by Becca Van
“Thanks, Jake. I think I have it now. It all looks pretty straightforward,” Keira said as Jake stood.
“I have a few things I need to be checking on. If you need me for anything, just come find me,” Jake said.
Keira sighed with relief when Jake left the room, Greg following behind. She had never been stared at like the way Greg did. It made her feel a little uncomfortable and uncertain. She pushed her thoughts aside, picked up the stack of invoices, and got down to work.
* * * *
Devon met his brothers in one of the storage rooms off the side of the bar. He had called them telepathically. He had taken the opportunity of searching their mate’s room while she was busy with Jake. He had made sure not to move anything, and if he did, he put it back where it had been. She had so little clothing it broke his heart. He wondered how long she had been on the run. He was going to get to the bottom of this as soon as he informed his brothers what he had found out.
“Our mate’s real name is Keira O’Lachlan. She is from Seattle, Washington. From her address I’d have to say she’s from money. A lot of money, but I need to run a check on her, before I can say for certain.”
“Why don’t you go use the computer in the office where you can keep an eye on her?” Greg asked. “I’m going to contact our Alphas, Jonah, Mikhail, and Brock Friess, and see if I can use Chris to dig up anything he can on our little mate. I know he can find out things we would never be able to,” Greg stated.
“Okay, let me know if you two find out anything,” Jake said. “I have to go check on the orders that have just arrived.”
Devon left the storage room, his brothers on his heels as they all went to do their respective tasks. Devon hesitated in the doorway of the office and leaned against the doorjamb. He watched his little mate working at the computer, her brow furrowed with concentration. He saw the tip of her tongue peek out of her mouth and had to stifle a groan as his cock hardened. He could just see Keira down on her knees in front of him, her sweet lips wrapped around his hard shaft as she licked the head of his dick with that pink little tongue.
She looked up and smiled at him, her eyes still glazed from concentration. He saw her eyes run the length of his body, and they caught on his distended cock pushing against the zipper of his jeans. He smiled wider when red tinged her cheeks and she hurriedly looked away. Her eyes were now glued to the computer monitor, and he wanted to go over to her pick her up and wrap her in his arms. Instead, he walked into the room and sat at the desk a few feet away from her. He could smell the juices leaking from her pussy and had to restrain himself from laying her over his desk and burying his cock into her wet little cunt. Devon got down to work. He needed to know what was going on with his mate.
Chapter Four
“Jake, Devon, we need to meet up away from prying ears and eyes. Meet me out back,” Greg commanded his brothers using their telepathic link. He needed to tell his brothers what he had found on their mate.
Greg couldn’t believe what Chris Friess, his Alphas’ cousin and Beta, had found out about his little mate’s adopted brother. David O’Lachlan was involved in a large prostitution ring. He and his cronies kidnapped helpless, innocent young women off the streets and sold them into sexual slavery. He was making millions of dollars supplying underworld mobsters with prostitutes and stealing money from Keira to help fund his exploits. Her brother was gambling heavily and had already gone through the estate trust fund as well as his own trust. He made bets of up to a million dollars at a time and needed his sister’s money for his gambling addiction.
The fact the women were being abducted made his blood boil. David was even suspected in the accidental death of Keira’s parents, but no solid evidence had been found, so the law hadn’t been able to touch the bastard. Keira was such a sweet little innocent and loved her brother even though he treated her like shit. Her brother had even stolen money from Keira’s trust account.
Their little Keira obviously knew something or had found out about David’s nefarious activities and bolted. Greg was so frustrated at her for not coming clean with them, but he knew he really didn’t have a say in her life, as yet. They’d only met her yesterday. He didn’t want her staying in the room above the club by herself anymore. He needed to feel that he could protect her. He and his brothers were going to have to figure out a way to get her into their home and bed. She was going to pitch a fit if he demanded she come back to the den with them. Maybe he and his brothers could stay over at the club on a rotational basis. But then she was going to wonder why they weren’t going home. Either way she was going to be suspicious. He needed to talk to his brothers so they could figure out what to do to keep their mate safe.
Greg stood outside, breathing in the scents around him. He couldn’t smell anything out of the ordinary, and he trusted his wolf senses, so he relaxed, waiting for his brothers. The back door to the club opened, his brothers moving toward him.
“What did you find out?” Jake asked.
“She’s on the run, all right,” Greg said and explained her brother’s nefarious business.
“Fuck. Is the law aware of what he’s doing?” Jake asked.
“They have their suspicions, but they haven’t been able to get any evidence,” Greg replied.
“What made Keira run?” Devon asked.
“I’m not sure. She obviously knows something, otherwise she wouldn’t be here. Chris found out David stole money from Keira’s trust account. Maybe the missing money put her on alert, or maybe she overheard something,” Greg replied. “Her brother is also a suspect in her parents’ ‘accidental death’ six years ago. Again, there was no evidence.”
“Fuck it. We have to claim her, Greg. My wolf is pushing hard and so is my dick,” Devon stated.
“We can’t just walk up to her and tell her we are werewolves and she is our mate. For one, she wouldn’t believe us, and secondly, she’d run,” Greg said.
