The Wolf's Mate Book 6: Logan & Jenna Page 6

  He flashed her a grin that showed a hidden dimple in his cheek and her heart stopped for a moment. “You’re my first. How’d I do?”

  “Really, really well.”

  On the table were several packages of thinly-sliced meats and cheeses, an assortment of condiments, and a large loaf of bread in a plastic package. He sat down at the table with an oval plate with two steaks on it, and put it in the center of the overflowing table.

  “Sorry.” He glanced around the table. “I don’t eat breakfast. I work a late shift, so when I get home from work I eat dinner and then I sleep until the afternoon.”

  “Please stop apologizing.” She smiled encouragingly at him.

  He gestured to the table and encouraged her to help herself. She considered making another sandwich, but the steak was calling to her, so she speared it with her fork and laid it on her plate.

  He took the other one after popping open a can of Coke. She cut a piece from the steak and put it in her mouth, chewing slowly. She sighed happily, closing her eyes and savoring the taste of the rare meat.

  After complimenting Logan on his cooking skills, she asked about his job and he told her that he was a bouncer at Jake’s, a local bar that was run by the pack. He told her he was ranked fifth in the pack, and then had to explain the ranking system to her, because she was clueless about it.

  “So you’d have to beat up your friends if you wanted to be higher then you are in the pack?” She frowned in confusion.

  “I guess that’s one way of looking at it. Rank only matters if you care about it. I didn’t join up with this pack because I wanted to come in as the alpha’s second, I did it because I like the way it’s set up. Jason runs a tight ship, and Michael, Bo, and Linus are great guys and strong wolves. The higher up a wolf is, the more responsibility they have. I still have to go to the meetings, and take turns cleaning up the full moon meeting place with the younger wolves, but I don’t have near the responsibility that the others higher than me do.” He paused and then said, “Do you care?”

  Swallowing the last bite of steak, she put her fork and knife down and met his eyes. He looked worried. “About your rank?”

  He nodded briefly.

  She pushed away from the table and stood, walking around to his side and sitting down on his lap. She loved how his arms immediately went around her. Stroking her fingertips down his cheek, she said, “I only care that you’re happy.”

  His eyes smoldered and her body heated. Sliding her hand back, she cupped the back of his head. Her eyes roamed over his handsome features and down his thick neck, stopping just at the place where his pulse thumped under the surface. Desire filled her, but not just sexually driven. She had the urge to sink her teeth into his neck and bite hard until she broke through the skin and could taste his blood.

  “Sweetheart?” The concern in Logan’s voice brought her back from her strange thoughts and she shook her head slightly. “Are you alright?”

  “I don’t know. Yes, I guess so. I just had a really weird urge.”

  “Which was?”

  She chewed on her bottom lip for a moment and said, “I wanted to bite you.”

  His dark brows lifted. “It’s not unusual for a wolf to want to mark their mate by biting them. Do fairies do that?”

  She snorted out a laugh, picturing Kari biting Raynir. “No, it’s not a fairy thing.”

  Silence stretched between them as he frowned in thought. She touched his face again, drawing his attention back to her. Their eyes locked again, her silver to his chocolate brown.

  “You’re my truemate, Logan,” she whispered, not wanting to break the spell between them.

  His voice turned husky and sent shivers racing down her spine. “And you’re mine, Jenna.”

  Lowering his mouth, he brushed his lips against hers. Then something buzzed against her hip and she jumped with a gasp of surprise.

  “Damn it.” Logan lifted her slightly and reached between them, pulling a cell from his front pocket. He glanced at the screen, gave her an apologetic look, and answered. “Yes, Jason?”

  Not wanting to eavesdrop, Jenna eased off his lap and carried both their plates to the sink. When she looked out the window, she saw that the sun was beginning to rise, which meant she could contact her family. In the Mortal Realm, it was easier for a non-conjuring fairy like herself to contact the Fae Realm when the sun was up, using the conductive power of sunlight to reach between the realms.

