Chapter 1

Chapter

One

N ew Orleans, 2048

"You almost got me shot, you asshole," Skylar growled at him.

"Me? I was the only one out there without a gun," snarled Travis.

"I know, and because I was so worried about saving your sorry ass, that bastard almost got the drop on me. You have no idea what would have happened if I hadn't been able to get us out of there. You, he'd have just killed. Me? He'd have taken his time. You haven't seen the crime scenes—I have."

"It's all right, Skylar. We're safe now and I'm not going anywhere."

"The hell you aren't. I'm putting your butt on the first plane back to Galveston. You and your mother can expand your empire somewhere else. New Orleans is off limits."

"Last time I checked, your father was the Alpha of New Orleans, not you. What do you say we give him a call, tell him what happened?"

"You can't do that."

"Think not? Watch me," Travis said, beginning to dial Rivière Du Loup.

"Travis, stop. Please," said Skylar. Travis hesitated. "We both know if my father finds out, he'll move heaven and earth to get me back to the plantation and tossed off the force, if he can manage it."

"As well he should. I don't know whatever possessed him to allow you to become a cop."

Skylar grinned. "My mother can be very persuasive."

"I've got news for you, Sky, your mother may rock your father's world, but she doesn't lead him around by the dick. No, I rather suspect you've been very careful to keep your name out of the papers and ensure your father has no idea of the kind of danger you're in. I'm not going to let you get yourself raped and butchered, all in the name of girl power."

"Can't I do anything to persuade you? What if I promise to be extra careful?" she said seductively, tracing her finger down his chest.

He shook his head. "You aren't going to lead me around by mine either."

"Look, Travis, this guy is dangerous…"

"No shit."

"I almost had him. I can catch him. I can stop him. Five women have already died."

"How is this not big news? Why isn't the FBI here? They're the ones that deal with serial killers."

Travis and Skylar had known each other for most of their lives. He knew her far better than she wanted to admit, and he knew all of her moods and all of her moves. He'd expected the seductive maneuver; it was one she used to good effect on everyone but her father and her brother. Jean Edouard.

"You manipulative brat," he snarled when she couldn't look him in the eye. "No one knows, do they? You spotted the pattern—you've always been good at that. Did you figure this was your ticket to the fast lane for a gold shield?"

"Do you have any idea how hard it is for a woman to get promoted to a gold shield and get into either Homicide or Major Case? The good ole boy system is alive and well in the New Orleans police department. If I crack this case, they can't keep me out. I'm good at what I do, Travis, you know that. You're also enlightened enough—at least I think you are—to know there's no place for me in wolfen society. I'm an alpha she-wolf and daughter to one of the most powerful alphas in the world."

"Your family loves you and your mother knows what it is to submit to your fated mate."

"My mother isn't an alpha; she has no idea. But yours does, as does my namesake."

Travis walked to the edge of the wharf and looked out at the Gulf of Mexico's still waters shimmering in the moonlight. His cock was hard as a rock; it had been since the shooting started, but then it tended to be in that state whenever he was around Skylar. He tried to tell himself it was the rush of adrenaline from facing death, but that wasn't it. He hadn't been afraid for himself—he'd been afraid for Skylar.

The fact was, she was right. Life as an alpha she-wolf wasn't easy. His parents made it work, mostly because his father loved his mother enough to allow her some freedom and not force her into the confines of the traditional role of mistress to the pack. But his mother was a celebrated chef, not a rookie detective trying to make her bones.

Travis had to let Skylar follow her passion, but he also had to find a way to keep her safe. Both his father and mother, separately and collectively, had warned him that heeding the call of his fated mate, whoever she might be, would not be for the faint of heart. They had no idea.

He suspected his parents knew he'd been called to Skylar as his fated mate, but neither had ever asked and he'd never told them. California or New York would have been the next logical step in expanding his and his mother's restaurant empire, but Travis had been insistent that New Orleans made more sense—it was closer to their base in Galveston, and they were on good terms with the pack that ruled over the city, etc. He'd been able to expound upon all the reasons it made sense.

The truth was that with Skylar now working as a cop in the Crescent City, he'd decided to pay court to her and then declare himself to her father. But Skylar had insisted time and time again that she had no use for a mate—fated or otherwise. She was following in the footsteps of both of their mothers. Travis planned, like both of their fathers, to bring her to heel and take her to mate regardless of her feelings on the matter.

