Fury shrugged off Tiger’s assessment. “That’s not his call to make since he works for us and we give the orders.” He stared at Wrath. “You should find out how deep her feelings run for you. Justice and I both have mates and we understand how important they are to our happiness. He’ll support me on this issue. Do you love her?”
“She is all I think about,” Wrath confessed. “I’ve never been happier than when I’m with her.”
“Sounds like love to me.” Fury chuckled. “Stop wasting time with us and go call her. Find out if she loves you.”
Wrath hesitated, staring at the other male. “What if she doesn’t return my feelings?”
“It’s her choice and her heart. You can’t be mates unless the love and need to be inseparable flows both ways. It’s what makes the mating bond alive. Just don’t be surprised if she asks for time to figure out if she is willing to give up her life as she knows it to be with you. They are different from us and I’ve heard their males aren’t as intense as we are. She may not take you seriously due to how some human males don’t understand the true meaning of loyalty and commitment for life. It’s your duty to tell her how we are, that it’s for life, but you aren’t allowed to share classified information about Species until after she is your mate.”
“He means use condoms to prevent her from becoming pregnant and don’t tell her there’s a possibility of it until she’s really yours. I’d wait until you live at NSO before you do that. We can’t allow the humans to know we can have children. It’s too dangerous and you getting her pregnant while living with the team would reveal our secret.”
Wrath understood the importance of protecting his people and their future. “She is on the birth-control shot.”
“Good. Make sure she keeps taking it. They assume we can’t get them with a baby and might decide she no longer has to take it.” Tiger spun on his heel. “I do have calls to make. Good luck.”
Fury nodded toward Wrath. “Call her.” He stepped into his office and closed the door.
Wrath hesitated and walked outside to find privacy under a shade tree before he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number on the note Lauren had left him. His stomach twisted from the uncertainty of what she would say or how she would react. They hadn’t started out on good terms when he’d taken her from that warehouse but emotionally they’d come a long way in such a small amount of time. He was willing to risk anything for her, even the pain of rejection.
* * * * *
The phone woke Lauren and she lunged for it. “Hello?”
“Lauren.”
Her heart instantly squeezed at hearing that deep, wonderful voice. “Wrath.”
“The briefing took longer than expected and then I was asked to be present while Bill was interrogated. I returned to the cottage to see you but was informed you’d been escorted to your friend’s home.” He paused. “I wanted to see you and was deeply disappointed that you were gone.”
“I wanted to see you too but they didn’t exactly give me a choice.” She sat up and clutched the phone tighter, fully alert. “You got my note.”
“I have it right here.”
She only hesitated for a second before blurting out what she really wanted to say. “I miss you already. I know I shouldn’t say that, it probably makes me seem kind of clingy but I just wish I was there with you.”
“I miss you too and wish you were in front of me.” He growled.
Her body instantly responded to that sexy sound. “Don’t do that. It makes me miss you more and I’m remembering the night we spent together and how you would make that exact sound when we were making love.”
He growled again and she closed her eyes, listening to him breathing, and hated holding the phone instead of him.
“I want to touch you so badly.” It stunned her that those words had come from her but she didn’t regret them. It was the truth.
“I will be returning to the task force headquarters tonight.” He paused. “Would you stay there with me? It’s too dangerous for me to stay with you since your place isn’t secure. I have to stay where I’ve been ordered to live—at headquarters. I know my room is small. My bed isn’t as big as yours and you have a pet.” He growled again. “It sounds as if I’m trying to talk you out of staying with me but that’s not the case. I’m just thinking of all the reasons you can use to say no but I’m hopeful you won’t. I want to sleep with you in my arms.”
“I’ll pack a bag.” Lauren grinned, opened her eyes, and excitement gripped her. “I’ll make sure Tiger’s food dispenser is full and I’ll ask Amanda to check on him. I’ll even put out extra for him and fill the bathtub so he’s got plenty of water. Not that he really needs it since he roams outside a lot of the time and probably has his own ways of getting it. I don’t have a job anymore so no worries about not going to work tomorrow.” She laughed. “Is it just for tonight or should I pack for a few days? Where do I go to meet you? I’ll drive there if they’ve dropped off my car. Just give me a place and a time. I’ll be there.”
“I’ll pick you up. Pack a lot of clothes. Expect me between seven and eight.”
“I’ll be ready!”
“I will be there as soon as I am able, Lauren. I can’t wait to see you.”
“I can’t either. Hurry up. I’ll be ready! Goodbye, Wrath.”
“It is never goodbye between us, Lauren. I’ll see you soon.” He growled again and hung up.
“Yes,” she laughed, hung up, and dialed. Wrath wanted to see her, spend time with her and she needed to pack. First though, she needed to call Amanda.
“Hello?” The groggy voice assured her that her friend was still sleeping.
“Sorry I woke you up. He called me! He’s coming tonight to pick me up and I’m going to spend at least a few days with him. Did you hear from Flame yet?”
“No.” Amanda sighed. “But I’m happy for you. Run with scissors, Lauren. If there’s ever a time to take a stupid and crazy chance where you know you could get hurt, well, he’s the one.”
“Thank you. I’m sure Flame will call you soon.” She glanced at the clock. “He’s probably still at work. It’s only four o’clock. Most people get off work around five, right? You’re a wonderful person and he’d be stupid not to realize that. He seemed pretty smart to me in the little amount of time I got to spend with him.”
“I hope so. He did say he was sure I could make him roar.”
“Roar?”
“He’s part lion or something. He purred at me a few times while we were rubbing up against each other on the dance floor. It was the hottest thing. I swear it made me wet.”
Lauren chuckled. “TMI, Amanda. I don’t need to know that.”
“We’re best friends so there’s no such thing. Give it up, besty. Does Wrath purr?”
“He’s canine. He growls and snarls.” She bit her lip. “His cock swells at the end of sex and he’s locked inside me until it goes down. He snuggles with me afterward. It’s wonderful but that information stays between us.”
“No! Seriously? Wow. What did that feel like? The swelling?”
“Amazing.”
“I wonder if Flame swells. I can’t wait to find out. Of course now I’m a little frightened. He is seriously hung. I couldn’t miss that when we were pressed together and I noticed it was ‘ouchie’ sized. I can’t imagine it if he swells even bigger. I might take on more than I can chew.” She chuckled. “Or suck. You know what I mean?”
“Way too much info.”
“What about Mr. Hunk? Anything to write home about in that department?”
“He’s more than a letter. He’s worth an entire book.”
Amanda snorted. “Maybe it’s a New Species thing. Good thing they weren’t mixed with horses. That would totally be scary, right?”
“No shit.” Lauren scooted off her bed and dropped to her knees to dig one-handed under her bed for her suitcase. “I need to pack. I’m taking my cell if it’s in my car—hopefully they’ve brought it back here by now—but if not, Wrath probably has a phone I can use. I’ll call you in the next few days.”