Rise of the Lycans: Shadows And Secrets

Chapter 35 – Marked

Maeve

Maybe it was his unexpected appearance or tender affection for our pup, but I started crying. I bit my lip and muffled the sob that threatened to burst.

“You’re really here?” I felt the tears blur my vision, still in disbelief.

“I’m never leaving you,” his words were quiet, soothing.

He was never going to leave me . Another choked sob left me. It was strangled and bitter. Would he change his mind in the morning? Tell me it never happened. My shoulders sagged, and I turned my face away from him.

“I need you to leave,” the treacherous tears started to fall freely, and I couldn’t even look at him.

“Maeve,” he spoke softly. “Look at me.”

I breathed in frustration, trying to calm my racing heart. “Just go.”

“Sweetheart,” he reached for my chin and turned my face. I glared at him as my lips trembled, unable to process the tidal wave of emotions and fear that filled me.

“Please, I need a moment to collect myself and get dressed,” I sniffed.

“No, Maeve, I’m not leaving,” he shook his head. “Goddess, I’ve missed you so much. Now, tell me why you’re crying.”

The tenderness in his tone only made me cry even harder. I knew my face would get splotchy, and my nose always swelled. I couldn’t believe he was here. Maybe I had fallen asleep in the bath, and this was another one of those realistic dreams that left me missing him even more.

“This is one of those dreams, isn’t it?” I cried out. “Any minute now, it’s going to fade away, and you’ll be gone.”

“You’ve had those dreams, too?” His eyes widened with surprise.

“I saw you in the sh-shower,” I told him. The tears came much harder as my body shuddered with sobs. “Touching yourself and saying my name.”

“Because I was,” he replied. “I saw you there too. Kissed you and felt the mark still on your right cheek. I don’t know how, but I know those dreams were real.”

My brow furrowed as I gazed at him through watery eyes. “Dream realm,” I whispered, remembering what Remington had said about demons and the baby having a gift. It wasn’t a place I had imagined. It was a place where we had both traveled to and connected.

Without another word, Rex reached for my bathrobe. He didn’t even bother letting me put it on properly. He dropped it over my shoulders, careful not to let it fall into the bathwater, and scooped me up before I could protest. It was a trigger for me. His strength reminded me of my weakness... of my softness.

I tried not to feel insecure about myself, but Rex was achingly and unfairly gorgeous. I felt like a bloated whale and clung to the edges of the robe, trying to hide myself.

“Maeve, everything alright?” Kit asked, looking surprised to see me cradled in his arms.

“I saw you in the shadow,” Rex spoke, eyeing her intensely.

“This is Kit,” I managed to find my voice.

“Kit-kat,” he said with a nod.

“I was just stocking the kitchen,” she said with a smile. “Mars whipped up some of that steak mince and tatties you’ve been craving so much.”

“Thank you,” I replied, trying to understand how Rex knew her full name.

“I’ll leave you two alone… I trust you’re in good hands with your mate,” her smile widened, and I felt Rex’s hold tighten around me. “Remington will be back in the morning with Doctor Ross to check on you.

I turned my gaze back to Rex, who looked at me with a strange expression I couldn’t read. “Doctor Ross?” He questioned.

I looked to Kit, only to find she had vanished. Rex didn’t seem fazed by her sudden appearance or disappearance.

“You’ve met Kit before?” I asked and a sharp breath huffed from his throat. He moved to the sofa, sinking down with me still on his lap. I tried to wriggle away, but he held me firmly in place.

“I haven’t held you in over a year and a half,” he murmured, kissing my head. “Sit still for a moment.”

My brow furrowed. “A year and a half?” It seemed like a strange thing to say.

“I’ve been trying to find you since last Hogmanay,” he said, his hand stroking over my belly. “I’m sorry I didn’t start looking sooner. By the time we arrived here, you were already gone, and I kept having visions of Edinburgh.”

