Chapter 28
Allie
"Shh, Bee," Malcolm hushed, picking up the month old child, "Pappa's here now."
I watched, speechless as Malcolm held his little girl. I couldn't get it through my head. Malcolm was a father.
Looking around the room, I couldn't believe what they had done with it. The walls were painted rosy pink with white lacy curtains over the window. Against the far wall was a light pink lounge with pale pillows on it and a tall lamp next to it. There were a few toys, such as a toy house and teddies on a shelf too. A white chandelier gave a small glow to the original dark room. And finally there was a white cot with a white bed net at the top and was also complete with a baby mobile.
Once Bee had settle, Malcolm asked, "Do you want a hold?"
My eyes widened, feeling like a child on Christmas.
"Can I?" I asked, not noticing my soft voice.
He nodded, holding her out to me. Acting as if I knew what to do, I hugged her to my body, one hand supporting her little head and the other was holding her little butt.
"Hey, Bee" I cooed, feeling tears in my eyes as I looked at her, "Hey, do you know who I am. I'm your Aunty Allie."
Bee gurgled, swinging her baby arms around. Already, I could see similarities. Lucky for her, she had her mother's good looks. But she did have the trade mark black hair and pale blue eyes.
Looking at Malcolm, I said, "I'm so glad you and Tarna had unprotected sex."
All four of my brothers' snickered under their breath, remembering my big mouth.
"Me too," Malcolm chuckle, gently pattering Bee's long hair, "I'm only sorry that Tarna had to do it on her own."
"What?" I asked, shifting Bee to a better position.
"She had her on the way to the safe house. They hit a bump or somethin' and her water broke. We didn't get there till it was all over," Malcolm sighed, looking ashamed.
"Don't feel bad, Malcolm," Graham told him.
"Aye, you didn't know that she was goin' to come early," Archie added.
"And she wasn't alone. She had Liv and Amy," Callum reminded him.
Malcolm nodded but he still didn't look convinced.
Bee's little spit bubble caught my attention making me laugh at her. I started to pull faces to making her giggle and start making noses and a baby voice.
"Oh, I can't wait till your eighteen. I'm goin' to teach you how to drink, teach you about the lads."
"I don't think so," Malcolm huffed, "no lads until she's fifty."
"How can that be? She's not comin' out of her room till she's sixty," Archie joked.
"Don't listen to them Bee," I told her, "us Patterson lasses have to stick together."
At that moment, the door opened and Tarna came through.
"Hi," she said softly, closing the door slowly to make as less noise as possible.
Making her way through the bodies, she found me and wrapped her arms around me.
"Hey, Allie, oh my God I missed you so much," she declared making me giggle.
"I missed you too Tarna," I told her, making her laugh.
"I heard her cryin'," She said, looking at Malcolm, "is she okay?"
"Aye, just havin' a little grumble," Malcolm told her.
"She is a Patterson after all," Archie added.
"Aye, she's a bigger attention hog than all of us combined," Graham complained.
"Well," Callum started, "When you look as cute as her, hey."
I giggled, knowing it was true. Bias aside, she was definitely the cutest baby I had ever seen.
"Oh, Callum. Liv's lookin' for you," Tarna told her.
He sighed, hanging his head, "time to face the music."
"I'll come too," Archie told him, pattering his shoulder.
"Aye, me too," Graham said.
At the sound of his voice, I narrowed my eyes at him.
"What, Allie?" he snapped, "I'll give you my word that I won't touch him.
"Touch who?" Tarna asked.
We froze.
"Time to go," Callum said as the three of them left, living Malcolm, Tarna, me and of course Bee.
Sighing, Malcolm told her, "Nicholas Macangus. He's Allie's mate."
"What?" Tarna yelled, making Bee whimper.
A little quieter, she repeated, "What? Your mate is, what, related to Hector."
"Half-brother actually," I corrected, rocking Bee to keep her quiet.
Tarna opened her mouth to talk before she shut her mouth, freezing. Her eyes flicked up to Malcolm's making us both frown.
"What, Tarna? What is it?" Malcolm asked.
And then I remembered. Tarna and Nick had met.
"I've, met, him," she said, quietly.
My frown deepen, looking between Tarna's frozen body and Malcolm's confused face.
"Wait, you didn't tell him," I asked.
"You know," she asked.
"Of course, I know," I scoffed.
"Can someone please tell me what's goin' on?" Malcolm finally asked.
I turned to Tarna, not wanting to tell him myself.
"Well, remember when we first met and I was caught trespassin' on Hector's land," she started.
"Aye, he cut you up like paper, how could I forget," he stated.
