A Guardians Passion (8 page)

“You were there to retrieve a mark from the crowd. Good thing. My match happened before you jerked that guy out of his chair and started pummeling him. Everyone’s eyes were on you instead of the ring.”

Freya nodded as she recalled the bear shifter wanted for the rape of a wolf. She had tried to tear him in two. It hadn’t been easy, and several of the patrons sitting next to him in the fighting arena had suffered bruises, but in the end, she collected her mark. It was funny, she thought as she looked at Melissa. She had been worried about the other women at the retreat recognizing her from the pageant from the moment she entered the lobby.

Refusing to dwell on how funny many of them, including Melissa, might have thought her predicament was, Freya started off to the hallway that led to the bathroom. Sure enough in the double closet that framed the hallway, gowns were hung. “So, you were a warrior-wolf?” Freya asked.

“No,” Melissa replied. “I still am.”

Freya stood before the closet, staring at the maxidresses and gowns, which looked to be her size. The Sohons really did think of fucking everything.

Chapter Five

Serving as a bodyguard or bounty hunter was not the only game in town when it came to satisfying the feral urges of weres. From the exclusive gyms to the more extreme prize-fighting competitions, there was always some way for a werewolf to step away from civilization, bare fang and claw, and return to the basics. While Freya had never competed for the pleasure of spectators and a prize purse, she certainly held nothing against Melissa for doing so.

She had planned on showering, then napping, but Freya barely had time to splash water on her face by the time she and Melissa finished discussing everything from warm-up routines to their worst battles.

While the cubs fed and then slept, Melissa recounted a battle she had participated in against a much larger female who may or may not have possessed a bit of bear in her lineage. Even as she spoke of dislocated jaws and missing flesh torn from her back and legs, the gleam of bloodlust in her eyes spoke to Freya.

Freya told her stories as well, relating the battle with a crazed Luna that had nearly ended her career. Sharing with Melissa how that incident had been somewhat responsible for putting her in the sights of Fenris and Rayne, Freya saw admiration and understanding when she mentioned such words as
rage
,
anxiety
, and
doubt
regarding her current state.

Before either of them was aware of the time, the sun had gone down on their first day, and they had a little less than ten minutes to prepare for the orientation. With cubs in tow, they arrived and sat together at the lavish beach party.

The centerpiece of the extravagant social was four long grills, two of which were large enough to hold the roast pigs twirling on spits. Chefs brushed marinade and seasonings upon grilled seafood. Rich, dark teriyaki glazes glistened over skewers of meat and vegetables, which were then served by a line of Sohon omegas. At each table were pitchers of ice water flavored with cucumbers, lemon, and mint leaves. A steel-drum band played in concert with the surf as a warm tropical breeze flowed over bare shoulders and swollen bellies alike. It was a beautiful night with a crescent moon, and Freya felt completely at ease. She was so relaxed that when Bryant began harassing his brother, she took hold of Ryant, all too willing to tussle.

Freya practiced with the squirming whelp what she would one day have to do for her own cub, bouncing the child on her thigh while Melissa served his brother bits of food from her plate.

“You’re good at that.”

Freya considered the little medicine ball in her grip. He had been fussy at first but had quickly settled as soon as she found a consistent rhythm. An offering of cocktail sausage didn’t hurt either as he nipped her fingers in his eagerness to get at the meat.

“Are you really thinking of returning to the life once your cub is born?”

Freya met Melissa’s question with a shrug. “I don’t know. I could be reckless before, but with Bun coming, I have no idea what the game plan will be.” She had left her first beta, Cole, in charge of her team and jobs while she stayed in Iceland. He reported to her occasionally. He consulted with her, but he was not a leader, and when her mother stepped in to help him, Freya hadn’t been surprised.

She had never said that she wouldn’t return, but when she asked Cole about working with his new alpha, he had admitted he didn’t see her coming back.
“There’s plenty to hunt over there,”
he had told her of Iceland and its proximity to the continent. She had wondered about hunting when she first arrived at the lodge, but then came pregnancy.

“I feel guilty to admit it, but I miss the adrenaline, the physicality, the thrills.”

Melissa agreed. “You’ll be back in fighting shape before you know it. And then after there are plenty of ways to get that thrill without putting your life in jeopardy. There is always the MCL.”

