New Species 04 Justice (18 page)

“The usual,” Tiger muttered. “Death threats and we were served with a summons

to appear in court.”

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Justice

Fury snarled, a vicious sound, and pure rage darkened his features. “Ellie’s father is

demanding she appear before a judge for mental competency.”

Disbelief gripped Justice. “What?”

“She had to cancel his visit. He’s angry and believes I want her cut off from her

family.”

“Competency hearing? That implies they believe she’s not of sound mind, correct?”

Justice’s anger spiked. “Is he accusing her of insanity for loving you?”

“Yes.” Fury’s hands gripped the chair tightly enough to make the wood groan.

“She’s carrying our child and it’s obvious enough with her morning sickness that he

would notice if he stayed with us for a few days. And they say she is being abused by

me. She doesn’t need to be upset but I have to tell her about this. She will be angry and that will make me furious.”

Tiger shot him a glance and his eyebrows rose. “You? Angry? Unbelievable.”

Justice smothered a grin at the joke and relaxed. “Don’t tell her, Fury. There’s no

need.”

“She has to be told. They delivered a summons to the gate in her name and I always

share everything with her.”

“She’s your mate, living at Homeland. That makes her Species.” Justice leaned

forward and crossed his arms to rest them on his desk. “Their laws don’t apply to us.

They have no jurisdiction and they can’t enforce it.”

Hope filled Fury’s worried gaze. “Are you certain?”

“Yes. Don’t upset your mate.”

“It’s her father. I’m sure he might mention it when she talks to him on the phone.”

“You’re right. Inform her there’s nothing the outside world can do. They can’t enter

Homeland and it’s a tactic to cause anxiety. It will blow over once her father calms

down. Tell her those things before you give her the news about him being difficult.”

“I wish the outside world had never found out about Ellie and me.” Fury softly

growled. “It’s caused so much grief. Everyone believes I’m harming her or that she

shouldn’t be with me. Why can’t they leave us alone?”

“You two belong together.” Tiger shrugged. “Your love for each other is clear and

perhaps they are jealous. Plus, humans can be really stupid when it comes to us.”

Justice grimly agreed. “Your mate and unborn child are safe, Fury. No one can take

them from you or enter our gates to take her away. Care for her, love her and be there

for her.”

“Always.” Fury rose to his feet. “I still wish the outside world had never learned

about us. I watch it cause her pain sometimes and it tears me apart inside. I want to

protect her but this is the man who helped give her life. I understand his

disappointment but to accuse me of harming her or her being insane to love me is

frustrating.” He glared at each man. “If you ever mate a human, protect her better than

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I have my Ellie. I’m going home now. I hate leaving her for more than a few hours.” He

stomped out of the office.

“Shit.” Tiger sighed, slumping in his chair. “I don’t envy him the conversation they

are about to have. This is why I swore off women from the outside. They come with

nosy families who seem to cause more trouble than having those associations are worth.

It makes me feel lucky that we don’t have parents.”

The thought of Jessie flashed through Justice’s mind. Her father was the senator

who spoke at meetings for Species and fought in Washington for the rights they had.

Worry began to surface. Would Jessie’s father have an adverse reaction if he knew his

daughter had allowed him to touch her? How much trouble could he cause them if he

did? He had real power, was not just some human who wanted to protest outside the

gates or send them nasty messages. He slumped in his chair as he leaned back.

“We’re lucky to be single.”

Justice met Tiger’s steady gaze. “Are we? I think Fury would disagree. His Ellie is

worth it to him. Their love is true.”

“Yeah. You have a point but so do I.” Tiger grinned. “Let’s make a pact. We won’t

tell anyone if we ever fall for a woman from the outside. Between humans thinking

we’re twisted bastards who brainwash women into being with us and our own kind

watching us to see what happens when we are with humans, let’s skip it and keep it on

the down-low.”

“The what?”

“It’s a term I’ve learned from a human. It means keep it secret. It’s no one’s business

and therefore they can’t start any trouble if they disagree with the relationship. The

male said he did that with an undesirable female.” His face grew solemn. “He laughed

when I commented that her looks should be irrelevant if she made him happy. I wasn’t

sure how to take that but I think he cares too much for appearances. The term is the

same though. It means being with someone and no one knows.”

Justice stood. “I don’t like that term. Anyone who would dismiss a person because

of how they look isn’t someone intelligent enough to learn from.”

“You going home?” Tiger glanced at the clock on the wall before giving him a

curious stare. “Are you not feeling well? You never leave this early.”

“I’m tired. I didn’t get much sleep.” It was partially true. He hadn’t slept much but

he wanted to see Jessie. “Don’t stay too late.”

“Sure.” Tiger shrugged. “I still have some paperwork to do but I’m going home

afterward.”

Justice hurried out of the room, thoughts of Jessie distracting him. He wanted to

protect her and avoid trouble with her father but that would mean not being with her at

all. His teeth clenched in anger. It might not be an issue. She might have only wanted to share sex with him once.

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* * * * *

Jessie jumped when the doorbell rang and realized she’d dozed off. She sat up and

gripped the side of the tub to haul her sluggish body out and grabbed a towel. The

doorbell buzzed again. Jessie cursed, dried and put on her boxers and half shirt. She ran for the front door. The doorbell sounded a third time.

“I’m coming,” she called out. She hoped whoever was there wouldn’t leave. She

yanked open the door.

Justice wore a navy suit with a light-gray tie. His hair had been pulled back into a

ponytail, away from his handsome features. His intense, dark gaze slowly lowered

down her body to take in her damp skin, her attire. It hesitated over her breasts. Jessie glanced down to see what held his attention—her nipples were hard. She hadn’t dried

off well so her clothes clung to her in places. She crossed her arms over her chest and

tried not to blush.

