Together, they lay cuddled under the blankets, healing in a way that only they would understand. They’d fought together and had saved one another from not only the outside world but also the demons within.
When she’d been running for her life, she’d never thought to find the one person who could complete her in a way that never left her wanting. And yet, the goddess had blessed her with not only a mate, but a male who truly understood what she could provide to the Pack.
She would fight by his side and fight for their Pack. She was witch, she was Talon, she was Ryder’s. And most of all, she was Leah.
She wasn’t alone anymore.
Not by far.
Epilogue
Ryder gripped his mate’s hips, pumping in and out of her as they both panted with need. Leah knelt in front of him, her hands fisting in the sheets as he fucked her from behind. With one hand, he slid his fingers over her and probed her ass. When she gasped and pushed back, he slowly worked his way inside, his fingers slick from her juices.
That movement made her come, her pussy clenching around his dick. Since he couldn’t hold back when he was with her, he thrust into her once more then came, as well, filling her up until they both lay together on the bed, spent and sweaty.
“Good morning,” Leah panted.
“Good morning,” Ryder chuckled. He kissed her neck then slid slowly out of her. “We need to shower if we’re going to make it to Brie and Gideon’s on time.”
As a former member of the Redwood Pack, Brie had been used to family dinners. The Brentwoods, it seemed, were now having weekly meals at their place. Ryder couldn’t find fault in the idea, other than the fact that it meant he had to get dressed and out of bed. But now that the others knew what he could do and what Leah would soon learn to do with her share of his craft, he didn’t want to hide from them anymore. Family meant getting the good and the bad, and he had to remember that. They had always been there for him, and he would always be there for them in turn.
Leah spooned back into him and grinned over her shoulder. “Brie is making a roast. Let’s get dressed.”
He smacked her ass then rubbed the sting. “You’re trading me in for a roast?”
She turned in his arms, gripped his dick and kissed his lips. “I need fuel so I can keep riding you long into the night. Roast first. Hot sex later.”
He laughed before kissing her again. “Deal.”
They showered quickly and made sure every inch of each other was clean before getting dressed and ready to head out. Leah grabbed the deviled eggs she’d made earlier and handed them over to him.
“You’re the big, strong wolf. You can carry these.”
He just shrugged and did as he was told like a good mate. It didn’t make much sense to argue.
Though they were still on the hunt for those who could hurt their Pack and worried about the repercussions of what Ryder had learned while in captivity, they couldn’t forget that their Pack and family needed emotional health, as well. The compound had been deserted when Kameron and Mitchell went back. The fact that it had emptied so quickly worried Ryder. That meant there was more than once place McMaster and his staff could hide.
That also meant that Shane was nowhere to be found.
The man had saved Ryder’s life and the lives of his mate and Packmates. Without Shane, the others would have had to fight to get inside the compound and back out again. He hoped Shane was alive somewhere, but he couldn’t be sure. Not anymore.
The witches were quiet, but ready to keep their side of the treaty intact. He would be forever grateful for Leah and the way she worked with Amelia. The witches and wolves were out in the public eye now. And, like they had said before, they were the ones who needed to keep the narrative threaded with truth. Ryder just hoped it was still an option.
They were fighting an unseen enemy from so many sides, it made Ryder’s head ache. But as long as he remembered that he wasn’t alone anymore, he could do it.
You’re alone, boy. You just keep forgetting it.
He didn’t wince at his uncle’s words. Didn’t acknowledge them.
Leah, however, narrowed her eyes and flicked her hand in the air. Mist surrounded them, and his uncle’s voice faded away.
Ryder just smiled at his mate; relieved that she was learning how to deal with her new powers. She couldn’t control the spirits, nor could Ryder. But they were working together to not be afraid of them. As for his uncle, well, they were learning to make the asshole go away so he wouldn’t torture Ryder anymore. Maybe one day soon they’d learn to get rid of him in truth, but first, they had a family dinner to attend.
