Despite her fear that he would not, Reid joined Carley in her bedchamber that evening. Without a word, he slipped into the bed and under the sheet, covering her body with his own, blessedly naked and incredibly turned-on body. She was sprawled on her stomach, and he lay on top of her, his front pressed to her back. His erection pressed into her backside. She lifted her hips, and he rolled his own in response.
“M-m-m,” she murmured, enjoying the feel of him, relieved that he’d come, glad he had apparently forgiven her. It felt like a lifetime since they’d slept in the same bed together.
“You like this?” he whispered against her ear. He pushed her hair out of his way and kissed her ear.
“I like everything you do,” she replied as she turned her head to give him better access.
The trail of kisses was hot and wet as he made his way from her ear to her shoulder. “I want you to be mine, Carley,” he whispered. “Amongst my kind, this will make you mine.”
“I want to be yours. Make me yours.”
He cupped her ass with one hand, smoothed his hand across her soft skin, slid his fingers through the crack and the wetness there. She was ready for him. She was always ready for him.
With his body bent over hers, he held himself up with one arm while he grasped his erection with the other, guiding it to her opening.
“I have never wanted something so much as I want this, Carley,” he said a moment before he thrust, pushing himself into her, connecting them. Mating with her.
She made a noise of desire as she arched her back and curled her fingers into the soft bedding, pushing her backside against him, encouraging him, asking for more.
He gave it to her. He gave it all to her. He pushed them both, until they were panting with need and desire, until she was just on the edge, almost there. And then he snaked an arm around her waist, held her tightly and thrust harder and deeper, pushing her over and following almost immediately. He collapsed next to her, gasping for breath, his heart hammering.
“Does this mean I’m forgiven?” she asked a short time later.
He turned his head to look at her. His eyes were glowing so brightly they lit the room as well as a lamp would.
“There’s nothing to forgive.”
“I wasn’t honest. I should have told you about Miguel.”
He reached over, stroked his fingers along her cheek. She nuzzled his hand.
“I hate to say this, but if you had, I might have walked away. I don’t think I would have even given us a chance. I wasn’t in the right place yet. I’ve grown so much since meeting you. Since falling in love with you.”
She choked on a sob and lifted her hand, cupping the one that lingered on her face. “I love you, too, Reid. So much.”
“Good. Because you’re mine now.”
“But…Miguel.” She hated to say his name. She hated everything about him. Everything he’d stolen in her life, but especially this. Her future.
Reid rolled away from her and climbed out of the bed. “You’re only his mate so long as he’s alive.” And then he was gone, stepping into the bath chamber and closing the door behind him. Carley waited a reasonable length of time, and then padded across the room and tapped on the bathroom door. When he didn’t answer, she twisted the knob and pushed the door open.
He wasn’t there. The window was open, the curtains fluttering in the cool night breeze. He’d flown away. Carley turned to the mirror and stared at her tousled image. Was he serious? Did he really intend to kill Miguel?
She fled the room, barely taking the time to pull on clothes in her haste.
* * * *
“He’s going to kill Miguel!” Carley burst into Cecilia and Finn’s chamber without bothering to knock. And discovered she and Reid had not been the only ones who had needed to connect in the way of the shifters.
“Fates be damned,” Finn barked when he pulled away from Cecilia, rolled onto his backside and pulled the sheet into his lap. “What is it with your family and their inability to knock?” he demanded, glaring at his mate, who demurely pulled a robe over her shoulders.
“Who’s going to kill Miguel?” Cecilia asked, ignoring Finn.
“Reid!”
“No less than he deserves,” Finn grumbled. “I can’t believe he was hiding so close and I never knew it.”
“He was able to hide his scent,” Cecilia reassured him as she stroked his arm. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“We have to stop him,” Carley said.
“Why? Unless I’m missing something, you sure seem a hell of a lot better off with my brother than with that other asshole.”
“Well, yes, of course, but—but—what if Miguel wins?”
Finn scoffed. “He won’t.”
“But—”
Finn cut her off with a scowl. He bunched the sheet in his hand and slid off the bed, carefully ensuring Carley did not see more of him than was proper.
“I’ll go find him,” he muttered. He stalked into the walk-in closet. When he stepped out again, he wore a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. He stabbed his finger at his mate. “You. Stay here. Do not come up with some stupid-ass plan that will put you or her in danger. Got it?”
Cecilia lifted her hands, as if in surrender. “Just go, make sure your brother doesn’t get himself killed.” Finn strode across the room toward the balcony. He pulled open the door. A blast of cool wind swirled into the room, and then he was gone, flying away in the form of a hawk. Completely unconcerned about her nakedness, Cecilia stood, walked over to the door and gently pushed it closed. Then she turned to Carley.
