Chapter Nine

Nuria was too warm. As she slowly came awake, she realized she was buried deep under her covers. Her bed was too comfortable, and she felt heavy. She blinked her eyes open, and her heart stopped for a beat as her memory flooded back and she realized where she was.

“Nuria? You okay?”

She pushed the covers off, groaning as she glanced around the room. Not only was she in Austin’s bed, but she’d let her guard down and allowed him to reach into her mind.

She’d let her guard way the fuck down. She’d let him strip her naked and climb between her legs. The only thing they hadn’t done was consummate the deal. She groaned again when she remembered begging him to fuck her.

Flopping back against the pillow, she also noted she was naked. Not surprising. After taking her turn exploring Austin, he had flipped her onto her back and made her body hum again and again. With his fingers. With his mouth. With his intense gaze.

“You blocked me again,” he stated from the doorway.

She jerked the sheet over her exposed chest and glared at him. She was losing her touch if she couldn’t feel his presence approaching.

After missing out on the fact that a man came into her house earlier in the day and started a fire, she assumed she was certifiable.

She ran a hand down her face and stared at the ceiling. At least she had her shield back up. The last thing she needed was Austin nosing around in her head. “What time is it?”

“Almost seven. I was going to wake you for dinner soon, but you were sleeping so soundly.”

“God, I slept half the afternoon,” she told the ceiling, not willing to meet his gaze as he padded across the room slowly.

Finally, he leaned over her. His smile undid her. “Not that long. Only about two hours. Before that you were—”

She held out a hand to stop him. “Don’t remind me. I know what I was.” Horny like a teenager and possessed by some demon who thought it was funny to put her in the path of her childhood sweetheart to reinforce the fact that he was her mate.

Austin sat on the edge of the bed and settled his hand on her thigh. Even through the blanket she could feel his warmth.

She closed her eyes, willing him to stop touching her. Stop being nice to her. Stop making it so hard to be mad at him.

On a long inhale, she realized there was pizza in the house. “Mmm. You ordered pizza?” Her stomach growled.

“Nope. Pulled it out of the freezer and stuck it in the oven.”

She chuckled, her body shaking.

“What’s so funny?”

“I’m trying to decide which meal involved more actual cooking. The grilled sandwiches or the frozen pizza.”

He laughed. “Okay, I’m not going to win any award in that department, so I might as well stop pretending.”

“Good plan.”

Austin pinched the blanket at her thigh and tugged it slowly down her body.

She stopped him by grabbing the edge of the sheet at her chest and holding tight. “How about you go back in the kitchen and let me get dressed.” She lifted her head to find him in nothing but jeans. No shirt. His chest was drool worthy.

He laughed again. “I licked, tasted, and ogled every inch of your body for half the afternoon, and now you want to get modest on me?”

“Yep.” She eased one arm out of the confines and pointed at the door. “Go.”

He was still chuckling as he rose off the bed and left the room, shutting the door behind him. “Crazy woman,” he mumbled into her head.

“Don’t you forget it.”

As soon as she was alone, she realized she had no clean clothes. The last thing she wanted to do was put her jeans and shirt from that morning back on. With a deep sigh, she eased from under the covers and headed for Austin’s dresser. It only took two tries to find his T-shirts, and seconds later, she left the room, aiming for the kitchen.

“You smell like sex,” he stated, not turning around to face her. He was cutting the pizza with a rolling knife as he spoke.

“Don’t remind me.” He smelled like sex too. He obviously hadn’t showered.

She should have showered before she left the room. Why hadn’t she? Oh, right. The lure of food, and perhaps the subconscious desire to keep his scent all over her. She wandered closer, staring at his fantastic back and the way his jeans hung low on his hips, his ass accentuated.

Taking the same seat on a barstool at the island as earlier, she tugged his T-shirt over her butt while considering how unwise it had been to think a simple white tee was enough coverage to keep him at arm’s length.

He had placed two cans of soda on the island, and she eagerly picked one up and took a long drink, realizing she was incredibly thirsty.

When he turned around, carrying two plates of pizza, he stopped dead in his tracks. His gaze lowered to her chest, and she glanced down to find her nipples puckered and obviously visible under the white cotton. “I borrowed one of your tees. I don’t have any clean clothes.”

“I see that.” He lowered the plates to the island and slid them across toward her and the empty stool next to her.

For a moment she thought perhaps he wasn’t pleased with her rummaging through his drawers to find something to wear. Or maybe he simply didn’t like her taking his things.

