Xander

by Dana Archer

  “Yes. I need to know up front so I can provide the means to help him recover.” Xander massaged her tense muscles, easing the pressure seizing her body. “Remember, my mate, I am friends with a male most shifters wrote off as unsalvageable. I stood by him when others called for his death and helped him cope as best I could.”

  Lowering her gaze, she licked her lips. Although the man who’d held Lena so tenderly hadn’t appeared crazed, she could guess who Xander referred to. More than ever, she wanted to talk to her sister about Devin and what she’d experienced while Gwen had been gone. “Lena’s mate.”

  “Yes.” Xander bent close and brushed his lips along her jaw. His gentle touch chased away the anxiety brought on by thoughts of what Lena had gone through. He eased back and caught her gaze. “I need to act on this information. Tonight. You mentioned Elias often participates in death matches. Those don’t happen often. We can’t risk missing the next one. I imagine he’ll be crazed knowing he failed in his role to protect you.”

  “And they might have to kill him.” She’d feared that outcome all along.

  Xander inclined his head. “We won’t give them the opportunity.”

  “How are you going to stop them? You said yourself these matches don’t happen often. What if you can’t find him in time?”

  “He will.” Vlad’s statement drew her attention to him. A hard, all-business look replaced the relaxed, amused expression he’d worn a few minutes ago. “The circles Xander has walked through in order to find you view him as corrupt and harsh. It’s an image he’s cultivated carefully over these past few months. If he asks to watch a death match, they’ll direct him to one.”

  “Trust me, my mate.” Xander drew her close and nipped at her lower lip before drawing it into his mouth and sucking gently. “I will do everything in my power to bring Elias home.”

  “I know that.” And she did. Winchesters never gave up on each other. Hadn’t he told her that?

  “Good.” Xander released her and climbed off the bed. “We will return to you as soon as possible. Dante will be close if you need him. Do not go anywhere without him.”

  “Vlad’s going with you?” She was hoping they could talk about their past.

  “Yes.” Xander dropped his shorts, giving her a delicious view of his defined backside before pulling on a kilt. “I’m not letting Vlad out of my sight.”

  “Why?” Gwen sat straighter. “Vlad’s done quite well on his own for years.”

  “That might be true”—Xander grabbed his phone and slipped it into the bag he slung around his hips—“but his ability to survive has no bearing on my decision. We have worked as a team in our dealings with the corrupted of our kind. It’d be foolish to break that pattern now.”

  Vlad brushed his lips over hers, a chaste kiss that left her weak inside. “Trust in your true mates. We will return to you. I promise.”

  He climbed off the bed and joined Xander.

  The urge built to pull them back into bed with her. Instead, she nodded. An alpha female wouldn’t have a problem with her mates leaving her alone for the night. “Okay, I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Or late afternoon. Depends on how long it takes to find anything out.” Xander turned toward the door. With his hand on the knob, he glanced over his shoulder. “Sleep well, my mate.”

  “Think of us,” Vlad added.

  With that, they left. She stared at the door and fought her disappointment. Without her lovers, her bed felt too cold and lonely. She didn’t want to sleep without their bodies pressed to hers. She had to do so, though. Admitting to her unfilled desire would make her look weak, and anyone who commented on it would be punished.

  The tightness in her chest returned, stronger than before.

  She rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck. No, she wasn’t focusing on the bitterness. She would take Vlad’s advice and let it go for now. If it still choked her in the morning, she’d deal with it.

  Chapter 29

  “Your mates are going to be pissed with me.” Dante’s announcement upon pulling into the Shifter Affairs parking lot was the first thing he’d said since agreeing to drive Gwen here.

  “Vlad isn’t my mate.”

  “Not yet, but he will be.”

  Needing a moment to gather her thoughts, Gwen smoothed the track pants she’d worn. While Xander’s house had a supply of spare clothes for visiting shifters of both sexes, all the pieces she’d found were plain, basic items meant to cover a person’s nudity. Apparently, her alpha mate hadn’t considered undergarments a necessary accessory. There hadn’t been a single pair of underwear, men’s or women’s, in any of the rooms she’d searched, including Xander’s. Then again, why would he consider them necessary? He didn’t wear any under his kilt.