“So, what’s the plan?”
*
Finn found Reid in the house where Miguel had tied him to the bed and whipped him with a belt. “What are you doing?” he asked as he stepped through the door.
Reid rolled his shoulders, but there was no pain, not even the normal tightness he usually felt, the reminder of the whipping he’d received from his crazy-ass pack master. Alexa deserved a freaking gold medal. Despite what Jake said the day before, she really was a god, at least in Reid’s eyes.
“This is where she lived with him,” he said as he waved a hand to encompass the house. “Look at it. There aren’t any pictures. No personal touches. That kitchen isn’t even a kitchen Carley would ever want to use. This is where she lived, but it doesn’t feel like her.”
Finn looked around with dispassionate interest. “Maybe because this was never where she belonged,” he suggested.
“She belongs with me,” Reid said fiercely.
Finn nodded. “There’s only one way to make that happen.”
“I know.”
“Are you prepared to have that hanging over your head? Killing a man in cold blood? Have you ever killed before, Reid?”
“No.”
“I have. It eats at your soul. It never goes away. No matter how happy that life you’re thinking about in your head right now, the way you got there will always, always be in the back of your mind. You will never, ever forget.”
“She should be mine. Not his. He doesn’t deserve her.”
“That’s true.”
“There’s no other way.” They both knew it. Just as shifters mated for life, so too did lightbearers. Happily wasn’t always part of the ever after.
“She’s worth it,” Reid added.
Finn let the comment hang in the air for a few moments, until he said, “I figured as much.”
Reid glanced at him and arched an eyebrow. Finn sighed. “Let’s go. Let’s get this over with.”
Reid watched his brother walk toward the door. “Where are you going?”
Finn stopped and mocked Reid’s earlier raised eyebrow look. “Did you forget who happens to be one of the best trackers of our kind?” he asked coolly.
“Oh. Right.” He followed his brother out the door.
*
“Are we really going to the kitchen to cook?” Cecilia asked as she followed Carley down the stairs and turned to the left, toward the kitchen suites.
“Yes. What did you think I meant when I suggested it? I told you it was crazy to want to go out searching for Miguel again, and you said you were bored, so I suggested cooking. Why not?”
“Because we should head down to the village to use you as bait and try to lure Miguel out into the open.”
“And then what?” Carley asked, not bothering to hide the exasperation in her voice. As much as she wanted to sever ties with her mate, as much as she had come to the conclusion that the only way she and Reid could be together was if Miguel was dead, she knew she and Cecilia were no match for him. Given what he’d done to Reid the day before, she worried that even he might not be successful. Knowing Finn had gone off to help him slightly eased the constriction in her chest, but only slightly. What if he didn’t get to Reid in time? What if Miguel had already killed him?
“You would know it if Miguel has gotten to Reid,” Cecilia commented, accurately guessing her thoughts. “Or if Reid got to Miguel. It’s this thing with lightbearers and shifters. We can sense each other’s emotions, almost like we share them. It’s weird, but you get used to it.” She shrugged, as if it was of little consequence.
“I never had that connection with Miguel.”
“Of course not,” Cecilia scoffed. “First, you have to have an emotional attachment to the person. Second, I’ve not heard of it between lightbearers. I’m pretty sure it’s something to do with our two species. Sort of makes the whole “archenemies for five hundred years” concept laughable, doesn’t it?”
Carley stepped into the main kitchen suite and frowned. It was empty, which was strange aside from during the middle of the night. There was always someone in the kitchen, whether preparing for the next meal or cleaning up after the last one. Granted, it was late in the evening, but something about the scene felt off. Especially given the dirty dishes stacked in the sink and the broom lying on the floor, a pile of dirt next to it.
“Something’s wrong.” She stopped walking, and Cecilia bumped into her back.
“You’re right,” Cecilia said, completely nonplused. “The whole situation is wrong. It isn’t fair that the only way you can have a happy life is if Miguel dies. I mean, I’m not an advocate for killing people, by any means, but let’s be honest. Miguel tried to kill you, when he pushed you down the stairs. Not to mention whipping Reid like that. And who knows if he’s injured or killed anyone else? I bet he has. Wait—he has, right? You told me you were pregnant when he pushed you over the cliff. So he killed your babe. He deserves—”
“Your babe?” The masculine voice echoed through the empty kitchen, causing both women to freeze, and drawing their gazes to a walk-in pantry a few feet away. The door opened, and Miguel stepped out, kicking aside what looked like a pair of legs lying on the floor.
“Nona,” Carley cried out, recognizing the dress bunched around the woman’s knees. Cecilia grabbed her arm to keep her from rushing to check on the elderly undercook.