  While Logan spoke to his alpha, Jenna opened the back door and stepped out onto the concrete porch, taking in a deep breath and letting the emerging sunlight heat her skin. She stepped down onto the grass and began walking towards the woods that surrounded the house. To the left was a garden that wasn’t doing well at all, and to the right was a small shed with cracked boards and white, peeling paint. She entered the woods, aware when Logan opened the back door and followed her quickly.

  Pausing, she closed her eyes and opened her fae-senses, searching for the best place to open the contact portal. She turned to the left and walked several paces until she reached a hollow tree. Kneeling in the soft moss in front of it, she pulled her shirt off and dropped it to the side.

  “Jenna?” Logan said quietly.

  Looking over her shoulder, she said, “I’m going to contact my family, but I need my wings.”

  He nodded silently and moved back, and she smiled to herself, wondering if he would like her wings. She closed her eyes and her wings slipped free from the confines of her back, unfurling, opening and stretching until the top points reached past her ears and the bottom points brushed against the ground. She heard Logan make a soft sound of awe, and she couldn’t help but feel proud that he liked her wings. They were pale blue, streaked with silver. Power rushed through her, and she felt the remaining weakness from her ordeal disappear. In the bathroom mirror, she’d seen that her eyes were a dull, flat gray, and she knew that now they would be true silver.

  Since she only planned to contact her family once using this tree, she didn’t create a true fairy circle, but made a temporary circle using twigs on the ground. She felt the sun rise further, and beams of light shone through the trees, one landing on the hollow tree in front of her. She picked up her top and held it to cover her breasts with one hand. She planted the palm of her other hand on the tree and thought of her parents. The hollow tree trembled under her palm and then the air swirled in front of her, creating a hazy surface, like a fog-covered mirror. Her mom’s face appeared.

  “Jenna? Is that you? Are you alright, darling?” her mom said, her tone laced with panic.

  “Yes, Mom, I’m okay now. I’m in the Mortal Realm, and I’m with my truemate.”

  Her mom pressed her hand to her chest with a sigh of relief. “Thank the heavens!”

  Her dad peeked into view, his face stern. “What happened?”

  She could feel that the temporary circle was not going to last much longer. “I was betrayed by Maximus. He sold me out to some werewolves in the Mortal Realm. I escaped and my truemate saved my life.”

  Her dad cursed. “I will skin that muck-sucking toad alive!”

  “If we ever find him,” her mom said with a snort of derision.

  “He’s disappeared?” Jenna asked in surprise.

  Her dad nodded. “He told the authorities that he tried to save you from being taken, but we didn’t believe him for a second. And then when Kari woke up from being drugged, she told the truth of what happened. The authorities went to take him into custody to question him about where you were, but they found him gone and his home ransacked.”

  She was thankful that Kari was okay. Chewing her lip, she said, “He was probably taken by the same scum that took me.”

  “Are you safe, honey?” Her dad asked.

  “I am.” She felt Logan kneel behind her and she leaned slightly to the side so he could be seen through the portal.

  “I’m Logan Anderson, Jenna’s truemate. I swear to you that I will keep her safe, find the ones that hurt her
, and put a stop to them.”

  Her dad nodded, respect shining in his eyes. “Do what you want with the wolves, but Maximus must be returned alive to our realm to stand trial for his crimes. He doesn’t have to be free from harm, mind you.”

  “I understand,” Logan said, his voice low and deadly.

  “When will you come for your belongings, honey?” her mom asked.

  Jenna glanced at Logan and he shrugged. She said, “The full moon is in a few days, and I need to build a proper fairy circle so I can come through with Logan. Two weeks should be long enough.” Already she was making a mental list of what she would need in order to complete it.

  “We’ll see you in two weeks then, darling. Logan, we’re looking forward to meeting you,” her dad said. Both her parents told her that they loved her and Jenna returned the sentiment, lifting her hand from the tree and swiping the twigs away so the circle was broken. The air dissipated immediately.

