Josh

by Dana Archer

  Mira glanced around as they walked. Much progress had been made to the Alexanders’ new home in the short time since she’d been here. While the walls were unpainted, exquisite gray tile with lines of white covered the floor, and a wide oak staircase led to the upper levels.

  The door to the family room stood open. A quick peek revealed plush, tanned carpeting on the floor, and marble surrounding an oversized fireplace. No furniture filled the room, but when it did, the home would be as inviting and welcoming as the mansion they’d abandoned in Virginia when they’d picked up and moved here earlier in the summer.

  Kade urged her forward with a hand to her lower back.

  “You’re not alone.” Kade whispered into her mind.

  No, she wasn’t. She glanced over her shoulder, offered a small smile, and took the last few steps to the formal living room. Micah’s scent hit her first. The familial trace linked him to Edmund. Her rapist’s face flashed across her mind. Her stomach rolled. She embraced the disgust, accepted the hatred she felt, and pushed both aside. Chin raised high, she entered behind Rafe’s wide back.

  Her cats slammed into her, all three predators enraged by the sight of Micah. He was a nearly identical replica of the male who’d ruined her life. Long, thin, black hair that looked more like a cape than a hairstyle hung to mid-chest. Although muscle packed his frame, it paled in comparison to the strength in Josh’s body. Micah was shorter than Josh, too.

  Weak. That was the impression she got from Micah yet she wasn’t foolish enough to let her guard down. No matter how he looked, he could still shift into a dangerous predator. It was the cat he housed that incensed hers. Micah’s lion would be the one to hurt Josh if it ever came to a battle between them. The man was nothing. Josh could crush him easily.

  Micah’s gaze roamed over her. His visual caress made her skin crawl. She held completely still, not allowing the shudder to show.

  “You are beautiful, Mira.”

  She bit back the snarl and inclined her head. “Thank you.”

  Micah glanced between Rafe who stood to her right with his arms crossed over his chest and Kade who mirrored the pose on her left. Micah raised a brow. “Well, this is a tad awkward. How am I supposed to convince you to choose me as your mate when your other suitor is hovering over your shoulder?”

  Kade growled. “This is my territory. I can be wherever I want to be.”

  A smirk twisted Micah’s thin lips. “And I thought you understood the Council’s…recommendation.”

  She flicked her gaze to Kade before she could stop the reaction. The guarded look he wore told her the great shifter elders had decided to put another spin on their original dictate. Before she could ask what, Kade stepped forward. “I will not allow the Council to break their original order. I have been more than generous in my acceptance of their time limit and in allowing you to come in the first place.”

  “You agreed to my right to have an exclusive courting period with our sweet Mira.”

  Talons punched out of Kade’s hands, and full feline fangs filled his mouth. He took a threatening step toward the smaller male and bared the deadly teeth at Micah. “I said no such thing. Do not twist my words. I agreed to allow you one date with her. One. That’s all.”

  Micah matched the forward step. He danced his fingers across the arm of the couch. “You did not deny the elders’ conclusion over why the goddesses did not intervene in Edmund’s attempt to mate Mira. Three centuries have passed without the prophecy coming to pass. Doesn’t it make you wonder why?”

  Kade retracted his talons. “It is not my place or yours to question the goddesses. Mira has always had the choice in who will become her mate. The goddesses decreed it when they spoke.”

  “True, true.” Micah nodded. “But our females are easily influenced and not wise enough to make such decisions.”

  Rage turned her vision red. She snarled and stepped forward. Rafe looped an arm around her waist and gave her a warning look. Kade moved before she could break free. He slammed Micah into the wall and got up into his face. “I will not tolerate such demeaning opinions of any female within my pride. Do so again, and I’ll return your maimed body to your pride as a warning. Understand?”

  Micah nodded, and Kade released him with a shove. Micah landed on his ass. Unfazed by the rough treatment, he pushed from the floor and made a show of brushing the nonexistent dirt from his skinny rear.

