CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Havana sighed. “I’m not calling you ‘Alpha’ in bed.”

“Why not?” Tate asked, fighting a smile. Teasing his mate had fast become one of his favorite things to do. “You could play the shy submissive devil who can’t meet my eyes.”

“You are nuts if you think that’s going to happen.”

“It could be fun.” He’d never really been a big fan of soaking in a bathtub. He preferred showers. But as he lay in his freestanding tub with his mate situated comfortably between his legs, he felt more relaxed than he had in days. It was a combination of things—the feel of her skin against his, the heat of the water, the lavender scented bath bomb, the relative silence. The fact that she was naked was a bonus.

“You won’t even try?” he asked. “Playing the role of shy submissive devil who has disobeyed pride rules and needs to be punished by her Alpha … yeah, that would work.”

“Not happening, Garfield.”

Tate nipped the tip of her ear. “Fine, be that way. I’d rather play the ‘Alpha Male Claims his Mate’ game anyway. We can call it practice.”

A claiming between Alphas could be savage. The moment the mental path for their true-mate bond cleared, the mating urge would slam into them. It was said to be so all-consuming that it robbed a person of all control and left them with only one thought in their head—to claim their mate. But the mating urge also fed a natural-born alpha female’s need to test their male, so there would be no fast, sex-crazed fuck for Havana and Tate. She’d make him work for it, just as she always did.

Until her devil opened that damn door, the mating urge would remain dormant. Assuming that was the only thing blocking the bond’s frequency, of course. There was no saying for certain that Havana had gotten rid of whatever issues that blocked it before her devil shut him out. But Tate believed they’d worked through them together.

“You’re not reluctant to become Alpha female, are you?” He dragged his fingertips up the arm she’d braced over the side of the tub. “I was hoping you’d come around to the idea.” His cat tensed as he waited for her answer.

“I can’t say I’m excited to lead your pride, but I don’t have an issue with it,” she said, her eyes closed, her head resting on his chest. “I was hesitant at first, but that was mostly because I worried your pride mates would see you mating a lone shifter as a weakness. But now that I’ve met each of your pride mates and—with the exception of a few—seen that they’re nothing but happy for you, I’m okay with it.”

Tate felt his mouth tip up, touched by her concern. “I didn’t realize you worried they’d consider my claiming a loner a demonstration of weakness. You should have mentioned it. I could have told you that it was a senseless worry—my pride mates don’t have issues with lone shifters. We employ them, we associate with them, and we support Dawn’s shelter. In fact, my pride mates often donate blankets, food, furniture, and clothing to the shelter. I don’t order them to do it. They do it because they want to.”

“I was pretty sure you’d tell me that I was worrying unnecessarily, but I needed to see for myself that that was the case.”

“So you’re good with ruling the pride alongside me now?”

“Yes. Don’t think my not being excited means I’ll do a half-assed job. I won’t shirk my duties, neglect the pride, or leave the main bulk of the responsibilities to you. I’ll be your partner, your equal, your sounding board—whatever you need.”

“I’ve never doubted that you’d be a committed Alpha. You already are one. It’s just that your clan currently consists only of you, Aspen, and Bailey. Camden sort of lingers on the periphery of it. He gives off the lone wolf vibe.”

“I suspect the only thing that keeps him in one place is Aspen.”

Tate felt his brow crease. “I don’t think so. He cares about you and Bailey in his way.”

Havana’s nose wrinkled. “I don’t know if he cares about us per se. It’s more like he cares what happens to us. Aspen’s the only person he’s formed a bond with, from what I can tell. But I don’t know if it’s a healthy bond. It’s just a little too intense. I can’t explain it well.”

“I know what you mean. Something about him is …. off. But I don’t get the sense that he’s cruel or unfeeling.”

“The stuff that happened in his life before he appeared at the center … It’s a doozy of a story, Tate. Maybe it all switched off something inside him, or maybe he’s always lacked a certain something that I can’t quite put my finger on. Corbin said he used to watch Camden very closely when he was a kid, worried he’d go down a dark path. But then Aspen turned up at the center, and Camden connected with her. That seemed to stabilize him somehow.”

“They could be true mates.”

