Chapter 9
Vaughn
All night long, we sleep, wake up, have sex, sleep again.
The doors and windows are all locked, and the only time my guard drops is when I’m busy making this little angel come all over my cock.
The rest of the time I’m watchful. Holding her in my arms, keeping her safe.
I sleep a little, but with my ears pricked up, alert for any sound.
Lily sleeps so sweetly, her features relaxed, dark eyelashes curling on her cheeks. She trusts me.
Because she’s mine.
The knowledge swells inside me, fills my veins with power.
She’s my mate now, and nothing can change that.
Even if her father storms the place with a whole army of his criminal buddies, she’s mine. I’ve got her virginity.
It’s late morning now and she’s facing away from me, spooned in my arms, her lovely ass pressing distractingly against my cock.
Gently, I draw her hair away from her neck and expose her bare shoulder.
The mark I gave her glows in the dim light of the room.
Two sets of teeth marks, forming an ellipse.
It didn’t break her skin, but it’ll be there forever.
I hadn’t planned for it to happen. But my beast got so feral and growly yesterday, and I was struggling to hold it back.
And I knew she was mine.
Everything has happened so fast between us. Meeting, mating and falling…
As crazy as it sounds, I’m already falling for Lily. She’s everything I’ve wanted from a mate and more. She’s the one, delivered to me by a stroke of fate. After years of restlessness, my wolf has finally settled inside me.
My mark will keep her safe, too.
Prove to everyone that she’s already taken.
It won’t stop her father from seeking revenge though.
I don’t want Lily to know, but I am worried about him and his connections. The tracker wound up far, far away from here, but if I was him, I’d have someone search every location it passed through. I’m also worried about my pack and the ultimatum I gave them—
Lily’s eyelashes flutter. I hold my breath.
Her eyes open, those green irises flood with light, and everything else is forgotten. I dip my head and take possession of those soft, plump lips.
Minutes later, I’m squeezing her big, creamy tits, while my cock is sinking into her sweet, wet pussy again.
She comes with my finger on her clit, my cock buried deep inside her, and my cum flooding her womb. She’s not on heat now, but I long for the day when my seed will make her pregnant, and her soft belly will swell with my pups.
Her hand goes to the mark on her neck. “It tingled,” she says in a tone of wonder. “Will it always be like that when I.. you know…”
“Come?” I supply with a smile. After all these dirty things I’ve done to her, she’s still so shy. It’s adorable. “I dunno. You’ll have to tell me.” I squeeze her tight, thinking of the thousands more times I’ll be fucking her in the future.
She turns onto her back so she can see me better, and her expression turns thoughtful. “Is everyone going to see your mark?”
“Of course,” I reply, struggling to keep the growl out of my voice.
“And my dad—if he finds me?”
I nod. “Yup.”
“So I’m not in danger anymore?”
“I sure hope not.”
“But they might still come here… and my dad’s going to be mad—” She breaks off, worrying at her lower lip and gazing at the narrow gap between the curtains where the daylight’s flooding through.
“I’m gonna go back and show them. My dad and that asshole, Anthony.”
Anthony. It’s the first time I’ve heard that prick’s name. My wolf snarls, vowing to tear him apart. Piece by piece.
Meanwhile, alarm is pouring through me. “You’re saying you want to drive back to your dad’s house? Lily, that’s dangerous.”
“I know. I just don’t want this hanging over my head.” She reaches for my hand and squeezes it. “Our heads. I just want to get on with our lives together.”
“It doesn’t have to be,” I tell her. “I’ll always protect you.”
“But I don’t want you to live on high alert all the time. Her eyes narrow. “You think I don’t know you were keeping watch over me all night?”
I groan. She might be the most delicious vision of innocence, but she’s also darn perceptive. “There are other ways, that don’t involve putting you in danger. Like we could just send them a photo of my mark.”
“Or a little video where I tell them to get screwed.” A mischievous glint comes into her eyes.
But then her jaw sets. “No, I’m gonna tell them in person. I want to see their reactions.”
“Lily, you can’t. It could be suicide,” I say, while all the time, my wolf is swelling inside me, ready to go with her and make ground meat out of them both. And any other fucker who gets in its way.
The roar of several powerful engines cuts off my next thought.
“What’s that?” I bound out of bed, go to the window.
Eight leather-clad bikers on motorcycles are pulling up in front of the gates.
“What’s going on?” Lily slides in under my arm.
“My pack has come,” I say, with a surge of pride in my chest.
“To stay?”
“I gave them an ultimatum—either they come here, or I’m out.”
“Come and live in Perdue?”
“Yup.”
She’s quiet for a beat. “You did that for me?”
“Of course. This is your home. It’s where you belong.”
Her face lights up. “Oh, Vaughn—” She wraps her arms around me, and presses her face to my chest.
