Chapter Fifteen

Stacey placed her hand on the doorknob of Patrick’s office. How was she going to tell him? Should she tell him? The thought of turning and running as fast as she could did cross her mind, but the door opened before she could do anything.

Max stepped out. “Ah, Stacey. I guess this means my mate made it through her meeting with Sonora without causing trouble?”

“Um, yes.” She glanced in the office to see Patrick and felt her heart flutter. They were going to have a child together. “She went to meet her mother and said she’d call when she was done.”

“Thanks.” He held the door for her so she had to enter or raise too many questions.

She felt her nerves tightening as the door closed behind her.

“How’s my girl?”

“Oh, fine.” She brushed her hair behind one ear.

“What’s wrong?” He stopped what he was doing and looked up at her.

“Wha-what makes you think there is something wrong?” Was she that easy to read?

“I’m your mate. That thing you did with your hair? You only do it when you’re nervous about something. What’s going on?”

“Nothing bad. I got to learn beside Alicia.” She slipped into the large leather chair. “Sonora made some of the things I couldn’t quite grasp easy to learn.”

“She taught you two everything in one day?”

“Oh, no. We’re going to see her for several hours every day for the next week or so. She said Alicia was a quick learner.”

“And you?”

She shrugged.

“You okay?” He came around the desk and took her hands in his. “You’ve seemed a little off the last few days.”

“Yeah, well this wedding has me on edge.”

“No, it’s something else.” He pulled her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her. “You have this glow about you.”

“I do?” She leaned back to look at him. “I do have something to tell you.”

“Okay.”

She stepped away from him.

“Stacey, you’re scaring me.”

“It’s nothing bad. In fact any other time I’m quite sure you’d be the happiest man alive.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Alicia noticed a new smell on me.”

“And?”

“I’m pregnant.”

“What?” he stepped up to her and grabbed her shoulders. “You’re pregnant?”

“Yes.” She fought back the tears. Stacey had never seen Patrick’s anger so didn’t know how to prepare for it.

“A baby? Our baby?” He looked at her with awe. “We made a person?”

“I don’t want Max to be mad.”

“Mad?” Patrick looked confused. “Why would he… Oh,. you’re worried about how he’ll take the fact that you got pregnant before Alicia? There’s no reason to worry. Max knew when he mated with Alicia it would be harder for her to get pregnant because she’s human, well, was human.”

“But my father told me that the alpha is supposed to have children first.”

“Which is a little old fashioned. That was a show of strength, but Max isn’t going to excommunicate us because you got pregnant first. This will actually give him a chance to show how he wants to change things.” Patrick wrapped his arms around her. “But this could change the plan we have in play.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I don’t want you and our baby in harm’s way.”

“We won’t be in harm’s way.” She leaned back to look into Patrick’s eyes. “I trust Max to keep us safe. His mate will be with me.”

“I know, but there is a baby involved now.”

“Whatever you decide.”

Patrick remained quiet at her comment. “If you had the choice would you still go through with it?”

“Me?” Her eyes widened.

“Yes, if our roles were reversed and I was the one going to be in harm’s way how would you feel?”

“Are you pregnant too?” A slight smiled filled her lips.

“Just starting to show.” He pantomimed a small swell in his belly, which made Stacey laugh.

“I would worry about you and want to be by your side the whole time, but I would trust the plan Max and Alicia have put into motion. Everything is set up so he attacks during the reception where we have our pack there to back us up. I, or you, would be safe and if he tried anything I would rip his throat out.”

“I love that confidence.” Patrick gave her a heart-melting smile. “If you feel that strongly about it I will tell Max we’re still on.”

“You don’t have to tell him I’m pregnant.”

“If she sensed your pregnancy, I’m quite sure Alicia already told him. She’d be too excited at her ability not to.”

“I didn’t think about that.” Stacey played with her hair for a moment before she realized what she was doing and stopped. “Plus I don’t think there are any secrets between them.”

“Ha, they’re not perfect, but I understand what you’re saying. After she learned the truth about werewolves I’m sure there is little they’re afraid to talk about.” He took her hand and pulled her close again. “But until we get past this wedding thing I won’t let you out of my sight.”

***

Alicia blinked. Her mom was talking about something, but her mind wasn’t paying attention.

“Alicia!”

“Sorry, Mom.”