As she was working in the city and living on her own, he'd wanted to be close by, both to protect and seduce her. Skylar Gautier may not have wanted to admit it, but he was her fated mate and she would be his. Opening a new restaurant in the French Quarter gave him a good reason to be here.

Taking a deep breath, he turned back to her. "All right. I do understand—your ambition, your need to protect, your need to find your own way. But you don't have to find that way alone. I'm willing to keep silent about what happened tonight."

"Thanks. I do think it would be better, though, if you went back to Galveston for a while."

"That's not happening. First, like it or not, I'm your fated mate." He put his hand over her mouth. "I'm talking and you're going to listen and agree to my plan, or my next phone call is to your father to tell him I'm bringing you home, and why." He waited to see what she would do. She closed her mouth but shot daggers at him with her beautiful blue eyes. "Good. Second, you're not going back to your crappy apartment. It isn't safe and the killer knows where it is. Three, you will keep me advised of everything you're doing and where you're going to be. And fourth, you are going to submit to my authority and behave yourself and when you don't, you'll submit to my discipline. Have I made myself clear?"

"You can't stand there and dictate terms to me."

"I rather think I can. I'm pretty damn sure I can get you back safe and sound to Rivière Du Loup . Once there, your father can keep you in line and I'll ask for his blessing. If you still refuse, you can challenge me to let you run. But you won't win. I'll run you to ground and claim you then and there."

She stomped her foot. "I will not agree to any of this."

Travis grinned. She'd obviously forgotten how well he knew her. That stomped foot was classic Skylar and meant she knew she was out of all other options but sheer bravado.

"Your agreement isn't necessary. Your father is a traditionalist, or have you forgotten he ran your mother to ground?"

"I don't need you to look after me, and I sure as hell am not going to let you spank me."

"I have no doubt you're going to fight both but win neither. It's me or your father. If he finds out what you've been up to, he'll let JD take a strap to your pretty backside to remind you that he is alpha, and you will submit to his authority."

Even though he held all the cards, Travis held his breath. He desperately wanted her to agree to his terms, but if the only way to keep her safe was to take her back to her father's plantation, he'd lasso her, tie her up, and drag her back home.

He knew he was a sick bastard, as he was actually looking forward to disciplining her and taming her wildcat ways. He would make her purr for him. Skylar Gautier was arrogant, stubborn, and disobedient, and the only she-wolf he'd ever wanted. His mother had counselled patience; his father advised him to take her in hand and bring her to heel.

"This is categorically the worst idea you've ever come up with and you've had some doozies. Things will never work between us; can't you see that?"

"My mother used to tell my father that all the time. She was wrong, and so are you. Your choice is simple: submit to me and remain in the city to catch this killer, or I drag you home and you submit to your father, which will end with you submitting to me anyway."

"Fuck you," she spat.

"That's a given," he rejoined.

"Seriously, Travis, go home before I shoot you."

She brought her SIG Sauer up and levelled it at him.

"Put it down, Sky. And if you ever threaten me with a weapon again, I'll take my belt to your backside and lay a set of welts across it that'll keep you from sitting or fucking on your back comfortably for a week. Now put it down."

He held her eyes and finally she lowered the gun.

"This isn't going to work," she said, defeatedly.

He closed the distance between them and tucked one of her errant curls that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear.

"We'll be fine, and I'll keep you safe. My mother and I purchased an old restaurant in the French Quarter. It has a loft space that I plan to turn into a residence. Right now, it just has a bed, but it's a nice, big, comfy bed. We'll go there tonight and then if you give me your keys after I drop you at the station, I'll go pick up your things."

"And what do I tell anybody who sees you dropping me off?"

"The truth. That you're with me now."

"Fuck, I hate you."

"No, you don't, and you aren't going to curse at me and use foul language. I expect you to start learning to obey me. When you don't, you'll get your bottom spanked. And just so you know, when we get to the loft, you're going to get naked and put yourself over my knee."

"The fuck I will."

Travis growled. "One more curse word and you can have a mouth full of soap after your spanking and before you stand in the corner. You're going to mind me, and that starts now."

"What if I tell my father you laid a hand on me?"

Travis laughed. That seemed to throw her.

"I've known your father almost as long as you have. All I have to do is call to you. When he sees you respond, it's all over but your caterwauling. It won't change a damn thing, except maybe get both of our mothers spanked if they try to interfere. He'll let me make you run—you know he will."

"You can't do this to me. Shit, Travis, I'm a cop."

"You are my fated mate, Skylar, and I've put up with your bullshit as long as I'm going to. Put the gun away and let's go home."

"No."

"Rivière Du Loup it is."

