Ultimatum: Graham Pack Mates, Book 3

by Annmarie McKenna

  But she wouldn’t. Not today, when his sister was getting married. Today was all about Nikki. Then again, she had no doubt Eli and Caelan and every other shifter in attendance today would be able to smell it on her, so perhaps she should tell him. Give him warning before someone else gave it away.

  For the first time in her life, she halfway regretted being what she was. It wasn’t natural to know you were pregnant the day it happened. Humans certainly couldn’t, and even though technology was getting better and they were able to tell much quicker than in days past, they still weren’t anywhere close to detecting a child when a shifter could.

  Until she got Derek’s reaction to her news, she’d be on pins and needles anyway, so why put it off?

  “What can I say? I want my mate’s undivided attention when I’m eating her,” he said, continuing their discussion.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  There was a hideous pause while she waited for him to assimilate what he’d heard.

  He choked down his mouthful of soup. “Pregnant?” A grin curved the corners of his mouth, making her relax. “Holy crap. You really are fertile. Damn. It’s kinda weird to know so soon, huh?”

  Not the most enthusiastic response she wanted, but she lifted her chin. “I wasn’t going to tell you.”

  The spoon clattered to the table and his fists came down on the table, making the dishes jump. “Why the hell not?”

  Also not a reaction she expected. Was he pissed or excited? “Well, it’s your sister’s day, and I didn’t want to do anything to detract from it.”

  He shrugged. “I can keep a secret if you can.”

  Now it was her turn to snort. “You may be able to, but the second I walk in the room, anyone in the pack who’s paying even a speck of attention will know.”

  He winced. “Too true.”

  “Which is why I’m telling you now—because I wanted it to come from me, not some drunk shifter congratulating you for something you didn’t know about.”

  “So…what happens now?”

  “I’ve never done this before, so I can only go on what I’ve seen from the other women in the pack.”

  “No.” He twirled his hand in the air. “I mean, do you want to get married or have some kind of shifter ceremony? Are you moving in with me or you want me to come here?” He looked around her kitchen, obviously trying to work out logistics in his head.

  Paige wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans. “I hadn’t thought about it yet. I was really more worried with how you’d take the news, I guess.”

  Reaching across the table, he took her hand in his. His thumb traced a circle on the back. “I knew what I was getting into a few days ago night, sweetheart. I didn’t necessarily expect to hear this kind of thing so soon, but I believe you and I’m not going anywhere. It’s not like we went to any sort of lengths to prevent it. Might take a while to sink in maybe, but I’m here for you. Okay?”

  Tears pooled in her eyes. How had she gotten so lucky in her mate? Never in her wildest dreams had she envisioned being paired with someone like Derek. Of course, she never thought she’d be with a human, which made this whole thing even more unbelievable. Derek should at this moment be twenty miles from her, having run away from her crazy self to be with someone normal.

  “Ah hell, don’t cry, sweetheart.” He got up and knelt beside her, tugging her into his arms.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “For becoming a whimpering idiot. I’m happy. Really.” She sniffed. Had to be the hormones.

  “Well, the whimpering I can agree with, but never an idiot.” He put his lips softly on hers and brushed away a tear from her cheek. “Now, if you run off again like you did last night, I can guarantee I won’t be so accommodating.” His hand covered her belly in a gesture that left her feeling like the queen of the world.

  She sniffed and put her hand over his. “This is all just a little too…easy, I guess.”

  “What is?”

  “You. Us. This whole thing with you being my mate and taking everything in stride like you’re a shifter when you should be jumping in your car and driving away as fast as you can.”

  He started to push up on his feet. “I can still do that if you want.”

  She grabbed the collar of his shirt with both hands, holding him in place. “Don’t you dare.”

  “No?”

  “Hell no.”

  “I can handle hanging around for a while.”

  “Mmm.” She meshed her mouth with his and tasted the chicken soup on his tongue before pushing him back. “I can’t. I have to get moving or I’ll be late.”

