Lee: Emerson Wolves—Paranormal Erotic Wolf Shifter Romance (5 page)

“Really? And how the hell do you expect to make sure that happens? In the event that you need to be told, I’m a grown woman and can take care of myself. Not very good, mind you, but I have been trying.” He growled at her this time. “Oh, do grow up. He didn’t do anything to me. I came here like this. And while I do appreciate you thinking you have to be all macho and stuff, I don’t need you or anyone else leaping in where you shouldn’t. She’s too…my aunt takes no prisoners.”

“Schroeder?” Kimber nodded. “You’re her niece? The woman I’m supposed to protect?” He looked at his brother, who only shrugged at him. When Lee turned back to her, she could see that he was now pissed at her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why would you think you have to protect me? And from whom? My aunt?” He nodded, then shook his head. “That wasn’t helpful at all. I don’t know who you are or why you think I need your protection, but I’d rather you just stayed out of my life. I have enough crap going on, and you won’t be helping yourself by getting yourself wrapped up with me.”

“I’m your mate.” Kimber heard his brother start laughing behind him, and then the door opening and closing, shutting them off from the dining area. “I’m sure you know what that means. I’m going to make sure that you’re not mistreated any longer, and see that you have a place to stay. I was talking to Mabel, and she said that—”

“She had no right to tell anyone what was going on with us.” He asked her who the
us
was. “My daughter and I. We’re having a rough time right now, but you’re not needed. Like I said, I have enough going on for several lifetimes, and I don’t need some bossy dick coming into my life to make it worse. So get the hell away from me so I can do my job.”