“Maybe. I don’t know if what they feel for each other is actually platonic, though I suspect it isn’t.” She shrugged. “It’s all a bit of a mystery.”

“You’ve never asked Aspen how she feels about him?”

“No. If things are platonic on his part but not hers, she’ll avoid voicing what she wants so that she doesn’t have to be hurt by it. I haven’t raised the subject because if I make her face something she’s subconsciously ignoring, she could start hurting over it, and that could come between them.”

“Then I guess it’s best to leave it be. There’s no sense in fixing what isn’t broken.”

Tate got the impression that Camden liked being a loner, so he wasn’t certain the tiger would accept his invitation to join the pride. Tate just hoped the guy didn’t try to talk Aspen out of joining. Havana wouldn’t truly be happy in the pride if her girls weren’t part of it.

He nuzzled her wet hair. “You know, I was thinking …”

“What?”

“Aspen and Bailey would make good enforcers.”

Havana twisted her head to look up at him, her face a study in surprise.

“They learned a lot of skills during the years they worked for the Movement,” Tate added. “I’d be a fool not to put those skills to good use. Plus, I want you to have your own bodyguards once you take on the position of Alpha female. Who better to guard you than two of the people you trust most?” In actual fact, they were also the people he’d trust most to protect his mate. They adored her with the ferocity that shifters were known for. His cat felt equally comfortable with the idea of them guarding her.

Havana bit her lip. “I can’t be sure whether or not they’d accept your offer, but I do agree that they’d make good enforcers. Will Luke, Farrell, or any of your existing enforcers have an issue with Aspen and Bailey being part of your ranks?”

“No. They’re impressed by what they’ve seen of your girls so far. Even Luke, despite that Bailey watches him like she’s waiting for him to blow a fuse.”

“She said there’s a darker side to your brother. She believes he has a storm inside him.”

“She’s very perceptive.” Tate sighed. “The past six years have been hard for him.”

“Why?”

“Because he never feels close enough to the person he most needs to protect. His mate was twelve when he found her—they recognized each other at first sight. She’s part of the local bush dog pack.”

Havana’s lips parted. “I had no idea he’d found his mate. It explains why I’ve never seen him with a woman.”

“For obvious reasons, he hasn’t yet claimed Blair. He visits her, calls her, has people watch over her. But it’s not easy for him to not have her close.” Personally, Tate would find it a sort of hell. “He intended to claim her on her eighteenth birthday, but her parents nagged him to wait until she’s twenty-one. He refused, but he has agreed to hold back until she turns nineteen, which is ten months from now. His cat has been riding him hard ever since her eighteenth birthday—the feline feels that, as an adult female, Blair’s ready to be claimed.”

“Poor Luke,” said Havana, her voice soft. “It can’t be easy for Blair either.”

“I suspect not. The only saving grace is that bush dogs are one of the few shifter breeds that don’t experience the mating urge. Since she isn’t able to experience it, Luke hasn’t been struck by it either. That’s good, or they’d otherwise be a sexual mess.”

“Have you met her?”

“Yeah, plenty of times. I like her a lot. So will you. She’s pretty mature for her age. Knows how to handle herself—and how to handle Luke, for that matter. She has a steely stare that freaks people out, watches everyone like they’re prey. My cat likes it.”

“A bush dog will fit well here. They’re insane on their best day.”

“That they are. Back to the subject of your girls becoming enforcers … I’m aware there’s no guarantee that they’d follow my every directive. But I don’t want blind obedience. I want people who can think for themselves.” Tate kissed her temple. “Besides, I’m confident that you can keep them out of trouble. For the most part.”

“You’re obviously forgetting that Bailey likes trouble.”

“I haven’t forgotten. I’m just positive that you’ll handle her.”

Havana almost snickered. Leading her friend was one thing. Handling Bailey was a whole other ball game, and Havana doubted that anyone would win the mamba at that. “I suppose I should be flattered by your faith in me.” She frowned as a porcelain ornament on the window shelf caught her eye. “That’s my buddha.”

“Is it?”

Her lips thinned at his airy tone. “Yes.” It used to sit quite comfortably on her bathroom window shelf. She hadn’t noticed it was missing, which bugged her.

“Maybe it’s just similar to yours.”

She snorted. “Like I’m not fully aware that you’ve been moving my stuff here little by little.” She felt him smile against her neck.