  “I must admit I was quite surprised to hear Mira had suddenly become so desperate for a mate that she’d accepted the courtship of a weak human.” Micah’s gaze swept over her, leaving an itch in its wake. “I suppose since none of the males you’d taken to your bed over the years enjoyed your body enough to lay claim to you, then you would be.”

  Rafe snarled, and the sound shook the windows. Micah flinched and carefully avoided locking gazes with him. Satisfaction warmed her. The coward knew he was no match for the Alexander twins. Would he feel the same way with Josh? Uneasiness settled over her.

  “It’s merely a statement of fact.” Micah chuckled, his derisive gaze sweeping over her. “Mira whored herself for three hundred years yet not once has she captured a male’s attention. It is what it is.” He offered a smile which showed the state of his mind. The demented glint churned her gut. “But I’m willing to sacrifice for the greater good. I’ll accept what nobody wanted.”

  Both brothers stepped forward, snarls falling from their lips. Oh no, she refused to let them fight her battles. She didn’t know what game Micah was playing, but she intended to find out.

  She strode forward, leaving Rafe and Kade at her back. Hands clenching and releasing at her sides, Mira fought her cats for control. She stepped into Micah’s personal space and fixed him with a disgusted look.

  “If you think demeaning me is any way to convince me to choose you as my mate, you’re a bigger fool than I thought. I am not worthless nor am I unwanted. I wasn’t when Edmund decided to rape me nor has that changed in any of the years since. The lovers I’ve taken have respected me and my choice not to mate.” She let her fangs descend slowly and allowed a low growl to slip free. “If you think to repeat history, you will meet the same fate as Edmund.”

  Instead of being intimidated, his smile widened. “Oh, sweet Mira, you will make a fine lover and bear me strong cubs.”

  She spun on her heel and stormed toward the doorway before she ripped his throat out, then and there. “Pack up and go home. I will never choose you.”

  “Then say goodbye to the feral cub. If you deny me, I will ensure Molly is put down by week’s end.”

  Mira stopped. Sharp talons burst from her fingers, her rage too great to contain. Fear rose next, but she ignored the hollow feeling. She glanced over her shoulder. “What exactly are you talking about?”

  Micah rolled his eyes. “Please, don’t play games. Certain members of the Council know of Molly’s sad fate. They’ve only allowed her to remain with you out of sympathy.”

  Sympathy? No. More likely they were trying to figure out what had happened. As single shifters, they’d never be able to see the Leon spirit’s aura surrounding Molly or realize that the Leon ancestor had joined with her in the way of an alpha, making the five-year-old the leader of its pride.

  Unless a Royal told the single shifters the truth, they’d only be guessing at Molly’s and the Leon spirit’s fates. Since only the Alexander pride and a very select few members of Xander’s pack had seen her since she returned from Alaska, Mira had faith Molly’s secret was safe. For now.

  “You dare threaten me and mine?”

  Micah sat on the couch, oblivious to the partially shifted, enraged males a foot in front of him. He crossed his legs and pressed his head into the cushions. “Oh, yes. I’d do that and more. Care to push me?”

  “I would despise you until the day you die.”

  “Don’t care.” He shrugged. “As long as you spread those lush thighs for me, I’ll be happy.”

  Kade’s assessment of the situation had been right. Mic
ah meant them harm and would use her to cause it. She also saw the truth in his eyes—even if she mated him, he’d see Molly taken from them.

  Never. She would never mate Micah nor would she allow him to hurt her family. She just wasn’t sure how to stop the latter. If the Council took action against Molly, they’d be powerless to stop it. Molly shouldn’t exist.

  The experiment conducted on the youngster at birth partially joined her with the first ancestor of the Royal Leon pride. From what Mira gathered, the scientists had meant to use Molly as a pseudo host until she mated a single shifter. Molly’s mate would then accept the Leon spirit, thereby making all of their children immortal single shifters.

  The Leon spirit had changed the game plan, though. It had chosen Molly to be its host…the first female alpha in the history of shifters. Someday, she would lead her own pride. If the single shifters found out about her fate, they’d try to kill her in an attempt to steal the Leon spirit from her.

