Protection: A Bad Boy Stepbrother Romance (41 page)

J
ace roared
, sweeping a hand across his desk in anger. Papers flew everywhere, and plastic shattered as his laptop hit the wall. That laptop was his prized possession, but none of it mattered.

He had well and truly ruined things this time. Gripping the velvet ring box in one hand, he contemplated throwing the thing out the window. He unfurled his fingers, placing the delicate box on his desk.

His fingers shook as he thought about what he’d done. He’d given her the bite, unable to help himself. Rather than flat-out demand that she finalize the mating, he’d wanted to do it right. Woo her, ask her for her hand in mating. Maybe even tell her his feelings.

So he’d left. When he’d returned, the office was empty, and he knew he’d failed her again. He hadn’t said the right words, hadn’t made her feel safe, the way she made him feel.

He growled a curse, angry that another barrier had cropped up between them. It was too much, too painful. He needed her now.

Tessa would come back. She had to come back. Jace was certain. He didn’t know much about what happened in a one-sided mate bond, but he knew that the afflicted partner couldn’t last long without the other. The question was more what condition she’d be in by the time she returned.

The mating bond had to be completed by both parties, or rejected. If things went awry, the bond’s magic could be destructive to one or both Shifters involved.

He couldn’t just sit here and wait. If she was already damaged by the time she came back, Jace wouldn’t be able to live with himself. He’d brought this on her without asking her permission, and hadn’t been able to tell her why she shouldn’t run. That slowly she’d begin to suffer in his absence, or even that her mind might fragment in slow increments.

“Are you alright?” came a soft voice from the doorway.

Jace looked up to find Cera just outside his office, arms full of papers and rolled maps. Her wide eyes were taking in the wreck of his office, concerned.

“What’ve you got?” he asked, sidestepping her question.

Cera entered the office and looked around, then dumped everything onto Jace’s now-cleared desktop. She pulled up a chair and began sorting everything into piles, explaining as she went.

“Okay. Shaw filled me in on what’s going on. He asked me to help you formulate a plan to protect the Den. I didn’t really know what we’d need, so I brought everything: elevation maps, floor plans of the Den, old tax record blueprints from the compound the Legion is occupying, aerial maps, and a printout of every single document we had that could be remotely related,” Cera said, pointing to each as she organized everything. Pulling out the aerial map, she flipped to the page that covered the Den.

“I figure our best chance is to hole up in Arcady, right outside of the portal. They can’t get into the Den, so we can focus our efforts on dispatching as many of their men as possible,” Cera said, sounding for all the world like an Army major.

“That would be true, but you’re forgetting something. The Legion has some way of getting into the Den. They’ve done it before,” Jace said.

“I’ve always assumed that the Legion just waited around until they got someone under their thumb, and then got them to invite everyone in,” Cera said, her brow wrinkling in confusion. “That’s not a problem I anticipate here. This is a small pack, as close as a family. We would know if someone was planning to betray us, don’t you think?”

“No, we wouldn’t know at all. I’ve now lived in close quarters with two separate Shifters turned by the Legion. I had no idea with either one, and I’m the god damned head of security,” Jace said, his voice bitter with self-reprisal.

“Okay. So we’ll set up a ring defense around the Den’s portal, and still focus on taking down the Legion’s troops. We can adapt the same strategy—” Cera started again, stubborn.

“Let me tell you what will happen with that plan. They will arrive at the best time to throw us off our game, probably dawn or dusk. They’ll hit us with some flash grenades and lots of knockout gas, and that’s just the appetizer. They’ll take anyone they want back to their labs, and let the rest of us burn along with the whole of Arcady and the Den. I’m going to tell you right now, if you end up at their compound, you’ll wish you’’d have burned,” Jace said, his tone and expression chilling.

“So, what? You’ve already given up? We all just run?” Cera asked, her tone taking an angry edge.

“No,” Jace said as he looked up at her. “I’m saying the opposite. We have to turn the tables, be the aggressors instead of the victims. We have to take the fight to them.”

Cera was speechless for a long moment, but she grasped his meaning soon enough. Flipping to the map of the Legion’s lab, Cera frowned.

“I know our chances on our own land are slim, but the Legion’s land is even worse,” she said, passing the photo over to Jace. Jace picked it up and studied it for a full minute, then slid it back across the desk.

“You mentioned blueprints of the Legion’s compound?” he asked. Cera nodded and selected one of the rolls of paper, spreading it out over everything else. Together they studied the floor plan.

“Doubtless they’ve upgraded the security, changed things here and there. But we’ve got their little henchman locked up here, and he can tell us how to get in and out safely, I expect,” Jace mused.

“I hear he’s not much of a talker,” Cera said.

“He’ll talk,” Jace said without elaboration. “I’ll need you to come up with the best way to get us close to the Compound. Round up Declan, he should be able to provide us with a distraction, give us a chance to slip inside.”

Cera nodded, already caught up in her plans.