One thing at a time, he reminded himself. One day at a time.
As they made their way to Gideon’s house, Ryder’s phone chirped. Leah gave him a questioning glance and he checked the screen, only to frown.
“I need to go to the front gates,” he said slowly. “There’s someone there who is asking for me.”
Leah’s eyebrows shot up. “Seriously?”
He nodded. It was unusual, as humans couldn’t actually see the wards nor the den, though they tried. That meant whoever it was had to be at least part supernatural. Maybe. Things were changing daily so he really didn’t know anymore.
“Do you want to go on to the house?” he asked, knowing the answer before he’d even asked the question.
She just raised her brow and took the eggs from him. “Keep your claws ready, wolf boy.”
With that, he kissed her forehead and they made their way to the gates. As soon as he caught sight of who stood there, he broke out into a run. He heard Leah set the eggs down on the ground and follow him, her legs pumping as fast as she could.
“Shane?” he called out.
The human stood—barely—and raised his chin. Sweat poured down his face and he looked as if he’d been through hell and back.
“I need your help, Ryder,” the human panted. With that, Shane fell to the ground, his head slamming into the dirt.
Ryder cursed and pushed through the wards, going to his knees to check Shane’s pulse. It beat rapidly, and the man’s skin was cool and clammy. There was a gunshot wound on his side, but from the scent, someone had patched him up.
However, that wasn’t the only thing in the man’s scent. A tang he couldn’t quite place was mixed with the human scent Shane had held before. Something had happened to him, something bad.
His wolf went on alert, ready to see if this were a trap, but he had a feeling Shane was on his own.
“Dear goddess, what’s wrong with him?” Leah asked.
Ryder met her gaze and saw the worry etched on her face. “I think he’s dying. I…I don’t know what to do. He’s not Pack.”
Gideon was suddenly there, his hands balled into fists. “This is the man that saved you?” his brother, his Alpha asked.
Ryder nodded. “Yes, but there’s something off about his scent.”
Gideon cursed. “The moon goddess spoke to me, that’s why I’m here. I got here as fast as I could. She told me to bring him into the Pack.” He met Ryder’s eyes. “If I do this, we could bring more trouble to our borders.”
Ryder looked down at the man who had saved his life. Had saved Brynn’s life. The moon goddess rarely spoke directly to wolves. If she had done so, it was important. Far more important than he realized he was sure. “We already have trouble, Gideon. A whole shitload.”
With that, Gideon cursed and let his claws out. He slashed his palm, then Shane’s, before slamming them together. The Alpha’s power pulsed outward, and Leah went to her knees beside Ryder. With one hand on Shane, Ryder wrapped the other arm around his mate.
“It is done,” Gideon growled. “He is Pack. Now Walker can Heal him and we can see what the fuck is going on.”
The Pack bonds fluctuated and Ryder’s eyes widened as he felt Shane’s bonds tie to his as Heir.
“Holy shit,” Ryder breathed.
Leah tugged on his hand. “What is it?”
“He’s wolf but not,” Gideo
n growled out. “How the fuck did that happen?”
“He’s not fully wolf,” Ryder whispered. “He’s…something different.” He met his Alpha’s gaze. “What the fuck did the humans do?”
Leah turned in his arms and forced his gaze to hers. “Dear goddess…”
He looked down at his mate, then down at the man who had saved his life and yet might be the one thing to bring chaos to his Pack.
The world had shifted once again, and Ryder stood at the precipice, waiting for a resolution. He had his mate, he had his powers, he had his Pack. That would have to be enough. Because if it wasn’t, the Talons were lost.
Again.
THE END
Next in the Talon Pack World…
Its Charlotte’s turn in Wolf Betrayed.
