A Mate for Gideon (The Program Book 2)

by Hartnady, Charlene

  ****

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” Brant growled from somewhere behind him.

  All Gideon wanted was to keep on walking. He didn’t want to face anyone right now. Two fucking days and Jenna would be gone.

  Not only gone but in grave danger too.

  He already felt guilty for hitting the male. On the other hand, his fist connecting with Lazarus’ face had felt really good.

  The female showing up now, was such putrid timing. On the one hand, he actually felt happy for Lazarus but on the other, he felt like killing him.

  Gideon turned and faced his king. Although he wanted to tell Brant everything, come completely clean, he couldn’t risk it. If Jenna ended up getting booted from the program, she would be in grave danger. He couldn’t do that to her. It would be better to take the safer path.

  “I’m pissed,” Gideon growled. “I’ll admit that I’m also a little jealous. Okay. Make that a lot fucking jealous. I want a human female.”

  Brant did something totally unexpected and laughed. It took a while for his king to get himself back under control. “I knew it. Someone has the hots for the human females. I must say that you have been acting strangely over the last few days and this explains it.”

  His heart sped up. Maybe, just fucking maybe. “Does this mean that you’re going to let me into the program? Allow me an opportunity to choose one of the females?”

  “Not a fuck,” Brant snarled without a moment’s hesitation. “This needs to be by the book, and you chose not to take part in this heat. The good news is, there’s always the next heat. I can promise you right now that there will be plenty of human females for you to choose from. I was involved in the selection and you won’t be disappointed.”

  Fuck it.

  Gideon wasn’t interested in a bunch of human females. None of them would be Jenna. His heart clenched at the thought of his female. How could he change Brant’s mind without cluing him in?

  “No,” Gideon said, a little too harshly. He worked hard to get his emotions under control. It wouldn’t help his case to snarl and growl at his king. Hitting Lazarus was one thing, any type of aggressive behavior towards his king would send him straight into the dungeon. “No,” he repeated, his voice low and even this time. “I’ve seen a female that I’m interested in. One that has fired my blood. I would like to join now. Please tell me what I have to do to be admitted into the program during this heat.”

  Brant shook his head. “It’s not going to happen.” His dark eyes narrowed in on Gideon. “It would be best if you distanced herself from the female in question. I assure you that there will be many more.”

  Gideon breathed deeply. “Please, my lord. What is it that I could do to make this happen? Name it.”

  Brant narrowed his eyes further. His jaw clenched for a few moments. “Have you had any relations with this female? What the fuck have you done, Gideon? First my elite leader, York, and now you. The two males that I would never have expected this from. How deep is your involvement with this female?” He growled, it wasn’t lost on Gideon how his king’s nostrils flared as he spoke.

  No one had reacted to the faint smell of human that clung to him. All had assumed that it was because of his dealings with the females over recent days.

  Jenna’s words played through his mind about being too fearful of the fallout that their relationship would cause. Fear of what others would think of him. He dismissed it outright. It could not be further from the truth. His fear was for Jenna and not for himself. Gideon shook his head. “I have seen a female that interests me but that is the end of my involvement.” Guilt rose up in him. Not because he was lying to his king but because he felt like he was wronging Jenna by not admitting to their involvement. He ignored the emotion. Jenna’s safety was more important than anything else right now.

  Brant’s eyes closed for a moment. He huffed out a lungful of air. “Thank fuck.” His king growled. “Then again, I should’ve known that out of all of the males, you are the one that I can rely on the most. It is the whole reason why I put you forward to Zane for our head of security. I’m sorry I doubted you.” His eyes darkened. “Forget this female. Stay far away from her. You will definitely be given a place in the next heat. I know that you’re more than capable of winning a position in the program.” Brant slapped him on the back. “You will only have to wait a few weeks…it will go by quicker than you think.”

  For blood’s sake. What the hell was he going to do? It would be better if he discussed this with Jenna before announcing their relationship. He needed to make sure that she was aware of the consequences and that they were prepared for the fallout.

