Lawe growled, a low, deep rumble of such intense male confusion that if it weren’t for Rachel’s pain, the other Breeds in the room would have been more than amused at the sound.
“Rule!” Lawe snapped out his brother’s name. “You’re with me.”
“Am I? I don’t know if I want to go with you, Lawe,” Rule stated from across the room. At the look of fury his brother directed his way, he sighed with weariness rather than his normal mockery. “Fine, but I think it would be in my best interests to stay here. This mating stuff is becoming contagious and I’d just as soon remain uninfected if it’s all the same to you. Unlike you, I’m still avoiding the issue and doing my damnedest to remain free.”
Lawe turned, and though Jonas couldn’t see his expression any longer, he watched Rule sigh in resignation as a grimace tightened his face. “Fine. Fine,” he groused. “But if I end up infected, I’m gonna kick your fucking ass and will do everything I can, every time I can, to make sure you’re cock blocked.”
Lawe swung back to Jonas. “I’ll contact you when I’ve found her.”
Pure Breed arrogance and a touch of male superiority filled his gaze and his voice. Jonas could have warned him then and there he was headed for trouble. But hell, he knew the other Breed wouldn’t listen.
Some things, a Breed just had to learn for himself. And the lessons Diane was getting ready to teach Lawe were those he would never forget.
As painful as those lessons might be, as certain Lawe was he had no need of them and would never bow to them, Jonas knew it would be an adventure Lawe would never want to miss.
After all, Diane was his mate. A perfect match, heart and soul, to the man he was. Could he have expected his mate to have been less of a warrior than he?
“Yeah, you do that,” Jonas said with a snort as Lawe and his brother headed for the doors.
Lawe jerked one of the wide panels open, stalked through it and didn’t look back. Rule followed more slowly and as he reached the door turned back to Rachel. “I’m certain you arranged this somehow,” he stated knowingly, his gaze narrowing on her as Jonas caught a hint of some unknown emotion, a scent he didn’t recognize. “I don’t think it was very sporting of you, Rachel. I have problems of my own you know. I didn’t need to borrow his.”
As the door closed behind him, Jonas turned back to his mate and arched his brow at her in question as she leaned against the table and smiled complacently.
The anger was gone. She was still hurting, but Diane was her sister, a sister who constantly placed herself in danger for some reason, in battles that weren’t hers, for men, women, children and creatures that would never offer the first word of thanks.
He was aware of the alphas behind him muttering, whispering and preparing to leave.
“What have you done?” he finally asked his mate, his voice low as he stared down at her in contemplation.
Rachel smiled sweetly, innocently. “Let’s just say I’ve hedged my own bets where my sister is concerned. Let’s just hope Lawe is smart enough to cash in the marker I just gave him, and he learns how to be my sister’s partner rather than her jailer.”
Ah, his little mate was far wilier than he gave her credit for, it seemed. And God knew, he gave her plenty of credit for that wily side of her nature.
“Playing games, sweetheart?” he asked in amusement, amazed as always that this perfect woman was his. That she loved him. That she was the woman God had created just for him, when his creators had told him that such a superior being would never claim him and would definitely never send such a ray of sunshine into his existence.
“And here you thought you were the master manipulator.” She gave a low, light laugh as he lowered his head to rub his cheek against hers. “Darling, you may know your Breeds, but I know my sister,” she whispered at his ear. “She’ll have him bagged and tagged before they ever return to D.C. or Sanctuary. He’ll be mated more firmly than any Breed you’ll ever meet and loving every minute of it.”
With that, she turned her head and pressed her lips to his cheek, bestowing a kiss of such warmth that each Breed in the room was suddenly longing for his own mate.
It wasn’t a longing born of lust but a longing born of the gentleness and the sudden softening they glimpsed in the Breed they had once sworn had been created with a machine for a soul. A true, flesh-based robot.
As she stepped back moments later, her gaze was filled with warmth as she glanced out at the other men. A small grin tilted her lips.
“Where has she gone, sweetheart? Holding that information back isn’t something you can do. And it’s not debatable.”
They had an understanding and he gave her the phrase that indicated it wasn’t a situation where she could deny him the information he needed.
“And you’ll tell him, of course.” She grimaced as she sighed heavily. “She’s going to take him home, Jonas. Diane’s heading to Window Rock. Right in the heart of his family, I believe.”
Yes, it was.
The past, the present and the future were coming together and Jonas knew the pain of it would affect Lawe even more than Rachel could guess.
“Pride Leader Lyons?” Her tone was formally polite, causing Callan’s brows to arch before his gaze narrowed.
Lifting a hand, he rose to his feet and indicated that his second-in-command, Kane Tyler, should follow him, then he moved to Rachel. Not that it would keep the others from hearing them speak, but her tone had warned him that facing the room with what she had to say could be uncomfortable for her.
“Rachel?” He stopped in front of them as Jonas watched his mate warily, suddenly certain she was prepared now to take his advice and to speak with Callan concerning their daughter.
Rachel lifted her chin and stared directly back at him. “I would prefer you speak to your son before I do.” She kept her tone incredibly soft. So soft, that perhaps the others couldn’t hear her after all. “The next time he frightens my child and shows the others his refusal to accept her by growling and snapping at her, I will take the matter up with his mother. At his age, he may prefer that any discussion of the problem come from you first.”
Callan’s brows lowered. “How long has this been going on?” he asked, careful to keep his tone below the anger level.
“As long as my daughter has been in Sanctuary,” she informed him. “His refusal to accept her is affecting the other children, I believe.” She quickly blinked her tears back. “This is the reason I no longer come to the main house when invited and no longer join activities with the other wives. I can’t leave my daughter alone with them, Callan. Especially if David’s in the house.”
Callan was eerily silent. A muscle ticked at the side of his jaw, and for a moment, Jonas considered pulling his mate back from his alpha. Until Callan sliced a look of disapproval at him, as though sensing Jonas’s thoughts.
“Forgive me for not seeing a problem existed, Rachel,” Callan said softly. “And I do appreciate you bringing this to me, though Merinus will be contacting you soon, I’m certain. We’ll discuss the matter with David before the three of us meet with you and your mate, if that’s acceptable?”
Jonas felt Rachel’s hand brush his. Twining his fingers with her delicate ones, he gave her the support she suddenly seemed to need as she realized the alpha of the Prides was perhaps much more understanding than she had believed.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “I’m certain we can be available whenever you need us.”
Callan glanced at Jonas once more. “Your mate is too good for you,” he stated with an amused twitch to his lips. “And far more intuitive. You should have come to me sooner, Jonas.”