Stealing Their Harley, page 9
“Rico,” Kacen starts, and I stiffen in his lap, worried he’ll break the sweet moment. “Thank you.”
The only one whose shock rivals my own is Rico. “What for?”
“For loving her and caring for her,” Kacen answers softly. “For being there for her after her father left. For being her friend. It’ll take a lot of time for the three of us, especially me as an Alpha, to get used to your presence, but we will do it for her. She clearly loves you like family and that makes you family to us as well.”
“I appreciate that, man,” Rico replies after a few beats. “And I’ll keep your secret for you. You guys don’t have to worry about me telling anyone what or who you are. I assume that’s a big deal, humans knowing about your… erm… kind.”
“It is,” I answer for them. “No one else can know, ever.”
“Noted.” He nods. “Okay, enough with the heavy stuff for now. Do you guys have alcohol? I could use a drink.”
Alekai laughs loudly. “I think we’ll get along just fine, bro. Come with me. I’ll show you what we have.”
“You’re not going to turn into a wolf or some shit, are you?” Rico asks, slowly getting to his feet. “I’m cool with it, but just warn a guy next time.”
I fall into a fit of giggles and turn to hide my face in Kacen’s neck. “Kacen seems to be the one who likes to go all wolfman on me. I’d keep your eyes out for a silvery white wolf if I was you.”
“Silvery white?” Rico tilts his head and studies Kacen. “Does it have to do with your hair color then?”
Kacen shakes his head. “Only sometimes. Pure white wolves like mine are rare. It’s part of my family’s bloodline. Alekai is brown and black with a white stomach and legs. Dawson is black with a tint of dark brown to him.”
“Good to know,” Rico mutters, following Alekai out of the dining room and into the kitchen.
I rest back into Kacen and sigh with relief. “Thank you for accepting him. It means a lot to me.”
“You’ve accepted us. It’s only fair we accept your family as well.” Kacen kisses the top of my head. “Just don’t be surprised if we have a bit of issue with jealousy when it comes to him. He’s a single, straight man and you’re the most beautiful woman we’ve ever seen. He can’t be blind to your beauty. It’ll be difficult to accept that he only sees you as a friend until we can see it for ourselves.”
“You guys are cavemen, you know that, right?”
Kacen growls, picking me up by the hips and setting me on the table. He stands and pushes his way between my legs, using the hands on my hips to pull me against him. “No, baby, we’re wolves.”
He doesn’t let me answer him. Instead he seals his lips over mine and I forget where I am.
Chapter 11
“It’s been two weeks, Rico,” I argue, stamping my foot in emphasis. There is only so much a girl can take. “I’m going stir crazy here. You got in undetected. Can’t you get us both out? Just for a little while. I need to see the sky and feel the breeze on my skin. Just for twenty minutes. Is that so much to ask?”
“I know, sweetie. I know you need out, but they locked the basement entrance shut. That’s the way I got in. I know I’m awesome but I’m not a magician. I can’t pull the security code to the keypad out of my ass.” He gives me a sympathetic smile and pats my shoulder. “If I could let you out for a run, I would. I know how much you need it. It’s not going to happen, though. Your guys aren’t going to risk your safety so you can go for a jog.”
I stamp my foot and drop back down on the couch, slouching in misery. It’s been two weeks since Rico showed up out of nowhere. When the guys tried to pressure him into returning home, he adamantly refused and insisted on staying. The guys protested at first, but one look from me promising hell if they sent him away and they begrudgingly agreed to let him have his way.
Since then, our days have taken on a new normal. Alekai makes breakfast, and Rico cleans up while I spend a little alone time with the guys. We watch movies, we chat, we learn more and more about each other every day.
Even though I treasure each and every moment I have to learn more about my mates, we stay inside this godforsaken house every damned day and it’s driving me insane. Occasionally, the guys leave one or two at a time to check up on things with their pack, but they refuse to allow me to leave the house. Being cooped up for so long is absolutely killing me. I’m going crazy and they won’t survive until my father comes back with my mother if I lose my shit.
