The door to Kade’s new home filled Mira’s vision. She focused on the ornate door knocker and took several deep breaths. She was no longer a cub. Her cats were vicious predators, feared and respected not only by her pride but by many dominants in the shifter community. She was desired and wanted. Edmund had no hold over her and neither did his great-great-nephew.
The mental pep talk steadied her and so did the invisible tether she felt to Josh, something she should not be able to experience with a human. Yet she did. That both pleased and worried her. The tie to him didn’t fit traditional matings. It wasn’t the one-way breeding bond where a male claimed a piece of his female’s soul or a soul-bond where mates exchanged not only pieces of their souls but also shared their animals. It was… She couldn’t even label their connection. All she could say was making love to Josh had changed her—physically, emotionally, mystically.
How exactly had the sex they’d shared accomplished that?
Her pulse kicked up with the ambiguity of their connection. Was she imagining it? Now was not the time to analyze anything. She needed to let it go for the moment.
Thinking of Josh and what they’d shared today would stir her passions and anxiety. Neither were emotions she could afford to feel, not with an enemy close.
She shoved open the door, unable to delay the inevitable.
Kade and Rafe stood like twin pillars of strength just inside the entryway. They’d been her lovers years ago. No longer, but their friendship remained strong. They’d protected and uplifted her when she’d been at her lowest. She nodded slightly, in acknowledgement of their support and in thanks.
A familiar brush against her mind, a tap that asked entry, not demanded, wrapped around her. She opened the mental pathway Royals shared and drew Kade’s mind to hers.
“What have you done?”
The accusatory tone was sharp, however Kade’s expression remained neutral.
“Nothing. Why do you ask?”
“You reek of Josh.”
She tensed. How could she smell of Josh? She’d showered again after he’d left. The bite on her shoulder, maybe? He had reopened the wound. Her pulse kicked up.
No. She couldn’t allow her confusion to show, not in the presence of predators. Though Kade and Rafe were friends, they’d dig for answers if they suspected she was hiding something, but she didn’t have any to give, none that made sense anyway.
She lifted her chin, hoping to convey her innocence and annoyance over being accused of something ridiculous. Image was everything. She’d learned that early on.
“And? He came to see me. I’m allowed to spend time with my suitors. You did approve him as such, and I refused to turn him away.”
“Spent time with him how?”
She forced herself to meet Kade’s gaze. She wanted to give him the same response he’d given her—it was none of his business. That would only stir his anger. As alpha, everything concerning the pride was his business. She settled for a half-truth. “We talked.”
“You lie. You did more than that, I’m sure, but I’m not about to argue with you. We have other concerns. I need you to be mindful of how you act and what you say. My cats are extremely agitated by Micah. He means us harm, and I fear he’ll strike through you. I want you to be careful once you leave here. Please, stay alert and don’t take unnecessary chances. I will have one of Xander’s protectors watching from the shadows. Do not ditch him.”
Pack protectors were known for being discreet. The valuable and elite tier of wolf shifter society also kept secrets better than anyone. Nothing forced them to betray their vow of silence, even torture. Whatever Xander’s pack mate saw or heard would never be shared. There was also a good chance she’d never notice her tail, even with the advantage of her cats. Xander’s two best pack protectors were older even than Aron who had passed the thousand-year mark.
Prides didn’t have an equivalent position. The structure of pack life was so very different than the pride. Life as a feline shifter was less stressful. For the pride, there was the leader and the family. That was it, no tier levels of dominants as in a pack or clear distinction between betas and the rest of the members. Maybe it was the nature of their animals that had led to the differences, or the fact that prides were notoriously smaller. Either way, she was glad she’d been born with big cats. She might not agree with all the rules she had to follow, but they were simpler.
“Fine, but I wouldn’t have to worry about any of this if you hadn’t allowed Micah here in the first place.” She was being unreasonable but couldn’t help it. The idea of actually seeing Micah left her agitated.
Kade closed his eyes and released a long, weary breath. “Do not remind me. I had no choice in the matter. Tomorrow night you will go to the Black Widow for your date with him where I can have shifters in the background.”
“That was the plan anyway.”