  Hopefully, he’d worn a kilt today. Xander was incredibly sexy in one. His thick, muscular legs tempted her to skim her hands over his thighs. It’d be so easy to slip her fingers under the edge of the kilt and touch lay hidden underneath.

  She licked her bottom lip. How much better would it be to kneel in front of her lovers? Prepping them…for her. Her heartbeat quickened at the fantasy. She shoved it out of her mind. This wasn’t the time for such thoughts. Dante’s words couldn’t be left unchallenged.

  “Vlad has a lot of groveling to do before I ever agree to date him or mate him. A few minutes of…” The word “sex” got stuck in her throat. They hadn’t technically engaged in sex, at least not the kind she’d been raised to believe sex meant.

  In her mother’s strict view, the one Gwen couldn’t shake, sex involved vaginal penetration between a man and a woman. Anything else was perverted.

  Gwen had loved her mother dearly, but she’d likely roll over in her grave if she knew her innocent, sweet daughter had two men in her life. Heck, Gwen was now one of those people her mother had gossiped about in church.

  Of course, her mother had wanted her daughters happy, above all things. Last night, Gwen had been very happy. At least until Xander had ordered Corey to treat Gwen nicely or else.

  “A few minutes of intimacy doesn’t make up for his sins.” Gwen glared at Dante, fully expecting him to defend Vlad. “He slept with my sister for weeks, lusted after her for years more, and constantly talked about winning her back.”

  Dante held her gaze but didn’t respond. His silence angered her more.

  Gwen unbuckled and turned in her seat. Her voice took on a harsh bite. “He even considered mating Lena. Not me! He ignored me. For years, Dante. While he went on to screw every woman who’d spread her thighs for him.” She fisted her hands until they shook, wishing those skanky bimbos were here to hurt. “How am I supposed to forgive him for that? He shamed me! Every time he kissed another woman.”

  “You shouldn’t.” Dante turned off the SUV and faced her. “You also shouldn’t forgive Xander for his sins.”

  “Xander?” She straightened, squaring her shoulders. “What has he done to me?”

  “Nothing in this lifetime. And in my opinion, he didn’t do anything to Tabitha either. Some might argue he did, though.” He shrugged. “Depends on how you look at it. But Elizabeth?” Dante shook his head. “Yeah, he screwed that poor girl over good.”

  The memory she’d shared… Xander had married Elizabeth instead of mating her. Gwen’s chest rose and fell on her quicker breaths. She couldn’t stop the anxiety from gripping her.

  “What did he do to Elizabeth?” It seemed simpler to refer to the woman she’d once been as somebody else. Otherwise, her emotions and thoughts became jumbled. Part of her was glad Elizabeth and Tabitha had died. They weren’t the woman she was today, and, well, Gwen was partial to this body, flaws and all.

  “Not my sin to share. I have enough of my own, but my advice to you is learn from it, then move on.” Dante’s gaze drifted to the windshield. He stared at the empty two-lane road leading back to the Winchester pack and sighed. “Of course, maybe if I took my own advice, my woman wouldn’t be drinking herself numb every day.”

/>   “Who is she? And what did you do to her?” Gwen leaned forward, drawn by the regret in Dante’s voice. This was one of the reasons behind his icy exterior. She was sure of it. If she could help him…

  “You are an alpha female at heart.” Dante glanced at her. A small grin cut through his impassive appearance. “Here you are, wrestling with your own demons, and your first thought is to help me.”

  Just as Hannah’s had been when she’d found Gwen in the bathroom. Gwen nodded. If being alpha female meant being a compassionate person, she could do this. “If I wasn’t, Xander and Vlad wouldn’t keep finding me. I am their gift from the Winchester pack’s goddess.”

  “I’m glad you’ve accepted that they’re yours.”

  She sighed. Being with them both last night had felt too right for their connection to be merely lust. Besides, she’d bet her life Xander wouldn’t share his mate with just anyone.

