by Ellis Leigh
With one snarl and a dive, Phego’s wolf pinned Gressil to the ground by his neck and bit down deep. The injured wolf yelped and pulled, trying to escape, flailing his legs to gain purchase on anything he could, but Phego was focused. Ready. Pissed the fuck off. Gressil had caused his mate to be hurt. He’d put her in danger.
Gressil would die for those sins.
And die he did.
With his teeth buried in Gressil’s throat, Phego curled his claws under his flesh. Tearing. Pulling. Ending.
Phego stared into Gressil’s silver eyes—the ones so much like his own that it sent a rock plummeting into his gut—as they went dark and lifeless. Still, he held his brother down, refusing to let go. Unable to give up. There was so much he wanted to know, so much information he should have collected, but Gressil was a threat to his mate. An enemy to his very future. One that needed to be destroyed for Phego even to think about moving forward in his life. One he himself had to dispatch if he was ever going to believe the past wasn’t coming back to haunt him. And though killing his own brother felt wrong in a lot of ways, it also rebalanced the scales in his mind. Gressil had tried to have him killed, had murdered his own parents. What Phego was doing was payback.
When Gressil finally lay dead, bloodless and still on the forest floor, Phego released him. Released the weight of something that had long hung around his own neck, too. Fuck information, fuck history, and fuck his brother for manipulating him into thinking his own parents had tried to have him killed. Gressil’s death brought him no sadness or sense of loss—it only brought relief.
And exhaustion.
Phego’s every muscle burned, his bones aching as fought to catch his breath. He fell backward, shifting in mid-roll. Ending up naked on his knees with blood staining his chest and his claws still out. Still sharp. Still ready to attack. An animal in human form, so much like his brother.
“Here.” Michaela appeared at his side and wrapped one of the blankets from the porch swing around his shoulders. Her kindness, her trust, reset something in Phego’s brain. He wasn’t like his brother—not really. Hell, not at all. He was honest and loyal, wary of strangers but never manipulative. He had a human side, one that had been locked up tight for too many years to count. One that his mate had finally helped him find.
Phego grabbed Michaela’s hand, unable not to touch. Desperate to feel something other than fear or hate. She gripped him back just as hard, stepping in front of him and pulling his head against her stomach. Her fingers in his hair were a balm, a gift, a chance to soothe something that felt utterly broken.
“They shot you,” he grumbled, sliding his hands up her back. Seeking any damage.
“Barely. Not even really a flesh wound. I’ll be fine.” She held him tight, supporting. Rubbing. Calming. Never letting him go. Never letting him forget that she was there for him. He wished he would have been there for her.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t trust you,” Phego said, his voice hoarse.
“It’s okay.” She pulled him tighter, letting him bury his face in her body. Giving of herself to comfort him. “We’ll get there eventually.”
Phego clutched her hips and kissed the curve of her stomach, unable to resist. Needing a piece of her like he needed air. “We will. I promise you, we will. No trying, only succeeding at being a mated couple. If you’ll have me, because the fates know I don’t deserve you.”
Michaela gasped, her soft catch of breath matching the jerk of her fingers against his head. “We’ll work this through together.”
Even though she hadn’t fully answered him, hadn’t told him if she’d be his forever, Phego could only smile and nuzzle more of her body. He craved her, was desperate to have her naked and wrapped around him. Not for sex, though that was also on his mind. But no, he needed her comfort. Her calm. Her very presence.
“Together.”
“Told you the armory would come in handy,” Ariel said, breaking the soft intimacy of the moment.
“Shouldn’t you be having a baby?” Phego asked, clinging to Michaela. Unable to resist peeking toward where Ariel and Deus stood together. “Thought you were in labor?”
“I am in labor, you jackass.”
Michaela chuckled, still holding Phego against her with her hands in his hair. Still comforting him like no one else could. “That was a great shot.”
Deus cackled. “Great shot? She clipped you.”