I hug her tight. Then I grab the pair of jeans I stripped off her last night and hand them to her. “Let’s go meet them.”
I saunter to the gates, keeping a tight grip on Lily’s hand. She’s practically bouncing beside me. She wants to meet the people in my life, I realize, and it’s a real good feeling.
There’s Jed, Farris, Devon, Stinger, and two couples—Onyx and Bank, and Kellie and Craig.
“What are you all doing here?” I ask casually as I unlock the padlock.
Jed—my unofficial second-in-command steps forward. He looks a little sheepish. Probably because he knows he should’ve warned me about their arrival. He’s damn right, but I’m so glad to see them, I’ll let it slide.
“We’ve come to be with you, boss. All of us.”
I scan the others. Seven pairs of eyes look back at me with sincerity and trust.
“That true?”
“Yes, boss,” Devon says. My heart lifts and I bear hug each of them, while my wolf whines and yips, overjoyed at being reunited with the pack.
“And this is my mate, Lily.” She’s standing a little behind me—to give me space, I guess.
To their credit, none of them looks surprised at how fast things have developed between us. They greet her warmly, the guys dipping their heads in a show of respect, as my animal requires.
“Bring your bikes up to the house,” I tell them. “And I’ll see you inside.”
“What’s happening?” Lily asks as she follows me to the kitchen.
“We’re just about to find out,” I tell her with a grin.
Lily flicks the kettle on and starts rooting around in the cupboards, but I stop her.
“No. That’s not how things work in my pack,” I say. “My mate does not labor—for me or anyone else.” I snatch her up and deposit her on one of the high stools, then I kiss her, long and slow. “You’re my queen. You remember that.”
“Okay,” she says, a radiant grin lighting her face.
A couple of minutes later, my leather-clad pack ambles into the kitchen, accompanied by a lot of clinking glass.
A bunch of bags full of beer and liquor bottles get deposited on the island.
I frown. “Someone told you all there was gonna be a party here?”
Jed flashes a grin. “Figured we should celebrate.”
Stinger, Bank and Craig get busy making coffee and putting the beers in the fridge.
I watch them with satisfaction. I was worried my animal would get all possessive and snarly around them, but it’s pacified by the respect they’re showing to Lily.
Besides, I’ve seen their eyes sliding to my mark, emerging from the neck of her T-shirt. There’s no way a wolf in my pack would touch a claimed female.
Once everyone has a drink, I go over to Lily, slide my arm around her shoulder. She snuggles into me right away.
Mine, my wolf growls—and I know it’ll never tire of repeating that word.
“Shall I leave you guys to it?” she says close to my ear.
I turn to her, and when her eyes lock onto mine, my heart fills with warmth and pride.
“No, you’re a part of the pack now. You deserve to hear everything.”
She makes a little sound of surprise. “I am?”
“Of course. Are you crazy?”
“A little.” She kisses me on the cheek.
Damn. I’m in danger of getting all slushy. I clear my throat. “So, what happened?” I demand.
Jed steps forward. “I passed on the ultimatum—word for word, like you told me to, boss. The elders said they need a day to think about it. Things got a little, uh, heated. And a bunch of them voted to stay, while we left.”
I’m silent while I absorb the news. I can feel Lily fidgeting beside me, desperate to know more.
“Left,” I repeat.
He nods. “We’re here to swear allegiance to you, boss.”
I nod seriously. When I told Jed to put out the ultimatum, I was ready to break away from the whole pack.
But instead, all the difficult elders, all the complainers and pains in my ass have stayed back in the territory, while my best people are here. Like I’d handpicked them myself. A brand-new pack. I feel like whooping, punching the air.
“Thank you, all of you, for trusting me,” I say solemnly, as befits my role of Alpha. “And welcome to Perdue.”
I raise my coffee mug, and we all clink cups.
“Pleasure, boss.”
“Great to be here.”
Kellie steps forward, bouncing on her toes. “Now we’ve done all the serious shit, can we get the party started already?”
I crook a questioning eyebrow at Lily. I don’t know if it’s respectful to party in her mom’s old house.
But she slides off the stool and claps her hands together. “You bet!” she exclaims. “I can’t wait to get to know you all.”
Soon, Devon’s pulled out some speakers and some ear-bleeding metal is playing, bourbon’s being splashed around and Jed is calling in a pizza order.
Lily has her arm slung around my waist, and is claiming she likes heavy metal, although I don’t believe her.
She looks real happy—eyes shining, cheeks glowing
“I think I’m going to love being part of your pack, Vaughn,” she tells me.
“See if you’re still saying that when they’re in your face twenty-four seven,” I grumble, but my heart is bounding in my chest.
If she wanted me to ditch them all and start out all new, just the two of us, I’d do it in a heartbeat. But I’m real glad she likes being around them, and I’ve got a suspicion they’ll become the loyal, supportive family she never had.