The Fairy Tales Collection (36 page)

“It’s not about who deserves it,” his
father snapped.  “You are my eldest-born and as such, it is you who must be the
alpha.  We cannot break tradition.”

Rafe shook his head.  “I already told you –
“

“Father is right,” Artemis interrupted
quietly.  “You should be alpha, Rafe.”

“Have you gone mad, Artemis?”  Rafe said. 
“You know that makes no sense.”

“He’s right,” Tagon said suddenly.  “You
have been father’s right hand man for years, Artemis.  You know how to be alpha
better than anyone else and that includes Rafe.  Our pack members trust you and
think highly of you.  Don’t let – “

“Hold your tongue, Tagon!  This does not
concern you so keep your mouth shut!”  Their father shouted, his eyes glowing a
dark yellow, and Tagon made a low snarl before falling quiet.

“Father,” Rafe said, “I cannot be alpha.”

“Because you don’t want to be or because
you foolishly believe you are in love with a human?”  His father asked.

Rafe gave him a cautious look and the old
man nodded.  “Your brother told me about your silly obsession with the
red-haired human.  And even if he hadn’t, I can smell her all over you.”

His nose crinkled for a moment.  “Why would
you be so foolish, boy?”

“She is my mate,” Rafe said tightly. 

“So you’ve bitten her then?”  His father
asked.  “She bears your claiming mark?”

Rafe glanced at Tagon, “You know I have
not.”

“Then she isn’t your mate,” his father said
dismissively.  “Forget the human and come join your pack.  It’s what you’ve
wanted most for years – don’t try and deny it.”

Rafe stared at his father’s grey face. 
Until a month ago, being a part of a pack again
was
what he wanted most
but that was before Rowan.  Before she kissed him, before she touched
him…before she loved him.

“I will not join the pack without my mate,”
he said quietly.

His father sighed loudly.  “After what your
mother did to you, to this family, you would still take a human as your mate?”

“She is not like our mother,” Rafe said.

“She will leave you, Rafe,” his father
replied.  “Humans can’t live with shifters.”

He coughed harshly before leaning forward
and giving Rafe a pleading look.  “Join your family again, Rafe.  We need you. 
Is this silly little human girl really more important to you than your own
family?  When she leaves you, and she will, do you want to end up like me? 
Alone and in love with a woman who will never return your love?”

“She isn’t like that,” Rafe repeated.

His father snorted angrily before leaning
back.  “Are you joining the pack again or not, Rafe?  I want your answer.”

Before Rafe could say no, Artemis said,
“Father, give him a few days to consider it.”

The old man nodded.  “Very well.  Go back
to your lonely den and think strongly about what my offer means.  You will be a
part of a pack again, you can find your mate here and have pups.  It isn’t too
late for that, son.”

Rafe didn’t reply and the old man closed
his eyes and sighed wearily.  “Tagon, help me to bed.”

Artemis took Rafe’s arm and led him out of
the cabin.  They stayed silent until they were at Rafe’s truck and then Artemis
smiled hesitantly at him.  “You should return to the pack, Rafe.”

“What is wrong with you, Artemis?”  Rafe
said.  “The pack would never follow me.”

“They will,” Artemis said.  “If father
tells them to, they will follow you.”

“What kind of alpha does that make me?” 
Rafe snorted.  “Besides I have no wish to be alpha.  I never did – not even
when I was younger.  It should be you, Artemis.  Why do you fight against
that?”

“Because father will never allow it,”
Artemis snapped.  “He wants you as the alpha and I want you to return to our
pack.  I’ve missed you, brother.  You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”

Rafe squeezed his shoulder.  “I’ve missed
you as well.”

“Are you really in love with a human?” 
Artemis asked.

Rafe nodded.  “Yes.  It’s completely wrong
on every level – she’s fifteen years younger than me and she had no idea
shifters even existed until last night but I love her.”

“Then why haven’t you bitten her?”  Artemis
asked.

Rafe hesitated and Artemis said quietly,
“Perhaps deep down you know you will forever lose your chance at being in the
pack if you take the human as your mate.”

“I could make my own pack with her,” Rafe
said.

“It is not the same and you know it,”
Artemis replied.  “You can’t tell me you haven’t missed being part of a pack,
Rafe.”

“Of course I have,” Rafe said.  “Many times
I thought I’d go crazy from the loneliness.”

“Then come back to us,” Artemis said.  “I’m
tired of being separated from my brother.  I know you love the human, but
sometimes you have to make sacrifices for the good of the pack.  It hurts but
you will get over it with time.”

Rafe studied Artemis closely.  “What is her
name, brother?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The human you’re in love with.  What is
her name?”

