The Burning Claw
Page 74

“Let’s discuss the plan,” Peri told them without answering the Alpha female’s question.
“I love you,” Lucian added before slipping out of her mind.
“I know, wolf. And oddly enough, I love you.” She heard his chuckle, though it sounded like he was far away.
Jacque rubbed her eyes as she stared up at the ceiling. She, Jen, and Peri had been talking for over an hour about their plan to go and check on Sally. Hopefully, if all went well, they could attempt to slowly bring her memory back. Jacque was exhausted, but she was also very excited.
“You two had better keep this blocked from your mates, at least until they’re too far away to do anything about it,” Peri warned the two girls for the hundredth time.
“Why are you acting scared of our mates?” Jen laughed. “You aren’t really afraid of them.”
“There are other things to dread besides injury or death,” Peri told them. “And enduring your pissed off mates is one of those things.”
Jacque couldn’t fault her there. When their mates got wound up about something, they took all of their normal annoying tendencies and intensified them to an almost unbearable degree.
“Are you ever coming to bed, Luna?” Fane’s voice in her mind startled Jacque and she sat up abruptly.
“We got to wrap this up,” Jacque said as she whirled her finger in the air.
“Daddy missing Mommy?” Jen asked with a wink.
Jacque held up her hand to her best friend. “It’s too late for your perverted mind.”
“What better time to be a pervert than late at night?” Jen challenged.
“She’s got a point,” Peri said with a single brow raised.
Jacque rolled her eyes at the fae. “If you’re agreeing with Jen about when being a pervert is appropriate, it’s time to head home and have play time with your white wolf.”
“Jacquelyn?” Fane growled.
“Hold your bloody horses,” she snapped sounding harsher than she’d intended.
“I don’t have any bloody horses. I don’t have any horses. I have a wolf who wants his mate—now.”
Jacque grumbled as she stood to her feet and stretched her hands over her head. “So, the guys head out tomorrow super early—” Jacque began.
“We will leave two hours after them. That will give them plenty of time to have covered some significant ground,” Peri said.
“And you’re sending Cyn away so they can’t bully her into coming and getting us?” asked Jen.
“She and Thalion are already on their way back to his realm. They need to keep an eye on his father.”
“I’ll talk to my mom and Alina about—” Jacque started, but the sound of her cell phone ringing cut her off. She pulled it out of her back pocket and didn’t bother to look at the screen. She had a pretty good idea that it was Fane. “What?” she huffed.
“Alina and I can take care of Slate and Thia,” Lilly’s voice came through the phone smooth and gentle.
“You saw something?” Jacque asked. Peri and Jen were both on their feet at her question.
“You and Jen have to be with Sally, especially when Costin finds her. It is imperative that you be with her,” Lilly said in a desperate voice.
“Mom,” Jacque said. “What did you see?”
“Tell Vasile that he has to find Costin. There’s going to be more bloodshed before they find him. But if they don’t find him in time, he will cross the line and he won’t be able to come back.” Lilly paused and let out a mournful sigh. “So much darkness surrounds him. He’s empty. He’s aching for her. I felt it, Jacque, in my vision. I felt what Costin is feeling. It’s…” She swallowed thickly. “It’s awful.”
“They’ll find him. They will,” Jacque assured her.
“I’ll be there before you leave tomorrow,” Lilly told her. “I love you.”
“Thanks, mom. I love you too.”
Jacque disconnected the call and slipped the phone back into her pocket. “Mom says we have to be with Sally.”
Peri didn’t look pleased by the information. “That doesn’t mean your mates will be okay with the situation.”
“Okay with what?” Fane’s voice said from the doorway.
“With us having a multi-pack orgy. We’ve planned one for the fall and we’re trying to pick a theme,” Jen said conversationally as if she was talking about shopping for a new summer blouse. “We were thinking of doing like a Village People thing, but that just seemed a bit cliché. So I think we’re just going to play up the whole beauty and the beast thing.
“Jacquelyn,” Fane growled. His eyes had turned a bright blue as he closed the distance between them. “Make her stop talking.”
Jacque turned to look at Jen and then back to Fane. She was about to ask if he was serious, but he surprised her by sweeping her up in his arms. He turned and carried her from the room without a backward glance. Jacque stared back at them helplessly as her mate carted her off.
“Are you okay?” she asked him as he walked up the stairs to the floor where their suite was located.
He looked at her, his eyes still glowing, and then buried his face in her neck. Fane took in deep breaths as he continued to walk. Jacque didn’t know how he wasn’t walking into a wall, but then his mouth started moving against the flesh where his bite was located, and her mind couldn’t think clearly.
They reached their door and he pushed it open as he pulled back and looked into her eyes. It worried her that his wolf was still looking back at her.
“I heard what your mother said about Costin,” Fane said finally. He set her on her feet on the ground but didn’t step away from her.
Jacque’s stomach dropped. “How much did you hear?”
Fane’s head tilted, an action that reminded Jacque of exactly what his wolf would do. “Just the part about Costin and how awful he feels. Was there something else?”
“She said that you guys needed to find him quickly,” Jacque said as she turned toward the nursery. “Is Slate—” she started to ask.
“Mom’s got him. She wanted to let us get a good night’s sleep. She has everything she needs. There was frozen milk, so I gave her that.”
Jacque nodded, disappointed that she didn’t get to hold their son before she went to bed.