“I know this is a lot, but you need to focus.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Today we are going to get the pictures taken for the announcement. They’ll go into the paper two days before the wedding.”

“Two days?” Alicia frowned. “Can’t you make it the day before?”

“And run the risk that they don’t make it due to someone dropping the ball? No. I need to be sure we get this done now so I can make sure it hits the paper and the internet. Trust me, this is as close as I can do it.”

She led the ladies into the waiting area of the photographer. Alicia wondered how her mom felt when Max gave her a list of people to use. He always wanted to help out the pack.

“So what do you think of the photographer? I understand Max recommended him.”

“Marcus? I’ve worked with him many times. He’s one of the best. I just never suspected.” Her mom turned toward her. She sat beside her daughter and leaned in. “That list Max gave me when I first started planning things had some of the most prominent professionals on it. I assumed he only wanted the best. Were all the people on that list from his pack?”

“I can only assume.”

I know Patrick likes to use pack members whenever he can. They understand the sensitivities other members have and always take that into account,” Stacey added.

Alicia shrugged. “That’s probably what makes them so good.”

The photographer came out and greeted them. The moment he saw Alicia he bowed his head. She inclined hers.

“Does that happen every time?” whispered her mom.

“Yes, Mom.” She didn’t have the heart to tell her mom he heard her. She winked at him as he started to set up everything. They had to climb into their gowns then don their veils.

She heard her mother suck in her breath when she saw the gown.

“That looks an awful lot like my wedding dress.” She gently brushed her fingers against the skirt.

“Dad got it out of storage for me.” She laced her fingers with her mom’s. “I have always loved your dress. Are you mad?”

Mad? No.” She dabbed at a tear that slid down her cheek. “I’m touched. You look beautiful.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Ladies?” The photographer pointed to the area he had set up for her and Stacey. Marcus had them pose several different ways.

“Your mother knows?” He pitched his voice so Angela couldn’t hear him.

“Yes, my grandparents worked for one of the pack members in the blue ridge mountains.”

“Knew there was a reason I liked her.” He helped her onto a stool. “I loved it when she contacted me. Her no-nonsense attitude made it amazingly easy to work with her.”

“That’s my mom.”

“Now, I need you to turn so you’re looking over your shoulder at me. That’s it.” He walked backwards as he made sure she didn’t move. Grabbing his camera, he started snapping shots, directing her to tilt her head and drop her chin. “Good. Now drop your shoulders.”

She relaxed her shoulders.

“Perfect. Now I want you to think of Max. What you thought of him when you first met him, when you realized you were in love with him.” He kept snapping pictures. “Excellent. Now, what do you expect for your future together?”

She felt her features soften as she thought about them together. Max with a child riding on his shoulders, laughter filling the air. Joy filled her as a soft smile played on her lips.

“And there’s the money shot.”

She had forgotten about the camera until he spoke. “You got what you needed?”

“Yes.”

They spent the next hour there being photographed. Once the photographer was finished the two women went to their dressing rooms in the studio and changed back into their regular clothes. Alicia was putting her dress back into the bag she brought it in when a slight sound made her turn around.

“Our boss wants to talk to you.” A strange man charged at her.

She didn’t think, Alicia just reacted, ducking as he tried to grab her and giving him a side kick to the throat, knocking the air out of him. “Tell your boss if he wants to talk he can speak to my mate.”

“Oh, he will, but he insists that you are there for that conversation.” He lunged at her again.

She grabbed him by the throat and slammed him up against the wall. “I am not some piece of fluff that Max mated with. I am a third-degree black belt and can mop the floor with you if I want. I’m not going to put up with any of your bullshit and tell Dom I won’t put up with any of his either. I am a force to be reckoned with.” She closed her fingers a little tighter around his throat and watched in satisfaction as his face turned an ugly shade of red. “Now, you go back to that sorry excuse of a pack leader and tell him you were bested by the alpha male’s human mate. If you live through it then I recommend you run as fast as you can and as far away as you can because my mate will kill you.”

Marcus stepped into the room, hackles up. He was ready to shift if needed to protect her. “Is everything okay?”

“Yep.” She didn’t release the man. “I was just explaining to him what Max will do the moment he hears what happened.”

“I’ll detain him.”

“No need. He has a message to deliver.” She turned and whispered in his ear. “Verbatim. You change any of it I will know.”

He gave her a quick nod.

