Dimitri (Immortals of New Orleans, Book 6) (15 page)

“We’re goin’ to be spendin’ a lot of time together.”

“I suppose we are. This plan of Jax’s. I’m not sure it’s going to work.”

“We’ve gotta smoke em’ out. Chaz is a bad guy. If he hadn’t sent those thugs here to find you, this would be a different conversation. I’ve been around a long time, and it’s rare that someone’s got the balls to send his pack onto another Alpha’s territory. This guy, there’s something not right with him. You’re not safe.”

“I’m glad you came.”

“I told you we were going on another date. And as I recall, you said yes.”

“I was under duress.”

“Since when is coming considered duress?” he asked, his hand stroking over her stomach. Shit, he’d just made love to her and his cock was stirring once again.

“That was amazing.”

“Now or then?”

“Both,” she laughed. “I’ve never been able to just let go. I really am sorry that I bit you.”

“We’re just getting started, cher. I assure you. We’re goin’ to be doin’ all kinds of things.”

“I wish I could say I wasn’t looking forward to it, but I am.” She kissed his chest.

“That’s the spirit,” he cheered. Dimitri reached up and untied his bow tie, unbuttoning the first few buttons of his shirt. “You’re avoiding my question.”

“I know. Too many ears here in the theater.”

“Fair enough, but you owe me, understood?”

“Yes.” She smiled, aware that she wanted to tell him, not because he was asking, but because she wanted a solution to her problem. The beta had been relentless, and now, she feared she couldn’t go back to the lonely life she’d once led. In the course of a week, her entire perspective on life had shifted.

It was no use to lie. They’d be pretending to be mates. Gillian had no idea what that really meant. But the warning of her mother’s words rang in her ears.
Mate a wolf, your tiger will die.

Gillian raised her head, gazing into Dimitri’s eyes. When the music stopped, the curtains to their booth flew open. Jax, the devastatingly handsome Nordic wolf, leered down on the lovers, who smiled up at him in amusement.

“I said pretend to be her mate. At any point, did you hear me say, ‘Come up to New York and fuck my sister in public…during one of my company events?’ Did I say that? I really don’t recall saying that.” Jax scrubbed his fingers over his tightly cropped hair. He moved to the balcony, overlooking the patrons who were shuffling into the lobby for the intermission.

“Sorry.” Dimitri laughed. He knew that they should have been slightly less conspicuous but the draw of his mate had been too much to resist.

“Sorry? Really? That’s all you’ve got?” He turned to Gillian, who scrambled up to her feet, adjusting her dress. “And you? What’s your excuse, little sister? Seriously, every shifter in the room could hear you.”

“Um, well, yeah, sorry about that. But technically this is your fault. I mean, what did you expect? You asked Dimitri to come here…to pretend to be my mate.” Gillian reasoned that her comeback sounded solid, inexperienced in dealing with her Alpha brother.

“This isn’t funny, Gilly,” he growled.

Dimitri put himself between Jax and his sister, hiding his grin.

“It’s cool, man. Look, the only ones who could have possibly heard us were shifters. You just announced us as mates. You know full well that any shifters wouldn’t think twice about us puttin’ a little rhythm into a musical number. No harm, no foul.”

“You don’t know what harm you can do to my sister…”

“Jax.” Gillian shot her brother a glare in warning. It was her place to tell Dimitri her secret, not his.

Jax sighed, reconsidering his words. “I asked you up here because it was obvious to me that you already had a relationship with my sister. That, and that you can protect her. Don’t make me regret it.”

“I swear it on my life, but I’d like to remind you that even though I saved her, she saved me. She’s badass when she goes cat.”

“I’m sorry, it’s just that some of the folks in my pack aren’t too crazy about having a tiger stay with the Alpha. They don’t trust her. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of Chaz’s pack and…” Jax paused. Retrieving his cell phone from his inner jacket pocket, he swiped at it with the pad of his finger. “Goddammit.”

“What’s up?” Dimitri asked. The hard crease in the Alpha’s forehead told him something bad was going down. He’d seen that look too many times from Logan, and he knew the shit was about to hit the fan.

