough, she has two other mates. I wouldn’t get to cocky. Wait until you see Graydon.”
The guy actually stands there to think about it for a minute before he puts his hands up in surrender. He turns and quickly walk down the hallway.
“Did either of you recognize him?” I question. “I don’t remember seeing him around the school.” They both shake their heads no.
“He’s probably from the North Pack,” Lucian answers.
“Well, if he’s any indication I don’t hold out any hope for the rest of the North Pack that’s here.” Zeke and Lucian nod their heads agreeing with me. The bell picks that moment to ring, and now we’re all late. Great.
Graydon
I don’t like having all these new people in town. I’ve had this feeling that something isn’t right, and I can’t shake it. The feeling wasn’t this strong until the North Pack showed up. Ever since Kelsey warned Callyn that she wasn’t the only one after her, I’ve had this strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. Of course, because nothing can stay a secret, they know about Kelsey having visions. Someone has spilled the beans about Callie. My guess would be Kelsey. Callie hates having attention on her, and these new people won’t leave her alone. It came to the point where I had to intervene and threaten people. You know Callie had enough because she didn’t even yell at me for being rude.
“How much longer are they going to be here, it’s been weeks,” I grumble.
“For once, I agree with Graydon and his attitude,” Callie sighs. I reach over and run my hand up and down her back.
One of the North Pack kids stops in front of our lunch table. “Callyn.” She lifts her head, meeting his eyes. “I was wondering if I could talk to you for a minute?”
What the hell? I growl. Callie places her hand on my thigh and squeezes. It’s her way of telling me to calm down, but how can I when some dude is trying to mack on my girl, my mate… our mate, right in front of our faces. Is he really this stupid?
“About what?”
“I wanted to ask you something, but I wanted to do it privately.”
Yup, he really is. He must have a death wish.
“Whatever it is you can say here, in the open.” His bounce to all of ours before setting back on Callyn. Let’s see if he actually has the balls to go through with it.
“Well, I was wondering...I was wondering if you were free Friday night? Maybe we can go see a movie together or something.”
He does, I’ll give him that, but Callie doesn’t have a chance to answer because I’m up and out of my seat in a blink of an eye. I use my foot to scoot her chair back some so I can step between her and this idiot. I glare at him.
“Mine,” I growl.
His eyes go wide. Yeah, buddy, you have no chance. Zeke, Lucian, and Max are all up and out of their seats facing off with him as well. I hear Callie sigh, before I feel her small hand on my back. She moves to stand next to me, and I don’t like it. I don’t want him looking at her. If she is behind me, I can protect her better. I move my arm and try to push her back behind me, but she won’t budge.
“No, let me handle this,” she says. “Look…” she trails off waiting for him to give her is name.
“Owen.”
“Look Owen, as kind as the offer was, I have to decline. I am already taken, by the four overbearing, protective shifters in front of you.”
“All four of them?” he questions, his voice an octave higher.
“Yes. All of them. They are my destined mates. I’m sorry.”
“I get it. I mean, I heard people talking about it, but it didn’t seem like it was true.”
“Yeah, well it is, and you can go now,” I say heatedly. The kid nods and hurries away.
“Graydon,” Callie reprimanded.
“What? He wasn’t taking the hint. I don’t even know why he bothered coming over in the first place. One, you are surrounded by four dudes. Two, you now carry the scent of all four of us. Three, you wear our claiming marks. He had to have smelled that you are claimed, and he still tried. Dude has a death wish.”
“Is there a four or are you done now?”
I cross my arms over my chest. “I’m done...for now.” I sit back down. Before Callie turns her attention to Lucian, I see the eye roll she gives me. I don’t care if she doesn’t like me protecting her, she’s just going to have to deal with it. I don’t want a repeat of what happened at the barn...ever.
“Lucian, can you explain the whole I carry your scent thing.”
“Sure,” he says with a shrug of his shoulders. “At first I didn’t notice it because you’re usually with all of us almost all the time. But I noticed that after I took a shower, your scent stayed with me...on me.”
“It doesn’t normally?”
“No, your scent would wash away after I showered. I noticed you carrying all of our scents the other day. Remember you came out to the car with wet hair.”
“How could I forget, Graydon yelled at me about it.” Callie turns and gives me a stern look.
“Fine, you want to get sick? Go right ahead.”
“That’s a myth. That’s not how you get sick. Do shifters even get colds?”
“No.”
“So, this argument is pointless.” Now, we’re both sitting here with our arms crossed, glaring at each other.
“Anyways,” Lucian says getting Callie’s attention back. “I know you recently showered. When I got out to give you the front seat, I smelled all of us on you. It shouldn’t have been there.”
“Is this a common thing?”
“Sometimes. I think it is stronger on you because you claimed four mates.”
“Huh, okay,” she says with a shrug. “I like how all of you smell, so I’m cool with smelling like all of you.”