Artemis shook his head.  “I’m not in love
with a human, Rafe.  I just – “

“You were never good at lying, Artemis,”
Rafe said.  “Tell me her name.”

“Cassia,” Artemis said in a low voice. 
“She lives in Newport.”

“Does father know about her?”

“No.  I,” he paused before shaking his
head, “it doesn’t matter.  I ended it a moon ago.  It was growing more and more
difficult to conceal her scent on my skin and it was not fair to her to ask her
to keep our love a secret.”

“Artemis,” Rafe said, “you can’t live your
life trying to please father.  This should give you even more of an incentive
to be the alpha.  If you’re alpha, you can bring humans into the pack.  You can
have Cassia’s love.”

“Father has spent years poisoning the pack
against humans,” Artemis said.  “They would never accept humans into the pack.”

“Are you certain?  I have seen more than a
few of them hitting on human females at the Woodsmen Pub,” Rafe replied.

“Fucking them is one thing,” Artemis said
bitterly, “but they would never mate with them, never allow them to join the
pack.  If I tried to force them to do so, it would destroy the pack.”

“You don’t know that,” Rafe said.

“I do,” Artemis replied.  “You don’t know
what the pack is like now.”

He suddenly gripped Rafe’s arm.  “Just
think about it for a few days, will you?  I know it’s difficult to give up your
love for your human, believe me I do, but promise me you’ll at least consider
father’s offer.  I miss you, Rafe.”

“I will consider it,” Rafe said quietly.

“Thank you, brother.”

* * *

“Tagon?”

“Yes, father?”  Tagon moved to the side of
the bed and adjusted the covers.  “What is it?”

“I need you to do something for me.  I want
you to find Rafe’s human and bring her to me.”

“What?  Why?”  Tagon asked.

His father gave him a grim smile.  “So I
can convince her to leave my son alone.”

“Father, I don’t think this is a good
idea.  If you hurt Rafe’s mate, he will – “

“She is not his mate,” his father said. 
“Bring her to me.”

“She won’t come without Rafe,” Tagon
replied.  “He will tell her what you said and – “

“Then you must convince her that I wish to
meet with her because I want to find a way to make this work for all of us,”
the old man said angrily.  “Do as I ask, Tagon, and stop arguing with me.”

“Yes, father,” Tagon replied. 

The old man patted Tagon’s face.  “You’re a
good boy, Tagon.”

“Hey, handsome,” Rowan said happily when
she opened her apartment door.  “How did it go with your father?”

Rafe stepped inside and without speaking
pulled her into his embrace and buried his face in her hair.  He breathed
deeply as she made a soft noise of comfort and rubbed his back.  For the first
time in hours he felt completely at peace and he kissed Rowan’s neck.  He
couldn’t leave his mate.  He missed Artemis and even surly Tagon, and he missed
being in a pack but he couldn’t abandon his mate. He would go crazy without
her.

“I take it that it didn’t go well,” Rowan
said when he finally released her.

“It wasn’t - “

He stopped and gave her a helpless look. 
He had no idea where to even begin.

Rowan took his hand and led him toward the
kitchen.  “Come on, honey, I’ve got supper waiting for you.  You can tell me
everything while we eat.”

* * *

“I am sorry, my mate,” Rafe said quietly as
Rowan pushed the uneaten food around on her plate.  Halfway through supper she
had abandoned eating and he gave her a worried look as she smiled wanly at him.

“It’s not your fault your father gave you
such a terrible choice.”

“It isn’t a choice,” he said.  “I’m not
leaving my mate.”

“I’m not really your mate though, am I?” 
She said.  “You haven’t bitten me.”

“I’ll bite you right now,” he said. 
“Rowan, I – I love you and I want to be with you.”

He expected her to be happy and when she
continued to give him a grave look, his heart sank.  “Do you not love me?”

She scowled at him.  “Of course I do.”

“Then let’s go to the bedroom,” he said. 
“I’ll claim you as my mate and we’ll – “

“You promised Artemis you would take a few
days to consider it,” she said.  “If you bite me tonight the choice has been
made.”

“I told him that to ease his mind,” Rafe
said.  “I love my brother and I miss him but it’s you I need.”

“You miss your pack,” she said.  “I know
you do.  If you take me as your mate, you’ll never be a part of a pack again.”

“We’re a pack,” he said.  “Remember?”

“I know I don’t know a lot about wolf
shifters, but I’m pretty certain that a pack of two isn’t how it works,” she
said softly.  “It’s one thing when we have no choice but now your father has –
“

“I don’t care!”  He interrupted hotly. 
“Listen to me, my mate.  I will not leave you – I
cannot
leave you.”

