ChasingCassie (15 page)

“Oh, goody. Wait, let me go and get into a good position. I
don’t want to miss a second of this.”

Ella turned and practically ran through the back entrance of
Fat Eddy’s. Cassie moved at a slower pace, trying to push her thoughts about
Brynn to the side. She couldn’t do anything about some mysterious half brother
at the moment, but she could show an arrogant, cold werewolf that she wasn’t
going to roll over and play dead.

Taking a deep, bolstering breath, she stepped into Fat
Eddy’s and walked over to where Ryan and Jay sat.

Cassie came to a stop beside them and slammed her palm down
on the table. Both men looked up at her—Jay with surprise, Ryan with a cool,
dismissive glance. She leaned down and stared into Ryan’s face. His eyes
widened before he narrowed them, glaring at her.

Cassie forced herself to stay still, not dropping her gaze.
She wasn’t going to show any submission to this werewolf. Something that may
have been surprise flickered across his face. It passed so fast she wasn’t sure
whether she’d imagined it or not.

“No.”

“No?” Jay’s hand covered hers. “No, what? What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Ryan snapped.

“Your brother told me to leave you. He doesn’t think I’m
good enough for you. I disagree.” She didn’t take her eyes off Ryan, determined
not to give in. “I’m not easily scared off. I love Jay. I deserve him. And I’m
not going to let anyone, including you, scare me away. Got it?”

Ryan glared back until she figured they were going to be
stuck there forever, staring at each other. Either that or he’d growl at her.
Her insides quivered.

“What, exactly, did he say to you?” Jay asked quietly.

“It was a private conversation,” Ryan interjected, his voice
a low growl. She stood her ground. She knew Jay wouldn’t let him hurt her.

“That if I loved you, I’d leave you, let you find someone
who deserved you. He even offered to set me up somewhere else.”

“Boy, what a jerk,” Ella remarked, her voice scornful. “You
should be thankful Jay found someone as kind, generous and lovely as Cassie.”

Ryan glared at Ella until she paled slightly and turned
away. “I was simply trying to convince her to do what’s best for both of you.”

Jay let out a low, lethal growl and she saw both men tense,
ready to fight.

“Jay!” she exclaimed sharply, relieved when his eyes turned
her way. They were shining, glittering—the wolf was close to the surface. He
visibly shook himself before turning back to his brother.

Cassie took a deep breath. “I’m not going, no matter what
you do, I won’t leave him.”

“Let’s go somewhere private for this, shall we?” Ryan looked
over at Jay. “Alone.”

Cassie swallowed. “I’ll just—”

“Lead us to somewhere private,” Jay interrupted her. He
glared at Ryan. “This concerns Cassie as well. I’m not having this conversation
without her.”

Cassie sent him a small smile before turning and walking
through the kitchen into the large storeroom.

Ryan closed the door and leaned back against it, scowling at
them.

“Do you want me to come back to the pack, Rye?” Jay asked.

“Of course I do, it’s your home, where you belong. Why? Is
she trying to convince you not to come back?”

“Stop assigning her the role of the bad guy, Rye. I love
Cassie. I intend to spend the rest of my life with her.”

“What about what Cassie wants?” Ryan turned to her. “You’ll
be an outsider. There are no other humans living on the estate. You’ll be
different from everyone else. The majority of the pack have never lived with a
human. They won’t like it, they won’t like you. At best, you’ll be treated as a
guest. At worst, you’ll be ostracized. Is that really what you want?”

Actually, it sounded awful, to be excluded, ignored…that
wasn’t how she wanted to live her life anymore. But this was Jay’s home they
were talking about and she would try to live there, for him. Besides, she was
determined to make an effort, not to hide herself away. They’d just have to
accept her. She held her shoulders straight and stared Ryan right in the eyes.

“They’ll have to get used to living with a human, won’t
they? We’re actually not that bad, once you get to know us. We’re
toilet-trained, we don’t smell and most of us have good manners. Can you say
the same?”

Jay stepped slightly in front of her as Ryan’s eyes flashed
amber.

“There’s no way I would allow Cassie to be treated so
poorly.”

Ryan’s gaze moved off her to focus in on Jay, and Cassie
shivered with relief. Ryan was truly scary.

