Chapter Two
The hot French vanilla cappuccino slid down Carly’s throat, warming her from the inside out, chasing away the chill of the morning. She ached in several delicious places, but even the pleasurable memories of the previous night couldn’t banish the hurt and disappointment that had blossomed in her chest.
Darlin’.
She was now mated to a man who was more comfortable beneath a skirt than standing tall. A particular blonde’s skirt.
She took another sip, let the soothing sweet taste flow over her taste buds.
The sound of knuckles hitting the wood of her back door cut through the silence of her kitchen. “Carly? Baby? Open the door.”
She snorted. ‘Baby’? So, she was ‘baby’ now. At least that was an improvement.
She ignored him. She couldn’t deal with him right then. Part of her—the furry bunny part—was overjoyed with the results of last night. Her freakin’ rabbit was hopping around in her mind, squeaking and jumping, rolling on her back now and again and just acting like a lovesick fool.
Heh. Love. No, love had nothing to do with a mating. Nope, it was all instinctual, animal attraction. Hearts never came into play. Sure, maybe someday…
Carly heard Neal’s deep sigh and forced herself to remain still. The rabbit wanted to comfort her mate, rub all over him, and make him smile.
“Carly—“ The ringing of a cell phone cut him off and she forced herself not to listen, afraid she’d hear another ‘darlin’’. “Hello?” His voice held more than a hint of annoyance.
A fierce pounding on her front door brought Carly to her feet. She could still hear Neal in the back yard, so it wasn’t the cowboy out front. She dropped the cup on the table before turning toward the front of the house. Another round of thumping and she increased her pace.
Geez, the visitor was impatient.
At the door, she peeked through one of the windows on each side of the portal and then rushed to let her visitor—no, visitors—in.
The very second the door swung wide, she was embraced in a big ole lion hug by her best friend, Maya, and nearly had the life squeezed out of her. Head on Maya’s shoulder, she stared at the four men still standing on her porch and raised her eyebrows.
After the Gaian Moon, most shifters were dead to the world for a while. Bumping uglies all night could do that to a body. But here stood four of the randiest men she knew and the pride’s prima, bright and early. Sure, maybe Maya’s mate had taken it easy on her since she was six months pregnant with twins, but from what she’d heard, her BFF’s guards were like energizer bunnies—er, lions.
“So, uh…”
The four men shrugged their shoulders.
All righty, then.
When the sounds of sniffles and hiccups reached her ears, Carly figured it might be some hormonal thing and figured she’d focus on soothing the woman.
She wrapped her arms around Maya’s shoulders, stroked her back and tried for a bit of levity, teased her friend about her mate. “Hey, it can’t be that bad. It’s not his fault he’s got erectile dysfunction. He’s old, right? We’ll get him some little blue pills and it’ll be all good. We can even order them online without a prescription from Mexico or Canada or something.”
Her friend stiffened in her arms.
Gotcha.
Maya shoved her away and held her at arm’s length, fire in her eyes. “Ohmagawd. He does not have ED. How could you…” She shook her head, narrowed her eyes. “You’re just trying to get me to quit crying.” She huffed. “Fine. I’m a tad emotional, but I totally have a good reason.”
Maya breezed past her and toward the back of her house. Probably to hunt up some ice cream.
Carly really needed to buy stock in Ben & Jerry’s. Seriously.
With a grumbled “Come in,” she followed Maya’s trail down the hallway and found the woman just as she’d suspected: carton of ice cream in hand and feet propped up on one of the chairs.
“Sure, beyotch, make yourself at home.”
She waved the spoon at Carly. “Thank you for such a warm welcome.” She scooped another mound of the ice cream into her mouth. “And if you’d been through what I’d been through this morning, you’d know that this stuff is totally earned. I even had a reason for crying this time.”
Carly raised a brow.
Maya stuck her tongue out. “I did. There was…”
Her words trailed off and Carly figured that she’d just realized that she had Neal camped out in her back yard. Through the walls, she could hear Maya’s guards joining her mate out back.
Her mate.
Gah.
But no, God was not being gracious and kind this morning. Nope. She watched as Maya’s nostrils flared and her friend took a nice, deep breath.
Oh. Joy.
And in three…two…one…
“You mated!” Maya squealed and raced around the table, arms stretched wide.
Okay, she waddled, but the end was still the same: she was engulfed in a great big lion hug once again, her friend rocking them back and forth in a happy dance.
Carly wasn’t all that happy. Mostly. Okay, a little happy, but a little of a lot of sad. Half and half?