  “Yes. They’re mine.” Taking Dante’s advice would be the only way to claim them too. Once she knew the extent of their sins, she would. Walking away from their future, the potential of what they could share, both in bed and out, was not an option.

  “So why hide stuff from them?”

  “I’m not hiding anything.”

  Dante motioned to the brand-new office building behind them. “Don’t you think they’d want to know you’re here?”

  She shrugged. “If they’d been around for me to run my day’s itinerary by them, I would’ve told them where I was going and why, but neither of them had been in the house this morning. You were, so you’re the one I approached.”

  “They’d told you they’d be gone for the day.”

  Movement caught her eye. She looked out the window. A beautiful blonde woman in a business suit climbed out of a car. An agent, maybe? Gwen had hoped there’d be female agents working here. They’d be more receptive to her involvement in Eli’s case if Gwen could convince them she was vital to his recovery and rehabilitation. Maybe Gwen was being sexist, but her experiences with men left her cautious. She couldn’t risk being cut from the informational loop…for her own good.

  “Yep, they’re trying to use their illegal connections to find Eli.” She opened the door and glanced over her shoulder. “But that’s not the only avenue to explore. Shifter Affairs is a powerful resource to utilize.” If the right agent got involved. Otherwise, the case might sit open for months or years. “That’s what I’m going to do. It is expected of an alpha female to look after her pack mates, and Eli is a Winchester.”

  With the small, pleased grin back on his face, Dante nodded. “You’ll be sharing everything you’ve learned today with your mates the first chance you get.”

  Not a question. Dante spoke as if doing so was a guarantee.

  “Of course, but maybe not until after I greet my true mates properly.” Naked and on her knees, waiting to arouse them. Gwen bit her lower lip and fought the naughty smile her fantasy elicited.

  “If you plan on seducing them, be prepared to take them both inside you at the same time. I know them too well. They might’ve played tamely with you last night, but it won’t last.” Dante narrowed his eyes and studied her. “You do know what I mean when I say taking them both inside you, don’t you?”

  She ground her teeth. “Yes. Xander gave me an idea of how that would work.”

  “Good.” Dante got out and rounded the SUV. After she got out, he shut her door, hit the button to lock the vehicle, and motioned her forward. She fell into step with him. “Just remember the female body is an amazing thing. You might not think you can fit both of them inside your body at the same time, but you can. You’ll freaking love it too.”

  She stumbled and stared at Dante’s back, openmouthed. She knew they’d both love her. At the same time. But hearing the truth shocked her. Maybe she was naïve.

  Dante stopped walking and glanced over his shoulder. He raised a brow. “Problem?”

  “No.” Whatever Xander and Vlad did to her would feel good. She trusted them with her body. Her heart? Well, they’d work on that. She flicked her hair back and strode forward. “I’m just wishing there’d been a hair tie or something at the house. My hair is too long.”

  “Then we’ll go shopping before we head back. I’m sure you’ll want clothes and girl stuff too.” Dante opened the door to the Shifter Affairs building and handed a card to the guard standing there, who examined it closely before pressing a button to open the next set of doors.

  A second time, she stopped and stared at Dante until he looked at her with his brow raised. “You’re offering to take me shopping?”

  “Yes.” Dante grasped her elbow and led her down the corridor to another set of doors. “I don’t mind shopping.”

  “Really?” She couldn’t keep the shock out of her voice.

  “Really. I’m used to waiting for females to try on clothes. I spent several months as a servant for an heiress of a crime family. I serviced her sexually, took her shopping, painted her nails, whatever she wanted.” He opened the door leading into the main lobby of the secured building, scanned the room and the people scattered about, then stepped aside, allowing Gwen to enter. The door shut with a click, locking them in. “Once I collected enough evidence on her, I slit her throat, hung her by her ankles, and let her bleed to death.”

  Gwen gasped. She swept her gaze over the people in the room, who were now eyeing them with caution. A massive guy wearing a beanie and dark sunglasses who was standing at the receptionist’s desk pivoted on his heel and moved purposefully in their direction.