“Sorry,” Ariel said with a shrug, looking a little paler than normal. “I had a contraction as I fired. It knocked me off a bit.”
Phego climbed to his feet, hanging on to Michaela as he did. “There are more Dires.”
Deus grew serious. “We know. We heard. There’s nothing we can do right at this moment, though.”
“Is there a plan?” Ariel asked, rubbing her belly and frowning.
“Yes,” Michaela said. She kissed Phego’s cheek before walking away from him, making his wolf whine. He wasn’t ready to let her out of his sight just yet. She must have understood because she shot a wink over her shoulder as she continued to walk away. “Let’s all head inside. Ariel and I have a baby to deliver, and you two can contact whomever you need to contact to do whatever it is you’re going to do.”
“You sound so professional,” Deus said, sounding sarcastic as all hell.
His mate wasn’t one to back down from a challenge, though. “I can talk about placental abruptions and hemangiomas instead if you’d like.”
“I’m good.” Deus backed up, hands in the air.
But Phego wasn’t ready for any of their laughing and joking. Nor was he ready for Michaela to walk away from him. He couldn’t gain control of his wolf, not wholly. Couldn’t stop his body from trembling.
“Mate,” he croaked. Michaela stopped and spun, frowning, staring at him as if he’d grown a third head, so he tried again. “You’re my mate.”
She stared at him, her eyes worried. Her head cocked to one side. “Yes, I am.”
“I want you to be,” he murmured, trying to make her understand. Failing, though. Her frown deepened, and he growled his frustration. “I want you to be my mate. Forever.”
She took a step closer. Just one. “You’ll have to trust me. Completely.”
He matched her step then doubled down, taking two more in quick succession. “I will. I do.”
“You do?” Another step closer. Close enough to touch. To feel. To scent. Phego gave her question the attention it deserved, diving deep into his feelings and instincts. He did trust Michaela. Full trust, not some semblance of pieced-together loyalty, either.
“Yes.” He grabbed her hand, pulling her against him. Wrapping his arms around her hips and yanking her almost off her feet. He couldn’t help it. He needed her. “I was an idiot. A stupid, selfish idiot and I definitely don’t deserve you. But I want you. I need you in my life.”
Thankfully, Michaela didn’t seem to mind him laying out his bad points. In fact, her face lit up, and a slow, sexy grin curled those pink lips he desired to taste again upward. “So you’re going to keep me all to yourself, then?”
His answer was bold, direct, and to the point. And one hundred percent truthful. “Yes.”
“You’re going to take care of me?”
“I will. I promise.”
“Us, too,” Deus yelled. “Our pack will take care of you.”
Phego shot him a glare, growling softly before refocusing on what was important. What mattered in that moment. On Michaela.
“They will take care of you. My brothers are protective,” Phego said, leaning closer, licking a path up her neck to her ear before whispering, “But not in the same way that I’ll take care of you, my mate.”
“Yes,” she hissed as he bit her earlobe.
Phego swallowed hard, fighting back his own demons one last time to spread himself at her feet. At her mercy. “Is that a yes to me taking care of you, or a yes to us being mates forever?”
She pulled back, her dark eyes twinkling. “Can’t I have both?”
/>
“Absolutely.” Phego pressed his lips to hers, claiming her mouth with the smooth slide of his tongue. His mate. His. Always. It’d taken centuries alone and traveling across multiple continents, but the fates had tracked him down and thrown her right into his path at just the right moment. There was no denying her, no hiding from her, no avoiding. She was his and he was hers.
And he felt buried in the need to prove it to everyone. Phego wanted to drag Michaela back to the barn and lick every curve of her body, needed to hear her scream his name and beg for more. He craved her release, was dying to give her everything she desired. Hell, he’d bury himself inside of her and exchange mating bites right there on the bloodied grass if that was what she asked for. Anything for her, everything for her. All because of her.
Hell, he wanted to make sure every male knew she was the mate of a warrior who wouldn’t stop to think before castrating him if he even thought of looking at her sideways. But once again, he was interrupted.