  “Can I?” Logan asked, and she had to look up at him to understand what he meant. He was looking intently at her wings. She nodded, smiling as he moved slowly, tracing first the edge of one wing before shifting behind her and brushing his fingers down both wings at the same time. He followed the contour of both wings from top to bottom, and then he said, “They’re amazing. Can you fly?”

  Letting her wings recede into her back, she slipped her shirt on and turned around to face him, leaning back against the trunk.

  “No. Only warrior he-fairies can fly. Their wings are made of feathers, and it’s a hereditary trait. I have some warriors in my family line, but my father has wings like mine.”

  “You said you needed to build a portal?”

  Nodding, she made the motion to stand, and he stood quicker and drew her up with him, lifting her into his arms as he began to stride back to the house.

  “I can walk.”

  He glanced in her direction and then looked ahead. “I know that, Jenna. Would you do me a favor and not disappear again like that without telling me where you’re going? I don’t mean to be a dick, but one minute you’re in the kitchen and the next minute you’re disappearing into the woods.”

  She opened her mouth to tease him, but the tightness around his eyes told her that he wasn’t really in a teasing mood. She leaned forward and nuzzled his neck, inhaling the spicy, male scent of him. His gait hitched and his arms tightened around her, but he kept walking.

  “I didn’t think you’d mind, but I won’t do it again.”

  He grunted and she smiled against his neck, pressing her lips to the place where his pulse beat steadily. As he walked up the porch steps and into the house, she took in another deep breath and her body flooded with heat and desire. She opened her mouth, her tongue stroking across his pulse.

  “Fuck, Jenna,” Logan growled. She loved how he said her name. Like a prayer.

  She felt herself being tipped backwards, but she knew that Logan wasn’t going to drop her. Her back landed on something soft; the couch in the family room. Logan moved over top of her and all she could see was his big body. Keeping his weight carefully off her, he held her eyes with his own for just a heartbeat, and then kissed her. Gone was the tentative kiss from the bedroom, replaced with a demanding kiss that made her squirm underneath him. One of his legs was between hers, pressing against the apex of her thighs. She canted her hips, moaning at the friction as she wound her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.

  He kissed across her cheek to her ear, his hot breath washing over her as he bit gently on the lobe and then kissed down her neck. Tilting her head to the side, she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding as goosebumps prickled her skin. Logan pressed his forehead to her shoulder and panted.

  “Jenna,” he said, his voice hoarse, his muscles tense.

  She slipped her hands from around his neck down his sides, tugging on the tight fabric of his shirt.

  “I wanted —” he groaned when she tugged the shirt from the confines of his jeans.

  “Tell me,” she whispered, raking her nails lightly up his back. He shuddered and groaned and she felt his teeth graze the flesh of her neck.

  “To take things slow, treat you right.” The last word came out on a growl that was halfway between aroused and frustrated.

  He lifted his head from her shoulder and she saw want and need stirring in the depths of his eyes. By his own account, he hadn’t ever had anyone special in his life, just a string of unsatisfying encounters. That he wanted their first time to be special touched her heart.

  “Slow’s good.” She rubbed her thumb along his jaw, feeling the scrape of stubble. “For now.”

  He moved fast and she found herself sprawled across his body as he lay back on the couch. She laughed and brushed the hair from her eyes. “Did I say thank you?”

  “For what?”

  “Everything. Saving me, taking care of me, fixing me breakfast.”

  “You’re welcome, but you don’t need to thank me. You’re my mate. It feels natural to take care of you. I can’t really explain it. We don’t know each other, but I feel like I’ve known you forever.”

  She nodded in agreement.

  “What now?” she asked, settling down on him.

  “The grocery store is open now, we could go shopping. What kind of stuff do you need to be able to open a portal?”

  “Lots of plants.”