The bell rings, signaling the end of lunch. We all grab our stuff. I let the guys walk ahead of me a few feet before I grab Callie by the elbow. She turns and looks at me.
“I know you don’t like me being overprotective, but I can’t help it. It’s gotten worse since we claimed each other. I really don’t want to go through what happened with the barn all over again. I couldn’t take losing you.”
Callie sighs, “Oh, grumpy bear,” she says before she hugs me. I wrap her up in my arms. I want to keep her there because I know she will be safe. “It’s not that I don’t like you being protective. I do, and I agree I don’t want a repeat of that night either. But you have to let me try and handle the situation first. If I can’t, then you can jump in and knock some heads around. Okay?”
I take a deep breath before I answer. “Okay.” I tell her that but every instinct in me is screaming to jump in first. I would rather be the one getting hurt over her. I do understand what she is saying. I’ll try for her, but I don’t know how well that will work out of for me.
Callie gives me a big squeeze before she steps back. “Come on, let's get going before we’re both late for class.”
She holds out her hand for me. I interlace our fingers as we walk down the hall. We just make to class on time.
Zeke
Graydon and Callie walk into class hand-in-hand. It looks like they worked out their issues. They never stay angry at each other for long. They’re both quick to anger, yet
both quick to calm down. I think tensions are high right now because of everything going on. I think we need to take a breather and have a little fun. I need to channel my inner Max.
It doesn’t take long for the teacher to explain what our assignment is, before she turns us loose. That’s the one nice thing about art. The teacher gives us free reign to talk so as long as our work gets done. With the noise going on around us, our conversation gets drowned out. It takes me a little bit to figure out what we should do. I want to do something that Callie hasn’t done. There isn’t too much to do around here, so we’ll probably have to go to a neighboring town. Then it hits me. I have the perfect idea.
“Guys, I have an idea.” They both look at me. “I think we need to take a day and relax. Just go out and have some fun.”
“Okay? What did you have in mind?” Callie questions.
“Cosmic bowling. Plus, this is going to sound cheesy, but I think we should celebrate the fact that we have claimed our mate.” I hear Graydon groan right before Callie gets excited.
“Oh, can we? I’ve never been bowling.” Graydon groans again. Callie looks at him. “Pretty please,” she begs. She gives him these big, doe eyes and pouts her lips.
“Come on man. It’s for Callie. Are you really going to tell that beautiful face no?”
“Fine,” he growls. “For her.”
“Why don’t you want to go, grumpy bear?”
“Because bowling is the bane of my existence.” Callie looks over at me.
“It’s true. It’s the one thing Graydon has no skill for.” I chuckle, but Callie gets this serious look on her face before facing Graydon.
“We don’t have to. We can find something else for us to do.”
“No, it’s okay. Maybe I’ll have more fun with you there.”
“Yes!” She turns and high fives me.
I see Graydon shaking his head, but there is a small smirk on his lips. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Graydon likes to think he wins when it comes to Callie, but that girl has him so wrapped around her finger that he can’t seem to see she always gets her way. If I’m honest, she has all of us wrapped around her finger.
“I can’t wait to tell the guys.”
A few moments later she giggles and both me and Graydon give her a weird look. Then it hits me that she is talking to them telepathically. It does come in handy. At least we won’t be getting in trouble for texting in class. The only downside is that us guys can’t communicate with each other like that. I hope that we can once the bond is completed. I know that is something we all agree on; Callie has to take the first step when it comes to that. She’ll let us know when she is ready, just like she did with the claiming. The longer we are together and the more our bond strengthens, I wonder if new abilities will happen? I’m hoping that us guys will be able to communicate telepathically in the future.
“Lucian, likes the idea. He says we should go to dinner as well. Max and I quote, says hell yeah, anything to watch Graydon embarrass himself.” Graydon groans as me and Callie laughs. “Are you really that bad?”
“Yes,” Graydon huffs while crossing his arms over his chest.
“If it makes you feel any better, I’m going to suck too. So, we can suck together. Deal?” Then she gives him this blinding smile.
“Deal.”
Callie leans over and stage whispers, “If anything, we can get those bumper guards, right?”
“No, I refuse to use those. Only little kids should be using them, not a grown man.”
I couldn’t help the laugh that escapes at his explanation. Oh, this is going to be fun.
Lucian
The rest of the week passes in a blur. Before I know it we are all sitting in my car heading over to the next town to go bowling. Callie is in for a real treat once she sees Graydon bowl. He hates it. I keep trying to tell him the mathematics behind it, but he won’t listen. I park, and we all file inside. I stand back so I can see the look on Callie’s face, and it’s everything I thought it would be. She actually squeals, before giving all of us a quick hug. The smile on her face alone makes this worth it.
Since we’re cosmic bowling, there are black lights and neon colors everywhere. There are quite a few people here already. We steer Callie over to the counter where we pay to play three games. The girl behind the counter ask for our shoes sizes and quickly returns with our bowling shoes.
