by Faith Gibson
Gregor was alerted the moment Tessa pulled up to the guard shack. Less than a minute later the rumble of her Harley sounded outside the building. It had been her bike he heard the day before. Now that he had kissed her, she was imbedded in his senses. He knew the minute she entered the building. He wanted nothing more than to confront her and demand answers, but at the last minute a plan sprang to his mind. As soon as she was within earshot, he pretended to be on a phone call. Let’s just see how creepy I am now, Brat.
Her footsteps stopped just outside his door. At the mention of a blonde, the sharp intake of breath was loud and Tessa’s pulse sped up. Yep, she was pissed. Gregor laughed out loud as she stomped off toward Isabelle’s office. After giving her a few steps head start, he followed her. It was rather easy considering her mind was on his words. She didn’t bother knocking on Isabelle’s door; she just barged right on in and shut the door behind her. No problem, he would just listen from the supply closet. He slipped into the small room and waited.
Isabelle told her cousin, “You know, you really shouldn’t just show up here without calling. What if I wasn’t here? Would you just go through my office like you go through my home?” Then nothing. Silence. What the hell? He stuck his ear to the wall, but he still heard nothing. That was odd. Even if they were whispering he would be able to detect it. After about twenty minutes the door opened, and Tessa told Isabelle, “Don’t hesitate to call Sophia.”
Gregor listened for Tessa’s footsteps to pass by. When they went the other way, he quietly opened the closet door and followed. Where was she going? She had been there enough to know the way out of the building. She stopped at the door to the stairs that led to the first floor. She couldn’t get through there; she didn’t have access. Tessa surprised him when she pulled a keycard out of her back pocket and swiped it over the sensor, peering around the corner before entering the doorway that led to solitary confinement. What the fuck was she doing?
Gregor grabbed the door Tessa entered just before it closed and gave her time to get to the bottom of the steps. He quietly called to the guards on duty using the radio. Almost all of the men who worked in the prison were shifters, so he knew they would hear his whispered command. “There is a redheaded woman wandering the halls. I want you all to back off and allow her passage. Do not follow and do not let her see you. I want to see where she goes.” Gregor followed her, staying far enough behind that she couldn’t hear him. Nikolas thought it was possible she and Isabelle both had shifter blood. If that were true, her hearing could be enhanced as well. He took extra precautions, just in case.
He stopped at the door to the first floor and listened. He could tell by her footsteps she was stopping at each cell. Was she searching for someone? Why else would she be down here? The mating bond called to him. It had been ever since she walked into the building. Now that she was on the first level around the criminals, his beast was clawing to get out. It recognized his mate and the fact that she was around dangerous men.
When he got close enough to see her without being seen himself, he noticed she was standing outside St. Claire’s cell. She was staring in, but she wasn’t saying anything. She stood quietly for a few minutes then whispered, “And I love you.”
Gregor’s heart shredded. Why would he think a woman as gorgeous as Tessa wouldn’t have a man in her life? But St. Claire? Geoffrey assured him that Tamian had no family in the area. What if she was his girlfriend and he had lied to Frey? Tessa’s footsteps alerted him that she was now jogging. This time he directed his command to the guard in the control room. “Quickly, override the system so the only door her key card will work on is the one leading to the roof. I am going to trap our little trespasser.” He followed quietly up the steps, hearing her softly swear when she was denied access to the door leading to the exit. He grinned inwardly. Had it dawned on her yet that she was screwed?
Tessa stepped out into the brisk October night air, holding the door until it quietly clicked shut behind her. She stepped over to the ledge, gauging the height.
The door opened behind her. She turned to see Gregor with his gun drawn and aimed at her. The ledge was only a few steps away.
“Stop.” Gregor wasn’t moving. He was probably feeling the bond and trying to keep it in check. She was most definitely being drawn to him. If she had been paying attention, she would have known it was him she was connecting with and not Tamian. She peered over the edge then grinned at the warden.
“Don’t make me shoot you, Red.”
