Two for Protection (8 page)

“Tad…”
Her voice had such desire he couldn’t deny her.

He
slipped on top of her, his bulky frame hovering above her as he stared down at
her, desire burning in her eyes. He teased along the curves of her hips, his
fingers brushing against Milo. His shaft twitched with need, his bear clawed
under his skin, impatient and demanding. He wanted to see the desire burn
brighter in her eyes.

He
blazed a hot, wet trail of kisses across her belly and stroked her thighs with
his fingertips. With every touch, she arched her hips, demanding more. He loved
that she couldn’t get enough of him. Nudging her legs farther apart, his
fingers delved inside her and she met the teasing thrusts. A demanding moan
tore through the air.

Passion
drove fire through him. Keeping his gaze on her, he slipped lower on the bed.
The trail of wicked kisses tingled over her thighs. He moved his fingers until
his thumb was lightly teasing over her bud before he replaced it with his
mouth. Tiny nips and gentle licks flicked over her sweet spot until she wriggled
beneath him. Her fingers locked in his hair, torn between pressing him closer
and dragging him up.

“Tad!”
She cried out, her legs twitching, and her back arching as the release he was
waiting for found her.

“Yes,
mate?”

“I
want to feel you inside of me.” Her voice was hoarse with need.

With
another flick of the tongue over her sweet spot, he nodded. “Your wish is my
command, mate.”

He
spread her legs farther, giving him the access he needed before filling her
slowly, inch by inch. Halfway in, he slid out before thrusting back in, filling
her completely with his manhood.

“Milo.”
She wrapped her hand around his shaft. “Now, please.”

“This
time is about you.” He reclaimed her nipple, gently pulling it between his
teeth.

Tad
increased his pace, driving the force of each pump. The thrusts became deeper
and faster, falling into a perfect rhythm, moving with precision. Her hand
still worked down the length of Milo’s shaft, keeping the connection between
the trio burning.

Their
bodies rocked back and forth, tension stretching Tad tighter as he fought to
hold on until she came again. Tipping her head back, she cried out, her nails digging
into his shoulder blades, arching her body into his. He pumped once more and
shouted her name as his own orgasm followed.

Easing
off of her, Milo quickly replaced him. Tad drew his hand through her hair,
pulling it away from her face and kissing her deeply. He had wanted to taste
her lips again since watching how they puckered as she came.

“Oh
no, I want her to be able to scream my name just as she did yours.” Milo shot
them a quick smile before sliding his manhood inside her.

“I
guess I’ll have to give attention to the breast he neglected.” Tad teased
before kissing along her jawline to her neck. He loved the way her pulse sped
up; her arousal was stronger to his bear nose just below her ear, making him
want to bury his head there. Instead he continued down her chest until he
reached her breast.

Kissing
slowly around the nipple he watched his mates, he was surprised he felt no
jealousy, only joy. Milo’s hand left her hip, sliding up her body until it
brushed against Tad’s arm. The sensation of Milo’s touch made Tad pause with
his lips wrapped around Courtney’s nipple.

For a
moment he wasn’t sure how to take the connection that sprang to life. It seemed
to open more doors than just with Courtney. As it settled around him, he
realized it was just another fold of the mating, allowing them the share the
same bond they already had with Courtney. They would be in tune with each other’s
emotions at all times, not having to rely on her to be the middle that
connected them. It would help in protecting Courtney from Jeffery.

With
the connection easing through them, Courtney shouted Milo’s name. Only to be
followed seconds later by Milo’s release. Milo slipped out of her and collapsed
beside her. His gaze found Tad and they shared a knowing look. One that had Tad
closing the distance between them and laying his hand over the other man’s.

Eternity
stretched on before their breathing returned to normal. They lay cuddled
together, caressing each other with long, lazy strokes, enjoying the moment.

Chapter Ten

Courtney
and Tad strolled hand in hand back into the family room, while Milo stayed in
the bedroom making calls. In that moment life was good. She didn’t care that
somewhere in the darkness Jeffery might be lurking, all she wanted was to be
snuggled with her mates. Her body longed for Milo, but he’d promised he
wouldn’t be long.

“A
little action to burn off some steam, huh, Tad?” Tate teased, munching on a
bowl of popcorn.

“I’ve
never known my brother to miss a moment.” Turi chimed in.

“You
won’t disgrace a beautiful thing with your immature comments.” Tad let go of
her hand and pulled her into him. “Don’t either of you have anything better to
do?”

“Not
me, I have plans to sit with the newest addition to our family. I have many
stories of you I’m sure she’s very interested in hearing.”

“I
think you’ve said enough.” Tad glared at his brother; she could see he was
trying to push the darkness away. It was clear the thoughts of Rosemarie were
coming back to him.

She
tapped her hand on his arm, and glanced to Turi. “I’m sure he has happier
memories to share. Do you have any embarrassing moments you can tell me about?”
A few amusing tales would help lighten the mood.

“I’m
afraid now is not the time,” Hazel announced. They turned to find her standing
in the doorway.

“What
is it, Mom?” Tate set the bowl of popcorn aside.