  No. Absolutely not. Mira wouldn’t allow it. Until she figured out how to stop the Council, there was only one thing left to do.

  “I will meet you at the Black Widow tomorrow night. Until then, get off the Alexander pride lands. You’re not welcome here.”

  Josh stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He wore his sternest expression yet the adorable lion cub mere feet from him completely ignored him.

  “Molly Elizabeth, stop it. Right now.”

  Her ears twitched, but she continued to claw the back of his chair—his favorite football-watching, napping recliner, the one Zoe had bought for him with her savings from working at the local amusement park.

  Devin sat on the couch, his feet propped up on the coffee table and a big smirk on his face. Although wetness still shimmered in his eyes, he’d at least stopped laughing.

  “You know, a little help would be nice.”

  Devin held up his hands. “Hey, you’re the one who said you could handle the cub. So”—he motioned toward where Molly clung to the upholstered back—“handle her.”

  It’d be simpler if Molly would shift back to her human form, but they’d been hoping for that ever since she’d arrived. The little girl was stubborn. He could relate, but her stubbornness was going to end up killing her.

  Unable to come up with a better way to get through to her, he grabbed her by the tuft of loose skin on her back and tugged. Cloth ripped as he pulled her off the chair. Molly hissed and twisted in his grip, little legs flailing wildly. He held her at arm’s length and let her struggle until she tired before he lifted her and stared into her pale blue eyes.

  She bared a single fang and hissed.

  “Enough, Molly. You are a child first, a cub second. This game is getting old, and I won’t put up with it.”

  More growls crawled up her throat. She swiped her paw, meeting air.

  “If you won’t shift, you will take control of your cat and show me some respect. My chair is not your scratching post.”

  She snarled.

  Josh narrowed his eyes, lifted one corner of his mouth, and growled, mimicking what he’d heard from the other shifters. The deep rumbly sound coming from him sounded deeper than he’d expected. The ache in his gums returned. His fingers itched. He ignored the sensations as the silent battle of wills continued.

  Molly fell quiet and stared at him. Instinctively, he knew it wasn’t enough. He didn’t want the child to cower, but he had to establish who was in charge.

  He leaned forward so his face was a couple of inches from hers and gave another low growl. Molly went limp and dropped her gaze. Hating himself for her reaction yet knowing it was the only way to deal with the little cub, he snarled once more then wrapped her in his arms, hugging her furry body close. She nuzzled his chin and gave his cheek a lick. He smiled.

  “Yes, little one, we’re cool. Just remember who’s in charge, and if you think to mark anything inside the house, think again.” He pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose and set her down. She scrambled off. Within moments, she was occupied by a rubber ball, the little dominance rift obviously forgotten.

  The sensation of an intense gaze settled on his back. He turned his head. Devin sat on the couch, elbows on his knees, and deep creases lining his forehead.

  Josh raised a brow. “What?”

  “If I didn’t see it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it.”

  He brushed white fur off his shirt. “I told you I could handle Molly. She just needed to learn I’m in charge, not her.”

  “That’s not what I’m talking about.”

  The shifter’s tone stopped him from making a smart-ass comment. “Then what?”

  “Your eyes glowed.” Devin studied him a long moment more before he shook his head. “I don’t think you’re entirely human anymore.”

  Josh laughed so hard Molly stopped to look at him. “Oh, yeah? Then what am I, buddy?”

  Devin scrubbed a hand through his hair. “No idea.”

  “It’s the dim lights in here. Zoe thought the same thing yesterday. Once she turned them on, I was all back to normal.” Josh walked to the wall switch and flicked it. He faced the other man. “Well?”

  Devin narrowed his eyes at him. He parted his mouth and inhaled, no doubt tasting Josh’s scent. The feline shifters often called on their animals when they didn’t understand something or needed more info.

  Devin sat back, brow still creased. “I guess I was wrong.”