Freya thought about the fighting competitions Melissa had told her about, the prize purses and the accolades. Melissa had claimed the rush to be nearly orgasmic when she fought, and Freya understood wholeheartedly. Before Fenris, she too had lived for the exhilaration and pleasure of combat. While both he and Rayne were more than adequate to satisfy her needs, any form of victory over them had become impossible.

Prizefighting was something she could look into. Staring out at the black-blue ocean, Freya knew that some considered Ulfur Lodge to be an arena. It surely hosted enough fights even if money wasn’t wagered. But then the hunt…

“Freya, packs go a long way in helping to raise cubs, but so does a mother.”

She snapped back to Melissa, who had refreshed their glasses with the flavored water. She took hold of the one being offered to her and took a sip. The chill of the water helped to curb her angst over the unknown. “Oh, I know.”Above all, she knew that her love of battle would have a rival, one who was fidgeting in her womb even now. Freya couldn’t help but wonder if Bun was jealous of her playtime with Ryant.

“Be honest. When you were a kid, didn’t you worry about your mother every time she went out?”

Freya recalled her childhood. She had told Melissa about her hard-edged mother, namely about how Geraldine didn’t take jobs but rather took on vendettas. Geraldine had rarely needed to seek work with others flocking to her in need of help or revenge. Her mother had spent a good deal of time with Freya when she was young, but several times a year, there would be a caller at the door, and Geraldine would gather all sorts of deadly weaponry. She would call one of her sisters over and give a stern nod to Freya. After a warning not to misbehave, Geraldine would vanish.

And Freya, as a child, would be sick with worry that no one but her seemed to share. Her aunts certainly didn’t seem flustered that Geraldine was putting her life on the line.

“She put food on the table.” Freya sighed. “And she was— No, she
is
still good at what she does. I doubt if she could be any other way. I used to think that I would be like her, that I was like her, but I’m not just a fucking thrill junkie.

“I mean, all this was so unexpected. I didn’t plan on getting knocked up. I didn’t even think I could get pregnant, but I should have known better fooling with a damn witch-wolf.”

Melissa smiled at Freya’s introspection as a skinny blond waif of an omega approached the table. He went down on his knees and offered a tray filled with smoking-hot sausages and grilled peppers, red, orange, and yellow.

Both women nodded, giving the male permission to fill their plates. Bryant growled at the young male, causing him to shake with the fork in his hand. Melissa chided her son before she reached over and sought a small sausage to calm him. As the omega shuffled away, she reassured Freya, “Trust me. You will figure this out, find the balance you need. I did.”

Ryant, seeing his brother munching on a pork sausage, struggled to reach Freya’s platter. She helped him, leaning over to get the meat for him. She broke off a small portion and placed it against his lips. Just meeting Melissa and her cubs had already done wonders for her mood and encouraged her to believe that things could be fine. Though she had witnessed nothing but calm strength from the woman, Freya still couldn’t help but to ask, “You never felt even the slightest bit overwhelmed?”

“Of course I did. Sometimes I still do. If I don’t have my hands full with the boys, then it’s Darren,” she said, speaking of her mate. “And if it ain’t him, it’s pack politics. But these days I am a lot less inclined to do anything that might jeopardize me seeing my babies grow into men, and that includes protecting my sanity. As soon as the boys are older and able to control their change, I might step back in the ring. I’ll
definitely
be back in the gym. I mean to help train them one day, and I’ll need to help their dad keep them in line.” Demonstrating her diligence already, she caught Bryant’s hands as he reached for the top of her strapless dress.

She had informed Freya she was in the process of weaning them off milk, but Bryant proved his reluctance to abide.

Freya chuckled at the stormy frown painted on Bryant’s features. The little cub seemed ready to throw a fit as his mother readjusted him on her lap. Freya couldn’t help wondering if she would be able to say no to such a cute little fighter. “Fenris could probably teach Bun much better than I could.”

Melissa rolled her eyes, lips pursed in disbelief. “Girl, he’s a Luna, right? He can’t teach chaos. The kind of brute destruction that Lunas can unleash can’t be learned. I don’t care if he is tamed.”

Before she stuck her foot in her mouth, Freya had to remind herself that not everyone encountered Lunas on a regular basis. “He’s a good fighter when he’s calm too.”

