Authors: Joyee Flynn
“I could go for another round!” He winked at me impishly and shook his ass as an invitation. Oh, it was so tempting, and my cock was recovering, pleading to do him again.
“Not here,” I whispered gently as I lowered his legs. He gave me a questioning look as I leaned over and kissed him. “You’re too special, my mate, to claim in the cab of a moving truck. And we need to talk about what’s involved in me making you mine.”
“You’re going to love me, aren’t you?” His smile was so bright that it was infectious. I thought the question strange and blunt, but I wasn’t all that shocked because it seemed to be so like Imogen to ask.
“That’s the plan. I hope we fall in love. I can’t wait until we do to claim you though, Imogen. Cat shifters are different than most paranormals. We have forty-eight hours to claim our mates from the time we smell them before we start getting sick. My brother overheated after meeting his from holding off, but I’m okay since we keep touching and fucking.”
“Let me tend to you, my keeper.” I nodded and he used his magic as he did before to clean us both right up. I realized something else off about the apparel he dressed himself in since it was a hot summer evening.
“Why the vest?” He wore gray suit slacks, a white button-up shirt, and a suit vest with it. Oddly formal but I figured everyone had a different style. At least this time he left off the tie.
“It hides my wings,” he whispered, suddenly looking anywhere but at me. “Most fairies wear them when on this plane.”
“Can I see them? I’ve never seen wings before.” I wasn’t sure Emily Post would think me polite for asking, but I just really wanted to see them.
“I know I’m small and feminine, but my wings are really girly.” Imogen still wouldn’t look at me as he moved to sit up and scooted toward the door.
“Are they pink?” I teased and felt like an ass when he nodded. “I’d still like to see them. Please, Imogen?”
He nodded again and didn’t look at me as he gave me his back and started taking off his vest and shirt. I gasped when I caught sight of what he’d been hiding. They were pink, but they weren’t. It was more like they were iridescent and reflected light. They weren’t huge angel wings like ones I saw in the movies but smaller ones where the tips maybe went as far as his knees.
They folded in several spots, making them look almost like a strange, colorful, feathered backpack. It was like nothing I’d ever seen, and they were really beyond words in their exquisiteness.
“That’s so cool that you can fly,” I whispered in awe as I ran my fingers over his wings. “These are beautiful, baby.”
“You think so?” He glanced at me over his shoulder, and I could see the pleading in his eyes that I was telling him the truth. I growled and moved closer to lick his lips. He sighed against my mouth, and I could almost feel the relief coming off of him.
“I think every inch of you is amazing, and I don’t think wings that can let you fly are girly.”
“Thank you!” Imogen cried out and turned around so fast that I barely saw him. He knocked me back on the seat and started peppering my face and neck with kisses. I laughed as he attacked me, the first real laugh I’d had in weeks since the order came down from the Council to evacuate paranormals and change our world forever.
“You know how you said you’re a nympho?” I asked quietly as he settled down and we simply lay there hugging each other.
“I didn’t mean that literally, Sasha.”
“I know, but I’m one, too, in a way.” He froze, and I quickly explained about the honeymoon heat, lunar cycles, and the other basics he’d need to know about being mated to a saber-tooth tiger shifter. By the time I was done, we were long since back on the road and almost to Billings, Montana. Imogen was quiet the whole time, and we sat in a long silence while he processed all of it, making me worry.
“Think we’ll ever get anything else done besides sex?” I glanced over at him, wondering if he was joking or upset. The puckish grin he was giving me let me know he didn’t have a problem with the idea.
“I’m sure we’ll make a few hours in the day to eat,” I answered with a snicker. “Why don’t you get some more sleep? I saw your bites were almost healed, but you’ve been through a lot.”
“I am quite tired,” he said and yawned as if proving his point. He used my thigh as a pillow, and a few minutes later, he was snoring softly. It was the cutest damn snore I’d ever heard. I thought a lot about what had happened since seeing the blue light that ended up being my mate. I ended up texting Aaron with an estimate on when we’d be at Conley’s compound since I didn’t feel like talking right then.
My life had changed drastically in the past several hours and while I hoped it would all be for the better… It didn’t mean I wasn’t still nervous.
* * * *
“Wake up, baby,” I said gently a while later as I pulled into Conley’s estate. I’d already been cleared by the guards, and I was watching the large cast iron gate slide open. “We’re here.”
“Does that mean I get fed again?” he asked sleepily as he rubbed his eyes and sat up. Damn! He was adorable even when waking.
“What would you like?”
“Cock,” he answered with a lazy smile. “I think I’ve become addicted to you, my feisty kitten. And I find myself thrilled about it.”
“Me, too.” I slid my hand into his as I pulled up front. Imogen stared around, not in awe of the huge mansion as I was but more as a tourist did in a foreign country. I wondered again how hard it would be for him to acclimate to living on this plane. We’d not even discussed that yet or even if I
could
live where he was from. Add it to the mental list of things to chat about later.
“So we will be living here from now on?” he asked as I parked the truck and turned it off. I thought about how to answer that as I opened the door, got out, and helped him down.
“We need to talk about that. I sent my stuff here ahead of me with another truck since we’re not supposed to live on our own anymore, and the pack in Sheridan was too small to keep everyone safe. But can you live on this plane permanently? Or would I go live in your world?”
