The Wolf's Mate Book 2: Linus & The Angel Read online

  After Jason toasted them as best man and then joined them at the head table, they ate their fill at dinner and then danced on a makeshift dance floor while the DJ from the bar played their song.

  It was just absolutely a perfect day. As the sun began to set and the suggestion was made to move the party to the bar – without them – so they could continue to have fun, her parents came to see them.

  They’d been waiting to know what they were going to give them. They’d promised to send Karly and Linus somewhere on their honeymoon, and had only told them to pack for the beach, but otherwise they had no clue.

  She opened the dark red envelope and pulled out two first class tickets to Newport, RI along with their itinerary and a black credit card with both their names on it. She gaped at her father.

  “I know how much you loved visiting the ocean as a child so we’re giving you a week in Newport, all expenses paid. Your hotel and towncar are paid for, and everything else should be put on the card. Take lots of pictures, darling. And have a wonderful honeymoon.” Her father kissed her cheek and hugged her tightly before passing her to her mother who gave her a hug and sniffled.

  “I’m so happy you found your mate, Karly. I wish you a lifetime of happiness and love.”

  “Thanks, mom.” She sniffed.

  “Now, you two have to catch the red-eye, so you should probably get going.” Her father said with a smile. “We’ll drop you off at the airport on our way home.”

  They gave them the impression that they would wait a little while so they could get dressed, and she and Linus pawed at each other in the bathroom in Jason and Cadence’s home and had a really, really fast quickie before they got dressed and said goodbye to everyone.

  Once they were at the airport and seated at the terminal waiting to board the plane, Linus kissed the top of her hand. “I’m glad we were able to make love on our wedding night, but I hope you realize that as soon as we get to our hotel that I’m going to take a very…very long time getting reacquainted with my wife in the right way.”

  “Oh? What’s the right way?” She teased.

  He leaned into her ear, “Nice and slow.”

  Good.

  As soon as the plane was in the air, she fell asleep against Linus’ shoulder, tucked against his side and feeling more blessed than any one person had the right to. Waiting at baggage claim was their driver who was theirs to use for the entire eight days at any time, day or night.

  On Goat Island, just a small bridge away from Newport, their suite overlooked the bay, but neither of them were interested in the view out the window.

  “Come here, love,” Linus said from the bedroom and she crossed the large sitting room to the lavish bedroom where he lay comfortably posed on the king sized bed. She kicked off her shoes and climbed up next to him, settling against him on her back as he leaned over to kiss her. “Did I tell you I loved you today?” He whispered against her mouth.

  “You might have mentioned it once or twice,” She smiled, sliding her fingers through his thick hair and anchoring him to her mouth.

  They kissed for a long time, not stopping until the tug of clothes pulled them apart for mere seconds, and when they were laid bare together, he stretched out next to her and ran his thumb down her jaw.

  “I love you, Karly.”

  “I love you, too, Linus.”

  “I feel like I didn’t really live until I met you. Like my life was all shadows before and now you’re my sun. I didn’t think I’d ever find someone that could love me in spite of everything about me, but you do.”

  His beautiful blue eyes shimmered with love and contentment. “Because we were made for each other.”

  They spent the entire day and night of the first day of their honeymoon making love, ordering room service, and driving each other wild. It was absolutely perfect.

  The morning of their second day, Linus called for the towncar to take them to First Beach. As requested, the hotel had prepared a breakfast basket for them with coffee and treats to take along. Armed with enough beach luggage for a family of eight, they walked onto the nearly deserted beach and set up their little area as far away from the parking lot and kiddie play structure as they could get and still actually be on the beach.

  The large umbrella provided just the right amount of shade for their beach towels that they laid out on top of a sheet they stole from the hotel. Although they had beach chairs set up, they both stretched out on their stomachs and drank coffee and fed each other sliced fruit and chocolate filled croissants and watched the sun glinting off the waves.

  Since it was a holiday week, it didn’t take long for the beach to fill up, but they were in their own little bubble and ignored everything. After putting on lotion in a nearly obscene way, they walked down into the waves and held hands, walking back and forth along the beach, talking about everything and nothing.

  When their stomachs growled for lunch, they ate at a pizza parlor in town and then headed to the hotel to scrub off the sand and play, passing out tangled up, still warm from the sunshine.

  She took a bite of heavenly lobster studded macaroni and cheese as they sat on the deck of a restaurant that looked out on the bay and sighed. Now this was bliss. Her husband, a beautiful view, and great food that she didn’t have to cook. If they could only be naked too, that would make it totally perfect.

  “Baby?” Linus tapped the end of his fork on the metal table and snapped her from her revere of watching a boat tour head out into the bay.

  “I’m sorry; I was just enjoying the view. What did you say?”

  “I said I wanted to talk to you about something important.”

  She straightened. “Oh, okay. Sure.”

  He folded his hands after putting his fork on the plate that had held four battered, fried fillets and a huge pile of French fries. “Would you like us to be part of your folks’ pack?”

  She blinked in surprise. That statement was way out of left field. “I…well, I don’t know. What brought this up?”

