Fated Mate

Joe turned, he gave her a smile, and then he looked up at Billy, the look in his eyes lethal. Billy backed down, relaxing his stance, but still kept an eye on Lee. Joe had noticed their silent cold war. She turned to face her sisters, pretending not to have seen their quiet exchange. She placed her elbow on the table and put her chin in her palm. She wanted to look at ease but she was still ready for anything-just as Billy was.

“Don’t you want to take a shower first before you eat? You’ll feel more comfortable.” Ann spoke, oblivious of the tension in the kitchen.

“I don’t think my stomach will be willing to wait that long. I can do that when we get home.”

Billy moved, she dropped her hand and placed it on the table. Her eyes shot at him, meeting his fidgety eyes. The tips of her fingers were already curling inwards. He stiffened then paused. They held each other’s gaze, both waiting for each other to jump. What is going on with me?

“Lee, we brought our stuff over. Yours is in Ash’s room.” Maria spoke and reached over the table for her hand. “The guys thought it would be safer for us to stay here for a while.”

She stretched out her fingers and took her hand. She turned her full attention to Maria; she needed Billy to relax, so that she could relax.

“Ash didn’t catch her?” Lee shivered, remembering the near death experience.

“No,” Maria’s voice was down to a whisper, “he came back when you collapsed.”

“Lee, when you passed out, what was the last thing you saw?” Ann was fishing. She always did that when she knew something but wanted to make sure they didn’t before she spilled.

“I don’t remember.” Lee looked at her, waiting for the answer.

“Lee, I know you were out but are you seriously telling me you don’t remember a grayish wolf sniffing you?” Her voice was high pitched in disbelief.

Lee was quiet for a while. All she remembered was something wet and big silver eyes. The only wolf she remembered was a brown one eager to kill her.

“No. The only wolf I remember is the psycho obsessed one that wanted to bite my head off,” Lee said it so casually as if it was an everyday event. Maria’s grip tightened around her fingers, a dark shadow crossed her face.

Joe walked around and went to her. He hugged her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. She reached up with her bandaged hand and rubbed it along his arms.

“I’m okay.” Maria smiled, the dark shadow gone.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

“No you’re not.” Joe’s voice was harsh. His jaw was tight and his grip on her tightened around her. “You’ve had nightmares since!”

“What! Why didn’t you tell me?” Lee was worried and angry with herself. She had torn down Maria’s whole cheerful secure world.

“Joe, she really didn’t need to know that.” She was heated. “Lee, you were out so I couldn’t possibly tell you. And anyway, I’ll be fine. We’ll all be fine once Sabrina is out of our lives.”

Sabrina, the cause of her new demons, she could never catch a break! When she was done with one problem, something worse always popped up. “Where is she?”

“Your dad went after her, but he called before you woke up. He lost her scent so he’s coming back.”

“I don’t understand?” These days, she didn’t understand anything. What did he mean by scent?

“They won’t tell us either. We have to wait for the drunk to wake up,” Ann spat out. Her eyes widened when she noticed the glare Lee was giving her. She wasn’t the only one, Billy moved protectively behind her.

Joe pulled away from Maria and walked back to the stove, placing a hand on Lee’s shoulder.

Calm down Lee, should I make the steak medium rare or would you like it a bit raw?

Her eyes widened in surprise. How did he know that? How did Ash know that? She’s been very careful not to let him notice her new taste. She always cooked his meat more than she did hers. Was she that obvious, or did nothing she did go unnoticed?

Lee felt uncomfortable. She expected the girls to comment on what Joe said but they were quiet, like they didn’t hear him. “The latter please,” she practically whispered the words out.

Coming right up!

Billy’s eyes shot at her then at Joe’s back, furious. What had she done wrong now?

Would you like anything to drink, that’s not one’s traditional beverage?

Lee turned and stared at his back, confused by his question. What did he mean by that?

Joe, stop that!

She turned back to Billy. His face matched his warning; he was livid! Seriously, what was this guy’s problem?

“A fruit juice will be fine.” She stood up slowly, careful not to provoke Billy. She opened the refrigerator door and grabbed the juice bow. A tantalizing scent hit her; she could feel all her senses stir in response. She was salivating, moving closer into the fridge. She breathed in deeply, taking in the appetizing scent.

She stopped then quickly shut the door and leaned against it. She had breathed in more than the appetizing scent. She closed her eyes and put her hand over her unsettled stomach.

“Lee, are you okay?” Maria’s sounded scared.

She nodded then swallowed the bile in her throat before she spoke. “There’s something rotten in there.” She walked back to the stool and sat down.

Joe placed the plate of hot red meat in front of her. The steak was submerged in some sort of red-brown broth. The sight of it made her drool. Her stomach launched in agreement. She picked the fork and knife and began cutting into it.

“Ewe! Lee, that isn’t fully cooked yet!” Ann had no problem expressing her disgust, but she wasn’t going to let her ruin the moment for her.

It had been a while since she had this glorious taste tease her taste buds. She cut a piece and put it in her mouth. The pleasure flooded her, kissing every nerve inside her. She closed her eyes to appreciate it, and then tore into the bloody meat.

“Thanks,” she said to Joe, keeping her concentration on her dish.

You are welcome. Would you like another one?

“You are a god, Joe, keep them coming.” She cut another piece and put it in her mouth, chewing on it a lot faster. She heard a low rumble from across the table. She didn’t bother to look up; she knew it was Billy, disapproving of something she may be doing. She wasn’t going to let him ruin this for her either.

Her sisters and Billy sat watching her stuff herself. This was one time she wasn’t concerned about her audience, Joe, her new favorite person in the world, was burning up the last steak. She’d cleared out six steaks already and wasn’t even close to being full.