by Abella Ward
Eric's hand traced the back of her neck. She leaned into his touch. "I'm sure you'd be fine here, but I just want to be sure."
Kayla nodded. She wanted to kiss him again, but pulled herself away and held her arms out for Mikayla. "I should probably get her back to bed and turn in for the night."
Eric gently handed the little Wolf to her, and Kayla snuggled her close in her arms. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight. I'll see you in the morning."
Chapter Six – Eric
Things were not progressing well with the vampires. Eric had pulled back his attempts to communicate with them, respecting their fear and need for privacy. It was imperative that they did not consider the werewolves to be threats so that further attacks didn't happen. The isolation these vampires had forced themselves in didn't help in that regard, however.
Perhaps it would be better to just back off and find a new place for his community garden. There were several other nice locations that he could put it in. That might just be the best idea.
He didn't like the idea of leaving the vampires in the grain elevators, though. For one thing, the elevators looked like they were about to fall down. Eventually, some curious human would wander in and that would be bad for both humans and vampires. Both groups were on his packlands, so both groups were his responsibility.
How could they resolve the situation peacefully…?
Eric sighed as he carried Mikayla up the stairs to her bedroom. She and Kayla were both living with him and the rest of the pack, where it was safest until the whole vampire thing calmed down.
He'd taken his old study and completely redone it for his daughter, giving her absolutely everything she wanted. Kayla had told him he needed to scale it back a bit, but he couldn't help himself when Mikayla gave him her big puppy-dog eyes. She was a good girl, after all, and a little indulgence wouldn't hurt.
"Can we chase rabbits tomorrow?" Mikayla asked as he tucked her into her princess-style bed with her superhero blankets.
"I have to work, Little Pup. But if you're a very good girl at nursery school, maybe Uncle Quin will teach you how to catch your tail."
Mikayla giggled. "I love it here. I don't ever want to go home. Can't Mommy and I stay forever?"
Eric smiled tenderly. If it were up to him, of course they'd stay. He and Kayla would officially become mates – perhaps even marry, since he knew that marriage was important to her. But Kayla had been avoiding him. He wasn't sure why she was so frightened of their situation. If he could only understand…
"You and Mommy need to live in your home, but you'll be able to come visit lots," he said, smoothing Mikayla's hair from her face. "Now be a good girl and go to sleep, okay?"
"Ok. Love you, Daddy."
Eric's heart swelled with warmth. He grinned, unable to keep it in. There was something very special about hearing his daughter say she loved him. He didn't know how to describe it other than to think that it made him ready to take on the world for her.
"I love you, too."
He left the door partly open for her as he went back downstairs. In the kitchen, he found Kayla working furiously at her computer. She was focused on her task, and Eric just watched her for a moment. He usually liked to work around her and see how long it took for her to notice him, but this time he cleared his throat to get her attention.
"Kayla," he said. When that didn't work, he moved to sit beside her. "Can I talk with you for a minute?"
"Just a sec." Kayla continued typing for a little while longer before she saved the document and sat back. "Is Mikayla in bed?"
"Yes. And you need to take a break. You work too hard."
Kayla shook her head. "I have to work. You can't keep a business running by twiddling your thumbs."
"Then I'll give you a loan. You can start with the capital to get more employees and get your brand out there. Then you'll have more time to take care of yourself."
"I don't know. I wanted to be able to build this company by myself."
Eric put his hand over hers. "You'd still be responsible for the loan – paying it back and all that. It'd just be a head start on things. I'm not trying to butt into your business. I just want to help you out. I still… care about you."
Love was the word he wanted to use, but if she was frightened of the situation like he thought she was, blurting out that he loved her again probably wasn't going to help. Even without his parents around to mess things up, they had to get to know each other again. And there was Mikayla to think about. More than their hearts would break if this went badly.
Kayla ducked her head. "I suppose a loan would be useful…"
"I'll have my lawyers draw up a contract," Eric said. He leaned forward unconsciously, his gaze going to her lips. Her intoxicating scent was driving him crazy, and at the moment all he wanted to do was—
"Eric!"
The Alpha drew back, biting down a curse. Did his brother have a sixth sense about when he and Kayla were having a moment so he could interrupt it? Kayla looked disappointed as well, though she turned back to her computer and busied herself as though nothing had happened.
"In the kitchen," Eric called.
Moments later, his brother appeared. A mix of anger and worry was on his face, and he stomped over to Eric. "There is a vampire here to see you."
Eric leaped to his feet. His teeth clenched and a growl erupted from deep inside his chest before he could stop himself. Even if he wanted to improve the relationship between Shifters and vampires, it didn't mean he wanted them to just waltz up to his home and invite themselves in for tea! Kayla clutched his hand, her face pale, and he tried to smile reassuringly at her. He didn't want her to worry.
"Let's go see him. Kayla, I'd like you to stay in the house."
"I'll go stay with Mikayla," she muttered. She closed the laptop and scurried off.
Quin fell in step behind Eric as they headed outside. There, a vampire stood in the artificial light of the streetlamps. It wasn't the same one that had attacked him before. This one was taller, with broader shoulders and a look of determination, not frenzy, about him.
