Filed to story: Cara Nelson The Guardian: Werewolf Book PDF Free
He turns and stands over me. “Yeah, you know, my canines go into your neck at your marking spot, yours go into mine and then we mate, solidifying the bond.”
“I don’t think so old man. Not happening. And I’m perfectly happy where I’m at.”
“You’re perfectly happy working in a human diner, skirting around pack. territories at night, hoping that they don’t realize what you are and try to force you into their pack so their Alpha or his heir can mark you?”
He takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger, getting so close that I can feel his breath on my lips, his eyes boring into mine. “And I’m not old.””
I scoff at him but I have to admit, his close proximity is having an effect on me. I can feel the heat pooling in my center and that is nothing compared to Mala purring in my head. I swear she’s ready to shift then smack him in the face with her tail before presenting her backside to him. How did I end up with a hussy for at wolf?
‘I’m not a hussy. He’s our mate and look at him. He’s big and strong. I wonder if every part of his body is as big as what we can see.’ She drools over our mate.
“Seriously Maia?’
‘Well, if you won’t…’ And before I realize what she’s going to do, she’s pushed me forward enough to close the distance between us, my lips pressing against his. Before I can react and pull back, he’s moved his hand to the back of my head, holding it in place while he tilts his head, his warm, soft lips pressing against mine hungrily before sliding his tongue across my lips.
I’m overwhelmed by his smell. The taste of him on my lips is making me dizzy and I moan without realizing it. As soon as I do, his tongue sweeps into my mouth and a soft growl comes from deep in his chest. I grab hold of his shirt, my head spinning with the sensations that he’s causing. His other arm comes around me, holding me up as my knees go weak.
His tongue dominates my mouth, tasting me, teasing me. I hope he’s not disappointed with my inexperience. My one previous kiss was at age 8, where a pack member in my class stole a kiss at school. Other than that, I haven’t exactly had the opportunity to kiss anyone.
Wait! What am I doing?
I push away from him. “That, that can never happen again.”
He gives me a cocky grin before leaning forward and rubbing his nose against mine. “Your wolf seems to disagree.” He says and kisses my nose before letting me go.
I’m pleasantly surprised when Grace pushes forward and kisses me. I don’t waste any time taking what she is offering. It becomes apparent to me quickly that she is inexperienced, but her tentative exploration only excites me more.
When she pushes away from me, I can see that her wolf and the mate bond. overwhelmed her. I’m fine with that. Louis keeps pushing me to mark her and make her ours. But I made that mistake before, trying to push someone into a mate bond they didn’t want. I refuse to do it again.
It was one of the first questions that Rik asked me when I called him last night, if I had forced the mate bond on Grace. After letting him know that she’s my fated mate and no, I have not yet marked her, he and I both agreed that this situation is not ideal. Her being a young, Alpha female who is also a Guardian, alone in the world, puts her at risk. I also told him that there is something going on with her past and I plan to find out what it is. I let him know that she may not be as willing to leave here as he and I would like. If I can’t convince her to come on her own, we agreed to pull out the big guns.
We begin walking again. “Will you tell me about your father?”
“Why do you care?” She asks me. Yeah, there’s definitely a story there. Anyone that has seen the mate bond in action would know that I care because she’s mine. I would want to help her anyway, but her being my mate seals the deal.
“I care because I’m your mate. But beyond that, it seems like you’re out here on your own when you have a parent that should be looking out for you, but isn’t.” As we walk up onto her porch, I stop and look at her. “If I had to guess, I’d say that as an Alpha, your father didn’t like that you didn’t have your wolf. He either banished you or began abusing you. I’m guessing your mother got you out of that environment or came with you in your banishment. If that’s the case, then the severed mate bond would be what killed your mother slowly, over time. How am I doing so far?” I ask her, but I can see by the look on her face that I’ve hit home. She turns, opening her front door before walking in. Tonight, she doesn’t close the door in my face. I stand at the door watching her. “Well, you may as well come in.” She says, when she sees that I’m standing outside.
I step inside to a place that’s as small as my hotel room and that’s saying something, especially when this space has a kitchen as well. I can almost see the benefits of Grace working in the diner. At least there she can get a real meal. This kitchen only has a small refrigerator, sink and small counter space with a hot
MONTHLY plate and microwave, no stove. She puts a pot of water on the hot plate to heat and grabs some tea bags from one of the two cabinets.
