A Very Merry Iona Christmas (5 page)

“Yes.” Carly grinned
to herself. “Not that she does much helping. She just hangs around and grunts
sarcastic remarks a lot…’

‘
Say what?’

“She’s not exactly,
how can I put this? The easiest of people to get along with.”

‘
Hey now! I’m beloved
by many. You’re lucky to have me inside this screwy little mind of yours.’
Iona turned her nose up at Carly’s slights.

“She never
shuts
the hell up
.” Carly bit out and Mason grinned. He had a feeling that what
was going on now was less explaining and more revenge.

‘
I do too. But you
know what? You should be grateful for my wisdom.’

“Wisdom?” Carly
scoffed. “She’s about as wise as a puppy with fleas.”

‘
Ok, that’s it. I
was being nice up to this point, but you… Hmm, you need a lesson in manners,
and a clue. In that order.’
Iona folded her imaginary arms over her chest
and huffed.

“So when you don’t
need her help anymore, will she go away?” Mason asked and Carly frowned.

“God, I hope so.”

‘
That’s it. You on
your own. Little Miss Sunshine. Little Miss knows what’s best but doesn’t know
anything.’

“So, if we were mated
and your life was perfect…” Mason shrugged just one shoulder.

“Oh, I should mate you
to get rid of her?” Carly felt the laughter bubble up inside of her for the
first time in a long time. “Yeah. Out of the frying pan and into the inferno.
Sure.” Carly chuckled.

“I’m just giving you
options.” Mason grinned and those eyes of his came alive. Carly couldn’t pull
her eyes away. She gave herself a minute where she didn’t have too.

“Great. Thanks so much
for that.” Carly shot back with a dollop of sarcasm. She laughed and it looked
good on her. It felt good.

Then she realised who
she was laughing with and she bit down on it. Mason watched her pull her
emotions back in again.

“I really should go.”
Carly said.

“I really can’t let
you go back to that place.” Mason knew that she was going to hate him, but he
didn’t see a choice in the matter. He’d used the link between the pack to give
the order and it had been carried out precisely and quietly.

“You really can’t stop
me.” Carly pushed up to her feet and pulled her hand from beneath his. Mason
pushed up to his full height and winced.

“Hope is already on
her way to pack land.” He informed her and Carly panicked. Her eyes tore around
the café. Her heart lurched in her chest and got stuck in her throat, and she
couldn’t breathe.

‘
Oh, I didn’t see
that one coming.’

“You said I could
trust you.” Carly accused him as she started off for the back of the shop. Hope
hadn’t passed their table and there was no side door. They must have taken her
out back, and she must have been scared stiff…

“Carly, calm down.”
Mason could hear her heart hammering like a freight train. It was no time for
him to second guess his decision, but he did it anyway.

‘
Calm down? You
stole her damn baby, you idiot. I should zap you myself…’
Iona knew that
she’d said the wrong thing the moment that Carly turned on her heels and drew
on her magic.

Mason felt the true
force of her magic hit him hard. The pain screamed through his body and he
fought to stay on his feet but that pain was just too much. His legs caved and
he fell to his knees on the floor as every muscle in his body locked up tighter
than hell.

His beast roared
within him to be set free, and Mason was close to losing control of that wildness.

His head snapped back
on his neck and his jet black eyes glared up at her. If she were any other
person he would gladly have taken her down. He knew he deserved it for what
he’d done, but she still wasn’t doing herself any favours.

‘
Ok, that’s
enough.’

“Get her back here,
now.” Carly bit out. She had a mind to damn well kill him, and yet that
wouldn’t get Hope back, if anything, it put her in more danger.

“Just come to my damn
house and you’ll have Hope.” He bit out through the pain. It had eased some, but
she was still punishing him…

“If she gets hurt.
I’ll kill you.”

“Carly, just come with
me…”

“You bastard. How
could you do this?” Carly couldn’t think past making him pay for what he’d
done. His duplicity. If this was how a mate behaved then to hell with him.

‘That’s where he’ll
be going alright.’
Iona didn’t agree
with what Mason had done, but she could see why he’d done it. Carly was a
headstrong woman and she didn’t seem to want to even meet him halfway.

“No, I’m really not,
and I might not have gone about this the right way, but I’ve done it for a
reason…”

“Because you’re an
unfeeling bastard.”

‘
Because he’s a
stupid male.
’ Iona snorted.

