The Protector's Heart (Wilde Creek Three) (23 page)

“He’s not so bad,” she promised.

Jack reached for Eveny, and Nila let him go.
“Wow, what a cutie pie. No wonder you want him here all the time,”
Eveny said to Brynn.

“Besides being a fun kid, it’s neat to watch
Acksel with him. I hope we have a boy.”

Mia shrugged. “Girls are easier.”

“Says the girl who painted her bedroom walls
solid black during her junior year of high school and her ‘goth
phase,’” Brynn said.

“I’ll never live that down,” Mia
complained.

“I don’t care what we have as long as he or
she is healthy and happy. Acksel said there’s only a 50/50 chance
that our children will shift, depending on whether they take more
after me or him.”

“I think it would be easier if our kids could
shift, but if they can’t then at least they’re growing up in a pack
that accepts them, unlike others that are strictly full-wolves
only,” Eveny said. She walked away with Jack to a handsome blond
male, and Brynn said that he was Luke, her human mate.

“Malachi told me about the changes to pack
law. It was because of her, and you, that things are they way they
are now, right?” Nila asked Brynn.

“Yes. If Acksel and I weren’t mates, then he
wouldn’t have made all the changes that he did, but because he
wants our pack to be inclusive and not exclusive, he changed all
the laws pertaining to mates and children. One of our children may
one day lead the pack.”

Because Brynn was human, Acksel wouldn’t have
been allowed to take her as his mate without being banished. Since
he was alpha, instead of taking the banishment, he chose to change
the laws that dictated that action. Some pack members left because
they didn’t like those changes and wanted the pack to remain
wolf-only. She was glad that he’d changed the laws, because she
benefited from it as Malachi’s mate. She wasn’t considered a
complete outsider. Although she’d never be part of pack meetings or
have authority in any way, she was welcome at the gatherings and
had the protection of the pack members, and so did Jack.

“I can’t imagine Jack ever shifting into a
full wolf, but Doc said that it’s most likely going to happen,
since he partially shifted already.” She was envious in a way, of
the freedom and the power that came with being a shifter, and she
was glad her son could enjoy it. It would be better to be a half
wolf who could shift than one who couldn’t. “Thanks for letting me
and Jack hang out here tonight.”

“You two are welcome anytime. Now that you’re
leaving the clinic, I’ll miss our chats.”

“Are you going to keep working through the
pregnancy?”

“Acksel wants me to quit now, but I told him
I wanted to work a little longer. I like getting out of the house
and being around people. With you going to work for Doc, you’ll be
there when I deliver the baby, right?”

“I suppose, I mean if you’d like me to
be.”

“Hell yes!” She lowered her voice. “I’m
scared as crap. I mean, how am I supposed to get a baby out of
there
? Did you know that she-wolves can shift after they
have a baby and then when they shift back to their human form,
they’re all healed? How unfair is that?”

Nila remembered Jack’s birth vividly, mostly
because she’d been all alone in the hospital room. Even though the
nurses had been friendly, it wasn’t the same as having someone she
knew and cared about there with her. She’d wished that Diane had
been able to be there with her, but she’d been out of town on
vacation and had come to see her as soon as she got home.

She squeezed Brynn’s shoulder. “We’re made
for it, you know. Even if you’re scared, your body will still know
what to do. I remember what having Jack was like, but the pain and
stuff is fuzzy in my memory. The thing I remember the most is that
when they took him away after he was first born and did all the
testing and cleaned him up, he was squalling like he was being
tortured. Then they brought him back in to me and the minute they
laid him on my chest, he quieted, as if he knew he was with someone
who loved him and would take care of him. That right there is what
makes the pain worth it.”

Brynn sniffled and rubbed away a tear.
“That’s so sweet.”

Acksel and Malachi were suddenly between her
and Brynn, and Nila looked up at Malachi in confusion.

“Are you okay?” Acksel asked Brynn.

“I’m fine, geez. Overreact much?”

Then Nila realized that Malachi was putting
himself between her and Acksel, because Acksel was obviously the
sort of guy who didn’t like his mate being upset. She wrapped her
arms around Malachi’s waist and hugged him. “You’re awesome.”

