Claiming Valeria (17 page)

“That’s true,” Dion said. “My father was ready to ring your neck.”

“But he didn’t. He just made damn sure I never did anything like
that again. Go on your honeymoon,” Rui said again. “Take the time you need to get
to know your mate. You can leave Tiago to me. If he shows up, I’ll put him on kitchen
duty. He’s off-base without permission; that will be enough to explain why he’s
being punished. It will do him good to peel potatoes for a while. We did our share
over the years.”

They shared a wry smile, and then Dion nodded. “All right. I
can’t make a decision about him right now anyway. I’m too pissed off.”

And hurt
, Rui thought but didn’t say.

He understood something of what his friend felt. Tiago was like
a younger brother to him too; he’d tagged along after the two of them from the time
he could toddle. Rui felt the same anger and hurt as Dion—along with a healthy dose
of regret. Because in the decade since Dion had become alpha and Rui his second,
the two of them had focused on the clan and its troubles, leaving the raising of
Tiago and little Rosana to elders like Isa, the creche workers or whichever warrior
was in the base at the time.

Rui didn’t see how they could’ve done it any differently, but
still…

“Get out of here,” he said. “And Dion?”

“What?”

“Don’t worry about Rock Run. Luis and I can handle things. Enjoy
your first few weeks as a mated man.”

Dion’s smile was very male. “I intend to.”

Now Rui watched as, a quarter-mile downriver, Tiago’s dolphin
skimmed over a wave, a silver flash against the horizon. Rui could return to base
and send a couple of men after him, but what was the point? Tiago was alive and
apparently staying close to home. That was enough for now.

The youth had made a serious mistake and deserved to be punished
for it. But Dion was wrong—no one would expect him to execute a twenty-one-year-old,
brother or not. Everyone knew a fada male in the throes of his first heat had the
common sense of a guppy. When Dion got past his hurt and anger, he’d see that for
himself.

Rui’s stomach growled, reminding him it was time for dinner—and
that Valeria and Merry would be waiting for him. He turned and headed back to the
base.

“Mama?” Merry shot Valeria a winning smile as they entered
the dining hall. “Can Tio Rui sit with us again tonight? Please?”

“It’s up to him, sweetheart. He might not want—”

“Oh, he will,” she said with a child’s absolute confidence and
skipped off to play with her friends.

Valeria gazed after her, a tiny frown between her eyes. Things
had been quiet the past couple of weeks, but Valeria didn’t fool herself that Lord
Adric had given up.

Rui had arranged a meeting with Dion before he left on his honeymoon
so that Valeria could explain what had happened. Dion had assured her that Merry
was a member of the Rock Run clan now and that he’d fight any attempt by the Baltimore
shifters to take her back.

“This thing with the crystal—” He shook his head. “But Merry’s
okay for now, right?” When Valeria replied in the affirmative, he said, “So we have
some time to figure this out. Let me see what Cleia thinks. She’s spent her whole
life working with energy—she may know something.”

“Good idea,” Rui said.

Valeria’s jaw tightened. The last thing she wanted was to bring
the queen into this, but this wasn’t about her, it was about Merry. “I’d be grateful,”
she forced herself to say.

“Meanwhile,” the alpha continued, “don’t leave the base without
a guard—not even to crab or fish. And keep Merry close to home. They might sense
she is here, but they won’t be able to find her—not with the concealing spell Cleia
had Lady Olivia cast for us. The only way Adric and the sun fae got into the base
in the first place was with Olivia’s help.”

Valeria nodded. It was a relief to know that Adric couldn’t come
and go at will. But—“How did Adric know where to find the queen? I heard he and
the sun fae teleported straight into your quarters.”

“They had help,” was the grim reply. A shadow passed over Dion’s
face, and she wondered who it could’ve been, to make his expression so bleak. “But,
Valeria? No one is to know. Understand? I promise you, Merry is safe. The man is
no longer at Rock Run—and he won’t be returning.”

Rui shifted as if in protest but remained silent. Valeria ducked
her head. “Of course.”

Dion waited another few days until Rui was well on the road to
healing, then left him in charge with Luis as second and departed on his honeymoon.
Meanwhile, Rui moved back into his own apartment. She could tell he hadn’t wanted
to leave, but he was too smart to push when he saw he was making her
uncomfortable. Meanwhile, he was courting her as promised: bringing her flowers
and a large box of her favorite chocolates, inviting her to the regular Saturday
night shows put on by the base’s musicians and poets, and joining her and Merry
at meals whenever he could.

She couldn’t help enjoying it, even as she kept waiting for the
other shoe to drop, afraid to trust that he really did want her.

She returned to work. She loved her long, solitary mornings on
the river, and now she needed them even more as she tried to decide what to do about
Rui. When she’d first decided to remain at Rock Run, she’d asked one of the clan’s
old watermen to teach her his trade, and it turned out she had a Gift for it.

