Howl My Name (BBW Paranormal Shapeshifter Romance) (Grayslake Book 5) (13 page)

Evie’s scent hit him a split second before she stepped into his sight, his shirt hanging from her body and their mixed scent clung to her skin. “Or me.” His mate shot a glare at Owen. “Or you can come to me.”

“You...”
Gasp.
“Can't just...”
Wheeze.
“Order me—”

“Amazingly enough,” Reid drawled, “I can.”

And because the wolf wanted to, he squeezed a little tighter, enjoyed the darkening of Owen’s face as it reddened and then purpled. The animal liked it, liked the wave of fear that came from Owen as he continued to steal his air.

“Reid?” There was no worry or concern in his mate's tone. Simple curiosity.

Another subtle squeeze, pulling that last whiff of air from Owen’s lungs, and then he released the bear. Owen fell to the ground with a gasp, fighting to fill his lungs with air, and Owen shot him a glare.

“Want it again?” His wolf pushed forward and released a growl.

The bear dropped his gaze in an instant, face paling until it nearly blended with the white on the walls. “Sorry,” he whispered.

He grunted and turned his attention back to the room at large. “What I said stands. You can't talk to me, you go to Owen or Evelyn,” his Evie whimpered and a glance showed her confusion. He reached out and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. She was Evelyn to them, Evie to him. It was a clear difference he'd explain later. Never did he want to hear
Evie
fall from anyone's lips. “There's also Asher. He's my Enforcer. I'll establish the rest of the hierarchy over the next few days, but this is the infrastructure as it stands today.”

Reid's gaze shifted over everyone once more. “I want you to understand something. I know your fear. I know what lives in your hearts and that you've fought to just survive over the years.” The tension ratcheted up and he'd never hated the reputation he'd cultivated more. “But there are two things you don't know that you should.

“I demand respect and submission--my wolf allows nothing less. I also claim this clan as mine. I will protect you until my last breath and I will kill anyone—
anyone
—who threatens my bears and this town. Today's attack will not go unpunished. I will cut them. I will claw them. I will rip off pieces of flesh and I will gut them while they still breathe.

“A crazy male kills to kill. I kill so others understand it would be crazy to touch what belongs to me.” The fear remained high, but he felt some of it ease with his words. “I will kill for you. I will die for you. Because you are
mine
.”

The panic slowly ebbed, the Brookfield men and women calming with his declaration. Asher was unmoved, simply raising a single brow as if it say, “You done now?” and Reid nodded. He was done. He'd said what needed saying and now he'd take a few minutes to breathe, to just be with Evie. They'd loved on one another—he could still taste her on his tongue--but they hadn't talked, hadn't simply enjoyed the world around them.

Meeting Brookfield bears and laughing with her all afternoon was one thing, but he needed more.

And wasn't that a pussy-whipped thought. He was a chick that needed to
connect
with his mate.

What happened to him?

He tugged on Evie, drawing her toward the back door and leaving silence in their wake. Hope grew that they'd escape without being stopped, but that fell flat the moment Carter neared.

“Itan?” his gaze remained lowered, but there was no hint of terror clinging to him.

“Yeah,” he kept the growl from his voice. Barely.

“Do you think leaving the house is safe?”

Probably not.

“I don't imagine it is, but being in a doctor's office in town wasn't either. So I'll take my chances. If someone wants to be a pussy and take me out with a bullet, they'll do it.”

The bear's eyes flicked to his and there was no missing the glare. A glare, but only a little fear. Well, at least his speech reassured someone. Or it could be that Carter was involved in saving his sorry ass. “With all due respect, Itan, I’m trusting you to deliver on your promises, which means I don’t want to lose an Itan who could help this clan heal.”

Reid grinned and looked to Evie. “He likes me a little bit.”

That had his mate snorting. “Reid, give him a break.”

He wanted to give Carter shit, but then he remembered the pain the clan endured for who knew how long. So instead of teasing, he reached for the male. He wrapped his hand around the back of Carter’s neck and squeezed, bringing the bear forward until the male’s bowed head rested against Reid’s shoulder. Wolves thrived on contact, on feeling the dominance first hand to connect with their alpha and take comfort in the stronger wolf’s presence. So that’s what he gave the bear. Nothing sexual, nothing that would make a mate jealous. Just a touch to tell him he wasn’t alone. Like a parent to a child, he reassured Carter.

