When she first came to this home, she hadn't been that much older than Penny was now. She could clearly remember her mother sitting her down at the table and making her a pot of sweet chamomile tea. All the ugliness of her past slipped away as she sat holding that delicate teacup. She carefully packed the small tea service in the suitcase using her kitchen and bathroom towels to keep it safe. She zipped up the suitcase and stood back.
"You ready, hun?" Marco asked. Penny peeked out from around his side, holding his hand.
Rheia nodded. "Yes. Surprisingly I was able to get most of my personal things into two suitcases. Everything else is just household items, but the things that matters will be going with us." She walked over and scooped Penny up, the small girl laid her head on her shoulder.
"We're going to a very nice place, Penny. It's called Lycaonia. It's a city where all the people are like Uncle Radek and Uncle Marco," she said, walking down the stairs. Behind her Marco easily managed the three suitcases.
Penny looked up and pointed to her chest with her thumb. Rheia nodded. "Yes, darling, people just like you, a whole city of shifters. Won't that be nice?"
Penny scrunched up her face for a second, thinking about it, then nodded.
"Okay, here are the directions. Things are pretty normal until you turn off the highway. No matter how lost you think you are, stay on the dirt road. You'll have someone waiting for you," Radek explained, handing her a piece of paper before plucking Penny from her arms. He kissed the toddler's face all over the place. Penny squirmed, trying to avoid his whiskers. Radek pulled back and smiled at her. Penny without changing expression tweaked his nose. He gave a long booming laugh.
"You're not coming with us?" Rheia asked, feeling uneasy. She tucked the directions in her pants pocket.
"Car's loaded, Boss." Marco said, returning from the garage. He handed the keys to Rheia.
Radek shook his head. "You'll be safe in Lycaonia. I'm going to stay with the guys and try to find this threat and eliminate it. There have been too many..." he hesitated. "Incidents lately. I want to find where these guys are and take care of it."
In Rheia's mind she translated; There have been too many murders lately, and they wanted to find the ones responsible and kill them all.
Rheia took a deep breath. "What if..." she didn't want to sound childish. She was a grown woman, a doctor even. She shouldn't be relying on these men to tell her that everything would be okay.
"What, honey?" Athan asked. The men gathered around to say their goodbyes.
"What if I don't like him? What if he isn't like you, any of you? What if he doesn't want me?" she said, voicing her greatest fear.
"Oh, honey, you're breaking my heart," Levi muttered and pulled her head close to kiss the top of it.
"You love us, Pumpkin Dumpling, but your mate will complete you in ways that we never will. You're our kid sister. But you'll be his mate, his partner, his equal. He'll see sides of you, we, and correct me if I'm wrong gentlemen, never want to see. You're our kid sister for crying out loud!" Radek said, the tips of his ears turning red.
"Ahh, you mean sex." Rheia grinned.
Levi gasped and covered Penny's ears. Rheia rolled her eyes. "It's a natural part of life Levi."
"Not for you," Marco grumbled.
"If he hurts you, just call us. We have no problem explaining very thoroughly how he should treat our baby sister," Athan said, his blue eyes turning dark.
Rheia turned to Penny. "I wonder what they'll be like when you find your mate?" For a second Rheia thought she saw the hint of a smile on Penny's face.
"That will never happen! Our Penny Baby isn't allowed to mate. Ever," Marco said, growling.
Penny rolled her eyes. Rheia's heart swelled with pride. Penny may not be her daughter by blood, but this tiny kiddo was turning out just like her.
"Okay, enough crazy talk. You head to Lycaonia, find your mate, tell him if he hurts you we'll skin him alive and Penny stays a baby girl forever. Got that?" Radek demanded.
"Yes, sir!" Rheia laughed, taking Penny from his arms.
She was just about to head towards the garage when she heard a loud bang and the sound of splintering wood.
"Run for it!" Radek yelled. The men turned and ran towards the family room, blocking the danger so she and Penny could escape.
