Page 32 of Mates & Mercenaries

As soon as the words are out, I rip free of my human body and allow my wolf to attack this asshole, to rip him to shreds. Better he die than Skylar. I don’t want her to have any threats looming against her again. With Edmund and all his top guys dying here, I’m sure his little clan will scatter and the threat to Chicago will be over and done with.

I will kill for Skylar, to keep her safe. I will do anything for her and the happily ever after that we all want, that we can have once this is over. The one that we deserve.

EPILOGUE - SKYLAR (SIX MONTHS LATER)

“Ican’t wait for you to come visit, Maeve,” I say happily into the phone. “It’s going to be so much fun. But no not the night clubbing kind of fun. This isn’t the city.”

My best friend and I leadverydifferent lives these days. She’s still living it up in Chicago, dancing and drinking all the time, hooking up with guys and having a blast. Exactly the life I thought I wanted before all of this happened. But now I know thatthisis the life for me. Swinging on the porch swing of our rustic farm house. This might not be the prairie, but it’s as close as we’re going to get and I adore that. This quiet life is perfect for me. I don’t want anything else.

It means I don’t know what my dad is doing anymore, how deep he is in it these days, but that’s the way I like it. When we talk, it’s about everything else. I ask him how he’s doing, how his health is, how he is enjoying his time in the gym. We never talk about his work, and that is the best thing for us both and our relationship. That separation is so much better for me. It means he can just be Dad. He’s actually coming to visit soon. Although not here. We’re meeting at one of the safe houses for a few days. Just to make sure no one follows Dad and comes for me.

But those rules don’t apply to Maeve. She can come all the way here without us having to worry. I can’t wait for us to hang out again; it feels like it’s been forever. She hasn’t even seen the new house yet. It’s crazy how fast time passes.

“How much fun could we have in a night club with your swollen belly anyway?” Maeve laughs. “You’re about to give birth. I don’t think you could pull off any sexy moves, do you?”

I rub said stomach and laugh. “You know, you might be right about that. I can hardly even walk anymore, it’s all waddling. I’ve gotten to the stage where I’m actually looking forward to the birth so I don’t have to be so big anymore.”

“At least you have four hunky guys around to look after you.”

I can’t help but think about the day of the showdown between Edmund and the pack. I hid with Maeve and told her everything. I didn’t hold any of the details back, and it’s safe to say that she was stunned. Not only for the reasons that I was away for such a long time, even though she always knew that my life could be in danger, but by how wild I’d been. Not satisfied by one man, but by four.

She’s accepting, though, because Maeve is incredible. She was the first one to accept us. My dad came around eventually, when he started to see how much the guys cared for me, and how happy they made me.

“I definitely feel like the luckiest woman alive. I can sit with my feet up as much as I want because there is always someone to look out for my every need.”

“Ah, sounds like heaven. Are they prepared for another mouth to feed when I come along? Because I might want some of this treatment myself, it sounds lovely.”

I glance down at Sam in his wolf form, sleeping curled up around my feet, and smile. Then I catch sight of Rex and Clay, throwing a football to one another in our large yard. Not that we really need the yard because we have so much space to run and be free. My wolf is well and truly satisfied here. This is so far away from my Chicago prison, and I adore every single part of it.

“They will take care of you, I can promise you that much. They are actually excited to meet you properly. And I can’t wait until you see them.” She will love them, I’m sure of it. How can she not completely adore them? I know this isn’t the life that someone like Maeve would ever want, but I’m sure she’s going to enjoy the peace for a few days. I hope so, anyway.

The heat beams down on my shoulders, as if I need an extra reminder of how great it is here. I never need to be reminded, it’s not like I will ever take this life for granted. Here is my heaven, my happy place, I don’t want to be anywhere else in the world.

“Alright, well, I have to get going, Skylar. I need to get to work. But I will talk to you soon.”

“Sure thing. Talk to you later, Maeve.”

I let out a contented sigh as I hang up. I shift a little, but it’s enough to disturb Sam. He gets to his feet and takes off at the speed of light, stretching his wolf legs as much as he can. I laugh to myself, knowing how much that means to a wolf. I find myself shifting a lot now because I can and because I enjoy it. I think it’s actually a side of myself that I locked away and didn’t want to think of, because I couldn’t shift much. I was trapped by Dad, but now I am me and I can be free. Although I have been shifting less throughout my pregnancy. It’s just easier to be sluggish and heavy on two legs instead of four.

Creed appears with my mug of tea for me and takes a seat beside me. “You only get more beautiful with every passing day,” he declares sweetly.

“When did you get to be such a sweet talker, huh?” I ask with a giggle.

He leans down and rests his head on my belly, listening to the heartbeat of our baby. Or cub. Sometimes we think of our child as a little wolfling. Our little baby shifter. Boy or girl, I can’t wait to meet our little child. We’re going to have the best time.

“I can’t wait until you’re born, little one,” he whispers. “I can’t wait to finally hold you in my arms. I am going to be one of the best fathers in the world.”

Seeing this softer, more gentle side of Creed really warms my heart. He really has changed. He said that I bring out the best in him, and it seems like that actually might be true. He’s still his alpha self when he needs to be, but he has also found a way to be in touch with his emotions as well. I really do think he will be the best father ever.

But not just him. Our baby is going to be lucky enough to grow up with so many loving parents. And I certainly don’t think that this will be our only child. All of us are ready to have a massive family running around us in this big yard.

I rub Creed’s head as he continues to whisper to our child. I lean back and bask in the warmth of his love for our baby. A smile spreads across my face. I haven’t ever known what my future is going to look like before. I didn’t see much further than just getting out somehow and discovering who I am. I certainly never would have thought that it would look like this. This future certainly came as a surprise.

But now I can see a glorious future stretched out in front of me, full of love and happiness. I can see that life is going to be amazing for me. For all of us. For Creed, who can finally be an alpha in the kind and caring way that I’m sure suits him more than anything. For Rex, who is much calmer than he used to be because he has seemingly found his place here in the world, which I completely understand. For Sam, who no longer has to spend his days in front of a computer screen worrying about what might be coming to threaten him all the time. For Clay, who is definitely coming out of his shell and finally finding his feet. That has been one of the best transformations for all of us to see. He’s so much happier now being himself. I love it.

“Oh my!” I press my hand to my belly. “That was a strong kick.”

Creed’s eyes pop wide. “Yeah, that was crazy. It felt a little harder than the usual kick. Are you doing okay? Do you need anything?”

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