Page 45 of Mated in Darkness

At least, that’s what Riaz had said when he explained to us who was coming. Kaylee hadn’t looked surprised, and since they were her family, it made sense.

No, I was the only one really surprised and worried.

After all, they were about to meet Kaylee’s mate, a newly made wolf who hadn’t even shifted yet and had no idea what the fuck he was doing.

“Come on, we need to meet them,” Kaylee said as she tugged on my arm.

I shook my head.

“Maybe you should go to them first alone?”

She frowned, giving me a look. “You want me to meet them without you?”

“I don’t want to get in the way.”

“How would you be getting in the way? You’re my mate, Jason. They’re going to love you.”

I raised a brow. “I’m not an established wolf, or even a dominant one. I don’t know how the hell I’m supposed to protect you or do anything other than make a mess of everything because I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing.”

Kaylee’s eyes glowed gold, and I knew I had said the wrong thing.

“First off, mate of mine, you never need to protect me. I’m dominant enough to protect us both. And yes, I can feel the dominance of your wolf coming along, and one day you may grow to be more dominant than me, and that’s perfectly fine. Because you’re never going to force that strength on me to try to show me that you’re better than me.”

I move forward, cupped her face. “Never. I would never do that.” I frowned, an odd anger pushing at me. One that was far stronger than I would usually feel.

“Did someone do that to you? I’m sure you already ripped out their throats, but I can come back and do it again once they’re healed.”

Her lips twitched into a smile before she went on her tiptoes and kissed me softly. “That’s very sweet of you, and I like that little aggressive wolf of yours, but don’t worry, I’m fine. And you will be fine. My parents will love you. My siblings will love you.” She paused. “Well, maybe not Conner.”

I gulped. “Your twin?”

“Yes, he’s a little growly when it comes to people near me. Mostly because we have that twin bond thing, and I’m going to be the exact same way with whoever comes near him.” She shrugged. “We can feel who we are to one another more than most folks. And it hurts to think about somebody hurting our best friend. The other half of us, in the most basic of twin ways.”

“Now I’m nervous about meeting Conner.”

She grinned. “Don’t be. He’s going to like you. Not the same way I like you, which is a good thing.”

“Yes, that would be a weird thing, considering I’m starting to like you.”

I grinned and pulled away, trying to untangle all the emotions pounding through me. It was like everything was on hyperdrive, and I realized it was because of the mating bond, and the fact that I was now a shifter didn’t make things any easier for my analytical mind.

“Okay then, let’s go meet them, and then we can make a plan to find out exactly who is killing our people and leaving that disease.”

I nodded at her. “And frankly, I’m worried about what happens if it spreads.”

She froze, staring at me. “It could spread?”

I held up my hands. “I don’t know. That’s the problem. I’m only partway through my research, and I should have been doing more of it, but then things have been happening, and well, here I am.”

“I would say things happen for a reason because that’s what fate is, but let’s get you back into that lab.” She paused. “We’re going to have to get you a lab up with the Redwoods.”

I swallowed hard. “I guess my life is changing, isn’t it?”

She opened her mouth to say something, and I wasn’t sure what she could say to make anything feel not so awkward, when a new scent invaded my nose, and Kaylee went to her tiptoes, bounced, and turned to open the door.

“Father,” she said, and she wrapped her arms around a man that looked her age, and he hugged her right back.

The guy was tall, wiry, with runner’s muscles and sandy hair over his eyes.

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