  Gideon nodded. “Good advice, my lord.” He grit his teeth.

  His words seemed to ease some of the tension between them. “Good to hear.” Brant paused before continuing. “I’ve had enough insubordination to last me a fucking life time. York is walking a fine line. I expect more from you. Is that understood?”

  Gideon was forced to clear his throat because the words were sticking. “Yes…” He finally managed to get out. “I do.”

  Unfortunately he understood only too well. It looked like he and Jenna were going to have to gear up for the fight of their lives. They needed a plan and a backup plan.

  Chapter 10

  “You can’t be serious.” Jenna whispered, trying hard to keep her voice down which was difficult considering the news that Gideon had just delivered. She leaned against the wall, careful to avoid the cleaning supplies. Jenna really like Lazarus so she couldn’t help but to feel excited for him. The only problem was, Lazarus’ unexpected woman had made things a little more difficult for her and Gideon.

  The overhead light in the closet was dim but it was enough for her to be able to make out Gideon’s features. His mouth was set in a hard line. He looked really worried. “Yup, he is taken with the female. That much was clear. I shouldn’t have hit him though.”

  She couldn’t help but to giggle softly into her hand. “You hit him?”

  Gideon sighed. “Yeah. Pretty much smashed his nose.”

  “Again? He can’t be too happy with you.”

  Gideon shrugged. “He didn’t mind too much, totally understood where I was coming from. The problem is that we’re out of options. I’m going to speak with Brant in the morning. Going to tell them about us.” His eyes were dark, the vee between his eyes deepened.

  They were finally going to come clean about their relationship. Thank God. “I’m glad. It’s better that everyone knows. I’ve had enough hiding and sneaking around. I want us to be together for real.” She grabbed his hand.

  He squeezed her fingers. “Me too. I’m a little worried though. There’s a good chance Brant’s going to kick you out. I might end up in the dungeon. I’m worried about you, Jenna. With that bastard still out there. I wish you’d allow me to kill him.” His voice turned all growly.

  “I’ll take my chances. I managed to hide out for weeks and I can do it again.” She chewed on her bottom lip for a few beats. “They can’t keep you locked up forever, or can they?”

  Gideon shook his head. “No they won’t. A few days, a week or two tops.”

  She found herself smiling. Hopefully the vampire kings would see it their way and if not she would find a way to survive until Gideon was set free. It was amazing what you could do when you put your mind to it. “Good. I’ll give you the address of the little bed-and-breakfast I was staying in. The only problem…” Damn why hadn’t she thought of it sooner.

  “What is it?” He gripped both of her hands.

  “I don’t have any cash. At least, not enough. I can get by for three or four days…tops. I don’t want to have to get a job because it would make it easier for Liam to track me down.”

  Gideon smiled. “Don’t worry about that. I’ll make a deposit into your account before I go and see Brant in the morning.” His eyes darkened with worry. “I don’t have cash either.”

  “Don’t worry, I will be careful. Here…�
� Jenna dug in her purse, finding a notebook and pen. She wrote down the address of the bed-and-breakfast, as well as her banking details and handed the paper to Gideon. “You’ve got my cell number? It’s a burner phone so Liam won’t be able to track me. I will pay for everything with cash and will use a false name.” It bugged her that she had to rely on him for cash. “I will pay you back the money.”

  Gideon frowned. “No need…you are mine now. My money is your money. Let’s just hope that it doesn’t come to that.”

  Hearing him say that she was his made her heart leap. It made her smile. “Um…okay.” Was all she managed to say in the end. “You’re really going to tell them?” There was a small part of her that was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to go through with it.

  His frown deepened. “I’m really worried about you. I’d feel better if you would let me kill the son of a bitch. I can leave right now and be back within an hour. It would make this whole thing a lot easier knowing that you were safe. If anything were to happen to you…” He cupped her jaw.