"Right, well, anyway. The two wolves that brought me to him was Davy and...Hector's brother."
Malcolm crossed his arms, looking a cross between confused and angry.
"He was just doin' as he was told," I quickly said, upsetting Bee a little, but I didn't want to lose my maybe only ally, "in the library, you didn't vote no."
He frowned, "What does that have to do with anythin'?"
"Well, why didn't you?" I asked him.
He shrugged, "Because I know what it's like to be label as somethin' that you have completely no control over. Because I've done a lot of unforgivable thin's in the past and I have no right to say no to a lad that I haven't met. He doesn't deserve that and neither do you."
I smiled, feeling my heart warm. At least I could trust one brother.
"In time, they'll see that too," he reassured me.
"I'm really happy for you," Tarna said half hugging me.
I giggled, "I'm happy for you too. And thanks for lookin' after my niece long enough for me to meet her."
"Hey, thanks for survivin' long enough to meet her."
I bit my lip, trying not to laugh. Thank God for Tarna.
Nicholas
I sat on the floor outside the library feeling like a school lad waiting out the front of the headmistress office. My face burned, still healing. I guess it could have been worse. He could had tired me up and shot me.
What did I expect? That they would welcome me with open arms, call me brother, give Allie and I their blessing. Maybe, after all the things Allie had told me about them I had convinced myself that I would finally have the family I had always dreamed of. I should know by now that dreams don't often come true.
"Hi."
I jumped, quickly moving back and turning my head to only see a thin, lass with long black hair, a French accent and magic flowing from her like it was a scent. It didn't take me long to figure out that she was Graham's witch mate, Bleu.
"Sorry," she said, cringing her face, "I didn't realize you were someplace else."
I chuckled, a small part of me wishing that I was.
"Um, I'm Bleu," she introduced herself.
"Aye, I know. Witch magic isn't difficult to detect and your drench with it," I told her.
She giggled, blushing a little, "yes, I guess that's true."
We fell into an awkward silence making me wonder why she had come. She was Graham's mate, the brother that hated me the most and yet she was the mate that was talking to me as if she wanted to be my friend.
Before I could stop myself, I asked, "Did Graham send you to see if I was schemin' to over throw Callum."
She shook her head, looking down in shame, "Actually, he told me to stay away from you."
I frowned, "Then, why are you here?"
She shrugged, "Because I'm too curious for my own good some times and you look sad. And I know what it's like to be new to the family."
"Well, your situation was probably different to mine," I told her.
She nodded, "probably. But five years ago, I was kidnapped from France by Archie, brought back here to be traded for answers to a rogue named Harrison who worked for your brother."
I swallowed, remembering the wolf.
"So then I spent three years being used as a weapon against my own people and rogues before escaping and coming here which I eventually found out the truth of why I was really stolen. And then I attacked Callum, Archie and Malcolm."
Okay, maybe she half knew what I was going through.
"Look, I'm not here to tell you want to do but, please don't give up too easy," she begged.
I sighed, "I don't want to, honest. But it's only day one and already I've been punched in the face."
"Well, then you need to ask yourself. Is a life with Allie worth it?"
I smiled at her, glad that she was smart enough to know what questions were worth asking.
"She's worth the whole world," I declared, making Bleu smile.
"So," she started, "What are your options?"
"Well," I sighed, "I could always run away with her but bein' apart from her family would kill her. She plays it down, says that she doesn't love them, but I just know she wouldn't be able to survive. So, that leaves, stayin' and tryin' to convince everyone that I'm not some spy."
She giggled, thinking that I was joking, "Just be yourself..." she paused, "Or, give them space."
I snorted, knowing that this whole thing was ridiculous. Why was living happily ever after so hard?
At the sound of creaking floorboards, my head turned. A smile spread across my face when I spied Allie coming towards us. Turning to see who is was as well, Bleu scrambled to her feet.
"Allie!" she screamed, running to her.
Allie giggled, wrapping her arms around the little witch.
"I'm so glad your home," Bleu told her, making her smile.
"Your spell worked," Allie stated, as they broke apart, "I was in the library, it worked. I never knew you had so much power till then."
Bleu shrugged, "I've been practicing."
Allie giggled, before she tightly hugged her again.
Once they broke apart, Bleu quickly said, "I better go find Graham. It was nice to meet you Nicholas."
I waved, liking at least one Patterson so far.
Once Bleu was gone, Allie turned to me with raised eyebrows.
"Found a new mate already," she teased, taking a small step towards me.
"I thought you ran off on me," I said, with a cheeky smile, "How was she?"
"We'll talk about Bee in a minute. I want to show you somethin'," she told me.
