Invisible Warrior (The Protectors Series) Book #11

by Teresa Gabelman

  “I want to stay, Mira,” Steve replied, walking over and peering over her shoulder. “I hope I did okay.”

  “You did.” She laughed, pulling out the maxi pads. “I bet there’s a story behind this.”

  If she only knew, Steve thought. “Nah, Ronan knew all about that stuff.”

  “Really?” She glanced at him in shock.

  “No, not really. I think he wanted to kill me.” Steve helped her empty all the bags and sort it the best he could. “Actually, I’m pretty sure he was going to plow my side of the truck into a telephone pole, but at the last minute changed his mind. I may be wrong, but it was a damn close call. There was no reason for him to go off the road like he did. Makes a guy wonder.”

  “Any other problems?” She eyed him before opening a bag of diapers.

  “Nope, just Ronan’s possible murder of me is about it.” Steve hated to lie, actually thought he was good at lying, but he was fidgeting like he’d just drunk a pot of Sid’s coffee.

  “Wyrick called Kira.” Mira turned to him. “I know you’re trying to protect me, but not telling me the truth isn’t going to help at all. I know everything.”

  “Wyrick needs to chill.” Steve frowned. “I don’t want you to worry.”

  Mira reached up, wrapped her arms around his neck, then laid her cheek against his chest. “I have never felt safer than I have since the day in the car.” She squeezed him tightly. “But I still need to know what’s going on, Steve.”

  Drew started to fuss, so Mira pulled away, kissing his cheek before going to Drew. Instead of picking her up, she gazed down at her. Steve stepped up behind her and did the same, putting his hands on Mira’s shoulders.

  “Mommy and Daddy won’t let anything happen to you,” Mira whispered as Drew settled back down.

  Steve was speechless, which was saying a lot. His eyes rose, staring straight ahead as he swallowed hard.

  “Too soon?” Mira finally broke the silence.

  Turning her around, Steve kept his emotions at bay, at least he tried to keep them in check. “I’d be honored.”

  Mira took his hand and led him to her bed. Crawling up, she pulled him next to her. They lay on their sides staring at each other. “I wish I could….” Her eyes fixed on his.

  It took Steve a minute to realize what she was saying. He reached out and touched her face. “Mira, I know you have to heal, but believe me when I say that is the last thing I want from you.”

  Steve wondered why Mira’s face paled as she moved slightly from his touch. “What?” He frowned, lifting her face to meet his as he thought about what he’d said. “Oh shit! No!”

  “It’s okay. I know, especially after having Drew, I’m a little out of shape and can’t fix myself up as much as I want.” Mira sat up, moving further away from him.

  “I didn’t mean it like that.” Steve actually laughed. “Holy hell, Mira. I’d give my life to be with you, but that is not the reason I want to be with you. It has nothing to do with your looks because to me, you are beautiful inside and out. Everything about you is beautiful. When you hold Drew, you shine like no one I have ever seen.”

  Mira watched him for a long minute not saying a word, and Steve could have kicked his own ass for saying what he did.

  “I swear I screw everything up.” Steve shook his head. He went to scoot off the bed, but Mira stopped him.

  “You didn’t screw anything up.” Mira climbed up on his lap, straddling him. “I’m just glad you didn’t mean what you said because of my looks. That would have been a deal breaker.”

  Gently cradling the side of her head, he kissed her slowly savoring her taste. “Just know I say some stupid shit sometimes, but I mean well.” Steve grinned when she nodded. “What I meant by that ass-backward statement was, that is not the only reason I’m here right now. Whether we ever do anything, which would suck if we didn’t, I wouldn’t run. I’d be here feeling the same way about you that I do now.”

  “So, you’re telling me that if I told you I never wanted to have sex with you, you’d be okay with that?” Mira looked skeptical.

  “Fuck no!” Steve said a little too loudly, then cringed, dropping his gaze on Drew. He whispered, “Fuck no I wouldn’t be okay with that, and I’d do everything in my power to change your mind to the point of prancing naked in front of you at every opportunity possible.”

  “Oh, you would?” she replied, then chuckled. “Would you do a striptease?”