Today was the first time all three of my guys left together. I guess there is some big pack meeting all three had to be present for. They’ve been gone for hours and as much as I want to tear them to shreds for keeping me locked up, I miss the hell out of them.
“Oh my god! That pout you have on your face is killing me,” Rico huffs out and stands back up, holding out a hand to me. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s go search the house for that code. If we don’t find it, at least we can kill some time looking for it before the others return from the dog pound.”
“Rico! I can’t believe you called their packhouse a dog pound.” I giggle at the memory on the guys’ expressions when those exact words had left Rico’s mouth yesterday when they were arguing.
“Well, what was I supposed to do? Kacen was being a shit about losing yesterday when we played Call of Duty. He may be a supernatural alpha but he’s shit with technology, gaming, and strategy. Hell, even Malcolm, the twelve-year-old punk from Burbank, outmatched him in both fighting skill and shooting ability.” Rico turns and points to a new stack of wood sitting next to the fireplace, waiting to be burned. “Kacen broke a fucking chair with his bare hands when that kid beat him. Luckily, I was able to mute his headset before that colorful mouth of his could do permanent damage to a budding adolescent’s growth!”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. I’ve heard you say much worse to that same adolescent. Besides, it’s not like he bullied him or anything. He just demanded a rematch in a tone that would make even the strongest of men grovel at his feet.” I twirl my hair around my finger absently, remembering the way Kacen’s high handed attitude turned me on. “It was kinda sexy actually.”
“Ugh. Gross. Keep those kinds of thoughts out of my head and off your face. I swear I can almost see drool forming at the corners of your mouth whenever you talk about one of them.” Rico mimics wiping if off with the corner of his sleeve.
I swat his hand away, laughing. “Ass.”
Giggling like two school kids getting ready to cause mischief, we leave the room and go about searching the house for a clue that would tell us the secret code to get out.
Having grown tired after an exhaustive search of the house that yielded nothing but dust balls, an attic full of old attire, and discarded old porn magazines, we gave up and raided the kitchen. An entire carton of ice cream later and Rico and I retired to the living room to watch a movie. The credits were just beginning to roll when the sound of the front door opening draws our attention. I immediately roll off the couch and rush down the hall. Dawson is the first one through the door and I launch myself at him without warning, jumping into his arms and wrapping my legs around his waist. The momentum pushes us into the wall, knocking a few of the pictures down, but I couldn’t care less. I lock my lips with his in a kiss sure to set the house on fire. He meets my fervor with his own, gripping my ass with his strong hands.
“Christ, that’s hot,” Alekai murmurs, coming to stand next to Dawson. His eyes are lit up from the inside, the telltale glimmer of arousal sparking within their depths.
I pull my upper body away from Dawson’s torso and turn toward Alekai, grabbing his shirt and pulling him into me. While Dawson continues to drop hot kisses on my neck, I give Alekai a proper welcome as my lips slam down on his. His hand comes up to cup my breast over my shirt and I arch my back, unable to keep my lower body from pressing further into Dawson. I can feel his hardness against my core and I can’t help but rock against him, groaning at the friction it creates.
Dawson grunts and drops his head against my shoulder. “You’re going to be the death of me, love.”
With serious effort, I manage to pull my lips away from Alekai, panting and shaking. “I missed you guys.”
“Just them?” Kacen asks from the doorway. He arches a challenging eyebrow and I don’t hesitate to meet it head on.
I wiggle out of Dawson’s hold, earning another grunt, and shuffle over to Kacen. He’s always so dominant and passionate, but when I lift onto my tiptoes and rest my lips against his, the kiss is soft and sweet. I sigh and lean into him, unbelievably blissed out.
“Do you have to do that shit where anyone could walk in?” Leave it to Rico to break up an intimate moment between me and my guys.