“Hello, Justice. I was in the bath. How are you? I didn’t expect anyone to come by

or I’d have grabbed different clothes. How have you been?”
Is that me babbling?
Jessie wanted to kick herself. Justice was on her doorstep and he looked good enough to

attack. She closed her mouth, took a breath and forced a smile. “Would you like to come

inside?”

His gaze lowered further and a smile tugged at his lips. “Are those men’s boxers?”

She looked down again. “I steal them from my older brother when we stay at my

dad’s at the same time.” She laughed, peering up at his face. “The fly is sewn shut and

they are comfortable to sleep in. Dad had them in his plane with some of my stuff he

brought to give to me the next time we saw each other.”

Justice stepped inside the entryway and closed the door softly behind him. Jessie

noticed how much taller he was since she was barefoot. Her boots gave her a few inches

of height. It made him appear bigger than life in her opinion.

“I came to welcome you to Homeland and see how you are doing.” His focus

trained on her hair. “Are you in pain?”

“Not anymore. I took a pain pill not long ago.”

He hesitated. “May I see your injury?”

“Sure. There’s really nothing to see except a bandage.” She turned, presented him

with her back and reached up to her hair to pull out the pins.

Justice’s fingers brushed hers, stilling them. “Allow me.” His voice came out barely

a whisper.

Jessie’s heart pounded at the husky shift of his voice. It sounded pretty sexy to her.

She inhaled and nearly groaned aloud. He smelled so good it made her want to turn

and bury her nose in his shirt. Whatever cologne he used was money well spent. It

reminded her vividly of the night before when they’d been naked and touching. An

image of sinking down on his cock flashed through her memory and heat spread

between her thighs. She started to ache.

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Stop it
, she ordered.
He came to check on me and welcome me to Homeland
. If she didn’t get a grip she was afraid she’d turn back around when he finished looking at her head,

tear open his clothes and run her tongue over any interesting body parts she came

across. With Justice that meant every darn inch of his skin.

Justice pulled the pins one by one from her hair. Her body responded to his soft

touch when he freed her hair and used his fingers to brush through it. Jessie clenched

her teeth, fighting to hold back a moan.

“It’s not so bad. Just a flesh wound. It was a few stitches but I can’t take the

bandage off for two days. They need me to keep it dry.”

“They had to cut off some of your beautiful hair,” he growled.

Jessie turned her head to look at him, wondering why he suddenly sounded angry.

The look in his eyes was one she’d seen before, the one he’d given her when she’d

impaled herself on his cock. She inhaled sharply when his hands suddenly gripped her

hips from behind and slowly pulled her against his big body.

“I was worried about you. I thought you would die.” He took a breath. “I was

certain I’d never get to touch you again.” He inhaled deeply while a purr vibrated his

chest. “I about went crazy, Jessie. Let me stay with you. You owe me a night in bed.”

There was no way she wanted to deny either of them more time together, especially

when her body ached for him. He purred again when he turned her around to face him.

Strong arms lifted her higher until her feet left the floor and she wrapped her legs

around his waist. One of his arms hooked under her ass to support her as his mouth

found hers.

Jessie moaned against his tongue, which delved inside her mouth, and wound her

arms around his neck. She grabbed the tie in his hair and tugged it free until his hair

spilled down his back. The silky texture of it was something she couldn’t get enough of,

just like his passionate kiss. She ground her hips against the hard arousal nestled

against the vee of her shorts. Justice growled against her mouth. He broke the seal of

their lips and pulled his face back as his gaze traveled behind her.

Justice stalked through her living room in the direction of the hallway and she

knew where he carried her. Jessie’s mouth brushed across his neck, placing open-mouth

kisses on the hot skin she encountered. She laughed as she nipped his skin lightly and

licked his ear when he stumbled.

“You think that’s funny?” He chuckled. “You distract me from everything when

you use your teeth and tongue.”

He entered the master bedroom and eased her down on the tall bed. She hated

letting him go but knew it was the only way to undress. Her arms and legs released him

with regret, loving being wrapped around him a little too much. She watched as he

stepped back, reached for his tie and roughly jerked on it until he pulled it over his

head. His jacket hit the floor next and she leaned back on the mattress, using her elbows to hold her up. He unbuttoned his shirt in record time, yanked it off and threw it down.

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The shoes were kicked off quickly and she grinned, noticing he wasn’t wearing socks

again.

“What is amusing to you?” His hands paused at the waist of his dress pants.

“You don’t ever wear socks, do you?”

“Never. I don’t own a single pair.” He tore open his pants. “Why am I the only one

undressing?”

“Because I love to watch you take your clothes off. You’re going to wrinkle your

suit and it looks expensive. Do you want a hanger?”

Justice shoved his pants and boxers down his body. He stepped out of them to

stand naked at the side of the bed. “I don’t care about the suit. I just want you, Jessie.”

Jessie pushed to an upright position and pulled her shirt over her head. She tossed

it away before dropping flat on her back. She gripped the waist of her boxers, lifted her hips and slid them down enough to kick away.

“Are you going to shred my comforter?” She chuckled, appreciating every bare inch

of Justice as he stood over her. She scooted to the center of the bed, never taking her

eyes off him. Her gaze roamed his broad shoulders, his muscular arms and his pebbled

nipples. Her focus lowered to savor the sight of his fully aroused state.

“Is all that for me?”

Justice growled in response as he lunged forward, got on the bed and crawled to

her on his hands and knees, looking carnal and hungry. He stopped, braced his weight

and grabbed both her ankles to push her legs apart. He released them and climbed

higher over her until they were chest to chest. His big body pinned hers to the bed and

his exotic gaze narrowed as he stared deeply into her eyes.