“Busted. I just want you to feel at home here. The best way to achieve that is to bring a little of your home here.”

“Ooh, nice save.”

“Think of it this way. You’ll have less things to transport here when you do finally move in with me.” He lightly nipped the bite mark on her shoulder. “You practically live here now, so it wouldn’t be such a huge thing to just make it official,” he added, his voice far too casual.

Shaking her head, she sighed, tired of going over old ground. But of course he hadn’t dropped it—typical Alpha male, really. “You just can’t help yourself, can you?”

“You know you want to move in with me. Why not just do it?”

“God, you are so damn spoiled.”

“I’m not going to feel bad for wanting my mate living with me.” He curled his arms around her. “It’s where you belong.”

“We’ve already had the conversation of why I’m not going to do it yet.” She slashed her hand through the air. “I refuse to have it all over again.”

“You know, I shouldn’t like it when you use that school-teacher tone and take me to task for pushing so hard, but I do.”

“I guess that’s a good thing, because I’m sensing I’ll be doing it a lot.”

“Probably.”

“Kudos to your dad for raising two alphas. Especially when said alphas repeatedly tried to kill each other as kids.”

“Yeah, we were a trial.” He idly danced his fingertips over her stomach. “How many kids do you want?”

As his lips began to trail suckling little kisses down her neck, Havana tilted her head to give him better access. “I’d be good with two. Hopefully one of each gender, but I’m not fussy. I just want them to be happy and healthy.”

“Two works for me. But we have to have the boy first, so that he can look out for his sister.”

Like Rolando had for her, Havana thought. “It sucks that our kids will never know their maternal relatives, especially my parents and brother. But they’ll have your siblings, plus two honorary aunts who’ll no doubt spoil them rotten and teach them things they shouldn’t.”

He kissed her shoulder. “I hate that my mother will never get to hold our kids; that they’ll only know of her through whatever stories I tell them.” He tucked his face into the crook of Havana’s neck. “Gaia would have liked you. No, she’d have fucking loved you.”

Havana reached back to hook her hand around his nape. “My mom would have adored you. Rolando and my dad would have thought you were awesome, but they were so gruff and broody they probably wouldn’t have showed it.”

She and Tate sat like that for a short while, giving comfort and taking it.

“We need to get out of this tub before the water goes cold,” she finally said.

He traced her collarbone with one finger. “Not until I’ve made you come.” He dipped his hand under the water and unerringly found her clit, making a gasp fly out of her. “Feel free to scream.”

Keeping his mate close to his side, Tate stared down at the two females sitting on Havana’s sofa the next morning. “Well?” he prompted.

Aspen tilted her head. “You’re not just saying this in the hope that it’ll make Havana more comfortable about being part of your pride? You truly want to make us enforcers-slash-her personal bodyguards if we join?”

Tate hiked up a brow. “Can you think of anyone who’ll protect her more vigorously than you and Bailey would?”

“No.”

“Then there’s your answer.” Tate cut his gaze to Camden, who sat on the armchair, his expression carefully blank. “I’m open to offering you a place in the pride, Camden. You wouldn’t be the only shifter who joined when their relative mated into the pride. These girls are your family. I see that, and I don’t wish to take them from you. I couldn’t even if I tried. And I believe you’d make a loyal member of my pride.” Purely because he’d do nothing to hurt Aspen.

Havana, Bailey, and Aspen watched the tiger closely, looking hopeful.

Camden clasped the arms of the chair, seeming torn. “I don’t like being under anyone’s rule,” he said, but it wasn’t a no.

“I have no wish to run your life or take your choices from you. All I’ll want is your loyalty and for you to respect my status—the rest will automatically follow.”

Camden licked the front of his teeth. His eyes snapped to Aspen and lingered there for a long moment. Sliding his gaze back to Tate, he said, “I wouldn’t join your ranks.”

Meaning the male didn’t believe he could deal with someone directing his movements day after day, Tate understood. “I don’t require you to.”

“All right. If the girls join, I’ll join.”

Tate didn’t miss the relief that flickered across the bearcat’s face. “Good.” Tate turned back to Aspen and Bailey. “You two, however, I do wish to have in my ranks. So, what will it be?” He watched as Havana, Aspen, and Bailey each looked from one to the other, having one of those silent conversations again.