Maya released her and then slumped into the seat right next to Carly. “It was last night, right? Why didn’t you call? I would have totally woken up for that.” She leaned forward and sniffed. “And Neal? Really? I didn’t…I had no… But you’ve been around each other before and…” She waved a hand in the air. “Doesn’t matter. You’re mated!” Her eyes widened. “We have to plan a party, send out announcements and—“
“No, My. No.” Carly shook her head. Determined.
“But…” She poked out her lower lip.
Carly lowered her voice to a whisper, not wanting the guys out back to hear. Neal, in particular. “You know how I feel about Neal. You know…” She swallowed, blinked back the tears. She was acting like a stupid, stupid girl. She’d dreamt of love and mating going hand in hand. Instead, her heart was breaking more and more with each beat. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “He called me ‘darlin’’. When it was over, he called me ‘darlin’’. Like I was just some… And he still has the blonde hanging around, even after we met and…”
Maya gasped, covered her mouth with her hand and then reached for her, pulled her close. They’d talked about Neal in broad strokes before and she’d always made her feelings abundantly clear. “Oh, Carly. I’m sorry. But, maybe you should give him a chance to expl—“ A fierce roar, louder even than the pride’s prime had ever released, poured from the backyard and through the kitchen and Maya’s face went white. “Oh. They told him. I was trying to stall. I don’t feel like crying again so quickly.”
Carly’s eyes snapped open wide. “Told him what? What’s going on?”
Guilt and more than a hint of sadness wiggled its way into Maya’s expression. “They…” She licked her lips. “They found… You see… Near Ian’s house…”
“Spit it out, My.”
“There was a death last night, and it wasn’t pretty.” A tear slid from the corner of her friend’s eye and Carly’s heartbeat picked up, racing and nearly bursting from her chest. God, they’d decided to mix with the lions this time around, see if they could improve lion-rabbit relations as well as finagle a few extra babies to strengthen the warren and pride. She prayed a lion hadn’t gotten too rough and…
Maya opened her mouth and anything she might have said was cut off by the cracking and breaking of wood as Neal shredded the back door.
Shredded.
What was left of the door barely clung to the hinges while the rest littered the floor.
Her mate stepped past the splinters as if they didn’t exist and Carly rose to her feet, fury pumping through her. That was her door, damn it. He couldn’t just go around—
She didn’t finish the thought. Couldn’t, really. Not when Neal was in front of her in two steps and then his lips covered hers, arms wrapping around her like steel bands and he yanked her toward him until their bodies were aligned from chest to knees.
Neal wasn’t gentle with his kiss; he was ruthless. He forced her lips apart and his tongue invaded her, sweeping in to trace every inch of her mouth. He lapped at her, sliding the supple muscle in and out, mimicking the movement of their bodies from hours before.
Carly responded, rabbit forcing her to welcome her mate, and she tangled with him, tasted and drew in his essence, proved that she could give as good as she got and then some.
Then, just as quickly as it had begun, it ended. He ripped his mouth from hers, the pounding of her heart thumping through her abused lips. He cupped her skull and pressed it against his chest, rested his chin on the top of her head. His hands stroked her back, fingers tracing her spine, and, slowly, her pulse slowed.
Distantly, she heard her friend speak, but she was too dazed by his sensual attack to catch it all.
“…you told him…mated…he deserved…gutted…looks just like her…family…”
Things did not sound well in the furry world.
Carly squirmed against him until she could raise her head and take in the rest of the room. “Would everyone like to share with the rest of the class?”
Five sets of eyes focused on her and she was sure that a look at Neal would reveal that he was intent on her, as well.
But it was Maya who spoke up first. “They found your cousin Beth this morning between your glade and your brother’s house. She’d been…” Tears glistened in her friend’s eyes and she took a deep breath before continuing. “She’d been killed while in her fur.”
“That’s why Ian called so early this morning… He told me to stay put and not let anyone in and…” Carly’s mind traveled back to just before dawn, Ian’s frantic and anger-tinged voice as he bit off orders. She’d recognized his tone, the barely suppressed fury. Since her brother tended to run hot, she hadn’t thought much of his attitude. She even paused for a handful of seconds after his call and pondered listening to his orders, but quickly tossed the idea aside. After her cappuccino, she’d planned on making her way to Maya to talk things through about her mating, yet…
She took a deep breath, unwilling to break down and cry before she knew it all. “You’re sure it was Beth?”