“I was in Edinburgh,” I told him. “I saw you with Brianna, Flaym, and Dori when you came out of Pendragon’s… but that was a few months ago.”

“Months?” He stilled. “Maeve, we came to Edinburgh nearly a year and a half ago. It’s been fucking hell. I’ve been trying to hunt you down but kept coming up empty-handed. Your grandparents have received only your postcards for the last sixteen months.”

“Wh-What?” I didn’t know anything about postcards.

The swirl of his lycan eyes flashed. “Where have you been hiding?”

“I was only here for two weeks before the males started acting strange and trying to claim me because they could scent an Alpha pup.”

His eyes sharpened like a blade. “Who?”

“It’s not important right now,” I sputtered. “I knew time moved differently in other realms, but I didn’t realize it was that slow in the Dark Realm… Or is it faster?”

“You were in the Dark Realm with the Demons,” he continued. “For how long?”

“I was in Edinburgh for about two months and left on New Year’s Day. I’ve spent the last six or seven weeks sleeping, eating, or reading in the Dark Realm.”

“Who’s the man with the dark eyes?” He asked, staring at me. “The one that brought me here through shadow jumping?”

“He brought you here?” I don’t know why I sounded so stunned. At this point, nothing should surprise me anymore with him. “Remington is my uncle,” I informed him. “He is my biological father’s brother.”

“What?”

“My father was a benevolent demon, and he had been friends with my shifter father who raised me.”

“You said was ?”

I explained how my father fell in love with a woman he met on the banks of Loch Lomond, how he gave up immortality to be with her, and how she turned out to be a Faerie. I told him how my shifter father found me and took me in.

“Did your uncle Remington explain how they died?” He questioned.

I shook my head. “No, but Eos, the Moon Goddess’ sister, is the Goddess of faeries, and the Fae Queen is evil. I think she’s behind it.”

He scowled. “Eos has always been jealous of her sister.”

“How are my grandparents?”

“They’re okay,” his eyes softened. “But they’ll be better once they see you. Does Alpha Hamish know you’re here?”

The front door pushed open, and Alpha Louise walked inside. “Hamish disna know, but a’h dae.”

“Alpha Louise,” Rex growled low.

She held her hands up in surrender. “A’h mean nae harm.”

“Did you know the Demon had her?” He growled and reached for the tartan blanket to ensure I was fully covered.

“Forgive me, Yer Highness, but th' demon is her Uncle, an she’s bin under mah care since before she wis born.”

“On whose authority?”

“Th’ Moon Goddess herself,” Alpha Louise said as she lowered her head.

She explained how the Moon Goddess appeared to her nearly twenty years ago and ordered her to keep me safe at all costs. The Goddess suspected her sister might realize my importance to the Fae Realm and try to take me. Loch Lomond was part of pack territory, but it held mystical energy that the Highlands Alphas of the past had protected. Alpha Louise told me that I was spending the day with her and Hamish when my parents’ plane went down, and she believed Eos was responsible because unseelie Faeries had attacked the pack that day.

I knew Loch Lomond always had mystical energy because I could feel it.

“Th’ attack wis a distraction,” she added.

“A distraction for what?” I asked softly, wondering why my parents and so many other brave warriors had to die.

“To collect ye,” she told me. “Th’ only safe place left fer ye wis wit Alpha Ares.”

“My father knows?” Rex rubbed his nose against my temple, inhaling my scent, trying to calm himself.

“He's aware o' demons an faeries, but th’ Goddess had asked me tae keep Maeve’s identity a secret. Yer father grew suspicious when Ambrose saw Maeve wit Remington at th’ supernaturals pub.”

“So, the Vampire King recognized me after all. Did Ambrose know about the pup?”

“A’h dinnae believe he did.”

The Moon Goddess was the only one with higher authority than the Alpha King. If the Goddess had asked Alpha Louise not to say anything, it would have compelled her to keep the secret, even from the Alpha King.

