Chapter Twenty-Two
Ken's car drove through traffic like a hot knife through butter. Betty didn't own a car—her bank account would have a seizure if she even dreamed about it—but she missed being behind the wheel.
Her mate clutched the chicken bar over his head. “So…anyone ever explain what the speed limit signs mean?”
She gave him her best wolfish grin. “You only live once.”
“Eyes on the road! I want to live to see our grandchildren.”
She did her best to keep her smile. Hands sweaty, they slipped a little on the steering wheel. “You want children?” The loaded question hung in the air.
Betty sensed him hold his breath before he asked, “Do you?”
“I asked first.” Obviously, he wanted children. He had just mentioned seeing his future grandchildren. Couldn’t have one without the other. Betty hadn’t dared dream of starting a family. She barely could take care of herself, let alone a little shifter.
He cleared his throat. “I've never had a family. I mean, besides pack and Ryota. I want what I missed out on as a kid.”
“Is that a yes?”
“Yes,” he whispered, his gaze focused on the windshield. “Lots and lots of kids. I even thought of doing what Ryota did and adopt if I couldn't find a mate.”
She gripped his hand. With the help of a mate like Ken, a family didn’t seem like an impossible task. Heck, she ran a rescue. She loved taking care of creatures. How different could babies be? “Yes, I think I do.”
He set her hand back on the steering wheel. “Let's survive this drive first so we can practice making babies when we get home.”
In his condition, she didn't think sex was the best idea. She hadn't been at the rescue all day and had ignored her parents. They'd been taking care of her animals and volunteers. She hoped the place hadn't burned down, but she couldn't leave Ken alone and she didn't have an extra bed for them at her place. “Can you pull my phone out of my pocket and call my dad? I need to check in.”
Ken did as she asked. “Mrs. Newman? I'll pass you to—I'm fine. Yes, I'm really okay. TV? They sometimes televise them. I'm glad you watched.” He gave Betty big round eyes as if pleading for help.
“Tell her I'm spending the night.” Betty grinned, enjoying Ken’s discomfort. He wanted family. That meant he got hers as well.
“Betty will be spending the night at my house. Do either of you need anything?” He was so sweet to her mother Betty’s tooth ached. “Shopping? You filled her fridge. I wasn't aware it was empty.” His eyes now narrowed and lasered onto Betty. “Dust bunnies.”
She cringed. Her money problems were her own. He didn't need to know about them.
“I'll be fine. It looked worse on television, I promise. Night, Mrs. Newman.” He hesitated as if listening. “O-okay, Missus—ah—Mom.” He hung up and then wiped a hand down his face. “They filled your fridge and dog biscuit canisters. She thought you'd lost weight and is furious you let things get this bad without telling them.”
Betty pulled into his driveway, still avoiding eye contact.
“How bad are things?” He poured the pack’s power into his glare, triggering her shifter instincts. “Answer me.”
“Don't beta wolf me. You're not allowed to do that to your mate.”
“Yes, I am. You’re pack and my responsibility. I wouldn't let anyone in the pack starve.”
“It's bad, okay? Happy, now?” She straightened her spine and met his dominant stare, not backing down like she had with Ryota. Ken might be the pack’s beta, but he was her mate. They were equals in her eyes. “I'm not bringing anything into this mating except debt and strays.”
He pulled her out of her seatbelt and dragged her onto his lap. “You bring everything.” His kiss was desperate and demanding as he tangled his fingers into her wild hair. “I was once a stray. You don't know the depth of respect I have for what you do. It's easy to make money, but it's hard as hell to give your heart to the unwanted.”
She cupped his handsome, chiseled face in her hands. “You are not unwanted.” This gorgeous wolf was hers forever. “I saw how your pack loves you. Your father is devoted to you. You're not unwanted.” She kissed his forehead. “Never again.”
“I know.” He gave her a sad smile. “But the feeling never really goes away.”
And she would spend the rest of her life making it fade if it was the last thing she did. He deserved better but he had gotten her instead. “Let's go inside.” She crawled out of the passenger side.
Ken followed a little slower. “Did I mention your mother suggested a massage?”
“How kind of you to offer.” Betty unlocked the front door and was tackled by dogs. The ground broke her fall and one of the heaviest pups stepped on her kidney. She tried to give them commands but every time she opened her mouth, one of them tried to slip her the tongue.
Ken grinned, looming over her supine form. He petted his untrained pack of bullies. “Who’s a good dog?” He scratched ears until the rabble returned inside.
Betty rolled over. “We need to do something about their greeting etiquette.”
“I think it’s adorable.” Ken still moved so stiffly. That meant his healing energy hadn’t taken care of his sore muscles since it was still focused on internal injuries. Ken was a strong shifter but Chris was an alpha. She couldn't even think about what would have happened if Chris had won the challenge instead of it ending in a draw. They would have needed Trixie's tranquilizer gun to sedate her before she returned to Riverbend Pack.
She refused his help and got to her feet. “I'll draw you a hot bath.” She wiped the dog slobber off her face absentmindedly. “Umm… Where is the bathroom?” Hot water helped with the pain. Her mother used to do the same for her after she’d fought school challenges.
