by Milly Taiden
She thought back through the night and recalled the other men calling their wives mates. Wait a minute. Was a mate a companion like “married spouse” and not just “best friend”? Josh had said it was the simple definition. Ha, more like the understated definition of the century.
She knew wolves in the wild mated for life. Did the same go for the human version? It’d probably be similar since instincts drive those innate things.
“What you thinking about, love?” Josh asked.
She rolled her body onto her stomach and reached for a cracker with meat on the food tray beside her closed laptop. “Just wondering when you want to get married and how many kids I want.”
When his mouth dropped open, she laughed, blowing cracker crumbs from her lips. His hands were instantly on her, tickling her sides. The laughing heightened as she wiggled and begged him to stop.
Grabbing his hands, she pulled them out to the side, making his body fall closer to hers. She stared into his eyes, seeing love reflected. The love that gave her the strength to face her demons and conquer them.
All these ideas about her and Josh mating and having children worried her. What if he wasn’t the right one? What if he was? Her body and heart screamed yes, but her head said clamp on the brakes.
She could accept this gorgeous man with her would be her husband, but she didn’t know the first thing about love. Even though she was getting an idea of what it felt like in her soul, she didn’t know what to do when in love or how to act for that matter.
PDA—pubic displays of affection—was strictly prohibited in the military. She’d never had problems with that. Never had affection to show anyone. But now she knew she had to express herself or there would be problems. Was there a book or video she could watch that gave her the answers she needed?
There had to be websites that would tell her exactly what to do. She’d learn like she had her schooling and practice with the same fervor she did her military training. Then their lives together could get started.
At that moment, something in her changed. It was infinitesimal, but it shook her world. She had no reason, now, to keep running. Since the day she’d walked out of the house with her siblings in tow, she’d been running from her memories and emotions. She couldn’t handle them on her own.
With Josh in her life, it was all different. She had someone to lean on, someone who would keep her strong during those times when she felt the world would overtake her. She was no longer alone.
Her biggest fear flew forward. The smile faded from her face. A worried looked came from him.
“Promise me something,” she said.
“Anything,” he replied.
“If you ever see me turning into my father with you or the kids, intervene. Kick my ass, if you have to. Just don’t let me treat them badly.”
He kissed her forehead. “My love, the fact that you are asking this of me means you won’t ever let that happen. But if it does, I will spank your scrumptious ass.”
She lifted her hips off the ground. “You mean this ass?”
Josh disappeared under the blanket covering them. “Yes, this.” Playfully, he bit her butt cheek. She squealed and laughed. A sense of happiness she’d never felt slid over her. Was this love? She felt light and free. She could face anything the world threw at her with her mate beside her. This was how she wanted to be the rest of her life, which wasn’t likely. Life would hand her shit on fine china, but once she got through it, the end was priceless.
But something else niggled at the back of her mind.
As if enough hadn’t happened in the last four hours. She’d gone from saving the intelligence department to saving herself with her mate by her side all the way. The last hour alone blew her mind. How her brain even functioned was a miracle.
She was perched half on her guy, arm over his chest, thigh across his lower abs. It was the most comfortable position she’d ever been in.
“What’s wrong, love?” Josh asked.
She let out a sigh. “I don’t know. Something’s bugging me and I don’t know what it is.”
He partially rolled to face her. “Is it about us? Are we moving at light speed for you?”
“Absolutely.” She laughed at his slightly panicked look. “But that’s doesn’t bother me. It’s something else.”
“Oh, good.” He lay back and closed his eyes. She pinched his nipple and twisted it slightly. His eyes popped open, gold rings flaring.
“Don’t be an ass,” she said. “Help me figure this out.”
“Figure it out? So this doesn’t mean you want more sex?” He whimpered like a hurt puppy. She laughed again. When was the last time she’d expressed such happiness twice in the same minute? This man was a godsend.
“Wanting sex and figuring this out are not mutually exclusive. One doesn’t dictate the other,” she replied.
He drew a brow down. “Sooo, does that mean yes or no to sex right now?”
She giggled. Giggled! Her. Sergeant Major Obermier giggling. Hell was definitely freezing over and the pigs were flying south for the winter. “It means no, horny toad.”
“Hey,” he said. “Get your shifters straight. I’m a horny wolf, not frog.”
She gasped. “There are frog shifters? Really?”
“Uh, maybe,” he said with all seriousness. “I haven’t met any, but they would’ve been frogs so I wouldn’t have talked to them in the first place.”
She didn’t want to think about herself talking to every creature she came in contact with asking if they were a shifter or not. Rather quickly, she’d find herself in her own padded room playing with small plastic G.I. Joes.
“Okay, I’ll let that go for now,” she said, not sure how to approach such a statement. This conversation was getting weird. “We’re way off topic here. I’m forgetting something and I don’t know what.”
“Oh, yes,” her mate replied. “And it’s not sex.”
Exasperated, she sighed. “No, it’s not sex. We’ve confirmed that.”
