Part 3
As soon as I dried off, I wrapped myself in the robe Adam had given me and hurried downstairs. Blondie was nowhere to be seen. I walked into the kitchen and found Adam in front of the stove, flipping pancakes. On the counter beside him sat a mound of scrambled eggs and at least three pounds of bacon. Until that moment, I hadn’t realized how hungry I was.
“Better get what you want now,” he said, handing me a plate. “There won’t be much left when the others get here.”
“The others?” I asked as I opened the drawers in search of a fork. He stacked the last pancake on the stack and gestured to the drawers by the fridge. “Thanks. You don’t waste time, do you?”
“Why wait? All it’ll do is delay the inevitable.” I handed him a fork and began piling food on my plate. “Having second thoughts?”
“No, but I want all the cards on the table. You said earlier my parents wanted me to be with you. What else do I need to know?”
Adam gave me a glass of orange juice and sat down across from me at the table. “Are you sure you want to know?”
“Seems like it may be in my best interests.”
He nodded his head. “Fair enough. Eat. Get your fill and then will discuss everything. What your uncle has taken from you and what I expect.”
While I ate, Adam fielded phone calls. The blond man I’d seen before walked into the kitchen and went straight for the food. As soon as his plate was full he joined us at the table. I acknowledged his presence with a nod, he mine with a wink.
“Welcome home,” he said between bites. “I’m Sean.”
“Jenna,” I said.
“No intro necessary. Everybody knows who you are.”
“I don’t know if I should be flattered or scared.” I pushed my plate away and got up to refill my glass. “Orange juice?”
Sean nodded. “Please.” I handed him a glass and sat back down. “Man, you really did lose it, didn’t you?”
“Lose what?”
“Your memory. You and I grew up together. My dad was your dad’s best friend.”
I was stunned. I knew I had forgotten a lot of things, but how could I forget a lifelong friend? “I’m sorry. I guess there’s more missing up there than I thought.”
“It’s hard to get it back when the man in charge of your recovery is doing everything he can to keep you down.”
“He always told me I’d never get him back,” I said. “I guess after a while I believed him.”
“You trusted him,” Adam said. He put his phone on the table and glanced outside. “Logan found your car. He’s bringing it around now. Come Monday, I’ll get a truck and go have your things brought here.”
“You know that’s not necessary,” I told him. “I can just go back home in the morning and get what I need.”
His eyes went cold. “No, you stay here. Ben is going to be furious and I’m not entirely sure he won’t try to kill you on sight. I won’t take that chance.”
I rolled my eyes. If he only knew how many times I’ve had my life threatened. “Trust me, it’s an empty threat. It always is.”
“Not anymore,” Sean said. He motioned to Adam. “He’s holding all the cards and Ben knows it. You’ve got a target on your back now, Jen. You may as well get used to it.”
“Look, I didn’t trade one prison for another. I’m not living my life in hiding.”
“I didn’t say you were,” Adam said. “All I said is you aren’t going back to the house. At least not yet. Doc will be here first thing in the morning to go over everything. Let him do his job. It’s time you got everything your parents left you.”
“What’s there to go over?” My parents didn’t have a will when they died. I was a minor so everything went to my uncle. There was no life insurance. The small settlement I’d received from the accident had been used to pay for my medical expenses. “Adam, what else don’t I know?”
The door connecting the patio to the kitchen swung open. A man wearing a black leather jacket tromped inside. He nodded then put a stack of manila folders on the table in front of Adam.
“I don’t know who you’ve got in your pocket, but remind me not to ever piss you off,” the man said. Like Sean, he went right for the food and joined us at the table. “It’s all there. Enough to get him off her back for good.”
Adam flipped through a few of the folders. He stopped cold halfway through the third and ordered the two men out. Once they had closed the patio door behind them, he slid a single piece of paper to me.
“Son of bitch did it,” he growled.
I looked at the paper, but was at a loss. It was a bank statement from years before. “Adam, what am I looking at?”
“That’s Ben’s account. Look at his balances before and then after your parents died.” I did as he said, noticing the balances up to the week after my parents passed away. A thousand dollars jumped to over a hundred thousand. “I’m willing to bet if I look at Trey’s dad’s account I’ll see where that big ole chunk of change came from.”