  “Well,” he cleared his throat and took a drink of his beer. “It’s been bouncing around my mind since our joining ceremony. There’s harmony with that pack, a sense of family and belonging that’s wholly unique. And I know you miss your family, and I’m not so selfish that I would want to keep you from them.”

  “Who said you were selfish?”

  He shrugged. “Me.”

  She shook her head. “You’re not, I promise. Once I knew that no one in my parents’ pack would be mine, Linus, I never expected to be part of their pack in any way except as the daughter of a member. If you want to join up with that pack, of course I’ll support you, but don’t do it for me because I don’t need it.”

  “I just want you to have everything you want and need, sweetheart.” He twisted the empty beer bottle in his hand absently.

  “I do. I totally have everything I’ve ever wanted and needed because I have you. I found the missing piece of my heart and I get to be in your arms forever. So home is wherever we are, in Kentucky or West Virginia...it doesn’t matter to me as long as the home includes you.”

  “But-“

  She put her hand up. “Nope. I don’t want to take you from your family any more than you want to take me from mine, and besides, your pack needs you. And the drive to my parents’ isn’t so far we can’t visit a few times a year and they’ll come to see us, too.”

  He looked like he would protest some more or push the issue, so she reached across the small table and took his hand in hers. “There’s only one thing that I think is missing from our lives.”

  “What?”

  “A baby.”

  A slow, sweet smile spread across his face. “Now that’s something I can help you with.”

  “Good. Just know this, love. I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life because you’re in it.”

  “Me, too.”

  * * * * *

  It was dark when they walked out of the bar at the hotel and down the winding sidewalk past the s
mall firepit where a few partiers were gathered on wooden lawn chairs chatting. They walked all the way around to the dock at the back of the hotel and pulled a chair into the shadows.

  She lifted her skirt as Linus freed his cock from his shorts as he sat on the chair and she straddled him, sinking down onto his cock and pressing her mouth to his. “Ah, I love you so much, baby,” he said, nipping a long line down her neck as she moved slowly up and down his length, the darkness and her long, loose skirt hiding them from any prying eyes.

  “I love you, too,” she promised, dropping her head to his shoulder and holding him close with one hand tangled in his hair and the other gripping his shoulder. One of his hands dug into her hip tightly, and the other slipped up the front of her tank and under the satin bra. His hand felt warm against the cool evening air and she leaned back slightly and dropped her head back, closing her eyes and reveling in the sensations coursing through her body.

  His hand left her breast and trailed down the front of her body over her clothes before moving under her skirt and gathering her honey on the tips of his fingers and driving her to climax with his fast motions over her swollen bud. She clenched her teeth on the cry in her throat and it came out a muffled moan that Linus echoed through his own pursed lips, pulling her against him and dampening the sound into her shoulder while his body released into hers.

  Panting and drifting down from bliss, he nuzzled against her ear and whispered with a rough voice, “I’ve never been happier, my sweet angel, and that’s the truth.”

  *****

  As is the way of most wonderful things like honeymoons and vacations, they left their little slice of paradise behind, with fond memories of fireworks over the water, the windows wide open at night so they could hear the sounds of the ocean, the siren call of the waves, and having eaten their fill of all things seafood.

  She spent the summer full swing in decorating their home. Linus turned one of the two spare bedrooms into a studio for her, surprising her with a top-of-the-line printer and a new lens for one of her cameras. As promised, she took a picture of him in his beautiful shifted form with the woods behind their home as the backdrop, and she was able to get the oil painting finished by his 28th birthday at the end of July. She surprised him a second time on his birthday with news of her pregnancy. He went into immediate overprotective mate mode and refused to let her near chemicals of any sort except watercolor paints. So she used the photos from their beach trip to make some paintings for the house. They also began to host a Sunday evening meal for the top ranked in the pack.

  For the celebration of the anniversary of the near disaster on the day they met, Linus locked them up in the house and turned off all the phones for three solid days so they could enjoy the last bit of bliss of their private time together before their child was born.

  In the very early spring, Remy Eugene Mayfield joined their family. Dr. Mirella delivered him at the nearby hospital with hers and Linus’ family and his close friends and pack members filling up the waiting room to welcome the next generation of werewolves into the pack.

  To look into her baby’s gorgeous blue eyes and know that someday he would lead a pack as alpha filled her with pride but also fear; to know the burden of his life as it would come some day. That he’d be responsible not only for his family – his mate and children – but also for the lives of everyone in his pack. Linus was committed to teaching Remy and any other children they had about the history of werewolves.

  When Karly turned 21 and began her journey to find her wolf mate, she had no idea that the path she chose would take so long to reach the place where she could find rest with her wolf, but she didn't regret the journey. She learned to stand on her own two feet and push on no matter what came at her. To be sure, their lives could have turned out vastly different in many ways, but she was thankful every day when she woke in Linus’ arms, in the bed in their home, with their son sleeping quietly in his room.

  Once she stared insanity in the eyes and thought she would not live to see another sunrise. Now, she took nothing for granted, especially her family and her husband, who fought for her and never gave up.

  Family. Surely this was heaven.