At the five nods, she squeezed her eyes shut. God, Beth. She’d been the sweetest, kindest woman Carly had ever known. They’d grown up together, side by side. While Carly’s brother, Ian, was the warren’s Buck and ruled the rabbits of Ridgeville, Beth’s brother, Devlin, had been Ian’s Second. They were two peas in a pod and even looked almost identical when shifted. Their brothers had always called them twins and they’d spent every minute together when they’d been kits, with human Maya not far behind.
And now she was gone.
“Why? What happened?”
“Guys? Give us a minute?” Neal’s deep baritone surrounded her, enveloped her in soothing comfort. Damn it, she didn’t want to lean on him. This was Maya’s territory, not his.
Too bad her heart wasn’t down with that thought. Nope, her heart wanted him to snuggle her close and never let her go. Wanted him to help her get through whatever was to come.
Maya and her guards filed past them. Maya’s fingers stroked her lower back as she slid by. “I’ll be here, I won’t leave you and…”
Neal interrupted her. “I’ve got her, Prima. Why don’t you have the guys take you home? I’m sure Prime would like you by his side.”
Oh, yeah, that’d go over well with Maya. “I’m her best friend—“
“And she’s his mate, Prima. Let him take care of her. We’ll bring you back later. You need to rest. I’m sure the babies are kicking up a storm, right? Aren’t you hungry?” Brute. The man was a god.
Carly heard a deep, threatening growl coming from Maya, but it retreated, growing softer, telling her without looking that her best friend had retreated.
Alone, Neal shuffled around the room and then sat, tugging her onto his lap, cuddling her close, and she absorbed his comfort, drank in his scent, and let his presence wash over her.
“I’m sorry, Carly. So sorry.”
“Who did it? Why?” She sniffled, letting the tears flow down her cheeks.
The hand on his back froze for a moment and his heartbeat stuttered. “Ian and Devlin think they may have been after you.”
It was her turn to still.
“Why?” She could barely choke out the word. Neal’s lips ghosted over her forehead and she accepted his comfort with a soft sigh.
“Because Ian’s been having trouble with a couple of different groups. The tigers are pissed at the warren, as are a couple of different flocks. Then there’re the mountain lions…”
Carly nodded. It was true. Ian had a knack for getting into arguments. “But did he piss them off enough to kill? For them to try to kill…me?”
He squeezed her tight and spoke against her temple. “One or two of them, maybe. Most of them are trying to find a place in Ridgeville, and while Prime has his fingers deep in the town government and is powerful in his own right…”
She nodded. “Ian owns damn near everything. He may not tear into flesh like you carnivores, but he’s a bloodthirsty leader. No one can move in without securing housing, and he has very rich friends who own a hell of a lot of real estate. Not to mention his personal holdings. They wouldn’t sell to shifters without his consent.”
“Exactly.” Carly felt his smile against her skin.
While the pain of her cousin’s death remained fierce, she felt some of the tension release and she began to understand the need for a mate. It wasn’t just making babies; it was comfort and caring and lo— No. None of that. Not with a man-whore like Neal.
“You know I won’t let anything happen to you, right?” She nodded. He wouldn’t. Males were ferociously protective of their females. If he were still breathing, he’d protect her.
“Well,” he drawled, “As long as you don’t run off in the middle of the night.” He rubbed her arm. “What happened, Lucky?” He repositioned her and nuzzled her neck, pushed her top aside and lapped at the healing wound on her shoulder. She hated her body right then. Despised the desire that bloomed.
“I’ve been waiting to mark you for six months. The second I do, you bolt. I felt like my heart was gonna burst, I was so damned happy, but I’ve got a feeling you’re not.”
Neal pulled back, placed a finger beneath her chin and forced her to tilt her head until she was looking right into his eyes. Damn. Those pretty blues were shining with something she didn’t want to identify. Nope. Because, if she thought about it, she realized she may have hurt him, may have bruised his heart by disappearing, which meant…which meant there might be something there worth having.
“What went through that gorgeous little head of yours last night?”
She swallowed past the lump in her throat, pushed back all the emotion that threatened to wash over her, grab her, and tug her beneath the vast ocean of battered feelings.
“’Darlin’’,” she croaked out. “You called me ‘darlin’’. You call every single woman on earth ‘darlin’’. And, last night, I was just another ‘darlin’’ to you. I was just like your blonde bimbo.” She wasn’t gonna cry. She’d built him up in her head so many times, made him seem like the perfect mate in her imagination, just to have all of it torn to pieces by his wicked smile, the seductive flash of his eyes, and then that single word. Darlin’.