Aspen’s focus returned to him. “Okay, we accept your offer.”

“So long as you understand we’re likely to piss you off occasionally,” Bailey added.

“That has already occurred to me,” said Tate. “Once you’ve joined my pride—which can happen at any time you wish, even right this moment—”

Havana snorted. “Nice try, Garfield, but stop.”

Annoyed that she’d guessed his game, Tate inwardly sighed. Yeah, okay, so he’d thought that maybe if her girls joined now, she’d do the same. His cat thought it amusing that they struggled to get anything past their mate.

“As I was saying,” Tate went on, “once you’ve joined, I’ll arrange for you two and Camden to move to one of the pride’s complexes. This building is strictly for lone shifters. Plus, you should all be surrounded by your pride mates anyway; you need to know and feel that you belong. Your inner animals will need that, too. Do you all want to live in separate apartments?”

Her hands joined together as if in prayer, Bailey turned to Aspen. “Oh, I love having a roommate. Please be mine.”

“No way,” said Aspen. “I’d kill you within a day if we had to share the same living space. Or, more to the point, my bearcat would kill your mamba.”

“You’ll be sharing an apartment with me anyway,” Camden told Aspen.

The bearcat scratched her cheek. “I think it’ll be better if we live separately.”

The guy scowled. “How do you figure that?”

“You don’t see just how uncomfortable your partners are with me living with you,” said Aspen. “They’re suspicious of me, they feel awkward having me there, and then they do things that make me feel uncomfortable in my own home. I know a few of my exes have treated you badly, too. Living with you is a blast, but it isn’t something we can realistically keep doing.”

“The fuck we can’t,” clipped Camden. “Ever since we moved out of Corbin’s house years ago, we’ve been roommates in whatever apartment we lived in. Like you said, it’s a blast.”

“You’re not getting tired of ending relationships because your partners have bitched at me? You’re not getting tired of my dates giving you shit out of jealousy?”

“No, and no. None of those people were worth our time, or they’d have accepted that you and I are close friends.”

“Wouldn’t you prefer to live alone so that you can have a regular bachelor pad?” Bailey asked the tiger.

Camden frowned. “No. I like things the way they are. I like having my best friend living with me.”

Havana raised a finger. “Which is why Randy—”

“Don’t even mention that sack of shit,” clipped Camden.

“—and others you’ve dated have found it hard to accept Aspen,” said Havana. “You might have an easier time making your partners get along with your best friend if she isn’t living with you.”

The tiger’s face scrunched up. “I could give less of a fuck if people don’t like that she lives with me.”

“Your mate would care,” Aspen pointed out. “If you meet him or her, they’re not going to want me living with you. Come on, Camden, it’s not like we’ll never see each other—we’ll probably be living in the same building.”

But the tiger didn’t drop it, so the two disputed the matter right up until the moment they walked out the front door with an exasperated Bailey, who was pushing them to hurry so that they didn’t miss the movie they planned to go see at the theater.

Alone with Tate, Havana relaxed against him. “Thank you for giving my honorary family a place in the pride. You’re getting lucky later for sure.”

He smiled. “I’m already lucky. I have my mate right here. And she’s naked.”

Havana felt her brow furrow. “No, I’m not.”

“You are in my head,” said Tate. “It’s impossible for a man to look at you and not wonder what you look like naked. I don’t need to wonder. I know. And my mind brings up that pretty picture very often. It’s kind of distracting, but I’m good with it.” He kissed her soft and slow and languid. “I need to use the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” He patted her ass and strode off.

Just then, Havana’s phone rang. She grabbed it from the coffee table. Cesário. Damn. She hadn’t kept him up to date on all that had occurred, because she suspected he’d be pissed if he knew she’d almost died. Havana didn’t want him jumping into the situation and, in doing so, misusing the group’s resources. He’d regret it later.

She put her cell to her ear and greeted, “Hey, how are you?”

“You haven’t called with any updates,” he gruffly complained.

“I would have, but I know you find uninformative conversations boring and pointless, and since I don’t yet have intel about Gideon to pass on …”

“You must have something.”

