“It wouldn’t have mattered,” Jacob says as he squeezes my hand. “We’re unstoppable when we’re fighting for love.”
I feel my heart expanding in my chest at the sound of the L-word on his lips.
“This time there is no tree to save your ass, Burton,” Easton says as the guys approach. I let go of Jacob’s hand and stand back.
The firefighters phase back into their human forms and watch beside me as the Dixon brothers take charge. This is personal to them, so they let them handle it.
“You killed our fathers,” Roman says with his hands squeezed into fists. “You tried to attack our mates. It’s the end of the line for you.”
Burton knows he fucked up and he also knows there’s no chance of him getting out of this alive. He drops to his knees in front of them and raises his chin in the air. “Please make it quick.”
Jacob steps up to him with a roar and snaps his neck. The man falls to the dirt, lifeless.
It’s over.
After we all clean up the bodies and burn them in a pile, the firefighters are about to leave. Quinton stops before getting into the truck and turns to me. “You coming Frye?”
My mouth falls open. “Are you serious? After what I did?”
“What, kicking Grey in the balls?” Enzo says with a laugh. “He deserved it.”
“We have all wanted to kick the big guy in the nuts a few times,” Brees says with a chuckle. “But none of us had the guts to do it.”
“You showed bravery today,” Quinton says. “You’re welcome back on the team. If you want it.”
I turn to Grey to see what he thinks.
He rolls his eyes. “Get in the fucking truck, Frye. You saved me from getting shanked. We’re even.”
“I’ll be back,” I say as I grab Jacob’s hand. “But starting tomorrow. I want to spend some time with my mate.”
I watch as Roman, Easton, Cameron, and Jacob thank the guys. They shake hands and some of them even hug. It looks like the hatchet is finally buried between the firefighters and the Dixon brothers. I’m glad about that.
Jacob squeezes my hand as they pile into the truck and drive away. He looks all edgy and frazzled. He’s breathing heavily and his body is tight.
“Are you okay?” I whisper to him.
His jaw is clenched, too tense to answer.
“Fuck,” Easton says as he rubs his eyes. “Is it too early for a fucking drink?”
Roman shakes his head. “I’ll get the scotch.”
Cameron limps over to the house. “I’ll get the bandages.”
The boys are all cut up, but I notice that their wounds are already healing. Their gashes are bloody, but they’re no longer seeping blood, which is good I guess.
When it’s just Jacob and I standing outside, I turn to him. “What’s the matter?”
He shakes his head dismissively. “Nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me, please. I’m your mate, Jacob. You can tell me anything, remember? No secrets between us.”
He looks so tense. When I cup his cheek, some of that tension melts away. I love that I can have a calming effect on him.
“It’s my bear,” he says, his voice sounding part growl.
“What about him?”
“He wants… our mark on you.”
I immediately touch the tingling spot on my neck. Somehow I already know where it’s destined to go.
“Seeing all those males around you,” he says with pain in his voice. “It’s put him in a rage. He needs it. I need it.”
“I need it too,” I say as I take his hand and pull him to the house. “Let’s do it.”
Chapter Ten
Jacob
There are no showers this time. No foreplay. No kissing.
A frantic primal need is coursing through my veins as I press my mate against the wall in my bedroom and pin her there.
She licks her lips as she looks up at me, arousal filling her hazel eyes. I can tell she senses my urgent need and it’s turning her on.
Seeing my girl around all those shifters changed something in my bear. The possessive streak I’ve always had is now on steroids. It’s taking over my mind. I can’t think about anything else.
We both need our mark on her. Desperately.
I’ll never have her around another man without my mark on her skin. It’s not going to happen.
“Jacob,” she gasps when my scratched-up body starts to swell.
He’s trying to come out, not trusting me to do it. He growls in my ear, drowning out the words she’s saying to me.
I grit my teeth and try to shove him back down, but he’s unstoppable like this. He’s crazed with the primal need to mark her. To lay ownership on her. To make it so every male knows exactly who she belongs to.
My bloody skin tightens and stretches out as my muscles pump with blood and balloon underneath. It’s close to tearing. I’m close to sprouting fur.