by Sam Crescent
So, she did. Dani hopped into the car and headed back to Dawson, where hopefully things would be normal.
****
“This is you looking after your new Alpha female?” Emmett growled at Boone as they sped down the highway. He was pissed as hell that he’d been gone for four hours and his pack had managed to lose his brand-new mate.
“She ordered me to go! Your mate is really stubborn … and sneaky … and hot.”
“Watch it…” Emmett was fairly certain she was headed home from the direction she left town, according to Bob, who ran the only gas station in town, but he was concerned that she was heading back into a populated city so soon after her first shift. Any threat or surprise could have her bear making an abrupt appearance, and Goddess only knew how much trouble could follow if that happened and she was all alone. The two-day trip to Dawson was going to be torture not knowing if she was okay. At least with both him and Boone taking turns driving, they would catch up on the head start she had on them. His stubborn mate refused to answer any of his calls and his bear was telling him that Dani needed them.
Chapter Twelve
Dani was exhausted by the time she arrived back in Dawson—so tired that she almost didn’t notice the cop car that started following when she stopped for gas just outside of town. A few butterflies tumbled around in her stomach as Andy had been having his buddies in the police force keeping tabs on her before she’d left town. But when it veered off in the opposite direction once she got halfway home, she decided it was just a coincidence and kept driving before she fell asleep at the wheel.
She was already missing Emmett, and that just made her grumpy. She’d never been the clingy type before … in fact, most of her previous boyfriends complained about her being too aloof and not paying them enough attention.
Barf. What a bunch of sissies they had been—not like my Emmett. Dammit, Dani!
This new voice inside of her head was really getting bent out of shape that Dani had gone anywhere without their mate at all, that she could feel quite clearly. She was also not enjoying how noisy and crowded Dawson seemed to be after spending time in Hillion Falls. Dani begrudgingly agreed with the fuzz-bucket on that score. Being back in the city felt like a million attacks on her senses, constantly surrounding her, and it almost made her claustrophobic.
So many changes were happening, whether she wanted them to or not, and all Dani craved was to crawl into her own bed in her own home and try to ignore the lot of it. At least until she could make some decisions on her own terms … preferably while in her ‘thinking’ pajamas and eating ice cream on her couch. After all, that was how important decisions were supposed to be made.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I’ll figure all of this freaky shit out like a champ.
Her cool sheets felt like heaven against her bare skin as Dani slid into bed. One loud sigh and a fleeting picture of Emmett’s face went through her mind until it was soon overtaken in some long overdue sleep.
She had no idea how long she’d been sleeping for, but it was long enough to scare the bejesus out of her when the bedroom door slammed open against her wall with a crash. Dani was awake and enraged in an instant, and before she could even realize what was happening, fur flowed over her entire body as it grew and grew into her grizzly form, the bed creaking under her increased weight.
Instincts had her on the intruder in seconds. A loud bang sounded and she felt something burn across her shoulder, making her roar out in pain. A high-pitched screaming noise was now hurting her sensitive ears and she swiped one massive paw in the direction it was coming from to try to get it to stop. A grunt was followed by sobbing immediately after that, and then finally she looked down to see who was in her house.
Huh. Why is Andy sitting on my bedroom floor, crying like a little girl?
Dani heard another roar from downstairs, and as much as she wanted to seek out the person it belonged to, it irked her to have Andy in her bedroom. She didn’t want him here.
We told him not to come back. We told him we didn’t want him. He’s weak. Make him stop making those noises.
Dani agreed with the voice wholeheartedly. Things seemed much simpler in this form. Didn’t want this asshole here? Make him go away. Easy peasy.
Just as Dani’s furry arm was raised up once again to get rid of the pest that was her ex-boyfriend, a giant bear ran into the room and bellowed at her.
She knew it was Emmett, even without Boone poking his head around the corner and swearing when he saw what was happening. Just like that, the other half of her receded and she was suddenly standing there, very naked in her room. With a sobbing ex-douchebag, a giant grizzly bear, and another man she barely knew, all staring at her.
“Kinda rude to just barge into my house, don’t you think?” She scrambled for her robe as Emmett turned back into his delicious two-legged alter-ego, but then Andy’s muttering drew her attention and she felt her rage increasing all over again. It was like a living thing building up inside of her.
“And you,” she yelled at Andy, “why the fuck are you in my house, you sniveling waste of skin? Not so tough now, are you? It must suck getting beat down by a woman, huh?”
“I heard a gunshot and then you roared!” Emmett grabbed the gun that had been sitting beside Andy, who was now rocking back and forth, mumbling about bears and boobies. “What the hell is going on? Who is this guy?”
Dani shrugged and looked back down at the man she’d actually grown to fear before she’d left town. Apparently, he was more bark than bite. “This is Andy, my asshole ex.”
****
Emmett was barely able to think, he was so enraged. When they’d pulled up into the driveway and heard a gunshot, he’d imagined the worst. Lucky they had arrived when they did, as it looked like Dani’s bear had had enough of the pathetic male sitting sobbing on the ground. He was certain she would have killed him if they hadn’t interrupted, even though it would have been due to her new instincts. When she’d changed back and the adrenaline had worn off, Emmett was certain that would have scarred Dani emotionally.
