AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A little taken aback by that, I have to regain his proverbial footing, and lose my mind in the process. "Love you too, brother-in-law."
That was probably not the best idea. Can't take it back now. Opening the door to our motel room, I find Paige is curled up on the bed, watching the TV.
"Anything good on?" She looks over at me and uncurls her legs, scooting closer to the side I'm on.
"Not really." She grabs the remote and turns it off. I walk over to her, set the bag and coffee on the side table, and then turn to give her a kiss. Her arms wrap around my neck as I move between her legs. She moans with satisfaction as I slip my tongue into her mouth. Pulling away, I press my head against hers.
"I could get lost in you all over again." She giggles and lets her hand fall down my chest as I grab her food.
"I hope it's still warm; I was talking to your brother outside for a bit."
"That's ok. What did he have to say?"
Handing over her coffee and sandwich, I sit beside her on the bed. "Oh, you know, wanting to gut me."
"What? Really?"
I unwrap my sandwich and take a large bite. Damn this thing is good, even if it's not as warm as it was when I picked it up. "Yeah, but that wasn't his main point. He told me his guys would be here in an hour, and the guy from last night is chained up in his bathroom." I take another bite, the greasy bacon and egg coating my mouth in deliciousness.
"Why is he in the bathroom?" Paige takes a bite of her sandwich and makes a little noise of contentment.
"Thorn said he put him in the tub because it's uncomfortable, and if he looked at his face, he might kill him. I can't blame him, though I wish I had killed the guy from last night slower."
Paige leans onto my shoulder, so I wrap my arm around her. I don't know what I would have done if they had taken her from me. Go crazy, likely.
"I don't want you to do this," she whispers.
Setting my cup and sandwich down, I pull her into my lap. She tucks her head into my neck as I rub her back. "It's going to be okay, Paige. I just need to pay attention. Mic has never been that good at a one-on-one fight. He's sloppy and lazy."
"He could have gotten better, you don't know."
I continue to rub her back. "You're right. I don't know. But now that he has tried to take you from me, I have even more motivation to win this. No one will ever come between us again, Paige. I will protect you and our baby."
My heart swells with the knowledge that Paige might be carrying my baby. I never really dreamed of having a family, Paige being so unattainable for so many years, but now that I have her here in my life and our pup in her belly, this fight is even more important. I want them to be safe, just like I want my little brother to be safe. I want to know him. Give my family the safety I never had growing up.
"Come on, sunshine. You gotta eat up. I don't want you hungry when we head out, and Thorn's team should be here soon."
She nods her head and climbs off my lap. We finish eating and getting ready when, not even an hour later, Thorn is knocking on our door. Thorn, Paige and I climb into my truck while the other team follows behind in the van. The drive to pack lands is tense; I know Paige isn't happy, but I need to do this. For my family.
The road leading into the pack lands gets thicker with trees. My wolf is pacing, itching for a fight, but I need to keep my head straight. This isn't like a sparring match back at Twilight Meadows. This is a fight to the death. I've never intentionally gone into a fight with the sole purpose of killing someone. It feels different knowing this is intended to kill someone to take control of the pack.
The first couple of houses come into view, and as I turn the corner, the pack house sits straight ahead. A fair few people are milling about, which is surprising since it's so early in the morning.
"I connected with my contact last night and told him what was happening. He has gathered those he knows want a change in leadership to support the challenge," Thorn says as he looks around the area. His assessing eyes take in every person and threat. Let's hope the crowd helps and doesn't cause more problems. I park in front of the pack house, and Thorn hops out quickly. Paige, however, sits in silence in the front seat.
"You okay, sunshine?"
She turns her head slowly towards me and swallows a lump in her throat. "No, but I will be. You better win this, Liam Gates." She tightens her grip on my hand. "I just got you. I can't lose you. I love you, Liam."
Leaning over, I slide my hand along her jaw and kiss her luscious lips. "I love you too, Paige. More than anything in this world. It's going to be okay."
I give her one last peck as she nods at my statement. Maybe I shouldn't promise things like that, but I don't want her being scared. I climb out of the truck and meet Paige in front of it. Thorn is talking to the other guys in the van. Glancing around, I see a lot of people looking our way. Some seem happy to see us, while others are looking at us with disdain. Grabbing Paige's hand, I head around the side of the pack house to where the new fighting arena is.
The backyard is full of people. Thorn wasn't kidding when he said he told people what was going on. The crowd stands around an octagon-shaped fighting area, partitioned off by thick ropes and filled with sand. It stands out against the wooded backdrop. The closer we get to the area, the more people turn and watch our progress; from some of the looks of terror, they must see Thorn and the council team coming up behind us.
Suddenly, Paige squeezes my hand tightly. Looking around for danger, I see her parents, Rain and Albain Vata, walking toward us with scowls and confusion on their faces. I didn't realize that was possible. A wave of protectiveness consumes me, pulling Paige behind me I look at her parents head on. I'm not sure what's worse, being beaten or spending my entire life being put down and ostracized because of who I was and how I was born. Paige is a strong woman, but parents are not supposed to ignore you or tell you the horrible things they told Paige. Her mother looks at Paige behind me with disgust.
"I had hoped that not hearing from you for eight years meant your pathetic life had ended, and our eternal embarrassment with it." The venom in Rain's voice is beyond anything I've ever heard. Before I can say anything, Thorn comes out of nowhere and steps up into his mother's face.
