Chapter 34

34

I could kill Ares for opening his big mouth.

We've got enough to deal with right now in the aftermath of The Guild's attack. Funeral arrangements need to be made for the two squad fighters who perished in battle, all hands are on deck in the infirmary to help aid those who were injured, and now we've got to regroup and strategize as to how we can beat the hunters before they ambush us with another surprise attack. The last thing we needed to add to the pile was the bomb Ares just dropped about how my mate was the one who alerted everyone to the explosives- and oh yeah, he's also a hunter-turned-shifter that we've secretly been holding captive for days.

As if one explosion wasn't enough today, that news had the same force as the detonation in the road. Everyone here in the Goldenleaf packhouse who didn't know about Cam's existence before now is collectively losing their goddamn minds.

Listen, hindsight's a bitch and I now realize that I should've probably at least told my parents about him. At that squad meeting after he was brought in, though, my captivity was still so fresh. I was still reeling over Cam being both a secret shifter and my fated mate, and I was still processing how to handle it. I didn't know how I was gonna do that, but one thing I did know was that I wanted to figure it out before getting the council or my parents involved. So, I played the kidnapping victim card on my friends and convinced them to keep it all under wraps until I decided I was ready to deal with it. Except now, that decision has been taken from me, thanks to fucking Ares .

"Why would you keep this from us?" my mom demands, her expression equal parts angry and hurt.

"It was squad business!" I say defensively. "We were handling it."

"It was alliance business, and at the very least, the council should've been informed," Alpha Reid states, calm and collected as ever.

I can't say the same for my Uncle Theo. He looks like his head's about to explode, his face turning redder by the second. "Where is he?" he demands, striding toward my brother. "Is he in the holding cells?"

"No," Madd replies flatly, miraculously keeping his cool for once.

"Then where is he?" Uncle Theo snarls. He suddenly flinches back in realization, narrowing his eyes and sweeping his gaze around the room. "Is he here ?"

Madd darts me a glance that inadvertently confirms our uncle's suspicions, and all hell breaks loose again, everyone shouting over one another to be heard. This has all just turned into a big clusterfuck and my anxiety is through the damn roof.

After the attack, a meeting was immediately called to debrief the six-pack council, so there wasn't enough time to stop off at the squad complex and return Cam to his cell. Instead, I just brought him back to the Goldenleaf packhouse with me, shoved him in a guest room, and told him to stay put. I mean, it's not like he's a flight risk. Any suspicions I had that he was working as a double-agent for The Guild were put to rest as soon as I saw the hunters shooting at him and vice versa. The guy is on team werewolf now, whether he likes it or not, and as far as I'm concerned the guest room is just a cushier cell.

Except now everyone knows he's here, and that flimsy door isn't going to protect him from a house full of pissed off Alphas.

I lock eyes with my twin, silently pleading for his help in diffusing this situation.

"We made a judgment call," Madd barks out, his deep voice cutting through the dull roar of bickering. The room slowly quiets down as the others turn their attention to him, and he sweeps his gaze around the crowd gathered in the living room, frowning. "If anyone has a problem with it, then you can come to me directly."

Ugh, why does he have to try to play the hero right now? As much as I appreciate Madd's willingness to fall on the sword for me, I can't let him shoulder the blame for something he didn't even want to agree to in the first place. In fact, he was the one who took the most convincing to keep this under wraps. I heave a sigh as I step closer to my brother, throwing up a hand. "It was my fault," I announce.

"No, we all agreed," Madd growls, snapping his head sideways to shoot me a hard look. In that one look, though, I see everything he's not saying out loud.

Let me handle this. I've got it.

I give him one of my own back that says I can take the heat, but we don't get the chance to finish our silent conversation.

"I don't care whose fault it was, I'm going in there," Mom huffs, her long blonde ponytail whipping behind her as she spins on a heel and takes off for the guest wing.

"Mom, stop!" I shout, chasing after her as she stomps toward the hallway. All the doors in the corridor of the guest wing are standing open except one, so it's a pretty easy guess as to which Cam is holed up in. I hear my dad's heavy footsteps thudding against the floor behind me in pursuit. He tries calling out to his mate, but she's on a damn mission. Once the barbie beast sets her mind to something, there's no holding her back.

"Just wait!" I yell, catching up to her as she approaches the sole closed door and trying to shoulder her out of the way as she reaches for the knob. She's braced for impact, though, and as soon as she gets her hand on the knob, she flings the door open and goes charging into the room.