Heart in her throat, Rheia clutched Penny tightly and ran into the garage. She opened the driver's side door and got in. Penny scrambled over to the passenger seat and hit the button to lock the doors.
"Good girl! Now, get the seatbelt on and hold on tight. We don't have time to get you in your car seat," she said and started the car. She hit the garage door button. Slower than she could remember it ever moving in the past the door rose. Before the door was completely up, the same feral from her nightmare appeared behind her car, grinning at her in the rear view mirror.
"I don't think so!" she muttered and threw the car in reverse. Pressing her foot down on the accelerator she had a second to appreciate the surprised look on his face before he disappeared under her car. Both she and Penny bounced up and down as they ran him over.
The car screeched to a halt at the bottom of the driveway before she executed a 'K' point turn that would have made her father proud. She slammed her foot down on the gas pedal and sped away.
After a few minutes, a small, warm hand took hers. She looked over and saw Penny was watching her closely. There was neither fear nor panic on her face. Her brave angel was trying to comfort her.
"Oh, baby, we'll be okay, and your uncles will be okay too. We'll get settled in Lycaonia and they'll come to visit and this will seem like a really bad dream. You'll see." Penny nodded and pulled her hand up and kissed it sweetly.
"I love you too baby girl. I know one thing, my mate has a hell of a lot to live up to." Rheia said, trying not to think of what could be happening to the men they'd left behind.
Looking serious Penny nodded again. She let go of her hand and popped her left thumb into her mouth.
"Get some sleep, baby. I'll drive for a bit to put some distance between us and the house. Then we'll stop for a snack somewhere and I'll put you in your car seat, okay?"
Penny nodded again.
Radek, Athan, Dax, Marco, Levi... you better be okay.
CHAPTER TWO
Colton leaned against the SUV and sighed. He looked down the long, dark dirt road that circled the outskirts of Lycaonia. There was still no sign of their unexpected visitor. When Aiden had knocked on his door the night before to ask him to take this early morning lookout, he jumped at the chance. He'd do anything to avoid another sleepless night. Looking out at the pre-dawn sky, he had to admit even if only to himself, that the odds that this was his mate on her way to him was slim, but waiting out here in the frigid temperatures was preferable to watching his mate be killed in his dreams.
In the distance he could see a faint glow. As it moved closer he realized that it was a car coming towards him. He pushed away from his SUV and walked until he was in the middle of the road. The sun was just coming up, providing enough light for him not to worry about being run over. Slowly the car rolled to a stop a good distance away, seconds later the driver's side door opened and a small figure got out.
"Hello there!" he called. "My name is Colton Albright; I'm your escort into Lycaonia."
"How do I know that?" a female voice yelled.
Huh?
"Do you have any ID?" she asked.
He scowled. "Do you mean the official Lycaonia ID that states I'm a wolf-shifter from a secret paranormal city? No, I left that in my other pair of pants."
"You don't have to be snarky about it," she admonished.
He squinted, trying to see if she was kidding. He could see the outline of her body, but not much else. "You're going to have to trust me. I'm going to get in my car and drive to the Alpha estate where you'll meet with the Unit Commander. He's in charge of placing you in a safe house. I suggest you pay attention, the turn off is well hidden." Without waitin
g for a reply, he turned and got into the car. Grumbling he fastened his seatbelt. "Pain in the ass woman."
When he began to pull away, he noticed that she stayed right on his ass. He thought about tapping his brakes but didn't feel like explaining to Aiden why the SUV needed repair work, not when Aiden's own car was still being rebuilt after his mate torched it. Smiling at that particular memory, he cranked up his iPod. His compilation of songs from Supernatural blared inside the SUV. As soon as they got to the estate, he would drop the crazy woman in Aiden's lap and go watch reruns until he passed out. He was always surprised at how much they got right.