“Then what the hell do we do?” Jake asked.
“That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it? I don’t want her staying here by herself anymore. We need to get her to the den where she’ll be safe. What I don’t know is how to get her there without making her suspicious,” Greg stated.
“What if we tell the truth? We tell her we don’t like her staying here by herself. We tell her it’s not safe for her to be alone and we want to make sure she is comfortable. We can offer her the spare room in our suite at the mansion,” Devon said.
Greg thought about that, pacing back and forth. He turned to his younger brother with a smile. “Good idea. Once we get her in our suite of rooms we start wooing our mate into our bed and our hearts.”
Greg and his two brothers entered the club again. Jake left to man the bar. Greg went to the kitchen to grab some food for their little mate. She hadn’t even taken time to have breakfast that morning, and since it was just after two in the afternoon he knew she had to be hungry. There was always a supply of sandwiches in the fridge ready for any of the employees to have on their breaks. Greg reached for one of the large platters and grabbed a couple of bottles of water. He was going to let her get away with thinking she had pulled the wool over their eyes with her name for the time being, but once she was in their house, all bets were off.
Greg took the food and water into the office. He found Keira still sitting at the desk entering in the data necessary to run the club. She looked up at him and smiled absently then continued working.
“It’s time for a break, baby girl. You haven’t stopped since this morning, and I’ll bet you’re hungry,” Greg stated, placing the platter of sandwiches and bottled water on Devon’s desk.
“Yes, actually I am rather hungry,” Keira replied.
Greg passed her the platter, and she took half a sandwich and bit into it. She groaned with enjoyment, and he felt his cock throb. This was getting to be too much for him and his wolf to take. They had to claim her soon, or his and his brothers’ wolves were going to take over. They sat in companionable sile
nce and ate their lunch. Greg smelled Devon approaching the office, and by the rumble he heard coming from his brother’s stomach, he was looking for food, too.
“Hi, sweetheart, how’s the work going?” Devon asked.
Greg watched Keira interacting and conversing with his brother. She was such a shy little thing, but when she talked about her work, her whole face lit up. He could see her passion as she waved her hands around explaining what she had done. He knew then she wasn’t as introverted as she made out. There was passion beneath that shy façade that just hadn’t been tapped into yet. He couldn’t wait to get their hot little mate into their bed, but first they had to tell her they were werewolves. He wondered how she was going to react. Would she laugh and think they were nuts? Or would she run from the house screaming? He certainly hoped not.
“I have to head back to the house and get some work done. Jonah, my cousin and boss, along with his brothers, runs a large corporation from their home. Apparently they can’t do without me,” Greg said.
He saw her looking at him. Her eyes glazed over, her pupils dilated, her breathing escalated, and she licked her lips. She leaned toward him, and he took advantage of her arousal. He moved over to Keira, cupped her chin in his hand, and leaned down to brush his lips over hers. He saw the shock in her eyes at his gesture, but he also smelled her desire. Her eyes dilated even more, her heartbeat notched up, and she was breathing heavily. Yep, his little mate wasn’t as immune to him and his brothers as she tried to make out.
“I’ll see you later, baby,” Greg said and headed toward the door. He glanced back when he felt her eyes on him, and couldn’t help but grin when he caught her ogling his ass. He left the room without a backward glance.
* * * *
Greg walked into his Alpha and cousin’s large office in the back of the den house. He waited until Jonah was off the phone and sat down in the large armchair across from his cousin.
“Fill me in with what’s going on with your mate, Greg,” Jonah commanded.
Greg spent the next half an hour going over everything he, his cousin Chris, and his brothers had found out about his mate. His Alpha leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
“You need to get her here. She’ll be safer at the pack house. Have you spoken to Mikhail or Brock yet?” Jonah asked.
“No. I wanted to talk to you first. I was going to ask to bring Keira here, but you saved me the trouble. We’re going to have to beef up security. I don’t want Michelle in any danger, either,” Greg stated. The last thing Greg wanted was to have Jonah and his brothers, Mikhail and Brock, angry with him for putting their mate, Michelle, in jeopardy.
“I’ll get Chris, Blayk, and James on it,” said Jonah, and then he heard Jonah use the common mental link to speak with his cousins.
“Chris, I need to see you and your brothers in my office as soon as possible. We need to discuss a few things.”
“We’ll be there in fifteen minutes, Alpha,” Chris replied.
“I can’t believe she was living with a murderer for the last six years. God, he could have taken her out at any time, and we would never have met her,” Greg said, running a hand through his hair with frustration.
“That’s your wolf talking, Greg. You are going to have to claim her as soon as you can. I can feel your wolf pacing. Have you told her about us yet?”
“No. I’m just a tad worried how she’ll react. I was planning on telling her tonight when we bring her here. Do you think Michelle will be able to help her if she gets all hysterical? Fuck, I’m scared if she runs my wolf is going to take over, and then where will we be? The last thing I want to do is have her running from my wolf in terror.”