Turning her back on him, she had a moment to worry when he growled again, but his mouth was suddenly at her neck and he was nibbling on her throat. Her body seemed to have been thrown on a live wire as soon as he moaned in her ear.

~~~

Lee felt his wolf stir along his skin. He wanted his mate right now. And his wolf also knew, as he did, that she’d been hurt. Running his hand gently down her waist to her hips, he pulled her back against his body as he explored her neck. Christ, she was hot and delicious.

He’d come into the kitchen to see if Hunter needed him. It wasn’t like Hunter—or Sloan, for that matter—to go into the kitchen, and he thought that if they needed him, he was there. But he’d seen the girl doubled over in pain and Hunter reaching out to touch her. His wolf must have smelled her before him, because he was ready to kill Hunter before he knew what was happening. Then he was standing close enough to get her scent.

“I don’t think you’re supposed to be back here.” He pulled her hips closer and rocked into her firm ass. “Please don’t do this. I can’t afford to lose this job too. You have no idea how much I need it.”

“I need you more.” He moaned when she whimpered. “I’d like to sit you on the counter and strip your pants off and feast on you. Then take you somewhere that I can make love to you all night.” He worked the tiny buttons free of their confinement on the front of her blouse, and then cupped her breast before working to free her more.

“I can’t let you do that.” Lee cupped her naked breast in his hand and rubbed his thumb over her hard peak. “Please don’t do this. You can’t want to have sex with me right now.”

“I’d love to have sex with you right now. And later, then again after that.” He nipped at her skin hard enough to draw blood, and sucked on the tiny wound
. You taste like sex to me. Let me take you out back and see if all of you tastes like that.

Lee felt her respond. He could smell it on her too. She was wet and needy. But before he could reach into her pants and touch her, someone cleared their throat behind him. Lee turned just enough so that they couldn’t see her and how he’d nearly undressed her. He’d managed to get her blouse undone and her bra lifted up over her breasts. And if he’d had his way, her panties would be on the floor as well.

“Kimber, honey, I have some people wanting to work. Do you need a minute or two?” Lee told Mabel yes, but Kimber told her no. When the door closed again with Mabel’s laughter going out the door with her, he kissed Kimber on the neck again.

She jerked her shirt closed, and he stepped back. He wanted to show her how easily he could get her naked again, but he doubted that she’d be any happier with him. With her hands holding her blouse closed, she turned to him.

“Get out of here.” Lee thought about telling her that she was coming with him, but saw the look in her eyes. “I don’t want you to come near me again. This is…do you have any idea what my life is right now? How much shit that is—?”

“I met your daughter yesterday.” Her face paled, and he took a step toward her but stopped when she glared at him. “She was buying food at the market. I’m not sure of her name, but she left behind her purse. I have it. Your scent is the same as hers. Strawberries. She’s cute, by the way. And looks like you.”

“She had to replace what she’d eaten.” Lee nodded. “I didn’t know she’d made her do that. And when I found out, she…she told me that she’s going to keep track of what we eat. I don’t want you to think that I make my child do slave labor. And she won’t again if I can help it.”

“You can’t go back there.” Kimber nodded. “I have a big house. It’s not…I’d very much like it if you stayed with me.”

“I’m not going to sleep with you. And I’m certainly not going to live with you. You think that just because you…you nearly had me naked, that I’m easy? Well, I am not.” He nearly laughed at the tone in her voice. He supposed he could have been offended, but he really just thought it was cute. “You…I don’t even know why I let you…let you do this to me.”

“I’m not sure either, but I enjoyed it.” Her face turned red. “But as for my house. I would very much like for you to sleep with me, but I know that we have to get to know each other first. It’s a big house, lots of rooms. You and Hannah could even share a room if it would make you feel better.”

“You make it sound as if it’s a foregone conclusion that we’ll end up in bed, or that we’ll just do as you say. Well, I won’t. I might be desperate right now, but I won’t trade one hell for another. Thanks, but I don’t think so.” One of the dishwashers came in the room with them then, and snorted as he passed them. Lee only watched him, knowing that Hunter had more than likely told him what was going on. “I don’t have any money to pay rent either, but Sloan said she had a cottage.”

“You’ll both be safer with me. I can promise you that. I know your aunt, and if she finds you, what do you think she’s going to do to you? I don’t want you to pay me…you can help out around the house if you want. You don’t have to, but you can if it makes you feel better. And the yard. I’m having flowers delivered in the next few days. You and Hannah can help me by planting them.” She looked at the grill and the two orders that had just been hung there. “I can watch Hannah for you while you work too. I won’t harm her any more than I would you.”

“You say that I’m your mate. How do I know you’re not just saying that? And so you know, I have known a few mates in my time, and one of them didn’t end well. The people across from us were supposed to be mates. She murdered him, then killed herself.” He moved toward her with his hands up. Lee asked her to put her nose against his throat. “And what will this prove?”

“If you’re my true mate, you’ll understand once you smell me. And so you know, the couple that you were talking about? They weren’t mates. You cannot harm me any more than I can you. They might have been lovers, but not mates. Not true mates.” She didn’t look convinced. “I swear to you, I won’t touch you while you test my theory.”

Lee didn’t think she was going to do it. As another order was placed on the ring in front of the grill, she put down the spatula that was in her hand and took a step toward him. Even before she did as he’d asked, he could tell that she was closer to believing him. And as soon as her face was at his throat, her mouth at his pounding pulse, Lee felt his entire being center, his heart calm, and his wolf rejoice at finding her. Perhaps this was what he’d needed all along. But when she stepped back from him, he could see she might need a bit more convincing than he or his wolf did. She was still not going to trust him.

Chapter 5

Kimber walked around the house. It was beautiful. A little empty right now, but she told herself that the furniture was coming soon. She had no idea why, but she thought that she’d like his choices in that as well.

The kitchen was made for someone who enjoyed cooking. The island in the middle was huge, and the sink at the one end wasn’t the kind that was just for washing hands, but big enough to wash the pots and pans that hung over it. She glanced up at the double hanging pot rack and felt her fingers itch to touch them. But she only walked to the double refrigerator with a matching freezer next to it.

“I have a large family and they like to eat.” Kimber nodded to Lee. He picked up Hannah and sat her on the counter. “I wanted to show you my stash. I love these kind of cookies. And if you want, you can have as many as you want. If Dawn comes over and has a basket, we, my dear child, are going to be in heaven.”

“I’m not allowed to have too many sweets.” But she took three of them from the box when he offered. “Can I really have as many as I want? I’ll pay you for them if you get some of those coconut kinds.”