“Because it was the
only damn way to get you to come with me. To let me show you your life with me.
Hope’s life.” Mason could feel her magic pulling back. His body felt stronger.
His muscles were getting looser…

“This, this is my life
with you. You’d use my daughter to get to me…” Carly spat out.  

“That’s not true…”
Mason growled. He’d never in his wildest dreams thought she’d see it that way.
He thought she’d be pissed, but this was more than that.

“You already have.”
Carly wasn’t shouting anymore. Her look was pure cold steel and there wasn’t
just accusation and disbelief in them, there was hatred.  

‘
Now hold on to those
damn panties a minute longer…’
  Iona bit out. She could see both sides of
this and this little witch had gotten hold of the wrong end of the damn stick.

“No, I’ve taken Hope
home where she belongs…” He wanted to explain himself. She didn’t want to give
him that chance.

‘
Someone needs to
tell the alpha, when he’s in a damn hole, stop digging…’
Iona sighed. The
man knew as much about women as she knew about cars, and they weren’t even an
inkling in someone’s brain when she walked the Earth.

“Bastard…” Carly
forgot all about her magic as a rush of pure anger swept through her.

She launched herself
at him, but Mason had long since recovered from the effects of her magic and
she got one good thump in before his hands locked around her wrists. With fast,
deadly precision, he grabbed her, locked her arms down, and spun her around as
he got to his feet and caged her against his body.

“Carly, I would
never…” Mason growled against her ear and for one long moment it stilled the
fight within her. Then her brain kicked her backside into gear and she was
trying to break his hold on her again.

“You have no damn
right to decide where my daughter belongs… do you hear me?” Anger flared in her
voice.

‘
Boy, do you not
know women
.’ Iona shook her imaginary head in dismay. ‘
And you need to
calm the hell down and go to your baby girl…’

“Let me take you to
her…” Mason growled as the fight started to go out of his mate and she realised
that she was never going to be able to break free.

“I can never trust
another word you tell me…” Carly hissed.

Mason knew that he
might have just lost her forever, but he didn’t feel that he had ever really
had her in the first place… He’d gambled and lost. His idea was to win over the
child and woo the mother at the same time, but the nagging thought of those
suitcases that he’d spotted in her flat had caused him to panic.

What the hell was he
supposed to do now?

~

~

~

Carly hadn’t spoken
one word to him the whole journey to pack land. She had nothing to say that
didn’t involve curse words and the urge to zap him again. That wasn’t to say
that the journey as silent… Iona had spent the whole time blabbering on at her
about mates, him, and sex.

The last thing Carly
wanted to hear about was sex with the man sitting beside her. His presence was
almost overwhelming in the confines of the pickup truck. The fact that it was
dark out had only seemed to emphasize him more in the cramped space and her
body tingling with his closeness didn’t help matters.

Every so often he’d
asked if she was alright. Carly hadn’t even bothered to respond. It was a
stupid question delivered by an idiot, and she had no inclination to speak with
him.

When his hand had
brushed her leg whilst changing gear; she’d felt the rush of excitement go
through her and groaned inwardly at it. How could you be attracted to a man
that you hated?

‘
It’s the mating
pull. Ain’t love grand?’
Iona teased and she frowned harder as she turned
her head away from Mason and stared out of the window. She didn’t even want to
catch sight of him out of the corner of her eye.

‘
You can’t ignore
me or him forever.’
Iona chuckled. ‘
But you go ahead and sit there
sulking…’

Sulking? Are you
kidding me, Iona?

‘
Ha! Got you
talking!’
Iona teased again. The witch had a need to lighten the mood.
Sure, the alpha had screwed up big time, but his heart was in the right place.

I just want Hope
and then I want to get the hell away from here… and him.
Carly thought.

‘
Well, that’s where
things get kind of screwy. For one, where you gonna go?’

It doesn’t matter
where…

‘Sure it does. How
are you going to support yourself and Hope?’

I’ll get a job…

‘That worked out
well the last time…’

Iona…
Carly didn’t want to hear it, but unfortunately she
couldn’t step out on her brain, and this witch showed no signs of shutting up.

‘
Ok, tell me this…
what happens to your mate when you leave? You know the odds are that he’s going
to go rogue, right?’

How is that my
problem?

‘Wow, that’s cold…’

Don’t you lecture
me on him. He took Hope. He’s a…

‘Male. Now you know
that men don’t think with their brains, girl. Just because this one’s a
different species doesn’t mean he’s not going to screw up. They all do. That’s
why women have rationality and the forgiveness gene.’