“So he paid Ben to forget the agreement our parents made. It doesn’t surprise me.”
“No, I’m saying Steven paid him to get rid of them. I’m sure you living through it was just icing on the cake for Trey.”
“That was an accident. No body could have planned that. We never should have been out that night. It was raining and-”
“Says who? Ben? The same man who so graciously stepped into your dad’s role without ever shedding a tear for him or your mother? The one who’s been living off your money all these years?” He tossed another folder in front of me. Two pictures of a mangled car slid out. “Do you see any water on that road? What about the time? Those are police photos taken during their investigation. Looks like daylight hours to me.”
As I looked at the photos my hands began to shake. He was right. The road was dry. Drought dry. The sun was clearly shining. My dad’s truck was mangled beyond recognition, but the other vehicle involved looked like it had been in a simple fender bender. Definitely not damage one would expect when involved in an accident that took two other lives.
I pushed the photos aside and opened the folder. Inside it was the accident report. Even the officers seemed to be at a loss as to how the accident could have happened. Ultimately there was no definitive explanation.
“But why?” I didn’t want to think Ben was capable of such a thing, but I knew better. I’d seen firsthand how mean he could be.
“Power. Your dad had it, Ben wanted it. Steven gave him a way to get it.”
I pushed the folder and it’s contents back to Adam and sat back. Power seemed to be all any of them wanted. Even Adam.
“Am I safe with you? After all, you want what they wanted. That’s why I’m here, isn’t it? What happens to me when you get it? Will you toss me aside? Kill me? I mean, once you have what want, you’ll have plenty of other women lining up at your door. What’s to say you don’t already have another woman in mind?”
“You just have to trust me,” Adam said. “My goal here is to bring back the pack your dad made. Make it what it was when he ran things. Ben runs it like some enterprise and Steven runs his more like a damn cult.”
“Agreed, but that doesn’t answer my question. What about me?”
“You’re mine now,” he shrugged.
Anger boiled over. I’d been a possession for too long. First to my uncle and then to Trey. I wasn’t about to trade one owner for another again. I launched out of my chair and ran toward the front door. Adam grabbed my wrist before I could reach for the handle.
I twisted to look at him. “I’m nobody’s property. If that’s all this is, I’ll take my chances on my own.”
“That’s not what I meant,” he said, pulling me to him. I resisted, but he had more strength in his hands than I did in my entire body.
“Really? What else could those three little words possibly mean?”
Instead of answering me, he kissed me. As much as I wanted to fight him off, I couldn’t. There was hunger there between us and it seemed, for me anyway, he was the only one who could satisfy it. I relaxed against him.
His hands slipped under my robe, caressing my breasts. I dug my fingers in his hair while he licked his way down my neck. He untied the sash on my robe, leaving me completely exposed. I pressed my body closer. His fingers bit into my hips. I moaned anticipating his next move.
The doorbell rang, snapping us both back into reality. “Son of a bitch!” he yelled. He waited until I my robe was secure before he opened the door. “You know, your timing needs some work.”
“Funny, my dad always said the same thing,” a deep voice said. I heard the jingle of keys. “Car’s in the driveway. Chick might want to check her phone. It’s been blowing up since I got in.”
“Noted. Thanks, Logan. Bear and Sean are out on the patio. Should be plenty of beer in the fridge.”
Without another word, a stocky man with shaggy brown hair walked through the living room and into the kitchen. Adam shut the door and handed me my phone. As expected I had over a hundred missed calls and texts. Some from Trey. Most from Ben.
“Let the threats begin,” I sighed.
Adam took my phone and sat it on the table next to my keys. He pulled me to him and kissed my forehead. “It’s bound to get worse as soon as they find out you’re here.”
“I’m sure it will.” I pushed away from him so I could look up at him. “Are you sure you want to put yourself through all this?”
“Bring it on. The men in my pack are younger and stronger. They’ve seen what life is like under them and what it’s like under me. This isn’t just about territory, Jenna. It’s about restoring what used to be.”
“You could do that without me, Adam. Once you got rid of the ones at the top, the rest would fall in line. You know how it works.”
“Why do you think Ben’s kept you alive all these years?”
