**Arena POVMateo wiped me down with a towelette, and now that I was feeling clean and refreshed, I craved another go at it."I'm ready for round three," I assured him, wanting even more. I couldn't get enough of what sex finally felt like, going nineteen years without it.Mateo walked over to me with a glass of sparkling water and a blanket to cover me. "Pace yourself," he smirked. "I'm sure you're on cloud nine now, but even the best of us need a cool-down."I winked. "Are you the best of us?""I aim for perfection," he announced, pulling the light-weight cashmere blanket over my thighs gently. He handed me the glass of water, and I took a sip. It was getting hot in his apartment, even with the air conditioning on, but the drink helped. Although, I was sure it wasn't cool enough to get the redness out of my face from being so close to a naked, sexy man like Mateo."You're just going to sit like that?" I pondered aloud, staring down at his exposed c
Murdered? I was caught off-guard, but it started to add up. The lack of photographs could be explained by such a traumatic event. "I'm so sorry for your loss," I began, unsure how else to console him."I appreciate that, but it's okay." I could tell by his face that it wasn't. I thought maybe I should change the subject, but he continued before I could interrupt. "It was many years ago, but I've never truly gotten over it."Which seemed weird because, from his exterior, you'd think he was some carefree billionaire who raced sports cars and had personal shoppers. He maintained a good mask."I can't even imagine," I sighed, heartbroken for him. I shifted my position on the loveseat towards him, both of our legs now under the cashmere blanket."They say one won't live much longer than their mate, but here I am, many years later." His tone was slightly regretful.I paused. "So you've already met your fated mate, then?" It wasn't a question as much as it was a
**Efrain"I can't believe we're paying this much for some b*tch," I grumbled as my father and I stood in the abandoned parking ramp in front of a sleek, black BMW. Six bodyguards were fanned out around them, looking rather out of place wearing suits and sunglasses on a hot Miami night."Shut up," my thrice-cursed father said. "She's not 'some b*tch. She's Mateo Castilas's daughter. That alone makes her worth every penny."I huffed in frustration. "So you want me to mate with her, then?"Agustin stroked his chin. "Maybe. Maybe we don't need that Catalina Zuleta, anyway. It'd be much more advantageous to have an alliance with Mateo than with Rodri Zuleta. But we can't forget the fact that she's your Moon Goddess given mate."I rolled my eyes. "You know I don't believe in that crap.""Crap or not, facts are facts." My father checked his watch again and frowned. "Half an hour late. This is coming out of his payment.""Whatever," I sighed.The drunken a** frowned at me, then
**ArenaMateo fell asleep with his c*ck inside me. I let his heavy weight press on me like a warm blanket. After all, before long, I wouldn't have him. I'd have to treasure moments like this.He'd been an animal, waking me up several times during the evening and night. I knew I was sore and achy all over, but the slight sting just reminded me of him. I prayed it never went away.I combed my fingers through his hair while he slept, breathing in his scent as the sun climbed above the horizon.Mateo started nuzzling me, and I knew he was waking up. I smiled, and it made my eyes sting."Hey, baby," Mateo murmured, rocking his hips slowly so he moved gently in my sore passage. He kissed along my jaw lazily, skimming his hands along my sides. "You should have woken me up. I probably crushed you all night.""It was just an hour or three," I said, seeking his lips with mine. "I wanted to stay close with you.""Well, you certainly did that," Mateo chuckled. I felt the vibration to
**MateoMy men had ascertained days ago that Agustin Rodriguez did not have my Lucia, as he'd claimed on the phone. Apparently, he'd wanted Arena—no, Catalina—back and had come up with the cruel ruse. I was prepared to rip his drunken head off, but if Catalina was Efrain's true mate, well, that did put a crimp in things.Though, I suppose I should have been thanking the bastard. Because of his slurred threats, I at least found out that Lucia had indeed been found. That, and El Lobo was finally dead. I didn't believe in coincidences.The slimy rat had my Lucia in his custody all these years. All these years, he was laughing his ass off as I came again and again to find my daughter.If he weren't already dead, I'd have killed him.This, of course, left a new problem: Marco del Rio.True, back in the day, I'd slaughtered his parents. But that was only because they'd conspired to kill my wife. If I hadn't needed his connections so desperately to find Lucia, Oscar "el Lobo" woul
**MarcoI'd given Lucia a cell in the basement, somewhere my little Serena had never been and would never be. My staff took care of her, which was a good thing because Lucia refused to take care of herself. Bathing, changing clothes, even force-feeding her had all become necessary.I stood in front of her cell door, looking at the huddled shape. A maid had dyed her hair back to dark brown, but there was no getting the skeletal girl to put on any weight. If anything, she was still losing it, despite the staff's and the doctor's best efforts."You really planning to die on me?" I asked through the small, grated window. This place had been designed by my