But then he rounded the island, set his hands on her thighs, and turned her to the side to face him. “Sexy. As. Hell.”

She swallowed. Yep. Bad choice. Unless she subconsciously wanted to arouse him. Oh, who was she kidding? She still wanted to have sex. He had denied her earlier and then worn her out doing everything but.

As he slid his hands up her thighs, pushing the shirt higher, she held her breath. She wasn’t even wearing panties, and when he figured that out, a slow smile spread across his face. “Tease.”

“Whatever it takes.” Who the hell was she?

He smirked and shook his head. “Not gonna work, babe.” He released her, spun her to face the island, and took his seat next to her. His denim-clad thigh pressed against her bare one.

She opened her mouth to argue and then closed it, thinking better of the plan. She was a total mess in the head. On and off. Hot and cold. Half of her wanted him to yank her onto the island and fuck the daylight out of her. The other half wanted to run from the house, literally, and put as much space between them as possible.

Sleeping with him would be a bad idea, but would it be worse than what they’d already done? Would it make a difference? Mostly she wanted to get it over with, and she couldn’t think of a better person to lose her virginity to than this sexy god of a man sitting next to her. She could easily ignore their differences while they were having sex. Even occupying the same room or house with him masked her anger. Was it dissolving? Or was she simply weakened by the pheromones?

Austin grabbed her hand where it rested on the table and squeezed. Without looking at her, he spoke. “You can stop the mental tug of war. I’ll make it easy for you. Not going to sleep with you, Nuria.”

She jerked her gaze toward him. “What? Why? I mean, what difference does it make? I’m not saying we have to bind. In fact, I don’t want to. But… Well… Why the change of heart? You wanted to earlier.”

He turned his head and met her gaze, his expression serious. “That was before I realized you were a virgin. No way in hell am I going to take that from you.”

“Seriously? Do you realize how antiquated that sounds? People have sex all the time, Austin.” Why the hell was she arguing this point? She really needed a head exam.

He released her hand, lifted a slice of pizza, and took a huge bite.

She stared at him. Was he going to ignore her?

When he swallowed, he finally spoke again. “Sure they do. But they aren’t me.”

She rolled her eyes. “Come on. You don’t expect me to believe you’re a virgin.”

“Didn’t say that.” He took another bite.

She had yet to touch hers. Her face flushed, heat rushing up her cheeks. “So, you can sleep with other women, but not me. How is that supposed to make me feel?”

He glanced at her, taking a drink of soda before speaking again. “Other women aren’t my mate, Nuria.”

She gulped, a tight knot forming in her stomach. Her voice was lower and softer when she responded. “You’re saying you can’t control the urge to bind to me if we go that far.”

“I’m saying I don’t want to. I’m not going to sleep with you until you decide you’re willing to be mine.”

“You already slept with me,” she pointed out.

He narrowed his gaze, shaking his head subtly. “And I intend to sleep with you every night too. Might even wear you down eventually, though I’m not sure I deserve it. But my dick isn’t going inside your pussy unless and until you sink your teeth into me and make me yours.”

“Me? Why does it have to be me?”

He smiled again. “Because it’s the only way I’ll be sure you really want to.”

She moaned, her shoulders lowering as she turned toward her plate, picked up a slice of pizza, and took the first flavorless bite. Even food wasn’t going to taste good until she admitted defeat.

∙•∙

Austin watched as Nuria played with her slice of pizza. She ate about half of it and abandoned it.

Damn but he wanted her. The urge grew stronger with every passing minute.

Several moments of silence passed, and then suddenly the phone rang. The home phone. Austin jumped in his seat, startled. That’s one way to keep me from attacking her again.

He slid off the stool and made his way to the cordless on the counter. “Hello?”

“Are you harboring that bitch in your home?”

Austin froze. “Who is this?”

“None of your fucking business. But that bitch is as good as dead. Even you can’t protect her.” The caller with the deep gravelly voice hung up.

Austin set the phone back on the cradle but remained facing the wall. What the hell?

“Austin?”

He had no idea what to say to Nuria, so he remained silent.

Suddenly the phone rang again. He jerked it off the receiver and nearly shouted his next, “Hello.”

“That bitch has some nerve coming back to Silvertip after the stunt her family pulled.” This was a different voice. Not as deep. “And you’re no better than her if you let her stay with you.” The caller hung up.

