Thank fuck. I hope to hell he knows what he's talking about.
Jared produces a bottle of Spanish-labeled pain reducers. "I went out to get you some ibuprofen," he says to Amber. "And coconut oil because it's supposed to be anti-bacterial and anti-fungal."
"Not for a major wound, you idiot," Trey says and Jared punches him.
"And I have liquor, too, if you prefer that." Jared holds out a bottle of Jose Cuervo.
I shove the bottle of Cuervo away. "No liquor. Yes on the painkillers. Can you get her a glass of water?"
Amber accepts the ibuprofen. She's looking pale, which fucking kills me, so I scoop her up and climb to the head of the bed, settling with her cradled against my chest.
Jared returns with the glass of water and three ibuprofen. "Do you need anything else?"
I shake my head.
"All right, we'll leave you alone, then."
The two boys walk out. Maybe it's because my chest has been ripped up, leaving my heart standing open and unprotected, but my gratitude for their loyalty overwhelms me.
~.~
Amber
I lean back against Garrett's solid chest. "I feel... kinda weird."
"The serum that coated my teeth contains a drug that will make you a little high. It calms the female after she's been mauled."
"Is this dangerous for female wolves, too?"
He shook his head. "No. shifters have incredible healing capacities. It would be a temporary pain for a she-wolf. She'd be out of pain a few hours, healed by morning." He strokes my hair back from my face, worry etched in the lines of his face.
"I'll be fine, too."
He runs his thumb along my cheek. "You are incredibly brave. You're alpha material, even if you aren't a wolf."
I study him. "What does that mean, exactly?"
His face closes, as if he has something to hide. "Nothing. Just that you're a good mate for an alpha."
Ah. I understand now. "Except that an alpha's mate should be a wolf."
His jaw tightens. "I don't care about that."
I don't have to be psychic to know he's hiding something. Protecting me from something. Shitballs. My certainty about wanting to be marked erodes. "So it's a problem that I'm human? Of course it is," I answer my own question. "Because you won't produce shifter offspring."
"May not," he corrects. "And that's inconsequential. Me being alpha is of no matter, either," he declares.
Goose bumps stand up on my skin. My head's foggy from the drug in the serum, and I give it a shake to clear it. "Wait... you might lose your position as alpha? Because you're mated to me?"
His face hardens. "You're not just a human. You're a paranormal, with second sight. You're a perfect mate for an alpha," he repeats as if speaking directly to my would-be detractors.
My vision blurs. "I'm sorry."
"No," he says fiercely. "Not sorry. You'd better not be sorry for me, because I'm the lucky son-of-a-bitch who found his fated mate. Do you think the urge to mark happens every full moon, with any female? It doesn't. I've never felt it before I met you. So, I may have held back, but it wasn't because I was worried about losing my position as alpha or of the stigma of mating with a human, or anything like that. Do you understand me?" He cups my chin. "It was only out of my fear of hurting you, and because it wasn't fair to claim you under these circumstances."
"What circumstances?"
His face clouds. "I strong-armed you into helping me. I brought you here against your will. You hardly know me. And you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into by mating with me."
The serum has relaxed me now, taking away the agitation and sharpness of the pain. "What have I gotten myself into?" I bring a teasing lilt to my voice. "A dominant wolf who threatens to spank me when I don't follow orders?" Just saying the words reactivates my lust from earlier, and when Garrett inhales sharply, I know he's scented my arousal.
"You have a mate who's going to use your little body any and every way he pleases, anytime, anywhere," he growls in my ear. Wrapping a fist in my hair, he tugs my head back.
My pussy clenches.
"When you displease me, I will pull down your panties and spank you with my hand. I'll shove my big cock in your ass, and I won't let you come."
A shocked giggle comes out of my mouth. My body turns to liquid desire as orgasm looms close without my lady bits even being touched. He seems to know because he slides his thick fingers between my thighs, somehow finding the swollen nub of my clit through my jeans.
"I'll tie you to the bed and fuck you senseless. And when I'm finished, I'll shove a big plug in your ass and spank you, just because I feel like it."
"Y-you're crazy," I mutter, but my thighs scissor together, and an orgasm rips through me. My pelvic-floor muscles lift as my pussy contracts in a series of waves.
Garrett palms my nape. "Damn, girl, even having marked you, I don't know how to make it through the night without fucking you six ways until Sunday."
"What's holding you back?" I ask in my best bedroom voice.
"The open wounds on your shoulder." That killed the mood. "And knowing my father will be here soon."
A flash of knowing flickers. "He's here now," I say, just before a loud knock sounds on the suite door.
Chapter Ten
Garrett
"You wait here, baby." I ease her from my lap onto the bed. I doubt my dad will greet our mating with celebration, and I'll be damned if I'm going to subject Amber to his reaction.
She looks adorable, hair tousled and eyes bright with that freshly fucked sort of look. Her color has come back, thank the fates. I stamp my mouth over her full lips and back away, hardly able to tear my eyes from her. My human. My mate. I can hardly believe it.
Jared already let my father and the top three of his pack in, and they crowd the hotel suite wearing grim expressions. A fresh stab of shame over my inability to retrieve Sedona shoots through me as I step forward to shake my father's hand. He's not the hugging sort of father-he maintains his cold authority from a distance, even over his family members.
"Son." He clasps my hand. "What in the hell is going on?"
"Sedona was kidnapped by wolves while on a spring break trip to San Carlos. She's in a remote area called Monte Lobo. With your reinforcements, we plan to go break her out at first light."
"You should have called me right away."
I expected this critique, but it still makes my chest heavy. "I know. I wanted to take care of it without worrying you, but you're right, and I'm sorry."
My father gazes at me, his steely gray eyes hard, the lines on his face making him look so much older than I remembered. I realize, with a start, he would no longer win in a contest between us for alpha, not that I'd ever challenge him. My dad nods, once. "Who the hell is Amber?"
As if on cue, my little human toddles from the bedroom, dressed but looking slightly woozy. My heart lurches. I hold my arm out, and she ducks under it, nestles against my side.
"Amber Drake, sir." She extends her hand. I don't know how she knows to call him sir, but I appreciate her ability to adapt to the situation. She's just a slip of a thing, but I see her grow taller, her back straighten. She must be a formidable enemy in the courtroom.
"She's my mate." I lace my words with a touch of steel to warn my father against any insults. He may not approve, but it's done, and he'll have to get used to it.
My father's gaze travels to the fresh wound on her shoulder then rest on her face. He gives her a stern look, as if she's one of his pack members. "I told you to stay put, young lady."
"Lay off," I growl, but Amber seems unfazed.
"I know, sir."