“Where will you be?” she asked.

“I’ll be getting to know the new guy,” Jace answered, and then he was gone.

Cera looked up, blinking. Had Jace Copeland just made a joke? She shook her head. Surely she’d imagined it.

I
t only took
Tessa a few minutes to catch Kat and Camilla up on everything that had happened over the last few hours.

Tessa told them about James’s warning about the Legion attack, about the scolding from Shaw, and gave them a censored version of her trip to Jace’s office. Kat listened throughout the whole tale, saying little.

“So now I have no idea where we stand. It’s the same thing over and over again. We kiss, he runs. I don’t think I can do it anymore,” Tessa surmised.

“You two are so far into the mating ritual, it’s a done deal. I doubt either of you will back out now,” Kat said.

Flashing Kat a disgruntled look, Tessa got up and dug around in her purse for the hair pick she always kept on hand for hair emergencies. She started running it through her hair, but it kept catching at the scarf she’d perma-borrowed from Emmy. Tessa frowned, but didn’t remove the scarf.

“Take that hideous thing off already,” Kat said.

“It’s, uh, cold in here,” Tessa lied, continuing to fuss with her mop of blonde ringlets. The room was silent for a long moment.

“Tessa, you’re not a very good liar,” Camilla said.

Tessa shot a frown at her sister, but kept working the comb through her hair even though it was pretty much detangled by now.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Tessa bit off.

Cool air hit Tessa’s neck before she even realized that Kat had moved. The scarf vanished, and Kat was staring at the barely-closed set of teeth marks.

“He did this to you?” she asked, her voice soft as she reached out to touch the wound. Tessa reared back, not wanting the bite touched, even by her friend.

“I’m fine,” Tessa replied as she backed away.

“Did you ask him to do this?” Kat asked, her voice still soft but now underlined by anger.

“It was the heat of the moment. I doubt he knew what he was doing,” Tessa said, turning to put the comb back in her purse.

“Tessa, look at me.”

Tessa looked at her friend, surprised by how upset the other girl was over something so silly. Kat opened her mouth and closed it, clearly trying to find the right words.

“I know this sounds crazy, but I have to ask. He bit you like this and he didn’t explicitly ask you if it was what you wanted?” Kat asked.

“I told you, it isn’t a big deal. It hardly even hurt,” Tessa said as she settled herself back on the bed.

“You don’t understand, Tessa. He’s completed his half of the mating ritual without your consent,” Kat said.

“What? What does that mean?” Camilla broke in, her brow furrowing.

“It means he’s bound Tessa to him. Did you bite him back?”

“No, of course not.”

Kat mumbled a curse.

“You have to find him as soon as possible and return the favor, Tessa,” Kat said, her tone dire.

“I don’t see what the big deal is, Kat. What are you not telling me?”

“I told you, he’s bound you. The problem is that you didn’t bind him back. If you wait too long to complete the mating ritual, it might stick that way. You’ll always need him, but he could live without you. If he stays away too long, you would be affected.”

“Affected how?”

“You’d wither, mentally and physically. You’d be out of your mind before too long, and after a long enough separation, you could die.”

“He wouldn’t do that to me!” Tessa protested.

“He already did. It’s against our rules to bite without permission. He’s taken away your free will. It’s a serious violation of our beliefs. We’ll have to bring Shaw in on this,” Kat said, her expression stony.

“Kat, no. You can’t tell anyone,” Tessa said, sitting up and reaching out to grip the other girl’s arm.

“Tessa, Jace has made you his slave! You can’t seriously think to protect him!” Camilla said wildly, standing up and grabbing her sister’s arm.

“I’m sure he just needs some time to clear his thoughts. He’ll come back when he’s ready,” Tessa said. As she spoke, she knew it was absolutely true. Jace wouldn’t let his fear destroy her. It just wasn’t in his nature.

“We have no idea how long it will be before the ritual starts to affect you. It could be any minute now, Tessa.”

“What’s the longest I might have?” Tessa asked, stubborn.

“Maybe a day? That’d be if you were very lucky, I think.. You need to finish this right now.”

“If I bite him after a couple days, will it still work?” Tessa asked, trying to be calm.

“I have no idea. Like I said, this is against our laws. It’s unheard of in our pack.”

“I need some time to find him, Kat. Don’t go to Shaw just yet, I’m begging you. Jace will make this right,” Tessa said with absolute conviction.

Kat said nothing for a full minute, staring at Tessa. She shook herself with a frown.

“Jesus. If this is what mating is supposed to be like, I don’t want any part in it. I’ll give you three hours to find him, Tessa. After that, I’ll have no choice but to involve Shaw.”

Kat stood up, looking nothing short of murderous.

“Thank you, Kat. I know this seems crazy, but everything will be okay. I’m certain of it.”

“Don’t thank me. I’m not doing you any favors by not ratting Jace out right away. I will help you look for the bastard, though.”