“Macaroons.” Kimber looked at Lee when he said it at the same time she did. “She can have one now and the rest after dinner. You know how I feel about ruining your dinner, Hannah.”

Kimber thought that he’d tell her she was too strict on her daughter, but he only took the two extra she had in her hand and put them on a small plate. Lifting her off the counter, he hugged Hannah before putting her on the floor again. Hannah held his hand while he showed them around the rest of the kitchen.

“I hate to carry laundry up and down the stairs, so I have a washer and dryer here and one on the second floor. They’re both large capacity because I wasn’t sure how the smaller ones worked with a family.” He opened the pantry for her, and she moved into it with him. “This has another freezer in here, as well as a storage center. I’m not really sure I’ll ever use it, but Dawn, my sister-in-law, told me that I needed it. So I put it in.”

As they made their way out of the large area, she felt his mouth brush over her neck again. He’d been doing that, touching her in some small way, since he’d picked her up at the diner. While it wasn’t anything that she was used to, she hated that she was enjoying it so much.

They made their way to the dining room. “This table came with the house. I was so excited about having such a large one that I didn’t think about how much room it took up in here. So we knocked out the outside wall here and expanded the room by ten feet. The windows were Jack’s idea. She said it was friendlier than just having walls that said nothing about where the house was. And if you want curtains up, we can do that, but I love the view that we can have while we eat.”

“You listen to your sisters-in-law a lot. They’re right, but you depend on them a great deal, don’t you?” He nodded and walked to the large built in corner cabinet. There was nothing in it, but he told her that they would hold a lot of dishes and linen when it arrived. “I’m guessing that you’ll entertain a lot when you get settled.”

“Yes. When we get settled I hope we can entertain a lot. If you don’t want to, that’s fine too.” He kissed her neck again and moved away as he spoke. “I know that it’s only early May, but Sloan wants us to have the Fourth of July picnic here. She thinks we should be ready by then. What do you think?”

Kimber didn’t answer him. She had no idea where she was going to be in two months. For all she knew she might be in prison, or worse. Kimber also wanted to tell him that she’d not moved in yet, and that making plans like it was a done deal was just dumb. But she really did love his house.

The next room that they went into was the family room. She supposed it might have doubled as a ballroom if need be. It was the biggest room she’d ever been in. The hardwood floors were gorgeous, as was the wainscoting on the walls. It wasn’t the fake kind, but real oak and walnut.

A fireplace took up half of one of the walls. It was sitting right in the middle of large glass floor to ceiling doors that were open now, with the early spring breeze blowing into the room. This room, like the others, had no furniture at all, but she could see that it would easily fit several couches, as well as a few wingback chairs. A large television, still in the box, sat in one corner of the room, and she could see that the size of the room would easily accommodate one that size. To her, it looked as big as a king-sized bed. Maybe the bed would be smaller.

“We like our football. And I thought if we wanted to watch some adult films together, we should go life size.” He laughed when she looked at him. “I’m kidding, Kimber. My brother Hunter bought the television for me…for us. He said it was a housewarming gift. I think it’s his way of saying I was going to be holding the game day here. It’s because I usually make some mean snack food to go with it. Do you like football?”

“I do. But I enjoy the food, like Hunter does, more. It’s fun to find things that go well with company.” She thought of her other job. “When I was working, there were times when I got to make the side dish for the night’s meal. It was the most fun I had working there, next to the appetizers. I have some amazing ideas if you want to use them.” He told her he would like to, very much so.

The office and study were next. He told Hannah that she could come in here, but if there were papers on the desk, she wasn’t to touch them without someone telling her she could. Hannah looked at Kimber as she spoke to Lee.

“My mommy says that too. She has all these recipes that she’s making up and works on them at home, with Fern and me as her testers. Sometimes she makes them just for me to try. I get to rave them.” He told her rate. “No, rave them. I don’t have to eat like those people do in the restaurant. I can just taste what I want and rave about them.”

They all laughed, and Kimber was caught off guard at how easily it had come to her. When Lee wrapped his arm around her waist, she knew he was being careful of her back when he didn’t jerk her around. It was hurting her badly now, her back was, and she was tired too.

As they started up the stairs, several trucks pulled into the driveway. Lee went to the door and told her that his family was here already. When she went to look at them, Kimber had a moment of panic. There must have been seventy people there.

“They’re pack too. Hunter said he was going to bring a few with him. But if he’s expecting us to feed all these guys steaks, then he’s nuts.” Another few trucks pulled in and women started to pour from those as well. “Okay, maybe we don’t have to feed them all. The women have arrived to help out. This is going to go fast.”

“Hi.” Kimber nodded at the woman who was carrying a large bowl of what looked like potato salad. “I’m Jack. I don’t cook, but I was told to take this to the kitchen. Can you point me in the right direction?”

Kimber nodded and they made their way back to the area. Even as she entered the large room, she noticed that someone had come in the back door by way of the yard, and there were enough people in the kitchen to run a well-oiled restaurant. As they began pulling on aprons, Jack asked her where the playroom was.

“I don’t…I have no idea where he’s going to put one. Or if he will.” Jack only nodded and told her for now they’d used the study. Kimber took her there. In no time there were playpens set up, toys all over the floor, and a dozen or so young girls organizing the ten or so kids that seemed to pop out of nowhere, her daughter among them.

“She’ll be just fine. This is mine and Luke’s son, Kelly. He’s six, just a little younger than Hannah.” The little boy shook her hand, then darted off to play with the kids. Kimber looked at Jack. “You’re very overwhelmed right now, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” Jack smiled and asked her if she could give her some advice before the others got there. “There are more of you?”

“Yes. We’re mates to Lee’s other brothers. There’s Addie, who you should not touch unless you want her to know everything there is to know about you, including things you might not want her to know. Don’t tell Sloan your ideas unless you want her to make them a reality. And Dawn…well, don’t piss her off. She doesn’t have a temper or anything, but you might not get some of her jelly when she makes it. And that would just suck.”

“And you? What should I avoid about you?”

Jack seemed to consider it, and then smiled at her. Kimber thought that this woman would be the scariest of all the women she’d just been warned about.

“Me? I’m as sweet as they come. Really, you have nothing to worry about.” Yes, Kimber thought, she was scarier than anyone.

