Claiming Her Mate (7 page)

The moment Evan open his lids, he wished he hadn’t. Pain, sharp and agonizing, shot through his skull. The pain meant nothing to him however, when he saw Summer being held by Brad.

“Get off her you mongrel,” he shouted, trying to climb to his feet.

A foot slamming into his back, planted him back onto the ground.

“Looks like lover boy is awake,” Brad snickered.

“Leave him alone,” Summer screamed, a feeling of satisfaction filling him as she wrenched her elbow back, Brad receiving the blow straight to his face. The tiger let go of Summer to clutch at his nose and she raced to him. Whomever had been standing behind him made the mistake of coming forward, placing Evan at their back. Clearly they didn’t see him as much of a threat.

Grabbing a fallen branch just a meter away, Evan hefted it up high, swinging it with as much force as he was capable. There was a sickening crunch as both shifters slumped to the ground.

His eyes widened in horror when he saw Brad coming for Summer, claws outstretched. In the distance he could hear Aidan shouting at the man to stop what he was about to do, but Evan could see it in the man’s eyes. He wasn’t going to. In a desperate bid to protect the woman he loved, Evan reached for Summer, swinging her around and covering her with his own body.

Evan cried out as Brad’s sharp, talon-like claws sliced through his skin. They landed on the ground and rolled, Evan bucking in an attempt to remove the other man. He was getting sick and tired of tigers taking swipes at him.

Using a burst of strength he didn’t know he was capable of, Evan suddenly lifted the tiger up and off him, relishing the cracking sound Brad’s bones made as he slammed against the tree.

Not satisfied. Evan leaped to his feet, a little disconcerted when he could actually feel his skin as it knitted back together. Taking a step toward Brad, ready to finish the bastard off, a snarl from only meters away gave him pause and had him spinning around to face Aidan.

“Do it and I’ll slice right through her,” Aidan warned, clutching Summer tight, one clawed hand wrapped around her neck while he held the other close to her stomach. “She may survive, but the child won't, I promise you that.”

Evan froze. “Child?”

The Alpha’s laugh echoed through the trees. “You didn’t know, did you?” He grinned down at Summer. “My, my...have we been keeping secrets already? Doesn’t make for a good start to a mating, now does it?”

The look of shame told Evan that Aidan spoke the truth, though he in no way blamed Summer for not telling him. She must have been so worried about his reaction, and so scared herself. He wouldn’t let the bastard play on those emotions.

“It’s okay, honey.” His eyes flicked down to the claws so very close to his mate and their unborn child. “I love you, and I’ll love our baby. It’s going to be okay.”

“Oh, how fucking sweet,” Aidan sneered. “Only one problem. The child is an inconvenience I hadn’t planned on.”

Evan’s blood ran cold. “What does that mean?”

“You’re a smart man, Evan. What do you think it means?” The malevolent grin on Aidan’s face told him that if he didn’t act soon, he could lose everything he ever loved.

But how the hell was he supposed to go against an Alpha alone?

“Killing her or our child won’t solve a thing.”

Aidan seemed to think about that. “True. There are always other ways to control the prophesy. Perhaps little Ella would be willing to come home and take Summer’s place.”

Summer struggled in Aidan’s hold. “You stay the hell away from my sister.”

Evan growled when he saw Aidan’s hand tighten around Summer’s neck.

“Let’s not be rude, shall we?” Aidan arched an arrogant brow.

“Why do you care about the prophesy anyway?” Summer asked, glaring at the Alpha.

“Let’s just say I’ve recently made a deal with a new partner, and have a vested interest now,” he answered cryptically.

That sounded ominous.

Desperation swept through him as Evan tried to find a way to get Summer out of Aidan’s hold. What he would do if he did, he had no idea. Aidan was faster, stronger. And even as he stood there, Bradley and his brothers were waking up. Angling himself so he at least stood between Bradley and Summer, Evan’s eyes darted around for something, anything that would get them out of this mess.

A sudden hiss echoed through the trees distracting them all, and Evan gaped as Ally came darting in, leaping at a stunned Aidan. He could see the tiny claws extend as his cat landed them in the Alpha’s face. The shock was enough that Summer was able to extend her own, longer ones, raking the up the Alpha’s side before stumbling a little closer to Evan. But dammit, Trevor and Rick were still too close.

The Alpha growled, clutching at Ally and tearing her away before tossing her into the bushes. “Fucking cat. What the hell was that?”

“Well shit.” Bradley chuckled, eyeing Evan. “Now there is something I hadn’t expected. A familiar.”

“What?” Aidan frowned, clutching at the wounds to his side. His eyes widening in comprehension a moment later. “You’re a fucking witch? Why the hell did we not know this?”