  “Damn.” He grinned at her. “I’ll have to have a little talk with my sister about her ruining our day.”

  Paige slapped his shoulder. “You will do no such thing. Get back over there and eat. Time’s a-wasting.”

  Derek looked at his watch. “You’ve got hours still.”

  She shook her head. “Uh-uh. There’s a ton of stuff I have to do, you know, to get ready, and I’m meeting the girls at the church.”

  “For what?” His eyebrows shot upward.

  “Hair, makeup, clothes, flowers—”

  He threw a hand in the air. “Stop. I get it already. Women things. Thank God I was born a man.”

  “Hear, hear.” She lifted her spoon filled with soup and saluted him. “Things would be a tad awkward if you weren’t.”

  He chuckled. “So what you’re saying is, I have to sit around the church by myself, doing nothing while you girls get pretty.”

  “Basically. Or you could go do whatever you men need to do.”

  “Darlin’, us men step into our pants, put on a shirt, a tie, a cummerbund, throw on a jacket and shove our fingers through our hair. Voila, done.”

  “There’s got to be something you can do.”

  “I’ll be doing it.”

  She leaned closer and snagged half of his grilled cheese. She was starving and he didn’t seem too interested in eating, so she would. “What’ll you be doing?”

  “Watching you.”

  “Uh-uh. You can’t be in there with us. Only girls are allowed in the sacred walls of prewedding preparations,” she said around a mouthful of ooey-gooey, cheesy, never-tasted-anything-better, grilled perfection. Lord, she was losing her mind. She was supposed to want meat. Hardly cooked meat. Not grilled cheese.

  Derek snorted. “That’s fine. I don’t want to be in there with you anyway, but you can bet your sweet ass I’ll be right outside the door as soon as I decide there’s no way for anyone to get in from another direction.”

  She stopped chewing and stared at him. Not because of what he’d said—she knew he was only doing his job—but because it brought the problems she was having back to the forefront.

  “Maybe I shouldn’t go.” No way did she want to bring danger to Nikki’s wedding. She’d never be able to forgive herself if something happened today.

  “You’d be short a mate if you did that.”

  Paige cocked her head. “Huh?”

  “My sister would kill me if you weren’t there.” He offered her the half of his sandwich she hadn’t eaten. “You want this one too?” Her mouth actually watered, and despite the fact that she’d already eaten her sandwich, plus her soup, her stomach rumbled in anticipation.

  Her cheeks heated. He must think her a pig. Oink, oink. All this from a lady who hardly paused to eat lunch most days, she was so busy, and here she was devouring two.

  “Come on, take it. You know you want it.”

  “Jerk.” She snatched it from his fingers and warned him with her eyes not to laugh.

  “Hey, you eat whatever you need to.” He nodded toward her belly. “Must be those couple of cells growing in there. The only way you’ll offend me is by not eating.”

  “I’ll be a beached whal
e in a month if I keep eating like this.” She groaned, biting into the toasted bread.

  “You’ll be fine today,” he said, reverting to the original wedding conversation. “We’ll put you girls in a room we know is secure, and afterward, there’ll be plenty of people watching over you. Caelan wouldn’t have it any other way, with or without the threats to you. You know that.”

  She did. Their presence might be more noticeable because of her, but they would have been there regardless. The entire pack would be there, and since 99 percent of Caelan’s security staff was made up of pack members, there’d be plenty of protection. So there was absolutely nothing to worry about today.

  Chapter Nine

  “There is nothing worse than wearing a tux.” Derek ran his finger around the edge of his collar and tugged on it to loosen the overstarched fabric. “I’m gonna choke to death in this stupid thing.”

  “We’ll be sure to bury you with top honors,” Eli quipped. “Besides, it could be worse—this could be your worst nightmare come to life, with you standing up here buck naked. That would suck too.”