grandfather who favored the old dungeon style. I, myself, would have preferred a more Hannibal Lecter approach–with modern glass. But it wasn't like I had the money or the desire to renovate.Lucia shrugged her emaciated shoulders. "Why not? What's the upside of staying alive?""Oh… I don't know… living," I said."To live here
**MateoIt was the dark of the night, and the men and I were all assembled at the outskirts of Marco's territory. He didn't have a lot of it, so surrounding the area closest to the mansion was easy.Too easy."Watch your back," Armando said as though reading my mind.Truer words were never spoken. As we approached the mansion slowly under cover of darkness, we could all see that there were no guards. Not one."They're behind us," I murmured to Armando, who nodded."They've used something to mask their scent," Armando added."Damn." I stood very still and listened. Sure enough, there was a faint rustling behind our circle."I don't suppose we have any idea on numbers?" I asked casually. There was really nothing we could do about it now. We'd expected a trap, anyway. This was a mere inconvenience. I was just rather hoping…Armando turned slightly, listened a bit, then sighed. "I think he's pulled them as young as they can shift."I'd hoped Armando would allay my suspi
**MateoAside from that one "Dad" and the slap across the face, Lucia had not communicated with me at all. For days. The moment we arrived back at our mansion, Lucia had gone to her room and refused to come out."Lucia," I said outside her door for what must have been the hundredth time, "please come out so we can talk about what's bothering you."Silence."Did he hurt you?" I asked, my gut clenching. It hadn't really unclenched since I'd seen the condition her body was in. I had a doctor who was seeing to a healthy diet plan to bulk her back up, but that didn't mitigate what I'd seen.More silence.I sighed and put her tray down in front of the door. "I'm going to my office."I knew there was no point in waiting for her to come out. She was using her wolf senses to see if I actually left, so I wasn't tricking her.In my office, the desk was stacked high with requests. Now that Mateo Castillas was back from the dead, everyone and their brother was petitioning to join my
**ArenaI'd never seen a credit card used so fast. From the time I was finally back in Mateo's arms, until we'd gone downstairs to speak to the concierge, to the time we were standing in our own private suite, a mere ten minutes had passed.It was ten minutes too long for Mateo. Even as he stood impatiently at the hotel counter with his arm around my waist, his hand slid lower to cup my ass.I knew what he wanted so desperately. And I was going to give it to him. Because I desperately wanted it, too.The door shut, and Mateo pushed me back against the door, kissing me hungrily while he fought to get my shorts and panties off. He didn't bother to do more than open his fly before lifting me onto his cock.I always forgot how big he was, how deep he went. I arched my back and made a sound of need.Mateo's response was a primal growl. He drilled me hard against the door, his fingers digging into my thighs, denim burning against my skin, the metal teeth of the zipper biting deli
**MateoAgustin fired, and I felt the bullet burn through my shoulder, in the front and out the back. It didn't stop me from slamming my full weight into the fleshy wine sack, the chair toppling over and Agustin hitting the floor with a loud, "Oof!"The silver-plated gun went spinning away, and I roared in the coward's face."Mercy," Agustin wheezed.'Not today,' I answered. 'You mistreated my mate. You threatened my people. There is nothing in me that's going to let you slink off to do it again.'Agustin's bloodshot eyes bulged with the realization that he was going to die."Well then," he said, grabbing the the decanter that had fallen on its side and spilled most of its contents onto the thick, plush carpet. "You won't begrudge a man a final drink."I waited, my eyes narrow.Agustin took a long pull from the crystal decanter, closing his eyes and smacking his lips. "Alright, then. Make Efrain an Alpha, Castillas."'Where is he?' I demanded, pressing my paw down on
**ArenaI woke up in the middle of the night, not quite knowing why. I blinked into the darkness a moment, then groaned and rolled over onto Mateo's side of the bed, breathing in his scent on his pillow.Another sound had me peeling one sleep-sealed eye open. I sat up and stared into the darkness again, sniffing the air.A hand clamped over my mouth, and I let out a muffled scream."Shh," Felix whispered in my ear. "They're here."I stopped screaming and looked up at Felix as he slowly took his hand away. Rochelle was cowering behind him. "Who's here?" I asked."Agustin's men, I think," Felix replied. "We've been found."Shit. I scooted quickly off the bed. "Miriam? Celeste? Lucia?""Came here first," Felix said. "Going there n—"An ear-splitting shriek filled the air."Oh, Goddess," I gasped. The three of us made our way to my door and peeked out into the hall.A shrouded man was hauling Miriam out of her bedroom."Hey!" I yelled, causing Felix and Rochelle to
**Efrain"So, your super bright idea is to let them kill all our men in little, manageable batches while we hide out here with Russo," I said slowly, trying to figure out if it was the alcohol or just the fact that my father was too stupid to live."We're distracting them. Getting Castillas to think he's got the upper hand. Then, when