“I hate to break up your mating stuff,” Ariel said, clutching her stomach and curling over in pain. “But this baby’s still coming soon. I sort of need Michaela.”
Phego growled and pulled away, squeezing Michaela’s ass for good measure before dropping his arms. She didn’t go easily, though. Thank God.
“Time to go to work,” Michaela whispered against his lips, holding him in place by the neck. “We’ll pick this up later.”
And they would. They had time. Lots and lots of time to get to know each other, to fall in love with one another, and to simply be mated. Phego was looking forward to it.
He kissed her sugar-sweet lips one last time before letting her go so she could do what she’d come for. And so he could watch her ass swing under her thin skirt. Michaela was halfway up the steps when Thaus came racing around the corner of the cabin. Phego jumped to the bottom of the porch, ready to defend, ready to keep his mate safe even if it was from his own brother.
The one who had eyes for no one but his mate.
“What the fuck? Why is there a dead wolf back here?” He headed straight for Ariel, not waiting for an answer. Not needing one quite yet, apparently. But Ariel refused to wait for him. She was already in motion when Thaus hit the stairs, which gave Phego the chance to pull his own mate back into his arms. Just to keep her out of Thaus’ way, of course.
“You made it,” Ariel said as Thaus picked her up off the ground. Michaela sighed and cuddled closer to Phego, resting her head on his shoulder. Watching the other couple as Phego watched her.
“Told you I would.” Thaus kissed Ariel quickly, the two pressed together in a way that seemed almost impossible considering her shape at that moment. “But really, why is there a dead wolf back here?”
“It’s been a long couple of days.” Deus clapped Thaus on the back. “I’ll take care of the dead wolf here and the body of Colt out front. You all can deal with that baby.”
Thaus’ eyes went wide, and he whipped his head back to gape at Ariel. “You’re in labor?”
She grinned. “Yeah. Are you ready to be a daddy?”
Thaus shot a look at Phego that could only be described as panicked before licking his lips and giving his mate a nod. “Yes. Of course. But, hang on. What body out front?”
Ariel looked ready to push him back off the porch. “Seriously? That’s what you’re worried about right now?”
Thaus shrugged. “Dead things, angel. There are dead things. Or, well, dead thing. Dead wolf. Singular.”
Phego grinned down at Michaela as she shook with restrained laughter in his arms.
“Behave,” he whispered to her.
“I’m trying, but they’re cute together.”
Phego had to agree. He also had to explain to Thaus about the bodies. The dead ones. “There’s a body of a man named Colt out front at the tree line. Or at least, what’s left of him.”
Thaus growled. “No, there isn’t. I came around that way.”
The group froze for about half a second before Phego set Michaela on her feet and took off at a run toward the front yard. But when he got there, Thaus and Deus following right behind him, there was no body. No Colt.
“Fuck,” he hissed, staring down at the blood-soaked piece of grass where the fucker should have been. “He was dead.”
“I know,” Michaela said, coming up behind him. “I’m sure of it.”
“No way he survived that,” Deus replied. “I’ll search for…whatever I can find.”
“Uh, guys?” Ariel said, panting through her clenched teeth. “I hate to interrupt—”
“No interruptions. It’s just time to deliver a baby.” Michaela took a step toward Ariel, but before she could pull away, Phego tugged her closer, twisted her around, and rested his forehead against hers.
Time to lay everything out on the line. “You can’t go back to your pack.”
Michaela frowned. “Why not?”
“Was Colt working with Gressil?”
Her eyes widened, and her brow tightened into a furrow. “I don’t know. I…don’t think so, but I can’t be sure. I certainly hope not.”
Just as he’d expected. “Hope’s not enough. I need you safe, and I have to be sure. I don’t trust your pack.”
“You don’t trust anyone.”
Phego couldn’t deny that. Well, maybe… He caught Deus looking his way, and then he checked on Thaus, was stood on the porch with Ariel in his arms. His brothers were watching. Monitoring. Making sure everyone was safe. His brothers. His true family.