He removed his cell phone from his pocket.

Skylar holstered her gun. "All right, damn it. You win. But I'll hate you forever."

"No, you won't, but at least you recognize we're going to be together for eternity. That's a step in the right direction."

Travis fisted her hair and tugged her head back, his mouth slanting across hers, controlling the kiss and the woman in his arms. His tongue plunged past her lips and swept inside her mouth, dancing—no, that wasn't right—fighting for dominance. When she yielded, he finished the kiss, making sure to leave her breathless and clinging to him.

They took his truck back to the newest location in he and his mother's restaurant empire, Loup De Mer. He pulled into the underground parking lot, which would also serve as a loading zone, and into his private spot. He ushered her into the antique freight elevator and when they reached the third floor, he opened the doors and escorted her inside. Right now, it didn't look like much—just an enormous open space with floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the water on one side, as well as large windows in the back that overlooked the restaurant's courtyard. All the other walls were old, exposed brick, old being more than two hundred years. The space had high ceilings with exposed beams and duct work. There was a walled-off area for a bathroom, which had a clawfoot tub, wall sink, and toilet. Renovating that space and the kitchen were his first priorities.

Travis had spent the last week cleaning all the debris out and refinishing the floors. He'd bought an enormous antique bed, as well as an antique pantry and kitchen island. He had a small fridge, a coffeemaker, and a hot plate.

"I know it isn't much yet, but I'm meeting with an architect tomorrow to look at plans to turn it into a home," he said, nudging her toward the bed.

"You don't really expect me just to put myself over your lap and let you spank me, do you?"

"Of course not."

"Thank God."

"I expect you to get naked and then come stand by the bed. We may as well start the way we're going to finish, which means I'll put you in position over my knee. Then you're going to get spanked for lying to your family and for almost getting us both killed, as well as for generally being a pain in my ass."

"Travis, no," she said, stomping her foot.

"Skylar, yes. If I have to force the issue, it'll be my belt instead of my hand."

"Bastard," she snarled.

"Not true, and you know it. I was going to let you pass on the soaped mouth because the bath isn't really set up for it, but one more word of defiance, and I'll make it work. Now, Sky. Get naked."

"You pervert, you've been wanting to see me with my clothes off since we were kids."

Travis shook his head. "Also not true. Ever since I came of age and knew you were my fated mate, I've wanted to get you naked and underneath me. I want to drive my knot into you and have you tied to me for hours."

She blanched. "Oh no. That is not happening."

"Not tonight, and not until you catch this guy and put him behind bars. But the day that happens, we go out to Rivière Du Loup, and I ask your father for your hand, and you will say yes."

"You're delusional. This is not the Middle Ages. You and my father can't decide for me that you're taking me to mate."

"Yes, we can. But why don't we save that argument until after you finish this case. For tonight, you're going to get naked. Then I'm going to put you over my knee and spank that pretty bottom of yours until I get through to you and you're crying."

"And after that?" she said, breathlessly.

"I'm going to slip my hand between your legs and find out just how wet you are for me. Then I'll make you stand in the corner by the fireplace and wait for me to forgive you."

"Do you really want our first time to be standing up, with you mounting me from behind?"

"It worked for my parents," he said with a grin. "In fact, it was the first time my mother had ever been with a wolf. Now get naked."

Travis backed away toward the bed but kept his eyes on her. If she tried to bolt, he wanted to be ready. He should have brought his lariat upstairs with him. When he dropped her off in the morning and went to pick up her things, he'd be sure it made it up to the loft. Maybe he'd stop by one of the erotic toy stores as well as the Central Grocery and Deli to do a bit of shopping for them if he had time.

He sat down on the edge of the bed and watched Skylar turn her back to him and slowly remove her clothes, setting her holstered gun and handcuffs on the antique kitchen island. Unbeknownst to her, he had seen her naked before. It had been a hot night, and she'd gone skinny dipping in her father's pool. He hadn't seen much, but it had fueled his fantasies for years. She had been a girl at the time. The body that she revealed now was ripe and that of a woman. He inhaled deeply. Unless he completely missed his guess, his mate was highly aroused.

When she turned to face him, her body confirmed that fact. Her nipples were completely pebbled and just begging to be sucked. But that would have to wait until he had her in bed. First was the spanking that was long overdue, and then he would claim her in the corner. His cock throbbed at the thought. He had been painfully hard most of the evening, but now with relief in sight, his dick was making sure it was going to get what it needed. It would, but only after he gave her what she needed first.