“You must pick a mate by the end of the week. I want Micah off my lands.” Kade fixed her with a hard glare. “A shifter mate, Mira. Don’t even consider marrying Josh then asking me to bless your marriage under the light of the moon. The Council won’t stand for it, even if they approve of it. Remember, accidents happen, and once he’s gone, you’ll be back where you started. I refuse to lose you or Josh because of your stubbornness.”
She ground her teeth. “But—”
“Nothing has changed. The threat to your beloved human is still very real.”
She understood the danger. She just didn’t know what she was supposed to do about it. Making love with Josh had changed everything.
Or had it? Maybe she was being delusional.
“Come on. Let’s get this over with.”
He motioned for her to follow Rafe. Kade stepped behind so she was surrounded. Protected. They were making a point to the shifter who thought to mate her—she was important to their pride. It made her heart swell. She’d lived a lonely life yet she’d never been alone.
Mira glanced around as they walked. Much progress had been made to the Alexanders’ new home in the short time since she’d been here. While the walls were unpainted, exquisite gray tile with lines of white covered the floor, and a wide oak staircase led to the upper levels.
The door to the family room stood open. A quick peek revealed plush, tanned carpeting on the floor, and marble surrounding an oversized fireplace. No furniture filled the room, but when it did, the home would be as inviting and welcoming as the mansion they’d abandoned in Virginia when they’d picked up and moved here earlier in the summer.
Kade urged her forward with a hand to her lower back.
“You’re not alone.” Kade whispered into her mind.
No, she wasn’t. She glanced over her shoulder, offered a small smile, and took the last few steps to the formal living room. Micah’s scent hit her first. The familial trace linked him to Edmund. Her rapist’s face flashed across her mind. Her stomach rolled. She embraced the disgust, accepted the hatred she felt, and pushed both aside. Chin raised high, she entered behind Rafe’s wide back.
Her cats slammed into her, all three predators enraged by the sight of Micah. He was a nearly identical replica of the male who’d ruined her life. Long, thin, black hair that looked more like a cape than a hairstyle hung to mid-chest. Although muscle packed his frame, it paled in comparison to the strength in Josh’s body. Micah was shorter than Josh, too.
Weak. That was the impression she got from Micah yet she wasn’t foolish enough to let her guard down. No matter how he looked, he could still shift into a dangerous predator. It was the cat he housed that incensed hers. Micah’s lion would be the one to hurt Josh if it ever came to a battle between them. The man was nothing. Josh could crush him easily.
Micah’s gaze roamed over her. His visual caress made her skin crawl. She held completely still, not allowing the shudder to show.
“You are beautiful, Mira.”
She bit back the snarl and inclined her head. “Thank you.”
Micah glanced between Rafe who stood to her right with his arms crossed over his chest and Kade who mirrored the pose on her left. Micah raised a brow. “Well, this is a tad awkward. How am I supposed to convince you to choose me as your mate when your other suitor is hovering over your shoulder?”
Kade growled. “This is my territory. I can be wherever I want to be.”
A smirk twisted Micah’s thin lips. “And I thought you understood the Council’s…recommendation.”
She flicked her gaze to Kade before she could stop the reaction. The guarded look he wore told her the great shifter elders had decided to put another spin on their original dictate. Before she could ask what, Kade stepped forward. “I will not allow the Council to break their original order. I have been more than generous in my acceptance of their time limit and in allowing you to come in the first place.”
“You agreed to my right to have an exclusive courting period with our sweet Mira.”
Talons punched out of Kade’s hands, and full feline fangs filled his mouth. He took a threatening step toward the smaller male and bared the deadly teeth at Micah. “I said no such thing. Do not twist my words. I agreed to allow you one date with her. One. That’s all.”
Micah matched the forward step. He danced his fingers across the arm of the couch. “You did not deny the elders’ conclusion over why the goddesses did not intervene in Edmund’s attempt to mate Mira. Three centuries have passed without the prophecy coming to pass. Doesn’t it make you wonder why?”
Kade retracted his talons. “It is not my place or yours to question the goddesses. Mira has always had the choice in who will become her mate. The goddesses decreed it when they spoke.”
“True, true.” Micah nodded. “But our females are easily influenced and not wise enough to make such decisions.”