Bradley gave a careless shrug. “Stuffed if I know. Doesn’t matter much. He clearly has no abilities, which means all he has is a weakness. One you just tossed into the bushes.”

The malevolent grin that spread on the Alpha’s face created a ball of dread in his stomach. He may have slightly shocked someone the other night at the Pride meeting, but he had no idea how he had done it or if he could do it again.

“Oh, look at the worried little half witch. What’s wrong, Evan?” Bradley taunted. “Worried what we might do to your precious mate? You know, I had some pretty pleasurable plans in mind that night. If you hadn’t interrupted…”

“You arsehole,” Evan snarled. “Go near her again and I’ll fucking kill you.”

Before he could understand what was happening, power surged through Evan as if tiny electrical currents raced up and down every nerve. His system was on overload, ready to explode like the fury that pulsed through him. On instinct alone, he raised a hand, aiming it at an extremely stunned Brad and allowed the energy to purge itself from his body.

Blinding light erupted out of Evan’s hand, his whole being trembling as a lightning bolt of power burst free.

“Evan!”

He could hear Summer’s scream, so faint it could have been miles away. Evan’s sole focus remained on Bradley, and a small part of him relished the shriek the bastard made as he fell to the ground.

As quickly as it came, the bright light disappeared, leaving everyone in the clearing frozen. Evan drew in laboured breaths as his gaze darted to Bradley’s prone figure, then to Summer, and back again.

What the fuck did he just do?

“Fuck,” Aidan snarled as he glared at Bradley’s body. Evan braced himself for an attack by the Alpha, only to be taken by surprise when he turned to his two other brothers instead. “The others are coming. We need to get out of here.”

“You can’t be serious?” Trevor gaped. “They killed Brad.”

Aidan arched an arrogant brow. “Brad bit off more than he could chew, and do you really expect me to face Sage while wounded. Unlike Brad, I’m not a bloody idiot.”

Without another word, Aidan turned, disappearing into the bushes behind him. The remaining brothers shared a look before they also took off. Evan shouted but otherwise was unable to do anything, his body still trembling and slightly weak.

Shouts and snarls suddenly erupted through the air, and Evan sighed in relief when Summer came over to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. He buried his nose in the crook of her neck, relishing in the feel of her in his arms. He had come so close to losing her, and the child he hadn’t even known she was carrying.

He looked up when Sage, Chase, and two white tigers he assumed to be their brothers, Dominic and Rourke, burst through the tree line. “Where is he?” the Alpha demanded.

“He’s gone, Sage,” Summer said quietly. “He heard you coming. He was injured and wouldn’t risk facing you.”

“Fucking coward,” Sage snarled and Evan couldn’t agree more. The other man’s eyes widened when they fell on Bradley. “I take it he had a falling out with this one?”

“Not exactly,” Evan mumbled, unsure how to explain what he had just done.

“Chase, call the Shifter Council. Tell them what has happened. We have no proof of Aidan’s involvement, but they need to know Brad has been dealt with.” Sage met Evan’s gaze, obviously waiting for more details.

“It was me. I took him out.” Evan grimaced. “Seems some of my latent abilities are coming through. I didn’t have any control over them, and before I knew it Bradley was on the ground.”

Sage gave him a sympathetic look. “It’s never easy taking a life, no matter how justified. And as for your powers, we can find someone to help you with them. For now, we need to focus on this mess, though. Did you get any answers?”

“Oh, we did,” Summer scoffed. “And more.”

Sage frowned. “Something tells me I need to be sitting when I hear this.”

Evan tightened his hold on Summer. “It doesn’t matter, not yet.” He peered down at Summer, her honey-gold eyes shimmering with emotions he felt echoing through him. “God, I thought I’d lose you.”

“Not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me,” she whispered, linking their hands and bringing them to rest on her stomach. “You’re stuck with us.”

“Damn. I’m going to be a dad. We’re going to have a baby.”

His mind was still trying to process the information when his brothers-in-law let out a few catcalls and whistles.

“You're pregnant?” Sage gaped.

“Yes, she is,” Evan answered for a blushing Summer. “We’re having a baby.”

Damn, it didn’t matter how much he said it, the idea of having a child still felt so unbelievably surreal.

Chase chuckled as he hung up the phone that Evan presumed he had used to call the Shifter Council. “Ah...that would be
babies
, dude.”

“Huh?”

His friend's grin was huge. “Tiger shifters have litters like regular tigers, remember?”

Evan’s brain took a moment to catch up to what Chase was telling him, but when it did, he suddenly felt extremely light headed. Babies…litters…more than one.

“Oh, fuck me!”

The rest of the men joined Chase in laughter at the expense of Evan.

