The Sigma Menace Collection

by Marie Johnston

  A quick learner, Mercury circled her sensitive bud and tunneled a finger down. Slowly he slide it inside.

  “Even wetter,” he moaned into her mouth.

  Her body clamped down onto him, barely letting him move to slide in and out. She hoped instinct told him to prep her well before trying to fit his massive size into her.

  Pounding on the door made them both freeze.

  “Mercury! Get some food and meet in the lodge in an hour.” Dani recognized Bennett’s voice.

  To say irritation flashed in Mercury’s eyes would be an understatement. Was he growling?

  “Merc!”

  “Yeah! Fine!” Mercury hollered back.

  “Well next time answer your damn texts,” Bennett shouted through the door. “Or I’ll think the little woman slit your throat in your sleep.”

  Dani stiffened then forced herself to relax, but Mercury caught the movement and withdrew his finger from inside of her. Her body instantly mourned the loss.

  “Leave, Bennett.”

  “You’d better not be doing her. Dude, you know we can’t trust her.”

  Mercury helped Dani up. “Fuck off, Bennett.”

  Loud stomps could be heard as Bennett stormed off the porch.

  “Sorry. He’s, uh—”

  “Protective?” Dani finished. Bennett had to know everything about Mercury, and although she had no intention to hurt Mercury—only pleasure came to her mind when she thought of him—she couldn’t blame Bennett for looking out for him.

  “Yeah. That’s it.”

  “You guys text each other? I thought you all were telepathic or something?”

  Mercury’s guarded look and considered pause meant he was figuring out what was okay to tell her and just how much. She wasn’t fishing for information to use against them, just surprised that paranormal creatures equipped with a variety of mental gifts would be thumbing iPhones to communicate.

  “We can be,” he finally said. “But it’s not working like it should.”

  Looking at him expectantly, Dani waited for a follow up to his cryptic tidbit.

  Instead, he said, “We’d better get ready,” and ruffled through the drawers, the huge tenting in front of his sweats had be uncomfortable. Dani shifted, suddenly self-conscious. She was relieved temporarily of the terrible pressure that had been mounting since he popped up naked in front of her last night. It was getting stroked, literally, again when the door pounding scared the ever-loving shit out of her. Mercury took no relief for himself, back to business as usual, but he had to be aching.

  When he straightened, his eyes swept her from head to toe, flaring hot. In that instant, her pressure was back, thrumming like it was trying to get closer to the giant male in the room. His gaze traveled her body slowly, like he was remembering how she felt and the sounds she made when his hands worked her.

  “I’ll change in the other room. You can have the bathroom.” Adjusting his sweats, he headed out the door.

  Dani briefly recalled another bedroom in the cabin; it was empty. On her way to the bathroom, she stopped to read some of the titles of books on his shelves. She wouldn’t have pegged him for a reader. But interestingly, there was quite a variety: classics, contemporary, mysteries, textbooks. The wear and tear on them meant they weren’t just for show, he probably even moved around with them.

  That thought led her to wonder how old he was. Shifters lived much longer than humans. As his mate, if she bound herself to him, she would share his life span. Even acquire his self-healing abilities. Maybe she should bind herself to him before the stretch marks started.

  Holy shit! The hot mess that greeted Dani in the bathroom mirror startled her musings away. The bar soap and lack of conditioner, not to mention the thrashing from the nightmare, gave her long, chocolate hair all kinds of free rein to get tangled up. But under the rat’s nest, her dark eyes sparkled and her cheeks retained their flush from being with Mercury. The memory caused her to flush even more and her already taut nipples to poke further through the t-shirt material, so now she looked like a thoroughly sexed-up woman.

  Frantically trying to finger comb her hair without ripping it out, Dani got it manageable and tied it back on itself into a loose ponytail. Mercury owned soap, a razor, toothpaste, and a toothbrush. That was it. Those four things, along with the towels, were all the items in the small bathroom.