“Austin?” Nuria’s voice was closer this time. “Who was that?” She set a hand on his lower back, the warmth from her fingers seeping into his skin.

“No one.” The phone rang again, and Austin picked it up, connected, and disconnected before the caller had a chance to speak. Hand shaking, he turned off the volume and set it back down.

“You’re scaring me.”

Austin’s dad broke into this thoughts. “There’s been a development. I’m on my way to your place with two members of the Arcadian Council.”

“I hope you know something that will explain the threatening phone calls.”

“Shit.” His dad sighed. “Be there in ten.”

Austin turned around and set his hands on Nuria’s biceps. “You need clothes. My dad’s on his way here.”

She pulled the corner of her lower lip between her teeth and held his gaze before releasing it. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“I don’t know yet. Let’s see what the Arcadian Council has to say.”

“The council?” Her voice rose to a squeak. “They’re coming here too?”

“Yes.”

“From the Northwest Territories? Someone managed to get here already since this morning?”

“Two of them, yes.”

Nuria shivered, crossing her arms.

Her breasts plumped up enough to draw his attention, but now was not the time to notice such things. In his gut he knew the shit was about to hit the fan. “Come on.” He slid his hand down to tug hers free and then led her from the room.

She grabbed her clothes from the morning off the floor and headed for the bathroom without another word.

Thank God. He didn’t have more to say. And no intention of telling her about the two calls he’d taken. Hopefully his dad could shed light on that.

By the time he had on a shirt and shoes, she was back, fully dressed. She was also fingering her hair.

“You used to hate having your hair in your face. I rarely saw it down like that,” he commented.

She shrugged. “People change.” With that, she headed back to the living room.

He followed, wondering what sort of change she meant. Another question for later.

As soon as they hit the living room, he could sense his father and several others outside. He headed straight for the door without waiting for anyone to knock.

Nuria was nervous. Her stress was palpable behind him. She didn’t touch him, but he knew she was less than a foot from his back. He’d give anything to haul her against him and use his strength to ease her nerves, but he didn’t have that right, and there was a good chance she would be seriously pissed if he exercised it. Especially in front of others, including the Arcadian Council.

“Austin.” His father nodded as he entered the house. “You’ve met George and Henry before,” he pointed out, indicating the two men right behind him.

Following the two council members was Bernard Arthur. For the second time that day, Austin was pleased to see his dad not just interacting with the leader of the Arthur pack, but seeming genuinely friendly. It was a step in the right direction.

It would take years to break down the ingrained hatred between the two families, but if two of the leaders were working to amend things, the road would be smoother.

“Nuria.” Allister shook her hand and then held it in both of his. “So sorry about your property. I sent about six men over there earlier to assess the situation. They’ll get started with the repairs in the morning. It will be back in perfect condition in no time.”

“Thank you. That’s very kind.” Her voice was weak.

Austin ached to hold her. But again, not his place. “Please, everyone, take a seat.”

The group of six crowded into his living room, George and Henry settling on the couch while Bernard took an end chair. Allister pulled a chair in from the kitchen area. That left Austin to grab Nuria’s hand and lure her to the loveseat. He liked the arrangement. At least his thigh was touching hers.

“There’s been some disturbing developments,” Bernard began.

“I hope they can explain the equally disturbing phone calls we’ve been getting.”

George lifted an eyebrow. “Phone calls?”

“Yes.” Austin couldn’t keep himself from grasping Nuria’s hand and holding it on her lap. Luckily she didn’t flinch. “Threats.”

And then she did flinch. “Austin?”

He squeezed her hand. “Let’s hear what they have to say first.”

She nodded, but her eyes were wide and her face ashen.

George looked toward Allister. “I’ll let you recount the details. After all, you were the first person to speak with Wade Garsea before we arrived this afternoon.”

Austin’s father cleared his throat. He met Nuria’s gaze. “It took some coaxing, but it would seem that Wade believes your father stole a significant amount of money from him and his brother Turner on the night you and your family left town fifteen years ago.”

“What?” Nuria nearly shouted the word. “That’s ridiculous. My dad wasn’t a thief.”

Bernard nodded. “We know that. And you know that. But for some reason Wade believes it to be true and has spent the last decade and a half under that assumption.”

“How much money?”

“Fifty thousand dollars.”

Nuria yanked her hand out of Austin’s and jumped to her feet. “Fifty thousand dollars? Is he high? My parents never had that kind of money in their entire lives.”