I'm right behind her, my dad close behind me, and Cam looks completely bewildered when the three of us spill into the room, my mom marching right up to him and stabbing a finger into the center of his chest.

"So you're the one who kept my daughter locked up?" Mom spits, glaring daggers at my warden.

"He's also the one who let me go!" I counter, catching up to her and trying to put myself between them. I don't even know why I'm standing up for Cam right now- I should just let my mom have at him for all he put me through- but some desperate, naive part of me is still clinging to the idea of fate having some master plan here, and as far as first impressions between parents and mates go... this one isn't great.

I cast my dad a pleading glance to intervene, and thankfully, the man doesn't disappoint.

"Fallon," he calls in a low voice.

Her head whips around, their gazes locking.

"Let Avery have a chance to at least explain before you go throwing punches, huh babe?"

Mom's brow's draw together, her lips pursed tightly in anger. For a second, it's like time freezes as we all look on warily, wondering how this is going to play out. Then my mom's shoulders droop as she begrudgingly relents, swiveling in my direction and giving me a pointed stare that says to hurry up and explain myself.

Shit.

I rock back on a heel, pinching the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger. "I didn't want you guys to find out like this," I sigh, shaking my head as I mutter, "fucking Ares and his big fucking mouth."

"This isn't Ares' fault," my dad replies in a clipped tone. "If you'd been honest from the beginning about what was going on, we wouldn't be feeling so left in the dark right now."

"Oh yeah, and Mom wouldn't have gone straight to the complex to tear him a new one?" I snort, gesturing toward her.

He darts my mom a glance, wincing. Yeah, he knows I'm right.

"I just wanted to work things out in my own way, in my own time," I explain, taking a step toward my mom and reaching out for her hand. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys right away, but I swear I was going to at some point. And in some way a whole lot less dramatic than all…" I grimace as I wave a hand, " this ."

The door to the hallway is still standing open, and I can hear the rumbled voices of people arguing back in the living room. It sounds like they're having a hell of a time holding my Uncle Theo back from charging in here to join the party, and I'm just frustrated and overwhelmed and annoyed that I'm even dealing with this right now.

I heave another sigh, letting go of my mom's hand and stepping back. "Alright, well since we're obviously doing this now … Mom, Dad, this is Cam. My mate." I swivel to face him. "Cam, these are my parents."

He stands up a little straighter, meeting each of their eyes in turn. "Nice to meet you both," he says smoothly, stepping forward with confidence and extending a hand. "You raised one hell of a daughter."

"Damn right we did," Mom chirps, moving toward him and slapping her hand in his. I see her knuckles whiten as she squeezes his hand tightly in her grip, but he doesn't so much as flinch, holding her eye contact.

"I'm sorry for what you must've gone through when she was captured," he says, swallowing thickly. "I regret my involvement."

Mom narrows her eyes on him suspiciously as she finally releases his hand, my dad moving in beside her and slipping an arm around her waist. He guides her to step aside so he can offer Cam his own handshake, his left arm still slung around his mate to keep her grounded.

"I'm Gray, and this is Fallon. And while we're looking forward to getting to know you, I think we need some time for all of this to sink in before we can have a real conversation," Dad says, always so damn diplomatic.

"Of course," Cam nods.

I've gotta admit, he's better than I expected under pressure. If he's intimidated, he doesn't show it- and there's something undeniably sexy about that level of confidence in a man. As if my level of attraction to him wasn't already problematic enough.

"C'mon, babe," Dad coaxes, pulling my mom in closer to his side. "Let's go back out there and help your sister keep her feral mate contained."

I snort a laugh, slipping my dad a sly smile of gratitude as he starts to steer my mom away. He pauses as they pass, slinging an arm around my shoulders and pressing a quick kiss to my head, then continues toward the door with his mate in tow.

"Family dinner," Mom calls back to me over her shoulder. "Make time to come by sometime next week." Her gaze flickers between me and Cam. " Both of you."

"Sure, whatever," I breathe, just wanting this awkward confrontation to be over.

The two of them disappear into the hall, and I immediately cross the room to pull the door closed and lock it behind them, blowing out a frustrated sigh as I slump back against the cool wooden surface. "Ugh, I did not want to deal with this shit today," I groan, dragging my hands down my face. "If only Ares kept his mouth shut…"

"Then you could keep on pretending I don't exist?" Cam mutters, arching a brow. He makes a scoffing sound in his throat, shaking his head with a scowl. "Hey, I get it. You're back home now, back to your life. The game's over between us."

