Chasing Sam: Vegas Mates Book 1 (5 page)

“Sam…” He waited for her to meet his
gaze.

“My wolf says it doesn’t matter, but I don’t
think it’s right to ask you—” Her voice trailed off as she saw
Johnny, one of the family chauffeurs, standing outside the diner
window. “Why is he here?” she whispered under her breath.

“What’s not right? And who is here,
Sam?”

Sam glanced nervously at Chase and then at
Johnny again. “Give me a minute.” She got up from her chair and
headed for the door. “I’ll be right back.”

Chase nodded and stayed in his seat.

She pushed open the door and stepped out
into the cool Vegas night air. “Why are you here?”

“Your dad sent me to fetch you back to the
house.”

“Does he know I’m here?”

Johnny nodded. “I called him when I saw you
inside.” He looked through the window at Chase and then to her.
“Sam, what are you doing?”

“Don’t you lecture me about my actions,
Johnny Salazar,” Sam hissed. “You forget so quickly the dangerous
game you are playing with your crush on my sister.”

“Sam… I…” He stuttered. “I have to take you
home. Now.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “They are packing to
head to the Villa tonight, Sam.”

Mom convinced dad to move up the hunt. Crap.
Now what?

“
You have to tell Chase what is going on.
He deserves to know the truth,” her wolf urged again.

“I’ll be back in a minute, Johnny. I have to
say goodbye.”

“I’ll wait out here,” he answered and nodded
toward the brick wall.

Sam turned and strode back into the diner.
She struggled to keep her composure as she sat.

Chase waited a moment and then spoke. “My
wolf is concerned that your twenty-fifth year is nearly over.”

She ducked her head and nodded. “My parents
wish to match me this weekend. They already have candidates picked
out for me. Johnny is here to take me home to meet them.”

The muscles in his face clenched, making him
look fierce and very angry. She winced at the sound of his teeth
grinding.

“No!”

The force behind his voice made her jump.
Tears welled in her eyes and her lip quivered. “I don’t have any
control over this,” she said softly. “I’m lucky to have avoided it
as long as I did.”

“You are supposed to be my mate, Sam. Mine.”
His voice was quiet but had an edge of sharpness. Her body warmed
instantly at the thought of being his, though, and her arousal
grew.

“I will belong to whoever catches me on the
hunt.” She was surprised by the look of relief that washed over his
face.

“Then I will catch you, Sam. My wolf says
any man may apply to the father of the one being hunted and
participate.”

“You barely know me.”

“Sam.”

“You could be killed, Chase. These other men
have trained their whole lives.”

“I won’t be able to live without you, Sam.
Not now.”

She sniffled and dabbed the corner of her
eyes with her sleeve. “I won’t be able to live with myself if you
are killed.”

“Sam,” Johnny’s voice called from the
doorway.

“What?” she growled. The diner grew quiet,
and she felt heat rise in her cheeks. She was making a scene and
Chase wasn’t going to see reason.

“We have to go. Your father has called three
times.”

A hand grasped her wrist. Sam met Chase’s
gaze. “Do you feel our connection?”

“Yes, but—”

“Do you want to be a doctor?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Are those other men going to let you?”

She shook her head. In the back of her mind,
Sam knew her hopes of working with Doctors Without Borders were
nonexistent if she married a noble. Her life would be spent playing
the political games her parents were constantly entwined in.

“You forget, Sam, I’ve been a soldier for
over fifty years. Let me talk to your father.”

She wrapped her fingers around his hand and
pulled. “We have to go now. I hope you are ready for a war.”

“Samantha Talia Demakis.” Sam cringed. Her
father’s voice assaulted her ears the second Ellie opened the door.
Chase held her hand and led her into the foyer. Ellie threw her a
sympathetic look before whispering, “They are in the dining
room.”

Sam nodded and trudged past the housekeeper.
They walked through the arched entrance to the dining room. The
twelve-chair table was dark mahogany and all but four of the seats
were filled. Her father sat at one end and her mother at the
other—King and Queen Demakis. She wanted to roll her eyes, but
didn’t dare. Three unfamiliar men sat closest to her father, and
her sisters all sat near her mother. Coffee was out on the table.
Dinner had already been served and cleared.