“I trust my Dire pack,” Phego said. “No one else.”
Michaela’s face fell, but Phego was ready for that. He tucked a finger under her chin and tilted her face to his. Refusing to let her avoid his eyes as he professed his truth.
“No one but them and you. You’re part of the pack now.”
Her smile spread slowly, lighting up her eyes like the sun creeping over the mountains. “Really?”
“Really. You’re mine.” He gave her a soft kiss on the lips, a promise of sorts, before pulling back and looking her square in the eye once more. “And I’m not trying to be unreasonable, but you can’t ever go back to your old pack. Not after this.”
Michaela stared at him, investigating something. Looking for more than he knew how to give. “Never?”
Guilt had him sighing. “Maybe someday, if we ever figure out what happened to Colt and how he was involved with Gressil, if at all. But for now…”
He couldn’t say it. Too afraid she’d back away. That she’d leave. That she’d find the possibility of a life with him less appealing than returning to her friends and family.
But Michaela surprised him with a quiet, “Fine.”
“Fine?”
“Yes, fine. Hopefully, I can go back at some point. I’d like to see my family again. But for now, we can avoid them. I felt comfortable when we came here, so maybe this was meant to be.”
Phego just shook his head, dread a heavy knot in his gut. “We can’t stay here, either.”
“Why not?”
“Colt knows where we live.”
Michaela frowned again. “What if Deus finds him…his body?”
“He could have sent word to others. Someone could know where you are right now. I wouldn’t feel comfortable with you anywhere near these woods. I wouldn’t be able to know you were safe.”
It took her far longer to nod than he would have liked. “So we have to move?”
Phego could only offer her the truth. “Yes.”
“Together?”
As if there was another option. “Yes.”
“Fine.” She rose up on the balls of her feet to press her lips to his before pulling away and catching his gaze. “So long as we’re together, I’ll go where you do. The fates brought us together. Who am I to try to tear us apart?”
And that was it. Those words, that acceptance, was all he needed. She was his, he was hers, and they were headed off soon to start a new life together. He’d drag her out of the woods right at that
moment if it weren’t for Ariel.
Michaela was on the porch and helping the woman of the hour inside when Phego yelled out to her again. “How long until Ariel can be moved?”
Thaus growled. “Fuck, man. She’s having a baby.”
“Three days, minimum,” Michaela said, ignoring Thaus’ crankiness.
“We leave in three days, then.”
Michaela waved her acceptance of his words and disappeared inside, Thaus right behind her. Phego took a moment to catch his breath, to let his wolf senses spread and get a feel for the earth around him. He’d have to be on guard, watching over the Omegas every second as they waited out Ariel’s recovery. Thaus would be on board the second he understood what had happened. Hell, he’d probably try to figure out a way to remove Ariel from danger before she’d had those three days.
Deus sidled up beside him, looking frustrated and worried. “Nothing. Scent trail ends at the fucking creek.”
“Same trick as Gressil.”
“Yup.” Deus sighed and ran a hand over his short hair. “I swear, that man was dead. There was no way he could have survived that attack.”
“Did you scent anyone else on the trail?”
“No.”
“Then he survived. Somehow, he lived through Gressil’s attack and got away from us.”
“Fuck,” Deus hissed. “What do you want to do?”
“Kill the bastard for being a threat to my mate, but that will have to wait.” Phego’s lip curled, though the snarl he wanted to issue stayed silent. That backstabbing motherfucker. “Three days for Ariel and the baby to heal, then Michaela and I need to disappear.”
“Understood.”
But Phego wasn’t sure he did. “She’s my mate. If they find her…if they know where she is…”
Deus looked right at him, his eyes solid. His words sure and strong. “It’ll be as if she never existed.”
“Good,” Phego said, relief easing the tightness in his shoulders. “Stay on it. And cover the front while they’re inside. I’ll take the back.”