“I had assumed it was because he actually loved me in his own weird way,” I answered. “But now, I don’t know.”
“It’s because of who you are; who your dad was. The blood you’ve got in you demands more respect than you could possibly imagine. You’re as pure as they come, Jenna. Everybody knows it.”
“I don’t know where you’ve been getting your information from, but I’m no more pure than some half-breed. Mom couldn’t shift. The trait skipped her.”
“Is that what he told you?” I nodded. “Wow, and nobody ever thought to set you straight?”
“How many people do you think I’m allowed to have direct contact with? How many of those few people do you think are willing to contradict him?”
“Not a single one apparently.” He raked his hand through his hair and sat down on the couch. “Damn him. And damn Trey too. He should have told you as soon as he put that ring on your finger.”
“Told me what?” My phone rang, but I didn’t move to answer it. “Adam. Told me what?”
“Your lineage. That’s why your marriage was arranged. In our families all marriages are. It’s how the bloodline has been preserved. On both sides. Your dad was a direct descendent of one of the oldest packs in Bucharest. Your mother’s lineage goes all the back to 1500’s. I’ve got the papers upstairs in my safe if you want proof. When I said your blood was pure, I meant it.”
I sat down beside him, dumbstruck. My uncle had always told me my mom couldn’t change. The trait had skipped her and gone to me. My dad of course he’d said was a pure werewolf, but beyond that he never volunteered any other information.
“Did you not ever ask?” he asked me.
“Of course I did,” I answered defensively. “I asked all the time. I always got hit for it, too. Then he’d tell me the same thing. Mom couldn’t shift and Dad was nothing more than a werewolf who just happened to be a leader.”
My phone began to ring again. Adam glanced up at the table and then at me. “I’ll turn it off.”
“No,” he said before I could get up. “It’s time.” He checked the screen and then put the phone to his ear. I could hear my uncle’s angry voice on the other end. “When you’re done with the tantrum.” The screaming stopped. “That’s much better. I told you years ago your plan would fail. Now it has. Jenna has come home. She’s mine. I expect her inheritance to be transferred to her as soon as my lawyer contacts yours. Before you say it’s all yours, know this. When the papers arranging our marriage were signed, both my parents and hers were required to leave copies of their wills with the lawyer. I’ve seen them. In fact, I have copies of them here. I want all her things packed up as carefully as possible. I’ll send a moving truck around to pick them up first thing Monday morning. Don’t bother trying to win her back. I have no plans to let her go.”
He hung up and tossed the phone back on the table. Predictably it started to ring again. A sly smile told me it was Trey. Of course this call had to be answered.
“Hey Junior.” The smile grew. “To what do we owe the pleasure?” I could hear his voice, but I couldn’t make out what he said. “Hey, you’re the idiot that gave her up. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.” With that, he hung up.
“I think you enjoyed that a little more than you should’ve,” I said. He sat back down and pulled my legs into his lap.
“Maybe so,” he shrugged. “He’d do the same if he were in my shoes. Oh wait, he did.” His fingers traced my calves. “You know I don’t want to dominate you, don’t you?”
“No,” I answered. “You’re an Alpha. It’s in your nature.”
“True. But in a wife I want strength. I want my equal.”
I folded my legs to my chest. No body had said a word about marriage. At least not in the present tense. “I’m sure you’ll get that when the time comes.”
“It has come,” he whispered. “I’ve spent years building this up. Before the accident and after. This house. The business. The pack. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for us. For you and for me. I promised your parents I’d take care of you. I’d like to fulfill that promise.”
“Adam, I’m not ready for that. Hell, I’m not sure what I’m ready for. Everything you’ve told me here tonight-”
“I’m not saying marry me now. I know you’ve got a lot to work out. Trust me. And I won’t rush you. Just don’t shut me out.“
“Prove to me I’m more than a means to an end,” I told him. “Show me you’re more than Ben. More than Trey. Treat me like a person and not an object.”
He scooted over to me. His amber eyes looked so much softer than they had before. “Another challenge?”
I put my hand on his cheek, wanting with every fiber of my being to believe him. “Another challenge.”
“Yo! We’ve got company!” Sean said as he ran past us and out the front door. Logan and Bear were right behind him.
