~

 

“I should leave,” Lily said, turning away from Jacob with the intention of heading out the front door.

Jacob’s long fingers closed around Lily’s wrist and he yanked her back around to face him. She stumbled over her footing, pitching sideways, but he reached out and stabilised her with his other hand against her hip…

It took Lily a moment to realise that she was back facing him again – that she wasn’t walking out of the door, because every part of her body was firing to life from that touch of his hand against her skin.

Tingles…

Warmth … heat … inside and out…

Those eyes of his make my legs feel weaker and my stomach flip like a pancake…

This is how fate tells you that you’ve met your mate?

Any other time I’d say bring it on … any other time but now.

Why now?

Why did fate have to throw us together like this?

I can’t…

I kind of wish I could…

What if Zane kills someone?

It’s my fault that bear is here…

“You’re not going anywhere, Lily,” Jacob growled at the thought and that sound underlined every word.

He meant it. She could see that as clearly as she could see the way his eyes tried to devour her soul.

“I can lead him away…” Lily stated her case and she didn’t, not for one second, see Jacob consider her words.

“Not happening,” he said. Adamant in his words, in his tone, and in his stance.

He took one step closer to her and she felt that too. She could feel his proximity as if it was a stamp on her psyche, a claim on her body, mind, and soul…

That’s not fair, fate…

It’s not just about me and him – there are others…

“George already got hurt…” Lily protested, but her mate just gave a slow shake of his head, not for one moment did he take his eyes off hers…

“George is always hurt,” Connor announced as he strolled into the room and eyed the mates.

Sure, he’d been listening from the other room, but he considered it a duty to his vampire nature to eavesdrop on everything that was within earshot. It would be rude not too.

“I do not need your interference…” Jacob offered his words without taking his eyes from his mate. She looked trapped, mesmerised by him, and in his book – that was a good thing.

“Oh, really?” Connor bitched with as much snark to his tone as he could add to his voice.

“Yes, really!” Jacob growled in annoyance.

He was trying to talk his mate down from trying to do something very stupid, and the last thing that he needed was a sarcastic vampire stirring the pot.

“You kind of needed my help to heal your mate, now didn’t you?” Connor’s voice had become lighter, more melodic…

“I didn’t ask…” Jacob grumbled.

“That makes you a bad mate!” Connor teased.

“Do not…!” Jacob wrestled his gaze away from his mate and growled at the vampire…

“One would think that a good mate would be grateful to have a fully healed, woo-able mate ready for mating, alive and kicking – no pain – no suffering, but noooo!” Connor grinned the moment that Jacob went to take a step towards him…

“You don’t really have a sense of humour, do you?” Lily asked, and when he snapped his eyes back down to hers – they were full of mirth, it looked as if the vampire could bring his mate to humour, make her happy, and he hated that he lacked those skills.

“I …” Jacob scowled… as he stopped to decide what to say next…

“It’s a yes or no answer… you don’t have to think long and hard about it,” Lily said, trying not to smile.

“When it’s needed…” Jacob offered back.

“Life needs a sense of humour up front and central – otherwise it’d be kind of boring…” Connor offered.

“I find nothing funny in Lily saying that she’s leaving to be bear bait!” Jacob growled back.

“So you decided to bore her into submission… I get it,” Connor tossed up his hands, “well, no actually I don’t, but each to his own.” He turned on his heels and left the room.

Jacob muttered something under his breath that Lily couldn’t hear, but the way that he bit it out, she kind of guessed what he was saying. The man rolled his eyes in his head, and then his shoulders as he turned his attention back down to her…

“He’s messing with you,” Lily said, and a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

“I know, but still, the man is…” he grumbled another growl…

“Funny.”

“Funny?” he turned his nose up at that.

“Just as Chelsea said he was.” She gave a little shrug.

Jacob just snorted a grunt of annoyance.

“Bear bait?” She asked, after a moment of silence when neither of them spoke to fill the gap.

Jacob winced at the thought. It sounded so much worse when she said the words – he could actually image her out there running from the damn bear, and he didn’t like that thought one little bit…

It made his wolf try to push forwards once more to protect her…

We had this conversation, wolf…

If my fangs come down – do you really think that Lily will want us as her mate?

The beast rumbled a growl within his mind … Mine … It staked its claim once more.

Then show some control…

He berated his beast and the wolf became silent. It still sat just beneath his skin, but he didn’t feel the danger of the beast breaking free.

“I won’t allow you out there to face the bear,” Jacob informed her. “Call me a male chauvinist pig, a misogynist, hell, call me pig ignorant…”

“All of the above…” she shrugged…

“But, hear me when I say that I don’t care how you see me right now, because it’s my duty as your mate to protect you…”

“It’s not just you. George…”

“George is pack. You are pack. Any male in this pack would gladly give his life to protect you,” Jacob growled. “You may not like me right now. You may hate me … I don’t care. I will protect you, Lily. Even from yourself.”

“I don’t need protecting from anyone, least of all myself,” Lily dug her heels in…

She’d heard his words loud and clear, and there was a big part of her that had been bowled over by them.

Who wouldn’t want some big hunky shifter guy saying that they would die for them? Even if you didn’t want that, it was always good to hear that someone had your back.

She wanted to kick her feminist side into the long grass and swoon over Mr Muscles – and yet, there was still that nagging voice of guilt and doom in the back of her mind, and the more that she thought about it; the more that it pinged around in her brain.

“Sure you do…” Jacob said. Then his lips stretched in what she thought might have been an attempt of his body in a spontaneous smile. “You’re a witch, after all.”

“Oh…!” Connor shouted from the other room. “You went there!”

Lily dropped her head forward on her neck and giggled as she gave it a small shake. Then she took in a deep breath and lifted her head, meeting him eye to eye…

“For the record,” she said, and his eyes narrowed just a little; he was waiting for the punchline – the verbal kick to his manhood. “I don’t hate you…”

“Progress!” Connor shouted, and Lily chuckled hard.

“Promise me that you won’t do anything stupid,” Jacob said, and Lily chewed that over…

“She’s a witch, define stupid or she’ll dance around the edges and garner forgiveness later…” Connor called once more, and Lily frowned as her cheeks coloured just a little.

Jacob lifted his right eyebrow and gave her a look of disbelief. She looked damned guilty…

“You would have, wouldn’t you?” His tone was accusing as she grimaced, scrunching her shoulders upwards almost to her ears…

“Well….” She looked as guilty as sin…

“Wow!” He grumbled. “Witches are tricky.”

“You have no idea…” Connor groaned. “But now that you have a witch mate – you will.”