Blown Away (Rogues Shifter Series Book 4) (7 page)

He smoothed down my hair and then squeezed me a little bit tighter, just making sure that I was safe, I guess. "Tell me what you learned about your parents."

W
e stayed wrapped together on his chair as I told him the few facts she'd disclosed regarding my mother and father. He asked me all about my impressions of my grandmother and how Isaiah reacted around her, and he got a big kick out of Samson's protective instincts and my grandmother's opinions of males.

"It's a matriarchal society. The powerful females have many consorts."

"Oh, really?" I teased.

He grinned. "
Does that idea appeal to you? Do I not satisfy you, Madame?" He nuzzled my ear.

My heart pounded. "I'm pretty sure
you know that you satisfy me—epically."

"Epically?"

"You know what I mean." I pushed at his shoulder.

"Utterly? Absolutely? Or
perhaps you mean explosively? Fiercely? Passionately?" He was saying each word low and sexy as his warm breath tickled the sensitive skin of my neck.

I was giggling. "Yeah, yeah,
and you're humble too."

He laughed with me, but then his look turned serious again. "Whenever you feel you're ready, we'll contact your father."

"Not yet. I want it to sink in. And I need to tell Bridgett, too." I stroked his face and smiled. "Sasha brought me a sandwich."

"I sent him. I didn't think you'd want to see me again so soon."

"He said that I'm your entire world." I teased him.

"Sasha talks too much, but he's right. If I lost you, I'd walk into the sun."

I shook my head in disbelief. "You have so many others who love you. Who need you."

"I've spent my entire life waiting for you, my love. If you leave this world before me, I'll follow. Liam says we should look for each other on your cliff."

"Let's not get morbid. We have lifetimes remember? But to be honest, I am a little worried about the stupid three-question bargain I made with my Grandmother. She was seriously spooky. I might have put us in danger."

"If you never go there again, she can't collect and I don't believe that she can come here unless she's summoned or i
nvited. So don't worry." He stood with me still in his arms. "You need to eat your sandwich."

"You're always worried about whether I eat. Anyway, I think I'm getting chubby." I pulled up my tee shirt and looked at my belly. "I'm eating too much of Liam's french toast and bacon."

"I want you healthy, so don't argue."

"Yes,
General
." He smiled a little wickedly this time.

I ended up eati
ng in the kitchen with my feet in his lap as he massaged them. I think we both needed to reconnect physically as well as emotionally after our spat. I was feeling very relaxed and quite content by the time I finished eating.

We watched an action movie with the boys downstairs, (Will, Rick and Sash), and then Garrett beat them in pool while I ate a huge bowl of ice cream and cheered him on from the couch, still wearing my comfy pajamas. The vamps decided to go out for a while, they needed cheering up after their loss to Garrett, not that he ever took money from them. Usually it was a promise to do some silly chore he'd dream up.
Two days ago he had them cleaning the gutters on the roof and then replacing all our bulbs with energy saving ones. He definitely got off on playing Master Vampire with his nest, even though he was probably the most easy going MV in the country.

"Come on,
General. Lets end the night the way your parents did." I led him into his room, with its huge bed, satin sheets and abundant pillows.

His eyes were already dotted with silver. "You want to sleep here tonight?" Usually we spent our time together in
my
bed because his room shut down tight at dawn.

"Eventually."

"Vixen." He kissed my cheek, then my ear and then finally, my mouth, causing my toes to curl up. "Prepare to be satisfied epically." Making up was so much fun.

CHAPTER THREE

The next morning, I packed for the trip to Los Altos we’d be taking later that evening. I pretty much knew what Garrett would need, so I packed for him too. We'd explained to the Alpha, Quentin, that driving back and forth from a hotel would really cut into our time, so they'd agreed to put us all up in one house, since we didn’t want to be separated. They assumed that Garrett and his nest would rest in the windowless finished basement of the house during the day
, however we had other plans.