He could smell the scent of blood coming from her and he pulled her further away from the male, pushing the neck of her robe aside to reveal a bleeding gouge from a bullet.
“He shot you!” The growl that came from him had Andy’s cries turn frantic.
“He … did.” She looked shocked as that sank in and her anger from before seemed to slip away as she sat on the edge of the bed while Emmett looked in the en-suite bathroom for a first aid kit.
“I called the cops. They’re on their way.” Boone frowned, looking at Andy. “Should I tie him up or something? At least we don’t have to worry about the cops believing his story over yours. The guy has completely lost his mind.”
The sounds of sirens getting closer must have had reality slamming into Dani. Her breathing started to increase as Emmett held a compress against her wound to stop the bleeding.
“Boone, go grab my clothes, would you? And then wait for the cops.” Emmett stroked Dani’s face with his other hand. “Baby, just breathe. All you have to do is tell them what happened … without the bear stuff, of course, and they’ll take him away for good.”
“I can do that.” She nodded up at him, but her hands dug into his arms as if she was scared he would leave.
“Bears … naked bears,” Andy muttered. “I had sex with a bear…”
“Shut up!” Emmett hissed in the rocking man’s direction. “Or we’ll finish what we started.”
That made the sobbing come back, but at least he wasn’t babbling about naked bears anymore.
Boone threw his clothes at him and Emmett quickly dressed before he heard the footsteps down the hall. Two officers came into the room, weapons drawn, with Boone close on their heels.
“The gun he tried to shoot my fiancée with is on top of the dresser, officers.” Emmett didn’t move from Dani’s side. “I only touched the butt when I came in and saw it on the floor. Did you call the ambulance as well?”
/> “Paramedics are on their way. What happened here?” The female officer took in the scene with a much calmer eye than her male partner.
“Jesus, Andy! What the hell did you do?” The other officer, who obviously knew Dani’s ex, knelt down in front of him, trying to get him to talk to them.
“I woke up when the door slammed against the wall. He must have broken in when he found out I was back in town. Before I even realized it was Andy, he came in and shot at me.” Dani’s voice was quiet. “I honestly thought he’d be over our breakup by now. After the gun went off, he kind of just crumpled and started talking gibberish.”
“Boobies and bears!” the man in question yelled out, his eyes wildly looking around the room.
Well, the asshole got his timing just perfect—at least the timing was perfect to convince the cops he’d had a psychotic break and tried to kill the woman who’d left him for another man, and that was all that Emmett could ask for.
Chapter Thirteen
By the time the paramedics arrived, Dani’s wound had started healing, looking more like a scratch than a graze. They’d wanted to take her to the hospital, but Dani fought until they relented and bandaged her up with instructions to go see her regular doctor if she had any problems. They filed out behind the cops dragging a nonsensical Andy between them and Dani waited until she heard the cars pull away before she turned back to Emmett.
“Why did you tell them I was your fiancée?”
“That’s what’s bothering you in all of this?”
The words were out of Boone’s mouth with a laugh before Emmett could answer her question, and she threw a glare at him, hoping he would mind his own business. These shifters were a nosy bunch; there was no doubt about that.
Her eye daggers must have been epic because he quickly threw his hands up in surrender and winked before opening his mouth again. “I’m going to run out and get some food for us. I’m starving.”
“Thanks, Boone.” Emmett waited until the other man left before he pulled Dani over to the couch and onto his lap. “I told them that because it makes more sense that your ex would be in a jealous rage to find out you’d moved on. And … because we are mates, you know.”
“I know what you’ve told me, but, Emmett, you saw Andy. I had to leave town to get rid of one insane, controlling man. I’m not interested in being with another one.”
Dani was surprised at the expression of confusion, and then the hurt she saw on his face as he took in her words.
“You think I’m controlling? That I’m like that asshole?”
“No, I know you’re not like Andy.” She quickly tried to explain what she was feeling, “But you have to admit that you’re used to being in control … of pretty much everything.”
“I’m Alpha, that’s my job.” He shrugged. “That’s what my people need from me. That’s what they would need from you as well.”
That made her stop in her tracks. “What?”
“As my mate, you’re Alpha female of the pack, Dani.” He cupped her cheek so that he could look into her eyes. “I’m hoping that you will come home with me and stand by my side, be my equal. We can make our choices together, Daniella. That’s what I want from you. And if you think I’m being too bossy, or overbearing, I’m one hundred percent certain that your sow will let me know it, one way or another.”
That made her smile, despite herself, but it also reminded her of what could have happened if Emmett and Boone hadn’t arrived when they did and her smile crumbled under the grim knowledge.
“I think I would have done something horrible to Andy if you hadn’t stopped me, Emmett.” Her eyes closed as she whispered the words and confessed her fear, and she felt Emmett’s arms tighten around her in comfort.