“So you won’t be bringing her back?”

“No, I will be. But we won’t be staying if the pack treats
her so badly. I won’t live with a pack who would treat my mate like that.”

Cassie stared at Jay’s back, tears welling up at his words.

“They won’t know how to treat her. She has no place in the
pack. Even if they make the effort to be polite, to be respectful, she’ll have
no role, no contribution. Is that what you want for her?”

“No, not at all, which is why I spoke to Cooper. He’s agreed
to let us petition the advisors, asking for Cassie to be accepted as an
honorary packmate.”

Ryan gaped at him, stunned. Cassie had to resist asking him
what the hell he was talking about. She’d wait until later, when they were
alone.

“You’ll never win the vote.”

Jay shrugged. “If we don’t, then we’ll see how things go.
But if Cassie dislikes living in the pack, brother, if she’s treated with
anything less than the respect and warmth she deserves, then we will leave.
Cassie is willing to try to live with the pack to make me happy, how can I do
anything less?”

“You owe your loyalty to the pack,” Ryan rumbled.

“Yes, and other than one lapse in judgment years ago, I have
always done my best, given my all. But Cassie is my mate, she comes first.”

“But she’s not your true mate, she isn’t a werewolf. I
thought you would have learned your lesson after Lia.”

“Cassie isn’t Lia.”

“You’d leave your pack, your family for her?”

“In a heartbeat.” Jay sighed. “Enough. You won’t ever
understand. I think it’s best we say our goodbyes now, you’re needed back
home.”

Ryan shook his head and left, closing the door behind him.

Cassie immediately jumped into Jay’s arms.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

He ran his hands down her back. “For what?”

“For sticking up for me like that.”

“I will always have your back.” He grinned. “I can’t believe
you told Rye off. You know, he’s not used to people speaking to him that way,
especially not a human.”

She gulped. “Is he really mad?”

“Yeah, but don’t worry. He knows where I stand now.”

“But wouldn’t he have sensed your lie? About leaving the
pack?”

He began kissing down her neck and she clasped his
shoulders, leaning into him. “No, because it wasn’t a lie.” He cupped her face.
“If you don’t like living with my pack then we’ll leave.”

He kissed her deeply—long, slow and sweet. When he drew
back, she gazed up at him, astounded.

“Y-you mean that? You’d give up living with the pack, your
family, for me?”

“Yes. I love you. You’re willing to live with the pack, even
though you’re afraid and unsure, how could I be willing to sacrifice anything
less?”

“But what about you? They’re your family, you wouldn’t be
happy living apart from them.”

“Yes, I would. Because I’d be with you. I will not have you
treated as anything less than the wonderful person you are. Yes, they’re my
family and I will miss them. But I cannot live without you. If you wish it,
we’ll go somewhere else. You come first, baby, and you always will.”

Her insides melted and she took his mouth in a rough,
scorching kiss.

“God, I love you. So much.”

He clasped her face, staring intently into her eyes.
Reaching into his front pocket, he withdrew a small ring box. “Cassidy
Callington, I love you. Will you marry me?” He flicked open the lid and she
gasped. Inside was the hugest, ugliest ring she’d ever seen.

“It looks like something out of a Cracker Jack box,” she
blurted out, slamming a hand over her mouth as she realized how rude that
sounded.

He merely chuckled. “Not quite, it’s from a junk shop.
There’s no jewelry store here. The ring box, Ella provided and, well, I hope
you’re not too disappointed. I’ll get you a real one when I can. But if you
agree to marry me, I want everyone to know you’re mine. I don’t want to wait.”

“Even though Ryan was right and I can never be your true
mate? Never have that bond?” Laney had once explained the true mate bond to her
as a linking of souls. Cooper and Laney could communicate through their link.
Sense one another’s feelings and thoughts. It sounded…magical.

He clasped her face firmly. “You are my life. We have a tie
just as strong, just as real and special. And I know that both of us will fight
to keep what we have. Marry me, Cassie. I’ll love you for eternity. No matter
where we are or what we do, you’ll always be in my mind and filling my heart.”

Tears welled in her eyes, blurring his face, but the
intensity of his feelings still shone through. She reached for his hand.
“That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard. Sometimes I can’t quite
believe that you really love me. I get this shock when I realize this is all
real, not a dream.” She held out her left hand. “I would love to marry you.”