  “In a heartbeat.” Steve snorted. “I even know a bar that has a stripper pole. I’d do that shit up right.”

  “And if I still haven’t changed my mind?” Mira observed him closely.

  “You haven’t seen me in action, but if even after all my naked persuasion it was a no go, I wouldn’t run.” Steve’s voice went from teasing to firm in a second flat. “You have my heart, Mira, and I don’t give that lightly.”

  “And I don’t take it lightly,” Mira whispered, then kissed his neck. “As soon as I’m able, you will have all of me, Steve, my Invisible Warrior.”

  He felt himself go hard and tried to talk himself down. Holy fuck and hallelujah because if he couldn’t have all of her, he’d definitely go insane. He put his hands on the bed as she kissed him hard. Her body rubbed against his, and he knew without a doubt he needed to practice his self-control.

  Mira pulled away from him, her eyes barely open. “There are other things I can do….” Her words trailed off, and she gave him a sexy little smile and then… someone knocked on the door.

  “Shit!” Steve hissed and knew without a doubt his luck was not good enough for whoever it was knocking to just turn around and leave. Nope, that wouldn’t happen, and he didn’t want them to wake Drew. “Hold that thought!” he ordered as he picked her up off his lap and set her down on the bed.

  Steve had a raging hard-on, so when he reached the door, he cracked it open keeping his lower half behind the door. “Yeah?” His voice sounded irritated, but he didn’t care. He was fucking irritated, and his dick hurt.

  “I wanted to tell Mira that I have a pediatrician coming tomorrow,” Slade informed him.

  “Ah, okay.” Steve nodded. “Couldn’t you have texted that to me?”

  “No.” Slade cocked his eyebrow. “I was coming to Mira to tell her, but you opened the door so you can tell her.”

  “Is that all?” Steve shifted his lower body, trying to find relief in his tight jeans. Damn, he was going to have to get looser pants. This fucking sucked.

  A large smile spread across Slade’s face before his eyes narrowed and his smile faded. “She just had a fucking baby, Steve,” Slade whispered, leaning closer to the door as he glared. “She can’t—”

  “Duh,” Steve whispered back. “I know that. And as if that would ever happen in this fucking place, because someone is always knocking on the fucking door.”

  Slade stepped back and a smirk appeared as he nodded. “That’s the fucking truth.” Then he turned into Dr. Hottie McVampire again. “Six weeks, Steve, and not a day sooner.”

  “Six weeks?” Steve’s voice rose as he adjusted his cock then whispered, “You’re fucking with me, man.”

  “Six weeks.” Slade pointed at him with a deadpan glare before walking away.

  Steve watched as Slade disappeared out of sight. “Six fucking weeks.” He shut the door and looked down at his bulging dick. He was going to have to ask Siri about blue balls and prayed that was just a fucked up nickname for what he was about to go through.

  “Was that Dr. Hottie?” Mira asked from the bed.

  “More like Dr. Bad News Asshole,” Steve mumbled to himself. Seeing her staring at him, he nodded. “Yeah, he said tomorrow a pediatrician would be coming to see Drew.”

  Mira nodded as her eyes dropped, then rose to his. She stood, walked toward him then dropped to her knees, her hands on the waistband of his jeans. “As I was saying….”

  It was like a celebration going off in his head and pants as her nimble fingers unbuttoned his jeans. Was he a se
lfish prick for even entertaining the notion that she was going to…? And Drew started crying. Both Mira and Steve eyeballed the crib, but the crying continued and got louder.

  Mira stood, her hands pressing against his chest. “It’s close to time for her feeding.” Mira kissed him. “I’m sorry. Rain check?”

  Smiling, he kissed her back. “Definitely.” Steve’s voice came out a little strained as he watched her pick up Drew, then head toward the door.

  “I’ll be right back. You want to come?” Mira glanced at him from over her shoulder.

  Steve pointed to his dick with a shake of his head. “I’ll hang here.”

  After Mira closed the door, Steve grabbed his phone. Unlocking it, he fell on his back on the bed. “Siri, can a man really get blue balls?”

  “Here’s what I found on the web for ‘Can a man really get blue balls?’” Siri’s robotic voice filled the room.