he gets here, we squash him like a bug. He won't see it coming," Agustin replied, clearly very pleased with himself.I swirled my glass and downed some whiskey. My father was such an idiot. But, Moon Goddess willing, if the exalted bitch even existed, the wasteful, hair-brained scheme would work. Especially now that they had the backing of Russo's men as well."Remember, when we go through the spoils, I'm getting a cut," Russo said. "And that delicious bitch I didn't get to f*ck before.""You're welcome to her," I responded. "Do whatever you want with her. Do her seven ways to Sunday. I don't give a damn."Russo licked his lips. Having seen hi
**MateoI could still smell my sweet Arena on me as we drove back to Miami. I'd left Jeeves in Naples with Arena and the others, of course, so it was Win and me inside Win's souped up Jeep, heading away from our women and straight towards danger."Armando's assembling the troops," Win said, checking his texts on his heads-up display while he drove. "He'll be ready by the time we get there."I nodded, leaning my chin on my fist and staring out the window."You know she'll be there when we get back, right?" Win turned to me after a pause. "They're both going to be there, and we're going to have a hell of a welcome home."I chuckled. "You might. I think Arena might be angry with me, especially if I come home with so much as a scratch on me."Win shrugged. "War is war. We do what is necessary.""I know," I replied. "I just don't think Arena will be so understanding.""I thought you'd already… you know… you smell to high heaven of her," Win said, wrinkling his nose.I lift
**ArenaI laid on a chaise lounge out on the patio, next to an oblong pool. I'd opened up Mateo's shirt to get some sun on my skin, and was now laying topless, in my panties, on top of his shirt. It smelled like him, and that just made me more sad. I thought of tossing it in the water.The sliding of the glass door caught my attention. "Miriam?" I asked, starting to tug Mateo's shirt back over me."No." Mateo's familiar, velvet voice carried over the patio.I stopped putting the shirt back on and laid back down with a sigh. "What do you want?" I asked, not looking at him.The chaise creaked beneath me as Mateo sat down on the edge. "I want to apologize. I went all Alpha on you, and I hurt you. And I want to tell you where we stand.""Oh," I said, turning my face away from him.Mateo ran a knuckle over my cheek. "Baby, look at me."I didn't want him to see the hurt and tears in my eyes, but I didn't resist when he gently tilted my chin towards him."Oh… mi tesora…" Mat
**Mateo"Okay," I said, indicating for Lucia to enter the bedroom.She didn't."Lucia?" I asked, beginning to stand.Lucia waved me back down. She looked at the floor, biting her lip. "I… I guess I'm a little pissed off at you.""Okay," I said again, feeling my temples begin to throb. Was there anyone who wasn't pissed off at me today? "How can I help? Do you… need a hug?"Lucia snorted. "Don't even try it."Her words hurt. When she was a child, a hug would have healed everything. Now, I couldn't even touch her. "Alright, I won't."Lucia was quiet a long time, then she finally bit out, "I guess I'm pissed off at you about a lot of things.""I understand," I replied. "I—""Stop saying that! I already told you, you couldn't possibly understand!" Lucia barked.I mentally counted backwards from twenty. "I just meant I understand you are pissed off at me, and I understand why you would be. And I'm sorry we haven't worked that out yet. But I do have to go soon, and I th
**Efrain"So the bastard is in Naples," I muttered, looking at my tablet screen."Italy?" Jorge asked in confusion.I rolled my eyes. "Florida. Beach. Gulf of Mexico.""Oh. Sorry, Mr. Rodriguez," Jorge said.I couldn't wait for the day when he would call me Alpha. Though I sometimes doubted his smarts, I never doubted his loyalty. "I need you to go get her.""Get her?" Jorge echoed.Maybe I wouldn't make him my Beta after all. Some days, he was too stupid to live. "Yeah, go get her. So we can use her to lure in that bastard Mateo Castillas.""Why don't we just go in with fifty men or so and kill him?" Jorge asked.I shook my head vehemently. "I won't leave our pack fifty warriors short with all the crap going on now. He's got a pack building with mercenaries, and half the packs in the Miami area are still fighting over that f*cking cantina. No, you're going to go up there with five guys and get her for me. Then that f*cker will have no choice but to come here. And the
**Efrain"So… you're saying he just came in and took her," I said, narrowing my eyes on Frank Russo, who was sitting on the other side of his desk.Russo shrugged, examining the items I kept in my office. "I wasn't about to fight him for her. She's your bitch, not mine."Catalina was my bitch. MY bitch, not Mateo's. I thought I'd made that perfectly clear at The Pound. Well, I'd tried to, anyway. Whatever supersoldiers Mateo had brought decimated my guards. It was all I could do to escape. "Thanks for nothing, Russo.""You're welcome," Russo said pleasantly. "Now, to business. I'd like to help you with Castillas. He broke into my home, killed my bodyguards, and ruined a perfectly good sex session. I'm a little put out.""Hmph." I didn't much care about his "sessions." He'd killed more of the girls from The Pound than I could count. But I was interested in an alliance against that f*cker Mateo. "My sources tell me Castillas isn't at home anymore. That asshole Armando is, but n