The first man asked her to move back from the
table, he was taking pictures. After about ten minutes of pictures being taken
and Billy going on about her pancakes, the men took off their coats and started
helping with the clean-up. She was surprised speechless when one of them got
the mop and bucket out to start putting hot water in it.
“I can do this.”
The man he’d called Aedan winked at her and
continued to pick up the broken pottery while the third man began piling dishes
that weren’t broken in the sink. Feeling out of her element, she went to the
sinks and began filling the stainless steel bowls up with hot water. There was
a dishwasher, of course, but there were plenty of pots to wash up too.
After about an hour the kitchen was set to
rights. Not only were all the pots and pans cleaned, but the dishwasher had
been run and lunch dishes were put away as well. Danny had finished up where
she’d begun, and Andi had spent the better part of that hour just cleaning the
big grill. It shone like a mirror when she was finally finished. She was going to
help Danny put away the pots when she heard someone clear their throat.
“You think you can cook us up some lunch?” The
older gentleman helped her lift the largest pot she’d ever used out of the sink
and into the rinse water. “Whatever you have around, that’ll be good. But I have
to tell you, the rest of them are coming over too.”
“Rest?” He told her that she might have as
many as ten for a late lunch. “Okay. I can do that. There is some soup too. Not
much, but enough for a few bowls. And I found enough to make some sandwiches if
that’s okay.” He assured her that it would be wonderful.
She made her way to the walk-in and thought
about what was in there. There were salad fixings, of course, and some vegetables,
but the size of those men led her to believe that they’d want something more
substantial. Like a steak or chop. Finding two dozen of the chops and some
potatoes, she figured whatever was left over Martha could serve for tomorrow’s
special. Andi had already figured she’d not be working here after today. No one
was going to believe that she’d had nothing to do with this mess.
~~~
Mac was let into the restaurant by Ennis. The
two of them had been talking via their link about what had been going on here
for a couple of days while he’d been gone, and he’d told him to come by the Home
Cooking. Ennis said he was just on the verge of telling Storm that Martha had
to go when his family told him to have a seat, food was about ready. He was
glad now that she’d taken it out of their hands, apparently. Aedan sat beside
him and grinned.
“You hungry?” Mac said that he could eat.
“Well shit. I was hoping you said that you’d already eaten and that whatever
those smells are that are coming from the kitchen would be ours. Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.” He took a deep breath and
could smell the aromas. “Who did you get to come in and feed us? A four star
chef? Christ, that smells like heaven.”
“Yeah, no kidding. Storm and Mom are helping
Andi put it all on platters, and when they have it all ready, we’re going to go
and bring it out when they tell us. The kitchen isn’t big enough for us all; and
besides, we were threatened.” He asked him about what. “Andi, the cook. She
said that if we got in her way again, she was going to call Martha back to
finish the dinner. I think that shocked her, saying something like that. She
doesn’t strike me as the sort of person that would say something bad about
someone else. I think we all rattled her.”
He could see that. They were all grown men
and large. And with all seven of them there, including his dad, he thought
perhaps they were about the size of a tank. Then when you added in Billy, Mom,
and Storm, he could see where even the calmest person could have a time with
it.
“Set the tables closer together so we can
eat.” Nodding at his dad, he and Aedan started shoving tables together in a
long line. Dad and Riordan were putting out silverware and Darcy was filling
glasses of tea. Liam and Ennis were putting out napkins and salt and pepper shakers,
pulling them from other tables. “Boy, I’m telling you, I’m sure looking forward
to this meal. Don’t know why, but I have a feeling it’s going to be about the
best we’ve all had in a bit. At least since Caroline passed on.”
His parents’ old cook had died about three
months ago. Caroline had been a part of his childhood all the way up until he’d
left for college, baking and cooking for the household every meal and keeping
them well supplied with cookies and pies when they were away. Mom and Dad were
looking but had yet to find anyone to take her place. Mac thought it was
because they were still missing her.
“Okay, we’re ready.” He looked at his mom
when she came out of the kitchen with two heavy platters. Taking one of them
from her, he kissed her cheek as she told him to go into the kitchen and get
the other ones. “Stormy is talking with that nice young girl. She thinks this
is her last day.”
“Why?”
His mom only shrugged and put her platter
down, following him to the kitchen after he set his on the table. He warned the
others there had better be enough for him when he got back.