Adam joined them at the door and then looked back at me. “It’s Steven. Are you up for this?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I told him. I tightened my robe and went to stand beside him at the door. Bear left Adam’s side and flanked me. Logan adjusted his position, protecting our backs. Surprised, I turned to look up at Adam.
“I told you. This is ours.”
Steven’s Mercedes pulled to a stop in the driveway. All four doors swung open. As expected, both Steven and Trey got out. Two other men I didn’t recognize got out, but stayed by the vehicle.
“Get in the car, Jenna,” Steven barked. “You don’t belong here.”
“Looks to me like she does,” Bear said. He moved in closer to me. “If the shit hits the fan, get your ass in the house.”
“You can stop where you are,” Adam told them. Had I been the trespasser, his tone alone would made me tuck tail and leave. “Jenna’s made her choice and there’s not a damn thing you can do to change her mind.”
“She’s not fit to decide anything,” Steven spat back. “Damn female. More trouble than they’re worth.” He stopped cold ten feet from me. “You bitch! One bed’s not even cold yet and you jump into another?”
“Watch it, man,” Sean said. “Around here we don’t talk to a lady like that. It’s a little something we call respect. Maybe you’ve heard of it?”
Steven snorted. “Lady my ass. She’s a Goddamned bitch in heat.” He turned to Trey. “You sure can pick ‘em son. Had I known then-”
“You would’ve had her finished off?” Adam finished. Steven’s eyes widened. Obviously he thought his secret was safe. “Oh yeah, I know. Got the paper trail and everything. Wanna see?”
“Just give her back,” Trey said. He reached for me, but Bear knocked his hand away. “Back off. She’s my fiancé.”
Adam grabbed my hand and squeezed. “Was your fiancé. Was.” He stepped in front of me, and closer to Trey. “How does it feel? To see something so good slip away.”
“I said, give her back!” Trey yelled. Compared to Adam, Trey’s tone sounded more like a child throwing a fit than a future leader.
“I’m not going anywhere, Trey.” I told him. “Just get back in the car and go. Find a girl. Have babies. Have a great life.”
“I’m not leaving here without you,” he growled. “You’re mine. Bought and paid for.”
Adam dropped my hand and backhanded him. “She’s not a piece of property you bastard! She never was. Now get the hell out of my territory.”
“Who the hell do you think you are?” Trey shouted. His fists were balled up, but he made no move to use them.
Adam stepped closer to him. “Her father’s choice.”
Trey snorted. “Yeah and how much money did your dad put out for her?”
“Not a single penny,” Adam growled. Trey backed up a few steps. “My bloodline was enough.”
“Oh yeah? Didn’t know a pure generation or two made you a prize.” He looked at me and chuckled. “Guess your dad was as desperate to marry you off as your uncle was. He gave you to the first mutt he could.”
Adam backhanded him again. This time the force knocked Trey to the ground. He looked up at us through a mess of dirty blond hair. Anger burned in his pale blue eyes. One of the other men ran to him and tried to help, but he swatted them away and scrambled to his feet to face Adam. Sean tugged on my robe, urging me to step back. Adam grabbed my hand and squeezed.
I moved closed and put my free hand on his forearm, assuring him I wasn’t going anywhere. If he was willing to stand up to them on my behalf, it was only fitting that I stay and support him as best I can.
“Wrong,” a deep voice said. I looked behind me to see an older man walk through the front door. He put his hands on my shoulders and kissed the top of my head, and whispered, “Good to have you back.” He stepped in front of me. “My family is pure all the way back to the Mayflower on both sides. If memory serves, your lineage can only be traced for four generations.”
“Get in the car, Trey. We aren’t accomplishing anything here tonight,” Steven said. He turned to look at me. “This is far from over. I’ll get my money’s worth one way or another. Count on it.”
“Go ahead and try,” Adam said. “I guarantee you won’t like the results.”
“Better get what you want now,” he said, handing me a plate. “There won’t be much left when the others get here.”
“The others?” I asked as I opened the drawers in search of a fork. He stacked the last pancake on the stack and gestured to the drawers by the fridge. “Thanks. You don’t waste time, do you?”
“Why wait? All it’ll do is delay the inevitable.” I handed him a fork and began piling food on my plate. “Having second thoughts?”