  Sighing, as she checked her clothes to determine if they were at all dry, Dani thought it just wasn’t fair he could look as good as he did without an arsenal of supplies. Humidity wasn’t bad in West Creek and they were deep in the woods surrounding the town, so at least her underwear was dry. The rest would need more time. Throwing the panties on, she folded and tied the shorts and tied the bottom of the t-shirt so it wouldn’t hang too badly on her breasts, announcing how Mercury made her feel.

  Waiting patiently at the door, absorbing the sight of her, all he said was, “Ready?”

  “I don’t have shoes,” she said, pointing to her boots from last night sitting by the bed. She could wear them, this wasn’t the time to be concerned about fashion, but seriously, boots with her outfit would look atrocious and that bothered her when it shouldn’t.

  He quirked an eyebrow at the boots, obviously wondering why she wouldn’t wear them.

  “The path to the lodge isn’t too bad and we’ll be down there for a while. I’m sure the commander wants to talk with you more. If you don’t plan on running, you won’t need them.” The last sentence was said with a growl underlying the words.

  “Let’s go, then,” she said, almost defiantly. She wanted to run from Mercury and the feelings he stirred in her, and the memory of his touch. Mothers had to protect their young and as long as she was pregnant with a baby who Sigma desperately wanted, she would cling to any protection the Guardians offered.

  As long as she was pregnant. It was so early yet. What if she didn’t carry to term? She had just graduated college when she joined Sigma. Before she lost her family, one of her older friends had gotten married and became pregnant. Dani recalled her excitedly spilling the news, officially announcing the due date, only to lose the baby shortly after the first trimester.

  Concerns and questions, so many questions, were flying around in her head as she followed Mercury down the path to the lodge, picking her way carefully with her bare feet.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, abruptly rounding on her. “I can smell your worry.”

  Damn shifters and their senses. Could he smell her desire, too? Could the others? Would they smell Mercury on her, or figure it was from their close proximity the last twelve hours? She blinked up at him, suddenly aware of the bright sun shining in her face. It was a beautiful summer day and she had no idea what time it was.

  “Are you worried about the commander? Meeting the others?” he asked.

  “No, actually. I really don’t care about spilling on Sigma and any secrets of theirs I might know. I’m just wondering—” It felt suddenly too intimate to talk baby with this man, who was the father. “Nine months is a long time, and it’s so early. What if…”

  Caught by how painful it was to voice the thought of losing the life forming inside of her, Dani found she couldn’t really say it out loud.

  Mercury’s brows drew together. “What if what?”

  Reformulating her words to almost think hypothetically. “Well, you know, some women miscarry.”

  “Do you feel like something’s wrong?”

  “What do you mean?”

  Mercury shrugged. “Our people are very intuitive, in touch with nature and our bodies. You’re human, but our baby,” he paused on those words, an unreadable look flitting across his face, “will be a shifter. Look in on yourself and see if you can feel something wrong.”

  How was she supposed to do that? Closing her eyes, letting the warm sun’s rays melt into her, she concentrated on the area in her abdomen where the little one grew.

  Chapter 6

  It was a breathtaking sight. Dani, with her fa
ce turned up into the sun, eyes closed, a half smile almost overtaking the worry he’d scented from her just a moment ago. Her messy ponytail hung down her neck, caressing her delicate skin in place of his tongue.

  He’d had a taste of her and wanted more. She’d let him into her body and he wanted deeper. He wanted to explore every inch of her skin, inside and out with his hands, his tongue. He wanted to feel her heat and moisture wrapped around him. Instinctively, he knew he hadn’t been missing anything. Kissing and touching wouldn’t have felt the same with anyone else. He couldn’t stand the thought of other women touching him any more than they had to. He just knew it was something to be saved for his mate. As a Guardian, mates aren’t found very easily and his rocky start in life, and difficulty tolerating people, didn’t give him much hope of finding his.

  Before he sported another massive, painful erection, he decided he’d better do something. She was worried about their baby. Their baby. Would he ever get used to that? He wasn’t allowed consent or the pleasure of her body, neither was she, to make this baby. Regardless, a baby was made from them and she was scared.