Carley lifted her gaze to Miguel and gasped. He looked terrible. His face was distorted and puckered from the burns caused by the hot coffee she’d tossed at him when he showed up at her house in Chicago. His nose was crooked, clearly broken, and there was dried blood on his face. When he opened his mouth to speak, she could see several missing teeth.
The look in his bloodshot eyes was pure, unadulterated hatred.
“You were pregnant?” he asked. When she didn’t respond, he said, “You killed my progeny.”
“No, you killed my babe.”
“I’m going to kill you,” he said. He lifted his arm. His hand glowed brightly for a moment before a sword appeared in his grasp. “And I’m going to kill that one, too. The Chosen One wanted her dead. This is my chance to see to his final wish.”
“My brother has been dead for months, and he’s still messing with my life,” Cecilia commented, as she tugged Carley backward.
Carley stumbled and Miguel charged, screaming some sort of convoluted battle cry as he did so. “Run!” she shouted, and Cecilia fled to the other end of the kitchen. Carley lunged for the nearest counter, grabbed the steak knife lying there, and twisted round just as Miguel reached her and lifted his sword with both arms. She stabbed him in the thigh. He screamed and jerked away from her, the knife still protruding from his leg. His leg crumpled under him and he grabbed the countertop to hold him upright.
“Bitch,” he said on a snarl. “You’re dead.” Carley scrambled away from him. She felt the rush of air as he clumsily swung the sword, missing her by a wide berth. Cecilia rushed toward the nearest door, and Miguel threw a charm at it, locking it. Cecilia turned around and smirked.
“You think that’s going to stop me?” she taunted. She placed her hand on the knob, and it automatically twisted under her grasp.
“Cecilia, move!”
The bloody knife flew through the air and caught her hand, leaving a wide slice before clattering to the floor. Cecilia cried out in pain and cradled her injured hand to her chest. Miguel had already shifted his attention back to Carley. She walked backward to ensure she kept him in her line of vision, lest he decide to throw more knives. She bumped into a counter, knocked over a metal bowl full of beans soaking in water. The water poured across the floor, mingling with blood, the pile of dirt, and soggy beans. The colander bounced and bumped along the floor until it came to a stop near Nona’s body. Carley could see the older woman’s torso from her current vantage point, but she couldn’t tell if the woman was still alive. She hoped so, as she deliberately moved away from her prone body to draw Miguel’s attention away from her, just in case.
“Stop moving,” he said, fury in his voice. “I’m going to kill you, one way or the other. The more you resist, the angrier I get, and the more I’m going to make you suffer before I do it.”
“No,” Carley said with more bravado than she felt. “I’m not the one who is going to die.”
He laughed, a maniacal, booming laugh. If she hadn’t been convinced he was crazy already, she was now. He lifted his sword, holding it before him as he advanced. Carley looked around for an escape route, and discovered she’d backed herself into a corner. Her only option was to run toward where Nona lay on the floor. She hesitated, until the tip of Miguel’s sword was almost close enough to nick her, then she bolted to the left.
The door flew open with enough force to rip it from the hinges, and three animals rushed into the room, a lion, a tiger, and a cougar. Their combined roars rattled the windowpanes. Miguel turned around, but the cougar leaped and caught him in the chest before he could lift the sword in defense. He lost his grip on the weapon, and it clattered against the stone floor, landing a few feet away in pool of water, dirt, and smashed beans.
The cougar shifted into the form of a human, and then Reid grabbed Miguel by the collar of his shirt and hauled him to his feet. “She’s mine,” he said with a growl, and he delivered a punch to Miguel’s kidney that caused him to lift off his feet and knocked the wind from his lungs. The lion and tiger shifted as well, and Tanner and Finn strode over to the two men. Finn grabbed Miguel by the arms and held him so Reid could hit him again. Tanner stood there, arms crossed over his chest, a stony look on his face. He made no move to stop the beating. Carley turned away from the scene and rushed over to check on Nona. She sighed with relief when she felt a weak pulse.
Cecilia dropped to her knees next to her. “Is she alive?”
“Yes.”
Cecilia’s gaze darted to the beating happening a few feet away. “They’re going to kill him,” she whispered.
“I know.” She did not like the feeling in her gut, telling her this was wrong. He killed my babe. He tried to kill me. He wanted to kill Reid. And Cecilia. Yet guilt ate at her, and she considered telling Reid to stop. But if he did, she would still be mated to Miguel.
“Stop!”
Reid paused midpunch and glanced over his shoulder. Carley looked at the doorway, where the king of the lightbearers stood, wearing a deep blue robe that fell to midthigh, a pair of matching pajama bottoms, and a furious look on his face.