He chuckled. “Yeah?”

“You put yourself between me and your leader.
That’s pretty amazing in my book.”

“For the record, I would never hit a woman,”
Acksel said with a huff.

“I disagree with that statement,” Eveny said
from where she and her mate stood while Jack played on the floor
with some toys at their feet. “In fact, I have photographic proof
that you’ve hit me on many, many occasions.”

Acksel made a face. “Not since we were
little, Ev, don’t make me out to be an ogre.”

Mia snorted and choked on her drink, spilling
some of the dark soda onto the floor. Acksel snarled and Mia
groaned. “Great. I’m the one who pisses him off and no one is here
to protect me.”

Malachi said, “I’d get over there.
Eventually.”

She made a face at him and everyone dissolved
into laughter. Nila rested her cheek on Malachi’s chest and
listened to his heart as he, Acksel, Brynn, and Mia teased each
other. She really loved the camaraderie of the pack. Jack would get
to grow up in this. Nila’d had friends when she was in school, but
they hadn’t been the lifelong sort like Mia and Brynn or Acksel and
Malachi. Being part of the pack, even only as a mate, meant that
Nila was part of something bigger than her own small family, and
Jack was too.

Acksel clapped his hands together and
everyone fell silent. “The pack is gathering outside now. It’s cold
as hell, so let’s get this show on the road. Ready, Malachi?”

“Yeah, we’ll be right out.”

Acksel and Brynn walked out onto the back
deck after she bundled up, and Mia, Dade, and the elders followed.
Eveny brought Jack to her and then she and Luke left as well, until
it was just the three of them.

“After I’ve claimed you and Jack in front of
the pack, we’re going hunting. I always hunt with Acksel and Dade
and usually Sam or Ren. There isn’t anything other than hunting
going on.”

“You’re not going to bring back any dead
things, are you?” She made a face.

Laughing, he kissed her forehead. “Nah. We’ll
be gone a few hours and then when I get back, I’m taking you and
Jack home and, once he’s tucked in his crib, you and I are going to
celebrate our mating night.”

A shiver raced down her spine. “Oh?”

He practically purred as he kissed her, and
then he tousled Jack’s hair. “Let’s get you two ready.”

Malachi wrestled a very wiggly Jack into his
snowsuit while Nila tugged on boots and a coat. They stepped out
onto the deck and found an elder named Hollis standing between
Acksel and Brynn. Hollis held a thick book in his hands. Torches
were flickering on the deck, and the pack was gathered in the yard.
Mia, Eveny, and Luke were in front of the group.

Nila, Jack, and Malachi stood in front of the
trio. Malachi held Jack with one arm and gripped Nila’s hand,
linking their fingers.

Hollis spoke in a loud, clear voice. “On this
night, Malachi Slattery brings Nila Caruthers and her son, Jack
Caruthers, before the alphas, the elders, and the pack, to declare
them his mate and his son. The laws of our people are clear: a wolf
may claim any person as his or her mate and that person is welcome
into the pack. If there are any among us who would disagree, speak
now or remain silent forever.”

She wondered if someone would say something.
A she-wolf who thought she was better suited for Malachi, or a wolf
who didn’t think that humans should be part of the pack. But no one
said anything. After what felt like an eternity, Hollis smiled at
them and took a step back. Acksel and Brynn grasped hands, and
Acksel said loudly, “As alpha of the Wilde Creek Pack, I declare
Nila and Jack Caruthers honored members, under the authority of the
alphas and the protection of the pack. Welcome to the pack.”

He lifted his head and howled, the sound
piercing the silent night in a way that shook her to her very soul.
Brynn smiled and hugged her and Jack as Malachi and the other pack
members joined in the howling. To her surprise, and everyone
else’s, Jack howled too, although his howl sounded more like a
playful yip than the deep-throated cry of the others.

Malachi curled his hand around her neck and
gently pulled her to his mouth. The nearly-chaste kiss made her
smile as he pressed his forehead to hers and whispered, “My mate.”
Then he kissed Jack on the top of the head and said, “My son.” He
smiled at her, eyes brimming with love. “I love you, Nila. My life
wouldn’t be the same without you and Jack in it.”