“I think you should honour your promise to
your brother,” Rowan said quietly.  “Biting me tonight would be a mistake.”

“You’re having second thoughts about being
with an old man,” Rafe said, “and my father’s offer is a convenient way for you
to not – “

“Stop it!”  She said sharply.  She pushed
her chair back and stomped over to him before sitting on his lap and cupping
his face.  “I love you, Rafe Taggert, and I don’t fucking care how old you are
or that you’re a goddamn wolf who howls at the moon.  I am not having second
thoughts.  What I’m trying to do is not be selfish for once in my fucking
life.  I want you, I love you, and the thought of not being with you is killing
me.  But do you know what’s worse?”

She squeezed his face and he shook his
head.  She rested her forehead against his before saying, “What’s worse is
thinking that someday you’ll regret the decision you made today.  That you’ll
wish you had made a different choice and you’ll grow to hate me because of it. 
I couldn’t stand that, Rafe.  I couldn’t.”

“That won’t happen, Rowan,” Rafe said
fiercely.  “I love you and I’ll always love you.  A shifter will never abandon
his mate.  Please, let me bite you.”

She pressed her mouth against his in a
brief, warm kiss.  “Honour your promise to your brother, Rafe.  Give it a few
days.  If you still feel the same as you do now, then you can bite me.”

“Do you promise?”  He asked hoarsely.

She gave him a small smile before making an
‘x’ over her heart.  “Cross my heart, hope to die.”

“I love you, Rowan.”

“I love you too, Rafe.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes
before she squeezed his shoulder and started to stand.  He immediately pulled
her back into his lap, holding her tightly around the waist. 

“Let me up, honey,” she said.  “I want to
clean up the supper dishes and go to bed.  I’m tired.”

He swallowed heavily.  “Do you want me to
leave?”

She shook her head.  “No, absolutely not. 
Unless you want to go?  I understand if you do.”

“I want to stay with my mate,” he said. 

She nuzzled his throat affectionately and
he cupped her breast, kneading it gently before kissing her deeply.  She was
panting lightly when he finally released her and she rubbed her ass against his
growing erection.  “Maybe I’m not that tired.”

He grinned at her and she cupped his face. 
“Honey, you can’t bite me during sex.  Promise me you won’t.”

He hesitated and she poked him in the
chest.  “Promise you won’t bite or you’re banished to the guest room.”

“You wouldn’t do that,” he said with a
small grin.  “You’re way too horny for that.”

“I have a vibrator, Mr. Taggert,” she said
primly.  “And a package of fresh batteries.”

He growled at her and she laughed before
kissing him firmly.  “No biting.  Promise me, honey.”

“I promise,” he said.

“Thank you.  Now, Mr. Big Bad Wolf - take
me to the bedroom and ravish me.”

* * *

“So you really wouldn’t let Rafe bite you
last night?”  Belle panted into the phone.

“No.  I just – I want it more than anything
but I also want him to make sure he’s absolutely positive this is what he
wants,” Rowan sighed.  “What are you doing over there?”

“Trying to move a box of books that weighs
about a thousand pounds,” Belle replied.  “Hold on a minute.”

Rowan waited patiently as Belle set her
cell phone down with a loud clunk.  She listened to the faint sounds of Belle
grunting as she tidied up the dinner dishes from last night.  Rafe had left
about half an hour ago to work at the Farthen’s place and she had immediately
called Belle.

“Okay, I’m back,” Belle said breathlessly. 
“But I gotta go.  The stupid box is in my way and I need Bennett to move it for
me.  He’s out in the back yard and I swear my cell phone loses its damn signal
every time I walk through the west wing.”

“Sure, I’ll let you know in a few days what
happens.”

“Hold on,” Belle said, “that’s not what I
meant.  Come over for lunch – I’ll text Ella and tell her to join us – and
we’ll talk more about it.”

“Are you sure?”  Rowan said.

“Of course I am.  I’ll see you around noon,
okay?”

“Yes.  Thanks, Belle-baby.”

“Anytime, honey.”

Rowan hit the end button and shoved her
cell phone into her pocket.  She paced back and forth in her small kitchen
wondering for about the hundredth time if it had been a mistake not to let Rafe
bite her last night.

It isn’t.  Rafe needs to be absolutely
sure you’re what he wants.

She sighed.  Her inner voice was right but
she was a bundle of nerves.  Rafe was adamant that he wanted to be with her but
his pack was important too and –

There was a knock at her door and she
headed toward it.  She checked the peephole, her eyes widening with surprise,
before opening the door.

“Tagon?  What are you doing here?”