  “No. It’s too risky. What if you were caught?” She shook her head. “Promise me.”

  Gideon’s throat worked and a muscle ticked in his jaw. His chest heaved. He ran a hand through his hair. “Again?”

  “Humor me.” She raised her brows.

  “It’s against my better judgment but I promise not to kill the bastard so long as he keeps his hands off of you. He touches so much as one hair on your head though and the deal is off.”

  Jenna nodded, swallowing thickly. “He’s not going to get to me. Hopefully your king will understand and if not I’ll just lay low until we can be together again.”

  “I hate the thought of leaving…of running. It feels so cowardly.”

  “It’s not. It’s doing whatever it takes to survive…to be together. You do want us to be together don’t you?” Jenna felt her eyes sting. She could only pray that he wanted this bad enough.

  Gideon cupped both her cheeks, running a thumb down her jaw. “Of course I do. Don’t ever doubt that.”

  “Good,” she sighed the word. “We can leave…go far away, no one will ever find us. We’ll be fine because we’ll have each other.”

  Gideon nodded. “I hope it doesn’t come to that but if it does, then I’m ready.”

  He brushed his lips against hers, quickly deepening the kiss. She fisted his shirt, pulling him closer. Her whimper was swallowed by his demanding mouth. All too soon, he pulled away. “You’d better get back. I’m sure that by now, dessert is being served. You will be missed.”

  Jenna snorted. “Yeah right. The women are trying so desperately to get noticed by one of the guys and the guys are so busy ogling the women. It’s a circus. I’m surprised there haven’t been any catfights yet.”

  “We don’t have any cats on the property, at least, not that I’m aware of.” He frowned, looking utterly adorable.

  “By cat fights, I mean fights between the women. They call them that because they tend to use teeth and nails. It’s a human saying.”

  “I wouldn’t mind seeing such a fight.” Gideon grinned.

  “Let me guess, you would ideally want the women naked?” Jenna had to roll her eyes. Men were all the same.

  He frowned again. “Why would I want them naked?…No…I would be interested to see if human females have any skills and whether the strongest female ended up winning or a female that was more agile and fast. It would be fun.” Then he looked worried. “Please don’t think of taking part if any such cat fight were to happen.”

  Jenna had to laugh. She tried to do it quietly. “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

  “Good.” He growled, his chest rumbled. “I don’t want to see you hurt.” He kissed her. Soft and sweet. It all but took her breath away. “I would have to kill if that ever happened.”

  A few minutes later she slipped from the closet, smoothing her dress before taking a slow walk back to the elaborate dinner table. She couldn’t help but to think back on those first two days with Gideon.

  Two days.

  They somehow managed to cram all the dates into one weekend, becoming more and more desperate for one another as time went by.

  She smiled, pausing to look out a nearby window. A full moon hung in the sky, just like that night.

  They were both crazy with need by then. Especially considering Jenna had not let him touch her. Aside from some dry humping and the odd brush of his fingers through her clothing. Thing was, she was too afraid of letting him lay, so much as, a finger on her. As it stood, she was barely hanging onto what was left of her willpower. If he so much as tweaked her nipples or rubbed on her clit, she would beg him to take her.

  Beg.

  As in, all out and on her knees. The image of being on her knees in front of him made her groan. Inside her own head of course. Of having his thick cock in her mouth, of sucking on his head. It made her moan even louder. This time out loud for real.

  Oops!

  “What is it?” Gideon’s voice was so deep, so raw. It sent shivers up and down her spine.

  Their hands were clasped tightly as they walked. Yes, their date was a midnight walk in the gardens at Gideon’s hotel. Not really much of a date. Especially since neither of them were very interested in their surroundings. They were walking quickly. Jenna almost had to jog to keep up with Gideon’s long stride.

  “Um…nothing really…just…” She let the sentence hang.

  “Just what?” He threw her a toothy grin.