“I love you, too, Malachi.”

Acksel called for the wolves to shift and
Eveny appeared on the deck with Luke, offering to take Jack inside
while Nila remained with Malachi. Nila glanced around
surreptitiously as the wolves began to strip. Malachi took her hand
and gently pulled her down the steps onto the snowy grass and
around the corner of the house.

“What are we doing over here?” she asked as
the shadows closed around them and the sounds of the pack were
muted.

“I don’t want you looking at any other
guys.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course I am. The only naked guy I want
you ogling is me.”

“Did you just say ‘ogle’?”

“I did, woman.” He growled the words at her,
jerking her close until they were pressed together.

“I can’t see you in the dark,” she pointed
out.

He kissed her hard, delving his tongue in her
mouth like he was staking a claim, making her toes curl with the
intensity. With a grunt, he released his hold on her and took a few
steps back until he was out of the shadows and began to strip.
She’d seen Damien shift once, but he’d been showing off. Malachi
wasn’t showing off for her, he was shifting because he needed to,
and keeping it between them because he wanted it that way. This was
their time.

She caught his shirt as he tossed it to her.
He toed off his boots and stood barefoot in the snow with his
fingers at the waistband of his jeans. Warmth snaked through her,
and his lip curled up in a snarl.

“If you keep looking at me like that, I’m
going to want to stay here.” His voice was gruff, and she could see
his muscles were bunched and tense.

“You’re gorgeous, Mal, and you’re mine.” She
let the word roll around in her mind for a second and smiled at the
possessive way it made her feel. He didn’t
own
her, and she
didn’t
own
him, but they belonged to each other all the
same. “I’ll be here when you get back, and then we can go home and
celebrate.”

He shoved his jeans down and stepped from
them, tossing them to her as he straightened. She was tempted to
ask for a quickie, or to drop on her knees and lick him like a
lollipop, but for one, her son was in the house waiting for her,
and for another, Malachi needed to hunt.

“Have fun hunting, Mal,” she said, smiling
and hugging his still-warm clothes to her chest.

He winked and dropped to his knees, the shift
overtaking him quickly. He shook himself out and she closed the
distance between them and knelt next to him. His fur was thick,
coarse along his back but soft on his belly. He nuzzled her cheek
and made a soft sound, a cross between a purr and a growl, and she
looped her arm around his neck and gave him a hug and kiss on his
muzzle. Wishing him a good hunt, she walked to the deck, and he
followed her to where several wolves were waiting. Nila joined
Brynn on the deck, and they watched the wolves head off into the
woods.

“I’m jealous of them getting to shift, but
I’m glad that I can’t because I don’t really have to let Acksel
boss me around like I would if I was a wolf.”

“I’m sure he bosses you around enough as it
is,” Nila said as she folded Malachi’s clothes and set them on the
top step of the porch. She walked into the house with Brynn. Luke
was sitting on the couch and Eveny was on the floor with Jack,
stacking blocks.

“Acksel tries,” Brynn winked. “How is Diane
doing? Kammie stopped by while you and Mal were around the corner
and said that everything was going well, but I didn’t know if you’d
talked to her or not.”

“I went to see her yesterday, and we talk
every few days. She’s healing fine, and having fun with Kammie.
Malachi said the repairs on Diane’s house are finished now, so she
can go home as soon as she’s able to take care of herself.”

“I think it’s been good for Kammie to have
someone to take care of. She likes to be helpful.”

Eveny looked up from the floor. “She told me
it’s easier to be around humans than wolves because humans don’t
expect as much from her, not like the pack does.”

“Mal said that all females are automatically
omegas except for the alpha female. Why aren’t females ranked like
the guys?” Nila asked, joining Eveny on the floor.

Jack handed her a block and she stacked it on
top of another. Eveny said, “Packs are still very male-centric,
even ones that are as progressive as ours is becoming. I heard
there are a few packs where females are also ranked, but even in
those situations, the females are a separate ranking from the males
and not a truly cohesive ranking of everyone together.”

Nila thought of Ren and Sam and the other
males she’d met in the pack. “I don’t suppose there are many guys
who would like having a woman be higher ranked.”