Jax (Immortals of New Orleans Book 7) (14 page)

“He was a dick anyway,” Finn began.

“Perhaps, but that wolf…he was a brother. An uncle. A son. Killing during a challenge? The death it brings. It always comes at a cost, don’t ever think it doesn’t. But this is our responsibility. To lead. There is no other path for us.” Although Jax dare not speak the truth of his suspicion regarding the young wolf, he hoped someday Jake would realize his destiny. “I’ve already called Logan. He knows we’re coming and why. Jake will remain at my side. Finn. You’re needed here.”

“You still haven’t told us about Katrina. The pack…” Finn shook his head, hesitating.

“She’s my mate.” Jax shoved out of his chair, and moved to stand at the window.

When he’d woken, he’d found her quietly sleeping on his chest, wrapped around him like a blanket. With their turbulent past, he didn’t expect an easy road to their mating. He needed to convince her that bonding wouldn’t hurt him. But with his mark blossoming on her skin, his wolf celebrated, content she’d been claimed.

A laugh drew Jax out of his contemplation and he turned to see both Finn and Jake, shaking their heads.

“What’s so funny?” Jax asked.

“I just never thought I’d see the almighty Jax Chandler fall so hard. All the women over the years? Shit, I remember that little vamp from LA you dated. She had her fangs into you…literally.” Finn laughed. “And London? Holy hell. She’s going to lose it when she finds out you’ve found a mate.”

“You one hundred percent sure you guys are mates?” Jake asked.

“Of course he is.” Katrina stood in the entryway to the kitchen, a sheet wrapped around her.

Jax smiled, unsure of what to say. A laugh escaped his lips, as he thought about how she’d turned his life upside down in two days. The articulate Alpha had been rendered speechless. As he took in the sight of her bright eyes, her tousled hair, his cock jerked. Holy hell, he was in trouble.

“He marked me. Can you see it?” she asked, trailing her fingertips over her neck. She blinked and gave Jax a sexy sleepy smile.

He went to her, setting his coffee on the table. Jax ran the pads of his fingers over the lines. The quarter-sized intricate design had grown a deeper shade of pink.

“It’s beautiful. How do you feel, baby?”

“Baby, my ass…” Finn commented under his breath.

Jax ignored him, cupping her cheek. She turned into his touch, her lips brushing over his skin.

“Come here,” he told her, bringing her into his arms.

“Hmm…” Katrina nuzzled against his chest.

“Jake and Finn brought breakfast.” The Alpha spoke into her hair, inhaling her scent. A mixture of coconut infused with mango still remained and he recalled their interaction in the tub. Lifting his head, he met her gaze and trailed his thumb along her bottom lip.

“Sounds good.” She snuggled into his embrace.

“Hungry?” His dick tented the thin fabric of his pajama pants, detecting her arousal.

“Yes,” she purred, her palm sliding over his bare chest.

“Really, people? We’re right here,” Finn pointed out. “Maybe you all need to go get a room, as they say.”

“Hey, speak for yourself.” Jake leaned back in his chair with a wide grin. “Kat. Jax. Don’t listen to the big guy over there. I’m up for a show.”

Jax caught the amusement on Jake’s face and knew he was only half kidding. He’d heard from Gillian how she’d helped him heal after he’d been shot, having made love to both Dimitri and Jake. While he couldn’t be certain he’d share his mate, he’d happily let him watch. Jax suspected her interest in the idea, pushing the envelope sexually. Undressed in his office, his little wolf had responded with arousal to the intrusion. Jax had always been sexually adventurous, and after making love to Katrina, he looked forward to exploring her fantasies.

“Seems we have an audience this morning,” Jax laughed.

“Ah,” Katrina peeked around his shoulder and winked at Jake. “It appears we do.”

Jax put his arm around her and ushered her to the table, unfazed about revealing his erection to the others. Some things were meant to be concealed, but his sexual prowess and his interest in his mate wasn’t one of them.

“Finn, call a pack meeting. Announce that I’ve left for New Orleans on official business. Meeting with Logan and my sister.”