I just stare at him for a beat, chewing on the inside of my cheek. I'm not sure how to respond to that, because while it may have all started off as a game, both of us stopped playing at some point and this thing between us took on a life of its own. He doesn't get to pretend that none of it was real- not when he made those sweeping declarations the other day and spent the next hour making me come over and over again with his tongue.

What changed on the battlefield today?

He literally shielded me with his body when that bomb went off, but then he was suspiciously quiet as we dealt with the aftermath and returned to the packhouse. I should've known something was up with him.

Cam shakes his head, turning away from me with a dejected sigh. "Just go," he grumbles. He paces over to the dresser, putting his back to me as he rests his hands on the surface and leans forward, hanging his head.

"Go where? This is my fucking house," I quip, pushing off from the door and strutting in his direction.

" Your house, your pack, your life," he murmurs wryly. "Trust me, I get it."

I pause my footsteps, throwing my hands on my hips indignantly. "None of this would be happening if you'd just stayed in your damn cell, you know."

He whips back around to face me, lips twisting in a scowl. " Well what the fuck was I supposed to do, sit there on my ass while you all got blown up?"

"We would've figured it out," I snap.

He throws up an arm exasperatedly. "She said you were under attack!"

"So?" I scoff, folding my arms as I avert my gaze. "It wasn't your place to get involved, Cam."

"Then where the fuck is my place, Avery? Huh?" he growls, pushing off from the dresser and closing the remaining distance between us. "Because it's not with The Guild anymore. You saw what just happened out there. And it's not here, since everyone still sees me as the enemy. And it's obviously not with you, since you can't seem to stand to look at me."

I jerk my chin up, meeting his eyes as he stops just short of our chests brushing. "I'm looking at you now. Happy?"

"Nah, I'll be happy when you stop being such a stubborn bitch and admit I saved your asses out there today. That maybe I'm not the enemy."

I press my palms against his chest. "You fucking kidnapped me!" I shout, shoving hard but failing to move him.

"My people did," he clarifies, "and yours did the same thing when I showed up, so I guess we're even."

"We're nowhere close to even."

"Then let me fucking help!" He buries a hand in his hair, tugging at the strands. "Like I said before, if you'd just let me access a computer, I can cripple their systems. And I might be able to get us a man on the inside if I can try to send a message…"

"Why should I trust you?" I scoff.

Cam's brow furrows, his frown deepening. "You mean you still don't, after today? You saw what fucking happened out there." He throws out an arm, gesturing wildly. "You know who shot at me, right before you pushed me out of the way?" He leans down, putting his face right in front of mine. "My fucking dad . The man who raised me."

I draw a sharp gasp, eyes widening in surprise.

"Yeah," he scoffs, shaking his head. Then he turns and paces away a few steps, pivoting to stride back toward me. I drink in the way those inked, muscular arms of his bunch and flex as he reaches up to drag his hands through his hair again, testing the very limits of the fabric of that tight black t-shirt. He's usually so good at schooling his features, but for once, I can actually read the emotion on his face as he paces back in my direction, shoulders slumped and eyes pained.

"Cam," I breathe, reaching out for him.

"Don't," he barks, swatting my hand away.

I frown, stepping close enough to rest a palm against his chest. "What are you gonna do, lock me up?"

His eyes collide with mine, the muscle in his tightly set jaw feathering. "I've made mistakes, Avery. A fuck ton of them. But now I know how fucking wrong I was about shifters, okay? And I just... I wanna set things right."

I stare back at him, my pulse hammering and the bond between us burning brightly in my chest. My wolf presses forward, Cam's eyes shimmering with gold as his own peeks back.

He shakes his head, flickering his gaze away. "Or you could just stuff me back in that cell and take your chances," he mumbles. "Face it, you need me."

I roll my eyes, dropping my hands to my sides. "I don't need anyone."

"You sure about that?"

I cut him a glare.

Cam reaches out as he steps in closer, cupping my jaw in a hand and tilting my face up toward his. "Look, you don't have to like me," he says in that deep, rumbling voice, staring into my eyes. "You can hate me for all I care. But you know I can help. "

I huff out a breath, averting my gaze. "I doubt the others would go for it," I admit.

"Then make them listen," he murmurs, drawing my gaze back to those dark eyes of his. "You're a goddamn force, Avery. You never let me win an argument. Drives me fuckin' crazy, but if there's any situation where you should apply that, it's now. Let me help you guys win this."