She released her hold on him. “Make sure he doesn’t get lost before he makes it back to Dom.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

***

“You did what?” Max rested his hands on his desk as he tried to remain calm.

“I know, I know. I’m not supposed to put myself in danger. And I haven’t been walking down dark alleys in a long time, but he came into my fitting room and tried to jump me. I had to defend myself.”

“And I’m glad you did, but you showed strength a human shouldn’t have.”

“Oh, come on, Max. I used my martial arts. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

“Show me.”

“What?”

He stepped around the desk then leaned against it. “Show me how you handled it.”

“Um, okay.” She got up and went to the wall. “I was in the fitting room putting my gown back in the bag and I heard a noise. He came at me and said that Dom wanted to talk to me. I reacted.”

“What did you do?” He followed her, standing close enough for her to grab him by the throat and slam him up against the wall.

“Then I squeezed just a little.” She tightened her hold to the point she did when she had the man pinned to the wall.

“You used just enough strength. I’m proud of you.” He wrapped his arms around her then switched their position. “You know you should have screamed and brought everyone running.”

“Have I ever done that? I never do what is expected and if he did his homework he would’ve known that.”

“True.” Max pressed his weight against her and pressed a kiss against her throat. “The thought of him causing you any harm makes me want to rip his throat out right now.”

“You said you didn’t want to rule by the old ways.”

“I know.” He pressed another kiss against her collarbone. “But he makes me so angry all I see is red.”

“Then we need to calm you down.” She worked on his tie first. Once she loosened it, she undid the buttons of his shirt.

“Sweetheart, we’re at the office.”

“And that has never stopped Patrick and Stacey. No one would dare come in when they know I’m here.” She pulled his shirt out of his pants. Alicia rested her hands on his chest as she looked up at him. “I want you right now. I don’t want to wait until we get home.”

Max looked at his mate. The scent she gave off told him she did want this. Her need overpowered any common sense he had. His mouth captured hers as his fingers worked on her clothing. Soon he felt her skin against his. Her hands skimmed along his shoulders then slid down his arms. He broke the kiss.

“You are going to ruin my reputation here.”

“Your reputation?” She slid her hands around his back. “Which one? Max the alpha? ‘Max of millions’? Max the mate?”

“You’re not playing fair.” He nibbled on her neck as he laced his fingers with hers then pinned her hands against the wall. “I fit all three. I am your alpha and I am your mate. Having you in my life makes me the richest man in the world.”

“I know and having me naked right now excites you.”

“And it fills you with power, doesn’t it?” He lifted her up, centered himself and drove into her.

“Oh, God! Very much.” She wrapped her legs around his waist. “To know I can drive you to forget everything but me is heady.”

He started moving, setting their pace. One Alicia kept up with. Her blood zinged through her veins. Excitement filled her. Frissons of desire filled her as he pounded into her. She felt it build in the pit of her stomach. Her legs and arms started moving, trying to draw him in closer. Wanting more from him. Max moved faster, drove in deeper, giving her what she wanted. Her breath caught in her throat as her orgasm took over, filling her with euphoria.

***

Dom stared at his computer. He had been looking for her for a long time. Somehow she had kept herself hidden from him. Until now. There on the screen was the image of his future mate in a wedding gown announcing her marriage to another man. Next to her was a picture of Santos’ mate. According to the announcement they were having a double wedding. How cute.

Dom didn’t care about that. He finally had Stacey and he would make sure she paid for hiding from him all these years.

***

Stacey sat at the dressing table in the hotel room. The hotel was closer to the wedding site than the mansion so they had gotten suites, for them to get ready. She looked over at Alicia who was smiling and laughing with the photographer. Alicia looked so serene, like she didn’t have a care in the world. Stacey’s stomach was in knots and she was fairly sure she was going to throw up.

“How are you so calm?” she asked quietly.

“Are you kidding? My stomach is in knots.” Alicia turned toward her. “I thought this would be so much fun but knowing what could happen has taken the joy out of it.”

“You are safe. We’re not allowed to let anything happen to either of you.” Marcus, their photographer lowered his camera as he spoke. “Plus you have a gaggle of women on the other side of that door getting ready to be your bridesmaids.”

“I know. Today is supposed to be the happiest day of our lives. It’s not fair that stupid man is ruining it for us.” She placed her powder brush on the vanity she sat at. “But I’m not going to let him ruin our day.”