“You won’t shoot me.” She couldn’t help goading the Gargoyle.
“And why’s that?” He cocked the hammer.
She shrugged. “Because I’m a girl?” She crept closer to the edge of the roof.
“You’re out of your pretty little head.” At least he didn’t shoot her. Yet.
“You think I’m pretty?” She had been called cute her whole life. She really liked pretty.
“You know you are, now come over here. Don’t make me have to drag you down the stairs.”
Tessa momentarily imagined Gregor grabbing a handful of her hair and dragging her, caveman style, down the steps. Why did that turn her on? Oh, maybe because he was her mate, and anything he said to her would cause her body to want his.
“You want me? Come and get me.” She freefell into nothing, opening the wings of her flight jacket. This was crazy, even for her. The building wasn’t exactly high enough for her to fly from. She just had to make sure she dropped slow enough that she didn’t break any bones upon impact. Landing would probably hurt like a bitch. Mate or not, he was going to be pissed.
When Jonas found out Tessa was BASE jumping, he equipped her with the best and most technologically advanced suits there were. He even designed a jacket that could be worn without the pants for shorter distances. At that moment, she was glad she had put it on instead of her leather jacket she normally rode in.
If Gregor wanted her, he would have to phase and come get her. She didn’t think he would risk that. The ground came up quickly, and she tucked and rolled. She continued rolling a few feet before she finally stopped. It wasn’t the graceful landing she had hoped for, but at least she was unharmed for the most part. Gregor cursed at the same time he phased and flew right for her. Holy shit.
She didn’t have time to move before he was on her. “Holy hell, are you okay? Talk to me, Red.” He was on his knees beside her, his beautiful wings unfurled. When Tessa grinned at him, Gregor lost it. “What in the FUCK did you think you were doing? You could have been killed!” Yep, pissed.
Tessa figured her best option was to just keep quiet. What could she say, really? She was caught, red-handed. Gregor’s wings disappeared behind his back, but his fangs were still out. His uniform shirt was shredded. He didn’t wait for her to answer. He grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder. Definitely pissed. This was awkward since her flight jacket was bulky, but obviously it didn’t bother him.
She beat on his back with her fists, “Put me down you overgrown beast.” He did not put her down. He took her, kicking and hitting, into the prison. Several guards backed against the wall, allowing them to pass. When they got to his office, he put her on her feet.
“Sit.” He pointed to a chair. She did not sit. What she did do was calm herself so her own fangs and claws would not make a showing.
Eleven
Gregor was furious. What the hell was Tessa thinking jumping off the roof? She could have been killed. Okay, maybe not killed, but hurt. Badly. And he phased. With no thought to anything other than her safety, his wings opened of their own volition, and he dove after her. Gods, was that how Rafael felt when Vincent Alexander took a shot at Kaya? His heart stopped momentarily as his mate jumped off the roof. Had he realized she was wearing a flight jacket, he probably could have kept his emotions in check. Seeing her plummet to the ground filled him with an emotion he had never known in his five hundred and sixty-seven years. Fear.
Gregor picked up the phone and dialed Isabelle’s number. “C
an you come to my office immediately? We have a situation.” He didn’t wait for her to respond, he just slammed the receiver down on the base. Tessa was removing her jacket when he yelled, “Do you want to tell me why you think you have a right to walk around this prison, to floors that are secure for a very good reason, and then try to run from me?”
He waited for an answer that wasn’t coming. Isabelle ran into the office and stopped short when she saw Tessa. “What are you doing? I thought you had to go home and pack.”
Gregor needed answers. Did Isabelle not know about Tessa’s plan to find Tamian? “Isabelle, it seems your cousin, Trixie, decided to take a walk around the prison, to the first floor no less. Did I not make it clear the first level was off limits? And why would you think it’s okay for her to go down there unescorted if I told you it was unsafe for you?”
Isabelle sputtered and her face reddened. “Warden, I assure you I have no idea what my cousin is up to. And her name is Tessa, not Trixie. Tessa, what were you doing on the first level? How did you even get down there?”