“And if they ask about Kat?” Finn stood from the table, combing his hair back with his fingers.

“Tell them she’s a person of interest in custody with our pack.” Jax smiled at Katrina, who laughed. “Tell them I’m interrogating her, ensuring she provides us with information leading to the capture of my kidnappers.”

“Interrogating, huh?” Finn shook his head and gave a lopsided grin.

“He certainly has perfected the craft.” Jake smiled at Katrina and Jax. “I mean, all that
interrogating
he did in the office yesterday and then last night obviously led to more
interrogating
, hence the marking. The Alpha’s been busy.”

“You guys aren’t going to make this easy on me, are you?” Jax asked, picking up his coffee.

“Nope. Not even a little bit.” Jake pressed his lips together, stifling his laugh.

“Yeah, no, not going to happen,” Finn agreed with a smirk. “Hey, don’t feel too bad, Alpha. While you were doing all that
interrogating
, Jake and I were bonding.”

“You got it, brother. We had to save ourselves.”

“You two are hilarious.” Jax shook his head and sighed.

“They are pretty funny,” Katrina admitted. She reached for a pastry, her eyes on Jake.

“Go tell the pack. Also, do me a favor and call the helicopter. I want to skip the traffic. I’ve already texted Rhys and called up the plane.”

“Okay, I’m outta here.” Finn began to walk toward the foyer but stopped and paused. “You gonna be okay without me? The last time…”

“I’m not going to tell you that we aren’t going to run into trouble. But Jake’s going with me. Logan and Dimitri are there too. I’ve gotta find out what Ilsbeth knew. If I find the witch, I have a better shot figuring out how to stop these things.” Jax blew out a breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I really need you up here, Finn. The pack has been through enough shit the past month. One of us has to stay to keep order, and that, my man, is you. I’m trusting you to do this.”

“I got it. I’ll text you later with a status.” His new beta gave a wave and turned on his heel, leaving the room.

Jake gave a sideways glance to Katrina and back to Jax. “So, uh, just to recap about last night. Everything’s okay? Quintus looked like he bit you pretty hard.”

“My mate doesn’t listen well.” Jax slowly spread the cheese onto the bread, his eyes trained on his knife.

“You’re both overreacting. I’m perfectly fine.” Katrina unconsciously reached behind her neck, where Quintus had bitten her.

“Very soon she’ll experience a lesson that she will not forget,” Jax warned. His eyes went to Jake, who nodded his head in agreement.

“I’m sorry but I wasn’t going to let Quint kill Jake,” she replied.

“You know I love ya, Kat, but Jax is right. There’s a reason he’s the Alpha of this pack. You can’t just ignore him when he tells you what to do in these situations,” Jake asserted. “It’s worse that you challenged him. You’re his mate.”

“We’re not bonded yet,” she contended.

“We will be soon.” Katrina’s words cut through Jax, and he couldn’t identify the emotion that followed. Anger? Arousal? The growl of his wolf reverberated in his mind, urging him to take her again. While he hadn’t known her long enough to fall in love, the commitment would come in time.

“You know what will happen if we mate. I can’t risk anything happening to you.” Katrina pursed her lips and set her food on a plate. “And as far as me not listening, as you put it. I’ve lived a long time on my own with no master. I’m an Alpha’s daughter, a sister. Tristan doesn’t force me into antiquated rules. What makes you think submission to your will is in my blood?”

“Because, my little wolf…” Jax didn’t miss a beat as he drove his fingers through her hair at the nape of her neck. Tugging her locks, he tilted her head backward, exposing her throat. He leaned in, his lips inches from hers. “That little mark on your neck is mine. You are mine. Our mating will happen. Don’t. Test. Me.”

The tense whisper of his statement died as Jax captured her lips. His bruising kiss was met with passion. Katrina gasped into his mouth, returning his advance, biting and sucking at her mate. Fingernails raked down over his shoulder, tearing at his skin, and the sting reminded him that Katrina harbored a wild nature, one that might be impossible to tame.