“It wasn’t your fault, Dani. Startling and attacking a shifter like that would have any of us defending ourselves, but the two halves of your soul are still finding a balance. You have remarkable control for someone who’s only shifted twice so far. Instincts were responsible for your reactions, and Andy would have been the one responsible if anything else had happened. This is why new shifters don’t usually leave the safety of the pack until they’ve been mentored and are in complete control.”
Her nose scrunched up as she realized what a mess she’d made of things.
“I’m sorry. I was just freaking out and thought a little space would calm me down.”
“Do you feel calmer here?” he asked, his hands moving in soothing strokes along her arms and back.
“I feel calmer”—she exhaled a big breath and looked up into his eyes—“now that you’re here.”
It was the truth. Now that she was in Emmett’s arms, she felt safer than she ever had, but she also felt strong.
“Me too,” was his perfect response as he seemed content to simply sit and hold her.
****
The sun was starting to lighten the sky as Boone arrived back at the house, his arms filled with grocery bags. Emmett could tell that Dani was exhausted now that the adrenaline had worn off. She could barely keep her eyes open.
“Do you have a guest room we can stay in? he asked as he stood, still cradling her in his arms. “Neither one of us will get any rest with Andy’s scent in your room.”
“Yeah, up the stairs on the left,” she murmured, burrowing closer to him.
Emmett locked eyes with his enforcer. “You have the first watch. We’re going to get some rest. Tomorrow we’ll have to figure out where to go from here.”
He found the guest room and laid Dani on the bed before peeling her out of the robe and pulling the covers over her. She reached for him when he released her.
“Stay,” she whispered.
“I am, love, I’m just getting naked.” He stifled a grin as those words had her cracking open one eyelid so she could watch.
“Good, I like you naked.” She waggled her eyebrows and it made him laugh. Even dead-tired and with all that had happened, Dani’s vibrancy couldn’t be denied. He silently thanked the Goddess for sending him such a treasure.
Emmett’s body reacted to the proximity of his mate as she watched him, even though he intended for them only to rest. He slid under the covers next to Dani and pulled her back until she was flush up against him, the warm skin of her back against his chest. They both sighed as the comfort of being safe with their mate soothed the stress of the night away and sleep soon overtook them.
When he woke hours later, it was to the sensation of incredible, wet warmth closing over the head of his quickly hardening shaft. He groaned out his mate’s name as she slid further down to take the length of him inside of her mouth, his fingers tangling through her soft hair.
She released him and slid up his body, the hard tips of her nipples teasing his skin until her lips finally met his own. Emmett’s hands came up to help her settle as she straddled his hips. The feel of her slick sex gliding along his cock was a perfect kind of torture. He pulled her down more firmly, making sure to catch her swollen clit on each movement until Dani pulled her mouth away with a growl.
“No more teasing. I need you.” She snarled before sitting up enough to wrap one hand around his length and fitting the tip against her opening.
“Take what you need, love,” he groaned as she slowly sank down, taking him in to the hilt. “It’s all yours … only yours.”
Chapter Fourteen
Something in those words made everything snap into place for Dani. This man inside of her right now, he was hers. Just as she belonged to him and no other. She could feel the animal inside of her convey its relief that she finally understood. Their place was beside Emmett, now and forever.
Dani slowly began to move atop him, lifting up until she almost released him, then slowly coming down once again. All the while her hands caressed every inch of skin she could reach, she wanted to learn her new mate and every touch and stroke that drove him wild.
“Fuck, Dani, babe.” Emmett’s fingers tightened on her hips. “You’re killing me here. You feel so good arou
nd me. But I need you to move faster.”
She dropped down on him hard, kissing him before whispering in his ear, “You do it. Take me like you want me, Emmett.”
Dani didn’t have to ask him twice. Before she could even blink, he had her on her back, his lean hips still in between her thighs, cock buried deep inside of her. He thrust into her powerfully, every lunge hitting her aching clit, pushing her one step closer to the bliss she was looking for.
“Yes, harder.” Dani felt her nails digging into the skin of his back. She wanted everything this man could give her.
“Goddess, Dani, I can feel your pussy pulling me in.” Emmett’s voice was a low growl now, and he hooked her knees over his arms so that she was completely open to him. “I can’t wait to feel you come all over my cock. To feel that sweet heat milking every single drop of cum from my body.”
“Yes, Emmett! Oh, God, I’m coming!” Dani didn’t know why those particular words pushed her over the edge into orgasm, but who cared about the why when the reward was sheer bliss running through every single muscle in her body.
“Dani!” Emmett thrust in deep as he reached his own release. She felt his lips against her neck and shoulder. The sharp pain of his bite quickly turned into something else, and it was as if a shockwave started all over again in her clit and worked its way outward until she felt it out to her fingertips.
Her hands idly stroked up and down the length of his back as they both tried to catch their breath. Dani knew without a shadow of a doubt at that moment that she was done here in Dawson. All she wanted was to go back to Hillion Falls with this man and start an entirely new chapter of her life.
Emmett’s stomach chose that moment to make its plight known, causing her to giggle as she felt him slip from her body.