We were bringing Liam, and two other fae warriors for security during the day and night while we worked. They’d also be secretly transporting the vamps back to Garret’s house before dawn to rest in their usual rooms. Vampires were vulnerable to attack when they rested and we weren’t trusting the wolves with their safety. In addition we’d be installing our own surveillance equipment around the property. We couldn’t rule out the “inside job” theory.

Kyle and Ethan arrived right on time so I rewarded them with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. I’d invited my three original team mates to a late lunch, thinking that it would be great to hangout and chill together for a couple of hours before we had to leave. Ethan looked his usual handsome self, with his thick, dark chocolate hair, his large golden brown eyes and his warm smile. He was dressed in dark jeans, boots and a solid black tee shirt under a sports jacket. He turned women’s heads wherever he went, but it never made him stuck up.

Kyle was my height, 5’9”
, and had an edgier look. Spiky blonde hair framed his Asian features, assorted tattoos decorated his arms, and eyebrow stud set off his dark intelligent eyes. He wore his usual sneakers, black jeans and gory graphic tee. This week it was some heavy metal band called Death Bed, with blood splattered around the words. His exotic features turned heads as well, but Kyle was already committed to his mate, Peter, and so never noticed that kind of attention.

I dished up the amazing chili that Liam had left warming on the stove, since he wouldn’t be co
ming back until 4:00 PM. “So Kyle, how many of those…um...shirts do you actually have?” I was thinking that he could have changed it up a bit for the important meeting tonight.

“At least a hundred,
I think.” He kept eating, but his eyes had narrowed. “Peter said I should dress more professionally, but this is how I dress.” He shrugged. Ethan and I didn’t say a word so he sighed in exasperation, rolled his eyes and pulled out his cell. “Hey, could you bring over my leather jacket and a regular shirt? Yeah, you were right. See you soon. Love ya.” He looked at me. “Happy?”

“I’ll be very happy
to see Peter.”

“Yeah, I bet. He’s everyone’s favorite. Nobody can figure out why he picked me as his lifemate, but you two can vouch for my winning personality, right?”

Ethan almost choked on his chili. I chuckled out, “It’s similar to Bridgett and William choosing each other.”

“You are so not comparing me to your crazy-
assed sister." We continued to eat without answering."I mean, yeah we’re both smart and kinda outspoken—and hard to live with sometimes—and stubborn.” Ethan and I were grinning and trying so hard to hold in our laughter. Kyle frowned. “Well I’m much cooler.”

“Much,
” I said.

“Cooler.”
Ethan added as we nodded at our annoyed teammate.

He glared at us for a minute and then shrugged it off. “Well, anyway, Peter’s
been talking to that Flynn kid, trying to help him out. We don’t want the Shifter Council getting involved and then executing the poor guy just ‘cause he’s a hard headed SOB.”

“We’ve all been there,” Ethan chimed in before
gulping down another mouthful.

Sinc, our other team mate, arrived twenty minutes later looking great in black leather pants and a red silk blouse, but after giving me a weak hug, she sat as far away from Kyle and Ethan as she could manage. She was a knockout with piercing blue eyes and rich brown hair that hung below her shoulders in soft waves. At 5’4” she was curvy where women should be curvy and always moved like a woman
with plenty of confidence. Tonight she avoided our eyes and only seemed to be playing with her food.

After our
Rogues, Inc. team was formed, Ethan and Sinc discovered a mutual attraction, becoming lovers and then eventually, housemates. When Ethan suggested that they make it more permanent, Sinc flipped, managing to sabotage their relationship by pretending to cheat on him with Sasha. When she’d returned to her empty house, she realized that she’d made a terrible mistake, but Ethan couldn't bring himself to trust her again.

I took another good look at her. Sinc was getting thinner and I knew it wasn’t just
because of losing Ethan. She was stressed about seeing her parents again in Los Altos, the weres who’d tossed her out when they’d found out she was ‘only a shifter’ and could never be made a werewolf. She’d also have to confront the Alpha and his mate who’d insisted that she leave, even though her dad had petitioned them to let her stay. Tonight was going to suck for her, so I decided to stick close in support.