Allister chuckled, which Austin thought was out of place until he spoke. “As it turns out, yes. He was high.”

“What do you mean?” she asked as Austin grabbed her hand again and tugged her back to sitting.

Bernard spoke again. “Apparently he and his brother were running a lucrative drug business out of the house. Marijuana.”

“Seriously?” Austin blurted out. “I never thought Wade Garsea had enough brain cells to run any business.”

George cleared his throat. “That would explain why it took very little time for him to tell us this story.”

Austin scrunched his forehead. “And then there’s that. Wade told you this? He told you he was a drug dealer and someone stole his money? What sort of imbecile admits to something like that?”

“The kind who spent their life high,” Allister added. “So, yes. Indeed. Once he realized he was caught this morning because there were several eye witnesses who saw him enter Nuria’s home and then exit the back door while smoke billowed out, he got agitated. It didn’t take too long for him to get angry enough to start rambling about Rawling.”

“Why does he think my dad took the money?”

“Because apparently one day several months before you left town, Rawling caught Wade and Turner in the middle of a transaction behind the house. He confronted them. They pretended it was a one-time deal, and he told them not to do it again.”

Nuria’s shoulders slumped. “So from that they decided he stole their money?”

“They had hidden it in a metal container on the property. When it went missing the same day as your family, they made the connection,” Bernard added.

Henry spoke for the first time. “Are you sure it’s not possible?”

Nuria shook her head vehemently. “Not a chance. We didn’t even have enough money to scrape by. If my dad had brought fifty thousand dollars with us in cash, I would have noticed. We wouldn’t have slept in the car and stayed in the crappiest one-bedroom apartment in Quebec City for the first few months when we arrived.

“My dad easily got a job, but it didn’t pay much, and it’s expensive to live in the city. I never saw any evidence of extra cash. There was no money for me to go to university. And there were plenty of opportunities over the last few years of my dad’s life for him to have told me if he had a stash of money somewhere.”

Austin reached for her hand again and held it gently. His heart ached for what she’d gone through because of his stupidity.

Her voice lowered as she finished. “He knew he was leaving me destitute. I saw it in his eyes. It was his biggest regret.” She tipped her face toward her knees and let her hair fall around her. Hiding. Always hiding.

After a pause, George spoke again. “May I ask why your family fled in the night?”

Nuria slowly lifted her face and took a deep breath. Her lip was trembling.

Allister stopped her. “I’ll field that since it was my son who caused the problem.” He held her gaze, but he spoke to George.

Nuria was on the edge of tears.

Allister turned toward George and Henry. “Antoine, that is. Not Austin or Alton.”

George lifted a brow. The man knew Antoine. He’d been in town recently arresting him.

His father continued. “Apparently my older son’s antics didn’t start last year when he attacked Heather. He’s always been a bitter, jealous child. No matter what my wife or I did to convince him, he believed we favored our four younger children over him.

“My wife and I recognized, probably before Austin and Nuria, that there was a chance they would one day bind together. Even as kids they were close.”

Austin gasped. His parents knew that? Back then?

“Antoine was jealous, as usual, and he attempted to rape Nuria that day. I have to assume she was very shook up when she got home. I knew her parents well. She was their life. If she came home as scared as I’m sure she did, they wouldn’t have hesitated to do whatever they could to make her life better. Even if that meant leaving everything and fleeing the province in the middle of the night.”

Austin held her hand tighter. She was trembling. He finally couldn’t stand it another moment and released her to wrap an arm around her small frame and hold her against his side. He kissed the top of her head, keeping his face there so he could inhale her scent and reassure himself she was still in the room, still alive, still his.

His father continued again. “My biggest regret is that Beth and I never had the chance to apologize to you or your parents for the actions of our son. I swear we never knew anything about this. If we had, we would have turned him in to the council years ago.”

Nuria’s voice shook. “It wasn’t your fault. You’re not your son.”

Austin stiffened. If it was anyone’s fault, it was his.

“Nevertheless,” Allister continued, “I want you to know how sorry we are. I can’t imagine how distraught you were to have someone steal your innocence at such a young age. My own flesh and blood.” He looked like he might cry.

Austin had never seen his father so emotional. It tore him up inside.

Nuria lifted her face. “He didn’t get very far. Luckily a cat raced across the barn, catching Antoine’s attention, and while he was distracted, I scrambled away and ran from the barn.”

“I’m sure it was still a horrifying experience I would wish on no one.” Allister swallowed.