“We’re not allowed to let outsiders live there,” he answered as he shook his head. “We can visit my family, but only fae are allowed to live there. It’s our sanctuary from this world, and it wouldn’t help to bring people from this world over there.”
“I feel like I should apologize for that and making you move.” I nodded to the guard who opened the door for us. They knew to expect us so we didn’t have to jump through too many hoops.
“Don’t worry, I like this realm better actually, and there are certain perks to living with you.” He chuckled and snuggled up against me. That worked for me! We stepped into the foyer of the house, and I smelled someone familiar. I couldn’t help the smile that crossed my lips if I’d wanted to.
“Sasha!” My brother, Kody, called out as he raced to me. I’d not seen him in a while, and I missed the days when we all lived right by each other. I dropped Imogen’s hand and opened my arms for my pint-size bro. I was the tallest of the litter at six three, so I had a good eight inches on Kody. He jumped into my arms, giving me a fierce hug.
One of the great things about being a shifter, and especially when part of a litter was there, was no man-code against hugging. We hugged all the time, none of that half-hug shit with the slap on the back. And shifters are very touchy-feely, and even more so for litter-mates. It was a comfort thing, nothing creepy.
“Come meet my mate,” I said excitedly as he kissed my cheek.
“You found him on the way here?” Kody gave me a glance, letting me know he’d be grilling me later.
“Yes,” I answered for now, the really, really short version as we turned to Imogen. Who wasn’t looking at us. “Baby? What’s wrong?”
“I thought Conley was a shifter like you,” he whispered as he started to shake. I followed his gaze and saw Conley, Marc, and a few other vampires I didn’t know staring at my mate as if he was dinner. Fuck!
“No, they’re vamps.” I snarled loudly at them. It didn’t seem to shake them out of whatever haze they were in. It looked like they were stoned almost, dilated pupils and everything.
“I take back what I said about you being smart since you literally just brought me into the lion’s den here, Sasha.” Imogen didn’t sound very happy with me, and I couldn’t say that I blamed him. His voice sounded stronger, but I could smell his fear and damn it was strong, almost overwhelming.
“You said they were a threat if they bit you though. These ones won’t bite you!” I felt as if I was missing something major here that would connect the dots in my brain and let me know what the fuck was going on.
“They goddamn better not bite him.” Kody growled at his mates and stared daggers at them. “Stop looking at my brother’s mate as if you want to eat him up! What the fuck is wrong with you guys?”
“They want to eat me all right. Literally.” Imogen groaned as the three of us started walking backward to the door. No turning our backs on the hungry vampires. “Sasha, my blood is addictive if they drink it. But, just like catnip, the smell is intoxicating as well.”
“Fuuuuck,” I drawled with lots of feeling. “That’s the part I was missing. I’m a moron. Your blood doesn’t smell any different to me than other supernaturals. You smell like magic, but I’ve smelled similar before. I missed the connection to what you were telling me.”
“He doesn’t smell enticing to you because you’re not a vampire,” Marc said with something between a moan and a growl of desire. “I’ve not smelled fairy in centuries.”
“I’ve only tasted one once even longer ago.” Conley looked giddy at the prospect.
“What is wrong with you guys?” a dark-haired, gorgeous man asked as he pushed past them and came to stand by us. “He smells good, yeah, but get a grip. You’re centuries-old vampires not kids who don’t know how to control their thirst!”
“Aaron,” I whispered, knowing that voice. And then two things hit me at once…he was my other mate, and this was so not how I ever wanted our first meeting to be.
“I prayed you were my mate,” he said as he glanced at me, his eyes tearing with emotion. “Let’s get the crazy vamps calm and have a proper greeting. Plus, I want to know how you found a fairy.”
“He’s our mate,” I replied and then heard Kody snarl.
“If you two don’t cut this shit out neither of you will get any sex for a month!”
“I apologize, our sexy tiger,” Conley said gently as he stepped closer to Imogen. “I don’t think this is something we can control.”
“Aww, fuck,” I groaned, glanced at Kody, and we shifted, tearing our clothes. Since I was bigger than Kody, my tiger was as well. Hell, since I was big for a cat shifter in general my tiger was much bigger than could be found in the wild. That is if saber-tooth tigers weren’t extinct. Okay, so it was all a bit confusing. The end result was Kody, about a four-hundred-fifty-pound tiger while I was closer to seven hundred.
We roared with everything we had, loud enough to shatter the glass in the front windows of the foyer. That finally seemed to snap the two vamps I knew under the spell and the four that I didn’t.
“Shit,” Marc gasped as he shook his head. “Okay, I’m okay now. Wow, so wasn’t ready for the smell of fairy and what it does to us.”
Kody and I didn’t shift back. He stood out in front with Aaron as I paced behind them, guarding Imogen. My brother moved up to Marc, opening his mouth wide to show off his deadly teeth and moved them right over his groin.
“I get it, no sex for a while,” he said, swallowing nervously. “I was a very bad mate. I’m sorry, baby, please don’t bite off my balls. I didn’t want to fuck him, I swear.”
“It wasn’t sexual, Kody.” Conley had guts as he approached my pissed-off brother and moved his hand in front of Marc’s groin. “The blood of the fae is like waving cocaine in front of an addict. We can brace ourselves and deal with it if we know a fairy is coming. It took us by surprise, and for that we apologize. Can you forgive us, our sexy tiger?”