There was another platter of chops, a bowl of
corn, and another of green beans. Corn bread was still steaming on the stove
top, as well as three big bowls of fried potatoes. His mouth started to water
when he thought of how many of these alone he was going to scarf down. And if
Stormy didn’t want this girl, whoever she was, then he’d hire her to cook for
him full time. As he took some of the platters to the dining area, he saved back
one of the bowls of potatoes for himself. He figured if his family got them,
he’d never get even a fried onion that was in the bowl too. Before he could
leave the kitchen, however, he saw them.
Storm was a beautiful woman. And he’d be the
first to tell anyone who asked that he was slightly afraid of her. He knew that
if asked, she’d be armed with not just a gun, but knives as well. And he also
knew that she could kick his ass even though he was bigger than her. But the
woman standing next to her was who had his full attention.
Fragile was the first thought that came to
mind. Then delicate. Rose-like and even soft. But he also had a feeling that
she could be hard, defensive, as well as protective. He stood there staring at
her when he felt someone bump him from behind. He turned to look at his dad.
“That would be Andi.” Mac nodded. “She and
Storm are friends, and when she was hurt a few days ago, she had her brought
here to hide out. I think she asked you to look in on her while she was gone. I
know that Billy has been giving you reports and all, but the shit hit the fan
today. I guess her family is a piece of work.”
“Married?” His dad said he didn’t think so,
but that he’d heard from Ennis that it was a dad and aunt that were making
things hard for her. “Do you think they’ll come here for her?”
For some reason Mac hoped so. He tried to
shake off the feeling that he needed to protect her by telling himself that she
was a friend of Storm’s, so he had to. But Mac found that he wanted to touch
her too. Looking at his dad when he said his name, he handed him the platter of
the coveted potatoes and made his way to the woman.
“Andi, this is my brother-in-law, Cormac. He
goes by Mac. Like I was telling you, they’re not going to let anything happen
to you.” Mac shook his head and looked at the bruising on Andi’s face as Storm
continued. “Come on out and have lunch with us, and let them tell you how
wonderful your meal is. I’m sure that any one of them will beg you to marry
them so that you’ll cook for them.”
The low growl coming from his throat startled
all three of them. Storm cocked a brow at him and Andi backed up. He tried to
reason with his cat that things were fine, but he wasn’t too happy right now. Mac
took a step back too and smiled at Andi.
“I’m hungry, that’s all. And I guess we’re
all waiting on you to join us.” Andi just stared at him. “Dad said that he had
some of your pancakes this morning and that they were as light as feathers. And
my favorite food of all time is fried potatoes.”
“They were fast.” He had no idea what that
meant. Mac didn’t venture into the kitchen except to pick up a snack or to
microwave leftovers from some restaurant he or one of his brothers might have
been to. He was not a cook. “You should go eat, while things are hot.”
Hot. Heat. Mac felt his mind go into
overdrive at the thoughts that the words brought up in his head. Not for food,
though he thought of filling his belly with something, but it was the woman,
not food. She must have sensed something, because she took another step back
and he took one toward her this time. Storm moved between her and him. He
wanted to snarl at her, but the look on her face had him pause.
You’re scaring her, you idiot. Back the fuck
up.
He didn’t want to back up and he was pretty sure that Storm knew it.
Back up
or I swear to you I will shoot your dick off and slap you around with it. Back
the fuck up, Mac.
He did. One step, then another until his cat
was snarling at him. Storm didn’t move, didn’t let him see Andi either. Mac
knew that he’d frightened Andi. He felt horrible about that, but something was
wrong here and he didn’t understand it.
“Storm? Mac? Are you guys coming to eat?” He
turned to his mom, trying to get his fuzz-filled head to reason with his body
and cat. “Mac? Are you all right?”
“Yes.” Even his voice wasn’t right. He turned
then, looking at his mom, and then nodded at her. “We’re just coming now. Storm
is trying to talk Andi into coming with us.”
“Well of course she will.” His mom came into
the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Andi, pulling her past him and to the
door. She was telling her how much she was looking forward to the meal she’d
made when Mac turned back to Storm. She looked as pissed off as he felt
confused.
“What the hell is wrong with you? I told you
to back off. She’s been going through some shit, and you being a fucking
jackass is not going to help her.” He nodded and told her he didn’t know what
was wrong with him. “Well, fucking straighten up or I’ll make you. Do you
understand me? She’s got enough shit on her plate without you acting like one
of her family members.”
“Her aunt and father.” Storm told him that if
she had her way, she’d shoot them both and bury them in the back yard for the
worms to get ill over. “They’re hurting her for what reason?”