“I’m good. Trust your Itan. Know that my mate and this clan are the two most important things in my life. We’re walking out to the gathering clearing before I call everyone together tonight. If you feel the need to protect me, you send out a few armed bears and they stay back. You got me?”

Carter shuddered and Reid knew his instincts were right. Bear or wolf, the connection was needed. “Yes, Itan.”

Apprehension still followed them out the door, but the overwhelming fear was gone. It was a step. Good or bad, it was a step. He just hoped it was in the right direction. Was it subterfuge? One of the bears pretending to be a friend, sneaking into the den under the guise of need, while plotting his death. Because Evie might not remember, or be willing to acknowledge it, but as he lay dying on that worn carpet, he heard six words that told him someone who was supposed to protect him was out to kill him.

No one else was supposed to get hurt.

Evelyn stayed at his side, quietly moving through the forest with her hand in his. They didn’t speak, not as they crossed the wide lawn and not as they crossed the tree line. It wasn’t until the foliage masked their location that he spoke. Or rather, moved.

In one fluid spin, he had her pinned to the trunk of a tree, his mouth on hers as he plundered her depths. His tongue delved into her, licking and caressing hers with a sensual rhythm that had her desire flaring to life once more. She’d just come on his mouth and she wanted him again. She ached for his mouth, his fingers, his… cock. God, she wanted his cock. Deep and hard, but she swallowed her pleas.

They’d mate, but not while a half-dozen bears traipsed after them. And it was at least a half-dozen of Grayslake and Brookfield’s finest. At least, she recognized one scent, perhaps two, as belonging to the town.

She pulled her lips from his and forced her lids to part. Panting, she forced words from her mouth. “Is that a good idea?”

“Kissing you? Yes.” He leaned down once more but a hand on his chest stopped him.

“No, I mean, the Brookfield bears following us.”

Reid grinned. “You like me a little bit, too.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. “More than a little. Which is why I don’t want you shot or mauled by two of our own.”

“How much more?” The need, the craving, for the truth lived in his eyes. As did hope and she ached for him. The story he’d told… what he’d endured…

“A lot, Reid. More than I should in so short a time, but I can’t help it. You’re…”

“Your mate. And you’re mine. I don’t just like you a lot, Evie. I told you, you’re necessary to me, to my survival. You are my other half and if I don’t have you, I have no reason to breathe.”

She nodded. What else could she do? Her feelings drew closer and closer to his with every minute they spent together. Was it fast? Yes, but most shifter matings were. Biologically, their bodies were drawn together, but emotionally… their past bound them. Evelyn’s emotional wounds were fresh and raw, while Reid’s were deep in his marrow and long lasting.

He lowered his head and pressed his forehead to hers. “And if it wasn’t for these wounds on my back, I’d claim you right this second. The asshole who did this is dead. Not just because he attacked me, but because you were put at risk
and
it delayed our mating.”

“Do you think we should be doing this then? Shouldn’t we be tracking him or something?”

That had him pulling back with a grin and she immediately missed his closeness. “Asher has that under control.”

“How do you know?” They’d been together and he hadn’t time to speak with Asher alone since they’d woken.

“Because that’s what a good Enforcer does. He protects the hell out of his Itan. That includes finding the asshole who hurt me. Then, once he’s found, I get the joy of cutting him into tiny pieces.”

Evelyn grinned and rolled her eyes. “You and your killing.”

Reid’s breath caught and he froze in place, staring at her. A vulnerability she’d never seen filled his expression. “Do you have a problem with that part of me? I can’t change who I am, but I can—”

She placed a hand on his cheek. “I like who you are.” She quirked her lips in a half-smile. “I told the women that everyone’s a little crazy, you just don’t hide yours.” Then she shook her head. “But I don’t think that’s it. Our pasts shape us, but you…” She met his gaze, unflinching as they stared at one another. Owen was nearly choked for staring at Reid, but her mate simply gave her a curious expression. His beast was nowhere in sight. It was all man. All
her
man. “You’re black and white, Reid. I see you as very Old Testament. Eye for an eye with a few extra shades of red.”