"I am the Alpha of these packlands," Eric said. "What are you here for?"
"You are attempting to evict us from our home."
"No, I—"
"I don't want to hear your lies!" The vampire spat at him. "I am the leader of the coven you've attacked. For the sake of my people, I challenge you to a duel. If I win, you will leave the vampires alone."
"And if I win, you'll actually listen to me instead of being an idiot, and let me explain what I want," Eric snapped. He tore off his shirt – it would only get in the way, after all.
The vampire growled in his throat. He removed his own shirt slowly, unbuttoning every button and folding it before setting it aside. Eric was tempted to roll his eyes, but he couldn’t help but notice how shabby the vampire's clothing actually was. It was neat enough, but his pants had been clearly mended a few times, and his shirt was a faded color that spoke to years of being used. Were the vampires worse off than he realized?
Eric fell into a crouch. He would have an advantage if he Shifted, it was true, but the point of this wasn't to kill the vampire – he wanted the blasted thing to listen to him!
Yet, he knew the years of slaughter could not be forgotten, especially for the long-lived vampires. How many times had he been in this same position before only to have his home taken from him and his coven scattered and killed by the people who said they just wanted to help?
The vampire sprang forward silently. He swung at Eric's face, but the Alpha was easily able to avoid the blow. He rolled, putting his weight on his shoulder so he could scissor the vampire with his legs and flip him over. Both fighters pushed themselves back to their feet. The vampire growled and wove back and forth, looking unsteady on his feet.
Eric took a step back, his brow furrowed. He did not pull out of a fighting stance. Instead, he merely watched the vampire. He was panting already, his pallid face taking on a strange yellowish c
olor.
"When was the last time you ate?"
The vampire growled. "What difference does it make to you?"
"Look at yourself. You can hardly stand upright." Eric slowly straightened and held his arms loosely at his sides. "I can't duel a man who is in your condition."
The vampire froze. He stared at the Alpha with wide eyes and a slack jaw. Eric nearly laughed at the expression, only it wasn't all that funny. This vampire was so certain that the Wolves were going to run them out of their home that he was fighting an Alpha while underfed. He gestured Quin over to him.
"Call the blood bank and get something for our guest sent over. We can finish our duel after you've fed," he told the vampire.
The vampire backed up a step. He swallowed hard. "Are you serious? You're not…" He swallowed hard, shoulders slumping. "You really don't mean to run us out, do you?"
"No. I only want to help. Why don't we talk—?"
"I'm not the coven's leader," the vampire interrupted. "He sent me here. He—"
There was a sharp schwing through the air. A streak gleamed in the street lamps' light. The streak buried itself right into the vampire's heart. He staggered back, glancing down at his chest with a surprised expression. Eric started forward, reaching for the vampire.
Another schwing.
Burning pain blossomed from the center of his back. A fire sparked in his blood and quickly streamed up and down his body. The pain was too much. He collapsed onto his knees.
The last thing he thought of before the darkness closed in was Kayla's face.
Chapter Seven – Kayla
From the screams and howls that rang outside the window, Kayla was certain that somebody had died. She blasted nursery rhymes as loud as she could to keep Mikayla from hearing, but it was doing no good. Mikayla pressed her face into her mother's arm, crying and shivering.
When a chorus of howls burst from outside, both mother and daughter jumped. Kayla's head swiveled to the window, and it was only because she was holding Mikayla that she didn't rush to it. What had happened? Was Eric okay?
Moments later, everything went silent. Kayla didn't dare turn down the nursery rhymes, though her heart pounded and her ears strained for anything other than the music.
When there was a knock on the door, Kayla jumped. Mikayla screamed. The door instantly burst open and Quin bounded in. With a single leap, he landed next to them and glanced wildly around the room, fists risen in the air.
"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice deep with a distinctive growl to it.
Kayla pressed a hand to her heart and nodded. "We're both fine. What happened?"
A second Wolf stepped in. She was a strongly-muscled woman with a waist almost as thick as Kayla's herself. Kayla had seen her around a lot, though her name escaped her for the moment.
"Nothing bad," Quin said. "But Eric wants to see you. Daisy here will look after Mikayla until you're back."
Mikayla buried her face into her mother's shoulder and whimpered. Kayla's own heart sank. She could tell by the look in Quin's eye and the way he had burst into the room that it was bad. Really bad. He was lying for Mikayla's sake when he said it wasn't.
Almost robotically, Kayla shifted her daughter to Daisy's hold. Her heart hammered. Mikayla curled into a ball, still whimpering. Light gray fur began to sprout along her arms and legs.
"Hurry," Quin urged.
It was only halfway down the stairs that Kayla found her voice again. "How bad is it?"
"Bad. It was all a ruse. The vampire that was fighting started to tell us what was really happening, and he was killed. Eric was shot with a silver arrow. We're lucky that it went through a lung rather than his heart, but he might not make it."
"And I need to say goodbye."
"No."
Kayla shivered, not knowing what else Eric would need from her.
"They say if a Wolf's mate calls him three times, he can come back from the brink of death."
"But I'm not his mate," Kayla whispered. Tears blurred her vision.
