Page 54 of Chasing Savannah

He held her in his arms a moment more. “I’ll convince the Felix to give you space.”

She nodded in thanks. “I need to...” She inclined her head towards the kids’ room.

“Of course,” he said, backing away. Allowing her to go tend to their son.

He watched her leave, his body hard to the point of pain, but his mind even more determined. Nothing had been easy about getting the family of his dreams. Convincing Carlos to take the position as Felix of their fledgling prowl had been an uphill battle. He’d nagged him at every turn, and finally they had their own prowl and territory to go with it. Now that he’d found their mate, and knew they would be in a Tribond, he would work just as hard to convince her that they all belonged together.

His mate didn’t yet know that there were seers in his own family and he’d seen his future. He had from the first moment he’d met Carlos. And his future was with them. Yes, he’d keep the Felix from going alpha on her, but he’d be more subtle in his persuasion. She’d be in a mating before she saw it coming. He left the apartment and took the elevator down to the ground level.

They were in the middle of the city, so though they had a huge privacy fence covering what little of a yard they had, he knew the Felix wouldn’t have much space to release his anger. He found Carlos pacing around the pool, still in his human form. Points for him, he thought for sure he would find the Alpha shifted.

Carlos’ head lifted as he scented him. “I want our mate.”

“Me too, Alpha, but we can’t rush her.”

Carlos lifted his head and released a frustrated growl. Derrick waited out his anger.

“The old Felix said she would be stubborn.” He reminded him.

Carlos hissed and rounded the pool, invading Derrick’s space. He was in his face, his eyes yellow, and his panther right under the surface. “I want to know what the Seer told her.”

Carlos’ voice was a growl that traveled down Derrick’s spine. It reminded him that his best friend had rightly been made the Felix of their prowl. His power settled over him, full alpha.

“It doesn’t matter what she was told, the damage is done.” Derrick said. But Carlos was right, and Derrick planned to get to the bottom of it. “Now we have to find a way to convince our mate she belongs with us.”

Carlos turned his back and his breathing was harsh as he battled his cat. It was times like this when Derrick could appreciate what Carlos dealt with as an alpha. His animal was stronger, more powerful, and more aggressive than them all. Controlling a beast with that much power took work. He watched his friend pull his power back, the angst that was being pushed down the prowl link loosening. He imagined many cats in the building breathed a little easier.

Carlos turned around and his eyes were back to their normal hazel color. His voice was still raspy with his panther. “You still smell like her.”

He smiled, “I told her I could convince you to back off if she gave me a kiss.”

A surprise bark of laughter left Carlos. “And that worked?”

His smile turned cocky, “it’s a gift.”

Carlos grabbed his shoulder and brought him into his chest for a hug. Their cats reached for each other, reveling in the touch of its prowl mate.

“Fuck, Derrick. I need her.”

“I know, Alpha. I eventually wore you down, I can do the same for our mate.”

Carlos laughed and backed away. “Yeah, you got a gift.”

“What can I say?”