A Note from Carrie Ann
Thank you so much for reading MATED IN MIST. I do hope if you liked this story, that you would please leave a review where you bought the book and on Goodreads. Not only does a review spread the word to other readers, they let us authors know if you’d like to see more stories like this from us. I love hearing from readers and talking to them when I can. If you want to make sure you know what’s coming next from me, you can sign up for my newsletter at www.CarrieAnnRyan.com; follow me on twitter at @CarrieAnnRyan, or like my Facebook page. I also have a Facebook Fan Club where we have trivia, chats, and other goodies. You guys are the reason I get to do what I do and I thank you.
Make sure you’re signed up for my MAILING LIST so you can know when the next releases are available as well as find giveaways and FREE READS.
The Talon Pack series is an ongoing series. I hope you get a chance to catch up! The prequel, Wicked Wolf is out now and is about Gina and Quinn. Tattered Loyalties, Talon Pack Book 1, centers around the Alpha of the Talon Pack, Gideon, and his mate, Brie. An Alpha’s Choice, Talon Pack Book 2, is also out. Its about Finn and Brynn and how they found their fate. Next up in the Talon Pack world, Charlotte, Bram, and Shane deal with the very dire ramifications from what happened at the end of Mated in Mist. I cannot wait for you to see what happens.
The Talon Pack (Following the Redwood Pack Series):
Book 1: Tattered Loyalties
Book 2: An Alpha’s Choice
Book 3: Mated in Mist
Book 4: Wolf Betrayed (Coming October 2016)
Want to keep up to date with the next Carrie Ann Ryan Release? Receive Text Alerts easily!
Text CARRIE to 24587
About Carrie Ann and her Books
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan never thought she’d be a writer. Not really. No, she loved math and science and even went on to graduate school in chemistry. Yes, she read as a kid and devoured teen fiction and Harry Potter, but it wasn’t until someone handed her a romance book in her late teens that she realized that there was something out there just for her. When another author suggested she use the voices in her head for good and not evil, The Redwood Pack and all her other stories were born.
Carrie Ann is a bestselling author of over twenty novels and novellas and has so much more on her mind (and on her spreadsheets *grins*) that she isn’t planning on giving up her dream anytime soon.
www.CarrieAnnRyan.com
Redwood Pack Series:
Book 1: An Alpha’s Path
Book 2: A Taste for a Mate
Book 3: Trinity Bound
Redwood Pack Box Set (Contains Books 1-3)
Book 3.5: A Night Away
Book 4: Enforcer’s Redemption
Book 4.5: Blurred Expectations
Book 4.7: Forgiveness
Book 5: Shattered Emotions
Book 6: Hidden Destiny
Book 6.5: A Beta’s Haven
Book 7: Fighting Fate
Book 7.5 Loving the Omega
Book 7.7: The Hunted Heart
Book 8: Wicked Wolf
The Talon Pack (Following the Redwood Pack Series):
Book 1: Tattered Loyalties
Book 2: An Alpha’s Choice
Book 3: Mated in Mist
Book 4: Wolf Betrayed (Coming October 2016)
Montgomery Ink:
Book 0.5: Ink Inspired
Book 0.6: Ink Reunited
Book 1: Delicate Ink
The Montgomery Ink Box Set (Contains Books 0.5, 0.6, &1)
Book 1.5 Forever Ink
Book 2: Tempting Boundaries
Book 3: Harder than Words
Book 4: Written in Ink
Book 4.5: Hidden Ink
Book 5: Ink Enduring (Coming June 2016)
Book 6: Ink Exposed (Coming November 2016)
The Gallagher Brothers Series:
A Montgomery Ink Spin Off Series
Book 1: Love Restored (Coming September 2016)
The Branded Pack Series:
(Written with Alexandra Ivy)
Book 1: Stolen and Forgiven
Book 2: Abandoned and Unseen
Book 3: Buried and Shadowed (Coming July 2016)
Dante’s Circle Series:
Book 1: Dust of My Wings
Book 2: Her Warriors’ Three Wishes
Book 3: An Unlucky Moon
The Dante’s Circle Box Set (Contains Books 1-3)
Book 3.5: His Choice
Book 4: Tangled Innocence
Book 5: Fierce Enchantment
Book 6: An Immortal’s Song (Coming April 2016)
Book 7: Prowled Darkness (Coming May 2016)
Holiday, Montana Series:
Book 1: Charmed Spirits
Book 2: Santa’s Executive
Book 3: Finding Abigail
The Holiday Montana Box Set (Contains Books 1-3)
Book 4: Her Lucky Love
Book 5: Dreams of Ivory
Excerpt: Wicked Wolf
From New York Times Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan’s Redwood Pack Series
Wicked Wolf
There were times to drool over a sexy wolf.
