Chapter 6

What the fuck just happened? Beck raised up on his elbows and stared at the door Lydia disappeared behind. He pushed off the sofa and stood, adjusting his erection so it wasn't pressed against his zipper. Goddess, he'd never been harder in his life, and all because of a kiss. With his mate. Beck let that sink in. Bears didn't have fated mates, but if Lydia was telling the truth, he was hers. His need to find her earlier now made sense. Beck didn't know the female, but he wanted to. Wanted to get to know about her life. Wanted to know why she was in Alaska. That meant getting her to talk to him. He strode to the closed door and rapped softly.

"Lydia? I wasn't pushing you away because I don't want you. I do. Too much. I only wanted to slow things down because I was two seconds away from shooting in my jeans like a teenager."

"Really?"

"Definitely. Is that part of the pull of fated mates? Getting so aroused you can't hold off coming?"

She opened the door and propped against the frame, but instead of letting her keep some distance between them, Beck snagged her around the waist and pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her. He buried his nose against her neck, inhaling the scent that was all Lydia. When she returned the embrace, he was content to hold her.

"I'm sorry." Her breath was warm against his cheek.

"Nothing to apologize for. This is new to both of us. But how about we slow things down and talk? I'd love to get to know you." When she nodded against his shoulder, Beck kissed her hair, taking in her scent again, then stepped back. He took her hand and led her back to the sofa. Once they were seated, he snagged their forgotten beers and handed hers over. "Tell me about you."

"What do you want to know?"

"Everything. When did you shift for the first time? Do you have siblings? Are you close to your parents? What were you like when you were little?"

Lydia grinned. "Okay, let's see. I shifted when I was fifteen. I was a late bloomer, you could say. Full-blooded Gargoyles shift when they reach puberty. Half-bloods, those with one human parent, don't transition until they meet their mate, so I was lucky there. I have one brother, Locke, who is seventeen, and another, Gio, on the way. I am incredibly close to my parents. Most Goyle kids are because our parents are… I don't know how to describe it other than to say the love they have for their children is only surpassed by their love for their mate."

Lydia paused to take a sip of beer. "As a little girl, I was a handful. I wanted to emulate my mother in every way, and Sophia Stone is fierce. She has this saying – family is everything, and we defend our family. When I was around nine or ten, she clawed a man's dick off for threatening one of my cousins. I didn't find that out until I was much older, but like I said, she's fierce. My dad has two brothers and four cousins, and all their offspring are like siblings to me since we were born around the same time. We began training in martial arts and weapons early on. When we were old enough, we were taught defensive driving. Our parents went through hell and back fighting the Unholy as well as the Greek King and some of his followers, and even though things calmed down once both were taken out, there was always the possibility of another uprising. They wanted us prepared for any situation." Lydia twisted the bangle bracelets on her wrist as she spoke.

"In other words, don't fuck with Gargoyles. Got it. What brought you to Alaska?"

Lydia took a deep breath and launched into a wild story about her cousin who has visions, finding his mate in South Carolina, wolf shifters, and a GIA agent intent on finding the truth. She explained how another cousin along with two females were hackers, and they kept an eye out for the agent as well as anything to do with shifters. They'd come across some cryptic messages, which led Lydia to Sterling. Then she spoke of her cousin, Sebastian, King of the Gargoyles, tasking her with recruiting other shifters for a council. A King who was mated to a wolf, which indicated there was no species prejudice.

Beck smiled and threaded their fingers together, rubbing his thumb over the daisy tattoo on her middle finger. "If I didn't believe we were fated before, I do now. My best friend, Dooley, is a hacker, and he lives in Kodiak. He alerted me to some cryptic messages coming out of BC. My mother was the Queen of our pack there. As I said before, mates sometimes only last as long as they're useful. In our society, the females rule, and males are only good for procreating and earning money for the pack. My father gave Amara a male child, and she didn't give him a chance to try for a female, so she kicked him to the curb. Boyd is my sisters' father, and he liked being important. When my mother grew tired of him, she sent him away, and that pissed him off. He went out and found a younger, stronger female to challenge my mother for her title. Valerie, the new Queen, could have killed Amara, but instead, she allowed my mother to leave the province." Beck opened a fresh beer and passed it to Lydia before getting himself one too.

"Boyd being here after all these years is suspect at best. Dooley found out that Valerie sent Boyd packing because he gave her two sons instead of daughters. If I thought he wanted to reconnect with Chloe and Delaney, I wouldn't bother with him, but as far as I know, he hasn't been part of their lives more than a phone call here and there over the years. There's something else; neither of my sisters heard from Amara yesterday. If it were me, that wouldn't be unusual since we rarely speak, but she calls the girls every morning like clockwork."

"Do you think Boyd's after your mom?"

"I don't know what to think, but I do know the male is bad news."

"If Valerie cut Boyd loose, why would she rent a car for him?" Lydia rubbed the back of Beck's hand with her thumb. It was an innocent gesture, but it set fire to his blood. His Bear was pissed he had put a halt to their earlier make out session, and it was gearing up for a fight if Beck didn't get Lydia naked soon.

"Maybe she didn't. Boyd's a crafty fucker. He could have stolen a credit card. I'm more worried about who was trading the cryptic messages. In one of them, they used the word impress. Dooley thinks that's code for my mother because she refers to herself as the Empress instead of Queen."

"I think we should put Dooley in contact with the Trio so they're working together instead of against each other."

"We can do that at a reasonable time. Speaking of, I hate to leave, but I need to head home and get some sleep before my first flight." Lydia's smile faded, and Beck understood. If they were truly fated, and he had no reason to doubt her, he wanted to spend as much time together as possible. "I have an idea. How would you like to come with me? On the flight, that is. As much as I'd like to spend the night with you, if you come home with me, we won't be sleeping."

