Josh growled, and Grace winked at Michelle before she addressed Josh. “This one is Renee, she’s Jack’s mate and a witch. I think she’s going to bring her sister Kendra, who is the female Alpha of the jaguar jamboree. She’s also a witch who took on a cat so she’s eager to meet you. You’ll like her, and we can avoid all this silly boy stuff you guys do anytime another male gets near your mate.”
“What about me? I wanted to scratch your eyes out earlier when you stood near Josh.”
Josh made a grumbly sound that vibrated through her, and she stiffened when she realized the wolf inside her moved. Like, actually moved.
He carried her up some stairs as Grace followed. “It’s all right. You get used to the wolf inside. She’ll help you. But she’ll rise when I’m near. My wolf always does when you’re around.” Josh kept his voice calm and quiet, and she couldn’t help but snuggle into him.
“I think we might be able to have Josh sitting with you when they come in. You’ll be possessive, that’s how it works, but it should be fine.” Grace opened a door to a lovely guest bedroom. “There’s a bathroom through there. Akio brought your bag so you have clothes to change into. Get cleaned up. I’ll be back to check on you in a few minutes.”
She was already mainly naked as he sat her gently down while he turned the shower on before helping her out of the gown thing she’d been wearing.
His hands shook and she leaned out to take one in her own. “I’m here.”
He fell to his knees and buried his face in her lap. “Christ. You nearly weren’t. You nearly died. You don’t…I can’t…I’ve never in my life felt worse. Thank you for being alive and okay. Thank you for not being mad.”
She tipped his chin up. “Only you could manage to look gorgeous with smudges of blood all over you. Are you all right? I’m sorry, I should have protected you, it’s my job too, after all.”
He stood, pulling his clothes off and tossing them in a corner. That second consciousness inside her belly perked up as pride rushed through her. He was all hers. This beautiful, masculine, powerful male.
“In.” He pointed at the shower. Though all that sternness fell away when he put a hand at the small of her back and helped her in carefully. “I’m fine. I killed a few mages, but not all of them. But I will. There’s nowhere on this planet they can hide from me.”
“So some of them got away?”
“I’ll handle it all. So just stand there and look beautiful and let me do the work.”
“Are you mad at me?” she asked, her voice sleepy as he got her hair nice and wet. One of his arms was banded around her waist, helping her stand. Her legs were rubbery, and she kept going very hot and then very cold.
He gently soaped her hair. “Why would I be mad? I’m…I’m fucked up ten ways right now because you nearly died and I have this driving need to run with you. To grab you and run and never look back because I can’t bear the thought of actually losing you. I came close enough. People want to kill you and my wolf is really not down with that. And you have a wolf too. And my wolf finds that really, really hot.”
He shook again as he babbled, struggling to keep control. The talking helped keep the man in charge.
Her voice softened as she gave over to the way he touched her. “The bond is different now. More intense and I wasn’t sure that was possible. You’re feeling some really powerful stuff.”
He tried to remain clinical as he soaped the blood off her skin.
“I can’t believe I don’t even have open wounds.” She passed her fingertips over the pinked skin where she’d already healed so much.
“Just be glad it’s better. A few hours ago it was much worse.”
She hugged him, staying snuggled into his body even as his cock got so hard he felt he should probably apologize.
“You saved my life, Josh.”
“Cade did.”
“No, Cade turned me. You saved my life.” He realized she meant something more than just the gunshots, and tears flooded him again. She was the best thing in the world. The finest gift he’d ever been given.
“Um,” he tried to speak when she moved, slick from the soap, and her skin slid against his cock and he arched. “Sorry. You just…”
She tipped her head back. “Good to know I’ve still got it. We can take care of that, you know, before the room fills up with shifters.”
“You were shot sixteen times. I can wait to fuck you until you’ve had some time to recover. I’m a werewolf, not an animal.”
“Only you could make me laugh a sentence after you mention how many times I was shot.”
Through their link he felt her wave of dizziness, and he got her rinsed off while he held her up.
“Plenty of time for fucking when you’re recovered.” He turned the water off and helped her out, drying her off carefully, and then he assisted in getting her into soft yoga pants and a shirt.
“Come on, into bed with you, and I’ll let people know you’re ready. You’ll tell them what you saw and you’ll rest and that’s an order.”
“An order?”
“Yes. Don’t push me right now, Michelle. I’m on the edge. My wolf is not happy at all that anyone will be coming in here when you’re weak.”
“You’re here to protect me.” She said it so matter of fact that he knew she simply accepted it as fact. And that eased some of his anguish.
She continued. “Is everyone okay? I can’t believe I didn’t ask. Akio? Dave?”
“Ed, the wolf who was driving, was shot twice. He dove to knock you down as I was doing the same. But we were both too late. Akio is fine. He went off to eat because Cade ordered him to. He hadn’t left your side since we brought you in.” Thank God for his friend and their anchor. He might have lost it without Akio’s support.
He pulled the blankets back and helped her into bed before he went to the door and let the wolf just outside know Michelle was ready to talk.
Josh moved back to the bed and grabbed a chair.
“No.”
He looked up at her. “No, what, beautiful?”
“I need you to sit here with me. Please. I need…”
He understood and settled next to her on the bed. “You need to be touched. And I get it. I need to touch you so that works out just fine. Shifters, the whole lot of us, we find a great deal of comfort in touching and being touched. You’re on the mend and newly changed so you’ll need it more.”
She snuggled into his side, sucking in a breath. He sucked in his own gasp when she licked his neck.
“You taste so good. Even better now.” Her lips brushed over his skin as she spoke and sent shivers through him. “Wow, I can feel your arousal. I mean, here.” She squeezed his cock. “But through the bond too. It’s…wow. So wow.”
He smiled. “When you’re ready for it, I’m going to fuck the hell out of you. Just sayin’.”
Her arousal twined around his through the bond, and he had to put a pillow over his lap before everyone came in.
Akio entered the room first and moved right to them. He approached the side Josh was on, knowing how possessive and on edge he would be after his mate nearly died. Even with an anchor.
“Hey, little witch.” Akio kissed her forehead. “You’re looking a far sight better than you were an hour ago. Don’t fucking try to die again or I will kick your ass.” And then he settled in the chair Josh was going to sit in.
Grace came in next with a tray she handed to Josh. “Eat. There’s a mug of soup there for you, Michelle. If you feel up to it, just sip it here and there.”
Cade followed and smiled at Michelle. “There she is, my newest wolf. Welcome, Michelle. And congratulations on the bond with Josh.”