“They
are nearing. If they continue, their arrival will be in twenty minutes. If they
veer off the path, it’ll be an hour.”

“They?”
Tad slid Courtney in front of him and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

“Your
father and another man are on his tail. I don’t believe they will catch him
before he gets here. We need to be ready,” Hazel explained.

“We’ll
be ready.” Milo stated, coming to join them in the family room. “Courtney, I
want you to stay in the study with Hazel. You’ll be safe there and out of
direct line if there’s a firefight. The windows are too far off the ground for
him to come in that way, leaving only one way.”

“Turi,
you’re with the women,” Tad ordered.

“Come
on, bro.” Turi complained.

Tad’s
body went stiff against her, and his fingers stopped teasing over her forearm.
“You might be an ass, but you’re still my brother. I want you safe and I need
to know the women are protected. Two birds one stone, that kinda crap. Now I
don’t want to hear another complaint.”

“Yes,
sir.” Turi quickly stood and saluted him before giving her a wink.

These
two were enough to drive her insane. She couldn’t imagine being surrounded by
all six of the Brown brothers at once. How had their mother managed when they
were young?

“Boys.”
Courtney intervened before Tad could do or say anything. She didn’t need him
beating the shit out of Turi. “Turi, you can use this time to give me the dirt
on Tad.”

“Come
along with me, Turi,” Hazel interjected. “There are a few things I’d like to do
first and could use your help.” She gave Tate a look that had him jumping to
his feet.

“I’ll
come too.”

“I
believe they’re giving us a private moment before the shit hits the fan.”
Courtney held her hand out to Milo. She wanted to feel them both pressed
against her, to calm the storm that was wrecking havoc on her stomach. Anxiety
and concern nearly overpowered her.

“Oh,
darling.” Milo joined them, wrapping his arms around both of them. “Everything
is going to be fine.” He nuzzled his head between the nook of her shoulder and
Tad’s chest.

“I
brought him here, this isn’t your fight. You shouldn’t be risking yourselves to
protect me. Damn it!”

“Courtney,
you listen to me.” Tad turned slightly so she could look at him without moving
Milo. “We’re not risking anything. I told you shifters are hard to kill.
Nothing’s going to happen to us. Dealing with Jeffery here on our terms will
free you. You’ll be able to live again without looking over your shoulder. This
ends here and now.”

“At
what cost? When this is over, then what? How am I supposed to go back to my
life in Texas? What about what has happened between us?” Questions poured off
her tongue, and all she really wanted to hear was that things would be fine.
That when things were finished with Jeffery, they would be there by her side.
She had only known them a short time, but no longer could she picture her life
without them.

“There’s
no cost, instead you’ll gain your freedom back.”

Milo
nodded against her shoulder. “Nothing is going to change between us, we’ll make
this work. If you’re unwilling to stay in Alaska, I’m sure Tex would be
grateful for the support in Texas as he tries to put the pieces of his clan
back together.”

She
let them hold her, to feel the truth of their words not just in her heart but
in her mind as well. To stop thinking and to trust what she was feeling from
them would take time. Right now, she forced the thoughts away.

“Things
will work out.” She said the words aloud to convince herself; they already
seemed to know.

* * *

With
their mate safe in the study, Milo knelt by the front window with Tad beside
him while Tate covered the back of the house. The waiting game was the worst. He
tried to relax to keep his shoulder lose when all the muscles wanted to do was
contract. The dual ache forming between his shoulder blades let him know he was
using his shoulder too much too soon. Tension of the muscles wasn’t helping.

“The
calls you made earlier, were you able to find out anything else on Jeffery?
Anything we can use against him?”

He
shook his head and glanced over at Tad. “The calls were for Ty. Seems the
Minnesota Alpha isn’t thrilled with the idea of Tabitha being able to have say over
how he runs his clan. He wants the Queen of the Tigers to leave him and his
people alone.”

“What
did Ty expect from you?”

“Calvin
and I have some history. Ty thought I might be able to get through to him.”

Tad’s
eyes widened with surprise. “Did you?”

Milo
shook his head. “He’s not willing to discuss all of his concerns over the phone
but I’m making headway. I’ll have to take a trip to Minnesota once we have
Courtney safe. I was hoping the two of you would join me.”

“A
trip might be what Courtney needs.” Tad smiled. The connection between them
allowed Milo to know Tad was thinking more about getting their mate in bed
again than actually seeing Minnesota. “That’s if we can pry Lisa off her long
enough. Lisa is pretty upset, since the two of them haven’t spoken much in
months. Their bond was weak because Courtney was trying to spread her wings.
This event might be just what they need to reconnect.”

Snow
crunched, forcing their attention to return to the window. Just inside the
perimeter, a man crouched by the tree line. If it wasn’t for shifter vision,
the man would have blended in almost perfectly.

“There
he is,” Milo said. Even with the distance, Jeffery’s exhaustion was clear. He
leaned against the tree, his chest rising and falling as he tried to catch his
breath. In his condition he was no match for a strong man, let alone three
shifters.

Tad
brought his phone to his ear. “Dad, he’s here.” There was a brief pause before
he replied. “Understood. Unless he makes a move, we’ll stand down.”