~~~

“Where is she? My grandniece, where is she right now?” Kimberly’s butler only stared straight ahead, not even making eye contact when he told her he did not know. That was the way she liked things, normally, but she was mad and he’d better have some answers for her. “And that brat? Did you drop her off at the diner as I instructed?”

“Yes, my lady.” She asked him if she cried and threw a fit. “No, my lady. She told me to have a lovely day and went inside on her own.”

“Well, I’m not having a lovely day.” Kimberly slammed her cane down on the floor for effect. “Where is she? I do not like not knowing everything, Daniel. You are to find her or…never mind. I’ll do it myself. Bring the car around.”

As she made her way to the front of the house to go to the police station, she had Daniel bring her the file on her desk. This was getting out of hand. First, Kimber just up and moved to another country. Then she joined that college that Kimberly had forbidden her mother to let her go to. And then, in what Kimberly could only think of as pure stupidity, Kimber had herself a child that she could not afford.

When Daniel told her things were ready, she looked at him. “No matter what I do to bring her down, she manages to land on her feet. First, I have her wages cut at that restaurant I had to buy. Then I had that man across from her try to break in. And what does he do? He tells her he’s sorry and brings her things back. What am I paying these people for if not to do as I have said? Then the crowning glory was that man who gave her the brat. When the heck is this going to go my way?” Daniel said nothing as he helped her on with her coat. “She’ll heed me now or I will ruin her and that child. Perhaps that’s where I need to look. That brat will need to go.”

The ride to the police station wasn’t long, but she hated to travel. There was a time when all she needed to do was make a simple call and things would be just as she wanted them. That Conklin man, he would nearly foam at the mouth to do her bidding. And the sheriff as well. Both of them were gone now, and she’d been blindsided by their being arrested.

As soon as her car stopped in front of the station, she told the driver to wait for her where he was.

“You mean to wait right here?” She looked at the five cars she was blocking that were parked legally in their spaces. One was a cruiser, but the rest were cars that had no business taking up her space when she came to town. “I guess I can move when they need out.”

“You’ll do no such thing. I want you right here. And if you as much as move forward an inch, I will fire you and have your license revoked for failure to listen to me. I make the rules here, and the sooner you figure that out, the better you’ll be able to keep your job.” Kimberly was smiling when she entered the building. Having things her way was the only way, and everyone knew it. And if they didn’t, then they would soon enough.

“I want to see the sheriff.” The man at the counter looked confused, so she snapped at him. “Now, young man. I’m too busy to wait until you have your brain work through this. Sheriff. Now.”

He finally picked up the phone and turned his back on her. She wanted to pop him on the head with her cane. The glass between them would have made it difficult, but she could have worked around that. But she noticed that everyone was staring at her, and Kimberly only liked that when she wanted it. Today, she did not.

“He said to tell you to have a seat and he’ll come out and get you.” Kimberly told him to tell him to come out now, and the kid actually told her to have a seat. “He said to have you wait for a minute until he’s done with his business.”

“He’s in the bathroom then.” He shook his head no and pointed to the chairs to her left. “No. I shall wait right here.”

There were others behind her now. Two men that looked like they’d just robbed a bank and had not gotten away. And a woman that she could smell all the way to her point in the line. She was high on something. Kimberly thought about her grandniece, and thought that would be a good way to rid herself of the brat. Kimber would be made to be a drug user.

The man behind her poked her in the shoulder. “Hey lady. Why don’t you have a seat before you fall over?” She thought it was a threat and turned to use her cane on his head. “You don’t even want to do what is going through your head right now. You might make others piss their pants when you speak, but I’m not like everyone else.”

Fear, an unfamiliar emotion, ran down her spine. He didn’t really look that large, but he was threatening. Instead of hitting him, as was her intent, she turned back to the man behind the glass wall and glared at him. He, however, was ignoring her in favor of the book in front of him. Before she could point out that her taxes were paying him to work, not lollygag, her name was spoken. The man, the new sheriff that she had not approved of, opened the door for her to follow.

“Miss Schroeder, what brings you down here on a lovely day like today?”