She crabbed in the old way—baiting a line with a chicken neck
and dragging it along the river bottom or a shallow part of the bay, and then, when
a crab latched on the bait, scooping it up with a hand net. Her Gift allowed her
to nudge water animals like crabs or fish to move in any direction she wished. It
had come in handy during the recent dark years as the river’s fertility declined.
With her Gift, she could always be counted on to bring in a decent catch.

Although there’d been no sign of the Baltimore shifters since
the confrontation in the cherry grove, Rui made sure she obeyed Dion’s order to
either take a guard or stay within sight of the base’s marina. Today she’d chosen
to crab alone in a small inlet a few hundred yards downriver from the marina. She
hadn’t gotten much further in her thinking about Rui, but with the help of her Gift,
she’d caught four bushels of crabs, to the cooks’ delight.

After lunch, she got Merry from the creche and they’d spent the
afternoon playing in the creek along with some other parents and their pups within
the protection of the concealing spell.

Back at their quarters, they changed and headed to the dining
hall, where Merry darted off to play with Trina. All Valeria wanted to do was relax
with her friends and a glass of wine until dinner was served, but the moment she
was alone, Petros approached, smiling as if they’d never had that argument at the
midsummer festival.

“Hello,
glika
. I’ve missed you.” His black gaze traveled
down her body.

“Have you?”

She turned away, but he grabbed her arm and hustled her out a
side door into a narrow, little-used hall. She allowed it only because she didn’t
want the whole clan witnessing them fighting.

He crowded her so that her back was against the wall. “We need
to talk.”

“I have nothing to say to you,” she said through tight lips.
She made to pass him, but he slapped his palms on either side of the wall next to
her, caging her in.

“No?” He traced a finger down her cheek.

She swatted his hand away. “We’re through, remember? There’s
plenty of other women who’d be happy to—”

“So I got mad.” His dark eyes were watchful. “I’d like to make
it up to you. Some friends and I are having a party, and I want you to come.”

“No. Now let me go.” She tried to push past him, but he gripped
her chin.

“‘No?’” he asked.

She felt a prickle of unease. “No,” she repeated more
forcefully.

His eyes narrowed. She forced herself to hold his gaze; she was
damned if she’d let him see she was afraid. But he knew. She couldn’t stop her body
from scenting the air with her fear.

He smiled, a slow, cruel stretching of his lips. “I’m going to
enjoy taming you,
glika
.”

A hand clamped on her nape and his mouth descended on hers in
a hard kiss. She tried to turn her head but he pinned her against the wall, his
lips grinding painfully against hers. His free hand caught her camisole, shoving
it up above her breasts.

She hissed and pushed at his hand, but he gripped her wrist and
squeezed. Pain shot up her arm. She jerked her arm but he just squeezed harder.
He glared into her eyes, his dominance beating against her, dark and oppressive,
willing her to submit. She instinctively averted her eyes, but she didn’t stop fighting,
her animal scared but determined. He might be stronger than her, but using dominance
to force someone to submit sexually was forbidden, against fada
tradição
—besides
being just plain wrong.

Somehow she managed to get her other hand between them. Her claws
sliced out, digging through his shirt into his skin.

Petros reared back. “You
bitch
.” He glanced in disbelief
at the blood spotting his shirt.

She took advantage of his distraction to escape.

Her hand was on the door to the dining hall when he said, “This
isn’t over, Valeria. I just might make a mate claim for you. Who do you think would
win—me or do Mar?”

She froze. The last thing Rui needed was to fight a mate-duel
right now. He was much better, but he had a way to go before he was back to full
strength. And frankly, she didn’t trust Petros to fight fair. He could easily corner
Rui somewhere and slip a knife into him with no one the wiser.

“You could,” she allowed. “But even if you won, I’d still have
to accept you—and that will never happen.” She pushed open the door. As she stepped
inside, she looked back at him and deliberately drew her hand across her mouth.
“And, Petros? No one
tames
me. No one.”

His mocking chuckle followed her into the dining hall.

Valeria shut the door with a snap and leaned against it. Her
anger was mixed with shock.
Who was this man?
She’d thought she’d gotten
to know him in the weeks he’d been at Rock Run, but apparently not. If this was
his true self, she’d had a lucky escape.

Dinner was just being served. Merry was already seated at a table
with Sabela and her parents, and Sabela’s sister, Carla. Rui, thank
Deus
,
was just coming in the main entrance and had missed the whole thing.

Valeria took a deep breath and headed across the cavern. Rui
reached the table just before her. He hugged Merry, then set her back on the bench
before dropping a kiss on Valeria’s lips.

“
Como vai, querida
?”