  He concentrated on her lower belly, zeroing in like he had x-ray vision. As she went inward, he went outward.

  A warmth spread through his mind, lighting up dark corners he’d given up hope on. A soft gasp came from Dani as if she felt him too, like he was feeling her. Tied to her presence was the tiny kernel of awareness he’d come to associate with his young. A thrill went through him, then a dawning comprehension of dismay.

  “Did you feel that?” she asked breathlessly, her eyes glittering excitedly in the sun. “I didn’t think it would work, but then I felt you and it was like a booster pack and I swear I could feel it.”

  Shoving this new information to the back of his mind so he could talk with Commander Fitzsimmons later, he gave her a forced smile.

  “We’d better get you some food before we meet the others.”

  The excitement drained from her face and made him want to growl at himself. She must not have felt what he did. Fucking Sigma.

  They entered through the back door of the lodge and wove their way to the kitchen. Another Guardian, Mason, was sitting at the table, scrolling through his tablet, chewing on strips of bacon. The males glared at each other since Mercury could feel the man’s distaste of his mate. He sat Dani at the far end so she didn’t have to be next to the infuriating male. Mercury rummaged through the cabinets for food. Grabbing the rest of the bacon and slices of toast he sat across from Dani and dished out their food.

  Stiffly she chewed her food, sensing the unease between the males, which wouldn’t be hard even for a regular human. Mason had been difficult lately, and with a human “visitor” they knew very little of, he anticipated nothing but antagonism from his fellow Guardian.

  Kaitlyn breezed into the kitchen. The tall female’s coppery red hair was braided down her back and she wore the standard Guardian black shirt and black tech pants.

  “Mornin’ bitches.”

  Mason grunted, Mercury muttered his greetings. Slamming doors and cupboards as she ruthlessly searched for her cereal and raided the fridge for milk, Kaitlyn was a force to be reckoned with in everything she did. Plopping down across from Mason, a couple chairs away from Mercury, she smiled over at Dani.

  “So, you’re Mercury’s mate we know nothing about?” Her tone was teasing, not insulting, and Mercury was grateful for her friendlier reception, despite the lack of trust.

  “Yeah, Mercury,” Mason’s tone dripped deviance, a cruel smile lifting his mouth, “why don’t you introduce your little human to Kaitlyn? I’m sure she can fill her in on aaaall about how to please you.”

  Mercury froze and Dani’s hand stilled midway to her mouth.

  “Aw, Mason!” Kaitlyn said, her mouth full of half-chewed cereal. “You asshole. You know humans don’t understand.” Milk dripped down her chin and with typical Kaitlyn elegance, she swiped at it with the back of her hand. Uncouth was a word he’d come to associate with the new Guardian.

  “Fuck, Kaitlyn,” Mason said, with only a touch of derision and more exasperation. “You eat like a dog.”

  Chewing on another large spoonful, she remained hunched over her bowl like she was afraid it would get grabbed out from under her nose and flipped Mason off.

  She looked at Dani with an apologetic smile. “I tend to forget, but as Mason pointed out, I once got in on the action at Pale Moonlight with your dude and the blond with the stick up his ass.” She winked at Dani. “But it was before I knew I could grow fur and it never meant anything. At least to me.” She leaned over and slugged Mercury in the shoulder. He let out a little oomph and shook his head. Her strength was really coming along. “Maybe this poor bastard can quit pining for me now that you’re here.”

  Trying to gauge Dani’s reaction, Mercury studied her while chewing his bacon. She had a sort of dazed and confused appearance, having gone back to eating her own food, watching everything play out. It seemed like she didn’t know what to make of Kaitlyn. Mercury could empathize. While he was quite fond—not in that sense—of the female, she was an unpredictable, but reliable, force. His empathy also extended to the new Guardian. Watching her trying to understand herself and this new world brought out memories from eons ago when Master Bellamy pulled him from his pack and showed him where he belonged. Only, it took decades to think maybe he did belong, and he often wondered if he hadn’t been better off roaming the wild with his pack of natural wolves.