“Damn,” Josh said. “I was hoping you’d forgotten that you said no already.” His smile warmed her heart. It would take a little time to get used to his serious-faced, playful banter. “Playful” wasn’t a word in the military handbook.
“You’re such a dork,” she responded as she scooted away and rolled onto her stomach. He laughed, smacking her on the ass. She could get used to that. No, no, no, stay focused. After pulling her laptop in front of her, she logged onto the Internet to see the latest news. “Shit. Look.”
She angled the monitor for him to take a peek. The bold headline read Hostages in the NIB?
“What’s NIB?” he asked. “I’ve heard you say it before.”
“That’s what we call this building, National Intelligence Building of the National Intelligence Agency. I think they are naming it after some senator when we move out of it soon.” She scanned the article, looking for anything scandalous. Clicking a link, she was taken to a page with various photos of the night and a few statements. Director Pommer was quoted giving the standard spiel when pressed by the media too soon.
Nothing about her or shifter involvement. And thank god there were no photos of the four dead men on the roof. She googled Yulian’s name again to see what else she could find. The fact that Mikhail wasn’t a part of this bothered her. They were a pair, it seemed. Maybe they got in a fight and no longer talked.
“You think we’re missing something?” Josh asked.
She sighed. “I just can’t believe that the brother Mikhail had no part of this. Of the two of them, he’s the smarter one. Yulian was always the more brute force type.”
“Mikhail was part of something,” Josh replied.
She looked at him. “What do you mean?” she asked.
“When you were on the phone with the president, Day listened to Yulian’s phone call. It had something to d
o with Mikhail finishing up at a home,” Josh informed her.
“What home?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Didn’t say. Does he have relatives or know someone here in DC?”
She didn’t know. He could’ve, but that didn’t seem right. Why hold a group hostage just to wait until his brother did something at someone’s house?
Josh snuggled up to her side. “What you said about Yulian not being the brains was definitely true. The men with him weren’t highly trained. We took out the four guards with little effort, and the guys inside seemed to be joking around a bit much. I’d have been pissed if they were my men.”
“I’m with you there. Very unprofessional, which wasn’t how the last run-in I had with them seemed. Their part was well planned and executed. It took us a while to locate their hideout. Here, it appeared they were just waiting for something. Yulian looked at his watch a lot. And if their plan all along had been to take the helicopter, he’d known only two other men could leave with him and a hostage.”
“He was going to leave his guards behind, wasn’t he?” Josh said. “What a bastard to sacrifice his own men. He should be shot and hanged by his balls.”
She felt something coming to her. The answer to all this. They were close. “How long after the conversation Day listened to till the time they left?” she asked.
“They started moving out right afterward,” he replied.
She sat up. “That’s it. Yulian’s part in this was to be a distraction. Like the news woman and Sheldon calling the police to distract the hostage takers.”
“Distraction for what?” he asked. “A robbery of some kind?”
“The brothers aren’t the stealing type. Not flashy enough for them,” she said. “They ransom people for money, so I don’t see them coming all the way over here to shoot out a Tiffany’s when they have the same thing much closer to home.”
“What about abduction? That makes sense if they took someone from a home,” Josh theorized.
“That works for me, but why the big distraction then? Why not just go in, take the person, and leave?” she wondered. Damn, they were missing something big.
“If you need a distraction, then that means the target has to have eyes on it or is out in public,” her mate said. “What house is out in public or easy to see?”
“Oh, fuck,” Candy said, dropping her face into her hands. “The White House.”
Chapter Twenty-six
From his place on the rug in front of the fireplace in his mate’s office, he watched her throw the blanket off and run to her desk. Damn, what a sight to see. She was gorgeous. He knew she would be by the way she filled out her uniform. Tight across her chest and hips, her ass a scrumptious bubble he’d love to sink his teeth (dick) into.
She paced in front of her desk, phone pressed against her ear. “Come on, pick up the damn phone.” He heard the personal message for the president answer. Irritated, she bashed her finger against the phone’s screen a couple of times then lifted it again. Deep concern floated from her.
“Dresden,” she nearly shouted, “are you with the president?”
Thanks to his superhuman hearing, he could hear both sides of the conversation. “He went to his private quarters on the second floor. Why?” he said.
“I believe the Steganovich brothers had a plot that included something at the White House,” she said.
“The one brother is dead, correct?” he asked.
“Yulian, yes. We heard part of a conversation he had on the phone about Mikhail being at a house. They are dumb enough to think they can pull off kidnapping the president.”
“Shit,” Josh heard Dresden say. “I left the president not more than ten minutes ago. He’s in the shower now for approximately fifteen more minutes.” Huh, Josh wasn’t sure he would want everyone to know his schedule that intimately. Did the president have a toilet break scheduled, also?
“I’ll be there in ten minutes. Let the gate know I’m coming.” Candy dropped the phone on her desk and went to a closet. When she opened it, he about shot his wad where he sat. The small cubbyhole was a military enthusiast’s dream. She dressed in a multi-gray camo design he’d never seen before, and without shifter eyes, he probably couldn’t see her in the shadows. Her boots appeared lightweight and flexible, not heavy like combat footwear.