  “Trick of the light, my friend.” Josh tapped his chest with a balled fist. “Only one in here is me.”

  Except, the snickering echoing in his head made him wonder if he really had lost his mind once and for all.

  Chapter 26

  Mira sat in her car and stared at the nested carts in front of the grocery store. She couldn’t seem to find the desire to move. Depression had plagued her for centuries. She knew how to hide it, how to pretend it didn’t choke her. Practiced smiles, the motions of living, and the need to be positive for her mentally unstable twin had kept her from spiraling into the abyss she often hovered over. She no longer had any reason to pretend. Devin had found his sanity. And…and she had no hope for a brighter future.

  Everything that had happened the past few days threatened to crush her. It was too much. Wetness dripped on her lap. She frowned at the liquid spots decorating the khaki pants she’d worn to Kade’s house. Realization struck. She wiped at the trail of tears on her cheeks. She’d allowed her dark mood to paralyze her.

  A quick peek at the clock showed she’d sat in the grocery store’s lot for over an hour. Her death-by-chocolate ice cream had met an early demise before it even made it home.

  She popped her contacts out and dropped them in the plastic bag along with her favorite therapy. With a pair of sunglasses shielding her feline eyes, she shuffled to the garbage can and dropped her melted purchase.

  A familiar and hated scent drifted to her. She pivoted on her heel and nearly collided with Zeb. He stumbled back.

  “S-s-sorry,” he mumbled.

  Mira frowned at the sight of him. Bloodshot, unfocused eyes contrasted with his pasty skin. Sweat beaded on his forehead. His cracked lips trembled. All in all, he looked horrible.

  She parted her lips and inhaled. Fear, pain, and a residual trace of unfamiliar chemicals surrounded him. She drew in another slow breath, allowing the foreign odors seeping from his pores to coat her tongue. The information didn’t make sense. She could’ve sworn the pungent taint clinging to him would’ve come from a corpse.

  She took a step back, not because he frightened her but because her stomach churned. Zeb stood there with his mouth hanging open and drool collecting in one corner. Although she disliked the male for what he’d done to Josh, her protective instincts rose. She laid her hand on his cool, clammy skin.

  “Are you okay?”

  “N-no. I need h-help. I…” He glanced over her shoulder. His eyes widened, and a garbled cry crawled up his throat. He licked his lips. “N-never m-m-ind. My sis…she’s right there. She’ll h-
help m-me.”

  He spun on his heel and ran. In the opposite direction.

  She watched his uncoordinated movements and frowned harder. She peered over her shoulder, but didn’t see anyone suspicious or his sister, just humans going about their daily business. She glanced in the direction Zeb had run.

  He darted across the road. Horns blared, and tires screeched. He hopped in to a rusted hatchback parked on the other side. The car peeled out. Black, noxious smoke burped out of its exhaust pipe and obscured her view of the license plate.

  She debated getting in her car and going after him but dismissed the idea. It wasn’t her place to get involved in investigating every illegal activity involving the humans. She’d mention it to Kade later.

  Ignoring the disturbing encounter, she made her way to her car and drove back to her place. The trip passed too quickly. Before she knew it, the metal box she called home loomed before her. She didn’t want to be alone inside the trailer’s claustrophobic walls but had nowhere else to go. There were only so many places in town she could wander without drawing looks from the townsfolk.

  She parked and made her way to the door. While the woods looked tempting to escape into, she didn’t want any shifters to accidently stumble upon her. She was in no mood for company tonight.

  With the door closed behind her, she kicked off her flats and tugged her shirt out of her pants. The scent of heaven drifted to her. A heartbeat reached her ears next, and her pulse echoed in her mate bite.

  “Josh.”

  He was sprawled on her couch, one leg bent on the seat, the other flat on the floor. With his back pressed into the corner and his arm stretched across the cushion, he looked relaxed and sexier than she’d ever seen him. The shadow of stubble she loved dusted his jaw and the ends of his hair stood on end as if he’d just woken. The absence of shoes and his rumpled clothes suggested he might have.