“I’m so sorry, dear,” George added. “It doesn’t help that we’re here forcing you to relive the experience.”

“It’s okay. He’s caught now. That’s why I returned to town when I did. I need to clear out my parents’ home and sell it so I can start fresh. I was hoping to go to university with the proceeds.”

“When you realized the house was on fire, you must have thought your future was about to go up in smoke,” Henry stated.

“Yes. I thought I would die. My parents didn’t even have insurance on the home anymore. They let it lapse years ago. They didn’t have the money to keep it up.”

George leaned back, rubbing his chin. “Not likely then that your dad stole the money from Wade and Turner.”

“Has anyone spoken to Turner yet?” Austin asked.

“No. We’re heading there first thing in the morning,” George said.

Nuria twisted around to face Austin. “What were the phone calls about?”

Austin looked at his father first and then George and Henry. “There must be more to it. Why would anyone call here threatening Nuria?”

She shuddered in his embrace.

George rubbed his chin with two fingers. “What kind of threats?”

Austin wasn’t about to repeat the language he’d heard from the two assholes on the phone and run the risk of making Nuria more nervous than she already was. Instead he opened his mind to everyone in the room except her.

He knew he would feel the full fury of her wrath later, but he took the risk. “Two callers. Both called her a bitch and threatened her life for returning to Silvertip. It’s like they were in on something bigger. I don’t get it.”

George stared at him, eyes narrowed. “Do you suppose other people in town think her father stole that money?”

“That’s what it seems like. But how could they? Why would two idiots brag to anyone that they had a stash of illegally obtained funds that someone stole?”

Henry lifted one brow and added his own silent communication. “Son, after meeting with that imbecile Wade this afternoon, I would put nothing past him.”

Nuria screamed.

Austin was startled by her outburst. She jumped up from the loveseat and rounded it to put distance between herself and Austin. And everyone else for that matter. She glanced around at all of them, arms crossed.

She was furious. He couldn’t blame her, but he’d rather face her wrath than have her scared for her life.

“Do I look stupid to all of you?”

Austin winced at the way she addressed the members of the Arcadian Council. Not that she didn’t have justification.

“This is my life we’re talking about.” She threw up her hands and rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. “Oh, wait. I meant to say, this is my life you are all discussing privately while blocking me.”

Austin winced, glancing at George.

George rubbed his neck, uneasy. “You’re right, Nuria. My apologies. But let me say that everyone in this room has your best interests in mind.”

“If there’s a threat to me, I deserve to know about it.” She stuck out one foot and crossed her arms defiantly.

George nodded. “Indeed.” He hesitated a beat and then continued. “It would seem several people are not pleased with your return to town. What we don’t know is why.”

She dropped her arms. “Threats. I got that. Threats about what?”

“We don’t know yet.” George stood. Obviously he was done here. “But I aim to find out.”

Henry followed him. Allister and Bernard stood also, as if they suddenly needed to be someplace else. Anywhere but here. Cowards.

In seconds all four men stood at the door. George had his hand on the knob. “For your safety, Nuria, I suggest you remain here in the house.”

Austin lifted off the couch. “She will. Don’t worry.” He may have failed her when they were kids, but he wouldn’t make that mistake again. “I’d like to go with you when you speak to Turner,” he told George and Henry.

“Of course. In light of this new information, we probably won’t head that way until tomorrow afternoon. We need to investigate the local issue first. One thing at a time.” George opened the door and stepped outside.

Nuria’s voice filled the room. “You’re not seriously considering going with the council to speak to Turner. That’s crazy.”

Everyone paused in their tracks.

“Of course I am. Your life is at risk. We don’t know why so many people are angry, and we don’t know what happened to that money. The only way to make any headway is to speak with Turner. I want to be there.”

“Why? Let the council handle it.”

Austin lost a bit of his temper when his voice rose higher. “Because you’re my mate, dammit, and it would seem several people have an irrational bone to pick with you. I’m not going to sit back and wait for all hell to break loose with your life on the line.”

“I am not your mate,” she growled.

“Semantics.”

She turned a darker shade of red, glanced at the audience standing by the door, and then back at him before stomping from the room. Two seconds later his bedroom door slammed shut.

Without another word, everyone stepped outside as if they were leaving a funeral wake.

Austin’s father turned around before he closed the door. “I agree with George. Stay inside. I’ll contact you when I know more.” With that, he shut the door, leaving the room in silence.