“But so are you. You do have a reputation, you know?”

Freya took the praise calmly as she looked around the gathering, far more at ease than when she had first arrived. She noticed a stage set up in the sand where two males were lighting torches. That would be where the opening speech would be, Freya figured. “Bun could be a witch-wolf,” she speculated more to herself than to Melissa.

Melissa finished off a sausage before speaking. “So? He would still have much to learn from you. Stop trying to look for a loophole and enjoy the ride, girl! And for the moon’s sake, please stop referring to your kid as dough!”

Freya raised her nose as if she could have cared less. Folks were always calling their children Sweetie, Pumpkin, Dumpling even. She could have sworn that she had heard Melissa herself refer to Bryant as Darling. Before she could comment on the irony, Freya heard a familiar shriek.

“Oh my Goddess! Look at you two. Absolutely gorgeous.” Benna approached the table, looking more like a bride than a hostess. She was dressed in a spaghetti-strapped white chiffon gown with her reddish-gold curls drawn up into a high bun. She glowed as she took hold of an empty seat and pulled it between them.

Noting Freya and Ryant, Benna gave a wry wink. “You’re a natural, Freya. Mind if I join you?” she asked even as she sat.

“Of course not,” Freya muttered, even though she was sure the Sohon wouldn’t have cared.
Werewolves with fairy blood…

Benna reached out toward Melissa and her cub. She wiggled a finger upon Bryant’s belly, just barely removing it before the alpha cub snapped at her. “Whoa.” She laughed. “He’s a feisty one.”

“He can be,” said his mother.

Benna shooed off the notion before settling back against her seat. “Well, introduce me, Melissa. I didn’t get the chance earlier, what with you two needing to rest and all. The toddlers are so cute.”

“That is Ryant, and this little beastie is Bryant.” Melissa pointed to the cub in Freya’s arms first and then ruffled the thick black curls upon the head of the cub that she held.

“Little alpha…or gamma, I’m predicting.” She considered Bryant. “He is decisive, bold, but there is hesitation about him, I think.”

Freya had begun to alternate between feeding Ryant and herself as Benna detailed easy ways to predict the dispositions of werewolves. Even though the girl had never given birth, Freya suspected that Benna knew exactly what she was talking about.

Her plate was soon bare, but like magic, an omega was at her side, offering some new delicacy straight from the grill. The gorgeous, scantily clad omegas could have easily matched Rayne in their servitude, but the one who came before her now was especially reverent. Eyes cast downward, he had skin like the darkest of chocolates, well-defined abs defined like stairs leading into the white cargo pants he wore. His features were an odd combination of sharp and soft, his nose pointed and long, yet flaring, cheekbones well defined, but rounded cheeks and near-feminine eyes. Neat black locks were pulled into a high ponytail.
Perfect for grabbing and forcing to the—

Benna brushed her fingers against Freya’s arm, stealing her train of thought. This time it was Freya who postured with a growl.

“Are you guys enjoying yourselves?” Benna queried both her and Melissa.

Melissa agreed readily while Freya turned to find the dark omega gone. Her pack had no omegas, and she had been in the middle of speculating how Fen and Rayne would respond to the gift of one so gorgeous.

“Freya?”

“Yup.” She answered Benna’s question finally.

“Wonderful. And you like the gifts too?”

Everything is fucking spectacular, from the toilets to the spoons, chick. Now stop gloating for a damn minute
, Freya wanted to say. Spotting the dark omega serving another table, Freya smirked as she caught his gaze upon her. He quickly lowered his eyes but only after narrowly avoiding dropping his platter. Fen would eat him up, she mused before addressing Benna. “Of course.”

“Omegas
are
negotiable,” Benna drawled, betraying a hint of irritation. “Although I doubt any could survive a day at the Ulfur.” The last line was murmured under her breath.

Freya laughed at the statement, knowing it would be true. While she had once believed Rayne to be submissive, she had learned quickly that the term was conditional with betas. They could only pretend to be as timid, as selfless, and as serving as omegas; the truth of their nature was that they were the most manipulative. Her beta sure had his ways of getting what he wanted. Hell, her pregnancy itself was proof enough.
“I healed you, but I had no idea that you would be fertile so soon,”
he had told her.