Growls erupted from all three men at the
same time. Sam tensed and then shuddered at the responding growl
from Chase.

Oh my, God! They’re going to tear each other
apart right here in front of me.

“Demakis, what is the meaning of this?” one
of the men spouted. “She smells of this man.”

“Yes, we were under the assumption she was
unattached,” another snarled, never taking his eyes from Chase.

Chase pushed Sam behind him and held her
there out of view. She could still hear everything. A chair grated
against the wood floor and someone stood.

“Silence. I will hear no more of this
useless complaining,” Peter Demakis roared. “You may let her go,
Mr. Michaels. No harm will come to her.”

“What about those men at the table?”

“No harm will come to my daughter. I would
kill any man who tried.”

Chase’s body relaxed, and he allowed his
hands to drop to his sides. Sam moved from behind him but remained
close. At least the four men had ceased snarling at each other and
pulled their fangs back into place.

He stood still as Samantha’s father
approached. Peter Demakis was a large man—tall, muscular, the
epitome of the Demakis noble line. Dark brown eyes glared angrily
at them both.

“Why are you with this man, Samantha? You
had obligations at the house, and you left without a word.” Her
father spoke calmly, but beneath the calm there was unresolved
anger over her disrespect of the guests.

“I did not plan those obligations, father.
You and mother planned them without my knowledge, and I was not in
a proper frame of mind to speak with your guests.”

“They are your guests, Samantha. They are
here to meet you before the hunt.”

“Father.” Samantha took a brave step toward
her dad. “I do not wish a match without my wolf’s approval.”

Her father’s eyes glowed and turned gold. A
deep growl rumbled from his chest. She stepped back into Chase’s
chest, trembling. “Your wolf has nothing to do with your
match!”

Sam’s wolf paced and pulled inside her. The
magic rose within and she pulled her mind back to allow the wolf’s
forward. Her wolf snarled angrily at her father and stepped toward
him again, leaving the safety of Chase’s body.

“I have everything to do with this, Peter
Demakis. It is I who will be hunted and I who will be bonded,” a
voice spoke through Sam’s body. It was the familiar voice of her
wolf that she heard everyday inside her head.

“Sam?” her father asked hesitantly. “Give me
back my daughter this instant. Samantha, come back.”

Even though her wolf was in control at the
moment, Sam could see the fear and concern in her father’s eyes.
The other men looked similarly concerned.

Chase stepped to Sam’s side and took her
hand in his own. Just that simple touch relaxed her wolf, and Sam
stepped back into control.

“I would respectfully like to put forth my
claim to bond with your daughter, Mr. Demakis. I am more than
willing to participate in whatever ceremony or hunt you were
speaking of earlier.”

“Chase. It’s too dangerous,” she
whispered.

“We already talked about this, Sam. This is
what has to happen.”

Her father turned on them both with an angry
glare. Somewhere in the midst of the turmoil, her mother had risen
and walked to her husband’s side. She lightly brushed her hand
along Dad’s arm and Sam was surprised to see him instantly
relax.

“So you’ve talked him into championing your
cause?” Her mother’s brown eyes glistened deviously. “I had no idea
you liked sentencing men to their deaths, Samantha.”

“Renata! Hold your tongue.” Sam’s father
snarled at her mother.

Renata Demakis huffed. She clicked her
tongue a few times, stepped toward Chase, and looked up to meet his
gaze. “She doesn’t get a choice.” Her voice dropped to a hushed
whisper. “If you come for her, you will die. Only noble born are
trained for the hunt.”

***

His magic rippled as his anger grew. Every
cell was electrically charged. The emotions he’d kept carefully
locked away were bubbling up. This woman was certifiable.
Whatever this hunt is, I am going.

“
Correction,
we
are going,”
his wolf piped up.
“The first part of the chase is completed in
wolf form.”

You mean…they are actually going to hunt
her?