“We did manage to find out that one of his jaguar-minions is named Enrique—that’s all we have on him so far, though. Well, it’s possible he’s a regular at a local casino, but we can’t be sure of that. Still, Tate’s enforcers are staking it out.”

He grunted. “How will they know if the jaguar shows?”

“We spoke to someone who was able to give us a description of both him and his buddy.” There was no need to explain she’d gotten that info out of a man who targeted her with a gun. Twice.

“That’s something, I suppose,” Cesário muttered. “I didn’t call just to moan at you.”

“At least you’re admitting that you’re moaning.”

“I wanted to know if you had anything to do with your old Alpha’s death.”

Both Havana and her devil went utterly still. “What?”

“Someone from our group knows of your old clan. They told me Yasiel was found dead in his cabin a few days ago. Well, some of him was found. It looked like whoever mauled him—and I’m guessing it was a shifter—also ate some of him. The killer didn’t set off any alarms. No one sensed them enter the territory or leave it.”

Feeling her chest squeeze tight, she said, “It could have been an inside job.”

“It probably was. I just thought I’d ask if you had a hand in it.”

“No, I didn’t.” She looked up as Tate strolled back into the living area. “But if I find out who did, I’ll be sure to shake their hand.” She had a pretty good idea of whose hand she’d be shaking, actually. Her gut rarely led her wrong. And right then, it was pointing its metaphorical finger at her mate. So was her devil, shocked by the news of Yasiel’s demise.

“As will I, Ramos. The fucker reaped what he sowed—it’s that simple.” Cesário paused when a muffled voice spoke in the background. “I need to run. Don’t forget to keep me in the loop about the auctions.”

“I won’t.” Without looking away from Tate, she rung off and returned her cell to the table.

Frowning, he cupped her chin. “Is everything all right, babe?”

“Yeah,” she breathed.

“You don’t look okay.” He slid his hand from her chin to her nape, pulled her closer, and curled his other arm tight around her. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I just …” She licked her lips and watched his expression carefully as she explained, “I just spoke with my old boss from the Movement. He told me that Yasiel was murdered.” There wasn’t even a flicker of surprise on Tate’s face. “You had something to do with it, didn’t you?”

Tate pinned her gaze with his own. “If it wasn’t for that bastard,” he began, his voice low and deceptively calm, “you wouldn’t have lost your family. You wouldn’t have been banished from your clan. You wouldn’t have been on your own from the age of twelve. So yeah, babe, I had something to do with his death.”

“Just how close a hand did you have in it? Were you there?”

“I was there. So was Luke and Alex.”

“I take it Alex’s wolverine is the one who chomped down some of Yasiel.”

Tate shrugged. “Wolverines often eat their prey.”

Staring up at him, she swallowed as the matter truly hit her. “You went all the way to Vancouver. You trespassed on Yasiel’s territory, knowing there was a risk you’d be seen and captured. And you mauled and killed him right in his cabin with the aid of both Luke and Alex.”

“That bastard needed to pay, Havana. He had no business walking this Earth after all he’d done.”

Oh, Havana couldn’t have agreed more. Her devil was delighted to hear that their old Alpha no longer breathed. The animal was also impressed and moved by what Tate had risked and done all in the name of avenging Havana. Especially since he obviously hadn’t done it to win points or he’d have told her about it himself. He’d done it because he was quite simply Tate—a man who’d never let someone who’d so gravely wronged his mate live.

This was what her inner devil wanted in a partner—a male who’d protect, treasure, and avenge Havana. And, feeling it was time, the animal let the mental door finally creak open.

And the mating bond snapped into place.

Pain knifed through Havana’s head and chest, dazing her. Her vision blurred and darkened for a few seconds, but then it righted, and the pain faded away. She looked at Tate, her lips parted, as peace fluttered through her like a warm breeze. God, she could feel him. Could feel his elation, surprise, relief, and—

She sucked in a breath as a blindsiding, elemental, all-consuming arousal whipped through her system and made her body surge to life. Her blood heated. Her skin tingled. Her nipples beaded. Her pussy spasmed.

Havana’s breaths came hard and fast as the visceral, violent need pressed her to lunge. Taste. Fuck. Bite. Pressed her to claim the male in front of her and brand him as her mate.

That was exactly what she and her devil planned to do.