Chasing Love (10 page)

All night she had tossed and turned, imagining a million scenarios. Her sitting atop Edward, both of them naked in the moonlight, her riding his cock, long and hard. Or him behind her, thrusting into her over and over and making her come time after time. Or even both of them against a tree, a desk, the walls of a nearby building—anywhere! As long as they fucked madly and freely for hours and hours and she could finally sate herself and her curiosity.

At some stage last night, whether before or after she had tasted his long, hard cock in her mouth she didn’t know, her body had decided it wanted to fuck Edward raw. She was no longer sure that she could play with him and
not
try to jump his bones.

She took a deep breath as the scenery grew less and less populated. She and Edward had grown silent a short while ago, the pleasantries being exhausted and neither really needing to chatter simply to make noise.

Even though she felt perfectly comfortable in their friendship, Christiana wanted to talk about something,
anything,
so her mind could ignore the mental images of Edward thrusting himself into her mouth.

If she imagined him plunging his tongue, or other parts of his anatomy, deep inside her one more time she would come right here in the truck. And these were the non-XXX-rated fantasies intimately flashing through her mind.

“So, has anything really changed back home?”

Christiana had been disappointed, but understanding that only four members of her family could come to her college graduation. The whole event had been rained out. As the campus hall could only accommodate so many people, even ignoring the fire hazard rules, each student had only been given four tickets.

Two of Christiana’s siblings and her parents had arrived, leaving her with a million questions on how things at home were going. Email and phone calls were fine, but not like personal contact.

Christiana glanced at Edward as he concentrated on the roads and updated her on what was going on in her family’s life. Edward and his parents had been taken under her Grampa Zachariah’s wing. Even though they weren’t actually family, they were considered as such. They lived in the woods, where Roland, Edward’s father, could run when he felt the need.

Edward talked about the security company her father, Artemais, ran. He told her how he had grown bored with working the business side of things and had joined up with her Uncles Dominic and Samuel in the investigative side of the business. Edward went onto explain how he and Matthew, also a member of their extended family, and her Aunts Mary and Chloe’s only other relative, had begun plans to open their own sideline in the investigative and security businesses.

Edward explained how tracking people and keeping up-to-date with all the security measures more than fulfilled him, keeping his active mind and fingers busy. With something new to do every day he felt not only useful, but like all his talents were appreciated.

Edward finally moved on from his gushing over work to how her cousins and siblings were faring at their different colleges and traineeships. While her rather large family was spread out everywhere, everyone always made it home for Christmas and most of them did their best to make it to the weekends for special birthdays.

Christiana interrupted every now and then, asking questions and trying to get some clarification on different things. While she kept in regular email contact with most of her family, it was never the same thing as talking to them face-to-face or laughing and pulling pranks with them.

The time slipped away. They ate drive-thru food, laughing over shared jokes and old memories. The years just seemed to slip away and the camaraderie and friendship they had always seemed to hold fell back into place, as if they had spent the past five years laughing together such as this.

Before she knew it they were driving through the nearest village, where lots of her childhood friends had grown up. Many members of the Pack lived and worked here. A number of the older members had passed away, their children either moving away or growing apart.

Christiana found herself looking forward to coming home, even if she would be moving away once she started working in the city with her father’s company. The nearly two hour long drive would be nothing compared to the long haul from college. It would be nice to be home for a change.

* * * * *

“You
what
?!”

Edward felt his face harden into almost a mask. He knew Artemais Rutledge cared for him practically as a member of his family. He had no qualms about welcoming him into their ancestral home, no problems with him working in the family firm.

Yet on the subject of Christiana, apparently he would be treated the same as any other man. Deciding it wiser to be more formal, he repeated his “request”.

“I said, Sir, that I am requesting Christiana’s hand in marriage. I believe we are True Mates and wish to mate with her.”

“You are kidding me
?!”

Despite the way the man bellowed, Edward did not move. He felt if a fight broke out, it wouldn’t last long simply because both Christiana and her mother, Sophie, were only downstairs.

The older man stood up from his chair and paced over to where Edward stood. Face-to-face, he could feel the rage vibrating from the older man.

“If you tell me she’s pregnant with your child, I’ll…”

With so much anger vibrating, begging to be let loose from Artemais, Edward decided not to tease the old guy.

“Of course she’s not pregnant. She’s still a virgin. She doesn’t believe us to be mates. I was merely informing you of my intentions, both as a respected friend and the father of the woman I plan to marry, as well as my Pack Alpha. You know I respect both you and Christiana. Do you really think I’d force her, or that she’d let me be here alone if she had an inkling of what I was doing?”

Most of the anger left Artemais.

“You have a point there, son.” He crossed over to the sideboard and poured a Scotch for himself and Edward. Edward cleared his throat and decided it was time to lighten the mood.

“Besides, from what I hear, the scenario you’re so deathly afraid of here is exactly how you and Sophie came together.”

Artemais handed him a glass and smiled sappily. “Yeah, that’s right. I just don’t want to see my baby put in that situation.”

The study door opened and Zachariah entered the room. “What’s all this fuss about? Can’t a man nap in the evenings anymore?”

Both Artemais and Edward smiled.

“Gramps,” Artemais started, “Edward here was just battling me for rights over Christiana. Seems the boy might even be able to manage that girl of mine.”

The Old Man snorted. “‘Course he can—what do you think I’ve been trying to point out to all and sundry all these years?”

