She gave her uncle a big smile and stood to welcome him home. “I’m just sitting and enjoying the beautiful day, Uncle Ezra. How was your day today?”
“Don’t give me that song and dance little girl, you’re daydreaming about that mate of yours again. I heard today from Mali that Michael will be in town next week to oversee the building of the Alpha’s house. I would imagine that you’re pretty excited about the prospect of seeing him again.”
“Yes, it’ll be very exciting to have him here for a visit.”
“Ariane, I love you, girl. I know your parents would be very proud of the way you’ve turned out. I want you to make a good match, girl, and I want to give you some advice.”
“Okay, Uncle Ezra, what’s the advice you want to give me?” Ariane sighed and smiled at him tolerantly.
“Be patient, girl, don’t be running after him. Let him come to you. Mates love the challenge of the chase. Don’t deprive him of that. Your love will be stronger for it.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “And don’t close yourself off to other possibilities. I happen to know that a certain someone would like the chance to court you himself.”
She frowned at her well-meaning uncle. “Mali’s a good and decent wolf uncle, but he isn’t the one for me. I don’t wanna settle for anything less than my fated mate. My heart tells me that Michael’s the man I’ll spend my life with, and I have to follow my heart.”
Sighing, he smiled at the young woman. “All right, girl, I had to get my say in. Now, you gonna fix me some dinner, or would you like me to take you out for a change?”
“Hmmm,” she grinned, “going out sounds like fun. Give me ten minutes to freshen up and we can be on our way.”
“Heck, girl, take twenty. I’ll wait for you, and I’ll always be here for you if you need me.”
Smiling, Ariane hugged him and then rushed into the cabin to clean up. She loved her uncle and didn’t want him to see the sadness in her. What am I going to do? I don’t want to be alone, but I don’t want anybody but my true mate. Oh, God, what if he’s not willing to accept the truth about his heritage? Ariane stopped and looked at herself in the mirror. “Well,” she whispered, “I’ll just have to figure out a way to make him accept it.”
Chapter 2
Maddie and Remus walked back to his family’s home after a morning of meetings with the pack Elders, trying to get as much business out of the way as they could before concentrating on building their dream house. They were hurrying because Michael was due to arrive at any time.
“Have you figured out how to tell Michael about your family yet?” Remus asked.
Maddie wasn’t happy about her pending talk with Michael, and she refused to meet his eyes. “Yes, I’m just gonna come right out with it. I’ll tell him exactly what my grandfather told me in his journal.”
“You know he’s going to want to see proof. Are you prepared to show him your wolf?”
Maddie gave him an incredulous look and struggled to shield her thoughts from him. Remus, are you crazy? “There’s absolutely no way I’m gonna get naked in front of my brother in order to show him my wolf. It’s bad enough that your brothers have seen me naked. I don’t want to make a habit of it. Why don’t you join us for this conversation and show him your wolf?”
Remus smiled. “All right, baby, I’ll take pity on you. If he needs proof then I’ll come and show him my wolf, but you’re on your own with your talk. Believe me when I tell you that he’d rather hear this alone with you than have to worry about someone else seeing his reactions. I’m going to see if Latan and Ethan are home. If they are, I’m taking them out of the picture for a while so you can have the house to yourself for your talk.”
Maddie sighed and looked at him gratefully. “Yes, I suppose it’d be better for us to be alone.”
“How did Ariane take the news?”
Maddie grimaced and lowered her eyes. “She was devastated, Remus, absolutely devastated. I could see the tears in her eyes. She was trying so hard not to let them fall. I told her everything, and she agreed to stay away for now and not tell him that they’re mates. She’s gonna give him some time to come to terms with what he is before she puts herself into his life.”
Remus frowned before responding. “That’ll be very difficult for her because the pull of your mate is strong, but I think that she’s made the right choice. It’ll be easier on their union if he’s completely accepting of her when they do get together.”