Carly couldn’t deny the look of shock that overtook him, the wide eyes and paling of his face. But no denial rushed from his lips, and she took the coward’s way out.
She chose that moment to wrench from his arms and flee for the stairs.
On the first step, she sobbed. On the third, the first tear fell. On the seventh, they were coming one after another. At the top, she could hardly see.
Between the loss of Beth and all of the emotions pouring through her from her mating…it was too much.
All of it…just too much.
* * *
After getting summarily dismissed by his mate—his mate, for fuck’s sake—Neal left Carly in her bedroom, sniffles echoing through the door. Damn, but his heart nearly broke at the evidence of her crying. He’d wanted to stay, hold her close, and soothe all that hurt she had bottled up inside. Hell, the lion wanted to break down the door and take her again, give her pleasure to counteract the pain that had to be pumping through her body.
As Alex liked to say: shit, fuck, damn, and growl.
Instead, he’d left Carly’s and headed over to Alex’s place. The prime’s home was more like a flophouse for pride members than anything else, and he knew he could find some kind of help from the guys. Hell, maybe if he got lucky, he could get advice from Maya. Yeah, Maya had the same thought processes as his Carly (crazy female) and could, hopefully, help him with whatever the hell was going on inside his mate’s gorgeous little head.
So that’s how he found himself in the middle of the pride house’s living room, bottle of Jack in one hand, half-full glass of the amber liquid in the other, and surrounded by the rest of Maya’s guard.
He’d gladly have Wyatt, Deuce, Harding, and Brute at his back any day of the week.
That said, he wasn’t all that sure about their advice.
“Whatcha need to do is lay down the law.” Deuce nodded and took a swig of his beer. “Tell her that she mated ya and now she’s stuck. She needs to get over it.”
That sounded reasonable, but the man was drinking light beer, so Neal wasn’t all that trusting. What self-respecting man—lion—drank light beer? Besides, Carly was also hurting from Beth’s passing, and he wasn’t all that sure that ‘the law’ would go over well.
Wyatt threw an empty can at Deuce, hitting the man in the head. Neal snickered. “Shaddup, asshole. What do you know about women and mating?” The man turned his attention to Neal, all kinds of seriousness in his gaze. “Seduce her, man. Get in nice and close and keep her in your bed until she’s too tired to crawl away.”
Well, now, Neal could get behind that idea. Based on the twitch of his cock, yeah, his dick was on board as well. Oh, yeah. She’d been all sweet curves, gentle dips, and he wanted to explore every inch of her again. Wanted to lick her from head to toe, savor the taste of her skin, lap at her tasty puss—
Harding interrupted his thoughts. “Do you want to get him neutered?” A pillow went flying across the room. “Now, Nealy boy, whatcha want to do is—“
Brute cut him off. “Whatcha want to do is hightail it back to your mate’s house and figure out what the fuck you did wrong and fix it. Seducing and tricking aren’t your answer, and you sure as shit ain’t establishing a lasting relationship if all you’ve got is sex. ”
Brute was their leader, the biggest guy in the pride. Meanest, too. But all that was tempered by an intelligence and gentle nature that confounded the team. While he, Harding, Wyatt, and Deuce were ready to shred anyone who came close to hurting Maya, Brute was all about handling things peacefully. It really put a damper on their fun.
“What makes you think I did anything wrong? She was fully satisfied when we were done and I snuggled her close. Did all the right things. And then she locked me out!” He downed the rest of the Jack in his glass and savored the burn. “Her mate.” He grumbled. “I know I need to be sensitive. She’s torn up about Beth, but I want to be there for her, guys. She’s…”
He wasn’t going to reveal those few seconds when she’d admitted the truth about his endearment, but…fuck if he understood what she was thinkin’. Ladies liked it when he was all sugar.
Neal sighed and dropped his head against the back of the sofa, stared at the popcorn ceiling. When all was said and done, Carly was his life. Period. Full stop. And she didn’t want anything to do with him. Sure, she’d been all sweetness in his arms, but then… Fuck. His cat was clawing at his insides, growling, snarling even. The fucker wanted their mate. Now.
“I dunno what to do, guys.”
The soft patter of Maya’s footsteps against the tile approached them. He knew her steps better than the team’s. It was his job. Plus, he liked the firecracker prima. She’d breathed new life into the pride and had driven Alex batshit crazy, which was the best gift ever.