Ken hobbled into a massive stainless steel kitchen, followed by his canine groupies and pulled a roasted turkey out of the fridge. He pointed to the back of the house. “Master bathroom is off my bedroom. Want a sandwich?” He tossed each dog a slice of meat then a bit into a leg, crunching bones and all.
“Roasted bones can get caught in your throat.” Oh no, she hadn't. She just became her mom.
He rolled his eyes and took another mouthful. “Mayo on yours?”
“Yes, and I'm here if you need the Heimlich.” Shifters were experts on choking. When they were hungry, it was like their logical forebrains fell asleep. Every shifter experienced a bone or chunk of meat stuck in their windpipe at least once in their lives. If not for the Heimlich, choking would be the leading cause of death in their kind.
She gasped when entering Ken's bathroom of luxurious splendor. Oh dear, she was in heaven. She hopped in place for a second, then pulled out her phone to take a picture of the whirlpool tub. She sent it to Trixie then filled the tub with steaming water. It was bigger than her whole leaky bathroom at the rescue.
Not a second later, Trixie texted her back asking about the toilet. Betty rolled her eyes and took a selfie while sitting on it. Trixie sent her back a pic of her grossed out expression followed by a reminder of Betty’s appointment with the company’s representative tomorrow about the eviction.
Ken strode into the bathroom, sandwich in hand. He served it on a lovely white plate. The edges of the porcelain didn’t even have any chips. He eyed her phone while she sat on the toilet, still dressed. “What are you doing?”
“Scaring Trixie.”
He snorted and handed her the plate. “I have to go into the office tomorrow, but I was wondering if we could meet for lunch.”
“Sure, hot dogs in the park?” She took a huge bite of the triple-decker he’d made her. She appreciated that he hadn’t held back on the portions.
“I was thinking about something nicer. How about Japanese at my grandmother’s place?”
Betty’s stomach dropped, leaving her bite stuck mid-swallow. She worked her dry throat and forced the food down.
Ken handed her a glass of water. “It would be polite to meet them before the mating ceremony.” He gave her a shy smile. “They’re much more laid back than Ryota and Grandma makes the best miso soup from scratch.”
“Sounds great.” She poured enthusiasm in her reply. If Ken could get through meeting her parents, then she could pull this off as well. She took a mental note to Google miso soup. She’d never eaten Japanese food before.
Watching Betty consume the sandwich gave him bone deep satisfaction. She was accepting his care more and more. They were becoming a couple.
When Ken had first entered the bathroom, he had spotted the silly picture text on her phone before she hid it. He loved this side of her. Everything in his life was so structured. He hadn’t realized that fun was missing from his life until she’d stepped into that void. The night on the paddleboat had only proved it. She’d turned a disaster into one of the most special moments of his life.
She thought she brought nothing to their mating? She was the heart and soul of it. Everything he owned were just things. If anyone one lacked anything between them, it was him.
He hoped one day she would feel comfortable enough to send him silly picture texts. Or sexy ones. Maybe both at the same time.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
He shrugged. “No reason.”
“Yeah.” She dragged out the word making it long and clear she didn’t believe him. She set her empty plate on the counter, totally unfazed that they’d just had dinner in the bathroom. She stretched and patted her stomach. “We better soak before the tryptophan kicks in. I would hate for us to fall asleep and drown.” Stripping, she took her time revealing her delicious painted body.
A man could only have sinful thoughts when exposed to those curves and perfect skin. His hardening cock agreed. “Baby, I can’t imagine ever sleeping while you’re naked.”
She dipped her toe in the tub and adjusted the heat. “You’re just going to watch? I had thought this whole bath thing would be more interactive.”
He wanted to be rigorously interactive with her again, but he should heal and conserve his energy. It wasn’t unknown for someone to challenge a beta the day after a fight. Normally, he wouldn’t worry—he healed fast even by shifter standards—but Chris had almost killed him. Joshua was probably sharpening his claws right now. If he lost his position, he’d have less power to protect Betty and she was everything. Yet even against his better judgment to rest, his fingers worked of their own free will to undo the buttons of his shirt. It fluttered to his feet.
Betty sucked in a breath and brushed her fingers over the bruises on his ribs. “Oh, baby. Come here.” She gently led him into the tub and helped him sit on the marble edge. He didn’t need her assistance to undress, but it felt real nice having her hands on him. “Let me take care of you.” She stretched for a face towel on a shelf over the tub.
This placed temptation right in view. He prided himself on strong will power, however he couldn’t keep from caressing her breasts even if both hands had been broken.
She paused, eyes closed as he stroked her soft skin. “You’re cheating.”
“Who said I play fair?” He ran his hands along her bare flanks, admiring the lines of her body. “I wish people would leave us alone for a few months.”
“Months?” She giggled. The sound a balm on his wounded soul.
He nuzzled the space between the soft globes. “To give us time to know each other.”
“My mother would find us even if we hid in the troll caves of Mexico.”
“I’d rather sunbathe on beaches than hide in troll caves.” He trailed kisses lower, pulling her to straddle his lap.