He means well, I know he does. He’s still not sold on the whole mate thing and he wants me to go slow with them. He told me he’ll likely kick someone’s ass if sex is ever introduced into the relationship. It didn’t help when I explained that’s how the mate bond is completed. Since then, he’s done his best to break up any sexy time I have with my guys. You would think with him being such a player, even if he never admits it, he wouldn’t be so uptight about the idea of me having sex. I mean, he lost his virginity at fourteen and has been going strong with the ladies ever since. I even buy him condoms and leave them in his room all the time. I don’t know why he gets so mad when I do that. After all, how am I supposed to know you shouldn’t buy condoms that say extra small on them and leave them out for his next floozy to find.
With my hands resting on my hips, I spin on Rico, ready to kick his ass. Except I never get the chance. A loud pop sounds, and I scream as a searing pain races along my left side. I turn toward Kacen and watch in horror as blood begins to spread along his abdomen, soaking his lower shirt within seconds. I scream again as his body sways, and then he drops to the ground, unmoving. Glass shatters all around us and strange men begin to pour into the house through the broken windows and open front door. Within seconds, the foyer is filled with skin and fur and all hell breaks loose. “Get down to the basement, now!” Alekai pushes me in the direction of the basement door. “The code to the lock is in the chest to the right of the door.”
I watch in horror as he and Dawson shift into their wolf forms and start fighting the men and wolves descending upon the house. Rico joins in the fight, surprisingly holding his own really well. Somehow, he managed to grab a poker from the fireplace and is using it like you would a baseball bat. Rather than following Alekai’s orders, I rush to the kitchen and search the cabinets until I find a cast iron skillet. I’ve seen Tangled enough times to know it’s a decent weapon.
As I test the weight of it in my hands, a brown wolf rushes through the kitchen doorway and charges toward me. I plant my feet and swing the skillet with all my strength. With just the one hit, I manage to knock the wolf out cold. No wonder Rapunzel used one of these things. It’s better than any of my other options.
I lay out two more wolves as I make my way back down the hall toward where I hear my guys and Rico fighting against the remaining intruders. A part of me just wants to run and hide but my true fear is not in facing our enemies. It’s going back into the foyer and finding Kacen lifeless on the ground. I check my side and find it’s a pretty bad graze, but it’s nothing that a couple of stitches won’t take care of. I can only hope the same can be said about Kacen. I’ve never asked my guys about a wolf shifter’s healing ability. I’m hoping most of the stories have it correct and it takes more than a bullet to truly injure an alpha.
I ready the pan in my hand. Just a few more feet and a turn around the last corner and I will be back in the fray. I surge forward, confident I can help, when I’m pulled up short by a hand clamping over my mouth from behind me. I try to scream and struggle but something sweet smelling invades my senses and the room starts to dim around me. Within seconds, my eyes droop closed and the blackness reaches up to wrap me in its cold embrace.
As I wake up, I know immediately something is off. My head feels like it’s full of cotton. When I try to use my hands to rub my heavy eyes, the sound of chains rattling reaches my ears. It startles me and I pop my eyes open. It takes several hard blinks before I can focus enough to take in my surroundings.
The entire room I’m in is pitch black, but I feel the smooth, cool concrete below me and I can make out steel bolts screwed into the ground. Chains are attached to the bolts on one end and my wrists on the other end.
Panic fills me and I yank my arms down as hard as I can with no luck. The chains don’t budge.
“Harley, sweetheart!” The familiar voice startles me and I yelp in surprise. “I’m so glad you’re awake. I was so worried.”
My eyes scan the dark room until I make out a figure in the corner. It takes a few seconds to focus my still blurry vision. When I finally do, I know she’s real and I’m not imagining things. She’s chained to the wall opposite me, but she’s alive and she appears to be okay.
“Mom!” I pull harder at the chains, desperate to get to her. They don’t have much give, though, and I only manage to move forward a few feet. Tears stream down my face. Tears of frustration, but also of relief. “I didn’t know if you were alive or dead. I was so worried about you.”
