Healed: True Mates Book 3 (Wolf Shifter) (A Craggstone Paranormal Romance) (9 page)

Hearing her say it, imagining it—
nothing
could have prepared me for actually witnessing it.

She laughed, a low, throaty sound, tossing her golden hair back over her shoulder, exposing her neck to the ardent crowd.

“What the fuck?” This time I said it out loud, the words trickling out of my mouth on a low growl. I didn’t have to pretend to be furious. I stalked over to the couch where she was holding court, and grabbing the nearest admirer, yanked him from his seat, throwing him clear across the room.

My chest was tight, my head throbbing, as I reached for the next man—

“Tarq! What are you doing?” Amanda’s cry filled the room, bringing all remaining eyes to us. As if me throwing a man across the room hadn’t done that already.

“You don’t need these men, they’re not good enough for you!” I spoke the truth, plain and simple.

“What gives you the right to decide that?”

“Because you’re mine.”
You just haven’t accepted it yet…

“Don’t be ridiculous! You’re just my Beta—”

I cut her words off, lifting her out of her seat and smashing my lips down on hers. Not part of the plan, but I couldn’t help it. Instinct drove me to stake my claim in front of her suitors.

She gasped against my lips, her body soft and pliant, responding to my touch. It was her body that spoke to me, telling me things that she refused to admit…

“What the hell are you doing?” she hissed against my mouth, stiffening in my arms.

“Call it improvising,” I murmured back, licking along the seam of her lips, begging entry.

She shoved against my chest, and drawing on her power, the very power that made her Alpha, she broke free, springing back a step, putting space between us.

Space that I hated.

“You overstep yourself, Beta,” she said, her voice sharp and cutting.

Immediately, she was surrounded by her various admirers, including the one I’d thrown into the wall, him glaring at me, his eyes full of promised retribution. The room had grown silent, the crowd watching eagerly to see what she did next, waiting to judge their new Alpha.

Bring it on…
I sent back, allowing my eyes to flash silver. “You’re mine, you just don’t know it yet…” I growled.

“You’re wrong. And if you think that, then you should leave.”

“I’m not leaving—”

“I can order you to leave. Don’t make me.”

Her power curled out, filling the room, reaching toward me. I felt her hesitate, pull back a little, and I tilted my head slightly, letting her know it was okay.

Then it hit me, and it should have sent me to my knees, but it didn’t, instead bouncing off me.

For the third time,
what the fuck?

After a split-second hesitation, I dropped to my knees, arranging my face in one I hoped was appropriately pained, and stared into her glowing bronze eyes.

She had felt my hesitation, and she
knew
.

But what did it mean?

***

Amanda

Nothing had gone quite to plan, Tarq was furious, not faking it—I could tell it was real, his emotions cascading through the bond—and all because some men had been paying me a little attention. Not that any of them had held my interest…my eyes flitting around the room, searching for his stormy gray ones like a heat-seeking missile.

Like a fool, being led by emotions I had no right feeling.

Damn that stubborn oaf for doing this to me!

And now, something else had happened. When I had shoved at him with my power…it hadn’t touched him! It was as if I’d hit some impenetrable shield of some sort. I’d never heard of an Alpha and Beta having such an immunity between them, but then again, it wasn’t like James and Sean would share such secrets.

Tarq grunted from his position on the ground. He was overplaying it, his face twisted in a grimace that was almost comical, clutching his chest for extra effect. Someone was going to figure it out soon if I didn’t get a move on.

Next move. Distance.

“I’ve told you before, you’re not the man for me. Not the mate I want for my pups. And now you’ve shown that you can’t separate our work and personal lives. Obey me. You must go, back to Colstone. And send a replacement, I can’t bear to look at you!” It felt a little melodramatic, but the crowd seemed to be drinking it in, their faces pictures of shock and awe. I suppose, to them, seeing a big, strong man like Tarq forced to his knees by a diminutive woman…

Might as well go for broke!
I waved my hand in the air, shooing Tarq toward the door, having to bite back the laughter that threatened to escape at the absurdity of the situation.

Stumbling to his feet, he staggered like a broken man, his head bowed, milking the moment for all it was worth. But when he rounded the corner, heading toward the front door, he flicked his fingers in a quick, circular motion. Everything was going to plan. Finally.

Now, all we had to was wait, and hope that the traitor felt confident enough to make their next move.

CHAPTER NINE

Tarq

I was bored and cold, crouched underneath the front window, the sound of laughter and conversation seeming to carry on forever. Were these people never going to go to bed? I knew I should be glad that they were beginning to relax around Amanda, getting to know her, and starting to accept her—but dammit, I itched to see if our plan would work!

Finally, everything quieted down, the light dimming to a dull glow. Shaking the lethargy out of my sleepy legs, I flexed my fingers to get the blood flowing again.

If Amanda followed the plan, she would move straight to her office once everyone cleared out. I crept along the side of the house, careful to keep to the shadows, and peered in the corner of the office window.

Nope. Not there.

What the hell was keeping her?

I’d counted the footsteps leaving the main living area, the weight of each footfall allowing me to easily distinguish between male and female. All the men had definitely left, which meant Amanda should be moving to stage two. But she hadn’t. Why?

I crept back to the living room window, daring to peek over the edge, searching the dimness for her. She was still on the couch, facing the window, and she appeared to be having a heartfelt conversation with someone in front of her, someone I couldn’t quite see. Her posture was relaxed, a wine glass dangling from one hand.

Her eyes flicked to the window, spotting me. Her hand drifted up to touch her ear, our agreed upon ‘okay’ signal. No danger here. Not yet.