Tessa pulled the key card from her back pocket. “Here, this is yours.” She handed the security badge to her cousin, unapologetically.
“What the hell? You’ve done some screwed up stuff but stealing my security card? Are you trying to get me fired?” Gregor could tell that Isabelle was furious with her cousin.
“Yes, Tessa, please tell us what you were doing on the first level, and why were you at Tamian St. Claire’s cell?”
Gregor would have missed it if he hadn’t been a shifter. There was something that passed quickly between the two ladies.
Tessa glared at him but she did not answer. “Isabelle, I put my trust in you when I hired you. I hope you don’t allow the antics of your younger cousin to cost you your job. I want answers and nobody is leaving here until I get them.”
Isabelle gasped and by the look on her face, he had said the wrong thing. “Why do you think I’m older than she is?” She asked Gregor while pointing at Tessa.
“Because, you’re so much more mature. She’s a brat.” Gregor sneered at Tessa.
“Wait a fucking minute! Just because I don’t have a stick up my ass all the time does not make me a brat.” Tessa jabbed her fists on her hips, leaving Isabelle with her mouth hanging open.
“Mr. Stone, I do apologize for my cousin’s behavior. She’s rather sensitive.”
“Pot, kettle,” Tessa muttered under her breath.
This was getting them nowhere. “Miss Blackmore, I want to know what you were doing on the first level and I want to know now.” Tessa looked to Isabelle who was not offering any help. Before she could say anything, Isabelle grabbed her stomach.
“Oh god.” She doubled over and groaned. “Oh shit, Tessa. Tell me this is just a stomach bug.”
Gregor didn’t understand what was happening. One minute he was questioning Tessa, the next, Isabelle was lying on the floor.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“Just help me get her to her car. I need to get her home.” Tessa grabbed her stuff off the floor. “Isabelle, where are your keys?”
“In my office. Oh god, Tessa. It hurts.”
“Shh, I know. Just hang on.” Tessa turned to Gregor, “Please. I need to get her keys and get her home. Help me?”
“Of course. Go get her stuff, and I’ll meet you outside.” He lifted a writhing Isabelle off the floor. Tessa frowned at the sight of him holding her cousin. She did not like seeing another woman in Gregor’s arms.
Barely a few seconds passed before Tessa was there. “What are you doing?” Gregor was putting Belle in his Hummer instead of her own car.
“I’ll drive, you sit in the back with her.” He opened the back door to his vehicle and gently laid the doctor down.
Tessa climbed in the backseat with her cousin. “You’re a pain in the ass.”
Gregor started the engine. “I’m trying to help, and you’re calling me names. Now, I need an address.” He studied his mate in the rearview mirror. She was doing her best to soothe Isabelle. When she told him where Isabelle lived, he spoke the address into his GPS that, after calculating, told him which way to go. It was hard to keep his eyes on the road when Tessa sat so close behind. His heart warred between the feeling of kissing her and watching her jump from the roof. Two totally distinct emotions, neither one less powerful.
Isabelle was moaning and struggling. He split his attention between the road and Tessa. They arrived at Isabelle’s home, and Tessa told him to pull around back. He opened the door and she slid out, grabbing her cousin in her arms. Tessa carried Isabelle as if she weighed nothing. “Here, let me take her.”
“No!” Tessa pushed past him and walked up the back steps.
“Tessa, I can walk. Put me down. And why are we here? Why didn’t you take me…” A pain-filled moan cut off the rest of her sentence, and Tessa continued toward the house.
“Shit.” Tessa stopped moving.
“What’s wrong?” He had no idea why she wouldn’t allow him to help her with her cousin, unless she was jealous. He knew the mating bond could cause extreme possessiveness. She was shifting her load, attempting to pull the keys from her pocket without dropping the other woman.
“Tessa, don’t be obtuse. Let me help you.” He held his hands out expecting her to hand over her cousin. Instead, she surprised him when she told him, “Get the keys. They’re in my right pocket.”
