by Lacey Thorn
“What?” Derrick was incredulous. Hunters were prone to giving shifters cocktails that made it impossible for them to shift. But something that kept them locked in their animal skins? “Why would wolf shifters want to do that to another shifter? What could they be hoping for?”
“Maybe, they only want to do it to us,” Cody offered. “Maybe, it’s less about all the wolves and more about the packs alphas. You, me, Adrian, and Michael. If we were locked in animal form, would there be anyone who would challenge the pure bloods among the wolf breeds?”
“No one with our power,” Derrick admitted. “Fuck! The more I learn about these bastards, the more I want to take them out.”
“Agreed. Christ, Derrick. I don’t know what to do for Michael. All my years of training, and I have no fucking clue how to save him. Fighting will see one of us dead. Flight, when available to him, could lead to us to losing him for good. Short of a miracle, I don’t know what to do.”
A miracle. That sounded like exactly what Jess was.
“Have you ever heard of wolves sharing a mate?” Derrick asked, broaching the subject weighing heavily on his mind.
“No. Why? Jess.” Cody answered his own question while watching Derrick with a curious expression. “Wolves don’t share.”
“I know. Trust me. Yet…” Derrick paused, shaking his head. “I love her. I’ve fallen hard and fast and completely for her. So much so that I’d do anything to make her happy, to protect her.”
“What are you saying?” Cody asked, and Derrick swore he saw hope in his best friend’s gaze.
“I’m wondering if something unexpected might be the catalyst that holds us all together while the world around us spins out of control.”
“English, Derrick. What are you saying? Because if you’re thinking you want to share Jess with one of us, to allow another to mate her also, I want to be all in,” Cody assured him.
“Isn’t that strange?” Derrick mused. “My scent on her should be the biggest deterrent to keep other wolves away. Hell, it even works on humans, though they don’t understand it. Yet, with Jess…”
“It’s not,” Cody finished.
“No,” Derrick agreed. “And she has feelings for all of us. She hurts for us, fears for us, and I know she loves all of us. She cried herself to sleep just a bit ago.”
“What? Why? What the hell did you do?” Cody demanded.
“I told her no to her crazy plan to save Michael.”
“Wait, she has a plan to save Michael?”
“Her father came up with it, actually,” Derrick admitted.
“You let her talk to her father?” Cody questioned, and Derrick laughed.
“I came back, and she was in Michael’s room, curled up on his bed with his phone pressed to her ear. She tore your room apart by the way.” He laughed at Cody’s expression. His friend was a stickler for tidiness. Derrick teased it was the doctor in Cody. “She was looking for a phone. I had mine. You had yours. She found Michael’s.”
“What’s her plan?” Cody asked, returning to the point.
“Sex,” Derrick stated baldly. “If he can’t fight or take flight, she thinks fucking would help him burn off what’s in his system.”
“Michael made that suggestion also. You weren’t on board then,” Cody reminded him.
“Talk to me,” Derrick urged. “Do you think it could work?”
Cody looked thoughtful. He turned back to his equipment, picking up the printouts he’d given Jess earlier and going over them. “Maybe,” he conceded. “It would be a gamble. I mean, we have no idea what’s going on with Michael right now other than the animal has risen to the surface. Plus, I’m not sure who we could get to…” His gaze snapped up as it clicked in his head. “She wants to have sex with Michael.”
Derrick nodded. “To save his life.”
“And you’re considering this? Seriously considering sharing her?” Cody was definitely having trouble understanding.
“She asked me to imagine it was me hit and she was Michael’s mate. Or if it was you or Adrian. And she cried. Sobbed at the thought of losing one of us now that she’s found us. How can one woman care so damn much? How can she make me question everything we know and understand about mating? How can she make my wolf do the same?”
“I don’t know,” Cody replied. “I know I struggled the entire time she was in here with me, despite your scent clinging to her, despite knowing you’ve claimed her. I want her, and the animal in me was hard pressed not to issue a claim of our own. It scares me, Derrick. To the point I’m thinking I might have to leave once we get Michael stabilized. I can’t stay and not touch her. I’m not that strong.”
“I don’t think any of us are. We’ve got to figure this out. Quickly. She wants her father to look at Michael’s tests. Says he’ll find what we’re missing.”
“We can’t involve him,” Cody argued.
“I know, but he’s already involved. The moment we brought Jess here, he became involved. He’s her family, her father. She won’t exclude him. Not even to protect him.”
“If Alisha or any of the hunters on our tails find out you mated her, they won’t give two shits about using him to hurt her. To hurt us,” Cody offered with a growl. “How do we protect him?”
“Any way we can. I promised her, if he was ever threatened, we’d protect him,” Derrick vowed.
“Does she realize that involves making him disappear from his current life. Preferably by making the rest of the world believe he’s dead. We both know that’s the only way to fully protect him.”
“We’ll have to make sure they’re both aware of that,” Derrick agreed. It was the only thing they could do. “Now, about the idea of using sex to help Michael. What are your thoughts on that? Because I can guarantee my mate will be down here, trying to seduce Michael on her own, if we don’t come up with a safe plan.”