  His brows lifted. “I have a garden. Well, I tried to do a garden but so far nothing has really wanted to grow. I may have a brown thumb when it comes to gardens. Can you use it?”

  Nodding, she talked to him about making a portion of the tilled area a fairy garden, including a full-sized fairy circle, so she could contact her family and travel between the realms.

  “I know you said that in order for someone not from the Fae Realm to go through the portal they need a fairy with them, but what’s to stop other fairies from coming through it?”

  From the frown on his face, she was betting he was thinking about Maximus. “It’s a private portal that I control. It can’t be used without me.”

  The frown eased immediately. “Good.”

  They chatted for a little while longer, and then got up. He drove them to a food market and carried a plastic basket for her as they wandered up and down the aisles. She wasn’t really a picky eater, but she did enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables. Logan told her there was a farmers’ market in the next town that started up in May and went all summer, and she looked forward to exploring it.

  She chose several organic blends of tea to try, including peppermint, chai, and green tea with lemon. After locating the local produce, which was relegated to a small corner of the large, commercially-grown fruits and vegetables section, she picked several things, loading up the basket while Logan held it for her.

  As they walked up to a register to pay for their goods, she noticed that a lot of people were paying attention to them. As Logan gathered the purchased goods in the bags and carried them outside the store, she said, “People were staring at us.” She twisted a lock of her hair as she sat down in his truck and looked up at him. “Do you think it’s my hair? The metal streaks?” She was worried that her differences might embarrass him.

  He shook his head. “If anyone was looking at you, it’s because you’re gorgeous and they’re wondering what a sweet-looking female like you is doing with a nightmare like me.” He shut the door and she hummed in her throat as he walked around the front of the truck and opened his door. He slid the bags behind his seat and sat down.

  “Nightmare?”

  He put the truck in gear and shot her a smirk. “I think I’m the only one in the pack with tattoos. I’m big and I don’t smile and I’ve tossed a drunk or two out of the bar. People see what they want to see when they look at me, and most people see someone they think they should fear.”

  “You smile at me.”

  His large hand settled on her knee and she could feel the heat from his palm through the material of her jeans. “You’re the firs
t thing in my life worth smiling about.”

  Damn, that was the most romantic thing ever.

  At the home improvement store, Logan pulled a long, flat cart behind him as she walked up and down the aisles. She was fairly certain that she wouldn’t find everything she needed, but she could at least get started.

  She offered to pay him back for everything, but he refused, reminding her that he was her mate. She liked being reminded of it, even if she didn’t need to be. She was very, very aware of the fact they were mates, and the longer she spent with him, the more she liked him. Underneath the ink and the menacing grimace he gave to others, was a sweetheart with a great smile and a tender heart. She liked knowing this seemingly secret side of him.

  When they were back at his house, he unloaded her garden supplies and gathered tools from the shed, which needed a good scrubbing and coat of paint. Dividing the large square of tilled ground into four sections, she used flour that she’d picked up from the market to mark pathways and places where things would go. Logan made coffee for himself and sat on the porch, watching her quietly.

  The fairy garden, where she would create the ring, would be at the back right corner of the garden. Thin, low wooden fencing would surround the entire garden to keep animals away and to support the fairy roses, which she had been surprised to find hidden among the more traditional roses for sale. She’d also found rosemary, thyme, lavender, and ferns. She wanted moss to cover the exposed dirt in the area, which Logan said he would help her transplant from the woods, and she would also need to find mushrooms. The ring itself would be made of stone.

  Brushing off the flour from her hands, she smiled at Logan and joined him on the porch. He slid his arm around her immediately. She liked that it was already second-nature to him to touch her. He promised to take her to a nursery tomorrow to buy whatever other things she needed.

  After a light lunch, they started working on the garden. He put up the fence and she planted. They ventured into the woods with a wheelbarrow that he found in the shed and dug up thick, dark green moss to place in the garden. After a long search, she found a patch of mushrooms and had Logan dig them up.