The close proximity of his body and the way he's cradling my cheek in his warm, callused palm is scrambling my brain. His scent is like a goddamn drug, his gentle touch making me crave even more contact. My heart rate kicks up a notch as he wets his lips with his tongue, gaze dropping down my form.

"Fuck, I swear I can smell when you're turned on," he grumbles.

A blush of embarrassment immediately rises to my cheeks and I jerk back, flustered, brushing his hands away.

"If you need me to get on my knees again, I'm at your service," he drawls, the corner of his lips lifting in a little smirk.

"Fuck you," I snarl.

"I can do that, too."

I stare at him, suddenly at a loss for words while my chest rises and falls rapidly with my ragged breathing. Honestly, I'd love to diffuse this argument with a quick and dirty fuck, but this definitely isn't the time or place. Ugh, but the way he's looking at me…

He moves closer, reaching out to take my face in a hand again, sparks dancing between our skin. "Tell me what you need," he rasps, leaning down until his face is hovering right above mine and we're breathing the same air.

The last shred of my self-control evaporates in an instant. "You," I whisper.

The tension between us snaps like a rubber band, and before I can even blink, his lips are descending on mine.

Shit, he's never kissed me before .

We've fucked, we've rounded all the other bases, but somehow, we always managed to skip first. And this kiss ... it changes everything .

The way he captures my mouth is dominant and possessive, carnal and claiming. It sets off a chain reaction in my brain that has me winding my arms around his neck and burying my hands in his hair; parting my lips and tilting my head to give him better access to devour me. His hands cruise down the small of my back, dipping to my butt and squeezing my cheeks. Then they travel lower, wrapping around the backs of my thighs to lift me up off the ground.

My legs part to straddle his waist, my nipples hardening beneath my sports bra as they scrape against his firm chest. Our tongues tangle, his rough beard rasping against my chin as he pivots around and carries me over to the nearest wall, slamming my back against it for support as he begins tearing at my clothes.

It all happens in a beautiful, chaotic blur. Our kisses only break long enough for us to strip each other down, and then he's lifting me to straddle his waist again, lining the thick tip of his cock up at my entrance and shoving inside. He swallows my scream, ravaging me with his lips and tongue as he starts pounding into me hard and fast, stretching and filling me with that glorious cock of his.

Yep, still dicknotized. No regrets.

His lips leave mine to travel down my neck, licking and sucking and nipping at my skin. When he gets to the junction of my neck and shoulder, the sensation is too much- I cry out, and he slaps a hand over my mouth to muffle the sound, the pulsing of his hips increasing in tempo.

" This is what you need," he growls, swiping his tongue up the column of my neck and biting my earlobe. "Admit it."

My thighs tremble, the coil in my belly winding tighter as the friction of his pelvis does sinful things to my throbbing clit. "Shut up," I choke out .

"Not until you come for me, Luna."

"Why do you keep calling me that?" I ask through panted breaths. "You know my name now."

"Don't know," he breathes, gripping me by the hips. His fingertips dig into my skin as he manhandles my body, encouraging me to meet every one of his savage thrusts. "I think my wolf wants me to."

"Oh." A blush rises to my cheeks. I guess it makes sense, since he's an Alpha wolf. But also, that must mean his wolf has accepted me as his , and that thought makes my own wolf fucking preen .

"Fuck, right there," I rasp, grinding down onto him as I chase release. I'm dangerously close to the edge, my lungs constricting and muscles tensing. He slips a hand between our bodies, his skilled fingers rubbing against my clit, and within minutes, I lose it.

Cam's mouth slams over mine as my orgasm rockets through me, kissing me within an inch of my life as I ride out the waves of pleasure. A few pumps later, his chest rumbles with a groan as he finds his own release, warmth flooding my insides as he fills me up.

He drags my lower lip between his teeth as he finally breaks our kiss, burying his face in the crook of my neck and panting to catch his breath. "Fuck," he growls against my skin. "I needed that, too."

An airy giggle escapes my throat through the blissed-out haze I'm still in. "This is so fucked."

"Yeah," he agrees, chest still heaving against my own. He lifts his head, dark eyes colliding with mine. They aren't shining with regret, like I've seen every other time we've had sex. There's something else there; something I've never seen before. It scares me, and I almost push him away, tempted to run from it.

Then he kisses me again.