“Drive-by shooting in front of my building.”

“Not good.”

“But this is the city…I know you live uptown, but still…” Gillian argued.

“Something’s off. I can’t explain this to you, sis, but I just know. It’s part of the reason I asked Dimitri to come for you.”

“But you killed that wolf yesterday.”

“Yes, but the fact that they were able to get in the city unnoticed…it’s not safe for you here. I need to stay and sort things out as best I can, and then I’ll come for you.”

“It could be internal,” Dimitri theorized. Someone within Jax’s own pack may have known about Chaz’s wolves, allowed them to get close to his home.

“I’d like to think it’s too early to speculate. As much as I trust you to take care of Gilly, you’re not from our pack. So this discussion’s done.”

“No worries. I hear ya.” Dimitri knew that Jax would keep his cards close to the vest. No matter how cordial he’d been so far, Jax was an Alpha for a reason. Dimitri had almost killed one Alpha on the west coast, the last thing he needed was to challenge Jax.

“What are you trying to say?” Dimitri heard Gillian ask. He felt a tinge of sympathy for her. She hadn’t grown up around pack, and was clearly having trouble seeing the picture that Jax was drawing.

“You’re leaving. Now,” Jax said, putting his phone away.

“What do you mean I’m leaving? I just got here. You said I had a job with ZANE. I’ve gotta work. You can’t just cart me around.” Her voice grew louder.

“Gilly, it’s going to be okay,” Dimitri began. He got that she felt out of control. The past week had been hell for her and she sought some peace in the storm. But Dimitri knew that yelling at an Alpha was a bad idea even if she wasn’t a wolf. “We’re mates. It’d be expected that you’d travel with me, and I with you. You ever been to Mardi Gras?” Dimitri gave Jax a knowing look, hoping he’d throw him a bone.

“That’s right, Gilly. We can do a spread for the magazine on Mardi Gras. Maybe a ‘past meets future’ feature. Talk to locals, get some photos. Help readers who don’t live there get a feel for what it’s like.”

“That’s a great idea. There’s so much history. We can check out the parades. I know you’ll enjoy it.”

“Chaz is going to come for me there, you know.”

“Yes, he is. And we’ll be ready. Believe me, he won’t be able to hide in the shadows like he’s doin’ here. We can always go straight to the bayou if we think the city’s not an option. We’ll call Logan from the plane, set up a plan of action.”

“Nick and I will be down as soon as we clean things up here. I swear it.”

Gillian silently resigned herself to the fact that she’d be leaving New York. Wrapping her arms around herself, she nodded in agreement.

Dimitri took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. He locked eyes with Jax as he put his arm around her. Understanding passed between them; the Alpha knew she was his mate. Logan would know, too. Dimitri, himself, wasn’t comfortable with the idea, but it didn’t matter. Gillian could easily choose to reject his wolf, his mark and their mating. Chaz had attempted to mark her, and not even a scar remained. Why would he be any different? They’d made love, but he didn’t trust that she wouldn’t leave him. She’d been upfront, telling him that she didn’t want to be with a wolf. It still hadn’t made sense to him, because he’d never heard of a wolf mating with a tiger, not even a hybrid.

Everything about her was different. Too different. She was a loner, never relying on others for hunting, friendship. Even if every issue resolved itself, there was the huge elephant in the room; his pack. Would his pack accept another shifter into their lives?

Gillian tensed as they pulled onto the tarmac and the deafening engine of the Learjet roared to life. She carefully navigated the steps up into the cabin, the warmth of Dimitri on her back reminding her that she wasn’t alone. Trying to appear nonchalant, she slid into a cream-colored leather chair. Gillian wasn’t used to this kind of luxury. Flying coach, jammed in the middle seat, last row was more her style.

Dimitri gave her a warm smile, and it was as if someone had wrapped her in a protective cocoon. From the second she’d met him, it felt as if she’d fallen down the rabbit hole. Surreal, it had gone against everything she’d ever known. But as she watched him take off his coat and roll up the sleeves of his white dress shirt, she couldn’t help but think about being in his arms again. For the first time in her life, she considered what her life would be like without her feline spirit. Could she wake up in the morning with the knowledge that she couldn’t shift? Even if she managed to transition to wolf, how would she feel being forced to submit within pack? Would Dimitri only want to mate her so he’d receive the gift she’d sacrifice to be with him?