Rage turned her vision red. She snarled and stepped forward. Rafe looped an arm around her waist and gave her a warning look. Kade moved before she could break free. He slammed Micah into the wall and got up into his face. “I will not tolerate such demeaning opinions of any female within my pride. Do so again, and I’ll return your maimed body to your pride as a warning. Understand?”
Micah nodded, and Kade released him with a shove. Micah landed on his ass. Unfazed by the rough treatment, he pushed from the floor and made a show of brushing the nonexistent dirt from his skinny rear.
“I must admit I was quite surprised to hear Mira had suddenly become so desperate for a mate that she’d accepted the courtship of a weak human.” Micah’s gaze swept over her, leaving an itch in its wake. “I suppose since none of the males you’d taken to your bed over the years enjoyed your body enough to lay claim to you, then you would be.”
Rafe snarled, and the sound shook the windows. Micah flinched and carefully avoided locking gazes with him. Satisfaction warmed her. The coward knew he was no match for the Alexander twins. Would he feel the same way with Josh? Uneasiness settled over her.
“It’s merely a statement of fact.” Micah chuckled, his derisive gaze sweeping over her. “Mira whored herself for three hundred years yet not once has she captured a male’s attention. It is what it is.” He offered a smile which showed the state of his mind. The demented glint churned her gut. “But I’m willing to sacrifice for the greater good. I’ll accept what nobody wanted.”
Both brothers stepped forward, snarls falling from their lips. Oh no, she refused to let them fight her battles. She didn’t know what game Micah was playing, but she intended to find out.
She strode forward, leaving Rafe and Kade at her back. Hands clenching and releasing at her sides, Mira fought her cats for control. She stepped into Micah’s personal space and fixed him with a disgusted look.
“If you think demeaning me is any way to convince me to choose you as my mate, you’re a bigger fool than I thought. I am not worthless nor am I unwanted. I wasn’t when Edmund decided to rape me nor has that changed in any of the years since. The lovers I’ve taken have respected me and my choice not to mate.” She let her fangs descend slowly and allowed a low growl to slip free. “If you think to repeat history, you will meet the same fate as Edmund.”
Instead of being intimidated, his smile widened. “Oh, sweet Mira, you will make a fine lover and bear me strong cubs.”
She spun on her heel and stormed toward the doorway before she ripped his throat out, then and there. “Pack up and go home. I will never choose you.”
“Then say goodbye to the feral cub. If you deny me, I will ensure Molly is put down by week’s end.”
Mira stopped. Sharp talons burst from her fingers, her rage too great to contain. Fear rose next, but she ignored the hollow feeling. She glanced over her shoulder. “What exactly are you talking about?”
Micah rolled his eyes. “Please, don’t play games. Certain members of the Council know of Molly’s sad fate. They’ve only allowed her to remain with you out of sympathy.”
Sympathy? No. More likely they were trying to figure out what had happened. As single shifters, they’d never be able to see the Leon spirit’s aura surrounding Molly or realize that the Leon ancestor had joined with her in the way of an alpha, making the five-year-old the leader of its pride.
Unless a Royal told the single shifters the truth, they’d only be guessing at Molly’s and the Leon spirit’s fates. Since only the Alexander pride and a very select few members of Xander’s pack had seen her since she returned from Alaska, Mira had faith Molly’s secret was safe. For now.
“You dare threaten me and mine?”
Micah sat on the couch, oblivious to the partially shifted, enraged males a foot in front of him. He crossed his legs and pressed his head into the cushions. “Oh, yes. I’d do that and more. Care to push me?”
“I would despise you until the day you die.”
“Don’t care.” He shrugged. “As long as you spread those lush thighs for me, I’ll be happy.”
Kade’s assessment of the situation had been right. Micah meant them harm and would use her to cause it. She also saw the truth in his eyes—even if she mated him, he’d see Molly taken from them.
Never. She would never mate Micah nor would she allow him to hurt her family. She just wasn’t sure how to stop the latter. If the Council took action against Molly, they’d be powerless to stop it. Molly shouldn’t exist.
The experiment conducted on the youngster at birth partially joined her with the first ancestor of the Royal Leon pride. From what Mira gathered, the scientists had meant to use Molly as a pseudo host until she mated a single shifter. Molly’s mate would then accept the Leon spirit, thereby making all of their children immortal single shifters.