  Steve read it and sat up quick. “What the fuck? Fractured penis? I don’t fucking think so.” Steve scanned the room, then whispered to himself, “You can really fracture your dick? Holy shit.”

  Afraid of hearing Siri spout more devastating news, he googled blue balls. “What?” Steve jumped up off the bed. “When his balls swell to the size of coconuts because of lack of sex, unfinished BJs… oh, hell no. Come on, boys, it’s cold shower and alone time.”

  Steve glanced at the door and knew it would be a few minutes so he needed to make this fast. Heading into the bathroom, he stripped down, careful around his still hard junk. Turning the shower on as cold as he could, he jumped in. “Ain’t gonna be no coconuts on this guy.”

  Chapter 25

  Mira held Drew to her chest as she chatted with Angelina. Steve had brought them to watch the Warrior trainees train, knowing she was eager to get out of the compound for a while. She was glad because the walls were starting to close in on them.

  “Can I hold her?” Angelina asked, staring down at a wide-awake Drew who was watching everything she could focus on.

  “Of course.” Mira handed Drew to Angelina. Seeing Angelina with Drew broke her heart. The girl looked so natural holding the baby and yet, she knew children were not an option for Angelina. “Did you want kids?”

  “Yes.” Angelina chuckled when Drew blew a perfect bubble with her drool. Angelina looked up at Adam who was watching her from out on the training floor, then to Mira. “But I have no regrets. We talked about adopting in a few years. I want to finish college first.”

  “That would be amazing. So many kids need good loving homes,” Mira agreed. Her eyes sought Steve, who was helping someone on the floor, but he quickly glanced her way as if knowing she was looking at him. Her stomach dipped as her heart raced. Last night had been amazing, and all they had done was lay together and talk. She had wanted to do more, yet she was satisfied. He winked at her before getting back to work, making her blush.

  “I’m glad Steve found you.” Angelina grinned witnessing the display between them. “He’s one of the good guys.”

  “Yes, he is.” Mira turned to see her sister walk in with Ronan and wondered about that little relationship blossoming. She knew better than to ask Kira as her sister never talked about anything personal. Never had. But then again, they had spent so much time apart that they’d never really had the chance to talk about what had seemed insignificant at the time. Together, they had been easier to target and kill. Now there were three of them. She looked down at her daughter. Mira hated that she had brought another Grail female into this hell, and the risk and danger she had caused her innocent child. But selfishly, she didn’t know what she would do without her Drew Boo. Mira smiled at Steve’s nickname for her.

  “I can’t believe Nicole, Pam, and Tessa are going to train to be Warriors.” Angelina sighed, watching the three women, along with Katrina, jog past them. “I’m so jealous, but I’m human and have no chance of ever being able to do that.”

  “You don’t want to be human?” Mira glanced over at Angelina, hoping her question wasn’t too personal.

  “I don’t know.” Angelina shrugged. “I hate that I can’t supply Adam with what he needs and he has to go elsewhere to get it.”

  “Ah, get what?” Mira’s eyes opened wide. She surely didn’t mean sex. Vampires and humans could have sex, couldn’t they? She looked at Steve with raised eyebrows. He sure as hell seemed to want to have sex with her last night. “Sex?” she whispered, hoping that wasn’t the case.

  Angelina looked at her as if she were crazy before bursting out laughing. “God no!” Angelina laughed again, then looked fierce. “I’d kick his ass. No, he can’t survive on my blood, so he has to get his blood from a full-blooded vampire donor.”

  “Oh, okay, that kinda makes sense.” Mira glanced at Steve to see him slam somebody on the ground, help the trainee up only to do it again before he let the guy do it to him. “So is the donor male or female?”

  “Female,” Angelina replied, her nose wrinkling a little. “She’s a little too touchy-feely to my liking, but when they take blood they get a little….”

  “Horny.” Mira finished for her. She looked at Adam and knew by the looks he was giving Angelina that Angelina had no worries. She was gorgeous and Adam the Warrior was in total love with her. A blind person could see that.

  “Definitely, but I make sure my man is well taken care of. I’m usually there when he feeds.” Angelina tweaked Drew’s nose.