“Mine,” Callie says out of nowhere. The girl turns and quickly walks away. We all look at her. “What? She was looking too hard at you guys. You didn’t notice her flirting with you the whole time we have been standing here?” We look shake our heads. “Yeah, well I did, and I don’t like it.” All of us give Callie a big smile. I like her jealous side.
“We didn’t notice, baby, because she doesn’t even come close to you. You’re all we see and need,” I say. Callie sighs before coming over to me and giving me a hug and a peck on the cheek. Zeke grabs her hand and pulls her toward the closest empty lane.
“Smooth Casanova,” Max says. I shrug my shoulders.
“Tell me I’m wrong.”
“You’re not,” Graydon says.
We follow behind them, each of us taking a seat around the bench and quickly changing our shoes. Callie and I are the first to finish changing our shoes, so I grab her hand and take her over to the bowling ball rack. I help her pick out a ball that has some weight to it but still light enough for her to handle. The rest of the guys follow suit. When Callie and I get back to the lane, I enter everyone's names on the screen.
“I want snacks,” Max announces.
“We’re going to dinner after this, you don’t need snacks,” Graydon states.
Max places his fingers to his chest and slightly leans back. “Uh, yes I do. I’m getting nachos,” he says before he starts to walk away.
“And popcorn,” Callie shouts after him.
“You got it, angel.”
I shake my head and laugh.
“Would you like me to show you how to throw the bowling ball?” I ask.
“Yeah, because I have no clue what I’m doing.”
I grab her ball, and we walk over to the lane. I stand behind her.
“I use the center arrow as my guide, plus physics but since you’re a beginner, we’ll work with just the arrows.” She nods her head. “So, if you stand off to the side just a little bit when you release the ball, it should hit that spot. Try to keep your arm straight, and your eyes down the lane. When you pull your arm back, release the ball when it’s in front of you. You will also take your right leg and move it behind your left.”
I run through the movements with a couple of times. On the last walk through, I press my lips to her neck. She completely forgets about what she is doing. I wrap my arms around her and pull her back against my body, her back to my chest. She lets out a breathy sigh.
“Lucian,” she whispers. I place a few more kisses along her neck. Her breath quickens. I can stay like this forever.
“Man, stop mauling our girlfriend in public and lets play,” Max jokes. “I have popcorn, angel,” he says in a sing song voice.
Callie turns and faces me, her face flush. She gives a smile before giving me a quick kiss. “Come on and let’s play.”
The first game went quick, and Callie seems like a natural at this. She messed up a few times, but she’s doing pretty decent. She’s beating Graydon, and he has been doing this longer than her. Graydon is just awful at bowling. It’s during the second game when you can tell that Graydon is getting angry. I’m not sure if that's from all the gutter balls he’s been throwing or from Max picking on him for it. I just hope he doesn’t ruin this night for Callie.
Graydon
Next time I agree to go bowling, take my big ass out with a tranq dart. Max and Zeke are decent bowlers. They range between high one hundreds to low two hundreds. Lucian the smart-ass bowls perfect scores because, as he says, he understands the laws of physics. Then there’s me. I barely break a hundred, and my balls seem to like their home i
n the gutter. You would think that would be the worst of it, right? No. Max has been ribbing me all night, and Callie who has never bowled has been getting strikes left and right. She claims it’s beginners luck.
I call bullshit. So, instead of enjoying myself, I’ve been wallowing in self-pity all night. Now it’s my turn, and I don’t want too, but I get up and walk over to the bowling ball return and pick up my bowling ball. I set myself up in the center of the lane, like I do every time. I even try to use the arrows as guides, but nothing works. I swing my arm and release the ball harder than I should have, but I’m angry. At first I think, this ball is going to go straight down. It keeps going but then out of nowhere it veers right and ends up in the gutter. Are you kidding me?
I can hear snickers from the peanut gallery behind me. At least Callie tries to look contrite. The more this game continues the angrier I’m getting and the harder that I’m throwing the ball. At one point I threw the ball too hard, and it started to crack. It also doesn’t help that every time I pick up the ball, I death grip it, and the cracking is getting worse. Before I know it, it’s my turn again.
“Come on man, it's not that hard. Keep your wrist straight and eyes on where you want the ball to go,” Zeke says. Easy for him to say because he can do this.
“You need to relax,” Lucian states. Yeah, well I can’t relax when I’m angry.
“Can you just put your ball in the gutter already, so the rest of us can go,” Max teases.
He has been working my nerves all night, to the point where I overthrow this ball and it hops from my lane into the one next to mine. I watch the ball roll down that lane, thinking that maybe I’ll get a strike, but no. The ball goes right into the gutter. Of course, Max is laughing like a hyena.
“Man, you can’t even get a strike even when you throw the ball in someone else's lane. Maybe we should put the bumper guards up for you.” I growl.
“How about you shut up and take your turn before I do it for you?”
“No, way man. You’re not touching the score I have going on.”
Queen's Guard Page 14