"Yes, you are. You might have fought against it, Kayla, but the fact is there has never been another woman for him. And I think you feel the same way." Quin's voice was grim. "You still love him. It's obvious to everybody."
Kayla couldn’t deny that. She had never stopped loving him, despite the years and silence between them. If she could change the past, she never would have listened to his parents.
She was silent as Quin, with a healthy guard of Wolves surrounding them both, led her to a building that was equivalent to a hospital in human centers. There, in an underground room lit with various sizes of Himalayan rock salt lamps, was Eric. Even the golden-pink glow from the lamps couldn't hide how pale his normally dark olive skin was. A sheen of sweat covered his face.
Quin squeezed her shoulder once before he left her there alone.
"Eric," she whispered.
He didn't stir. Kayla wanted to rush to his side but found herself moving slowly, like she was stuck in the mud. There was no chair to sit on, so she climbed into the bed next to him and wrapped an arm around his chest.
"Eric," she whispered again. "Eric. Eric."
No change. What if Quin was wrong? What if they weren't mates? What if what Quin saw was just a tangle of emotions? Or maybe they were mates, but the old tale about Wolf's mate that brought him back from the brink of death was just a tale. She couldn’t see how saying his name would heal a wound created by silver, the most deadly poison known to Shifters. Tears dripped down her face.
Kayla touched his lips. "Come back to me."
Eric stirred. His lips parted slightly.
"Eric?" Kayla pushed herself to her elbow, heart jumping to her throat. "Eric, can you hear me?"
No movement.
"Eric come back to me."
He sighed, a hand reaching weakly for her.
"Come back to me," she whispered again.
Eric's eyes fluttered open. His eyes focused on her face and a smile spread over his face. His fingers brushed against her cheek, and then he sank back with a sigh. Kayla clutched his hand tightly. The rise and fall of his chest was more regular, and the pallor of his face faded slightly.
"I love you." Kayla kissed his forehead gently. "I love you."
***
Several days later, Kayla slipped out of Mikayla's room, grateful her daughter was finally asleep. Since the vampire attack, things had been noticeably more tense within the pack. Mikayla was still nervous and jumpy, but as long as Kayla or Eric – or sometimes both – stayed with her until she fell asleep, she usually slept through the night.
There had been no incidents with the vampires since their attempted assassination, either. It took Eric a day to regain consciousness and, in that time, Quin had withdrawn the pack from direct contact with the vampire coven. After Eric woke up, he agreed that they needed to formulate a new plan to deal with them, though both brothers were still against any sort of violence. It was amazing to Kayla that they still wanted a peaceful solution. If it were up to her…
But then, that was probably why she wasn't an Alpha.
Kayla padded down the hallway to Eric's room. He was sitting up in bed, looking none the worse for wear except for the scar on his chest. He grinned when he saw her.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, sitting on the bed next to him.
"Like I could run a marathon. And I'm tired of the healers insisting that I take extra rest. I don't need it. We Wolves heal like that." He snapped his fingers.
Kayla frowned. "Listen to the healers. They know what they're talking about. You went through something traumatic—"
"And you brought me back. That counts for something, doesn't it?" He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tightly against him. "I am supposed to do some vigorous exercise every day, though, to help increase my lung capacity."
Kayla knew what he meant. Instantly her face was on fire, but then so was the rest of her. It was something she had been fighting since she first saw him again, h
er desire for him. And being this close to him certainly didn't help matters. The warmth from his bare chest seeped through her top onto her skin. She shivered with anticipation.
"Well? Feel up to some cardio?" Eric raised a single brow, a wicked smile on his face.
She chewed her lip. "I don't think it's a good idea. Not when you're still recovering."
Eric nestled his face into her neck, making tingles shoot down her spine. She repressed a moan as the heat built higher in her core.
"Ah, but you're forgetting that endorphins help people heal faster…" The Alpha growled in a way that made her stomach tighten. "And I think, after all this, you might be in need of a good dose of endorphins as well…"
He nipped at her neck, making her gasp, and she knew he had won. Her whole body ached for his. Her arms threw themselves around him, and the next thing she knew, she was pressing him into the headboard while she straddled him. She ground her hips to his, feeling his arousal through the many layers that separated them.
"We have to be quiet," Kayla whispered. "And quick. I don't want to chance Mikayla finding us. That's not something I want to explain to her when she's only three years old."
"Understood," Eric grunted.
He quickly pulled off her shirt and pulled her back tightly against his naked chest, her bra the only thing between them. Kayla groaned, her head falling back as he dove into her neck again. He had always known that was the move that would get her screaming for more. His mouth on her neck was the best feeling in the world. She moved the blankets out of the way and reached into his pants. He was already ready for her, and feeling his size against her palm again after so many years made her groan.
"How do you want to do this?" Eric asked, pulling back to help her remove her pants. "Like old days or something new?"
"Hmm…" Kayla's face went red. "Well, I've done research, and there is a position I want to try."
Eric's eyes brightened and his grip on her tightened even as one hand slid between her thighs. A shiver went down her spine; her head fell back once more. The Alpha kissed along the top of her lacy bra. "What sort of 'research?'"