Cody licked his lips, and Derrick knew the idea of sharing Jess was the right thing when his wolf didn’t react with anger.
“It’s one thing to say she wants to save us all,” Cody stated. “It’s another to agree to mate four alpha wolves. And you know that’s what it would be, all four of us. That’s a lot for a human female to take on. Hell, for any female to take on.”
“Four mates means she’s fully protected. No one will get to her. We’ll work it out so one of us will always be with her when we’re away from here. No matter what.”
“And?” Cody prompted when Derrick paused. It was uncanny how in sync they could be at times.
“What better way to show how serious we are about uniting all the packs than for us to share a single mate. All four alphas with one woman. One woman who will bear our children, uniting us in a way we’ve never been before. No distinction between breeds.”
“Damn,” Cody breathed. “You’ve really given this some thought.”
“I love her, Cody. That means I’m willing to do whatever it takes to protect her. Even if it means sharing her. But I won’t do that unless I know all of us are on the same page when it comes to her. She comes first, last, and always. Protected at all times. I will kill for her, and if it comes to it, I’ll die, as well.”
Cody was nodding before Derrick even finished. “Yes, I’m on the same page. First, last, always.”
“Let’s go talk to Adrian,” Derrick said as he turned to leave the lab. This should be tearing apart his soul, thinking of another wolf touching his mate. It wasn’t. Instead, he felt a warm glow as if things had always been fated to happen this way. Which would mean they’d been fated to meet her now, when they needed her the most.
Chapter Thirteen
Adrian sat up, running a hand over his face as both Cody and Derrick entered the room where he kept watch over Michael. Derrick was tense, and Cody didn’t look much better. Adrian would bet everything he had that it had something to do with Jess. She was certainly keeping everyone on their toes.
“What’s up?” he asked as he came to his feet.
“How’s Michae
l?” Cody asked, moving over to the bed and automatically checking Michael’s pulse.
“Sleeping,” Adrian replied. “Not soundly, though. He’s restless. Find anything?”
Cody gave a weird semi-shake-nod thing that managed to be an answer without giving an answer.
“His pulse is racing,” Cody muttered. “While he’s fucking sleeping. If those fuckers were in front of me right now, I’d rip them apart with my bare hands.”
“Same,” Adrian rumbled. He was still kicking himself in the ass for not going after the attackers, but Michael had needed him there. Hell, Michael needed him now. “Do you think they have an antidote to whatever they hit him with?”
Cody shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“Logic would say yes, but then nothing about turning against your own kind seems logical,” Derrick stated.
“Maybe, they’re more human than wolf,” Adrian suggested. “Humans turn against each other all the time.”
“True,” Cody agreed while Derrick nodded.
“Regardless of the whys or ifs, we don’t have time for those things,” Derrick reminded. “We need to do something for him now.”
Derrick and Cody shared a look. One that had Adrian’s heartbeat speeding up.
“What exactly did you find?” Fuck, he’d try anything at this point to save his best friend.
“Jess was in Michael’s room when I got back from her cabin. She was using his phone.”
“His phone… Wait. You left without letting any of us know? What the fuck, Derrick! You know that bitch is out there just waiting to get her claws into you! Do you want to be in Michael’s position? We go in pairs or not at all. Hell, even being in a pair, Michael was hit. The only thing that kept them from taking him was me being there. If they got to you alone… Fuck! I don’t want to think about it.”
“Cody already lit me up over it,” Derrick admitted. “It was a quick in and out to get the rest of her stuff. I admit I shouldn’t have gone without telling you, though.”
“Without taking one of us with you,” Cody corrected, and Adrian nodded his agreement.
“I know. It won’t happen again. There’s too much at stake. For all of us.”
Adrian nodded again, agreeing completely with Derrick. There was a lot at stake for all of them. “Who was she on the phone with?” He could only think of one person, and Derrick confirmed it.
“Her dad. She wants to send him Michael’s tests. Have him look at them. She seems to think he’ll be able to work some miracle and figure stuff out. Plus, there’s no way to keep him out of this. Apart from us. Not without risking losing Jess, and she stays.” There was no missing the growl in Derrick’s chest as he made that statement.
“She’s your mate,” Adrian agreed, gaze bouncing between Cody and Derrick. “Of course, she stays.”
“Her father will be involved now, and god help us all, if he’s anything like his daughter,” Derrick warned.
Adrian and Cody both laughed.
“This is going to be a lot, but we’ll figure it out together and make it work. And if her father’s as amazing as she believes he is, then I can’t imagine him not being an asset,” Derrick growled.
“We’ll have to keep a close eye on him. If our enemies discover his importance, that he’s the father of your mate, they’ll use him in any way they can. Even if it means his life,” Adrian warned.
“Which brings me to the next thing I wanted to discuss.”
“About Jess? Or her father?” Adrian asked Derrick before glancing toward Cody.
“It’s about all of us,” Derrick replied.
“Okay, well, spill. Don’t keep me in the dark when it’s obvious Cody already knows what’s going on,” Adrian demanded.
“You want my mate,” Derrick stated. “So does Michael.”