  Mason stood, snarling something derogatory about humans while he was turning to go, making sure it was loud enough for her ears.

  Mercury flew out of his chair.

  “Stop.”

  That one word uttered from his mate halted him. Mason disappeared, chuckling maliciously.

  “I don’t give a shit who believes me, who doesn’t; who hates humans, who doesn’t; who had their face in your crotch, who didn’t. I really don’t. All I care about right now is this bacon and if there’s any more, because I’m starving. ’K?”

  Still frozen in his semi-leap position, Mercury was bewildered by her declaration—didn’t know what to make of it.

  “You heard the lady,” Kaitlyn told him. “Get her some damn bacon.”

  Dani gave her a whisper of a smile and looked expectantly at Mercury.

  He was dishing up more bacon fresh from the oven when he sensed Bennett enter the kitchen.

  “Kaitlyn, you’re with me today. We’ve got a domestic north of West Creek. Piece of shit keeps beating his mate, turned on his kids.” Turning to Mercury, Bennett continued, “Mercury, Boss wants to interrogate the spy.”

  At the warning growl, Bennett slung him a placating look. “Dani.”

  All business, Kaitlyn cleaned up her stuff and marched out of the kitchen. Mercury was surprised they were allowing her out in the field since she still passed out after her shifting. Her fighting skills as a human were admirable and would get her by as long as Bennett was there.

  Eyes flicking between Mercury and his mate, Bennett watched Mercury serve her.

  “Be careful,” Bennett warned.

  Mercury ignored him and sat back down. Almost as soon as Bennett left, he heard the other two newbies to their pack approaching.

  Feminine laughter wafted in ahead of Cassie and Jace’s arrival. Jace had a shit-eating grin on his face, gave Mercury a quick nod, and went to gather breakfast for his own mate.

  Cassie sat where Kaitlyn had just been, knowing better than to sit next to the woman with the shady past.

  “Dani, right?”

  “That’s right. Apparently, this is the meet and greet.” It was a statement, said with no sour notes in her voice.

  Cassie laughed gently. “Busted. I’m Cassie. Look, while you’re here, you’ll need some clothes.” She dug into the monster purse most women insisted on carrying around. Cassie also needed hers to conceal a gun and knife since she was also only human. Being bound to Jace came with the usual perks of quicker healing and long
evity, but Sigma would not hesitate to snatch and grab her again.

  Producing paper and pen, she slid them over to Dani. “Write your sizes and any special requests. We’ll get you enough to get by.”

  “Oh. No. You can’t. I mean, I don’t have any money or anything to pay you back.”

  Cassie delivered a reassuring look. “It’s all right, it won’t be that much. It’s not like I’m bringing back designer labels. I get you’re not a typical guest, but you can’t be running around barefoot, drowning in Mercury’s clothes.”

  Dani still hesitated, obviously uncomfortable with the charity.

  “I’m sure we can find a chore for you to earn your keep until we get things figured out. You’ll also need at least need conditioner, probably even shampoo. Am I right? Jace had next to nothing in his bathroom. I mean, I’m not high maintenance, but a girl needs something pretty smelling.” Leave it to Cassie to figure the girl out; it’s what she did for a living.

  Coming to a resolution, Dani scribbled some things down. Mercury didn’t care if she hung out in his shirts all day. And slept in them, letting her scent permeate every fiber. He never wanted to wash the shorts she was in as it was. But she would feel better in her own stuff, and if he wasn’t thinking with his dick, it’d be harder to hide weapons in the more form fitting women’s apparel.

  “Cassie, Jace, I need your input,” Mercury debated on bringing it up here, but he had to know what they might be up against, and he wanted to bring it to the commander as soon as possible.

  “Sure,” they said in unison.

  Would Mercury and Dani ever be like them—happily mated? First, they had to find out more about the baby and if Dani was who she claimed.

  “You said you could feel Madame G’s presence when she mated you.” Mercury began. Dani looked at the pair, eyes widening. So she knew the story.

  “I couldn’t,” Jace replied. “I know our natural mating bond feels better, but overall, not much different.”