“
Yes.”

Fuck that!

***

“I will have your daughter as my mate, Mrs.
Demakis. Count on it.”

“I’ll call your mother and tell her she’s
losing a son.” Her voice was cold, and the icy threat made him
growl again. He glanced at Sam’s dad and found only a look of
slight irritation.

“Tonight?” Sam’s voice was pleading. “Why
tonight?”

“Samantha, you’ve drug this out long enough.
These men have waited an entire year for your ceremony. Mr.
Michaels can join the hunt. Tradition gives him the right, but I’m
warning you both he will be unprepared.”

Chase bit his tongue. Perhaps sharing that
he was a war veteran and had been a soldier for over fifty years
was giving away an advantage. He may not have trained for this
so-called hunt, but if they were going to fight, he was going to
win.

“That’s the spirit. These spoiled brats
don’t know what just stepped into the ring.”

He took Samantha’s hand and pulled her
against his side. Growls erupted from the table along with
complaints that she was unfairly attached to the new contender. He
ignored them and turned back to Peter and his wife. “I am ready,
and I expect the rules to be clearly explained.”

“Samantha?” An unspoken question passed
between the father and daughter. Then she looked up and met his
gaze before nodding to her father.

“I understand.” Her voice quivered.

“Very good, we leave at once. Mr. Michaels,
everything will be discussed in the car on the way to the Villa.
You will ride with me and the other men. The girls will ride in a
different vehicle.” Her father turned to walk away and then looked
back over his shoulder. “If you want to call someone before we go,
now would be the time.”

“Yes, sir.”

God, does he really expect me to die
tonight?

“
These hunts are not usually to the
death, but they can be. He’s correct in assuming you are in danger.
These men are angry, Chase.”

“Sam,” he leaned down and whispered. “I’m
going to call my brother and tell him what’s going on.”

“Of course,” she answered. “There’s a study
right across the foyer you can use. I have to leave…” She paused,
and he could tell she was struggling not to cry.

***

Chase stared at the black Escalade and
frowned. Peter Demakis wanted all of them to get in one vehicle and
ride together? Four angry men, including himself, were about to
fight over
his
mate. What the fuck? Was her father just
trying to make things worse?

“Changing your mind?” One of the other males
snickered as he climbed into the SUV.

Chase snarled and crossed his arms.

“Get in, Michaels,” Peter said as he exited
the house and climbed into the front passenger seat. He looked back
at him before he closed the door.
Empathy?
He could have
sworn for a second her father was encouraging him. It had to be a
mistake. Why would Peter Demakis want his daughter to marry outside
the noble line…unless he really did care if she was happy?

The third man climbed in and took the last
captain’s chair on the driver’s side in the middle of the SUV.

The car was silent, and tension was so thick
in the air that nobody even moved. Chase stared out the window,
willing his wolf to stay calm. The scent of the other three unmated
males was wearing on his resolve. He was sure it wasn’t any easier
on them either.

About ten minutes later, Sam’s dad finally
broke the silence. He turned in his chair and looked back at Chase
and the other men. Chase shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“For tradition’s sake, I will go through the
expectations of the hunt.”

Chase met his gaze and realized instantly
the speech was for his benefit alone. The other men knew exactly
what was going to happen tonight.

“The ceremony will be blessed by myself and
my wife. Samantha will be presented as the gift of the hunt. You
will each drink a drought prepared to specifications of tradition
to keep you in your wolf form for several hours.”

“Wait, we will be drugged?” Chase didn’t
like the sound of that. He heard several scoffs behind him, but he
didn’t care. What if someone hurt Sam?

“The drought only inhibits the magic so that
you must use your wolf senses for most of the night. It will not
harm or inhibit your consciousness at all.”

Chase nodded. It wasn’t like he really had a
choice.

“Once Renata and I have presented our
daughter and all of you have officially accepted the challenge,
Samantha will be released and given an hour head start. Samantha
will also be drugged and unable to change into human form for
several hours.

“What stops us from fighting with each other
while we are tracking Sam?”