Page 22 of Her Eternal Mate

“And look what happened! Once, you got almost killed, and I fell off a building. The second time, I got kidnapped and was held captive by Maurice. The third time, our entire town was about to be blown to the heavens with bombs! If it weren’t for me taking all those bombs out to sea, we’d have all been dead. Not to mention you lost your brother. The fourth time, we were quietly and calmly asleep when all the vampires attacked us at once. Have we taken it upon ourselves to come into the crosshairs of danger and recklessness every chance we get? Why can’t we do something else?” I was exhausted, not out of any physical exertion but because it was so difficult right now to make Will see where I was coming from.

“And what is it that you suggest we do? Abandon ship? Run for greener pastures? Stop fighting and surrender?” Will’s voice was raised.

“In another life, if things had been somewhat more normal, I would have loved to run away with you, but I know we cannot do that. The pack needs our help, and we must be there for them. I understand that. But for how long will we keep dragging the pack with us? How many times will it anchor us and be used as an excuse not to leave this godforsaken piece of land?” Tempers were running high, especially my own, but if I didn’t have this confrontation with Will right now, I’d never get the chance to do so. We had to air our dirty laundry right now, even though we might end up hurting each other.

“As long as I am the Alpha, I cannot leave the pack. You, of all people, should know better. You’re my fated mate. We’re bound to each other. Aren’t all these thoughts pretty much intuitive to you by now? Can’t you see what I’m thinking?”

“And can’t you see what I’m going through, then? If we’re fated mates, you should be able to sense that your mate is in mental anguish, that every day I wake up, I have to relive all my traumas over and over again, all those haunting memories of everything that has ever gone wrong in my life!” I didn’t want to scream, and I didn’t, but my voice had raised itself to match his, and I was certain that if it went just a decibel higher, it would devolve into a scream.

Will took a deep breath and then stood up, his hands on his waist, his face furrowed into a frown. “What would you have me do?”

“I would have you pass the baton to the next person in line to be Alpha and come with me so that we can start our lives together. Away from all this madness and danger and desolation,” I said. This time, my voice was soft and slow.

“Lexie,” Will said, then held my hands, “what are we going to do about the soldiers? Leave the pack to fend for themselves? Blair is the sort of person who makes good on his promises. He’s going to hunt both of us down just for revenge. Not to mention all the people who live in Fiddler’s Green, their lives would be in constant jeopardy.”

It was hard to argue with him when he was making such a strong and valid point, but this was not about valid points and strong arguments. This was about him validating my feelings and understanding what I was going through.

“I do understand what you’re going through,” Will said, smiling warmly at me. “And, if you, please bear with me, once this Blair dilemma has resolved itself, I promise you that we will fulfill your dream. It’s not just your dream. It’s ours.”

“Really?” I asked, holding his face in my hands and pulling him closer to me.

“I promise, baby,” Will said, then kissed me on my lips. There was a certain power to kissing after a quarrel. It was like reconnecting on a spiritual level and rediscovering my partner in a new light entirely. His lips felt suppler, his tongue smooth and wet. The way he sucked on my mouth as he held me in his arms made me feel turned on, and there I stood, wrapped in his arms, forgetting why we’d just squabbled with each other.

As he kissed me, all my worries dissolved. I kissed his cheek, then planted my lips on his neck to give him one heck of a hickey. He put his firm hands on my butt and squeezed, making me hornier. We’d crossed the borders of kiss-and-makeup territory and were stepping into makeup-sex land, where all things were solvable by lovemaking and orgasming together.

I nudged his hand between my thighs just as I grabbed the outline of his cock over his jeans.

But before we could make good on our foreplay’s promise of sex, there was a knock on the door. This was a strange knock that rapped five times at the door with a certain harshness to it. Almost businesslike.

“Who is it at this hour?” Will sighed as he headed to the door. “Don’t you go anywhere. I’m coming back to finish what we’ve started.”

He winked at me as he went to the door, causing me to blush in anticipation. I stood there as decently as possible in the living room, watching from behind him as he opened the door.

A gentleman holding a grey cane, wearing a deep purple suit, and sporting a long blonde ponytail stood at the door, his eyes shining blue, his jawline sharp and angular.

“Good day, Wilhelm Grimm. Good day, Alexis Richards. I come to you on behalf of the Clandestine Order to deliver you these summonses for your appearance in the Clandestine Court for the crimes that have been committed in Fiddler’s Green pertaining to the safety and harmony of the supernatural beings who reside in the vicinity,” this man stated in a strange accent.

“The Clandestine Order?” I asked Will.

He turned around and looked at me, an expression of shock on his face, and then shook his head dejectedly.

Chapter 10

Will

“I’m sorry,” Alexis said, looking confused and coming to join me where I stood at the door. She extended her hand, which the emissary shook at once. “But I’ve never heard once of the Clandestine Order.”

“It wouldn’t be called the Clandestine Order if everyone knew of it. We excel at working in the shadows to maintain a delicate balance between all species that aren’t, strictly speaking, human,” the emissary said. “Where are my manners? My name is Rogelio. I serve the Clandestine Order as their messenger.”

“And do you often make it a habit of showing up at people’s doors out of nowhere?” Alexis asked.

I hadn’t yet become an active participant in this conversation because I was racking my mind to remember what the Clandestine Order was. I had heard of them operating in the United States even as far back as seventy years ago. While no one had officially told me what the Clandestine Order was, the chain of Alphas of the Grimm pack shared intel about different organizations in different countries who oversaw the rules, regulations, order, harmony, and maintenance of the supernatural world. A world that werewolves were a part of.

From what the previous Alpha had told me, I remembered that the Clandestine Order existed in the United States. The Syndicate of Secrecy existed in Europe. And in Asia, the League of Shadows oversaw all affairs of supernatural beings. Many such organizations were serving as governments for their designated continents.

All I knew was this: The Clandestine Order was supposed to be the most powerful organization to exist in the world. There was no running from them and no way to avoid their judgment.

“I appear when needs be, such as now. I have this summons for you, Alexis Richards, and one for you, Wilhelm Grimm, from the Clandestine Order. Both of you are to appear in front of the Clandestine Court in Manhattan tomorrow sharp at eleven o’clock.”

---