She gazed out the tiny oval window at the flickering runway lights trailing off into the distance and shoved the thoughts to the back of her mind. She needed to focus, to attempt to shake the lust from her mind and think clearly. Chaz had somehow learned of her gifts. What if Dimitri had found out too? What wolf wouldn’t want to have both the power of a tiger and wolf? Dimitri’d told her that he didn’t want to be Alpha, but she didn’t know him well enough to trust that he really meant it. All she knew for certain was that he didn’t want to leave New Orleans, his Acadian wolf pack. Observing him interact with his own Alpha would provide further insight to his intentions.

A familiar voice captured her attention and her eyes caught Jake’s. Casually dressed, in jeans and button down shirt, he was as handsome as she’d remembered.
Are all wolves this freakin’ hot? No wonder my mom told me to stay away from packs.
She tried to hide the smile that crossed her face, and he laughed. Her stomach rolled, and she prayed he didn’t read minds.

“Hey, Gil,” he greeted. “Ya ready for a little fun in the Big Easy?”

“Fun? Yeah, if that’s what you’d call being on the run from a maniacal jackass.” She grinned and nodded. “Something tells me you’re a glass half full kind of a guy.”

“You bet. Besides, you two seem no worse for wear. Dimitri’s in a good mood, that’s for sure.”

“He either wants to go on another date with me or he really likes cats,” she laughed, knowing he scented Dimitri on her once again.

“I suspect it’s a bit of both.”

“I was just joking. It’s more like he and Jax decided I was going on a trip.”

“I wasn’t. Logan’s got a cat. Mojo. Dimitri is constantly talking to it like a baby. Kissing it. Embarrassing really. You’d think the damn thing was the Alpha, the way it does whatever it wants.”

“Ah…that’s the thing about us cats, we don’t take orders very well.”

“Is that so?” he chuckled. “I can’t wait to see how that works out for the both of you.”

Dimitri came out from the cockpit, and caught the tail end of their conversation.

“Don’t you worry about Gilly, bro. She’ll do just fine. Although I do owe her for leaving me in Vegas,” he commented, casting Gillian a devious glance.

“You wouldn’t have gone to see the witch if I had let you come with me to New York,” she began.

“And that’s your first mistake, kitten. It was all good in Vegas.” Even though he felt like shit by the time he’d gotten to Ilsbeth, he wouldn’t admit it to her. “I know you like your independence, but there’s no foolin’ around at home with my pack. I give the orders and you listen.”

Gillian resisted the urge to roll her eyes…exactly why she didn’t want to be with wolves.

“Cat got your tongue?” Jake teased. “I don’t think she’s gonna submit easily, my friend.”

“Submit? Who said anything about me submitting? I’m going on a plane ride to take pictures of Mardi Gras. Technically, I’m working. While you all are begging for doggie treats, I’ll be happily on my own, snapping pics of the city,” she taunted. Unsure of why she goaded the two men, Gillian cautiously chose her words, aware there was a line she should not cross.

“You’ve got your hands full, beta,” Jake responded. He laughed out loud, holding his hand to his abdomen.

“It’ll be my pleasure when you do submit,” Dimitri promised, coming up behind her chair. He knelt behind her, wrapping a strong arm around her chest. His fingers lingered on her collarbone as he whispered into her ear loud enough for Jake to hear. “And when you do, I’ll make sure Jake’s there to watch. After all, you seemed to take quite nicely to it earlier tonight. I’m thinking you liked having a little audience.”

Gillian’s eyes met Jake’s and her nipples hardened at Dimitri’s statement.
Damn it all.
Blood rushed to her cheeks, and she fought the urge to moan as his lips pressed to her neck. Her head lolled back onto his shoulder. Closing her eyes, she reveled in the sensation of his tongue behind her ear, causing her to break out in gooseflesh. She sighed, her pussy aching in arousal. Surprised, cold abandonment washed over her when Dimitri stood and walked away.