Of course, he snorted. “If that’s what ya wanna believe.”

“It’s the truth.”

“We’ll agree to disagree.”

But she knew she was right, even if no one else could see what she saw. So instead of arguing about it, she slipped away and darted down the path. “C’mon. You wanna check things out, so let’s check ’em out.”

He groaned and turned, following her with his gaze. “Can’t I get a few more kisses out of you?”

“You gonna finish?”

“I can’t.” He glared at her and it did absolutely nothing.

“Then I’m gonna have to say no. I can only deal with you being a pussy-tease for so long before I can’t promise I won’t throw you down and take what I want.”

That had him smiling, eyes holding a sensual heat she’d come to recognize. “Baby, you can throw me anywhere. Use me any way you see fit.”

And damn but she wanted to use him. All of him and all at once.

Except now wasn’t the time and the middle of the woods while someone wanted to kill Reid wasn’t the place. Dammit.

“Let’s go, sexy.” She tilted her head to the side and jerked her chin. “The clearing’s this way.” After that, she bolted. She darted toward the clearing, trusting Reid and his bears to keep them safe as she raced down the path.

Her mate followed her, a low growl preceding his rapid pursuit. She crushed dried leaves and twigs beneath her feet, not even bothering to keep quiet as she fled. Reid’s steps were just as noisy, his large boots crunching and snapping everything in his path, his grumbles accompanying every stomp. It was those low words and half-assed snarls that had her laughing, his growls that had her giggling, and the near roars that had her outright laughing.

She ducked and darted, climbing a tree and launching herself from one to another before dropping back to the ground thirty feet away and to the right of the pathway. She may have more curves than the average bear, but that never, ever stopped her from being just as fast, fierce, and stealthy—when she wanted to be—as the other bears.

She just looked better doing it.

The clearing came into sight, the break in the trees easily seen as the sunlight beckoned her forward, and she increased her speed. She pushed harder, went faster, and raced to her goal. Only to be… tackled just before she stepped into the wide swath of land. Large arms wrapped around her and legs restrained hers as they rolled. Not once did her skin scrape the grass or rocks dig into her flesh. Not once did her head bounced on the hard earth.

Because of him.

Reid may have tackled her, but he kept her safe at the same time, rolling them across the ground without allowing her to be injured until they finally came to a stop twenty feet from the tree line.

“Got you.” He hovered over her, his weight now balanced on his legs and elbows as he kept her caged. “I’ll always catch you.”

“When I want to be caught.”

“Nah, I’ll always find you. There’s nothing you—or anyone else—could do to keep you from me. The wolf knows your taste now, knows your pure scent and the sound of your voice. Above all, it knows you belong to us. You try to leave and he’ll hunt you.”

She raised her eyebrows. “That’s sweet. And creepy. You understand how others could think that’s creepy.”

Then… he laughed. The sound breaking free of his lips in a rush. It wasn’t the cocky chuckle or fake huff that he gave others. It was an honest to God laugh. And it was beautiful.

Joy filled her, the knowledge that she’d done that for him, she’d helped him break free of the constant rage and got him to laugh for real. It was a heady feeling. And sexy. Damn, it was so sexy. Her pussy responded to his nearness, his overwhelming scent and the feel of his chest against hers. Musk and man sank into her lungs, imbuing her with his flavors and she could do nothing but draw more into her lungs. More and more and more again. Her nipples pebbled, her inner-bear lumbering to her feet and nudging her to do something about her desire, her need.

Well, what the hell did the bear expect? The middle of the gathering clearing with bears on their tail and Reid injured wasn’t exactly the place to cue up Marvin Gaye and sing
Let’s Get it On
.

It told her it absolutely was the perfect place.

Horny bear.

It agreed.

Being tasted was one thing. Tasting him was another. Which seemed like the most perfect, magical idea
ever
.

Mouth watering, Evelyn couldn’t find it in herself to disagree.

She wiggled, needing to sate the growing ache between her legs, and was gratified when he hardened against her hip. She knew he was long and thick, his girth easily able to stretch and fill her exactly how she liked. He’d fill her pussy soon, but for now she’d sate her arousal with him filling her mouth.