When they arrived at the estate, he couldn't help himself, he slammed on the brakes, bringing the SUV to a screeching halt. Sure enough, the car behind him hit the back of his car. Since they weren't going very fast by then, there wasn't a lot of damage.
Shouldn't have been following so closely.
Smirking he grabbed his iPod and got out of the car. He was making his way to the front door when he heard an angry woman's voice behind him.
"What in the hell was that?" she demanded.
Turning he watched as the woman fought with her seatbelt that was still wrapped around one arm. In a fit of anger, she threw it to one side and slammed the car door. She marched towards him, and as she got closer, Colton felt his stomach drop. He knew her. She had the same heart shaped face framed by sun kissed light brown hair as the woman in his dreams. Her eyes were a perfect mixture of blue and grey. He had only ever seen those eyes anxious, sympathetic or afraid, but never pissed. She was just as beautiful in life as she had been in his dreams.
She stomped up the porch stairs and began poking him in the chest.
"What kind of immature stunt was that? I have had one of the worst nights of my life and you pull this shit? You're lucky my brothers aren't here they would ..."
He watched as she stopped and realized what she said. Tears filled her eyes, at the mention of her family, though her expression remained defiant. With a shaking hand, he reached out and cupped her face.
"Thank the Gods," he whispered. He couldn't keep the tremor out of his voice.
She looked puzzled at first and then her eyes widened.
"You're the voice from my dream, aren't you? They said that the voice might belong to my mate," she whispered, and stood stock-still.
He nodded before pulling her close, he simply held her against him.
She pushed against his chest with both hands and stepped back. "You weren't an asshole in my dreams," she said bluntly.
He grinned. She was spunky. "And you weren't a prickly bitch in my dreams either."
Her mouth dropped and she just stared at him. Seconds went by before she began to smile. "I can't believe you said that. Aren't you going to try to woo me or sweep me off my feet?"
He shrugged. "Something tells me you're not the type of woman that wants to be swept off her feet. In fact, I'm willing to put money on the fact you're the type of woman that likes to be in charge."
She winced. "Actually, yeah." She squinted up at him. "And you're okay with that? Most men like meek women."
He gave her his most wolfish grin. He was pleased, when he saw her eyes widen at his expression. "I don't have to be in charge, but that doesn't mean I'm not dominant." He leaned in and buried his nose where her neck and shoulder met. He inhaled deeply, shuddering at her scent. He bit down lightly and heard her gasp. Almost instantly, he could smell her arousal. "Just because I'm not always in charge, doesn't mean I'm not an Alpha," he whispered, letting his lips dance on her skin.
"Colton let the poor woman get some air," Aiden boomed behind him.
Colton stepped back and turned to face his childhood friend standing in the open doorway. The look on his face must have been impressive because Aiden swallowed visibly. The rest of his unit stood next to Aiden in the foyer, smiling at him.
"She's your mate, isn't she?" Aiden asked.
Colton nodded. "Yes, she is." He turned to the woman. "This is Aiden McKenize, the Unit Commander. Aiden this is ..." He stopped. "What is your name anyway?"
Aiden burst out laughing and Colton flushed slightly. Growling, he frowned at his friend. "We hadn't gotten that far yet."
Aiden smirked at him, arms crossed over his chest. "What exactly did you get to?" he teased.
Colton thought about it for a moment. "We've pissed each other off, exchanged insults and she's damaged my car."
"So pretty much on par for the Alpha Unit," Sascha's voice said from their left. Colton looked over and the men from the other units stood grinning up at him from beyond the porch. "Har har guys. At least she didn't set my car on fire."
"Hey!" Aiden protested.
"His car was set on fire? Is it safe here?" his mate asked.
Colton felt his smile threaten to split his face. "Yeah. Meryn, his mate, blew his car up for being a dick, he totally deserved it. As for being safe, look around sweetheart, these men represent the best the paranormal world has to offer, there's no place safer." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Come on honey, let's head inside, you can tell me your name and why you're on the run."