“The Moon Goddess appeared to you when Maeve was born, just before Lilith trapped her,” Rex added. “But Lilith is a Demon.”

“Aye. Alpha Zeus called tae inform me aboot th’ Goddess.”

“The demons are picking sides,” I recalled what Remington had told me about the warring goddesses. “Eos was behind it.”

“A’h believe, now that th’ Moon Goddess is free, a war is comin,” she told us.

“And Eos will lose,” Rex agreed.

“Ye brought a cat wit ye?” Alpha Louise seemed to finally notice Jinx in the window.

“He’s more of a guard dog,” I giggled as Jinx’s tail swished.

“Dae ye need anythin?” Her eyes wandered to the kitchen.

“No. Kit stocked it already. Thank you,” I replied, wondering how she was able to get through the protection. “My uncle said there was an enchantment around the cabin…”

“Aye, but a’h hae his permission tae check on ye.”

“She’s my mate!” Rex replied indignantly. “She’s fine.”

“A'm sure thare will be plenty o' mate matching noo that th' bonds hae bin restored. Hamish is on his wey tae th' Moon Realm tae claim his mate... Th' lassie that wis with ye last.”

“Brianna,” Rex replied.

“Brianna? Brianna and Alpha Hamish?” I gasped in surprise, happy for my friend.

Alpha Louise laughed softly and wished us goodnight before she left. The tension seemed to leave Rex the moment we were alone. He settled me on the end of the sofa, propped with pillows, before going to the kitchen to retrieve food and water.

“This looks… interesting,” he smiled, looking at the steak mince with tatties and peas.

“It was one of my favorites when I was little.”

He sat on the sofa's edge and raised a spoonful of food to my lips. He wasn’t really intending to feed me… was he?

“Open for me, Kitten,” he murmured, and my breath hitched. I opened my mouth and let him feed me.

“Mmm,” I groaned. The savory flavor exploded on my tongue, and the was tender perfection. The corner of Rex’s lips twitched as he pulled the spoon away. I watched as he filled up another spoonful and fed me.

“What else has our pup been craving?” He asked.

“Sweets, sausage, and bacon,” I quickly rattled off.

“Grandma Dori’s great-grandpup would demand nothing less,” he grinned.

Another delicious spoonful danced in my mouth, and I couldn’t help wondering why such a simple act felt so intimate. Rex leaned forward and stole a quick kiss before offering another spoonful.

“Why didn’t you tell me about the pup?” He asked, his eyes fixed on me.

The stinging realization that I had kept his pup from him nearly the entire pregnancy hit me.

“I didn’t know that lycans could only reproduce with their destined mates,” I said softly. “I know how protective your father is of the lycans, and I thought he’d take the pup away from me. Or force me back to the pack…”

“To watch me take another as my mate,” he finished in understanding. “Maeve, I didn’t want anyone else.”

“I didn’t know that,” I peered up at him. “I know how your family feels about fated mates. About offending the Moon Goddess, and I didn’t want to put you in that position. When I found out, I thought it was my fault because I violated the new moon curfew that night and let it happen.”

“We’re the first generation of lycans born in over a thousand years. Werewolves have been known to produce offspring with chosen mates, but lycans can only have pups with their fated mates,” Rex continued. “Uncle Balthazar just explained it to us when he told Lukas and Selena they’re expecting.”

He offered me water, and I gladly took it. I was warm, full, and surprisingly relaxed. My eyes met his, and I held them. Heat spread low in my belly, and an awareness shot through me. I could see… and feel his need for me.

His hand caressed the skin of my leg, and I felt the tingling sensation through me. I wasn’t sure if humans felt the same sensations as shifter mates, but what I felt was incredible. The exhilarating rush of his touch seemed to spread to all parts of my body. My skin felt more sensitive than it already was, and my nipples were so tight they ached.

The blanket fell open as his hand traveled to my inner thigh. He leaned forward for another kiss, and this time, his tongue stroked my own with eagerness.

This powerful Alpha was my mate.

He was mine.