Edward came forward and helped the Old Man into one of the large, leather-padded chairs. Frowning, he looked down at the ancient wolf.

“Gramps, why have you been so determined to bring us together? It’s never been anything truly overt but everyone knows your feelings on the matter.”

Zachariah looked from his eldest grandson to the man he had helped raise from a pup. Sighing, he ran a hand through his thin hair. Despite his age and wrinkles, his eyes were still sharp, as was his brain.

“Sit down lad, this might take a bit of time. Years and years ago, your Grandma, your dad’s mom, was a member of our Pack. Back in those days, we had the equivalent of medicine men who would sniff out the young lads and lasses and match the True-Mated pairs. It’s all in the scent, in the ability to mingle a man and woman’s scent. If their scent won’t mingle, then not only can’t they have children, but neither can they join their lives together. It’s as simple and complex as that.

“Your Grandma didn’t want to marry the man she was to be joined with. She had fallen in love with a half-human werewolf from a neighboring Pack. This wasn’t a bad thing in its own but our medicine man had stated his scent was wrong—not just for her, but for his own life’s sake. Your Grandma refused to listen and I was forced to make a decision. Either exile her, or force her to do the Pack’s traditional will.

“I sat down with her, explained the reservations the medicine man held, tried to reason with her. But she was young and in love and refused to listen. Eventually we agreed that I would exile her but she would have enough time to pack up her things and ready herself to leave. Neither of us was truly happy with the arrangement but it was the best we could come up with.

“As you know, your father was born of the union, but at a great personal cost. The man who fathered him was mentally ill, deranged. He not only killed his entire tiny pack, but much of our own. We had no real concept of syphilis. We were still following many of the old traditions before the culling.

“And so I felt a huge burden of guilt. I had loved Janine like I loved everyone in the Pack, yet I couldn’t help feeling if I had just been stronger, more forceful, maybe I could have helped her avoid all that agony and grief her chosen mate had put her and her baby, your father, through.

“And so I set out to help her son. I felt if I could heal Roland, help him become the man he really was, that, in some respect, would help ease my burden, atone for the sins I had unwittingly committed. But there was more. I knew in my heart that Janine’s line was supposed to be joined to our line. I even knew it when the old medicine man, who had died in the culling, had set her up with another man. I had no substance to back up my claim…yet when I saw you, as a tiny infant, I knew you were the key. Knew you could right all those old wrongs for me. I knew you and Artemais’ eldest child could fix the past. But my interference had already caused enough damage. So I let it lie.

“But, it’s nice to see an old man’s crazy schemes come into fruition.”

Edward stared in shock, his Scotch completely forgotten in his hand. This was easily the longish speech he had ever heard from Zachariah, a man of few words.

“I have to convince
her
first.”

Artemais chuckled, almost choking on his Scotch. “Well, son, I wish you the best of luck. I don’t think anyone but you has
ever
been able to convince that girl of anything. You’ve set yourself up for a big task, but you have my blessing, for what it’s worth.”

Edward smiled hugely. “That’s all I was looking for, as I think you know. I didn’t want to suddenly invite you to the wedding and have to face the four of you over pistols at dawn or something.”

Artemais handed Zachariah a glass of Scotch and refilled his own and Edward’s.

“I propose a toast. To Edward and his convincing skills on my beloved Christiana.”

Edward raised his glass and drank deeply. He’d certainly drink to that! He’d need all the help he could get.

* * * * *

Christiana heard her dad bellow something—the words were indistinguishable through the heavy walls but the bellowing roar was easy to understand—and exchanged a glance with her mom.

Sophie Rutledge looked supremely unconcerned about the noise coming from her husband’s study.

“Give them five minutes. If we hear the furniture begin to break or more noise we’ll go in and stop them. Otherwise it might be best to give them their space.”

Christiana was going to argue until she heard the creak of her Grandfather’s door open and him shuffling down the hall, muttering curses.

Grampa would keep everything in line.

She turned back to her mom, bemused to find she had instantly turned back to peeling the potatoes for dinner. It was comforting but slightly alarming how some things never changed.

“So what are your plans, my girl?”

Christiana sat back and smiled.

“I’m not sure, Mom. I’ll stay here ‘til I get an apartment down in the city. And I plan to start working full time with Dad in the day-to-day aspects of the business but I really want to sorta shift around until I find an area of interest. There’s sure to be something in the company that appeals to me.”

Her mother nodded.

Christiana fidgeted. She picked up a peeler and helped start in on the potatoes.

“What’s on your mind, hon?”

Christiana instantly thought of a dozen blow-offs—and then instantly cast them aside. It would be no use trying to deter her mother. She had
always
had the ability to read her like a book.

“It’s Edward, Mom.”

Nodding, Sophie waited, patiently.

“He’s annoying! He seduces me one minute and then makes me mad as fire the next! He can never decide exactly what he wants and, then as soon as I turn my back, he’s hounding me again!”

Sophie smiled. “We had a conversation just like this when you were about fourteen, didn’t we, dear?”

Christiana resisted the impulse to throw the peeler onto the bench and pout. “This is different!” she insisted.

“How so, love?”

Christiana opened her mouth, and then shut it again. Then she opened it, but shut it again.

Sophie continued to peel the potatoes, obviously not in a rush.

“This time we’re adults, Mom,” she started very, very softly. “This time I want to believe we’re destined, I want to believe that I can turn my very oldest, best friend into the lover of my lifetime. I don’t think I could bear to be broken-hearted again.”