Reaching the house, they both glanced up when the front door opened and the sound of Ethan’s laughter drifted out to them.
“Hey, guys, what’s so funny?” Maddie smiled at the brothers, surprised to see them both all dressed up in their fancy duds. She focused her attention on Ethan as he spoke for the two of them.
“Nothing really, Maddie. We’re just happy I guess.”
“Where are the two of you off to, little brother?” Remus asked.
This time Latan spoke up for the mischievous pair. “We have a hot date, brother dear, something I’m sure your mated butt has forgotten all about.”
Despite the fierce scowl on Remus’s face, both brothers broke up in another round of laughter. Before he could respond, Maddie eagerly questioned the young men. “Oh, a date! Who’s the lucky girl, or rather girls?”
Latan got a dreamy, far-off look in his eye as he responded to Maddie’s innocent question. “Clarice Midland.”
“Okay.” Maddie smiled at him and turned her attention to Ethan. “And who is your lucky lady, Ethan?”
“Clarice Midland.”
Remus snorted before Maddie had a chance to process what Ethan had said. “Wait, you’re dating the same woman?” The shock in Maddie’s voice had the brothers looking at Remus with worry in their eyes.
No one spoke for several moments, and then Ethan broke the silence when he answered her, directing his gaze at Remus. “Uh, yeah, Maddie, we’re taking out the same girl. We’re in a bit of a hurry, though, so we’ll let Remus explain it to you.”
“Cowards!” Remus yelled at the backs of his disappearing brothers. Sighing, he brought his hands up to cup her face. “Maddie, Latan, and Ethan aren’t mated, so they’re free to date as often as they want.”
Maddie raised an eyebrow to let him know that he wasn’t going to get off that easy. “But why would they want to date the same girl at the same time? Isn’t that just a recipe for jealousy?” Maddie didn’t understand.
“As shocking as it sounds, Latan and Ethan like taking a girl at the same time. They claim it’s more pleasurable for them as well as the girl. It’s something they’ve done since high school, and it seems to work for them.”
“Together! They make love to her together, at the same time?” Maddie couldn’t keep the shock from her voice as a picture of what Remus was saying formed in her head. It annoyed her when he laughed out loud. “What happens when they find their mates?” she argued.
“Well, I’m not sure they’ve even thought about it. They’ll have to change their ways at that point. Wolves don’t share mates as a rule. We’re a very jealous lot.”
Remus punctuated his last words by grabbing his mate around the waist and hauling her up against his hard body. Maddie relaxed into the warmth of his embrace as he lowered his lips to hers. Just as his tongue reached out to tease her mouth, she heard a car pulling up the long gravel drive. Glancing over, she saw Michael pulling up in his rented jeep. She began to struggle in Remus’s embrace, anxious to go and greet her brother.
* * * *
Remus raised his head when he heard the sound of a car approaching. Glancing over, he could see it was Michael, so he turned and caught Maddie’s lips in another deep kiss. He had a pretty good feeling that his mate probably wouldn’t be in the mood to kiss him after her talk with Michael.
Releasing her, he watched as she hurried over to embrace Michael as he got out of the jeep. He gave them a moment to say hello, then walked over to the embracing pair.
As he started down to join them, he spotted Kor
il Wind River coming down the path through the woods. Koril, along with Brenner Wind River, was responsible for all security matters for the Wind River Pack. Remus knew he wouldn’t disturb him at home needlessly.
Remus reached out and shook Michael’s hand. “Welcome, Michael, it’s good to see you again. I hope you’ll consider our home your home while you’re here.”
Looking down at his beautiful mate, Remus cupped his hand along her cheek.
“I’m sorry, baby, but I have some business with Koril. I shouldn’t be long. Why don’t you offer Michael some refreshments, and I’ll join you as soon as I can.”
Remus walked quickly toward Koril, apprehensive at the worried look on the other man’s face.
“Remus, I’m sorry to bother you at home, but this is something that I felt couldn’t wait.”