All mine.

“Rex,” I whispered his name as my leg shifted slightly open. My body knew what he could do for me, and I was desperate for his touch. There would be more time to talk later, and right now—my body was doing the talking.

His knuckles grazed against me, and a jolt raced down my spine. His touch felt more intense because of the mate bond, and it instantly pooled wetness between my folds. Gasping, I reacted reflexively and tried to close my legs, realizing too late that I had trapped his hand against my throbbing sex.

“Goddess, Maeve,” he hissed, sounding like he was in pain. “I’m trying to maintain control here and be gentle.”

Rex had me off the sofa and in his arms before I could blink. He strode toward the bedroom and sat me gently on the bed. He pulled the bathrobe away, baring me completely to him, and I suddenly felt like a sacrifice at an altar.

“Beautiful,” he murmured.

His eyes darkened as he studied me, and his nostrils flared. I was suddenly aware of how naked and round I was, and though I couldn’t shield my body from him, my arm made an attempt to hide my breasts.

“I will spank your ass if you cover them from me,” he rasped, shedding his clothes and tossing them on the floor.

I was half tempted to cover them again, just to see if he would spank me. My lips parted as he started crawling over me. Careful not to drop his weight on me, he kissed the insides of my knees and licked his way up my thighs.

“Fuck, my mouth has watered for you since you left,” he growled.

A desperate cry ripped from me the moment his hot mouth found my aching, wet center. My whole body felt hot with need. His hands wrapped under my legs, pressing himself against me until there was no space between us. Rex continued lapping and laving as my cries met his groans.

“Ohhh,” was the only sound I could make as my head lolled from side to side.

I wanted to hold him there forever, to feel his demanding mouth bring me such mind-shattering pleasure. Goddess, his tongue was magic. My eyelids slid shut, and my head tilted back. I started rocking my hips against him, nearing the release my body craved.

He shoved two fingers inside me without warning, and his mouth suckled on that slippery, hard nub. A trembling wave of heat exploded inside me, and I saw stars.

“Oh, Kitten, you’re so sensitive,” he purred. “Delicious and sensitive.”

He continued lapping as pleasure pulsed through me. His wicked tongue didn’t stop there. It dipped inside of me, penetrating and hot. Then he flicked it back to my sensitive clit, making me twitch and cry out.

“More,” I demanded in a husky voice I didn’t recognize. I’d waited too long for him and needed to feel him deep inside.

“My greedy little Kitten,” he smirked, rolling me to my side and positioning himself half behind me and half over me. “Can you take me?” His hand caressed over my belly.

“Yes!” I moaned, too far gone to worry about anything else. All I knew was that I needed him, and I needed him now.

The smooth tip of his cock rubbed through my wet seam as he repositioned himself in the unique position that was ideal for pregnant sex. Our eyes connected, and he gave me what I hungrily needed. He slid in slowly, allowing me to adjust to each glorious inch as he rocked back and forth.

“Oh, Rex,” I groaned, feeling so full as he seated himself inside me.

“All yours,” he soothed raggedly, pulling out and pushing back in slowly. “Fuck, I’m in heaven.”

“This better not be a dream,” I moaned.

“I’m never waking up.”

Rex continued with slow strokes until we built up a steady rhythm. With possessive instinct, he placed a hand on the back of my neck, holding me as he took what was his. I saw his eyes flickering back and forth from the dark swirling eyes of his lycan to his beautiful blue. The feel of his flesh pressed against me, his touch, his scent—he was everywhere all at once—above me, on me, and inside of me.

“Mine,” he said in a low growl as he picked up the pace.

I felt my walls squeeze and flutter as they clamped down on him. Another strangled cry tore from me as ecstasy rippled through me. Rex dipped his head low, and he groaned as I felt the stretch of something swelling inside of me. I remembered the first time with him and thought I had imagined it.

“Rex,” I breathed out.

“Mine,” he snarled back, sinking his teeth into my neck.