“You can’t hold Michael’s actions against him right now,” Adrian commanded, his temper rising. “And it doesn’t matter what I want. She’s your mate. Yours. I respect that.”
“When Jess spoke with her father, she asked him about Michael’s condition, about what could be done to help with it.” Derrick blew out a breath. “He offered a solution.”
“Michael can’t fight because we’re afraid it would be to the death,” Adrian offered. “He doesn’t want to shift, even if the other drug wore off and it became an option, so we can’t go that route, either. What’s left to try?”
“Wait!” Cody jumped in. “When did he say he didn’t want to shift?”
“Earlier. When you went to get more sedative for him. He said he felt out of sync. As if shifting would make things worse. He said he was fighting to stay in control, to prevent his animal from taking over.” And that worried Adrian.
“Why didn’t you tell me that?” Cody demanded.
“As if you need one more thing on your plate to worry about,” Adrian snarled. “Do you think we don’t know how hard you’ve been working on this? Do you even sleep? When was the last time you ate anything?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Cody snapped.
“It does,” Derrick replied softly. “If we lose you, we lose the only doctor we have.”
“Not much of a doctor lately,” Cody stated.
“Christ,” Adrian sighed. “Maybe, this is what they wanted. Dissension among the four of us. We’re doubting ourselves and pulling apart. Hit one of us, and it attacks us all. We can’t let them win. We’re alphas. Friends. We need to remember that.”
“Jess mentioned that. Creating dissension. First, Cody, tell him what you found out from the test Jess ran.”
“She managed to isolate the animal DNA in Michael’s blood. The unknown drug seems to be attaching itself there. It’s possible it’s pushing his animal side to the forefront by attaching the increased adrenaline there.”
“Making sure he’ll want to shift?” Adrian questioned.
“Yes, and in doing so, he might not be able to shift back,” Cody warned. It was a sobering thought.
“What the hell are we going to do?” Adrian glanced down at his best friend. He couldn’t lose him.
“How far would you go to save Michael?” Derrick asked.
“Anything,” Adrian stated without pause. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to save him.”
“Would you share a mate?”
Derrick’s softly spoken question was like a lit match being dropped on gasoline-soaked wood. It ignited flames of desire in Adrian. Made him want what he’d already told himself he couldn’t have.
“What are you saying?” he demanded.
“Jess believes sex might be the key to saving Michael,” Cody offered.
“Michael already said that but…” Adrian paused as he worked through it in his mind. It could work. Maybe. “I’m not sure he can control himself in his current condition. He might hurt her.”
Derrick shook his head. “That was my first thought, too, but I don’t think he would. I don’t think any of us would be capable of hurting her, no matter the state of our wolves. She’s too important to all of us. If we do this, if she consents to this, then we’d all be together. She’d be our mate. Belong with the four of us. Fully protected at all times.”
Adrian shook his head. “How is your wolf okay with this? How does this feel right to me? I see Cody’s on board and I have no doubt Michael will be too. It makes no sense. Wolves don’t share. Especially when it comes to mates.”
“I love her,” Derrick stated simply. “We’ve already started forming a bond. If something were to happen to me, she’d be alone. I don’t want her to ever be alone. I want to know she’s protected, that she has a home, a pack that will provide for her. I want to know she’s loved. The thought of sharing her… I can’t explain how it makes me feel. It goes against everything. Yet, it seems completely right. Something inside me says it’s right. This is what we need to do. For her and ourselves.”
“I’d protect her with my life,” Adrian offered. “But I would do that regardless, Derrick. I’d do it because she’s yours, an
d as such, that would make her mine to protect, as well.”
“I would also,” Cody agreed.
“Same.” The grunt came from the bed where Michael was still tied down. His eyes glowed, showing his animal close to the surface. “I…wouldn’t…hurt her.”
Adrian knew it was hard for Michael to force out the words. Hell, it was almost as if he was on borrowed time as it was. If they were going to do something, they’d need to do it soon.
“I know you won’t,” Derrick agreed, walking toward Michael. “I know you want her.”
Michael growled, giving a jerk of his chin in affirmation.
“Can you handle sharing her with three other alphas?” Derrick asked then glanced at Adrian and Cody. “Can all of you?”
“Yes.” Michael was the first to answer, the reply pushed from between clenched teeth.
“Yes,” Cody agreed.
“I’ll take any part of her I can have,” Adrian stated. “If she agrees to this, to all of us, I’ll love her with everything I have for the rest of my life.”
“Maybe, you should ask her.” Jess stood in the doorway, watching them. She smelled so much like Derrick now, Adrian hadn’t realized she was there. He could tell Derrick had. Cody he wasn’t sure. Derrick was the one who crossed to her and pulled her close.
“Feeling any better?” he asked, running his fingers along her jaw.
“Depends. Am I dreaming or were the four of you discussing sharing me as a mate? That’s not possible is it? I thought wolves didn’t share. Isn’t that the cause of the tension between you and Cody?”
“If we’ve learned anything over the last few years, it’s that we’re not like most wolves. It’s not only the alpha status. It’s what we want, what we see as a possible future, not just for ourselves, but for all wolves. This could be a way to show them how we can be one pack, by the four of us claiming one mate.”