Everyone had gathered back at Evan and Summer’s home. The turn of events had left them all stunned, and while the family was thrilled with the news that she was pregnant, Summer knew they had far more larger concerns to deal with.

Aidan’s words about the prophesy echoed through her mind. His apparent knowledge of the evil they would be facing, and his willingness to side with whoever or whatever it was, all terrified her.

“So you’re telling me that Aidan knows who else is involved in the prophesy? This supposed evil?” Sage asked, pacing back and forth.

“From the sounds of it he’s working with them, although if the evil is as bad as the prophesy says, I’d say it’s more like working
for
them.” And that thought terrified her more than anything.

“Dammit,” Sage growled, startling poor little Ally, the cat leaping up into the air with a hiss. Summer leaned forward and picked the brave feline up, placing her in her lap. If it hadn’t been for Ally’s connection to Evan and her impeccable timing, Summer couldn’t contain the shudder that went through her at the thought of what could have happened. “Shit is really hitting the fan. And we’ve got Ella’s friend, Tessa, and her family coming, they should be here in a week. At least she knows about shifters, but this will still be a lot to deal with.”

“She needs our help, son,” her father added.

“I know, and I don’t regret offering it, but I’m concerned about what this all means.” Sage swiped a hand down his tired looking face. “We’ve got this prophesy hanging over our heads, Tessa on her way, Aidan causing trouble…and soon we will have new members of the family joining us.”

Summer smiled at her brother. “And they will be safe and sound. They have too many people who already love them, willing to do anything to keep them safe.”

Evan placed his hand on her stomach, chuckling when Ally swiped it away so she could rub the side of her face against Summer, purring in contentment. “I’m still trying to come to terms with the idea that we’re having more than one.”

“Don’t worry, Ev.” Chase shot him a wicked grin. “I’m sure you’ll get used to it once they’re here….screaming, cry, interfering with your sex life…”

Her mate surprised everyone when he raised his hand and flicked it out, a spark of energy shooting out and zapping Chase in the shoulder.

“Ah, dammit.” Her brother sat with a perpetulant frown as he rubbed his injury. “Not cool, dude.”

“Actually, that was pretty damn cool,” her brother, Rourke, chuckled. “You’re getting the hang of that already.”

Evan shrugged. “Not really. It’s mostly just instinct.”

“So you’re saying you could have set my arse on fire?” Chase asked, outraged.

“Bro, you had it coming,” Rourke laughed.

“Either way, I’ve taken the liberty of getting in contact with the Witches Council. I spoke to a friend on the way here,” Richard announced, giving his son a look that clearly said
behave
. “They’ll be sending someone to help train you. For now, how about we try not to provoke Evan, hmmm?”

The mood lifted remarkable after that and Summer felt like she could breathe properly again. Though the serious undertone remained and the family knew they had a battle ahead, Summer loved that they were so happy to be welcoming new members. It helped put her nerves at ease.

A yawn escaped her, and although she attempted to hide it, her father must have seen.

“I think that’s our cue to leave,” Richard suggested to the group gathered. “We'll have plenty of time to discuss this tomorrow.”

“Dad’s right. Aidan won’t do anything else tonight, the Council members are on their way to deal with Brad’s body.” Sage grimaced as he made his way to the door. “As far as the prophesy goes, well, we can’t prove whether that’s real or not, so let’s not borrow trouble. What we do know is that Aidan is out to create chaos, he may or may not be working with someone, and that our family is expanding.” Turning to Evan, he said, “From what I can see, you are fairly in control of your powers, I’m not worried. But it’s good that someone is coming to help train you to use them. And as long as dumbarse over there,” Sage tilted his head, indicating Chase, “keeps his mouth shut, you should continue to be fine.”

“Oh goodie,” Evan mumbled from beside her.

Summer sat Ally back on the floor as she stood and walked to the door, showing her family out. She knew they would all descend again tomorrow but right now, she needed some alone time with her mate.

“You know they mean well, right?” she asked, leaning up against the still closing door.

“Yeah, I know,” Evan chuckled.

Summer walked back to the lounge, but instead of taking the seat next to Evan, she moved to straddle his lap. Evan’s arms wrapped around her, almost instinctively, and she smiled. If someone had of asked her a few months ago if she thought she would be where she was now. Mated to Evan, pregnant with child, and a damn prophesy hanging over their heads, Summer would have laughed at them. She would have told them they were insane.

“What’s put that smile on your face?”

“You,” she whispered, lowering her head to capture his lips. “Always you.”

“Hmmm, always, huh?” Evan bit down gently on her bottom lip, making her gasp. “I like the sound of that.”

“You were always mine, I just had to claim you.”