Chapter 3

“Landon,” she whispered under her breath.

“Jocelyn,” he greeted as he smirked. “It’s been a while.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked him clearly annoyed.

“Who was that guy?” he asked as his smile faded, replaced by a scowl.

“What guy?”

“The one you were talking to,” he said sternly.

The fury he felt from watching her with the mortal stirred inside him again. He wanted to whisk her away then, but his temper had been ferocious. Once he discovered Aleta had attacked her, he’d destroyed his office. Ransacking everything in his path in a fit of rage. No one had been able to stop him. He didn’t want her to see him in such a state, so he waited, let his temper subside. Only later, his temper reached a new high after watching that mortal attempt to seduce her. She was his. She wasn’t supposed to be enticed by any other man.

Jocelyn’s face grew bright red with anger. “Are you stalking me now? I don’t have to tell you anything.”

“Well, I heard what you were talking about anyway. Remember, I have better senses than most men, so it doesn’t really matter. All I wanted to know is how you know him and to let you know he’s not good enough for you.”

“What do you know about what’s good enough for me or what I need in a man? I can’t believe you. You are so infuriating! It’s none of your business!”

“Yes, it is…” he blurted but stopped himself before his words betrayed him, and he confessed she was his female.

“I think I’ll date him just to piss you off,” she said smirking.

He took several deep breaths attempting to calm the wolf seething inside him. It wouldn’t help his case if he turned wolf for all of Manhattan to see.

“I heard about last night,” he said nonchalantly changing the subject.

“And?”

“And I thought we could have a talk,” he said. “There’s a coffee shop around the corner.”

“Please, Landon. I think I’ve had enough of you for today. I don’t need your berating,” she retorted.

He stared at her for several moments admiring the irritated expression on her face. It was so much better than just dreaming of her.

“Well, you are going to hear it whether you like it or not.”

“Really? How do you plan to do that?”

His eyes glimmered briefly as sparks of yellow weaved into the blue. “I will carry you kicking and screaming like a child, then spank you. We can do this my way or yours.”

“Ugh! Fine, I’ll listen to your scolding, but you have five minutes,” she said as she held up her hand to signal five.

They walked to a nearby coffee shop where Landon ordered them a couple of cappuccinos then he instructed her to have a seat at the far end of the shop. He sat directly in front of her, his steel blue eyes settled on hers, and she looked away.

“What were you thinking?” he asked. “You shouldn’t have been out at all. You know they’re looking for you. What would possess you to do such a thing?”

Jocelyn’s jaw fell open. “I don’t understand how this is any of your business.”

“It’s Guardian business; therefore, it’s my business,” his voice low and menacing.

“Whatever. I have Lucas on my ass twenty-four-seven, not to mention my sister, so I don’t need you to worry about me. Got it, wolf,” she said snidely.

Being so close to her affected him dearly, all he wanted to do was carry her back to his home and make her his. Her spiteful comments made his hot temper spike and did nothing to diminish his desire to claim her.

“Unless you want me to be your personal bodyguard, I will advise you to stay home.”

“Are you crazy? I already have two of Lucas’s warriors guarding me at all times. I don’t need another,” she said. Her cheeks flushed with anger.

“Well, they are doing a shitty job, so I’ll take over.”

“Oh, you are crazy! I swear, Landon, if you start following me I will be very…” She paused as if searching for the right word. “…angry.”

He chuckled then leaned in toward her, his intense gaze locked with hers. He heard her heart beat quicken. He smiled enjoying her reaction to his proximity.

“Do you think that will keep me away? Your fickle anger?”

“I’m done with your crap and your five minutes are up,” she said as she stood and walked away.

****

Landon stomped toward Lucas’s home, livid with his stubborn female. Why couldn’t she understand that he was just trying to keep her safe, trying to protect her?

It had been three months since he’d last seen her, and she looked gorgeous. She had infuriated him beyond belief. Nonetheless, she was irresistible. Last time he’d seen her, she’d been thin and frail. She’d just spent several weeks in the hands of the leader of the Malums, Lucas’s twin brother David, who’d abducted her and had planned to force her to mate with him. Landon along with the Guardians had freed her. Now, she was a vision of perfection, more so than before. Her waist was still small, but she’d gained some weight making her breasts plump at least a cup larger.

That night, all he wanted to do was forget her. She was his female, but she wasn’t a wolf and would never be accepted by his pack. He was alpha, and his duty was to protect them, breed alphas, but his female could never give him that. He was damned, so he stayed away from her despite his deepest cravings. After just one week without seeing her, she’d infiltrated his dreams. Burdening him with not only the knowledge that she was just within reach but showing him everything he was missing by choosing to forsake her.

He didn’t know how he’d managed to stay away for so long. He wrestled with his unfathomable yearning, battled his desire that burned deeper and deeper as his days drifted by. He had to forget her. There was no other way. His loyalty and honor resided with his pack. He couldn’t leave them without an alpha. It was them or her, and he had chosen the least selfish choice, his pack, even if it killed him.