Sitting in the middle of a war room disguised as a board meeting was not one of those times.
Gina Jamenson did her best not to stare at the dark-haired, dark-eyed man across the room. The hint of ink peeking out from under his shirt made her want to pant. She loved ink and this wolf clearly had a lot of it. Her own wolf within nudged at her, a soft brush beneath her skin, but she ignored her. When her wolf whimpered, Gina promised herself that she’d go on a long run in the forest later. She didn’t understand why her wolf was acting like this, but she’d deal with it when she was in a better place. She just couldn’t let her wolf have control right then—even for a man such as the gorgeous specimen a mere ten feet from her.
Today was more important than the wants and feelings of a half wolf, half witch hybrid.
Today was the start of a new beginning.
At least that’s what her dad had told her.
Considering her father was also the Alpha of the Redwood Pack, he would be in the know. She’d been adopted into the family when she’d been a young girl. A rogue wolf during the war had killed her parents, setting off a long line of events that had changed her life.
As it was, Gina wasn’t quite sure how she’d ended up in the meeting between the two Packs, the Redwoods and the Talons. Sure, the Packs had met before over the past fifteen years of their treaty, but this meeting seemed different.
This one seemed more important somehow.
And they’d invited—more like demanded—Gina to attend.
At twenty-six, she knew she was the youngest wolf in the room by far. Most of the wolves were around her father’s age, somewhere in the hundreds. The dark-eyed wolf might have been slightly younger than that, but only slightly if the power radiating off of him was any indication.
Wolves lived a long, long time. She’d heard stories of her people living into their thousands, but she’d never met any of the wolves who had. The oldest wolf she’d met was a friend of the family, Emeline, who was over five hundred. That number boggled her mind even though she’d gr
own up knowing the things that went bump in the night were real.
Actually, she was one of the things that went bump in the night.
“Are we ready to begin?” Gideon, the Talon Alpha, asked, his voice low. It held that dangerous edge that spoke of power and authority.
Her wolf didn’t react the way most wolves would, head and eyes down, shoulders dropped. Maybe if she’d been a weaker wolf, she’d have bowed to his power, but as it was, her wolf was firmly entrenched within the Redwoods. Plus, it wasn’t as if Gideon was trying to make her bow just then. No, those words had simply been spoken in his own voice.
Commanding without even trying.
Then again, he was an Alpha.
Kade, her father, looked around the room at each of his wolves and nodded. “Yes. It is time.”
Their formality intrigued her. Yes, they were two Alphas who held a treaty and worked together in times of war, but she had thought they were also friends.
Maybe today was even more important than she’d realized.
Gideon released a sigh that spoke of years of angst and worries. She didn’t know the history of the Talons as well as she probably should have, so she didn’t know exactly why there was always an air of sadness and pain around the Alpha.
Maybe after this meeting, she’d be able to find out more.
Of course, in doing so, she’d have to not look at a certain wolf in the corner. His gaze was so intense she was sure he was studying her. She felt it down in her bones, like a fiery caress that promised something more.
Or maybe she was just going crazy and needed to find a wolf to scratch the itch.
She might not be looking for a mate, but she wouldn’t say no to something else. Wolves were tactile creatures after all.
“Gina?”
She blinked at the sound of Kade’s voice and turned to him.
She was the only one standing other than the two wolves in charge of security—her uncle Adam, the Enforcer, and the dark-eyed wolf.
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