“No, but I want all the cards on the table. You said earlier my parents wanted me to be with you. What else do I need to know?”
Adam gave me a glass of orange juice and sat down across from me at the table. “Are you sure you want to know?”
“Seems like it may be in my best interests.”
He nodded his head. “Fair enough. Eat. Get your fill and then will discuss everything. What your uncle has taken from you and what I expect.”
While I ate, Adam fielded phone calls. The blond man I’d seen before walked into the kitchen and went straight for the food. As soon as his plate was full he joined us at the table. I acknowledged his presence with a nod, he mine with a wink.
“Welcome home,” he said between bites. “I’m Sean.”
“Jenna,” I said.
“No intro necessary. Everybody knows who you are.”
“I don’t know if I should be flattered or scared.” I pushed my plate away and got up to refill my glass. “Orange juice?”
Sean nodded. “Please.” I handed him a glass and sat back down. “Man, you really did lose it, didn’t you?”
“Lose what?”
“Your memory. You and I grew up together. My dad was your dad’s best friend.”
I was stunned. I knew I had forgotten a lot of things, but how could I forget a lifelong friend? “I’m sorry. I guess there’s more missing up there than I thought.”
“It’s hard to get it back when the man in charge of your recovery is doing everything he can to keep you down.”
“He always told me I’d never get him back,” I said. “I guess after a while I believed him.”
“You trusted him,” Adam said. He put his phone on the table and glanced outside. “Logan found your car. He’s bringing it around now. Come Monday, I’ll get a truck and go have your things brought here.”
“You know that’s not necessary,” I told him. “I can just go back home in the morning and get what I need.”
His eyes went cold. “No, you stay here. Ben is going to be furious and I’m not entirely sure he won’t try to kill you on sight. I won’t take that chance.”
I rolled my eyes. If he only knew how many times I’ve had my life threatened. “Trust me, it’s an empty threat. It always is.”
“Not anymore,” Sean said. He motioned to Adam. “He’s holding all the cards and Ben knows it. You’ve got a target on your back now, Jen. You may as well get used to it.”
“Look, I didn’t trade one prison for another. I’m not living my life in hiding.”
“I didn’t say you were,” Adam said. “All I said is you aren’t going back to the house. At least not yet. Doc will be here first thing in the morning to go over everything. Let him do his job. It’s time you got everything your parents left you.”
“What’s there to go over?” My parents didn’t have a will when they died. I was a minor so everything went to my uncle. There was no life insurance. The small settlement I’d received from the accident had been used to pay for my medical expenses. “Adam, what else don’t I know?”
The door connecting the patio to the kitchen swung open. A man wearing a black leather jacket tromped inside. He nodded then put a stack of manila folders on the table in front of Adam.
“I don’t know who you’ve got in your pocket, but remind me not to ever piss you off,” the man said. Like Sean, he went right for the food and joined us at the table. “It’s all there. Enough to get him off her back for good.”
Adam flipped through a few of the folders. He stopped cold halfway through the third and ordered the two men out. Once they had closed the patio door behind them, he slid a single piece of paper to me.
“Son of bitch did it,” he growled.
I looked at the paper, but was at a loss. It was a bank statement from years before. “Adam, what am I looking at?”
“That’s Ben’s account. Look at his balances before and then after your parents died.” I did as he said, noticing the balances up to the week after my parents passed away. A thousand dollars jumped to over a hundred thousand. “I’m willing to bet if I look at Trey’s dad’s account I’ll see where that big ole chunk of change came from.”
“So he paid Ben to forget the agreement our parents made. It doesn’t surprise me.”
“No, I’m saying Steven paid him to get rid of them. I’m sure you living through it was just icing on the cake for Trey.”
“That was an accident. No body could have planned that. We never should have been out that night. It was raining and-”
“Says who? Ben? The same man who so graciously stepped into your dad’s role without ever shedding a tear for him or your mother? The one who’s been living off your money all these years?” He tossed another folder in front of me. Two pictures of a mangled car slid out. “Do you see any water on that road? What about the time? Those are police photos taken during their investigation. Looks like daylight hours to me.”