“Dunno what to do about what?” From the corner of his eye, he watched her waddle into the room, her large, pregnant belly leading the way. Maya plopped down onto the couch next to him, then propped her feet on the coffee table with a sigh.
“Carly.” He refilled his glass and raised it to his lips, only to have it snatched away by the woman at his side. Maya wasn’t much for mid-day drinking. “She kicked me out. Won’t let me near her. Woman did a damned ding-dong-ditch on my ass last night.”
“You’re here to get advice about Carly? You’re here talking to this bunch of un-mated dumbasses about my best friend in the whole wide world since first grade?” The guys all grumbled, but quieted when her glare circled the room. “Y’all are dumbasses when it comes to this and you know it.” Maya sighed and turned her attention back to him. He wasn’t all that sure it was a good thing. “Neal…”
The sound of the front door opening and shutting had him looking toward the entrance. Even drunk, he had a responsibility to look after Maya and he needed to know who approached. The rest of the guys did the same.
But it was just Naomi, one of the pride familiars, a woman who made herself ‘available’ on the night of the Gaian Moon. There was also that thing with her cubs and him being the father—
“Hey darlin’.” Neal waved toward the woman and he took in her appearance from head to toe. Shit, how could he have ever thought the slim woman was attractive? Sure, she had perfected a walk that oozed. And, yeah, she painted those lush lips a bright red that had men thinking below the belt, but…
“Nealy!” She purred his name and it grated over his nerves. The nickname insinuated a relationship that no longer existed. Sure, they still had a connection of sorts, but nothing…sexual. At least, not anymore.
Naomi swayed toward him, leaned over the couch, wrapped her arms around his neck, and laid a kiss to his cheek. Probably left a smear of red lipstick on his skin.
And damn if that didn’t set his lion to roaring in the back of his head. The cat was not happy. It hated having another woman touching him, and he let it be known that Naomi’s attentions were not welcome.
Maya cleared her throat, drawing his attention. He ignored her smirk and the single eyebrow she raised. “You don’t see the problem?”
“Uh.” Maybe? He wasn’t sure he saw what was going on. The cat was clawing at his insides and thinking wasn’t at the forefront of his mind.
“Oh, there’s a problem with the pride, Prima? Is everything okay?” Naomi’s voice filled the brief silence.
Maya didn’t say a word. Nope, she just hefted her pregnant ass off the couch and strode toward Brute.
“Alex?” She didn’t have to raise her voice too loud, and soon the prime was in the room, nearly out of breath from running. Maya’s pregnancy had him on edge. Hardcore. And the male would drop everything if there was a hint that his mate needed him in any way, shape, or form.
At his hurried entrance, everyone turned their attention to the distracted male.
“Maya? What’s wro—“ A growl reverberated through the room and they all followed his gaze to find their prima perched on Brute’s lap. The lion’s face was paler than Neal had ever seen, and he wondered what the fuck the woman was playing at. No one touched the prime’s mate. No one.
“Isn’t Brute a doll?” She ran her fingernails over his head and stroked a single finger along the male’s neck. “He’s such a sweetheart.” Her voice dripped with affection for the larger man, a feline purr in her voice. “He’s such a darlin’, isn’t he?”
Brute tried to ease the woman from his lap. Okay, shove the woman from his lap, but Prima held fast. “You’re trying to get me killed, woman!”
Brute was a dead man. And he’d liked him, too.
The words were barely out of Brute’s mouth when Alex was at their side, yanking his mate free of the other man’s grasp and wrapping her in his arms.
“Mine.” The prime snarled and every person in the room lowered their eyes, trying their best to seem small.
“Yes, Prime.” Brute’s voice was low and calm.
“Now do you see the problem, Neal?”
I was just like your blonde bimbo…
He raised his head long enough to meet Maya’s annoyed expression and then Alex’s snarl had him focusing on his knees. “Yes, Prima.”
‘Cause, yeah, he did. Neal was a flirt. Shameless and undiscerning. He loved the ladies, loved making them smile and giggle, making ‘em feel pretty. Naw, he didn’t take ‘em all to bed, but he’d had enough in his lifetime. Including a certain blonde who was still touchy-feely.
There’d been no one since he’d met Carly, but plenty before then. And each and every one of ‘em had been his ‘darlin’’.
Exactly as his mate had been last night.
Shit, fuck, damn, and growl.
He was using that curse way too often since he’d met his mate.
Without another word, Alex hauled Maya away and Neal blew out a long, deep breath. The tension in the room immediately receded with their exit. Damn.