"Wait! I have to..." She turned back towards the car.
Laughing he pulled her back. "We can get your bags later."
She pulled free and shook her head. "You don't understand." She jogged back to her car and opened the back door behind the passenger seat.
Frowning, Colton and most of the men gathered around the car. When his mate lifted a small bundle out of the car, his brain couldn't make sense of it. It looked like a tiny body pillow wearing a coat. His mate set the bundle down and reached down to grasp a small hand. Hand? Blinking, Colton gawked down.
"Colton, my name is Rheia Bradley and this is my daughter, Penelope Carmichael. She likes to be called Penny."
Colton stared until multi colored dots appeared before his eyes. A solid whack to his back brought him to the present and he inhaled sharply, choking on his own spit.
"Breathe, you damn fool!" Sascha chided.
Gasping for air, he bent over and put his hands on his knees. "I think. I'm dying!" he wheezed.
He looked up and saw his mate roll her eyes. "You're not dying, but I think you are having a panic attack. Just breathe, Penny won't bite, I promise."
Colton took deep breaths staring at the ground. When he saw two small purple shoes appear, he looked up. Bright green eyes surrounded by dark lashes peered at him. Rich brown ringlets spilled from outside the coat's hood. She had tiny, pink, bow shaped lips and wore a serious expression. She raised her hand and placed it on his cheek. She was warm, very warm, too warm to be a human. This tiny child was a shifter and she was now his daughter!
His legs gave out and he fell to his knees in front of Penny as he looked into her eyes. The universe screeched to a halt around him and shifted. He knew eventually he would fall in love with his mate, but the love he would have for Rheia would be different than what he already felt for this child. He had fallen instantly in love with his daughter and Gods help the ones that were after her, because there was nothing he wouldn't do to keep her safe.
Five minutes ago, he had been a bachelor now he had a mate and baby girl. His world was changed forever. He smiled at her and she titled her head. Slowly, giving her time to pull away, he reached for her and then scooped her up when she didn't protest. Standing he turned and faced the men.
"I'm a father!" he announced, forgetting that the men around him had been there the whole time.
Cheers went up from the men as they crowded around to meet Rheia and Penny.
"This is my mate Rheia and my daughter Penny. Aren't they beautiful?" he asked, beaming.
"Being a father is nothing to play at," Rheia chided, her hands on her hips frowning at him again.
"I'm not playing. You're my mate and she's your daughter, that makes her my daughter," he rebutted.
She blinked. "Just like that? Poof! Just like that, you're willing to sacrifice everything and become a parent?"
she demanded.
Colton frowned, confused. "Of course. Isn't that how it works with humans?"
"Not exactly," she confessed.
"Well, that's how it is with me. She's already mine, aren't you, princess?" Colton asked Penny.
Yawning, the girl nodded, popped her thumb in her mouth and laid her head down on his shoulder.
Colton melted. "Let's head inside. My baby girl has to be getting cold. Darian, Keelan, can you bring in their suitcases?" he asked.
"Sure thing," Darian said. He and Keelan opened up the driver's side door and popped the trunk.
"Now wait a minute. You can't just expect me to let you walk off with my daughter. Hey! Get back here!" Rheia called as he walked towards the house.
"Is your Mommy always so grumpy?" he asked Penny. The little girl shook her head.
"Just with me?" Again, she nodded.
"Perfect," he sighed.
"Colton!" Rheia ran in front of him and held her arms out. "Give me my daughter," she said in a dangerous voice.
"Sure. I just figured you must be exhausted from driving all night, I was trying to help," he carefully placed Penny in her mother's arms. "If you only accept one thing right away and without question, let it be this. There is nothing I wouldn't do for her. In my heart she is the same as my own flesh and blood, I would die for her, for both of you." He hated the indecision and pain he saw on her face. Smiling he reached out and thumped his mate between the eyes. He winked at her stunned expression.