“And I think that’s my cue to leave.” Jake laughed and pushed up from the table. “As much as I enjoy a good show, I can’t figure out if this is going to be super-hot or more like gladiators. Yeah, I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

As Jake left the kitchen, Jax forced his libido under control. He’d torn his lips away from his mate, frustrated with her refusal to accept her fate, their mating. After making love with her, there was no doubt in his mind that the bond would make them stronger. But without her trust, he’d need proof before she’d consent.

Jax heard the water running, and was reminded that Katrina had gone to shower. His cock hardened as the image of her perfect nipples dripping with water formed in his mind.
Goddammit.
For the next year, I’m going to have a perpetual hard-on.
He adjusted his erection, but resisted the urge to stroke it. As much as he loved that the Goddess had given him an attractive mate, it was going to make it damn hard to concentrate on business.

The doorbell rang, breaking his concentration. On any other day, he’d have his staff attend to it, but he’d dismissed his butler and the rest of the staff, unwilling to risk Katrina’s safety or theirs. As he opened the door, he sensed London’s presence. He waved her into the foyer and retreated into the great room.

“Why are you here?” Jax had been grooming her to take over day to day operations. London had been working with Nick for several years and knew the company inside and out.

“Finn said…well, if you’re leaving, I need to get your input on these first.” She sat on the sofa and flipped open her tablet.

“I just sent you my feedback. We didn’t have to do this in person. Go with the black and white on the cover. Follow up with the color spread.”

“I just thought…”

“Why are you really here?” Jax asked, already suspecting why she’d insisted on visiting him at his penthouse.

By now, the pack already had their suspicions about Katrina’s role in his life. After their romantic interlude on his desk, half the company probably had heard her scream in orgasm. Although he’d found his mate’s lack of inhibition refreshing, he’d thought better of what he’d done afterward. He needed more time to work through Katrina’s introduction to the pack. Going down on her with the office door swinging wide open wasn’t exactly the optimal way to do it.

Jax ignored London, who slowly put her things back into her bag. With thick raven hair, green eyes and a razor-sharp mind, she’d caught the attention of many men, humans and supernaturals alike. Although Jax hadn’t slept with her, they’d shared an intimate moment. In a moment of weakness after Nick’s death, they’d kissed in the nightclub. Despite the fiery interaction, he hadn’t expected more than a fling. Despite not being his mate, the females in his pack often sought the attention of the Alpha.

As he leaned back on the sofa, he pretended to be engrossed in his email. With Katrina already vulnerable, he wasn’t ready to divulge information to his pack.

“There are rumors,” he heard her say. Jax kept his head down but lifted his gaze to meet hers.

“You shouldn’t believe everything you hear.”

“Everyone knows she’s here.” London scooted toward the Alpha, closing the distance. “So she isn’t staying? That bitch from Lyceum wolves is finally going home?”

“You need to check yourself.” Jax’s eyes flared in anger and he struggled to conceal his irritation. “Katrina. That’s her name. I suggest you use it. Not a request. And yes, she’s staying here. For as long as I say she stays.”

“Jax, please.” London’s voice softened as she edged closer, her knee brushed his. “We haven’t talked about what happened. The night you disappeared. At the club. Our kiss.” She closed her eyes and drew a breath, her chest rising and falling slowly. Gradually she opened them, and continued. “There’s something between us. I don’t know what it is. I know I was with Nick before and maybe that’s an issue, but he’s gone.”

“I don’t want to talk about Nick. I don’t want to talk about that night. It was a kiss. It was nothing more. I’m sorry, London.” Jax shook his head and set his iPad aside. Jesus, he hadn’t expected this conversation today. In the distance, he noted the shower had stopped running.

“Then maybe…” London gently laid her things on the table. “You need to give us a chance.”

Before Jax knew what was happening, the brunette had swung her thigh over his. Straddling him, she pressed her groin to his.

“What the hell?” Jax exclaimed. Because Katrina hadn’t claimed him, her wolf would lose it if she saw him with another woman. “You need to get off me right now.”

“That night…you kissed me. I’ll never forget it. If you just give us a chance I know…”