Lydia's eyes widened. "You'd let me fly with you?"

"If you'd like. And since I'm headed to Kodiak, we can stop and see Dooley. Talk to him and your cousin then."

"I'd love that. What time should I meet you?"

"The flight leaves at eight. If you want to grab breakfast first, we can meet at The Egg Cup at seven, if that's not too early. That'll give me enough time for my pre-flight checks. If it is too early, you can join me for my afternoon flight."

Lydia's smile brightened the room. "It's not too early."

"How about we trade phone numbers in case you change your mind?"

After sharing their numbers, Beck stood and held out his hand. Lydia took it, and Beck pulled her to her feet. He cradled her face and leaned in, pressing a chaste kiss to her lips. "I'm delighted you're here, Lydia Stone, and I cannot wait to see where this goes."

"Me too." Lydia kissed him this time, and Beck relished the taste of her lips.

Beck pressed their foreheads together before walking away. It was the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life, especially since his Bear was fighting to come out. Beck gritted his teeth as he walked out of the cottage and got into his truck. Lydia waved at him from the open door, and she blew him a kiss before closing it. Beck started the motor, then leaned his head back and closed his eyes. What a fucking day. He had a mate after all this time of hoping. Granted, she wasn't a bear, but she was a Gargoyle. One who could live a thousand years, and if he chose to accept the bond, he could too. He wanted to know what she looked like with her claws and fangs out, as long as they weren't grabbing his jacket. Shit, he left his coat in the cabin. Oh, well. He couldn't wear it with claw marks, but he also didn't want to spend money on a new one.

Before leaving, he checked his phone for messages only to find the battery was dead. Beck slipped it into the charging slot in the console, then backed out of the parking space. As he drove, his mind was swirling. He had been given a mate, but not by his goddess. Lydia mentioned the fates, but Beck didn't care who was responsible. Since he didn't know how all the fated stuff worked, who's to say the goddess didn't have a hand in it too? Beck was a good person. He was honest and loyal. He worked hard for his family even though he wasn't offered the same benefits as his sisters. He didn't begrudge them their privileges for being born female; it's how things were in their world.

He didn't have a nice home, but that was because he was saving for one. His truck was old for the same reason. It got him where he needed to go. He didn't spend frivolously. If he did, Beck would have more than a couple of tattoos. Lydia's boots and coat appeared to be new, and she had diamond studs in her ears. If she was used to the finer things in life, either she had money of her own, or her parents spoiled her. That wasn't a bad thing. She hadn't said, but based on her cute accent, she was from somewhere in the South. She had a large Clan filled with close friends and family. He couldn't see her moving to Alaska, but would he be willing to move away from his mother and sisters? They had pilots they called on to fill in, and one of them could take Beck's place full time if needed. And it wasn't like they would miss him. Plus, with his pilot's license, he could get a job anywhere. He would miss the cold weather and Dooley, but that was all Beck would miss.

The way Lydia spoke of her Clan, they were treated equally. The females had been trained alongside the males, and her King entrusted her with the task of securing other shifters for a council. If they claimed one another, he could help with her mission. From what she told him, shifters were in danger of being found out if the GIA agent continued dogging them. Dooley would be perfect for the council since he had eyes and ears all over Alaska as well as parts of Canada. He would ask Lydia about that when they were alone next.

His phone beeped as soon as it had a little juice. Since he and Lydia had traded numbers, he got excited thinking she missed him already. He was alone on the dark road, but Beck still pulled over to be safe. None of the messages were from her though. Nor were they from his mother. Normally, that wouldn't bother him, but since he'd mentioned they had a problem, she would have responded if she could. They were all from Delaney, and they got progressively more hateful. Where was he? Had he heard from Amara or Chloe? Why the fuck wasn't he answering her? Chloe was now missing too, and Beck needed to call her the fuck back so she could rearrange their schedules. He checked the time on the last one. It had been fifteen minutes prior to him leaving Lydia, so he hit dial on her number and pulled back onto the road.

"What the fuck, Sawyer?"

Beck bristled. She rarely called him that, but it was like when a parent used their child's full name. "My phone was dead, Laney. And what do you mean Chloe is missing?"

"Exactly what I said. After her tour, she took the helo back out, but the GPS tracker on it was turned off. I don't need this shit right now. I can't run a fucking business with one pilot." Beck chalked Delaney's rare cursing up to pregnancy hormones.

"Caleb and Damien are always on standby in case we need them."

"I fucking know that, but my sister and mother are missing!"

Beck turned the volume down and waited, not ignoring how she said her mother and sister. He was the outsider and always would be.

"Well?"

Beck pinched the bridge of his nose. "I went by Amara's earlier. She had entertained a male. His scent was familiar, but I couldn't tell you who he was. As for Chloe, maybe she's off with Boyd in Sterling."

"How do you know where my father is?" Beck shivered at the ice in her voice. That was new. They may not be close, but she'd never spoken to him with such disdain.

"You wanted my help finding Amara, and that's what I'm trying to do. Chasing all leads."

"I know you hate him, but he's not the evil incarnate you make him out to be. The fight to be Queen is part of our culture, something you wouldn't understand."

Beck understood perfectly. "There's nothing I can do about this tonight. I am going home to get a few hours' sleep, and I'll be at the harbor in time for my flight. Goodnight, Laney." Beck ended the call before she could yell at him. He would catch hell for it come morning, but he would face her wrath then. He didn't want to subject Lydia to his sister's bad attitude, but if they were going to be mates, she needed to understand his family dynamic. Getting out of Alaska was looking better with each passing second.