Chapter 6
Chapter Six
TEAGUE
Anticipation is making it impossible to get any work done. I pick up my phone, then set it down. She’ll call when she gets here, I assure myself.
Macklin would tell me I’m impatient. That the Fates have a plan for everything.
And after what my actions cost him, I tried waiting.
For a thousand years I waited and followed his lead.
Stood with him and Andros as we built Greystone and became its guardians.
The first Vale and the blueprint for twenty-eight more Vales across the world.
Vales are sanctuaries, providing supernaturals with a place where we can live in the open, instead of hiding in the human world like a dirty secret.
Where shifters can be themselves in whatever form they wish, vampires can escape the tyranny of their sires, and magic is wielded without worry. All races are welcome.
Macklin took on the running and expansion of Greystone, but that left me and Andros with little to do.
I turned my attention to building successful companies.
I love the intricacies of the cutthroat business world.
Andros found his niche in the legal aspects of our operation.
And since we provide the Vale with money and jobs, it’s a win-win situation.
Or it was. Somewhere along the way, the adrenaline rush disappeared, and the victories turned hollow. One company blurred into another. I was lost, drifting, outwardly coping, but inwardly wondering if this was all there was to this endless life.
Until a month ago, when Raine Thompson came to my office and shattered my world. A witch with second sight, she told me that if I didn’t find our mate, she would be lost forever. Forever. The word was so permanent it stole my breath.
Unwilling to take the chance, I picked up the phone and called Carlotta, a high-level witch, and arranged to meet with her.
Using my blood, she crafted the spell and cast it out into the world.
No matter what my mate needed, the spell would adapt to her circumstances and entice her to accept.
It was a pure gamble. There was nothing to prevent her from declining.
Or ignoring it. For three weeks, I waited, hope dwindling with every second that passed.
Then Charli called…
Macklin comes storming into my office. “What the hell is going on? You know all new people need to be vetted before they’re accepted into the Vale. It’s an ironclad rule for a reason.” His blue eyes are glowing with anger.
Leaning back in my chair, I raise a cool eyebrow. “As I was the one who helped write that rule, I completely agree. In fact, I have someone arriving tomorrow. A new employee named Charli Ford.”
He snorts. “Already met her. Yesterday.”
I shoot to my feet. Why didn’t she call? “Where is she? You didn’t scare her off, did you?” I grab my phone and call the number she gave me, but it rings and rings. Hanging up, I lean over my desk and glare at Macklin. “Spill.”
He narrows his eyes. “I don’t know where she is right now.
Yesterday, I got a call from Victoria at Second Chances, asking me to drop by.
When I got there, your employee was in the dressing room.
Victoria thought she was a drifter, passing through on her way to the campground, because she asked for a sleeping bag. ”
Why would she need a sleeping bag?
He continues. “When I dropped it off, Victoria was on her way out but promised she’d give it to Charli in the morning. I didn’t like the thought of an unknown wandering around Greystone. So I checked hotels and the campground. They didn’t have any reservations or campers with that description.”
“Where did she stay?” I ask with a frown.
“Best guess? Her car,” Macklin says with a glare. “I searched downtown but couldn’t find it. Why would you invite her here and not set her up with a hotel room?”
It was freezing last night. My stomach drops, and I hang my head. “I didn’t know she was here. I swear.” There’s no way in hell I’d let our mate stay in a fucking car overnight. Neither would he, except I haven’t exactly told Macklin she’s our mate. “We need to find her.”
I grab my phone and head out the door, Macklin at my heels.
His phone rings, and he answers it as we’re getting in the elevator. “Macklin.” He listens for a few minutes, his expression getting darker and darker. “Thanks, Victoria. We’ve got this.”
“What? Did she see her?”
Mac explains what happened at the store when Charli came to pick up the sleeping bag. “Victoria said the word ‘witch’ triggered her. Damn it. I don’t like this. How did you find this employee?”
According to Raine, Charli isn’t aware of her heritage, but if that’s the case, why would she get upset?
Macklin’s glaring at me, but I ignore it. “Did she say where she went?” When he raises a questioning eyebrow, I snarl at him. “We can talk about the details later. I refuse to let her sleep in her car another night.” The thought makes me feral.
“She’s in a white Toyota RAV4,” he spits out. “Should we ask Andros to help?”
I shake my head. “He’s in New York negotiating a deal. I’ll take the skies, you take the streets.” I toss him my keys and head to the stairs.
Putting on a burst of speed, I hit the roof and change into the shorts I keep here for this very reason. I change into them and shift. Wings, black as night and sharpened to a point, pop out on my back, and I leap into the air.
My skin hardens the minute cold air sweeps across my body, while my eyesight automatically expands to include the most minute details in a twenty-mile radius. Circling the downtown, I note every white car in the vicinity, but none of them is an RAV4.
I widen the circle to include the greater downtown area and the park, and that’s when I spot it. Landing on a nearby roof, I grab my phone and call Mac. “She’s in the park. Back of the parking lot. Pick me up outside the bank.” I drop to the street below and fold my wings in.
He hangs up without a word, which tells me he’s really pissed. I knew he would be. And he doesn’t even know the full story. I sigh. Hopefully, he’ll forgive me.
The green Aston Martin jerks to a halt in front of me, and I motion for him to open the trunk.
There’s no way I’m meeting my mate for the first time wearing a fucking pair of shorts.
I unzip the leather duffle and pull out a pair of jeans and a white button-down, along with a pair of running shoes, and exchange them for the shorts.
I grimace. It’s not what I planned, but at least I’m not half naked.
I shut the trunk and slide into the passenger seat.
Macklin raises an eyebrow at my attire, then slams the car into gear and takes off toward the park.
When we get there, I turn toward him. “Let me handle this.” My heart is beating so fast and loud in my chest; I know he hears it and is wondering why.
He grumbles but eventually mutters his agreement.
I get out and walk slowly toward the car, where I find her sitting in the driver’s seat, wiping her face.
I curse. Crying. She’s crying. Every tear sliding down her cheeks is like a nail hammering into my conscience.
I hate the fact I wasn’t there for her when she needed me.
Not wanting to scare her, I step in front of her car and tap on the hood.
She looks up, and I literally forget to breathe.
The weight of this moment staggers me. As does the sight of her.
Tears fall from the most remarkable light green eyes I’ve ever seen.
Set in a square face with dark eyebrows arched high and a pair of the softest-looking, full lips.
I stare at the mate chosen for me and pray with everything I am that I don’t fuck this up.
Exhaling, I give her my best smile and motion for her to roll down the window. She doesn’t move. Instead, she sits there, staring back at me with a shocked expression on her face. After a minute, she shakes her head and opens the car door. Her eyes skim my features before locking onto my gaze.
Compared to my 6’3”, she’s tiny. Not just in height, but her small frame is a sliver of mine, making my protective instincts go into overdrive.
Prominent cheekbones stand out sharply against the hollows in her face as if hunger is a constant companion.
How long has she been searching for a job?
Anger rises, but I smooth my expression before she can see it.
“It’s you. I mean…” she stammers, then pulls in a shaky breath. “Sorry. I don’t know why I said that. Charli Ford.”
It is me. “Hello, Charli. I’ve been waiting for you.” For a long damn time. “I’m Teague.”
Taking a deep breath, I hold out my hand, and after a long moment of consideration, she slowly places her small one in mine.
As our palms connect, the most intense feeling roars through me, until all I want to do is sweep her off her feet and take to the skies.
Any lingering doubt is gone. Charli’s mine. My mate.