  “Hardy har har.” Derek wondered if his agitation had nothing to do with the clothes and everything to do with the fact that his mate was tucked away behind the door in front of him. His mate. He shook his head and smiled. Who’d have thunk it?

  “Relax, Der,” Eli grunted next to him. “I’m not any fonder of these clothes than you are, but it’s what Nikki-Raine wants.”

  Derek snorted. “And what Nikki wants—” he droned again. The phrase seemed to be Eli’s motto now.

  “Damn straight. I’ll give her anything she wants.”

  And so would Derek. After all Nikki’d been through in the past year or so, she deserved everything, and Derek trusted Eli to give it to her. Her happiness above all else. Derek shifted on his feet. His possessiveness of Paige was starting to take him over as well. He’d only physically known Paige for less than four days, but he could already tell he’d do everything in his power to make her happy. And their child.

  “She’s pregnant.” He’d meant to think it, not say it out loud.

  “What? Who?” Eli adjusted the cuffs of both arms and tugged the cummerbund at his waist. His head shot up, his eyes narrowed. “Holy shit, dude. Are you serious?”

  Derek sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. “As a heart attack.”

  “I didn’t even notice. Christ. I must be losing my touch.”

  Derek snorted. “Or just focused on something else.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” Eli leaned against a sideboard lining one wall of the room beyond where the women were ensconced. “So…that was quick. Any feelings?”

  Derek shrugged. “Can’t say I’m not happy about it. Seems a little weird. Mostly because it’s so early, maybe. Don’t know many women who can say they’re pregnant so quickly.”

  “Not a human, anyway.”

  “That’s for sure.”

  “My best friend’s gonna be a daddy.” Eli slapped his hands together.

  “If my guess is right, you won’t be far behind. Certainly not for lack of trying, at any rate. You two go at it like rabbits.”

  “Wolves, thank you very much.” Eli straightened, popped the kinks in his neck and looked at his watch. “Jesus, can we get the show on the road or what?”

  “Nervous, bucko?”

  “Hell no. Just want to get home.”

  “Can’t imagine why,” he said in a dry tone, “nor do I want to.”

  “Nikki got us new sheets—”

  “Shut the fuck up.” Derek shoved his palms over his ears. “This is my sister we’re talking about.”

  “What? You’re telling me you don’t want this to be over with so you can get home? It’s not like Nik and I aren’t already bonded—this wedding is for her.”

  Hell yes, he wanted to be home. He wanted to be ensconced in Paige’s arms, wanted to be seated as deep inside her as he could get, wanted to feel her breasts against his chest. Damn. His balls drew up and his cock hardened, tenting his tuxedo pants.

  There was a burst of laughter from behind the closed door. Derek heard Paige’s over the rest. He knew the laugh well now, having heard it during their first night together when he’d found a particularly ticklish spot on her hip, of all places. The sound made his cock heavier with anticipation.

  “Is there a rest period?”

  Eli laughed. “Not much.”

  The ceremony had gone off without a hitch. Paige yawned while she admired the twinkling lights of the reception room and the slow thump of the current ballad being played over the loudspeakers. Every minute that went by seemed like an eternity.

  There were several children getting their groove on while their parents laughed and cheered them on from the edge of the wooden dance floor. One little boy had a sweet little girl in his arms. Their feet tick-tocked back and forth and the girl swiveled her head in much the same motion, trying to avoid his kisses. Paige smiled at their antics and yawned again. Tieran and Caelan’s baby giggled and cooed while her daddy danced with her chubby fist in his hand.

  Someday that might be her child up there, either the kisser or the kissie.

  “Do we look like that when we dance?” Derek’s smooth timbre purred in her ear.

  “God, I hope not.”

  He pulled out the chair next to her and plopped into it. “Is it over yet? You look worn out.”

  “Thank you and no. They haven’t done the cake.”

  “Who wants cake?” He balled his napkin and tossed it onto his plate. “You okay? You really do look ready to drop.” He massaged the back of her neck, and squeezing lightly at a knot of tension forming there.

