Melindas Wolves (2 page)

Melinda didn’t look at her mother. To anyone who didn’t know them, they probably looked like the closest mother and daughter in the universe. No one would suspect they had just met a few hours ago.

Joyce released her daughter and slipped away, leaving Melinda once again with all her concentration on the two men in front of her.

“Maybe we should step out back for a minute?” Keegan lifted his brows in question.

Neither man touched her. They stood close, too close, but all three of them knew the sizzle between them would turn into a full bonfire if they touched. That was how it worked with wolves. When both, or in this case all three, mates were lupine, the chemistry was explosive.

Melinda squeezed her legs together and instantly regretted it. She also wished she’d chosen an outfit that covered more of her skin for the evening. But that wasn’t the case.

She’d changed into the short pink sundress before the party. The skirt reached mid-thigh and was full enough that she would be exposed to anyone around if she spun too fast. The bodice was fitted, and she wasn’t wearing a bra.

She could get away with just about anything since she was five feet tall and barely weighed a hundred pounds. Nothing about her was ample, and that included her chest.

Her mother and grandmother were no larger. In fact she was probably the biggest of the three.

She nodded, and Trace and Keegan turned to head toward the sliding glass doors that led to the deck.

Rebecca leaned in and kissed Melinda on the cheek. She grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “I may not be lupine, but I’m smart enough to realize what’s happening.”

She winked.

Melinda had forgotten her friend stood so close to her all that time. As she stepped away to follow her future, Miles stopped her for a hug.

She watched as Griffen patted his brother Trace on the shoulder.

It was amazing she was able to get her feet to obey the command to walk, but she wove through the throng of guests and made her way out to the back deck with Trace and Keegan behind her.

The view from the deck was breathtaking. Melinda had stood there earlier in the day, taking in the mountains in the distance and the rolling hills of trees as far as she could see. Everything was so green this time of year.

“Now I see why they built the house facing the other direction,” Trace said.

“Amazing.” He followed her to the railing of the deck. The fabulous postcard effect was lost on her this time, however. She could see nothing. Her mind was too busy wrapping itself around this new turn of events.

She turned at the railing and leaned against it for support, fiddling with her hands in front of her. “This is unexpected.”

“Yes,” Keegan agreed. “Not what I thought might happen this evening.”

She smiled, watching his deep blue eyes narrow on her. A long lock of his hair came loose from the ponytail and whipped across his face. It was sexy, and she shivered at the thought of running her fingers through it.

Trace stepped closer and reached to cup her chin. His eyes closed as he held her face.

She tipped her cheek into his palm, every nerve ending in her body coming alive at the contact.

“You’re so tiny,” he commented.

“You’re so big,” she teased in response.

Both men chuckled.

“It’s powerful, beyond my expectations. I mean, they said… I just didn’t expect it to be this…consuming.” Keegan reached for her hand and lifted it to his face. He inhaled as he stroked her knuckles across his cheek.

He was right. The call to mate was intense. She’d seen her brother go through it a year ago, but nothing prepared her for this. Her nipples puckered, and she wished more than ever she’d chosen something that permitted a bra.

Trace leaned in closer, his breath hitting her ear as he whispered, “I can smell your arousal already. It’s intoxicating.”

A tight ball gripped her stomach. She needed to sit before she fell. Her knees wouldn’t hold her.

Someone wandered onto the deck from the yard. “I think Miles, Griffen, and Rebecca have a few guest rooms if y’all need one.”

She whipped her gaze to find Zachary Masters coming up the steps with a huge grin. He was the third of the Masters brothers.

“Go away, Zach,” Trace said to his younger brother without looking.

Zachary lifted both hands and scooted into the house.

Melinda glanced back at her men. “What do we do next?” She felt the flush that covered her cheeks as soon as the words came out unfiltered. “I mean…” She bit her lip and then released it. “That didn’t come out right.”

Keegan squeezed her hand. “It’s okay. I think we’re all three stunned and confused.

I don’t have the answers. We get to know each other and take it one step at a time.”

“Where do you live? What do you do? Have you two known each other long?” She sucked in a breath after that rush of questions.