I frowned, "What?"
"Come on," she said, reaching out her hand.
I took it and made my way to my feet. Allie led me down the gallery and up three-flights of stairs before we finally turned to a door. Opening it, she walked me through to a room. Two floor-to-ceiling windows brought light to the room, covered in white lace, with a desk in between them. Photos covered the walls of faces of her past. Mostly they were just of her family. Across the room was another door, leading into a bathroom, a wardrobe, even a fire place. On the other wall was a king-size bed with a dark wooden frame and dressed in white linen.
"This is my room," she told me, wrapping her arms around me, "Well, our room actually."
"Our room? So this really is official then," I teased.
She frowned, "What's official?"
"Us. It's like we're movin' in together," I stated.
"Well, technically, we are," she corrected.
"Well in that case..."
Taking her by the thighs, I threw her on the bed. She squealed from shock at first before she giggled, accepting my lips with moans. Letting go, I took the moment to look at her properly. Her hair was a mess and we were both covered in dirt. It was only then that I remembered that I still had no shirt on and Allie was still wearing the ripped mid-drift.
"What are you thinkin' about?" she asked, with worried eyes.
"A lot of thin's," I told her, "I'm thinkin' about, how am I goin' to get clothes seein' that I left everythin' behind. I'm thinkin' about gettin' into a shower."
"Agreed," she giggled, wrapping her arms around my neck, "What else?"
"I'm thinkin' about your brothers and –,"
She groaned, cutting me off, "Don't think about them."
"How can't I? They hate me and I can't blame them."
"Blame them, I do," she told me, making me look at her dumbly.
"Come on, Allie," I started, tugging a lock of hair behind her ear, "We both know you don't mean that."
"Oh, I do. I could kill every single one of them," she promised.
And that's when I realized another thing. She was building her armour again, her castle. It wasn't about her pass, it was her brothers. She wanted to be strong for them.
"Please don't build up your walls again, White Wolf," I begged her, "not now."
"Only around them," she promised me, "Around you, I'll be the real Allie."
"Why can't you be the real Allie around everyone?" I asked.
"Because, you saw my brothers, you saw Beathan. Do you think I could be your Allie around them and not be taken seriously. This is a man's world, no matter what people say."
"So, is this why your all for women's rights and all?" I guessed.
She shrugged, "Maybe. Or maybe I like the idea of every woman sickin' together. But if you haven't notice, most girls think I'm a bitch."
"Well, you're not a bitch," I said chuckling, knowing that she wouldn't believe me anyway, "So tell me about your niece?"
I watched her whole face light up at the mention, "She's so beautiful, Nick, she really is. "
I chuckled, rubbing my head against her neck as she continued to talk about her. My mind began to wonder back to when she had talked about having a large family. I had always wanted one too but it never seemed like a possibility. But now we maybe had a chance. That's if her brother's didn't kill me first.
Jumping topic, Allie asked, "Are you goin' to come down for diner?"
I shook my head, not game enough to leave the room, "Ah, no. You need time with them alone."
She frowned, "Don't use me as an excuse. Your givin' up."
"I'm not givin' up," I told her, sitting up on my knees, "I'm givin' them space."
"That's code for; givin' up," she informed me, moving up on her elbows.
"Allie, please don't do this," I begged her, "If I go down there, I'll be killed, okay. You need to understand, my position in all of this. I understand why they hate me."
"Why?" she asked, "They're bein' so unreasonable."
"Allie, you hated me."
She opened her mouth to argue when she realized that I was right. A smug grin formed on my lips, knowing that she had just lost.
She groaned, flopping down on the mattress.
"I hate it when you're right," she groaned.
I chuckled, leaning back down and started to nibble on her neck.
"How about – later – I'll make – it up to you," I promised her, making her eyes sparkle.
"God, you know your audience," she groaned.
"Aye, and I know she likes this," I thrusted, making her cry out, "And this," I thrusted harder, making her cry out louder.
"Stuff it, do it to me now," she moaned.
And that's when I stopped.
"Uh-huh, you have to have a shower to go to dinner," I told her.
Her face dropped, "No, don't. Don't say no to me."
"I'm not sayin' no," I corrected, "I'm savin' myself."
She scoffed, pulling back when I tried to kiss her, "Then who was the lad that I screwed the other night."
My mouth dropped offend, "Excuse me. He was a man and you did not screw him. You passionately made love with him."
She scoffed again, "You're such a girl."
"No, I'm definitely, all, man," I purred, pressing my hard pelvis against her.
She groaned, bucking underneath me.
"But," I stopped, "You have to have a shower."
She moaned, hitting me, "I hate you. I really do."