The Leon spirit had changed the game plan, though. It had chosen Molly to be its host…the first female alpha in the history of shifters. Someday, she would lead her own pride. If the single shifters found out about her fate, they’d try to kill her in an attempt to steal the Leon spirit from her.
No. Absolutely not. Mira wouldn’t allow it. Until she figured out how to stop the Council, there was only one thing left to do.
“I will meet you at the Black Widow tomorrow night. Until then, get off the Alexander pride lands. You’re not welcome here.”
Josh stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He wore his sternest expression yet the adorable lion cub mere feet from him completely ignored him.
“Molly Elizabeth, stop it. Right now.”
Her ears twitched, but she continued to claw the back of his chair—his favorite football-watching, napping recliner, the one Zoe had bought for him with her savings from working at the local amusement park.
Devin sat on the couch, his feet propped up on the coffee table and a big smirk on his face. Although wetness still shimmered in his eyes, he’d at least stopped laughing.
“You know, a little help would be nice.”
Devin held up his hands. “Hey, you’re the one who said you could handle the cub. So”—he motioned toward where Molly clung to the upholstered back—“handle her.”
It’d be simpler if Molly would shift back to her human form, but they’d been hoping for that ever since she’d arrived. The little girl was stubborn. He could relate, but her stubbornness was going to end up killing her.
Unable to come up with a better way to get through to her, he grabbed her by the tuft of loose skin on her back and tugged. Cloth ripped as he pulled her off the chair. Molly hissed and twisted in his grip, little legs flailing wildly. He held her at arm’s length and let her struggle until she tired before he lifted her and stared into her pale blue eyes.
She bared a single fang and hissed.
“Enough, Molly. You are a child first, a cub second. This game is getting old, and I won’t put up with it.”
More growls crawled up her throat. She swiped her paw, meeting air.
“If you won’t shift, you will take control of your cat and show me some respect. My chair is not your scratching post.”
She snarled.
Josh narrowed his eyes, lifted one corner of his mouth, and growled, mimicking what he’d heard from the other shifters. The deep rumbly sound coming from him sounded deeper than he’d expected. The ache in his gums returned. His fingers itched. He ignored the sensations as the silent battle of wills continued.
Molly fell quiet and stared at him. Instinctively, he knew it wasn’t enough. He didn’t want the child to cower, but he had to establish who was in charge.
He leaned forward so his face was a couple of inches from hers and gave another low growl. Molly went limp and dropped her gaze. Hating himself for her reaction yet knowing it was the only way to deal with the little cub, he snarled once more then wrapped her in his arms, hugging her furry body close. She nuzzled his chin and gave his cheek a lick. He smiled.
“Yes, little one, we’re cool. Just remember who’s in charge, and if you think to mark anything inside the house, think again.” He pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose and set her down. She scrambled off. Within moments, she was occupied by a rubber ball, the little dominance rift obviously forgotten.
The sensation of an intense gaze settled on his back. He turned his head. Devin sat on the couch, elbows on his knees, and deep creases lining his forehead.
Josh raised a brow. “What?”
“If I didn’t see it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it.”
He brushed white fur off his shirt. “I told you I could handle Molly. She just needed to learn I’m in charge, not her.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about.”
The shifter’s tone stopped him from making a smart-ass comment. “Then what?”
“Your eyes glowed.” Devin studied him a long moment more before he shook his head. “I don’t think you’re entirely human anymore.”
Josh laughed so hard Molly stopped to look at him. “Oh, yeah? Then what am I, buddy?”
Devin scrubbed a hand through his hair. “No idea.”
“It’s the dim lights in here. Zoe thought the same thing yesterday. Once she turned them on, I was all back to normal.” Josh walked to the wall switch and flicked it. He faced the other man. “Well?”
Devin narrowed his eyes at him. He parted his mouth and inhaled, no doubt tasting Josh’s scent. The feline shifters often called on their animals when they didn’t understand something or needed more info.
Devin sat back, brow still creased. “I guess I was wrong.”
“Trick of the light, my friend.” Josh tapped his chest with a balled fist. “Only one in here is me.”
Except, the snickering echoing in his head made him wonder if he really had lost his mind once and for all.