“Stand
down?” Milo couldn’t believe what he heard.

“Dad
and Sheriff Lutz are coming up behind him now. We can’t do anything until he’s
closer anyway, and we can’t risk them getting hit by a stray bullet just to
take him out.”

“You’re
just going to let him live? Do you think a man like that will leave Courtney
alone just because he’s behind bars?” Milo was normally the calm one of the
clan, willing to look at options other than eliminating the opposition. Not
this time. This time he wanted Jeffery dead for his mate and for all the others
he screwed with over the years, for the families of his victims.

“He’ll
die in prison. Locked up he won’t be a threat to her.”

“You
honestly believe that? You can’t believe he doesn’t have someone else willing
to do his dirty work. I’m not going to let this danger hang over her head just
so you don’t risk Devon’s anger. This is our mate we’re talking about.” Milo
stood, his gun in hand. He was determined to see the man pay. For the first
time in his life he was truly bloodthirsty.

“You
go out there with a gun with the search parties that close, and you’re going to
get yourself hurt or worse. How is that going to help her? Think about this,
man.” Tad turned to him. “Just see this play out. I guarantee he won’t be alive
long enough to cause any more problems for anyone.”

“What
do you mean?”

“Do
you honestly think Devon is going to do nothing? The sheriff and his men,
including my father, know who Jeffery is.”

He
moved back next to Tad, and glanced out the window. “Are you saying they’ll
kill him in cold blood?”

“No.
I’m saying that Dad has ways of provoking him. Jeffery will make a move and
there will be no other option.” Tad nodded. “Watch.”

“What
if he doesn’t?”

“Then
we’ll take care of him once the sheriff has him in custody. Poison in his food would
make it look natural. There’s no reason to bring attention to any of us.”

“You’ve
done this before?”

“When
something has to be done, yes. We’ve never killed an innocent. I believe this
is how some of those rumors of the Brown family being assassins started. Let’s
just say the previous generations methods weren’t so unnoticeable.” Tad must
have seen Milo’s surprise. He added, “This isn’t any different then when your
clan eliminated Victor. Protection of our kind and our mates is number one. You
know that.”

What
Tad was suggesting teased along the lines of ethical, but when it came to
protecting Courtney the lines weren’t so black and white. The clan had done
this before, protecting their own and their secret. This was no different.

Milo
knelt back down by the window, watching as Devon’s large frame came out of the
trees. The Sheriff was just a step behind, his hand on his weapon. Golden blond
hair stuck out from underneath police hat. His frame was a touch leaner than
Devon’s, but he was just as bulky. Both men were large and intimidating.

“Tad…the
sheriff?”

“Lion
shifter.”

“Now I
know why Devon works so well with him. Most would see his size and discount him
on that. Another shifter wouldn’t. What’s a lion shifter doing in Alaska?”

“Hiding.”
Tad shot him a warning glance. “So keep it between us. Only Mom, Dad, and us
boys know what Sheriff Leo Lutz is.”

“Your
family secrets are safe with me. Though I have to say it’s nice to have the sheriff
as one of us. Too bad the Fairbanks sheriff isn’t a shifter,” Milo joked.

The sheriff
called out, and Milo wasn’t sure what he said. Even with his superb hearing, he
couldn’t hear through glass. Only Jeffery’s reaction as he spun around, his gun
raised, let Milo know the fun was about to begin. If things got out of hand, he
was glad Courtney was safe on the other side of the house.

Tad
turned and whispered toward the kitchen. “Tate, join Turi with the women. Milo
and I are going to assist the sheriff and my father.” Without a complaint, Tate
did as he was told and snuck away from where he’d been watching out the back
window. They heard a door open and then shut.

“Let’s
go out the side. Move quickly, but keep to the shadows and stay out of
Jeffery’s sight.” Tad stood, keeping his gun in hand, his gaze on the window.
“He’ll end this tonight by his own actions.”

Milo
hoped so; it would do a world of good for his mate to be able to put this whole
thing behind her. Quinn would have to find another case to help make his career
because this wouldn’t be it. His mate was more important than his friend’s
career. One day, Quinn would understand.

Outside,
wind rushed past him. Snow and ice hit him full force as they made their way
toward what had turned into a shouting match.

“Drop
the gun!” Devon’s voice cut through the trees, sending Tad and Milo into
overdrive.

Milo
skid to a halt as loose snow flew through the air a few feet away from the
scene. Jeffery had his gun pressed against Sheriff Lutz’s temple, his eyes
wide, desperation pouring from him. Milo aimed his gun, focusing on a kill
shot.

“If
you don’t put down the gun you’ll die here,” Devon called out.

“You’re
alone and don’t have a chance. I have the upper hand. Let me get what I came
for and I’ll be gone. No harm will come to him.” Jeffery pressed the gun harder
against Leo’s head.

A
headshot would kill even the most powerful shifter, yet Leo remained still.
Everyone knew it would never come to that. It was just a way to get Jeffery off
his game and give them a reason to end the man’s life without looking like it
was done in cold blood.