“They’ve got it in their head that she’s
their maid and payday all wrapped up in a pretty little bow. When I found her the
other day, that piece of shit father of hers was dragging her around by her hair
and telling me that she had to send him her checks. He’s in jail. I had Mason
go and pay him a visit, and he’s supposed to not bother her again. We’ll see. Mason
said the man was too stupid to take to the compulsion very well, that he didn’t
expect him to stay away. But he’d go back and visit him a couple more times
just to make sure.”
“He will. Not bother her, I mean. Neither her
father nor her aunt will get near her if I can help it.” Storm said nothing but
stared at him. “We should go eat. I mean, I’m hungry, aren’t you?”
“I am. What was that?” He told her he
honestly had no idea. “Well curb it, buddy, or I will. She’s my friend, and I
don’t want you going all macho shit stupid on her.”
“You have such a way with words. You know
that, don’t you?” Storm told him to fuck off. “Yeah, like a delicate flower you
are. It’s small wonder that they don’t have you teach kindergarten or something
like that. You’d be such a hit with the parents.”
They made their way to the dining area and
Mac was trying his best to get his thoughts in a row. While he’d been in the
back rooms, Storm’s aunts had shown up to eat with them, and he was glad for
that. They were a family too, after all. Sitting down, he noticed that Andi was
at the other end of the table from him, and for some reason that made him feel
pissy again. But Storm grabbed his leg under the table and dug her nails—more
likely her cat claws—into his thigh, and he sat still. He didn’t move, thankful
that she’d not gone any higher on his leg.
Mess this up and I will make that pretty face
of yours look like raw meat.
He nodded and put his hand over hers to
remove it. But she dug deeper. Mac moved his hand and sat still until she
removed hers. He didn’t think he wanted to ever sit near her again at the
table. Storm was not a nice person when she was being protective. He hated to
see what she would be like with her own children.
Andi was trying her best not to eat very much
because she was afraid of getting ill. But they all, everyone around her, kept
shoving food on her plate. And when she protested that she’d eaten earlier, no
one seemed to care. She had two chops and a mound of potatoes on her plate—which
would feed her entire family at home—before she had any opportunity to pass the
platters beyond her. Well, her dad could eat this much and more. He’d eat this
as a snack.
“Are you enjoying working here?” Nodding at
Mr. Harrison, she told him she loved it, but wasn’t sure if she was going to
continue. “And why not? I’m telling you right now, if you cooked like this
every day, there wouldn’t ever be an empty seat in this place. This is
amazing.”
“It’s just potatoes and pork chops.” He
laughed, and she felt her face heat up. “That other woman—Martha—she said that
she’s in charge of the kitchen and that she was going to talk to Storm about
me. I think she made that mess you helped me clean up to show her that I’d done
it. I promise you that I didn’t do anything to her other than my job.”
Mrs. Harrison laughed as she spoke. “We all
know that, even Storm does. And Martha said that to her. Right before we got
here, Martha called Stormy and told her that you had this fit, and that you had
completely messed up her kitchen. That’d you’d broken her things and that she
would not work with you again. That you needed to be fired. Stupid woman.” Mrs.
Harrison handed her a thick slice of cornbread, and Andi took it as the older
woman continued. “She has no idea that my husband and sons were here when she
left, and that Stormy knows that you had nothing to do with it. I’m thinking
that you’re going to be in charge soon. Oh, and Billy—Billy Richards—he’s the
manager of this place, also a doctor. He comes here, waits tables, to get to
know the men and women that come in to see if they need him. It’s been working
well for all of them, I think.”
“I see.” She really didn’t, but glanced down
the long table at the man that had scared her. He was looking right back at her,
and no matter how hard she tried Andi couldn’t seem to pull her eyes from him. And
when one of his brothers spoke to him and he looked at them, Andi bowed her
head and let out a long breath.
“He’s very handsome, isn’t he?” Andi looked
at Mrs. Harrison when she spoke low to her. “Stormy told me what happened in
the kitchen. I guess we should have expected it to happen soon.”
“Happen? What happened?” When she only smiled
at her, Andi looked down the table at Mac again. But she saw a movement out of
the corner of her eye that had her looking at the door. Her brother. Andi stood
up when he pounded on the door.
“I have to go.” Everyone stood as well, and
she noticed in a vague sort of way that Storm had a gun and so did the man
seated next to her. They didn’t raise them up, but they looked like they could
at a second’s notice. “I have to go now. It’s my brother, and he’s going to
come in here.”
“Like hell he will.” When she turned to move
toward the back door, Mac was suddenly in front of her. Backing away from him
was impossible with the table behind her, and he managed to wrap her up in his
arms before she could tell him to stop. “Come on, we’ll go out the back and
Storm and Riordan will take care of him.”
