Wen Read online

  “Gerri is my mate. She was always mine. You’ve known it since we were kids. I’m not Gerbin, nor will I ever be.”

  Mandro took a step forward, must have remembered that he held his mate, and growled. He lowered Elna until her feet touched the ground but kept his arm around her waist. “I forbid it!”

  “It’s done.” Wen approached his parents. “Trust your noses if you don’t want to hear the words. Gerri is my true mate. She will be the mother of my young one day.”

  “You can’t forbid it.” Trayis stood next to Wen. “He’s not your child anymore. He’s my enforcer.”

  “She’s human. They are weak!” Mandro hissed. “She can’t birth the next generation of our bloodline.”

  “I’ve adopted her as my daughter. Think carefully before you say those words again.” Trayis glanced around. “I had hoped to announce it with a bit more tact, but there it is. Klentz was a good friend to me, and I swore I’d look out for his daughter as if she were my own if anything ever happened to him. What better way than to adopt her myself?” He glared at Mandro. “She’s always been a part of our clan, but she’s also family. Understood?”

  Wen felt pain as his parents both paled and he took in their reactions. His father stumbled back, dragging his mother with him. His mouth opened, closed, then opened again…but no words left his father’s lips.

  A small hand pressed against his spine and he reached back for his mate. He knew it was Gerri. She leaned against his side and he was glad she was there. He put his arm around her, hugging her.

  His father spun, lifted his mate into his arms, and stormed off into the woods. Wen watched them go.

  Trayis turned his head to speak directly to Wen. “They must face this head on. Adapt or not. That’s their choice, not yours.”

  He knew his leader was right. He hated that the clan had witnessed the tense scene though. His parents were too proud. It hadn’t been their best moment.

  Trayis strode over to the office door and smiled. “Who said clan meetings are boring?”

  A few people laughed.

  “Gerri is back and Wen is mated. As I was saying, that calls for a celebration. For those of you who haven’t met Gerri, introduce yourself to her today. She was raised with us, so there are no secrets. They need a few days to bond so we’ll hold a clan lunch feast on Saturday. We’ll also be inviting some of the other clans. They have reason to celebrate too. Wen took care of the last Vampire who attacked the human town and Lorn’s clan. That threat is over.”

  Wen saw smiles break out amongst the assembled clan. Trayis walked around, taking questions. Some of his friends wanted to see Gerri again and youths came forward to meet her. He kept her at his side but his gaze continued to roam, and he hoped his parents didn’t return.

  * * * * *

  Gerri felt exhausted by the time Wen led her back home. It had been nice to see familiar faces. The children had wanted to touch her hair, her skin, and ask her about the human world. The most uncomfortable questions had been those about her mother.

  “You did really well.”

  “Except the lying.”

  Wen opened the front door, sniffed, and then motioned her in. She guessed why he did it. His parents had taken off from the meeting and not come back. Neither of them had been thrilled upon learning of their mating. Not that she’d thought they’d take it well. But no blood had been spilled, so there was a plus side.

  “You said your mother was living with a pack in California. How was that a lie?” He closed the door and twisted the bolts.

  She frowned. “Because there’s a real possibility that she’s not still alive. Why did you bolt the door?”

  “My parents. It’s a habit I’ve formed thanks to them. I don’t want them walking in here.”

  “Do you think they’ll come after me?”

  Wen hesitated. “It would be stupid.”

  “But you think they would? Just answer.”

  He shrugged. “They aren’t the same as they used to be. I never know what they’re capable of now. I won’t risk it. I checked all the windows this morning. They are secured. They’d have to kick in a door or break glass to get in.”

  Damn. She hated that he was on high alert from his parents. It wasn’t necessarily her fault but it had to suck for him. She walked over and hugged his waist, closed her eyes, and rested her cheek against his chest. “I love you.”

  He held her tight. “I love you too. You’re not responsible for their actions.”

  “I know that. You aren’t either.”

  He said nothing, so she opened her eyes and looked up at him. The tortured expression on his face made her chest ache.

  “People can get broken inside when someone they love dies. They either bounce back or they allow it to eat them up. I saw that with my mother. The loss of her mate changed her.”

  “I’ll just never understand why I wasn’t enough for them.”

  “Please don’t think that way. I’ve gone that route and it takes you nowhere good. I talked to my mother until I was blue in the face and begged her to get her life together. I was her daughter, and she should have loved me enough to try to hang in there. That didn’t happen. She was slowly spiraling deeper into screwing up her life and mine. I couldn’t snap her out of it. I told you that she drank and I suspected she was doing drugs. The pack she got involved with was my wakeup call that she was hell-bent on destruction. That one asshole attacked me but she took their side. It’s not like I just disappeared on her without warning. I begged her to leave with me but she refused to go.”

  Wen rubbed her back. “I’m sorry.”

  “It was cut ties or let her drown me in that murk with her, Wen. She failed me. Not the other way around. Your parents have done the same to you. You’re an amazing son if they never figured that out. Don’t ever allow them to make you feel like less. It pisses me off.”

  A faint smile curved his lips. “I’m pissed at your mother.”

  “Me too but I’m not going to let that eat at me. We have shitty parents. That’s okay, because now we have each other.”

  “Don’t you want to contact Carol to tell her we mated?”

  “No.”

  “Perhaps she left the pack and got her life in order.”

  “Then I wouldn’t know how to find her anyway. Her boyfriend didn’t allow her to have her own phone. He was a controlling jerk. It’s better this way. I made my peace with losing my mom the day she chose that pack over me. Besides, I like to imagine she actually turned into a Lycan from the blood she was drinking and ran off with some hot newbie who couldn’t stand the pack he’d joined.” She smiled. “They’re mated in my fantasy and she’s happy. Maybe even had a few more pups.”

  “You’re breaking my heart, G.L.”

  “It’s called hope. I used to fantasize about you too.” She slid her hands up his chest and curled her fingers around the back of his neck. “And here we are.”

  He grinned. “Alone in your cabin.”

  “We should decide which place we’re going to live in.”

  “I don’t give a shit as long as we’re in the same bed.”

  She laughed. “Speaking of, how about we go test out the mattress springs again?”

  “First you need to eat. It’s past lunch and your stomach is grumbling.”

  “Sex, then food.”

  “Food, then sex.”

  “Is everything going to be an argument with you, Wen?”

  He ran his hands down to her ass and cupped both cheeks with his large hands, lifting her. “I’m your mate. I want to take care of you.”

  She wrapped around him. “It’s our honeymoon. I want lots of sex. We have years to make up for.”

  He walked into the kitchen and shelved her butt on the counter. “Food first.” He leaned in and nipped her bottom lip. “I wouldn’t want you fainting on me. Besides, I want to impress you with my cooking skills.”

  “I’m more interested in what you can do in a bedroom right now.”

&n