  “Just thinking about what I want to do to you when we get back to your room.”

  His breathing became a little labored. “What do you want to do to me?” He almost sounded angry. His eyes blazed and his jaw was tense.

  She could feel her cheeks heat.

  Gideon squeezed her hand. “Is it dirty?”

  Jenna pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and bit down. She nodded. “Very.”

  His eyes drifted shut and he moaned. “You have to tell me.”

  “I…um…”

  His throat worked and his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. His eyes stayed on her. So dark, so intense.

  “I was just thinking that I would really like to give you a blowjob.”

  Gideon frowned. His eyebrows practically fused. A deep vee formed between his eyes.

  “Maybe you vampires have a different word for it. I want to ease you”—she paused—“with my mouth.”

  His eyes almost bugged out of his skull. They began to glow softly under the moonlight. After swallowing thickly, he shook his head. “We don’t have a word for that because our females don’t do that to us. Their fangs are too sharp, but yours.” He growled low, his chest actually vibrated. “Your little, blunt ones would work just fine.”

  Jenna could feel that her brows were raised. “You’ve never had a blowjob? As in ever?”

  He shook his head. “Never.” His voice sounded pained.

  She made a humming noise. “You’ve been missing out big time. Human men love it. I would even go so far as to say that they rate it just as good as sex.”

  Gideon shook his head. “No way. I can see the appeal of having your stunning lips around my cock, of that sexy as fuck mouth sucking on me, but it would be nothing compared to your pussy. There is nothing better than coming together or as close as damn to one another as possible. I want to look into your eyes and watch you go over the edge. It would be my undoing.”

  “Wow!” She blew out a breath of air. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this turned on.”

  “Should we head back?”

  “That or you could take me here and now.” She smiled, pretending to be joking when the truth was, she would totally let him if he tried. So what if they were in the middle of a public garden. So what if the hotel security patrolled regularly.

  Gideon chuckled. It sounded strained. “I don’t want our first time to be rushed or interrupted. Our eighth date is going to be an all-nighter.” He paused, his jaw tightened. “You will most likely need to call in
sick tomorrow.”

  Jenna could feel her heart beat faster in her chest, could feel her lungs strain for air. “I’ve worked after an all-nighter before. I’m sure I’ll manage.”

  He threw her a feral grin. “You won’t be able to fucking walk, Jenna. On second thought…” He crushed his lips to hers in a scorching kiss.

  It made her chest heave even more. Thankfully he looked just as affected.

  “On second thought…” He repeated. “You will need two days to recover after I’m done with you.”

  She had to stifle a shriek as he threw her over his shoulder. They were close to his room. She jostled as he moved quickly. Taking the room card out of his pocket, he swiped it through the lock, closing the door behind them.

  Jenna expected him to throw her on the bed, but instead he put her carefully down at the foot of the bed. He sat, making them closer to eye level. His eyes were soft. Gideon put his hands on her hips and squeezed softly. “Are you sure about this, Jenna?”

  She nodded, feeling nothing but eager. She was hungry for him…starved. “Yes.”

  “There will be no going back.” His eyes were dark and intense.

  “What do you mean?” She asked, knowing exactly what he was saying. Once they had been together, they would both be ruined for all others. He was right when he talked about aligning to one another on a cellular level.

  Gideon smiled. “You’ll be mine, Jenna. Mine,” he growled.

  “I’m nobody’s property.” But even as she said it, she knew that it was true.

  He reached up and stroked her cheek. “I would be yours too, so it would be okay.”

  Technically, she was still married to Rob. It would still be a few weeks before the divorce came through. She should’ve told him. She could still tell him. Not today. Maybe tomorrow, but not today.

  She nodded, stepping between his legs and wrapping her arms around him. “Then I guess it’s okay.”

  “Be sure, Jenna. Be very sure.” His hands stayed on her waist.

  “I’m very sure.”

  “Thank fuck,” he growled. “Take off your clothes before I rip them.”