“He wants me. And he’ll stop at nothing to
get me if that’s what Dad told him to do. Jim is…he needs to do what he’s told
or he gets into trouble.” Mac only laughed. As she was led through the kitchen
to the back door, she heard the front door open and Storm talking…well,
talking
wasn’t the term she would have used, but yelling at Jim. “I have to go or he’ll
catch me.”
“He’s not going to touch you. No one is.”
He was dragging her to a car…a sleek,
expensive-looking car…and she was in the passenger side and buckled in before she
could protest. When Mac got in on the other side, he started the car and turned
to back out. But he only stared at her.
“I’d like to kiss you right now.”
“Me?” He nodded, his arm still on the back of
her seat, his other hand on the steering wheel. “Do you think that it’ll make
my brother go away or something? Because I’m pretty sure that it won’t. Make
him go away. Jim has problems that he can’t help, and he’s afraid of our dad.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t give a good fuck about
your brother right now. But I really would like to kiss you. If you’re worried
about your brother coming out here and interrupting us, I’m pretty sure that
he’s been detained by my family. Which gives me plenty of time to pursue the
idea of tasting you.” She backed from him, and he laughed. “I thought that was what
you’d say. For now anyway.”
He backed out of the parking space and was on
the road before she could think of a reply to what he’d said. There was
something very off about the man, and she wasn’t sure he was right in the head.
Andi thought of him growling earlier and wanted to ask him to do that again. It
had warmed her in ways not even standing over the register at home had ever
done.
It occurred to her that she should have asked
him where he was taking her. Or at the very least why she was being taken away
in the first place. Her brother wasn’t a nice person, but he’d only ever hurt
her when he’d been told to. He’d do what Dad told him to do to her, but he’d
never do anything on his own. That didn’t mean she wasn’t afraid of Jim; she
was. But her father was a real bastard to her and would cause her a world of
hurt when he could. Her aunt too. Now there was a monster.
“Do you know anything about shifters?” The
question caught her off guard and she asked him what he meant. “You know,
shifters. Like a man that can be another thing, a cat in this scenario. Or even
a vampire or anything that people, humans, don’t believe in.”
Andi looked out the window and thought of how
to answer him. Was he making fun of her? There was no reason to believe that he
knew about her encounter with a wolf. Her father and brother had beaten her
when she’d tried to tell them about the wolf man. Glancing at Mac, she wondered
what he was going to do if she admitted it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’d very
much like it if you were to let me out of your car so I can find a place to
hide.” He didn’t slow to stop but kept driving at a speed that was making her
heart race a little. And not necessarily in a bad way. “Why do you ask me such
a question? Do you mean to make fun of me? Hit me if I tell you what you don’t
want to hear?”
“No. I have no intentions of hitting you,
ever. And I won’t make fun of you. If you’ve some knowledge of what a shifter
is, then this will make things a little easier when I have to explain something
to you. Something that I only just figured out on my own.” She asked him what
that was. “That you are my mate.”
Mate. She’d heard the term before. And what
it meant. She would belong to him. Not just him, but whoever he wanted to sell
her to. Andi reached for the door handle, thinking that rolling from a moving
car would be better than being passed around like a napkin at a banquet hall.
“Don’t do that.” He reached for her hand just
as she touched the handle. “Please, just listen to me and I’ll explain.”
“I don’t need you to explain. I know what
mate means. My friends at school, they told me what happens when you become a
mate to men. And what they didn’t tell me, my father and aunt explained the
rest. Mates use you, and then when they’ve had enough, they pass you around to
all the other men they know. I won’t have it.”
The car suddenly stopped. Her seatbelt cut into
her neck, and she nearly hit her head on the dash it stopped so abruptly. Mac
turned to her after shutting down the car, and she whimpered when he reached
for her.
“I won’t hurt you. I won’t share you. Who the
fuck were you talking to? Not another shifter, that’s for sure. We don’t pass around
our mates. And we certainly don’t beat them. We can’t. Ever. Our kind treasures
our mates, not…. I’d really like for this conversation to be made when we’re
sitting down.” She looked at the seat, then back at him. “Okay, sitting in my
home on furniture so that we can talk about this calmly.”
“I want you to take me back to the
restaurant. I’d rather deal with Jim than…you’re not my mate.” He growled again,
and before she could appreciate the feelings he gave her, he pulled her to him
and kissed her.
