Midnight Wolf (Shifters Unbound #11)(48)

Angus felt the weight of Tamsin’s gaze. “Then I should be asking if you’re all right,” she said. “I’ve never met a Shifter like Dylan. He’s got a lot of power.”

“We came to an understanding,” Angus said quietly.

“Huh.” Tamsin pulled her feet onto the seat, wrapping her arms around her legs. “Must have been a hell of an understanding.”

“Dad claimed you as mate,” Ciaran told her. “He made the mate-claim, under the light of the moon, and Sean, Dylan, and me were witnesses. You’ll say yes, won’t you, Tamsin? You’ll be my dad’s mate? And stay with us forever?”





CHAPTER FOURTEEN


Angus braced himself for Tamsin’s snarl of outrage, for angry questions, even snarky comments, but she remained oddly silent.

He glanced at her. Tamsin was staring straight ahead, watching the road unroll under the glare of the headlights, her face pale behind the dirt streaking her cheeks.

“It was the only way to get Dylan off your back,” Angus said quickly. He who didn’t like to talk now spilled out words. “You’re fair game, by Shifter terms. Unprotected, no mate, no father, no clan leader. If I mate-claim you, then no one messes with you. Not Dylan, not my clan leader, not Shiftertown leaders, no one. Even Shifter Bureau has to clear things with me.”

Her lips parted as she listened, Tamsin’s tawny eyes focusing on him. Those eyes were quiet, the teasing, carefree manner she hid behind gone.

“I wasn’t there,” she said softly. “How can you mate-claim a female who isn’t in the room?”

“It wasn’t a completed claim. But it was good enough. I claimed you before witnesses and in sight of the Goddess. It counted in Dylan’s eyes, which was why he let me go and didn’t give chase.”

“So far,” Tamsin said. “He hasn’t given chase so far. But he will.”

“I know,” Angus said. “But now that I’ve made a mate-claim, his trackers will back off, because they’ll have to fight me to get to you. They know me, and know I won’t simply stand aside. Some of them have become friends, and they might refuse to obey Dylan on this.”

Ciaran leaned over the seat to her. “All you have to do is say yes, Tamsin.”

His voice held hope. April had taken Ciaran away when he was only two, and had died the next year, months after Angus had found her and wrested Ciaran back from her. Ciaran didn’t remember much about April, but he felt the loss. He’d never had a proper mum, and he knew it.

Tamsin sent him a glance, then fixed her gaze on Angus again. “I’ve been mate-claimed before. Twice. I turned both claims down.”

“Why?” Angus demanded. “Were the Shifters who made them assholes?”

A ghost of Tamsin’s grin touched her mouth. “Well, yes.”

“I did it to protect you, to add the layer of my fists between you and the world,” Angus went on. “You do so many crazy things, you need someone to fight for you.”

Again Angus waited for her derision, her laughter at him for doing something so stupid.

“You don’t have to put yourself in danger for me,” she said, her voice quiet. “I’m always running from bad people—I must be a bad-people magnet. But some of them turn out to be dangerous, like Haider. Seriously. Don’t officially be their enemy too.”

“I didn’t do it to be a hero.” Angus swerved around a slow-moving car. “I did it to save your ass from Dylan. He was going to call down all his trackers on you, including Tiger. Tiger’s a big, messed-up Shifter bred in a lab in Area 51. He’s not like normal Shifters. If Dylan sets him on your trail, you’ll never get away, no matter how far you run or where you hide. But Tiger’s a good guy at heart—he’s got a mate and a cub, and he’ll respect that I’ve made a mate-claim. Doesn’t mean he won’t find you; but he’ll understand that I’m your protector, and he won’t simply take you. He’s a tracker for Dylan and his son Liam, but Tiger doesn’t mindlessly obey anyone. He makes his own decisions.”

Tamsin didn’t answer for a moment, and when she did, her tone was thoughtful. “You know, I’ve never had a male try to scare me into a mate-claim by threatening me with a super-tracking Shifter from Area 51.” She looked out the front window again. “I’m going to have to think about this.”

“Are you not accepting because he has a cub already?” Ciaran asked, worried. “I’m usually good. I even clean my room sometimes before my dad remembers to tell me to do it.”

Tamsin turned around and clasped Ciaran’s hands, kissing each one. “Oh, sweetie. If I could have you as my cub, I’d love it. It’s not you I’m worried about—it’s your dad. I’d have to live with him.”

“No,” Angus said abruptly. “You do what you want. But no one touches you if I’m your mate.”

Tamsin squeezed Ciaran’s hands again and released him. “This is the weirdest mate-claim I’ve ever heard, I have to say. Are you sure you’re not just overly tired, Angus? You need some shut-eye. You’ll wake up horrified you ever thought of such a thing, and you’ll want us to forget all about it.”

“Nope.” He shook his head. “Situation will be the same whether it’s the middle of the night or the light of day. A mate-claim is binding. All other males will back off. The only way it ends is if you say no.”