“What is the meaning of this?” the king demanded.
“We’re taking care of business,” Tanner replied. “Shifter business. Go back to bed.”
“That man is not a shifter,” the king retorted. “He is a lightbearer. Which means this is my business. Not to mention, you’re in my kitchen. Now I repeat, what is the meaning of this?”
“He deserves to die,” Reid said.
“On what grounds?”
Reid stabbed his finger in Carley’s direction. “He’s tried to kill her multiple times. Remember when she supposedly fell down the stairs in the cliff? It wasn’t an accident. She didn’t fall.”
The king dropped his gaze to the barely conscious lightbearer, whom Finn was still holding upright. “Is that Miguel Santiago?”
“Yes.”
“He pushed Carley down the stairs?” He sounded incredulous.
“Yes.”
“And he was a follower of the Chosen One,” Tanner added. “And he whipped Reid, and planned to kill him.”
“Reid?” the king asked.
Tanner made an impatient gesture with his hand. “Reid. Finn’s brother.”
“Another shifter?” The poor leader of the lightbearers sounded terribly confused.
“She’s my mate,” Reid said. “He has to die. She belongs to me. We belong together.”
The king’s gaze darted from Miguel to Carley, then to Reid, and he shook his head. “That is not how lightbearers mete justice. I cannot allow you to kill this man. I will determine the extent of his crimes, and he will be punished accordingly. But it will not involve death. Not like this.”
Tanner opened his mouth, and the king cut him off. “This is a lightbearer matter,” he said. “This is not open for discussion.”
Finn unceremoniously dropped Miguel’s unconscious body. The king winced. Reid strode across the room and wrapped his arm around Carley’s shoulders.
“Then we’re leaving. We’ll go back to Chicago and live. She’s my mate, and I’m not living without her.”
The king’s eyes widened. “You can’t leave, Carley. Not again. We need you here.”
Carley wrapped her arm around Reid’s waist. “I love him, Majesty. I’m sorry, but I cannot stay, not without Reid.”
“Well, he can stay, too. For the love of lights, the coterie’s overrun with shifters anyway. What’s one more?”
Carley looked at her mate, lying in a heap on the floor. “But I’m mated to another, and I want to be with Reid. I can’t stay. I’m sorry.”
The king rolled his eyes heavenward, before focusing his gaze on Tanner. “This is just like you and my daughter, isn’t it?”
One side of Tanner’s lips quirked into a smile. “Well, we mated first, and Dane is too much of a pansy to abuse anyone. But yeah, it’s similar. And I happen to agree with them. Carley deserves to be happy. They both do.”
“But what about my kitchens?” the king protested. “Mica has disappeared, too. All my good chefs disappear.”
“Mica’s fine,” Carley assured him. “She’s in Chicago, too. Working at the same restaurant where I work.”
“Why should the humans get both of you?” the king grumbled. “How can I convince you to stay?”
Carley glanced at Reid and then shook her head. “You can’t. I love Reid. I have to be with him. Even if…Even if I am mated to another.”
“What if you weren’t?”
Carley gasped. The king had never exhibited violent tendencies in all of his reign. Surely he was not suggesting…
“What if I annul your union?”
“Annul?” Carley repeated.
Reid lifted his hand and cupped her neck, squeezing gently. “As in, abolish it?” he asked.
“That’s exactly what I mean.”
“But—but lightbearers mate forever,” Carley protested, even though, if she could have one dream, this would be it. To have Reid, and to live in the coterie, to take back her position in the king’s kitchens…She could see it already. And it looked nothing like the state of this place at the moment.
“I’m the king of the lightbearers. I made those laws. Well, my ancestors did. And if I can allow shifters into my coterie, and name a half shifter as my heir, I can certainly annul a union that never should have happened in the first place. As of this moment, Carley Santiago, you are no longer mated to Miguel.” He waved his hand in a dramatic fashion. And then he waved it again.
“And as of this moment, you are officially mated to Reid Hennigan, by lightbearer law. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if you were already mated by shifter law.” His cheeks tinged pink as he said it.
Carley looked at Reid. Reid looked at her. They both burst out laughing, before hugging and kissing to seal the deal. Then she pushed him away and clapped her hands.
“Okay, people, you heard the king. This is my kitchen now. And it’s time to clean it up. Hey—where do you men think you are going? This place is a disaster. We need all the help we can get. Cecilia—go get Olivia, so she can tend to your wound, as well as Nona. Reid—pick up that broom. Tanner—summon a guard, to take Miguel wherever he’s supposed to go. And then get back here to help us clean up. Your Majesty—well, you go, um, do your kingly business. The rest of you, let’s get to it…”
This was Carley Hennigan’s kitchen now.