"Finally, she says. We've only known each other for a little over a week, Eva."
She turned on her heel with a flip of her hair. "I'll show you how it's done."
"How…? What?"
Eva didn't answer. She marched across the room to a group of male students, then tapped one on the arm. "Excuse me." The sing-song voice and the bounce in her step made Eva appear even younger than usual.
He turned toward her, and Eva went up on her toes, grasped his head in both hands, and laid a full-out carnal kiss on him. He pulled her toward him with a growl.
At last, he straightened and left the kiss. Eva let her hands slide to his shoulders.
"Are you inviting my attentions, little wolf?" The question sounded like a challenge.
Samara bristled. "He doesn't even know her name."
Jason gathered her to his chest, stopping her march over there to leave scars. "I assure you, he does."
Eva trailed a fingertip down along one broad shoulder. "Mmmm. Yes, I am."
The male's teeth and eyes shifted. "I warn you, I am fond of the ancient rites."
Eva nodded, but Samara noticed her knees shook just a bit.
Don't rush in. Think.
"What does that mean?" she demanded of her mates.
James whispered the answer to her. "It means he is intent on making Eva his mate. Brand is going to take her to a bed and seduce her until she agrees to let him lay his mark. Dissuading him, now that she has invited him, will be very difficult."
Samara swallowed the lump growing in her throat. Eva wasn't a high Alpha. Could she fight off a male as large as Brand, if it came to that?
"Eva will be fine," Jason promised.
She looked up in time to see the male lifting Eva off her feet in a show of strength.
"Brand!" There was a cut of order in James's voice.
He looked their way, as did Eva. She went wide-eyed, pleading for something Samara couldn't name.
"Take care with our little sister, Brand."
Jason tensed a notch. "Our mate would be very displeased if her den sister were injured, and what upsets our mate upsets us."
Eva blushed, but she smiled widely.
Brand tipped his head their way. "Rest assured, Alpha Samara. There is no wolf Eva is safer with than me."
"Thank you," she replied.
Brand didn't wait for more discussion. He carried Eva from the dining hall and turned toward the far staircase.
His rooms. He's taking her there instead of to our shared floor.
James and Jason will kill him if he hurts her.
That simply, her stomach settled.
* * * *
Samara had seen the residence at the edge of campus before, but she'd assumed it was Pietro Galvani's home. Since they'd passed by the Alpha Maestro in the commons, it was a fair bet they weren't going to meet him.
James rang the bell and a silver-haired man answered it.
"Lord James. Lord Jason." He tipped his head. "You are expected, and—" He looked in Samara's direction, and his olive skin went a waxy, gray-beige. "I did not know…" He straightened and backed away quickly. "My apologies for keeping you waiting. Please, come inside."
"Thank you, Roberto," James replied, ignoring the servant's fumbling and shock.
Her mates guided Samara inside.
With another unreadable look at Samara, Roberto turned away.
"Am I not welcome here?" Her stomach churned and tears stung at her eyes.
Roberto whirled around, seemingly horrified. "Anytime you wish, Alpha Samara. I am honored to serve you. I simply did not realize you would be accompanying your mates today. I would have liked to have been able to prepare for your arrival. I fear you will find my attention to detail lax."
His response stunned her. "I'm sure I won't, Roberto."
The servant smiled widely at her trust in him. He led them up one level, then down a long hallway. At the last door on the left, he waved them inside.
"Can I provide you with any refreshments while the meal is prepared for you?"
"No, thank you," Samara replied. Her stomach was still complaining, and she wasn't sure how she was going to eat lunch, let alone anything else.
"A coffee tray," James requested.
Roberto smiled widely and tipped his head. He was gone in the blink of an eye.
As if she'd questioned them, Jason offered an explanation. "Roberto has dreamed of the day you would come here. If there was nothing he could do for you, he would be disappointed."
"I see." She didn't understand it fully, but it was a small thing to ask to make an old man happy.
He was back in what seemed like moments, while Samara was still wandering around the library, admiring the leather-bound books, the paintings, and statuary. Roberto appeared at her side a moment later, offering a small cup of the coffee. Samara stared at him for a moment, confused.
He lost his composure a bit, and his face darkened. "Kona with two creams, no sugar? This is your preferred, is it not?"
"Yes. Thank you." Samara took it from his hands, trying to make sense of it. "Marietta told you?"
He smiled. "She…confirmed it, but we knew long before that."
"How?" Her senses went on high alert at that. Was someone spying on her?
James stepped in. "Your father will explain."
Samara nodded her agreement. It wasn't fair to put pressure on a servant, since they were bound to the orders they were given. She'd decided that about Marietta when she learned the servant couldn't tell her who her father was.
Roberto hovered. It took a few heartbeats for Samara to put together the reason for his hesitation. She sipped the coffee, then smiled.
"Perfect. Thank you, Roberto."
He tipped his head and hurried away.
I think I just made his day.
Jason watched him go. "That was nicely handled."
"I'm learning," she admitted.
Still, her father's lack of an appearance bothered her. Didn't he want to meet her?
* * * *
"She is enjoying coffee with her mates in the library, Sebastian."
He couldn't help it. Sebastian winced. He'd thought he was ready to face his failures, but apparently he was being outted as a coward.
"Is there a problem?" Roberto pressed him.
"I'm…nervous." Admitting that galled him. He was Alpha, and Alphas rarely showed such weakness.
"So is she. This is not a situation a wolf often finds himself in."
Sebastian snorted, baring his teeth in frustration. "One should hope not."
Roberto placed a hand on his shoulder, something he rarely did. "I was there for you then. I am here for you now. You did all you could. Your daughter will understand that."
"I did too much. I only
hope
she will understand."
Roberto straightened, glaring at him. It was all Sebastian could do not to squirm in place.
