Chapter 16
When Ally walked into the room, all eyes turned towards her. Even the children glanced towards her. The only one who didn’t look at Ally was Sloan. Instead, she watched their faces as they stared at the woman and was shocked to find what those faces told her. Various degrees of respect, love, and even a little bit of expectancy shinned in their expressions. Sloan glanced towards the woman herself and felt a frown form on her face. She understood why they would like Ally. The woman was strong and surprisingly caring, but why would they look at her as if they were waiting for her next word before making a move?
“Charlie, go hold the woman’s hand or something,” Ally muttered while narrowing her eyes at Andrew. “I have a headache.”
Drew flushed slightly before sending Ally a large smile that she returned with a roll of her eyes. Turning her attention on Sloan, Ally motioned her forward. Sloan stood, Noah in her arms, and began walking towards the woman. Even as she did, her eyes scanned behind Ally, looking for the one person who hadn’t returned.
“He needs a little time,” Ally whispered as she took a restless Noah. As soon as Ally had her hands on the boy, he smiled largely at her, showing off one or two teeth. “I heard you, honey,” Ally said in a bright tone while placing a kiss on Noah’s forehead.
“Told you he’s momma’s boy,” Zeke mumbled loud enough for Sloan to hear.
A noise that sounded very much like a growl escaped Noah as he snuggled closer to Ally with a slightly smug expression. Sloan blinked her eyes at the little boy, and as much as she tried, she couldn’t convince herself that it was a burp this time. “He growled.”
Something grabbed Sloan’s hand, and before she could jerk away from the hold, it tightened. “It’s okay,” Charlie said in a cajoling tone. “Ally wants Drew to talk since you seem to trust him the most out of us all, but unless we want you to fall to your knees and beg the man to make you his slave; I’ll have to hold your hand.”
Sloan attempted to pull away from Charlie’s grip, but the woman was surprisingly strong. “I wouldn’t do that,” Sloan denied with a shocked laugh. “I have more self-control than that.”
“Let her go,” Ally said in a bored tone. All eyes cut to her, but the only ones that were narrowed were Drew’s. He shook his head, but Ally simply raised an eyebrow at him as if to dare him to deny her request.
“Fine,” Drew said in a slightly dejected tone. “Let her go, but as soon as the effects start taking over, grab ahold of her. I’d prefer Adam not to want to tear my throat out the next time he sees me.”
Charlie nodded her head and let go of Sloan, but Sloan was too busy staring at Drew with a slight frown on her face. It was the only words she had heard the man say, but she had felt nothing more that curious as he kept speaking. That was until he opened his mouth once more.
“Sloan,” he whispered in a light tone. The words floated from his mouth and as they reached her ears, a shiver flew through her heated body. Her tongue flicked across her bottom lip as if she were trying to taste his words, even as she took an involuntary step towards him. The man was beautiful, beyond beautiful; he was perfect. He was everything she had ever wanted in a man, everything she needed.
“Grab her,” he demanded, and a moan escaped her mouth. Her hand snapped out as if she could reach him from her spot, but someone blocked her view. Sloan stepped to the side, and when the person stepped with her, she felt rage eat at her chest.
“Move,” she snapped even as the person reached towards her.
Sloan reacted. Her hand curled into a fist and swung at the figure, but before it could connect, another person slammed her to the ground. She gasped as the figure growled at her, and for the first time, Sloan actually looked at the person lying on top of her.
“Threaten my mate again, and I’ll kill you,” Zeke snarled in her face.
Blinking, Sloan knew she should have been afraid, but all she could think of was getting to Drew, to doing whatever the man needed her to do.
“Zeke,” a soft voice whispered. “She’s not thinking. Come on, Zeke. Let me touch her.”
“She tried to hit you.”
The soft voice turned into a touch, and all of the fear that Sloan knew she should have been feeling earlier hit her at once. Her eyes widened as Zeke hovered above her. His eyes were a little too bright, and his lips were curled back to show teeth that were too sharp to be human. “I’m sorry,” Sloan whispered. “I didn’t know it was her.”
Charlie smiled at Sloan from over Zeke’s shoulder even as she held onto Sloan’s arm. “It’s okay. He’s just a little protective right now.” Charlie tugged on Zeke with her other hand until the man finally rolled off Sloan with a deep sigh.
“This is horrible,” he groaned from his spot on the floor.
When laughter echoed through the room, Sloan glanced over at Sebastian with shock. “Now you know how I felt. Every little piece of dirt feels like a threat.”
Charlie tugged on Sloan’s arm, bringing her attention away from Ally’s fiancé and towards her. “Come on, let me help you up, but unless you want a repeat of what just happened, I’d advise you keep touching me.”
Licking her lips in nervousness, Sloan allowed Charlie to help her to her feet. “I won’t let go,” she promised as her eyes turned towards Drew. To her relief, she felt nothing but kinship towards the man, even when he sent her his most charming smile. “What was that?”
“That was Zeke threatening you for swinging at his pregnant mate,” a man behind Ally said.
Sloan squinted towards him, trying to make out his features, and when he took a step further into the room, she wished he hadn’t. The look in his eyes made her want to run. After everything that had happened that night, nothing had scared her as bad as the completely blank eyes that stared back at her.
“Barron,” Ally snapped. “Leave her be.”
The man Sloan now knew as Barron turned towards Ally. He opened his mouth as if to argue, but instead a caring expression flew onto his face. Sloan had to blink a couple of times to see if what she was seeing was real, but as the man reached towards Ally with such carefulness, Sloan had to wonder if they weren’t related. There was no other explanation. Barron didn’t look towards Ally as if she were someone he wanted to be with, but more as if she was someone he cared for deeply, a sister.
“Barron,” Sebastian mumbled under his breath. “What is she hiding?”