“Not bad,” she said a little too brightly. Which was ambiguous
enough to not count as a lie. “And you?”

She sat down next to Merry, with Rui on her other side. Just
having his big, solid body next to her helped calm her. The tautness eased from
her shoulders.

But she should’ve known she couldn’t fool him. He caught her
chin, turning her to face him. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” With difficulty, she met his gaze.

His thumb came to her lower lip, rubbing gently. It was sore
from the kiss Petros had forced on her, but she kept still, not wanting Rui to ask
why. Because he’d go after Petros, and he wasn’t ready.

His nostrils flared. “Why do I smell Okeanos on you?”

Valeria shrugged, knowing he’d scent a lie. “He was just saying
hello.” That was stretching the truth, but it would do.

Rui’s face hardened. “Yeah?” He looked around for Petros, but
he hadn’t returned to the dining hall. “That man has overstayed his welcome,” he
growled.

“Leave it,” she said. “He means nothing to me. He knows not to
do it again. If he does, you’ll be the first to know. All right?”

He regarded her a few more moments, brow furrowed, before reluctantly
nodding. “All right. But you’ll tell me if he tries anything.” It wasn’t a request.

Valeria nodded. After that, the talk turned to other things and
when Petros re-entered the hall—wearing a different shirt, Valeria noticed with
a hint of satisfaction—he had the sense to sit on the other side of the cavern.

“Eat,” Rui said. He put a round of crusty bread smeared with
olive tapenade on her plate. “You’re too thin,
boneca
.” The words were practical,
but his green gaze caressed her, warm and protective, and she put Petros Okeanos
out of her mind.

When dinner ended, Rui walked her and Merry back to the apartment.
When they reached the door, Merry pulled him inside to see the house she was building
for her clown from rocks and scraps of wood. Rui listened patiently as Merry gave
him a tour of the rooms she’d built thus far, then drew Valeria back into the hall.

Valeria eyed Rui. He’d been working out. His body was nearly
back to its hard, toned self, his shoulders broad beneath the moss-colored shirt
he was wearing. She gazed at the strong column of his throat, wanting to set her
lips
there
, at the sensitive spot just under his jaw.

He inhaled and she knew he’d scented her arousal. He fingered
one of her curls.
“Ask me to come back later,”
he said in husky
tones
, “after Merry’s asleep.”

She briefly closed her eyes. Each night for the
past week, he’d asked a variation of the same thing:
Invite me in, Valeria.

She wondered if he knew how hard it was to keep
telling him no. She shook her head without speaking. “I’d better go. Merry—”
But
her feet remained planted where they were.

“Valeria.” He touched her arm. “I—can’t you at least give me
a chance?”

Something in her broke at that. She was already on edge from
the confrontation with Petros, and now the hurt and shame and anger she’d carried
around ever since Rui had left her for Cleia erupted.

“
A chance?
You had twelve months of chances. Even
last year, after you came back, I would’ve—” She flushed and shook her head. “But
you didn’t even try to get me back, Rui. You didn’t even try. So tell me why I
should give you another chance now.”

He took a deep breath. “You’re right,” he admitted. “But did
you ever ask yourself why?”

“I—of course I did.”

“And—?” His gaze was intent.

“I thought what everyone else did. That you didn’t really want
me.”

“No.” Sorrow crossed his face. “
Deus
no. Never that.”

“Then why?” She couldn’t keep the anguish from her voice.

“Because.” His throat worked. “Because I didn’t deserve you.
Not just because of Cleia, although that was bad enough. Because I’m dark inside…cold.
A killer. And you, you’re warm and loving and full of life. I felt it, Valeria.
I felt you recoil me that night I killed Merry’s father—and then you told me to
leave. And you were right. I—”

Tears stung her eyes. She swiped them angrily away. “You
ass
.”

He blinked. “What?”

“I said, you ass.”

“I heard you. I just don’t—”

“Then
listen
.” She slapped a hand onto his chest. “Killing
Merry’s father was wrong and we both know it. But I also know you took that job
for the clan, and that Dion approved it.”

“What are you saying?” He caught her wrist, his eyes searching
hers.

“I’m saying that I didn’t know the whole story. You were my mate,
Rui. All right, so I recoiled, told you to leave. But I hadn’t been at Rock Run
that long—I didn’t know how bad things were, that you only took that job
because there was no other choice. You should’ve talked to me, explained. We would’ve
worked it out.”

“It wasn’t just that.” He seemed determined to lay everything
before her. “It was like I said. You’re not just beautiful outside, Valeria. You’re
beautiful inside. You weren’t here a month before you had everyone loving you—from
Dion on down. But me…I’m a shark, Valeria. My animal is a cold-blooded killer. People
respect me, but they don’t go out of their way to spend time with me.”