Peter arrived soon after Sinc, handing Kyle a garment bag that obviously had more than just the two items Kyle had asked for. When Kyle curled his mouth into a sheepish smile, Peter bent down
to kiss him lightly on the lips. “You’re welcome.” He walked over to me and gave me a hug, asking, “How are you feeling, Jackie? I haven’t seen you since you’ve gotten back.” Peter was tall, over 6’, with wavy dark hair, dark eyes that glittered with humor and beautiful mahogany colored skin. He was laid back and relaxed for a lawyer, and the perfect complement to Kyle’s more intense personality. I offered him chili but he declined.

“I’m doing fine, thanks to everyone who helped to find me, including these three.” I looked at them affectionately as Samson ran over suddenly to lick my hand. I chuckled as I said, “You too, Samson. You kicked some serious ass!” We all laughed when my big tough Rottweiler lay down and rolled over to get his belly scratched. We were leaving him in Faerie with Aedus and Philladre while we were on assignment in Los Altos, where we were sure he’d be spoiled rotten. Plus Bridgett was there to pamper him too.

We chatted with Peter, who told us a little bit about the lion shifter, Flynn. “He’s stubborn and afraid, not cooperating with any of us. Rob’s at his wit’s end and we’re both concerned that the Council may take matters into their own hands.  Because he won’t talk to us or shift again we think they’ll decide he’s too dangerous, and they may be right.” He turned to me. “You’re pretty much our last hope for him.”

“I’m planning on paying Flynn a visit as soon as we get back from Los Altos. I’ll do my best.” I shrugged. The Shifter Council had agreed to wait until I was able to spend some time with him before making their decision, since I was the only shapeshifter healer in the western states.

After a few minutes, Peter said goodbye and wished us luck, so Kyle jumped up to take his hand and walk him out to the car. I was happy to see that their relationship seemed stronger than ever. I flashed on them possibly adopting a kid one day, and then recalled some of Kyle’s stubborn temper tantrums. Peter really didn’t need to deal with two unruly children. Still, I understood the attraction more than Kyle might think. Kyle made you laugh and relax, even in the middle of a terribly tense situation. He glowed with self-confidence, exuding a vibrant life force, and was never hesitant to speak his mind on any subject, usually with passion. There was an open honesty about him that I respected.

Two minutes later, Kyle was back at the table shoveling in his food, jabbering on about some book he was reading, but Ethan was watching Sinc, who was barely nibbling at her chili. He got up and moved to the chair next to hers, draping his arm around her so that she could lean against him. This was such a typical Ethan thing to do. He was all heart and he wanted her to know that he’d be there for her tonight, no matter what was going on with their relationship.  I smiled at him and he just shrugged. It was obvious to me that he still cared about her, and I hoped that they’d have a chance to talk privately before we left for tonight’s meeting with the pack.

To make that happen, I grabbed Kyle and asked him if he’d like to play some Mario Kart with me before the vamps woke up. This was a game he never lost, so it didn’t take much urging to get him upstairs and beating me at every-single-race. Ethan and Sinc made it upstairs half an hour later laughing about something, and I was grateful to Ethan for making the effort to cheer her up. If anything was going to help her get through tonight it was having his support. They sat on the couch and watched as Kyle’s Princess Toadstool flew past my Luigi once again, laughing wickedly. I stole a glance at Ethan and he smiled back as Sinc leaned against him to rest her head on his shoulder.

Kyle glanced at the couple, narrowed his eyes and said, “Ethan you’re nuts." He held up a hand to stop Ethan's angry comment. "But I’m following orders and keeping my mouth shut this time.”  Kyle and Sinc were like oil and water, always picking at each other like kids. Garrett had laid into them the last time, so Kyle was trying to stay on his best behavior, hoping to avoid being placed on unpaid leave. The odd thing was, they were actually very similar, both with a glowing red aura and attitude to spare. I figured that probably explained their constant bickering.