She picked up a small plastic bottle and squirted dark liquid onto her fingertips. “Seriously,” he said, “you’re painting your face? Is this that dangerous? I’m thinking I don’t want you to go, love.”
Candy rubbed the lotion onto her face. “First off, love, you have no say whether I go or not. And secondly, this isn’t the old face paint.”
His feathers were a bit ruffled with her stating he had no control over her safety. Shit, he’d better get used it. That was the kind of person she was. If there was trouble on the horizon, she was there before sunup.
“If it’s not paint, what is it?” he asked as he watched her beautiful pink skin turn dirt brown and black.
“This is made of synthetic material that, among other things, will protect my face from the heat of a bomb blast.”
That got him off his ass quickly. “Fuck, no. You are not going if bombs are involved.” He was sure her brow rose even though he couldn’t see it under the coloring. He rapidly realized that was not the thing to say to her. “Stop.” He cupped his hands around her face. “Just listen to me for a minute.”
How was he to tell her how much she meant to him and he wouldn’t let her die without coming off corny as hell? Fuck, he better make it fast; a hurricane was brewing in her eyes.
“Candy. I know we just met, but I’m here to protect you whether you like it or not. I cannot allow you to go into a dangerous situation unless I’m with you. Please, baby, you have to understand it’s a shifter thing. You are so precious to me—”
She placed a finger over his lips, which he kissed. “I understand you wanting to keep me safe. It’s how I feel about the men and women under my command.” Her grin brightened her face. So beautiful even with dark smudges everywhere.
He brought his lips down to hers, giving and taking everything he possessed in his heart. He wouldn’t let her go alone. No way around it. If her had to tie her up, then so be it. That actually sounded rather tasty.
She turned back to the closet. “I don’t have clothes your size, so do your shift thing if you’re coming with me.”
He stood, taken aback.
“What?” she said. “You said you wouldn’t let me go without you, so you better get on getting on.” She glanced up and down his body. “With you naked, we’ll never make it to the White House.”
He scowled. “That’s true. Too many cops around, right now,” he agreed.
“No,” she replied. “I was thinking more along the lines of me shoving you into a back alley and taking advantage of your naked situation.”
Air coming into his lungs and words coming out choked him into a coughing fit. He couldn’t believe Candy had made a sexy joke. She had been so shy an hour ago. What had he unleashed?
Taking a backpack from a hanger, she shoved in a couple of flashlights, cigarette lighter, and a small first aid pack. From the small refrigerator by the water cooler, she scooped out a couple of bottled waters and dropped those in as well.
On the desk, she grabbed her phone and turned to him. “You still look human to me, wolf.”
With a cheeky grin, he let his animal come forward and shifted. His mate watched with awe. She wasn’t scared. In fact, she was slightly aroused if the air told the truth. Candy pivoted toward the door.
“Let’s go. We have one more stop before we’re on the move.”
Chapter Twenty-seven
Since the NIB was a couple of blocks from the White House, Candy decided running would be faster than getting the car from the garage. Plus, when she and her new wolf buddy exited the buildin
g after stopping in security to load up on fire power, the garage was closed off with guards watching the entrance. No doubt they had made their way up to the kill scene on the roof. It would take hours while they went through the entire route down to the lobby looking for whatever clues and evidence they looked for.
Josh knew those details better than she did. He was more detective while she was more blow ’em up.
At the security gate, a transport buggy and a handsome guard were waiting to take her, and her dog, to the north side of the White House. When she smiled at the driver, Josh growled. She almost laughed then scratched between his ears.
As they approached the White House, Candy fell into a sense of awe. The building was massive with the West Wing housing the Oval Office and the East Wing with its “secret” underground bomb shelter.
At the main entrance, one of the two glass doors opened and Colonel Dresden hurried out. Candy stepped off the cart as soon as it stopped and came to a salute. Dresden returned her gesture.
“Candy? Is that you all dressed-up for the occasion?” the man said, trying to cover a smile with his hand. She was sure he referred to her synthetic paint and shadow camo. The wolf barked once. She knew her mate was agreeing with the colonel.
She leaned closer to the wolf. “Just wait till we get home.”
“When did you get a wolf as a pet? I’m hoping it’s a pet,” he said. She and her animal climbed the steps as the cart drove away.
“Colonel, sir. This is Director Tumbel with ALFA.” The wolf sat on its hind legs and lifted his right paw to the colonel. The man stared at the furry extension, then looked back to her.
“This is . . .” his hands swished up and down implying the animal, “his shifted form?”
“Yes, sir,” Candy replied. The colonel frowned and glanced around.
“Let’s do this inside so some media bigshot doesn’t get a picture of me shaking a wild animal’s paw.”
Candy stifled her smile and followed the retreating officer through the front door. The grand entrance was truly grand, from the massive marble columns to the shiny pink and white square floor pattern. The simple design elements were huge. The ceiling had to rise twenty feet, or close. A mirror at the side stretched from the floor to crown molding. Standing here, she felt small, insignificant. But she had an important job to do.