“You and your brothers work on getting her here. I’ll let the pack know to keep the animal tendencies to a minimum until you’ve told your mate what we are. There is a pack run planned for tonight. I think you and your brothers should attend. Maybe letting off a bit of steam will help control your wolves,” Jonah advised.
“You’re probably right,” Greg said with a sigh.
“I’ll have Michelle keep Keira company, but as soon as you get her in the door, I want you to let her know you know what’s going on. Someone will slip up and call her by her real name, and then the shit really will hit the fan,” Jonah stated.
Chris, Blayk, and James entered the office and sat down. Greg and Jonah explained the situation with Keira, and his cousins immediately got to work at their desks on the other side of the room. Greg and Jonah were chatting about the pack members and what they needed to do to keep the women safe when Chris spoke.
“We are going to need to be more vigilant protecting the women. Your mate’s brother is on her trail. He has found where she traded her car for the other. She’s been careful but forgot about the transfer papers when she traded her vehicle. It’s only a matter of time before he finds her,” Chris said.
“How the hell did you find that out so quickly?” Jonah asked.
“We have specialized software. I typed in your mate’s name, and any information on her, whether provided by her or not, sends back an alert,” Chris explained.
“Okay. Well, that’s good. I’m not even going to ask where you got that program. I don’t think I want to know. Make sure all the males in the pack are on full alert,” Greg commanded. “We have an obligation to make sure our women are kept safe.”
Chapter Five
Keira had finished up work for the day. She had made sure to work late to make up for her tardiness that morning. She saved the program she had been working on then shut down the computer. She was looking forward to a nice, hot shower, and then maybe she would head down to the bar for a drink. She headed for the shower. She undressed and turned the faucets on. Nothing happened. What the hell? She fiddled with taps, turning them on and off a few times, but still nothing. She tried the faucets at the sink and got the same results. She gave a frustrated sigh, re-dressed sans underwear, and headed downstairs.
Keira sat on a barstool and waited for Jake to finish serving a customer. She watched the easy grace with which he moved. The muscles in his arms and abs rippled, making her squirm in her seat.
“Hey, honey, do you want a drink?”
“No, well, maybe. I was going to have a shower then come down for a drink but the shower isn’t working. There’s no water at all in the upstairs bathroom,” Keira stated.
“What? Well, shit, that’s just what we need. Devon, take over for me. I need to go upstairs with Karen and check the water,” Jake called to his brother.
Keira rose from her stool and walked out to the hallway and the doorway leading to the internal staircase. Jake was already waiting for her. He let her go up first, and she could feel his eyes pinned to her ass. She couldn’t help feeling more feminine and swaying her hips more than normal. She tried to stop, but her body just seemed to take over. She stepped back and waved a hand at the bathroom but didn’t enter. Jake walked in and tried the faucets in the shower and the sink.
“I don’t know what’s going on, honey. There’s probably a blockage in the pipes. I’m going to have to call a plumber in, but it’s too late today. You know what tradesmen are like. I’ll have to get onto it tomorrow. Why don’t you pack your stuff up? You can stay at our house until we have the water problem sorted,” Jake suggested.
“Uh, I don’t…” Keira began.
“Come on, honey. I can’t leave you here without any water. Come on down to the bar when you’ve finished packing your stuff and I’ll get you that drink. Devon and I will finish our shift early tonight. We have a couple of staff coming in to close up the rest of the week. Besides, I don’t like you staying here by yourself. It’s not safe for a woman to be alone, especially at a club.
“I’ll have the plumbers in tomorrow, and if you still want to come back here when the plumbing is fixed, then you can. But just know that if you do come back to the club, my brothers and I will take turns staying here as well. We want to know that you’re safe,” Jake sai
d, coming out of the bathroom. “Tell me what you want to drink and I’ll have it ready for you.”
“A glass of Shiraz would be nice, thanks,” Keira replied then headed to her room.
She didn’t really want to impose on the Domain brothers, but she didn’t have much of a choice, and she would feel a lot safer having three big, brawny men there to protect her. She couldn’t survive without her morning and nightly showers. She loved to feel clean after spending a day in an office staring at a computer screen. Air-conditioning always played havoc with her skin, leaving her feeling grimy at the end of the day. Keira finished packing and took her stuff down to her car. She had to make two trips, but she was determined to do it herself. She was just heading to the front doors to the club when Devon came out the entrance. He had a scowl on his face which told her he was upset about something.
“What the hell are you doing, sweetheart?”
“I was putting my stuff in my car. What did it look like I was doing?” Keira replied belligerently.
“Don’t you go getting sassy with me, little girl. Why didn’t you wait and let us do that?” Devon asked.
Keira took in Devon’s narrowed eyes and his aggressive stance. He stood there in front of her with his feet shoulder width apart, his hands on his hips, and his pelvis thrust forward. She had no idea what had crawled up his ass, but she wasn’t letting him take his mood out on her.
“Why would I, Devon? I am a big girl and can take care of myself,” Keira replied. She moved around him and could see he was having trouble controlling his anger. She could see the muscles in his arms striating with tension, and his jaw was ticking as he ground his teeth together. She turned back and entered the club. She kept on walking and sat down on the barstool she had earlier.