“Come on.” Trace nodded toward the steps Zachary had ascended. “Let’s walk.”

He grabbed her free hand and tugged her off the deck and across the expanse of newly placed strips of grass behind the house. Keegan followed behind her, releasing her hand as they stepped away.

“Wait.” Melinda tugged her hand free of Trace and bent to remove her heels. She could barely walk as it was. She didn’t need the added difficulty of navigating the lawn on unsteady feet. “That’s better.” She left them where they lay and continued across the grass, putting some distance between the three of them and the house—at least enough space to not be overheard.

Finally, she stopped, both men halting on either side of her. She stared out at the land. “This is going to be complicated, isn’t it?”

Trace couldn’t believe this was happening. His mind raced with the possibilities.

How was this evening going to end? Whose house should they go to? How long did they need to stay at the party before they could make their escape?

Keegan stepped in front of Melinda and took her face in his hands. “It’s complicated, and it’s simple.” His face was serious. “The logistics will work themselves out. For now, we need to do whatever feels natural, get to know each other.”

Trace stepped up behind his mate. He was drawn to do so as though there was a magnetic pull between them. He set his hands on her slender waist and leaned into her back, sandwiching her with Keegan at her front.

Melinda leaned back against his chest. “Oh God. It’s overwhelming.” She had the same dark hair as Miles, though hers was long and wavy. Her skin was stunningly clear, a lighter shade than many Native Americans in the area. Her face was round like Miles, and her brown eyes danced in the same jovial manner. The similarities stopped there, however. While Miles was over six feet tall, Melinda was barely five feet.

“It is.” He stroked his hands up her arms until he reached her bare shoulders. When he flipped her hair away from her neck, he couldn’t resist leaning in to kiss her skin.

Melinda shivered beneath his touch, her body stiffening a moment later. “Oh God…” she repeated, her voice lower this time.

Trace watched as Keegan kissed her forehead, inhaling long and slow. He fidgeted as he drew back a few inches. If his cock was half as hard as Trace’s, he had to be hurting.

Melinda rolled her head forward, setting it on Keegan’s chest. “I never expected… I mean two of you…” Her voice was soft, barely audible. She faced the ground between them.

“Yeah, I guess that would be a shock for you,” Trace said.

She lifted her face and twisted it to look at Trace. “It’s not a shock for you?”

Trace shrugged. “Well, not all of it. After Griffen mated with two people, it was pretty obvious all the Masters men would do the same.”

“Why?”

“All of our first cousins, the male ones anyway, on my dad’s side also mated with another man and a woman. When it happened to Griffen, the rest of us assumed we would succumb to the same fate.”

“I’m just damn lucky to be the other guy,” Keegan said.

“You’ve been friends for a while?” she asked.

Trace brushed more of her hair back and squeezed her shoulders. Her bone structure was miniature compared to him and Keegan. “Yes, since kindergarten.”

She sucked in a breath. “That long? I’m at a severe disadvantage.” She giggled. The sound of her voice tinkling like that made his balls draw up tight.

He suddenly wondered if he might come in his pants.

“I don’t care how long you’ve been friends,” she continued. “It still has to be weird to share a woman.”

Trace didn’t say a word. He didn’t even breathe as he met Keegan’s gaze over her head. The two of them wouldn’t keep secrets from her, but divulging their sexual preferences this early in the relationship was uncomfortable. At the moment he’d rather have hairs plucked from his legs.

Luckily, she caught on fast before either he or Keegan spoke. She groaned. “Oh God. I’m such an idiot.” She wiggled out from between them and faced them from the side. “You’ve shared women before.”

Trace hated the way she crossed her arms under her breasts, closing herself off. He nodded.

She pursed her lips for a moment and then spoke again. “I’m not sure how I feel about that.”

“Why?” Keegan asked. “We aren’t with another woman now. We’re with you.”

She scrunched up her nose. It was so damn cute. “Yeah, but this is like fated. It seems odd to choose to share ordinarily. And it’s kind of unnerving to know you two have…” She waved a hand in front of her between them.