Ally’s eyes snapped towards Sebastian and narrowed, even as Seb took Noah from her arms. Barron reached out, putting both hands on the side of Ally’s head, and when the woman made a move to struggle, Zeke bounded towards them.
“Not hurting her,” Barron growled as Zeke reached towards the man as if he were going to rip them apart.
Zeke froze, watching as a pained expression flashed on Ally’s face before disappearing. When Barron dropped his hands from Ally, he smiled at everyone in the room before reaching up and wiping the blood running from his nose. Sloan shivered as the smile reached her. It wasn’t friendly, if anything it made her want to run even more. “All better,” Barron said with a wink.
Sloan took a step back, but didn’t get too far as Charlie stood her ground. “Don’t let him frighten you,” Charlie said. “The man wouldn’t do anything to displease Ally, and at this moment, it means that he can’t kill you or me.”
“That’s supposed to be reassuring?”
“It should be,” Charlie said with a laugh as Zeke began walking towards them. When he reached them, he threw an arm over Charlie’s shoulder, making Sloan feel like a third wheel as she clung to the woman’s free hand.
Sloan glanced around the room, before her eyes landed on Drew. “What’s happening?”
Drew smiled at her, and Sloan relaxed slightly. “Barron was telling the truth. When one of our males has a pregnant mate, their protective instincts kick into overdrive. Sometimes they can’t even help themselves. It took Zeke a lot of self-control not to harm you.”
Shaking her head, Sloan glanced hopefully towards the others in the room. “Can I just go home?” she asked, feeling deflated. “This is too much.”
Ned and Anthony shook their head at her as they began walking towards Ally. The woman grabbed one child from Anthony before making room for her other. Both of them smiled at Ally, but it was Zeke who spoke. “Go to sleep, Ally-Cat. I’ll handle this.”
A sigh escaped Ally’s mouth, but she nodded in agreement. “If I didn’t have to leave in a few hours, I would argue with you.” She turned her back on them before freezing. “Korbin isn’t the only one going with me and my family.”
“I know,” Zeke said in a low tone. “I don’t think now is the right time to tell him though.”
Sloan stared at the back of Ally’s head as she nodded. “Agreed.”
“Not agreed,” Barron said with narrowed eyes. “Who else is going besides us?”
Ally’s head turned in the man’s direction and a small smile turned the corners of her lips. “No one, Barron, just Korbin, my family, and you.” When Barron nodded, she glanced over her shoulder at Sloan. “Sorry it had to be this way. I hoped that we would be able to ease you into it, show you little by little, but the time is going too fast. Don’t worry though, Adam will protect you.” She hesitated for a moment. “There will be things that are thrown at Adam, things that he isn’t going to want to believe. It’s your job to help him through it. You have to be strong for him, just like you were for your brother.”
“How do you know about my brother?” Sloan said, but even as she asked the question, her eyes went to Zeke. When she turned back towards Ally, the woman was gone, along with Sebastian and her children. Barron still stood there though, and Sloan could feel her nerves begin to stand on end. “I’m not going to be able to leave, am I?”
Charlie shook her head at Sloan with a regretful expression. “Not until we know you won’t report back to anyone. The information you already told them was trivial, but you saw things tonight that could put us in danger.”
“Wipe her memory,” Ned said, and when Sloan glared in his direction, he shrugged. “Ally is my number one priority, and if erasing your memory will keep her safe, it’s what we’ll do.”
“No,” a quiet voice said from the doorway. Sloan glanced towards it, smiling when she saw Adam standing there.
He didn’t smile back, simply stared at each of them without blinking. “I’ll tell her everything. After that, if she wants to run, I’ll let her.”
“It is his decision,” Barron said in agreement, shocking them all. He smiled at them, and Sloan wished the man would stop showing off that particular expression. “Ally put him in charge for a reason. If she trusts the man’s decisions, I trust them. Plus,” Barron said as he walked from the room, “I won’t be here for the downfall.”
They all watched him leave the room, but after a few moments, Drew took a step forward with a frown on his face. “Come on, Adam. I like the girl, but if there’s a chance she’ll give out information, Zeke needs to work his magic.”
“Is there anything that she learned tonight that they don’t already know?” Adam asked in an empty tone. When no one answered, he shrugged. “Then what will it hurt.”
Anthony shook his head at Adam, but didn’t argue as he walked towards his twin. Swinging an arm around Drew’s shoulder, he began tugging the reluctant man from the room. “Come on, brother. If Adam wants to make mistakes, let him make them. It is how we learn.”
As they left the room, Ned nodded towards Adam. “You’ll be taking command when Ally leaves, and I do not question her decision. If that means letting you do this the way you want, I respect your decision.”
“Thank you,” Adam said as Ned left the room.
Zeke let out a sigh, bringing Adam’s attention to the man. “I planned to wait to leave a month after our son was born, but I may have to leave earlier. I will not put Charlie in harm’s way, not for anything.”
Adam nodded, but a small smile made its way onto his face. “The safest place for you will be here. Plus, I have an idea for a room that will keep anything and one from entering. If something happens, Charlie will be safe in there.”
“You’ll be a great leader, Adam,” Charlie whispered as she dropped Sloan’s hand. Zeke led her towards the door, but before they left, Charlie looked towards Sloan. “Be easy on him. He may forgive you one day if you hurt him, but there are very few in this house that will.”
Sloan nodded. “I’ll try.” Turning her back on Sloan, Charlie walked from the room with Zeke, leaving Sloan alone with Adam. She stared at the man before smiling slightly at him. “This night as been a little…odd.”
Adam laughed, but didn’t move closer towards her. “I know, but by the time it’s over, you’ll think it’s a more than a little odd.”
She took a deep breath, hoping to calm her nerves. “Tell me everything.”