“Tea?” She asks me and I nod. I don’t usually drink tea, but if it gives me more time with my mate, I will.
I watch as she pulls out two mugs, the only two mugs she has and places a tea bag in each, waiting for the tea pot to whistle. When it does, she pours the hot water into each cup.
“Cream or sugar?” She asks.
“I’ll take it however you make it.”
She leaves it without cream or sugar and brings it over to a small table, sitting both mugs on the table. “You can sit in the chair.” She tells me as she sits on the floor. Rather than taking the only chair in the room, I sit on the floor opposite
I can see her mind working as she stares into her tea. I stay quiet, waiting her out. “My father was a great father and Alpha for the first ten years of my life. I was his only child, the Alpha heir. When I didn’t get my wolf at age 10, he was patient at first. But then, over time, he became angry and he changed. Eventually, he began taking it out on my mother, trying to get her to conceive another heir, one worthy of being Alpha.” She stresses the word worthy, and I’m guessing that was his word.
“He banished me when I was 12. My mother refused to let me leave alone. I would have died on my own, and she knew it. We ran and found this place. For the first year, we watched every move we made, every person we saw. We were ready to run at any moment. Mom was working as many hours as Benny would give her so she could stockpile cash in case we had to run again.”
She stirs her tea, pulling her tea bag out and putting it on her spoon, setting it aside. “Eventually, he began having sexual relations with other women. I didn’t completely understand it at first. Mom just said he was cheating on the mate bond. But as time went on, it happened more and more frequently. My mom became weak, unable to shift into her wolf anymore.”
She takes a sip of her tea before continuing. “On my sixteenth birthday, something happened. Whatever he did, it killed my mother.” A sad smile crosses. her face, her eyes unfocused with her memory. “We had spent a wonderful day together. We’d gone hiking in the forest and were having dinner together when it happened. I’m sure he knew exactly what day it was, since he’d ruined several of my birthdays at that point.”
“What do you think he did?” I ask quietly, trying not to pull her out of this state she was in, caught in her memories, speaking and remembering at the same time. “I think he marked another she-wolf, taking another mate, knowing it would kill my mother.”
“So, that’s why you don’t believe in the mate bond?”
She looks at me, the faraway look clearing and a fierce resolve replacing it. ” Would you? I’ve seen what the mate bond does. I’ve seen it at its best and I’ve seen it at its worst. I have no intention of ever letting you or any other man have that kind of power over me. me.”
I nod, because what can I say. Her story isn’t the only one where someone abused the mate bond. Many Alphas feel that they are above the pull of the mate bond or that it is a binding that chains them, making them weak. However, I’ve seen what a positive mate bond looks like. I’ve seen the relationship between Rik and Cara, as well as Liam and Angel. There is nothing about the mate bond that made those Alphas weak. If anything, it made them stronger, better Alphas.
“Not everyone is like your father.” I say quietly.
“But how would I know if they were or weren’t. If you would ever become like that.”
“How about you agree to spend time with me and get to know me before you assume that I’m like your father.”
She’s already shaking her head. “My dad was different until I didn’t get my wolf. If I had, I may never have known what he was really like.”
“Your father is an asshole. Not all men or werewolves are like that. I can tell your now, even if I was a complete jerk, Louis, my wolf, would never let me treat my mate or pup like you have been treated.”
“You don’t know that.” She says quietly.
“I do know that. I’ve lived most of my life without a father and all of my life without a mother. I would never wish that on anyone, especially not my own child.” I tell her.
When Eli tells me he’s spent most of his life without parents, I’m shocked. I wasn’t expecting that.
“What happened to them?” I ask. If I’m telling my story, he should tell his too.
“My mother died giving birth to me.” He stops, his jaw tightening.
“And your father?” I ask quietly. I can tell that this won’t be as simple as his mother’s death.
The muscle in his jaw twitches before he answers. “The short version is my father challenged our Alpha heir to a duel after he caused the death of my older brother, the future Beta. The Alpha forbade it, but his son agreed. My father in his grief, killed the Alpha heir, the only child of our Alpha.” He stops and takes a sip of his tea before looking back up at me.
“The Alpha forced me to watch as he beheaded my father, blamed him for the death of my brother and the Alpha heir, called him a traitor, then he banished me. I was 12, so I understand your mother’s concern about not surviving alone at that age. I almost died as well.”
