Evening light filtered in through the curtains of the bedroom windows and Arran opened his eyes slowly. The scents of sunshine, honey, sweet grass, fur, and musk surrounded him.
She-Wolf. Mate. Delia. I have a mate.
A smile spread across his face as he took in her face. Relaxed in sleep, she looked like an angel, so soft and beautiful with porcelain skin and her short, dark hair curling in beautiful disarray.
She began to stir, and Arran reached out gently, cupping her face, and kissing her softly. He couldna help himself. She was so bonnie and soft.
“Mmm, hello.”
“Hello yourself, chridhe.”
“What time is it?”
“I dunno.”
“Did we sleep the whole day away?” she asked, as he gathered her warm body close to his.
“Naw, I think it’s round six,” he said, giving her his best guess.
“Think we can stay in bed longer?” she asked, her impish grin making his cock stir with interest.
“Aye, I think that can be arranged.”
Arran kissed her lips gently at first, then deeper, firmer and her hands clutched his shoulders. Need pulsed through him, and he was awestruck by how much he wanted her.
Would it always be like this? He wondered, but already knew there was only one answer.
Yes.
Being with Delia felt like a dream. He wished he could whisk her away somewhere only the two of them existed for a while, but she’d obviously come to Scotland for a reason. Maybe after she finished whatever she was there for, he could coax her into traveling a bit with him.
Sure, he had his own deadlines, but they could wait. Where his mate was concerned, there was nothing else that mattered. One day, and he was already completely smitten. What’s more, Arran did not even mind. In fact, he loved it.
I love her. Holy feck. I do.
Delia moaned, deepening their kiss and everything else just seemed to fall away. All his concerns and misgivings, all his self-doubt. For the first time in his life, Arran was in love. Really in love. And all he wanted was to revel in it, in her, for as long as he could.
Forever.
The first knock was soft. So soft, he dinnae think it was really real. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking. The second knock was stronger. Arran hated the interruption.
A sharp growl filled the room, and he looked down, surprised to see it came from Delia. A grin stretched across his face at her protective streak. Other men might feel emasculated, but not him. She was a fierce one, he’d wager.
Sexy, powerful little beastie. And all mine.
“Easy, chridhe. I’ll let nothing harm you,” he whispered, kissing her lips before getting out of bed.
“Stay here,” he told her, turning to head to the front door as he shrugged on a pair of jeans.
“Arran,” she called his name, stopping him before he left the room. “I won’t let anything harm you either.”
He watched her a moment longer. The picture she made in his bed, deliciously mussed and rosy from their loving forever imprinted on his brain. Arran thanked the Fates for bringing her into his life, and he knew he would spend forever just trying to make her happy.
His chest warmed with an intoxicating combination of affection and pride. He wanted nothing more than to barricade the door against the rest of the world and get lost in his newfound mate. But first, he had to deal with whatever this was.
One sniff, and his hope it was just an errant deliveryman, went right out the window. Delia was waiting for him, warm in his bed just a few feet away, and here was trouble coming to bother them.
No! He would not let the Herd interfere. Decision made, he strode forward, feeling his mate’s curious gaze from where she waited just inside the door to his bedroom.
Feck.
He should have known she would not sit idly in bed. There was no getting away from this now. Gerard had come back, likely to finish their earlier conversation, but he had news for the Alpha. He had a mate now.
Delia wore one of his button-downs and nothing else, tempting minx. A spike of jealousy flared to life, and he pushed it down, not wanting to mar this glorious day with any of that.
“Open the door, Arran. I command it!” Gerard shouted from outside.
Arran’s inner Bull growled and snorted, pawing the ground. There was something unique about Bulls that did not really apply to other Shifters. Once they were mated, they either fell in line or left the Herd.
He had never thought about his future in those terms. In fact, he’d never thought he would take a mate. One afternoon at Wulver & Dracos, and his entire world was upside down, but in the best possible way.
“Arran?” Delia questioned, and he heard her move into the room.
He flashed his gaze to hers and saw her Wolf in her eyes. Warmth filled him at the possessiveness he found there. Yes, he liked that very much.
“Highland Herd Alpha has come calling on me.”
“I see. Do you need help?”
“I dinnae ken,” he replied honestly. “Are you ready, mate?”
“Absolutely,” she replied.
Without further ado, Arran opened the door to his angry Alpha. He was unprepared for the Herd members surrounding the pompous idiot, but the slow, steady growl coming from behind him helped steady his Bull.
Whatever Gerard had in mind, he could stuff it. Arran had Delia now, and nothing was going to tear them apart. Certainly not three measly males.
Mine.