The door opened and Catherine stepped in. “I have coffee and some nibbles for you two. I know if I don’t feed you you’ll probably faint as you walk down the aisle.”

“That won’t happen,” said Alicia.

“As your maid of honor it’s my job to make sure you make it to your wedding in one piece, with a smile on your face and of course on time.” She set a large tray down and handed Alicia a cup.

“My protector and one of my best friends.” She held her cup up in a toast.

“Your mom will be here in a half hour.” She handed Stacey a cup as well while she continued to talk to Alicia. “She has your dresses, veils and everything else you need.”

“Thanks. We’ll be waiting.”

“I’m going to check on the rest of the ladies and will be back when your mom gets here.”

***

It took three people to help Alicia’s mom bring in everything. Garment bags, hatboxes, shoeboxes, gifts. Catherine couldn’t believe how much she had crammed into her little car. Opening the door to the suite Alicia and Stacey were using she found it a little hard to move. “That’s odd.”

A hand flopped out once she got it opened a few inches. “Oh shit, no.”

***

Patrick tried to stand still as Max worked on his bowtie.

“If you don’t calm down I’m going to strangle you.” Max pulled on his collar so he could finish the knot.

“Sorry. I just want this to be over. Knowing she’s only a few feet away yet I can’t see her is driving me crazy. Why do humans go through with this?”

“Can’t answer that except they do like to party and once the wedding is over they always drink, eat and dance the night away.”

The door opened and Catherine stepped in.

“What’s up, Cat?” asked Patrick. He had almost called her Catty.

She didn’t look up.

“What’s wrong?” asked Max.

“They’re gone.”

Patrick looked at her, not quite understanding what she was talking about. Then he heard Max speak and a chill ran through him.

“Dom.”

“Marcus was with them and I found him unconscious.”

“Is he okay?”

“A little banged up, but he’ll recover. I’m so sorry. You gave me one job to do and I failed.”

“You didn’t fail, Catherine. We knew he would attack, and he only had a few windows. As much as I hate the fact that our mates could be in danger because of that madman we had to let it happen. I have people watching and waiting. We’re going to rescue them as quickly as we can. I just want to be sure he doesn’t know that we’re following.”

“What do you need from me?” asked Catherine.

“Alicia and Stacey don’t know it but they’re wearing tracking devices. You’ll be our eyes and ears. The computer is right there. Grab it and follow us.” Max pulled off his jacket and tie and handed it to someone standing nearby.

Patrick did the same thing then followed Max to the car. If that man harmed one hair on his mate’s head he was going to kill him.

Max climbed into the driver’s seat and found Patrick staring at him. “I know you want to drive but I also know that you’re not focused enough to pay attention to the road. We need to come up with a concrete plan on the way.”

Patrick gave him a curt nod and walked around the car. Catherine climbed in the back seat.

“Catherine, you should see the program pinned to the bottom of the screen. Just open it up and let us know where they are.” He started the engine and headed down the road next to the hotel.

“They are still moving,” said Catherine. “Keep going forward and take a left in about a mile.”

“It looks like he’s taking them to his pack.” Max made the turn that Catherine recommended.

“We did plan for that as well.” Patrick turned in his seat to look at his sister. “Max has an instant message program loaded with everyone’s number. The message is already written, all you need to do is send it out.”

“Got it.” Catherine paused for a moment while she sent the message. “They’ve stopped moving. According to your layout of his compound they are in a smaller building adjacent to their main one.”

“Good. Let us know if they move them, or if my mate decides to do something stupid like try to run.”

“She knows your plan. The only reason she would escape is if she learned information she felt you needed to know.”

“You protect her well, Catherine.” Max laughed. “And I know she’d do the same for you.”

“Yet I let this happen.”

“Catherine, I need you to focus, not wallow in despair.”

“Yes, sir.”

Max pulled the car over in a wooded area not too far from Dom’s compound. “It’s a good thing the wedding is in the evening. The darkness gives us the perfect cover.”

He pulled his clothes off and shifted, then sat and waited as Patrick stuffed his clothes into a backpack. Patrick removed his clothing as well and once he put his in the same backpack he shifted as well. He picked up the pack and set it at his sister’s feet.

She made sure the straps were loose enough before slipping it onto her brother’s back. “Bring them home.”