“It was the same for me, honey.” She sniffles and my heart breaks. She’s a mess. Her clothing is too large for her small frame and her face and arms are coated with grime. It’s been a while since she’s seen a shower. But at least she’s alive and seems no worse for wear. “I didn’t know what happened to you. From what I’ve heard through the thin walls, they brought me here because of something your father did. I haven’t been able to figure out what it is, though.”
“Are you okay?” I purposefully dodge the dad subject. Now isn’t the time for me to be spilling his secrets. Yet. “Did they hurt you?”
“I’m fine for the most part,” she assures me. “My wrists and ankles have seen better days, but they haven’t hurt me. Are you all right?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I pause for a few moments and rethink my decision to remain quiet. I’m unsure if I should tell her the truth or wait it out. I’ve never been one to keep things from my mother and because of our situation, I feel like she deserves to understand what’s happening. I only hope the guys don’t hate me for telling her the truth. After all, technically, it’s my father’s secret I’m giving away. “Mom, there’s a lot of things I need to explain to you. It’s going to sound insane, but I need you to trust me. Can you do that?”
She doesn’t answer for several long seconds, but she finally nods. “I trust you, honey. What’s going on?”
It takes me a while to explain everything to her. I start from the beginning, with the day Alekai took me. I work my way through the conversation I had with my dad and how vague he was. Then, after a few deep breaths, I dive deeper and tell her about the guys.
“The guys who were protecting me are different, Mom,” I start our hesitantly. “At first, I couldn’t understand why I kept noticing strange things about them. Their eyes would change color, they moved too fast for a normal human. They were just… different.”
“What are you trying to say, Harley?” My mom’s voice shakes, and I hear her chains rattle.
Another deep breath. “Mom, they’re wolves. Well, wolf shifters to be more technical. They’re like werewolves, basically.”
“W-wolves?” she sputters but doesn’t say anything else.
I fully expect her to call me insane, but I do my best to convince her I’m telling the truth. “I know it’s hard to believe. I had a hard time believing it myself, but I watched Dawson shift into a wolf with my own eyes. Then I saw Kacen do it and then Alekai. It’s the most unbelievable thing I’ve ever seen, but the thing is, I did see it.”
She’s silent aside from her heavy breathing and I start to worry. If we make it out of our situation, she may have me committed. “There’s more, Mom.”
“Honey—” she starts, but I interrupt her.
“I belong to them,” I tell her quickly. She gasps and I cringe. I didn’t mean for it to sound like that and I try to back track. “I mean, wolves have mates and sometimes more than one wolf has the same mate. I’m their mate.”
“You’re mated to three wolves?” Her tone isn’t as disbelieving as I expected it to be. It’s more like she’s looking for confirmation.
“Yeah.” I grin softly, thinking about my guys, then frown when I realize they must be in a frenzy over me right now. I refuse to think Kacen is truly hurt. He can’t be. I won’t survive that. He means too much to me now for me to lose him so soon.
A major fact occurs to me and I groan when I realize I forgot to tell her. “There’s one other thing, Mom. Please, don’t freak out on me, okay?”
She leans her head back against the concrete and closes her eyes for a brief moment. “No promises,” she grumbles.
I grin. I missed her so much. “Dad’s a wolf, too.”
Her gasp fills the silence of the room. “He’s a wolf?”
“It’s the whole reason we are here, actually.” I go on to explain everything with Dad and why he left us and why he’d been hiding. “He may have made some big mistakes, but the big doofus did it all because he loves us. I have to admit that I’m not as angry with him as I was, knowing what I know now.”
“He’s a wolf?” She asks again, her tone more panicked this time. “He’s a wolf. Oh my god. That explains so much.”
I open my mouth to try and calm her, but a sudden chill racks my body and I know it’s not a good sign. I groan when the fever that I’d managed to keep mostly at bay the last two weeks returns with a vengeance.
“Harley? What’s wrong?” Her chains clank as she tries to get closer to me.
I wave her off. I don’t want her hurting herself trying to help me. It’s futile anyway with the chains. “I’ve been fighting some bug lately. I don’t know what it is, but it comes and goes.”
She stills. “Is it a high fever with chills and body aches?”