“It’s all right, Koril. What is it?”
“When we took care of Constantine, I put in safeguards to alert me if anyone showed any interest in his disappearance. Yesterday, I received a phone call from one of my watchers. He said that a man calling himself Dr. Vincent Kaugh was making inquiries about Constantine. When he was told that the doctor had been killed in an accident he became agitated and demanded to know where Constantine’s research was stored after his death. My man told him that he didn’t know what had happened to the items in his office and home and then assured him that the office had been completely cleaned out of all files.”
“How did he take that bit of information?” Remus asked.
“He got angry. He said that he and Constantine had been working on the same research and had shared information. He insinuated he couldn’t finish his work without the rest of Constantine’s papers. Told my guy that he’d be coming here to find out where his personal things had been stored and petitioning the courts for possession of it.” He stopped and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. “Remus, we can’t allow that man to continue his research. It could mean disaster for the pack. Hell, we thought when we destroyed all of the papers in Constantine’s home and office it would be the end of it.”
“All right, let’s not panic needlessly. Keep your safeguards in place and notify me as soon as this Dr. Kaugh arrives. Did he say where he was calling from?”
“No, but there was caller ID on the phone, and it showed the number. He was calling from California.”
“Okay, use the number to pinpoint his location and then get one of our best investigators on it. I want to know everything Dr. Kaugh has been up to for the past few years. And, Koril, for now, let’s keep this just between you and me.”
“No problem, Remus, I’ll get right on it.”
Remus watched as Koril turned and walked briskly back down the path through the woods toward the pack house. There was no way he’d let another doctor continue Constantine’s research. He’d nearly lost Maddie to the deranged doctor, and he wasn’t going to risk that happening ever again. With a deep sigh, he headed back toward his family’s home.
* * * *
Maddie took Michael by the arm and literally dragged him into the house, not stopping until they were in the bright, cheerful kitchen.
“Would you like a glass of iced tea, Michael?”
He looked at her rather strangely, and she could tell he was puzzled by her actions. “Sounds great, Maddie, as long as you’ll join me.”
Quickly Maddie poured two glasses of tea, grabbed a plate of cookies she’d made yesterday, and came to sit at the table with her brother. Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes as she realized just how much she’d missed seeing his familiar face. “You’re looking really good, Michael, life must be agreeing with you.”
“Right back at you, sis. You look happier than I ever remember seeing you. This Remus fellow treating you right?”
“Oh, Michael, he is so treating me right. I’ve never been so happy in my entire life. I love being married to Remus.” She took a drink of her tea. “What about you? When are you gonna settle down and make me an aunt?”
Michael grimaced before he spoke. “Down, girl. I’d have to be dating someone to be thinking about settling down. I’ve been so busy getting the business off the ground that I haven’t had time to even think about a love life, much less have one.” He smiled at her. “But don’t worry, little sister. I’m still young, and I’ve got plenty of time to find Mrs. Right. What about you and Remus? Any plans for little ones filling up this new house we’re building?”
Maddie choked on her tea and then snickered. “Well, we don’t do anything to prevent it, so I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”
Glancing at the briefcase he’d laid on her kitchen table, Maddie got excited thinking about the plans for her house being in there. “So, did you bring me the final plans to look over?”
Laughing at her attempt at nonchalance, Michael opened his case and pulled out a set of house plans. Very carefully he laid them out flat on the table and then pushed them over to lie in front of Maddie. “There you go, Maddie. The plans are all finished except for whatever little changes you want me to make. These are the same as the ones I had delivered to you last week. All it needs is your and Remus’s approval and we can break ground on this project.” Smiling, he sat back and watched her as she poured over the plans for her dream house.
* * * *
Maddie was going over the house plans with Michael when Remus came through the back door. Smiling, he walked up to her chair, picked her up, and sat back down with her in his lap.
“Remus,” she squeaked, “what are you doing?”