  With a black T-shirt stretched over a muscled chest, lean hips, and powerful jeans-clad legs, the guy didn’t appear as menacing as Dante, but the way he approached them, as if their sudden arrival or Dante’s casual admittance of murder captured this stranger’s attention, set Gwen on edge. If this guy meant to cause trouble, he would. Determination surrounded the man. Nope. Gwen wasn’t letting it happen.

  She stepped in front of Dante. She had no delusions about her ability to protect him, but it was obvious subtlety wasn’t his forte. Lucky for them both, she could muddle her way through tough situations when she had to do so. She’d explain away his graphic words before this spiraled out of control.

  Muscles tensed, she held her ground, but something about this man’s walk struck her as familiar. She couldn’t put her finger on what. He was built and had a dangerous aura that reminded her of the Shifter Affairs agents she’d met through her stepdad’s unit. There was also a fluid movement to his steps that reminded her of an animal. Yes, he was a shifter. Wolf, if she had to guess. He looked too ordinary to be a feline and not large enough to be a bear.

  Heck, she was getting better at deciphering her surroundings and those in it. A few months ago, she never would’ve picked up the small detail. She’d relied on others to tell her if she was in the presence of humans or shifters.

  The guy stopped a few feet in front of them. A heavy growth of dark beard covered his neck and face, lending him an unkempt appearance. He was tall, but many shifters were bigger than the average human. No other unique features set him apart from the other people in the room. He could’ve been anyone. He struck her as someone important, though.

  If only he’d take off those heavy-tinted sunglasses. Or lose the hat. She couldn’t even tell the shade of his hair or how long it was. Maybe if she had those details, she’d be able to decide if he truly posed a threat to Dante.

  The guy didn’t appear as if he had any intention of losing either accessory. Nor did he act as if he meant her or Dante harm. Nostrils flaring, he stared at them. The moment stretched into an uncomfortable chasm.

  Finally, one corner of his mouth rose slightly in what appeared to be a smile. It looked more like a sneer to her, but he wasn’t calling for the guards to cuff Dante.

  She relaxed her stance. “May we help you?”

  “I forget to shave, and you don’t even recognize me.”

  Her breath caught. The sound of the man’s rough voice triggered a fl
ood of memories of when he’d called her childhood home, looking for Lena. “Rick?”

  “In the flesh.” Rick slipped his sunglasses off, hooked them in the neckline of his T-shirt, and grasped her hand, pulling her in for a hug. “How are you, sweetheart?”

  Dante responded before she could. “She’s battered and recovering from four months of captivity in one of the fighting camps, but alive.”

  Rick’s grip on her tightened. “What?”

  She couldn’t see his face—he held her against his chest—but the sudden stiffness in his body and harder tone no doubt reflected the deadly look she remembered him often wearing. “It’s not a big deal. I’m fine.”

  Rick eased out of the hard hug and glared at her. “Not a big deal? Don’t feed me any lines. I know exactly what happens in those camps, and you are—”

  “A survivor.” She returned his glare, daring him to call her weak. “And that’s what I did. Survive.”

  “The goddesses guided Gwen to Eli. He protected her until her males could rescue her. Now, we’re going to do the same for Eli.”

  Her cheeks warmed. Apparently, her connection to Xander and Vlad wasn’t a secret any longer. Then again, she did carry both their scents. Every shifter who got near her, as Rick had done, would be able to scent their claim on her.

  “Males?” Rick asked.

  She ran her fingers through her hair. “Um…yes, both the alpha and top dominant of the Winchester pack are—”

  “Gwen is Xander and Vlad’s beloved human.” Dante squeezed her shoulder. “She’s off-limits to everyone.”

  “Except you?” Rick asked

  Dante gave a half shrug. “You know me. I don’t sleep with women unless it’s a requirement of a case I’m on. My hand—”

  “Okay.” She held up her hand before he divulged his masturbation habits to everyone within hearing distance. “We don’t need to share your private activities here.”