As I looked at the photos my hands began to shake. He was right. The road was dry. Drought dry. The sun was clearly shining. My dad’s truck was mangled beyond recognition, but the other vehicle involved looked like it had been in a simple fender bender. Definitely not damage one would expect when involved in an accident that took two other lives.
I pushed the photos aside and opened the folder. Inside it was the accident report. Even the officers seemed to be at a loss as to how the accident could have happened. Ultimately there was no definitive explanation.
“But why?” I didn’t want to think Ben was capable of such a thing, but I knew better. I’d seen firsthand how mean he could be.
“Power. Your dad had it, Ben wanted it. Steven gave him a way to get it.”
I pushed the folder and it’s contents back to Adam and sat back. Power seemed to be all any of them wanted. Even Adam.
“Am I safe with you? After all, you want what they wanted. That’s why I’m here, isn’t it? What happens to me when you get it? Will you toss me aside? Kill me? I mean, once you have what want, you’ll have plenty of other women lining up at your door. What’s to say you don’t already have another woman in mind?”
“You just have to trust me,” Adam said. “My goal here is to bring back the pack your dad made. Make it what it was when he ran things. Ben runs it like some enterprise and Steven runs his more like a damn cult.”
“Agreed, but that doesn’t answer my question. What about me?”
“You’re mine now,” he shrugged.
Anger boiled over. I’d been a possession for too long. First to my uncle and then to Trey. I wasn’t about to trade one owner for another again. I launched out of my chair and ran toward the front door. Adam grabbed my wrist before I could reach for the handle.
I twisted to look at him. “I’m nobody’s property. If that’s all this is, I’ll take my chances on my own.”
“That’s not what I meant,” he said, pulling me to him. I resisted, but he had more strength in his hands than I did in my entire body.
“Really? What else could those three little words possibly mean?”
Instead of answering me, he kissed me. As much as I wanted to fight him off, I couldn’t. There was hunger there between us and it seemed, for me anyway, he was the only one who could satisfy it. I relaxed against him.
His hands slipped under my robe, caressing my breasts. I dug my fingers in his hair while he licked his way down my neck. He untied the sash on my robe, leaving me completely exposed. I pressed my body closer. His fingers bit into my hips. I moaned anticipating his next move.
The doorbell rang, snapping us both back into reality. “Son of a bitch!” he yelled. He waited until I my robe was secure before he opened the door. “You know, your timing needs some work.”
“Funny, my dad always said the same thing,” a deep voice said. I heard the jingle of keys. “Car’s in the driveway. Chick might want to check her phone. It’s been blowing up since I got in.”
“Noted. Thanks, Logan. Bear and Sean are out on the patio. Should be plenty of beer in the fridge.”
Without another word, a stocky man with shaggy brown hair walked through the living room and into the kitchen. Adam shut the door and handed me my phone. As expected I had over a hundred missed calls and texts. Some from Trey. Most from Ben.
“Let the threats begin,” I sighed.
Adam took my phone and sat it on the table next to my keys. He pulled me to him and kissed my forehead. “It’s bound to get worse as soon as they find out you’re here.”
“I’m sure it will.” I pushed away from him so I could look up at him. “Are you sure you want to put yourself through all this?”
“Bring it on. The men in my pack are younger and stronger. They’ve seen what life is like under them and what it’s like under me. This isn’t just about territory, Jenna. It’s about restoring what used to be.”
“You could do that without me, Adam. Once you got rid of the ones at the top, the rest would fall in line. You know how it works.”
“Why do you think Ben’s kept you alive all these years?”
“I had assumed it was because he actually loved me in his own weird way,” I answered. “But now, I don’t know.”
“It’s because of who you are; who your dad was. The blood you’ve got in you demands more respect than you could possibly imagine. You’re as pure as they come, Jenna. Everybody knows it.”
“I don’t know where you’ve been getting your information from, but I’m no more pure than some half-breed. Mom couldn’t shift. The trait skipped her.”
“Is that what he told you?” I nodded. “Wow, and nobody ever thought to set you straight?”
“How many people do you think I’m allowed to have direct contact with? How many of those few people do you think are willing to contradict him?”
“Not a single one apparently.” He raked his hand through his hair and sat down on the couch. “Damn him. And damn Trey too. He should have told you as soon as he put that ring on your finger.”