Landon finally reached the fifteen-story apartment building where Lucas resided with his mate, his warriors, and Jocelyn. He hadn’t seen her head this way. He couldn’t scent her either, which only meant he had frustrated her enough she wouldn’t interrupt his conversation with the demon king.

Landon took a deep cleansing breath and stepped inside, sensing he was watched. Benjamin, one of Lucas’s warriors, appeared before his eyes.

“Landon, what gives us the pleasure?” Benjamin asked nonchalantly.

“I’ve come to speak to Lucas,” he said hoping he sounded calm even as his temperature spiked along with his anger.

“What’s so important it couldn’t have waited until tonight’s meeting?”

“That’s for me to know and for Lucas to find out,” he snapped.

“I see you haven’t learned any manners,” Benjamin replied coolly disappearing and reappearing seconds later. “He’ll see you.”

I would have barged in either way, he thought.

Landon entered the elevator and rode up to the tenth floor following Benjamin through an impeccably decorated large living area, up two flights of stairs and finally into Lucas’s office.

Wood bookshelves lined most of the interior of the large room. A burgundy chair and sofa sat at one end, and Lucas’s carved mahogany desk stood in the middle where he sat with his mate by his side. Lucas stood and walked over to the front of his desk.

“Welcome, would you like to sit?” the six-and-a-half foot demon asked.

“No, thanks,” he replied. “I was hoping we could speak in private.”

“Whatever you say to me can be said in front of my mate,” Lucas retorted, insulted.

“Fine,” Landon replied just as harshly as he shifted his weight. “I’ve come to ask you how you could have managed to put Jocelyn in danger.”

Lucas’s eyes simmered in red rage as his mate, Jenna, stepped forward ready to strike. Lucas placed his arm in front of her signaling he’d handle the matter.

“Jocelyn is my sister too now. We take many steps to ensure her safety. She never leaves her home without being accompanied.”

“Yet, Aleta still managed to get her filthy hands on her!” Landon countered as his rage prickled.

“She is using black magic now, which I was going to explain to the Guardians tonight, but you couldn’t wait. Aleta managed to create an illusion to make my men believe Jocelyn was still inside the club. She also managed to disguise herself as Clyde, luring her out of my men’s reach. Even so, they managed to find her, and they brought her back safely.”

“Since when are you so fond of Clyde? Is he one of your men now?” Landon chided hoping to incense Lucas.

Only it failed; he only succeeded in angering the Elemental, Jenna, her eyes now fully engulfed in red. Landon acknowledged if she reacted, fire would spew from her. There would be nothing left of him but ash.

“Let’s get this straight, wolf. You do not come into our home to lecture me on how to care for my sister,” she seethed. “I found her after years of searching for her at the hands of the enemy. She is here and safe.”

“I saved her! You shouldn’t let her leave this house,” Landon shouted as he took a step toward them.

“And what? We saved her from one prison to take her to another? That makes sense to you, wolf?” she asked.

“You can’t keep her safe. I’ll watch over her from now on!”

“You ass…” Jenna began but Lucas softly touched her shoulder, calming her.

“How long have you known?” Lucas asked serenely.

“Known what, demon?” Landon asked avoiding the question.

“Don’t play games, wolf. You’ve already insulted me, my mate, my warriors in my own home. There is only one reason why I haven’t ripped you to shreds, and that’s because you are apparently mated to my mate’s sister. Isn’t that true?”

Jenna gasped as realization struck her face, “No! No! No!”

Landon paused for moments trying to choose his words properly. “We don’t have mates,” he said under his breath.

“Yes, you do. Mate, female, bride, spouse, wife, consort...whatever you want to call it. She’s your female, is she not?”

“I don’t have to answer any questions,” he said wordlessly cursing demons’ abilities as empaths.

“Your lack of denying it says a lot. If you remember, I recently mated, so I’ll forgive this incident, this one time. You are a lucky man.”

“You know nothing of my luck,” he said, silently cursing his fate for pairing him with a female from another breed.

“When do you plan to tell her?” Jenna prodded.

Landon sized up the ballsy brunette. She wasn’t afraid of much, just like her sister. “I’m not.”

“What do you mean you are not? Don’t you think she deserves to know?” she asked as the fire in her eyes peaked again.

“My heart, that is for them to figure out,” Lucas whispered in Jenna’s ear trying to soothe her nerves. “Now, about you guarding her,” Lucas continued. “My men will continue to guard her. If you want to go along, that’s fine. I will warn you, Jenna is extremely overprotective of her sister, as you have just witnessed. I would suggest you don’t hurt her.”

Landon left Lucas’s office with those last words. What happened to Lucas? The mating must have soothed the demon king’s temper. He’d hoped to get a rise out of the demon, instigate him. He needed a fight to cool his temper. Seems the Elemental had succeeded in calming the once volatile demon. It’d been merely months ago, when he’d grown incensed at the Guardian meeting fearing they would harm her. Now, he was cool and calm using his brains before his explosive nature took over. Damn!