  “Isn’t that hard to watch?” Mira frowned, not knowing if she could do that without putting a witchy spell on the bitch feeding her man, knowing he was getting a hard-on while doing it, even if he couldn’t help it.

  “Yeah, it is.” Angelina nodded but then smiled. “But like I said, I make damn sure he is taken care of afterward so there is no doubt where he belongs.”

  “I can teach you a spell if she ever thinks about getting out of hand.” Mira winked at Angelina when she glanced her way. “It wouldn’t kill her, but she’d wish she wouldn’t have been so touchy-feely.”

  “Oh my God, that would be awesome.” Angelina laughed excitedly. “You got a deal!”

  “What are you two laughing at?” Lana and Caroline walked up, then smiled down at Drew. “Oh my, she is precious.”

  “Thank you.” Mira smiled down at Drew in Angelina’s arms then looked up at Lana and Caroline, who were staring at her.

  “Has anyone told you what we do?” Lana asked, her voice low.

  Mira nodded. During their talk last night, Steve had told her the stories of Lana and her sister, Caroline. They could talk to the dead, while Katrina could control animals, and Jill was just a badass. Mira totally believed it all. Being a witch, nothing surprised her.

  “Good, because there’s someone who wants to give you a message,” Lana said, her frown deepening.

  “Me?” Shock rippled through Mira, alongside fear. It was one thing to hear of others’ experiences, but something quite different when it was about to be her own. “Who?”

  “Drew’s father,” Lana replied. The look in her eyes should have warned Mira that something wasn’t quite right.

  ******

  Steve had wanted to get Mira and Drew out of the compound for a while. As it happened, all the women were at the warehouse as Nicole, Tessa, and Pam began training. Jared and Duncan were on the floor looking pissed. Nicole, Pam, and Tessa were stretching with Katrina, who had already been in training for quite a while. She was almost ready to go on assignments. She probably should have already been doing assignments, but he had a sneaky suspicion Blaze had something to do with that delay.

  Hearing Mira’s laugh, he turned to see her talking with Angelina. Last night after his shower and Drew’s feeding, they had laid on the bed, with Drew sleeping between them, talking and getting to know each other until Mira finally fell asleep. He had never watched a woman sleep, but that was exactly what he did. At first he felt like a creeper, a little weird, yet he was unable to take his eyes off her.

  Jax walked up, tapping him on the shoulder. �
�If you’re done staring at your girl, can you please go teach that dumbass over there how to do a proper takedown?”

  “I wasn’t staring.” Steve jumped to attention. “I was, ah, okay, I was staring, but I’m here and ready to, ah… what did you want me to do?”

  “Jesus.” Jax pointed toward the guy who was attempting a takedown and was failing embarrassingly. “Go!”

  Steve went over and started helping the guy, but every once in a while, he would look toward Mira who was watching him as Lana and Caroline approached her and Angelina. Feeling a sense of pride and wanting to show off a little, he turned to attempt a throw, but the guy was pointing and poked Steve right in the eye.

  “Motherfucker, that hurt!” Steve hissed as he grabbed the guy up and slammed him on the ground probably a little too hard, but fuck it. What in the hell was he pointing at anyway? He turned to look and was glad Mira was busy talking to Lana and Caroline, not paying attention to him anymore.

  “Ah, man.” The guy groaned as he got up. “Sorry about that. Are you okay? That had to hurt.”

  Steve tried to open his eye, but it watered and stung like a bitch. “Yeah, it’s cool. Just stop pointing at shit.” Steve wiped his eye, blinking several times.

  “Everybody partner up!” Jax bellowed above the noise. Steve watched as Tessa was left without a partner. Katrina was on a different level so she was in a different group. She walked toward them.

  “Can you be my partner?” she asked Jared with a bright smile, but he just glared at her.

  Steve really wanted to slink away because, man, that was just cold of Jared and it kinda pissed him off. He felt sorry for Tessa, yet he felt it wasn’t his place to say anything.

  “And don’t ask Steve, he’s busy,” Jared said as she looked at Steve.

  “Fine, I’ll go ask…” Tessa looked around and saw another guy without a partner. “…him.”

  “Then he will die,” Jared replied as Tessa took a step toward the guy. She stopped at Jared’s words.