“Thank God,” he whispered before leaning down to kiss her
lovingly. Then he placed the garish ring on her finger as tears escaped down
her cheeks.

“Hey, no crying. The big, bad wolf is gone now. He can’t
hurt you anymore.” He wiped her cheeks with his thumbs.

“It’s not that, I wouldn’t waste tears on him. These are
happy tears.”

“Ahh.” He grinned. “Well, good.”

He took her mouth with his, his hands almost shaking as he
began stripping her shirt off.

“Jay,” she whispered, trying to sound stern. She grabbed his
hands. “What do you think you’re doing?”

He grinned, devilish glee filling his face. “I’ve always
longed to have sex in a storeroom, haven’t you?”

She blushed. “Someone will hear us,” she protested, but
didn’t stop him as he undid her jeans, pushing them and her panties down her
legs, tugging them completely off her.

“Then you’ll have to be very quiet, won’t you?” he whispered
as he cupped her breasts. His thumbs circled her nipples until they strained
against the lacy bra confining them.

She whimpered.

“Shh now, baby.”

She watched as he tugged his jeans and boxers down.
Yum.
It didn’t matter how often she saw him naked, he still had the power to leave
her breathless and aching.

“Hmm, aching?”

She blushed, realizing she’d spoken aloud.

“Poor baby, shall I kiss it and make it all better?” He
began kissing down her jaw.

“Uh-huh.”

“Does it hurt here?” He kissed the sensitive crease between
her neck and shoulder.

“Umm,” she moaned as he reached down and cupped her mound,
teasing her.

“What about here?” His mouth moved to her collarbone.

“Y-yes.”

“What about here? Are these hurting, my love?” His free hand
cupped her left breast, holding it up so he could kiss her nipple through her
bra. She whimpered as her other nipple received the same treatment.

“Hmm, these seem very sore, my love, let me kiss them all
better.”

“Oh yes.”

He showered her breasts with attention as she bit her lip to
hold in her cries.

Suddenly, she found herself turned, facing the wall. Jay
pushed on her shoulders.

“Bend over. Place your hands on that crate.”

She did as he ordered, reaching down to rest her hands on
the wooden crate before her. Jay moved her feet apart, splitting her legs wide.

“Hurry up, before someone comes in to get something.”

“Yes ma’am.” His legs brushed up against the back of her
thighs before he entered her slowly, pushing inside her, filling her bit by
delicious bit.

Once he was fully seated within her, he paused, letting them
both get used to the heavenly delight. Then he moved.

Hard. Fast. Explosive.

He held her hips, keeping her still as he drove her higher
with each deep plunge. She clenched her teeth, fighting back orgasm, trying to
hold on to some semblance of control. But it was useless. He was never going to
let her hold back from him. Ripples of release slammed through her, stealing
her breath, robbing her mind.

Jay lifted her so her feet were completely off the ground.
She forgot where she was, forgot about remaining quiet as he drove into her
again and again. Then Jay slammed into her, stiffening, letting out a low groan
of satisfaction.

Breathless, Cassie would have collapsed if he weren’t still
holding her up.

“Wow,” she panted.

“Yeah,” he replied, equally as breathless.

She wiggled in his hold until he set her down. Turning, she
sat on the crate, yelping as the rough wood scraped the tender skin of her
bottom. She jumped back up and tugged on her jeans.

“How loud were we?” she asked, blushing.

Jay chuckled. “I wasn’t loud at all. You were the one
screaming.”

“Oh Lord.” She covered her face with her hands. “I can’t go
back out there.”

He tugged her hands from her face before leaning in and
kissing her. A leisurely, tender kiss that had her toes curling. She swayed as
he let her go.

“You’re braver than you give yourself credit for. Not many
would stand up to my brother. If you can do that, then you can easily go back
out there and finish your shift.”

She smiled at him. “I guess you’re right.”

“I know I am.” He turned and gave her a small push.

“Get moving, wench.”

Chapter Twelve

“Oh man, that was the longest shift ever,” Cassie complained
as they climbed into bed that night. “Was it my imagination or was everyone
staring at us?”