~~~
Mac had only meant to hold her in his arms,
talk to her calmly, and explain. But the moment he touched her, put his hands
on her skin, all he could think about was tasting her. Having her naked over
him, under him, he didn’t care at that moment. But himself deep inside of her
was all he wanted right now. As he deepened the kiss, pulled her body over his
as he let the seat go back as far as it would go, Mac knew that he was going to
have to slow things down. He could taste her innocence on her like perfume.
“I need to stop this.” He heard the words
leave his mouth, but his hands and body had other things they wanted to do. Her
blouse was lifted up, her breasts bared for him. Just a taste, he told himself.
He only wanted to suckle at her breast, to taste her.
“Please. Don’t.” He wanted to heed her words
but her fingers curled at the back of his head had him pulling her ass to his
groin so she could feel his cock. As she rode him with his help, Mac bit down
on her nipple hard enough to bring a cry from her mouth and make her body
shudder in pleasure. Lifting his head to look at her, he could see the need in
her eyes.
“Come for me, Andi. Come on me like this so I
can taste it on your skin.” He held her to him, his cock burning to take her,
his cat snarling at him to do it too. But as she rode him, her hips moving
faster and faster, Mac knew that he needed more from her. All of her. When she
continued to hold him to her body, he took her breast into his mouth again and,
reaching between them, he freed his cock.
He needed relief. Even if he only came on
her, he knew that his cat would be happy and he’d not ache so desperately to
have her. But as soon as her fingers brushed over his highly sensitive cock, he
tore his mouth from her breast and laid her over the seat.
“I need you. Now.” Her head was nodding even
as he pulled her pants off. He moved over the bucket seat, careful of the
shifter between them. Lifting her up as he did, Mac tore the remains of her
blouse off. Taking her breast into his mouth, he knew that he was going to hurt
her.
The ability to slow his need, even for a
second to breathe, was taken away from him when she nipped at his throat,
bringing out his inner beast. He lifted her body up over his and slammed her
down over his burning cock.
Her scream of pain tore at him. Mac held her
to him, her body tightening around him so prettily that he knew even if she
begged him to, there was no way for him to leave her body. Holding her,
whispering in her ear how sorry he was, Mac felt like he’d ripped at his own
heart to hear her crying like she was.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t mean for this
to happen.” Andi sobbed that he did too. “Okay, I did, but not right now. I
only wanted to talk to you. Kiss you a few times. Maybe even taste you, but not
in my car. This is not what I wanted when I asked to kiss you.”
Her head lifted and he could see the anger
there. Embarrassment too, but she was spitting fire at him and he felt his cock
stretch. Christ, he thought her beautiful before, but in her anger, she was gorgeous.
“Are you saying that this is my fault, that I
somehow lured you into taking me in your car like this?” He shook his head, wanting
to smile at her and tell her that he was enjoying this, but he was pretty sure
she would hurt him. “I told you several times to take me back there, and now
look at us.”
He did. Looked down his body and hers to see
how they were bonded. His cock was buried deep within her, her pussy wrapped around
him like open arms. Moving his hips, just to see if he could go deeper, she moaned
and he watched her face. When her eyes fluttered closed when he moved again, he
cupped her bare ass and pulled her closer to him.
“I want to see you come like this, riding
me.” Her head shook, but her body was stretching for his. “I never thought this
was your fault. But I’m glad that we’re here. You have no idea how beautiful
you look for me right now. Your pretty pussy wrapped up around me, your clit peeking
out of those lips of yours. I love the way your breasts pink up, your pert
nipple begging me to suckle at it. I want to do that, Andi. Do it until you
come on me.”
“I’ve never done this before.” He told her he
knew that. “Please. I can feel it coming, something so good, but you’re not
giving it to me. Help me get it, and then you can take me home.”
“I’ll take you home, Andi. When you come for
me I’ll take you home. I’m going to fill you, too, when you come.” Her body
seemed to jerk at his words, and he leaned in and took just the tip of her
nipple in his mouth and chewed on it before looking up at her again. “You taste
so delicious. So good. I can’t wait to have your cum in my mouth, your pussy
filing me when I eat you.”
She came apart then. Her back bowed, her
breasts pressed against his face, and he took one in his mouth and bit down on
it, drawing blood. She came again for him, and her screaming out her release
made his cock fill. Drinking from her, watching her face as she came again, he
wondered if there was ever anything more beautiful than his mate coming.
Pulling her mouth to his neck, leaning over for her, he told her to bite him,
to mark him. When her teeth scraped over his flesh, Mac felt his balls fill
painfully, his cock stretch once again. And when she bit down, not hard enough
to draw blood but enough to bring him, Mac cried out and bit her on the
shoulder when she came with him.