“The tub will overflow.”
“I have insurance.” She tasted like sunshine and blue sky and freedom. He cupped her ass, pulling her closer.
She ran her fingers through his hair, tugging his head back. “Finish undressing, lover.” She slid free of his grasp and shut off the water, then stepped into the bath. “I’ve never been in such a huge tub. Unless you count pools.”
He chuckled and stepped out of his pants. “I needed something that I could fit in without folding in half.” Soaking after a hard run was his guilty pleasure.
“Come here.” She wrung the face cloth of excess water and wiped the dried blood from his chest where Ryota had stabbed the needle. There wasn’t much. Even the puncture mark had vanished. “You scared me,” she whispered. “I don’t ever want to watch you fight again.”
Ken finally noticed the worry lines around her eyes. The strain of emotion hovering right behind them. “I won.” That was all that mattered in challenges.
“You almost died.” She turned away from him.
He caught her shoulder and turned her back. “Challenges are part of my life. I’m beta. Anyone striving for dominance will always come after me until I’m alpha. I’m the main target of any dominant wolf wanting power in New Port. I’m the safer target.”
“Safer?” She tilted her head.
He kept forgetting that she hadn’t been raised like him. That her father wasn’t an upper echelon hunter. “I’m the prime target. The hunter wanting to become an alpha will target the beta first. If they can beat the beta, then they’ll focus on the alpha. That’s dominant wolf strategy 101.”
“Chris jumped that tactic. He went straight after the alpha.”
“That’s why so many of us think of him as a wild card. He’ll either burn bright and die, or he’ll grow to be incredible.” Ken shrugged, not wanting to think of her ex-boyfriend. “New Port has an unusual dynamic as well.”
“Father-son leadership.”
He nodded. He didn’t doubt that Ryota had planned that. From day one his father had groomed him for a position of power. Tension between beta and alpha placed the pack on edge. With them both happy in their positions, they could focus on making their home safe and strong for their people. New Port was unique for wolf shifters.
She took a deep, shaky breath. “So you fight often.”
“I’m very familiar with the challenge arena.” He chuckled. “With less of a crowd than tonight.”
She pressed her hand to his chest, right over his heart. “It’s not funny.”
He joined her in the tub. “Sometimes it is. I was once challenged by a rabbit shifter. That guy could leap over my head.” He sank into the hot water and pulled her on top of him like a blanket.
She pressed her face to his chest. “He wanted to be beta to a wolf pack?”
“No, he wanted retribution for a slight to his honor. They’re a touchy race. I’d been covered in bruises by the end of the fight. My ribs ached for weeks. Not from a beating, but from laughing. It was hard to focus when a grown man hopped around the cage like a jack rabbit.” His respect for those shifters had gone up that day.
“You’re making this up.” She giggled though.
He ran his hand along the curve of her spine. “Nope. Ask my father. He wasn’t as amused as me.” No, his father had been furious that Ken had agreed to the challenge. If he had lost to a rabbit, his reputation would have suffered and challenges would have been booked for weeks. Ken hadn’t known how fierce rabbits could fight. Apparently, his father had.
“This is going to be harder than I thought.”
He blinked. “What do you mean?”
“Being a beta’s soulmate.” She kissed his chest and ran her hand over his abdomen, going lower and lower.
His breath hitched as she stroked him. “Yes, well, there are compensations.”
“Oh really?” She straddled him. “Like what?” Her hot breath caressed his ears and he melted under her slight weight.
“Anything you want.”
Her laugh was husky and mischievous. “I just want you.” She slid him inside her.
With a groan, he held her against him, his hands moving to her hips. He anchored her body to his, letting her lead him into a slow rhythm.
She sucked in a breath as she pushed him deeper.
It felt impossible not to take command. His nature was to lead, but with Betty he would follow.
She bit down on her lower lip, making little noises of pleasure.
He leaned in to kiss that lower lip. His mate. His Betty. His forever. He slid his hand between their bodies, touching her slick heat and rubbing that sweet spot.
The air hissed between her teeth. “Oh, Ken.” Her eyes closed and she tilted her head back.
Ken gritted his teeth, because her reaction to his touch was making it hard to stay in control. He wanted nothing more than to set her passion on fire. Make her beg for more. Make her forget any other man who had touched her.
Her movements sped up. Hips rolling and grinding against his fingers. Faster and faster. Short of breath, her grip on his shoulders became rougher. Nails digging in his flesh. Their bodies met in fierce desire, water splashed over the edge of the tub. They were carried along in ecstasy, Betty seemed senseless with need and he matched her every moan. He didn’t care if the whole neighborhood heard them. She cried out his name over and over. He felt it the same moment she did, so wild his entire body shook with the force of their climax.
She slumped over his body, arms wrapped around his neck and face buried against his throat. The only sound was their harsh breathing and the distant bark of dogs in the yard. “I want you. I don’t care about the other stuff. Just you.”
He smiled at the ceiling. “I can give more.” She’d never want for anything. He would always make sure she had food, shelter, and safety.
“I don’t need it. Never have. Just you.” She nipped his skin with her little sharp teeth. “I need you.”