She thrust her hip toward him, and he slid his fingers in the tight pocket. If Isabelle didn’t need immediate help, he would put his hand somewhere besides her hip. He grabbed the keys and unlocked the door. The alarm system beeped. “432867.” She told him the code as she continued on into Isabelle’s bedroom.
He stood in the bedroom door as his employee thrashed about, and his mate attempted to alleviate her discomfort. Tessa turned and instructed him, “I’d prefer if you leave. I’m pretty sure she won’t want you to watch.”
“Watch what? Tessa, what’s happening?” He was helpless, not knowing what to do to assist her.
“She’s going through the change.” Tessa turned in a circle, searching for something. “Can you turn the thermostat down? It should be in the hallway.”
Gregor found the thermostat just outside the bedroom. “How far?” He asked pressing the buttons on the box.
“Try fifty for now. She’s burning up.” Gregor returned to the bedroom to see Tessa placing a wet washcloth to Isabelle’s forehead.
“What change?” Gregor asked as he stood by, once again helpless.
“The transition. You know when a shifter changes for the first time?”
“How do you know?”
“Turn around. I need to get her down to her underwear.” Tessa didn’t wait for him to comply. She undressed her cousin who was calm for the moment. “I just know.”
Gregor was floored. Nikolas had said it was possible they had shifter blood, but he didn’t really believe it. Until now. “She’s one of us?”
“No, she isn’t one of you.” Why did she sound so appalled?
“Then what is she?” There was no other explanation. She had to be a shifter. He glanced behind him, taking care to keep his eyes on Tessa.
She was searching for something in his eyes. Just when he thought she wasn’t going to answer, she told him, “She’s a half-blood. Her mother is human.”
Holy hell, it was true. It was possible for humans to mate with Gargoyles. This was the best news he had ever heard.
Tessa did her best to soothe her cousin. She got up and rewet the washcloth then wiped the doctor’s brow as sweat beaded as soon as it was wiped away.
“But why is she changing so late in life? Why now?” Being part human must have something to do with the change. Is that why Dane Abbott had just gone through his?
“Because sometime in the past few days, she has been in contact with her mate.”
“What does that have to do with it? Wait, are you telling me that half-bloods don’t transition until they mee
t their mate? What if they never meet them?”
“Then they remain human.”
“So the doctor has met her mate.” Gregor puffed up.
“Get your fat head out of the clouds, big guy. It’s not you.”
Gregor knew that, he just couldn’t resist taunting her. “How do you know it’s not me?”
“Do you get any special feelings when you’re around Belle?” She wouldn’t look at him. Tessa didn’t honestly want to know the answer to the question. She was a pain in his ass, but did he really want to hurt her?
“What kind of feelings?”
“Special, out of the ordinary emotions you don’t get around any other woman. Like the ones you get when I’m around.”
“You mean repulsed?” Shit, that just slipped out. No, his comment didn’t hurt her feelings, it pissed her off.
“Fuck you, Stone,” she muttered under her breath. Yeah, she knew she was his mate, so why did she dislike him so much?
Twelve
Gregor kept his eyes on Tessa as she rose from the bed and walked past him without so much as a glance. He followed her into the kitchen where she filled a bowl with ice then added water to it. She sat the bowl on the counter, not letting go of the edges. Gregor leaned his backside against the counter, standing as close as he could without touching her.
Tessa, still holding onto the bowl sighed. “Look, this is going to be a long couple of days. I’d appreciate it if you’d give us some privacy. This isn’t pretty to watch, and I know she won’t want an audience.”
Gregor could understand that. Even though it had been over five hundred years since his first transition, he remembered the initial pain. He knew the female Gargoyles didn’t get wings, so it would only make sense the half-bloods wouldn’t either.
“Do you want me to bring your bike to you? You have no transportation, and I don’t like the idea of you being stuck here with no wheels.”
“Nobody rides Lita but me,” she scowled at him. Did she not realize he had the same bike?