Smiling at Michael, he just hugged her closer. “Just looking over our house plans with my mate. What are you doing?”
Maddie stared deeply into his eyes and then frowned. “What’s wrong, Remus?”
Sighing, Remus turned his smile to Michael. “Do you see what I put up with? This woman worries too much.” He kissed Maddie on the tip of her nose. “Everything’s fine, baby. I just wanna be close to you while we look at our dream house.”
For just a moment longer Maddie stared at him with a worried frown on her face, and then she gave him a big smile and started to show him her favorite parts of the house design. “Look, Remus, we’re gonna have this killer bathroom off our bedroom. It’ll have a huge whirlpool tub and walk-in shower, with multi-level showerheads and everything.”
Remus laughed out loud when he saw the look in Maddie’s eyes. It wasn’t too hard to guess the ideas for their bathroom she had running through her mind. He glanced at Michael and had to stifle another laugh as he took in the other man’s reddened face.
“Okay, little sister, TMI. Let’s keep the visual pictures in your head only and leave me some illusions about you, if you don’t mind.”
Although Michael spoke sternly, he had a sparkle in his eyes that told Remus he was happy for his sister.
“Don’t be jealous, Michael. I’m sure we could find someone for you to share a nice big shower with, if we put our heads together,” Maddie replied.
Remus couldn’t hold in his laughter at the horrified look that came over Michael’s face. He knew he’d better rein in his matchmaking wife before she drove Michael away. “Okay, Maddie, let’s give the poor man a break. There will be no matchmaking going on until our house is finished and we’re packing up to move in.”
“But he’ll be gone by then,” Maddie groaned.
Remus gave her a stern look. “Exactly.” He watched his mate fake a pout and then flash her puppy dog eyes at Michael. She dramatically feigned relief when he smiled at her and then ruffled the top of her head like she was a little girl.
“I know you mean well, Maddie. Just give me some time to find my own happiness, just like you insisted I give you space and time to develop your relationship with Remus.” Smiling at his sister, he winked and then turned his attention to Remus. “So, do you have any other changes that need to be made to the plans? I’ve already fixed everything you faxed me.”
“No, just glancing, I can’t see anything else that needs changed.
I appreciate your re-working the back wall in our home office. It was important for me to have an area for a safe built-in. It looks like we’re ready to roll on the ground breaking on Monday.”
Michael stood and stretched. “Great, then with your permission, I’d like a chance to unpack and get settled in before dinner.”
“Absolutely.” Remus stood, dug deeply into the pocket of his jeans, and then pulled out a key and handed it to Michael. “Here’s the key to the guest cabin. If you go back down our drive and head south on the main road you’ll come to a gravel road on your right. You can’t miss it. It’s the only access road for miles. Just take that, and it leads directly up to the cabin. The utilities are all on, and we put out fresh linens and stocked the fridge yesterday. Please, make yourself at home while you’re here. I’m sorry there isn’t a phone, but you have a cell phone, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Sounds perfect, Remus, especially since I’ve been living in a hotel the past few months while I finished that job in Atlanta. I’m really looking forward to the seclusion and peace and quiet while I’m here.”
Maddie jumped to her feet, startling her mate. “I’m gonna go with him and show him the way, Remus.”
Remus searched his mate’s eyes for a long moment and then glanced quickly at Michael. He wasn’t surprised to see a puzzled look on the young man’s face. Returning his attention to Maddie, he gave her a nod to let her know he understood. Reaching out, he shook Michael’s hand. “Again, Michael, welcome to our home. We’re very happy to have you visiting.”
“Thanks, Remus. I guess I’ll see you later.”
* * * *
Michael held out his arm, indicating to Maddie that she should go first. With a smile that didn’t quite meet her eyes, Maddie led the way out to his Jeep. As they started down the gravel drive toward the main road, Michael gave her a long, measuring look.
Martine, Missy - Denying His Wolfen Heritage [A Wolfen Heritage 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 4