“Hello, Ms. Jameson.  May I come in?”

She cocked her head at him.  “How did you
know where I lived?”

He shrugged.  “I Googled you.”

“How did you get into the building?”

“One of your neighbours was leaving the
building and was kind enough to hold the door open for me.  May I come in?”

She nodded and stepped back.  “Yes but Rafe
isn’t here.”

“It’s not Rafe I wish to speak with,” he
said before giving her a pleasant smile.

She gave him a suspicious look.  “Why so
nice, wolf boy?”

“Do I need a reason to be nice to my
brother’s mate?”

He sniffed at her and she rolled her eyes. 
“You know I’m not technically your brother’s mate yet.”

“I imagine my brother has told you about my
father’s offer,” Tagon said.

“He did.”

“He was quite clear to my father that he
would not leave his mate yet he still hasn’t bitten you.  Does that worry you?”

“No.”

Tagon smiled at her.  “My father would like
to meet you.”

“Bring him by tonight, we can have tea and
cookies,” Rowan said.

Tagon shook his head.  “My father is very
ill and cannot travel.”

“Fair enough.  Tell your dad that Rafe and
I will come by this evening.”

“He wishes to meet with you alone.”

“Why?”  Rowan asked.  “So he can convince
me to convince Rafe to dump my ass?”

Tagon smiled again at her.  “Surprisingly,
no.  He’s missed Rafe very much and – “

“Then maybe he shouldn’t have kicked him
out of the pack,” Rowan said.

The smile dropped from Tagon’s face and he
cleared this throat loudly.  “My father wishes to meet you in the hopes that
you can come to some sort of truce that will allow Rafe to have you as his mate
and be alpha of the pack.”

“No offense, Tagon, but that sounds like a
whole lot of bullshit,” Rowan said cheerfully.

Tagon bared his teeth at her and she cocked
her eyebrow at him before leaning against the wall.  “Try again.”

“I speak the truth,” Tagon said.  “But I
don’t care if you refuse to meet with my father or not.  I’ll tell him that you
weren’t interested in trying to help your mate.  Goodbye, Ms. Jameson.”

He stalked out into the hallway as Rowan
bit at her lip.  “Tagon, wait!  I’ll meet with your father.”

Tagon turned to face her and smiled again. 
“Excellent.  Come with me, I’ll drive you there.”

“You want me to go right now?”  Rowan
asked.

He nodded.  “Is that a problem?”

She hesitated before shaking her head. 
“No, just let me grab my purse.”

She ran into the kitchen and grabbed her
purse before pulling her cell phone from her pocket.  She quickly texted Belle
and was starting to text Rafe when Tagon appeared in the kitchen.

“Ms. Jameson?  I don’t mean to rush you but
my father tires quickly these days.  He’s waiting for us and I would like to
get back to him as soon as possible.”

She shoved her cell phone into her purse
without finishing her text and nodded.  “Let’s go.”

* * *

Rafe’s childhood home was large and
surprisingly inviting.  Bright sunlight poured through the large living room
window and she set her purse by the door before wandering across the room.  She
studied the photos on the wall.  Most of them were of Rafe and his brothers as
children and she smiled a little at the one of the three brothers standing in
front of a large tree house, their arms draped over each other’s shoulders and
identical grins on their faces.

There was a noise behind her and she turned
and watched Tagon lead the old man into the room.  He shuffled to the chair
next to the fireplace and collapsed into it with a heavy sigh as Tagon draped a
blanket over his lap.

Rowan studied him carefully.  He was tall
like Rafe but his hair was a lighter brown and he had bright blue eyes.  She
imagined in his youth he had been a very handsome man but whatever illness had
taken hold of him had etched lines into his too-thin face and his skin was an
unhealthy shade of grey.  Still, his eyes shone with sharp intelligence and he
stared steadily at her even as his hands trembled lightly. 

“My name is Arone Taggert,” he said
quietly.

“Hello, Mr. Taggert.  My name is Rowan. 
It’s nice to meet you,” she said.

He studied her closely. “How old are you?”

“Old enough,” she said.  “Tagon said you wished
to speak with me about Rafe.”

“I do.  Sit, please,” he said.

She crossed the room and sat down in the
chair across from him.  She crossed her legs and folded her hands neatly in her
lap.  She was nervous and she watched as the old man took a deep sniff in her
direction.

“You’re nervous,” he said.  “Why?”

“Because I’m in a house with two wolves who
aren’t exactly my biggest fans?”  She said.

He grinned, revealing extremely white
teeth.  “Can you blame us?  You’re taking our son and brother away from us.”

“No, you did that years ago when you
refused to allow him back into the pack,” she said.