It's because he was my bodyguard when I was a child. Early lessons die hard.
Sebastian scowled at him, and Roberto smiled, showing fangs.
"You're good, old man. I'll give you that. But don't push me too far."
"Never, sir. I wouldn't dream of it."
Right.
Sebastian smoothed his shirt, then took a calming breath. "It's time."
Far past time.
Roberto didn't presume to follow him. On some level, that was better. If he made a fool of himself, it was probably better for his servant not to witness it.
He's witnessed more than a few of my mistakes.
Sebastian made his way down the corridor and slipped into the library. His breath caught in his lungs at the sight of her.
My daughter. In my home. At last.
She didn't notice his entrance. Samara was busy examining the portrait on the far wall.
"That was your grandmother. My mother. You look quite a bit like her."
Samara whirled around. For a moment, she performed a slow visual assessment of him. Then her shoulders eased. "Was. I guess that means she's…passed away. I would have liked to have met her."
"She would have loved to have met you, too." It wasn't a stretch of the truth. His mother would have doted on Samara.
"Why didn't she?" It was a blunt question.
Oh, but you are a perceptive one.
"If I had told my parents about you, they would never have let me live to the agreement I made with your mother."
Her color drained away. "I see."
You don't. You
really
don't.
"Please, allow me to explain."
For a moment, he was sure she was going to refuse, storm out, walk away from him right there.
At last, Samara nodded. "I promised to hear you out calmly. I can't guarantee the
calm
part, but I'll hear you out."
More than I'd hoped for.
Sebastian proffered his hand. "Over lunch. Roberto will be setting it out now."
Samara hesitated and her mates came to her side. They led her toward the door.
Sebastian stared at his hand for a moment, his heart aching.
Give her time. She doesn't even know the truth yet.
That could be good or bad for me.
* * * *
Samara settled into the chair Roberto offered at the foot of the table. She considered pushing the plate away. It was filled with her favorites, but she wasn't sure she could stomach it.
Her father sat at the opposite end. He waved off the plate Roberto offered.
Is he as nervous as I am? Maybe so, but what did it matter?
Roberto took his leave and disappeared into the kitchen. Silence fell around the table.
"I suppose you should know who I am, to start with."
"That makes sense," Samara conceded.
"My name is Sebastian Travalian."
It had a nice ring to it.
I won't be using it. I'm a Trudale now.
"I met your mother when I was visiting America. Our kind maintains a close kinship with many human groups, including several Native American nations. I was there to revisit and revitalize our pacts with them.
"I knew Florence was my mate. There was really no question that she was. I also knew she reeked of another male…a male I soon learned was her husband."
Samara's temper simmered, and she did her best to hold it in check. "You knew she was married and decided to break up her marriage?"
His jaw tightened. "I don't mean to speak ill of your mother, but—"
"Oh, don't stand on ceremony. I know what she's like."
That drew a wry smile from him. "Yes. So do I." A look of misery replaced it. "Your mother was more than willing to carry on an affair with me. She's quite convincing, and I truly believed she intended to allow me to mark her as my mate."
"You
knew
my mother was married and
intended
to break up her marriage?" Samara was quickly losing her patience.
"Yes, damn it, I did." Sebastian motioned for a moment of peace. He took several deep breaths. "I was young, newly advanced to my position. I believed she would choose me over a…mere human. Yes, I admit I was more than a little bigoted back then. And…I was afraid of losing her and never being able to mate." He motioned again, before she could protest. "I've since learned the very hard truth that no mate is better than one you cannot trust."
Samara considered that. Jason covered her hand with his, and she grasped it, needing their connection. James did the same on the other side.
She couldn't imagine life alone after being part of their mating. "I see."
"When she caught pregnant with you, I pushed the issue. It was time to end the dalliance we were carrying on and for her to commit to what we…were to each other."
"And she refused you." Samara didn't question it.
He swallowed what looked—from his expression—like a sour wave of disgust. "In a word…yes. I wasn't content with her decision, of course, but Florence threatened to expose what she knew of our kind.
"Sure, most people would think she was a crackpot, but there are societies of people, enemies of our kind. They are always listening for news of us, for disgruntled humans who will point the way. Mind you, it wasn't just a duty to our people that convinced me to back down. If Florence shared the wrong stories about me… They would kill you, Samara. And I wouldn't be with you to protect you."
James squeezed her hand, then loosened his grip. "Leaving her unprotected had to be a torture."
Sebastian laughed harshly. "That was one thing I refused to do."
"I don't understand," Samara admitted.
He sighed. "I made a deal with your mother—a deal that ensured your protection. I would walk away and let her and her…husband raise my child."
"He's a good man," Samara argued. "I know you have your reasons for disliking the situation she created, but if it had to happen that way… I couldn't have had a better father raise me."
Sebastian waved her down. "I know. Had he ever been a danger to you… Had he not been the perfect father, I would have killed him myself, agreements be damned."
She shivered at the threat, but his admission put a temporary damper on her fury. "So, what
was
this deal?"
"They would raise you, happily. I warned her up front that I wouldn't stand for any abuse or neglect of you.
"She would provide me with updates and pictures of you, as you grew. Florence tried to claim she 'forgot' some of the time, but my men filled in the blanks and—"
"Men?" Samara questioned. "
What
men? What were they supposed to do?"
His face darkened and Sebastian cleared his throat. "I told her a few of my trusted men would stay close, making sure you were safe. Thankfully, they rarely had to intervene in your life, fleeting moments where they…dissuaded someone in the shadows. They also helped train you."
"Pardon me?" What was he saying?
"Do you recall two males from your self-defense classes, named Trent and Dale?"
She nodded. "Two older guys. They were in their late twenties when I was a pre-teen." They were also often paired with her in sparring practice.
I learned a lot from them.