“Okay. Let’s split up. I’ll take his house and office. Can you go find Maddie and ask her where he might be?” Tessa asked.

“Yes, and I’ll double check the rest of the Den compound too.”

“How will I reach you when I find him?” Tessa asked.

Kat pulled a pen out of her back pocket and reached for Tessa’s hand, scribbling her number on the back.

“That’s my cell. Call me as soon as you know anything. Now go, and if I don’t hear from you in exactly three hours, I’m telling Shaw everything,” Kat said, barely short of murderous.

“I’m sure it won’t take that long,” Tessa said, trying to sound confident. Kat just shook her head and slammed out the infirmary’s front door.

Tessa released a huge sigh and turned to Camilla.

“You look different,” Camilla said, giving Tessa a long look. Tessa sat back and looked at her sister.

“I’m not the subject of debate right now. Are you really all right? I’ll never forgive myself for getting you sucked into all this insanity,” Tessa said, reaching out to tuck a dark lock of hair behind Camilla’s ear. Camilla reached up and grasped Tessa’s hand, holding it in her lap.

“Look at me,” Camilla said. Tessa looked up, meeting her sister’s gaze. “They never touched me, never did anything to me. James would come to check on me, even keep me company sometimes.”

Tessa let out a breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding, feeling a huge weight lift off her shoulders. She’d imagined Camilla being tortured, maimed, killed. Her sister’s welfare had never been far from her thoughts, not since the moment she’d left the Legion’s compound. Not since Camilla’s birth, really.

“You can’t imagine how grateful I am,” Tessa replied, her relief evident in her voice.

“James protected me, I think. I don’t know why he did it, but he seems to care for me,” Camilla said. Tessa opened her mouth to respond, but Jace chose that moment to enter unannounced.

Tessa’s heart fluttered. She’d been right; Jace would never leave her in danger, not on purpose. He’d come for her, as she’d hoped he would.

Tessa’s brows raised, watching Jace start when he realized that Camilla was up and around. Tessa couldn’t help but suppress a tiny smile; she’d had the same reaction. Jace was looking back and forth between the girls, seeming unsure what to say.

“Jace, this is my sister Camilla,” Tessa spoke up, patting Camilla’s hand. “Camilla, this is Jace.”

They both nodded to each other. Then Jace turned to Tessa.

“I need to speak with you. Uh, in private,” he said.

“Okay. Give me a second to finish up here and I’ll be right out,” Tessa said, her cheeks flushing under his gaze.

“Right. I’ll be in the hall,” he said, backing out of the room and closing the door again.

Tessa stood up, straightening the bed linens.

“You should get some sleep,” Tessa began.

“Uh, not until you tell me he’s going to play nice,” Camilla fired back, still looking at the door as if she could see through it.

“He’s, um… you know, why don’t we talk about this later when you’re feeling better?” Tessa suggested, turning for the door.

“Oh my God,” Camilla said. “You love him. You totally do! I can’t believe it!”

“It’s complicated,” Tessa stuttered, her whole face on fire with embarrassment. “And if you don’t stay in this bed, I’ll never tell you anything, I swear it!”

Camilla harrumphed, but flopped back against the pillows.

“Fine. But you owe me. And I mean details, Tess.”

“Get some rest. I’ll find you after I talk to Jace,” Tessa insisted, letting herself out of the room.

When she stepped into the hallway, she found herself toe to toe with Jace, who was hovering just outside the room. Holding a finger up to her lips, Tessa led Jace down the hallway away from Camilla’s range of hearing.

“I didn’t realize she was awake,” Jace said, looking. He ran a hand through his perfectly-mussed locks, and Tessa had to tear her eyes away. Just because he was gorgeous didn’t mean he hadn’t screwed up big time.

“What do you want?” Tessa asked point-blank.

“I want to explain about the bite,” he said. His hot tawny eyes sought hers. Tessa crossed her arms and put on her best ice-queen expression.

“Kat told me enough.”

“I want to apologize, then,” Jace said, reaching out and taking one of Tessa’s hands. He turned her hand over and softly rubbed her palm with his thumbs, reminding Tessa of how he’d cared for her at the safe house.

“What if it’s too late for that, Jace?” Tessa asked, her voice subdued.

“Tessa, you have to know—” Jace started, but she cut him off with an angry wave of her hand.

“Can we just skip the part where you tell me this doesn’t mean anything? We have better things to do than worry about than your hot-and-cold approach to dating,” Tessa said, keeping her tone light.

“You haven’t let me explain about the bite,” Jace said.

“I understand. I ran into Kat and she saw this,” Tessa motioned to the bite. “She explained plenty to me. Don’t worry, I’ve made her promise not to run to Shaw.”

A dark cloud passed over Jace’s face as he understood her implication.

“I couldn’t care less about Shaw and what he might do. I’m only concerned about you. We have to finish the exchange right now, Tessa.”

“No,” she said, folding her arms.