Trace tried not to laugh. She was serious. This wasn’t funny to her. “Baby, our past is just that, in the past. We can’t change it. Yes, we have shared women. We can’t deny it. And we won’t keep anything from you. But none of them were you.” He stepped closer. “None of them made me feel half of what I’m experiencing right now.”

Keegan grabbed for her hand again and snatched it from under her chest.

“Sweetheart, we would no sooner be comparing our past experiences with what we’ll have with you than you would compare us with the other men you’ve been with.

Surely you can sense that?”

She blinked. In fact, Trace thought she swallowed also. It didn’t seem she quite agreed. Something was off, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. Finally, she yanked her hand from Keegan’s grip and nodded. “Of course.” She turned her gaze toward the house and then gasped. “Shit. I have to get back.”

At that moment Trace watched his mother lean over the balcony and yell.

“Melinda, honey, I’m so sorry. We need you.”

What the hell? Why on earth would his mother of all people call his mate away from him?

Melinda started jogging toward the house.

“Hon?” Keegan asked.

“The baby,” she said over her shoulder.

Trace slapped his forehead. Right. Of course. Rebecca was about to have a baby. In fact, she looked like she was going to pop any second when he’d glanced her way in the kitchen. He hadn’t given it much thought since his mind was consumed with meeting Melinda. But he knew she was due any time.

The question was, how had Melinda known to run for the house before Trace’s mother even called for her? Was she psychic? He needed to understand her abilities better. How powerful was this mate of his?

•●•

Melinda raced into the house where her mother grabbed her hand and tugged her down the hall to the master bedroom.

Rebecca was leaning over the bed panting, her enormous belly hanging in front of her. Griffen and Miles flanked her sides, rubbing her back and smoothing their free hands up and down her arms.

Griffen’s mom, Carlie Masters, scurried around on the other side of the bed, covering the mattress with a plastic sheet to protect it and then soft blankets.

“Melinda…” Rebecca reached out a hand, angling it around Miles to reach for Melinda.

“Did anyone call the midwife?” Melinda asked as she pushed her brother out of the way and leaned in close to Rebecca. The two of them had gotten very close over the last year. Melinda could safely say Rebecca was her best friend.

“She’s on her way,” Carlie said.

Melinda turned her attention to Rebecca. “How far apart are they?”

Griffen answered for her. “Three minutes. I timed the last few.”

Melinda smiled. “Stubborn woman.”

Rebecca winced as another contraction washed through her.

“I knew she was in labor,” Miles said. “But she wouldn’t listen to me.”

“It’s okay. Doesn’t change anything. We’re moving now, and Sheila’s on her way.

No harm.” Melinda looked into her friend’s eyes. “You okay?”

Rebecca nodded, not releasing the grimace on her face. Finally, the contraction passed. “Your mates…” she whispered.

“Yeah. Crazy night, huh?”

“You should be with them.”

“I don’t think they’re going anywhere,” Melinda teased.

“I feel bad hoarding you.”

Melinda shrugged. “Stop worrying about me. Let’s get this sweet baby out.”

Truthfully, Melinda was glad for the distraction. Her entire body had been pulsing with need surrounded by Keegan and Trace. Now that she was inside the house and focused on Rebecca instead, she could gather her brain cells back and take a moment to breathe.

The house was filled with people. No matter how many of them were in attendance, they couldn’t block the scent of her mates, but at least they masked it enough to let her focus on the baby and her friend.

As long as they stayed in another part of the house…

The loud noisy party had shifted to a lower decibel since everyone had scrambled to accommodate Rebecca.

“Is she okay?” Rebecca mumbled.

Melinda knew she meant the baby. She leaned in closer, hugged Rebecca tight, and set her lips on her ear. “She’s fine.” Miles and Griffen had chosen to think of the baby as a boy—wishfully. Rebecca’s intuition had always screamed girl. And Melinda was inclined to agree.

Her visions weren’t always specific or one hundred percent accurate, but her gut was rarely wrong. This sweet baby was a little girl. She knew it.

“Where’s Mimi?” Rebecca asked, lifting her gaze to scan the room.

“I’m right here, child.” Mimi stepped into view on the other side of the bed. The woman could be almost invisible when she put her mind to it.