This brought him to his next set of problems while he streaked away from the scene, leaving nothing behind of his mate, the vampyre, or himself. His brother would be waiting for him, not having asked what was pressing enough for him to suddenly leave a rather important meeting over the next delegation of the Howling. It was the gathering where an Alpha was to find or present his mate, three of which had been a complete failure for him up until this point. Looking down at the priceless treasure in his arms, he was not angered by the record. His brother, as he was Beta, would take over for him in the case of his absence from the clan. Being the eldest at times had its advantages. Also, because he was elder, he would be the one to determine the mate for them. Tarquin knew enough that this would not be a situation the human would understand. They would have to find a way around it. Fate had taken it out of all of their hands.
As he moved, he scented his brother before he saw him. The younger by only two years, nearly unheard of in the shifter world, Rion was a force to be reckoned with. More volatile and brash then his elder, the place of Beta and protector of the throne was one he was well suited to. Love, and the fact that Tarquin was the only soul who could soundly kick his ass, kept him in line. A recently attacked mate may not be able to take him on. Though—he smiled to himself now that the fear was gone—she had sassed a vampyre who was well on his way to striking her. That took more guts than she probably realized.
“Brother?” the golden wolf questioned in his mind.
Where Tarquin was dark and brooding, Rion was light and easygoing, by appearances anyway. Many had found it to be misleading in their dealings with them. He used to say to his mother that their likenesses had gotten mixed up by the Goddess Mother somehow as a joke. In their case, it was much better to go for the “brooding” one than the “lighthearted” one. Rion had an Ivan the Terrible interior and a serene cherub appearance. It was unsettling. No one wanted his ass kicked by an angel. It just wasn’t fair.
“Hurt,” Rion said, intruding into his thoughts.
“She was hurt. I healed her before I moved her.”
“Home?”
Tarquin could feel the impression of confusion and the tail end of censure from his brother’s mind. Rion would be able to tell the woman was human. As such, she would be completely off-limits inside the compound. Their existence was one they guarded well. Humans were not ready to know that the things that went bump in the night were very real.
“Rion, she has to come with us.”
“Sure?” Rion’s animal soul looked over at him quickly, then to the woman, and then back again. He lifted his nose into the air.
Tarquin remained silent, knowing Rion would catch on soon enough. He would feel the pull in her blood, the scent that rose off her flesh, and would notice the possessive way Tarquin held her close to his body.
“Mate?”
“Yes, Rion. This is our mate.”
Rion’s soul form sang a great howl into the sky, acknowledging and trumpeting the coming of his mate in their lands. In wolf form, they were more primal. Communication was more in impressions and single-word sentences. The older the wolf was, the more powerful his communication. The fact that Rion had resorted to basic language meant he had let his soul form nearly take over his human side in order to reach his brother as quickly as possible. The support was not lost on him. He would have quickly closed and dismissed the meeting before throwing himself in his brother’s wake. He had probably been ready to chomp on him for leaving so suddenly without him to guard, but the events now would silence any words.
“Go to the Domus, Rion. Prepare our room. She will heal in the bed made for her coming.”
Rion spirited off, his wolf a blur in the darkness. He would beat Tarquin by perhaps only a few minutes, but it would be enough. He could feel the happiness, the eagerness through their bond. He had worried his brother would need a balance to curtail his brash side. He needed a softness that Tarquin was not able to provide. He hoped the feisty woman in his arms would do exactly that.
Still, as he had seen by tonight’s events, and their own looks, the Goddess Mother did exactly what she deemed fit. And just because he felt as though this was what they needed, it didn’t mean she would provide it. She’d give what she knew was necessary. It was, he was sure, the reason why they had the woman he was now holding instead of some submissive. He was just too happy to care that she wasn’t what he had envisioned.
Chapter Six
In minutes, the Domus, one circular compound where all the shifters of their tribe lived together, came into view. His section with his brother was to the center and back of the circle. He cut around the outside edge and made a beeline for their front door. He was not in the mind-set to be stopped by his family. They would ask too many questions, and could very well scare his mate if she awoke before he was ready for her to. Surrounded by soft candlelight, lying upon the bed that would be hers forever more, and in a quiet atmosphere would be the best way to receive her. It would be less fuss, less shock, less everything until they figured out how the hell to deal with it all.
It was hard enough to be close to her with her scent wrapping around his body like fingers. He could feel his cock standing out like a pike, and no amount of easy breathing alleviated him of the issue. As soon as he passed through the doors, it was as if her scent was amplified, reaching out to intertwine with his and his brother’s in their home. It was as if she had always been there, as if there had never been a time when she wasn’t at their side. It soothed him in a way that he never thought possible even as a fire streaked over his nerve endings, sending him bounding up the stairs with preternatural speed.
Rion had done as he instructed, closed the blinds, turned back the cool white sheets and black comforter to make a space for her in the center of the square bed made especially for Alpha mates. It was nearly twice the size of an ordinary king-size bed. The scent of candles smelling of soothing lavender and sandalwood permeated the air, and Rion had even placed a glass of water with a pitcher, and cold cuts on a plate, on the end table. Tarquin raised his brow at that.
“Domesticated already?”
“Shut it, Quin. You only meet your mate once. She’s had a hard enough time, it seems.”
It was then Quin saw the tightness around his brother’s mouth and the tension in his shoulders. Even his blond hair, falling right to his shoulder, was mussed and messy, as if he’d been running his fingers through it constantly. He was keyed up like a shifter unable to shift. He could see the pain in his brother’s eyes and knew the source.
“She survived, Rion. We got her safely home.”
“No, you got her home. Had she been waiting on me, she’d be gone.”
“Once we bond, you will recognize her as surely as I do, at whatever distance there may be. She’s safe, brother. She’s safe.”
“Qu—”
Their mate’s soft moan silenced them both. Looking at each other, making an instant decision, they laid their mate down in the middle of the bed, stripped her of her clothing, and washed away the blood and scent of the vampyre. A few minutes after that, they were in wolf form, curled around her sides, ever vigilant, ever there.
Chapter Seven
Her head was killing her. Her throat tasted like ash, and her electricity bill must not have been paid by her absentminded self because she was ridiculously warm. To add to that glorious combination, her body felt as though it had been in the ring with Manny Pacquiao. She tried to roll over, but felt her sides trapped by something. Furry somethings. Okay, breathing furry somethings, and she knew she had no dogs. Opening her eyes slowly, she looked down at a massive black wolf on one side and a blond one on the other. When she said massive, she meant at least twice the size of the largest German shepherd she’d ever seen in her life. So, Z did what any self-respecting person would do—she screamed at the top of her bloody lungs, jumped out of the bed, ran blindly for the door.
The blond wolf leapt over her. Over her! He landed squarely across the door, and then he just melted. She didn’t know how else to describe it. His fur melted away, falling to the ground in disappearing golden sprinkles, until a completely naked green-eyed giant stood in front of her. His hair fanned around his shoulders…nicely built shoulders. It was like looking at Brad Pitt’s Achilles walking off the damn screen. She knew her jaw was hanging to the floor, but she was too afraid, amazed, and near traumatized to react.