  The End

  FROM THE AUTHOR: I hope that you enjoyed reading Linus’ story in the second book in The Wolf’s Mate Series. If you haven’t read the first book, The Wolf’s Mate Book 1: Jason & Cadence, I encourage you to do so. And don’t forget to check out my blog for news and updates about upcoming books at http://www.rebutler.wordpress.com. Send me an email at [email protected], I’d love to hear from you! Happy Reading! -R

  Also available from the author:

  The Wolf's Mate 1: Jason & Cadence

  A Curve of Claw (Wiccan Novella series #1)

  A Flash of Fang (Wiccan Novella series #2)

  A Price for a Princess (Wiccan Novella Series #3) - Coming April 2012

  Coming Soon:

  The Wolf’s Mate 3: Callie & The Cats

  Callie Hunter, best friend to alpha half-wolf Cadence, has had enough of the pack life. Setting her sights on anyplace without wolves, she heads north only to be sidetracked by a devastating car crash that brings her face to face with twin mountain lions.

  Ethan and Eryx knew the moment they touched Callie that she was the mate they'd always hoped for, but the females of their pride don't want Callie to stick around, and they’ll go to any lengths to drive her away. Will Ethan and Eryx's attempts to keep Callie cost them everything or will Callie find her inner wolf and the home she's always dreamed of?

  ******

  Read on for an excerpt of The Wolf’s Mate Book 3: Callie & The Cats

  ******

  Callie didn't even want to know how much this hospital bill was going to cost her. And where the hell was she, anyway? And who brought her here? And where was her damn purse? None of the nurses had answers for her, and once the doctor told them she was a wolf, they scattered like bunnies, and not the tasty sort. Helpful tip: when trying to blend into a town as a human, don’t get looked over by the local werewolf doctor.

  She had no ID, but they somehow knew who she was. And she had no clothes, because they’d cut off her favorite pair of jeans and the rest of her stuff, and wherever the hell her car was, her two suitcases were in the trunk so she had a stupid hospital gown on and nothing to wear instead. The doctor had offered to bring her scrubs and she’d accepted, but so far, no one had brought any. That was 20 minutes ago.

  This just wasn't how she'd planned to spend the night. Her body ached, but was thankfully healing. They’d cleaned her up in the ER and found her wounds healed. She didn't know how long she was out for, but she didn’t remember anything after her brakes went out. Feeling sorry for herself, and wishing she could call Cadence for some commiserating, she reminded herself she was trying to stand on her own two feet and make a new life for herself. She could get through this. She would wait for her things and then find a place to stay for the night and figure the world out after a good night’s sleep.

  The door opened and in walked two of the most handsome men she’d laid eyes on in her entire life. She stared at them gape mouthed like a fish while they grinned and walked towards the bed. She put her hand up to stop them from coming further and they both froze.

  “Who are you?” She demanded, gathering something like courage and closing her mouth so she didn’t look like a slack jawed idiot.

  The one on the right said, “I’m Ethan Fallen, this is my twin Eryx. We’re the ones that found you, Calliope. How are you feeling?”

  They wore the black uniforms and shining badges of sheriffs’ deputies. They were identical twins, except that Ethan’s eyes were darker than Eryx’s. One of them was gorgeous enough, but seeing two of them together was like trying to stare at the sun. The whole inside of her body threatened to melt. “It’s Callie, and I’m fine. You don’t happen to know where my stuff is, do you?”

  “Impound lot. What do you need?” Eryx, on the left, supplied the answer.
/>   She made a gesture to her hospital gown. “Something not hospital issued.”

  They both smiled. Geez they were hot. She shoved her lustful thoughts aside as Ethan said, “I’ll take a run to the lot, grab your things. The doc said you’re stuck here until they discharge and they don’t do that until after lunch, and it’s only 7:30. I’ll be back.”

  He looked at his brother and some sort of twin telepathy must have passed through them because Eryx nodded and Ethan left. “Mind if I sit down?” Eryx asked as he sat in the chair next to the bed.

  “I guess not.”

  He laid her purse on the edge of the bed. “I grabbed it from the car when they were cutting you out of it.”

  She felt her mouth fall open again. “Did you say they cut me out of my car?”

  His brow furrowed, “Yes. Your car crashed through the guardrail and rolled down the embankment. If you weren’t a supe, you’d be dead for sure.”

  “Supe?”

  He smiled, “A supernatural creature.”

  Must be a local term. Great, so wolf doc had felt the need to tell everyone in town that she was a wolf. Awesome. She closed her eyes and laid back. She so didn’t need any complications like this.

  She didn’t bother looking in the purse. The only thing of value was her wallet, and she was sure that it was safe, since they knew her information. She tried not to think about the hunky man sitting next to her, watching patiently like he had all the time in the world and she was the most fascinating thing he’d ever seen. She tried very hard not to think about his short cut, dark brown hair and stubbled chin, the silvery gray eyes, or the curve of his mouth. She tried damn, damn hard not to wonder what he looked like peeled out of that uniform and where he kept his handcuffs. Clearly, she wasn’t doing a good job of it. Clearly.