“Told me what?” My phone rang, but I didn’t move to answer it. “Adam. Told me what?”
“Your lineage. That’s why your marriage was arranged. In our families all marriages are. It’s how the bloodline has been preserved. On both sides. Your dad was a direct descendent of one of the oldest packs in Bucharest. Your mother’s lineage goes all the back to 1500’s. I’ve got the papers upstairs in my safe if you want proof. When I said your blood was pure, I meant it.”
I sat down beside him, dumbstruck. My uncle had always told me my mom couldn’t change. The trait had skipped her and gone to me. My dad of course he’d said was a pure werewolf, but beyond that he never volunteered any other information.
“Did you not ever ask?” he asked me.
“Of course I did,” I answered defensively. “I asked all the time. I always got hit for it, too. Then he’d tell me the same thing. Mom couldn’t shift and Dad was nothing more than a werewolf who just happened to be a leader.”
My phone began to ring again. Adam glanced up at the table and then at me. “I’ll turn it off.”
“No,” he said before I could get up. “It’s time.” He checked the screen and then put the phone to his ear. I could hear my uncle’s angry voice on the other end. “When you’re done with the tantrum.” The screaming stopped. “That’s much better. I told you years ago your plan would fail. Now it has. Jenna has come home. She’s mine. I expect her inheritance to be transferred to her as soon as my lawyer contacts yours. Before you say it’s all yours, know this. When the papers arranging our marriage were signed, both my parents and hers were required to leave copies of their wills with the lawyer. I’ve seen them. In fact, I have copies of them here. I want all her things packed up as carefully as possible. I’ll send a moving truck around to pick them up first thing Monday morning. Don’t bother trying to win her back. I have no plans to let her go.”
He hung up and tossed the phone back on the table. Predictably it started to ring again. A sly smile told me it was Trey. Of course this call had to be answered.
“Hey Junior.” The smile grew. “To what do we owe the pleasure?” I could hear his voice, but I couldn’t make out what he said. “Hey, you’re the idiot that gave her up. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.” With that, he hung up.
“I think you enjoyed that a little more than you should’ve,” I said. He sat back down and pulled my legs into his lap.
“Maybe so,” he shrugged. “He’d do the same if he were in my shoes. Oh wait, he did.” His fingers traced my calves. “You know I don’t want to dominate you, don’t you?”
“No,” I answered. “You’re an Alpha. It’s in your nature.”
“True. But in a wife I want strength. I want my equal.”
I folded my legs to my chest. No body had said a word about marriage. At least not in the present tense. “I’m sure you’ll get that when the time comes.”
“It has come,” he whispered. “I’ve spent years building this up. Before the accident and after. This house. The business. The pack. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for us. For you and for me. I promised your parents I’d take care of you. I’d like to fulfill that promise.”
“Adam, I’m not ready for that. Hell, I’m not sure what I’m ready for. Everything you’ve told me here tonight-”
“I’m not saying marry me now. I know you’ve got a lot to work out. Trust me. And I won’t rush you. Just don’t shut me out.“
“Prove to me I’m more than a means to an end,” I told him. “Show me you’re more than Ben. More than Trey. Treat me like a person and not an object.”
He scooted over to me. His amber eyes looked so much softer than they had before. “Another challenge?”
I put my hand on his cheek, wanting with every fiber of my being to believe him. “Another challenge.”
“Yo! We’ve got company!” Sean said as he ran past us and out the front door. Logan and Bear were right behind him.
Adam joined them at the door and then looked back at me. “It’s Steven. Are you up for this?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I told him. I tightened my robe and went to stand beside him at the door. Bear left Adam’s side and flanked me. Logan adjusted his position, protecting our backs. Surprised, I turned to look up at Adam.
“I told you. This is ours.”
Steven’s Mercedes pulled to a stop in the driveway. All four doors swung open. As expected, both Steven and Trey got out. Two other men I didn’t recognize got out, but stayed by the vehicle.
“Get in the car, Jenna,” Steven barked. “You don’t belong here.”
“Looks to me like she does,” Bear said. He moved in closer to me. “If the shit hits the fan, get your ass in the house.”