Some things are
unforgiveable.

‘Sure. Somethings
are, but this? You know Hope is with Annie, that she’s safe, and he only did it
because he wants you and Hope to…’

Can you stop
talking now?

‘I could.’
Iona paused for effect. ‘
I’m not gonna.’

Iona…

‘Don’t Iona me. I
want you to think good and hard about what you’re throwing away here. Look at
him- with those rippling muscles and those soulful puppy dog eyes. He ain’t
exactly hard to look at.’

Looks aren’t
everything…

‘No, but they help,
a lot, a real lot.’
Iona chuckled. ‘
Then
think about Hope…’

I am thinking about
Hope!
Carly wanted to growl like the
man sitting beside her. This witch was jumping up and down on her last nerve
now.

‘
Good, because tell
me who can keep Hope safer than a pack of damn wolves?’

I can.

‘Now you’re just
lying to yourself, and me, and you’re being unfair to him and to Hope.’

Carly cursed and
grumbled. Then she fell silent. She was done debating this with anyone,
especially a meddlesome witch entity that had gotten her into this mess in the
first place. She just wanted to see Hope, to hold her, and to know that she was
ok.

Then and only then
would she start to contemplate the rest of her life and where she was going.

~

~

~

Carly stalked into the
large living room and her eyes took in the sight. There must have been ten kids
running around, all screeching and chattering, and the sound of laugher had
thrown her for a moment. When her eyes locked onto Hope, her heart jolted
within her, and she went to make a beeline for her child.

Mason’s hand wrapped
around her upper arm and held her in place.

“Look at her, Carly,
she’s fine, she’s having fun. If you go rushing over there and snatch her up
then she’s going to get worried, scared even. Take a moment to steel yourself.”

Mason’s words sunk in.
On this he was probably right. Hope was happily playing and didn’t even notice
that she was there. She certainly wasn’t in any danger.

“Your fears aren’t her
fears. These are just children. Everything is just normal…” Mason let her go
the moment that she tugged her arm away.

“Don’t you tell me how
to handle my daughter.” She bit out. She’d seen the sense in his words and yet
she couldn’t get past what he’d done. He’d scared her half to death.

“I’m not. But she’s my
daughter too now. Anything she wants or needs…”

“You’re insane.” Carly
started across the room towards Hope. She was getting her daughter and getting
the hell out of there… When one little tyke launched himself at her legs and
clung on, causing her to halt in her tracks, and clinging on like a spider
monkey.

“Hi.” He grinned up at
her with the cutest smile she’d ever seen.

‘
Oh, that’s a mean
one. Careful he doesn’t get all claws and fangy and snap at your ankles.’
Iona’s
sarcasm wasn’t welcome.

“Hi, yourself.” Carly
couldn’t just unpeel him. He was a child. It wasn’t his fault that the alpha
was an idiot, and she was a firm believer that the sins of the fathers
shouldn’t be imposed on the next generation. She looked up for an adult and
found Annie sitting across the room chuckling at her.

“That’s Bo. He’s made
quite an impression on Hope.” Annie informed her and her eyes snapped downwards
again.

‘
Wow, I guess we
got here just in time before they all decided to eat her for supper.’

Shut up, Iona.

“Are you Hope’s
mummy?” Bo didn’t seem to want to stop grinning or letting go of her.

“Yep.”

‘ Yep, she is.
Swooping in to save the day…’
Carly
couldn’t help it when a flash of guilt swept through her.

“Is Hope going to live
here now?” Out of the mouth of babes always came the inopportune questions.

‘
No Bo, it’s just
too dangerous…’
Iona really was wearing down that last nerve.

“Errr…” Carly’s eyes
snapped back up to Annie and the she-wolf shrugged.

“I didn’t say a word.”
Annie protested. Carly was trying to figure out how best to be diplomatic with
the child when Mason swooped in and untangled the boy from her legs.

Carly’s eyes took the
alpha in. There was the contrast in the sight of the man with so much strength
handing the child with kid gloves. It sparked something within her… and she
stomped all over it.

“Mummy!” Hope’s
excited squeal saved her from answering.

“Hi, sweetie…” Carly
went to lean in and scoop Hope up as she raced towards her, but Hope reached
out and snagged her hand…

“Come see what we
made. Tent city!” Hope exclaimed with wonder and awe as her other hand pointed
to the mass of sheets and towels that had been strung up over furniture on the
far side of the room. “Bo calls it his den!” Hope giggled as she dragged Carly
with her across the room.