  It felt heavenly. She thought about his question. “Yes.” Not that the answer was a hard one, but it took her brain a little time to sort out to what he might be referring. Okay about the baby or okay about her stalker? Since the baby hadn’t multiplied past a few cells at this point and the evening had been devoid of any stalker issues, her answer was yes.

  He nodded once. “Good. Is it over yet? I need to get you into bed.”

  “Is that a promise?”

  “Yep. But not in the way your dirty little mind is thinking.” He leaned over and caressed her lips with his.

  Paige sighed and melded into the kiss, opening her mouth and tangling her tongue with his.

  “How many people do you know?” he whispered.

  “Not a lot. Why?”

  “I wondered how soon we could have our own fiasco. The more people we have to invite, the longer it’ll take.”

  She snickered. “What if I don’t want to marry you?”

  “I wasn’t asking.” He drew her head closer with the hand around her nape.

  Velvet softness invaded her mouth and sent a flood of cream to her pussy. She’d have a wet spot on her dress if they didn’t stop.

  “Your nipples are hard,” he murmured.

  “The better to entice you with,” she mumbled back.

  “I see you two are having a good time.”

  Damn. Paige jerked away, some of the slight fuzziness lifting away. Why was someone always interrupting them?

  “Hey Tieran.”

  Tieran smiled and winked conspiratorially. They’d had an interesting discussion about trees while they were getting prepared for the wedding. “I believe Nikki’s words were something to the effect of, ‘since neither of you will be hungry for cake, please feel free to go home’.”

  Paige gasped, but Derek, the cad, barked out in laughter. “We can’t leave. We’re part of the wedding party.”

  “So? The pictures have all been taken and things are winding down here. I expect Nikki and Eli will be leaving shortly too. They’re worse than you guys in the touching department. I swear if they could get it on out there on the dance floor without anyone knowing it, they would.”
<
br />   “Sounds like Eli. But that’s my sister, so…ew.” Derek slapped his thighs. “Well. If you don’t need us, then I think we’ll go.”

  Paige nodded vigorously.

  “I thought so.” Tieran smiled and turned in the direction of a sudden sharp wail. “We’ll be leaving too. Gotta get the baby home before things turn into supernova meltdown.”

  Tieran walked off as Paige and Derek rose.

  “Let me just get my things.” Paige said. “My clothes and makeup are still back in the room we got ready in.”

  “’Kay.” He walked her with a hand at the small of her back. The peace and quiet hit her the second the doors closed behind them and she realized her head was pounding.

  “I’m exhausted.”

  “I knew it. Can’t imagine why.”

  “Lack of sleep.”

  “Whose fault is that?”

  She sighed. “My insatiable inner beast’s.”

  “Don’t blame your wantonness on your wolf, sweetheart.”

  “Okay, then I’ll blame it on you. You make me want to do things I’ve never done before.” Her feet somehow carried her up the steps. She hadn’t been kidding when she’d said she was tired. “I feel like I’m walking in sludge.” Another yawn hit her before she could curb it.

  “How ’bout a nice hot bath? I’ll scrub your b—”

  A funny popping noise cut him off. Paige turned, smiling at just where his back scrubbing would lead. His eyes were wide disks in his face. He shoved her forward, pushing her up the stairs, making her trip. She went down hard on one knee.

  “What the hell are you doing, Der—”

  A bright bloom of red fanned out just below his right shoulder, staining the white dress shirt.

  “Oh Christ.” She reached for him, only to have him force her up the steps again.

  “Go,” he ground out, sweat forming on his forehead. The muscles in his neck corded and his jaw ticked. His hand went for the small of his back just as another pop sounded.

  Derek jerked. Paige screamed and grabbed for him. His back hit the wall of the stairwell. This time red spattered his right side, near the bottom of his ribs. For a stunned moment he stared at her, shocked. Then his hand whipped out, suddenly holding a gun. He stepped in front of her and fired. The deafening concussion echoed in the small space.