“You can stop where you are,” Adam told them. Had I been the trespasser, his tone alone would made me tuck tail and leave. “Jenna’s made her choice and there’s not a damn thing you can do to change her mind.”
“She’s not fit to decide anything,” Steven spat back. “Damn female. More trouble than they’re worth.” He stopped cold ten feet from me. “You bitch! One bed’s not even cold yet and you jump into another?”
“Watch it, man,” Sean said. “Around here we don’t talk to a lady like that. It’s a little something we call respect. Maybe you’ve heard of it?”
Steven snorted. “Lady my ass. She’s a Goddamned bitch in heat.” He turned to Trey. “You sure can pick ‘em son. Had I known then-”
“You would’ve had her finished off?” Adam finished. Steven’s eyes widened. Obviously he thought his secret was safe. “Oh yeah, I know. Got the paper trail and everything. Wanna see?”
“Just give her back,” Trey said. He reached for me, but Bear knocked his hand away. “Back off. She’s my fiancé.”
Adam grabbed my hand and squeezed. “Was your fiancé. Was.” He stepped in front of me, and closer to Trey. “How does it feel? To see something so good slip away.”
“I said, give her back!” Trey yelled. Compared to Adam, Trey’s tone sounded more like a child throwing a fit than a future leader.
“I’m not going anywhere, Trey.” I told him. “Just get back in the car and go. Find a girl. Have babies. Have a great life.”
“I’m not leaving here without you,” he growled. “You’re mine. Bought and paid for.”
Adam dropped my hand and backhanded him. “She’s not a piece of property you bastard! She never was. Now get the hell out of my territory.”
“Who the hell do you think you are?” Trey shouted. His fists were balled up, but he made no move to use them.
Adam stepped closer to him. “Her father’s choice.”
Trey snorted. “Yeah and how much money did your dad put out for her?”
“Not a single penny,” Adam growled. Trey backed up a few steps. “My bloodline was enough.”
“Oh yeah? Didn’t know a pure generation or two made you a prize.” He looked at me and chuckled. “Guess your dad was as desperate to marry you off as your uncle was. He gave you to the first mutt he could.”
Adam backhanded him again. This time the force knocked Trey to the ground. He looked up at us through a mess of dirty blond hair. Anger burned in his pale blue eyes. One of the other men ran to him and tried to help, but he swatted them away and scrambled to his feet to face Adam. Sean tugged on my robe, urging me to step back. Adam grabbed my hand and squeezed.
I moved closed and put my free hand on his forearm, assuring him I wasn’t going anywhere. If he was willing to stand up to them on my behalf, it was only fitting that I stay and support him as best I can.
“Wrong,” a deep voice said. I looked behind me to see an older man walk through the front door. He put his hands on my shoulders and kissed the top of my head, and whispered, “Good to have you back.” He stepped in front of me. “My family is pure all the way back to the Mayflower on both sides. If memory serves, your lineage can only be traced for four generations.”
“Get in the car, Trey. We aren’t accomplishing anything here tonight,” Steven said. He turned to look at me. “This is far from over. I’ll get my money’s worth one way or another. Count on it.”
“Go ahead and try,” Adam said. “I guarantee you won’t like the results.”
If you have enjoyed this short of Claimed Part 3 please share some love for the author, and come back NEXT Friday for Claimed Part 4. If you Missed Claimed Part 1 Check it Out Here. If you Missed Claimed Part 2 Check it Out Here. I have asked Dawn to be a regular with Flash Fiction Shorts. We Have Numerous Parts to Share With You In Claimed. Once Claimed is Over there Are More Surprises to Follow.
Dawn Kirby lives in West TX with Jamie, her husband of 17 years and their three wonderful children Tristan, Aishlynn and Shelby. She's the author of SECRETS, DECEIT and TRIBULATIONS. All three part of the paranormal romance Serenity Series published by Twisted Core Press. Her work is also featured in several 7DS Books anthologies such as SEVEN DEADLY SINS, A MAN’S PROMISE, LINGER, among several others. Another short, DATE NIGHT was published in 13 Tales of the Paranormal by Firefly and Wisp. To find out more about Dawn's work please visit www.dawnmkirby.com.
Places to find Dawn Kirby
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