With a sigh, I crouched back down, wishing like hell that I’d worn gloves. Sure, shifters ran hotter than humans, but crouched down this low to the damp ground and not moving—anyone would feel the cold.

Two peals of feminine laughter drifted through the wall.

I’d been right. All the men had left. Though it had fucking taken them long enough. If I’d had to spy on yet another one fawning and lusting over my mate… A low growl escaped from my mouth before I could stop it.

A flurry of emotion hit me square in the chest—fury, shock, and anger mostly, but underneath, there was the slightest hint of fear.
Amanda!
She was using the bond!

Jerking to my feet, I spied her still seated on the couch, her eyes wide as they stared at the wall, right next to where I crouched. I saw a hand extend, the black steel of metal dull in the low-lit room.

With a roar, I threw myself through the window, glass shattering with a loud crash, and twisting myself to the side in midair, barreled head first into the person who was threatening my mate.

I wrenched the gun from his hand, pinning him to the floor, my lips drawn back in a snarl.

We had got him!

Slowly, my mind registered the softness of curves beneath me, the feminine roundness to her face, the long lashes blinking at me, spiked with tears.

Correction. We had got
her!

***

Amanda

I watched Tarq throw himself at the woman, ripping the gun from her hand and pinning her to the floor. I couldn’t believe it!

I scrambled over to where he crouched, his back rigid with shock. The shattered glass pricked at my hands, scraped at my knees though my jeans, but I didn’t care. We had caught—her!

Not once had we thought it would be a woman, and I certainly should have. Looking back, the events had female written all over them. Not that I would fight like that, but a weaker pack member? Setting a fire, using a gun to do their dirty work—it spoke of someone who didn’t want to get up close and personal with their kill, and what man wouldn’t attack with his bare hands?

Tarq glanced at me over his shoulder. “You okay?”

I nodded, and he hurled the woman up, roughly marching her into the office and over to a straight-backed chair, pushing her down.

Our captive shoved the hair from her face, then rubbed her wrist, wincing in pain.

“You broke her wrist?” I asked Tarq, closing the door and watching as he took position behind her, his hand on her shoulder, holding her down.

“Probably. When I disarmed her, most likely.” He sounded like he didn’t care, but I could tell he did. He wasn’t a man who liked to hurt women, no matter what they might have done. I had come to the conclusion that he was a gentleman at heart, and having done this went against the grain for him.

I strode over to the desk and perched on the top, so I looked down at her. I let the disgust I felt show on my face as I took a long, lingering look. At a person who had fooled us so completely, I was still reeling with shock.

“So, Kate, why did you do it?”

“You should have died, you bitch!” Kate spat out, lurching to her feet, but Tarq shoved her back down, keeping her pinned with one hand like she was nothing.

She was spitting at the mouth, her eyes wild with fury, crazed with a kind of madness I couldn’t even start to understand.

“Why do you want to kill me?” I glanced at my nails, idly picking at the manicure. They needed re-polishing, and wait, was that a hangnail? I gave the now silent Kate my best bored look.
Wait for it…
“Maybe I should just kill
her…”

Kate’s mouth gaped open in disbelief, her hands knitting protectively across her stomach.

Now
that
was interesting.

“You—you can’t! You won’t! I haven’t killed anyone!”

“But you did try and kill your Alpha—”

“You’re not my Alpha! So it
can’t
be treason.” Kate was worrying her lip, the skin starting to tear and bleed.

“I am the Alpha of the Smithrock Pack, and whether you claim me as your Alpha or not, you still tried to kill me. Do
you
want to be Alpha?”

This time I watched her hands carefully. Watched how she stroked her fingers back and forth, ever so slightly.

“She’s pregnant,” I stated to Tarq, ninety-nine percent sure I was right.

Kate glared at me.

Now I was one hundred percent sure.

“I’m guessing the father is…” I watched her face, looking for a tell. “Gary? No, Eric? Bingo! Raving-dead-lunatic as the father. Congratulations, Kate, he was quite the catch!”

“You didn’t know him properly, no one in this pack did—only me. I was his chosen mate—”

“I think you’ll find Kara was his chosen mate. The one he fought for in front of the Shifter Council. The one he died for.”

Kate flinched as if my words were causing her physical pain. “He was murdered. Tricked and murdered. Gary told—” She stopped short, her mouth clamping shut again.

“Gary told you what?” Tarq growled, leaning over her shoulder, glaring at her at eye level.

But the woman stubbornly remained silent. Tarq and I exchanged looks. We could hardly beat the information out of her, not with her carrying a pup—even that bastard’s pup.

I took a deep breath. I was going to have to try and connect with her, woman to woman.

“Eric wasn’t what you thought, Kate. He had many women, and you were just one of them.”

“We were
mated!”
she cried out, shaking her head rapidly. “The other women didn’t count, didn’t matter—he told me that! He just wanted that Kara back so he could teach her a lesson, use her as an example to the pack. He said that if you let one bitch get away with it, then they’d all think they could do whatever they wanted. He only wanted us to mind, to treat the men with the respect they deserved!”

I felt physically sick as I listened to her spew Eric’s tainted bullshit, her eyes glowing with certainty. In her mind, she was right. The bastard had brainwashed her.

“Did he ever force himself on you?” I asked gently.

“No! He didn’t!”

“Are you sure? Try to remember, did you always want him?”

Kate looked confused, as though I were the one losing my mind. “Well, a woman doesn’t always
want
it. You must know that! But it’s our job to service—”