Page 17 of Forever My Siren Luna (The Hidden Cove #2)

I was instantly on alert. “ What’s wrong with Lira,” I asked, knowing that was the only thing that he would be needing this late at night.

He was with her at the brothel. I was sitting in the parlor in our old bedchamber after meeting with her father, staring at the rowdy ships in my harbor and waiting for news she was somewhere safe for the night, praying it wouldn’t be in that grimy pirate’s presence.

“ The lass is drunk as a skunk, and Val is making this harder than it needs to be.”

Drunk? Lira doesn’t get drunk.

“ Where are you?!” It’s Killian’s voice snarling at Cherum now, not just mine.

“ Meet me at the packhouse gates. She’s flailing like a flippin’ fish. Gah!” The mind link cuts out, and I race towards the entrance to the packhouse. Why would Val take over for Lira? Why the hell did Cherum let her get drunk in the first place?

When I saw Cherum start stumbling up the path towards the castle, I shook my head in disbelief.

Lira is in his arms, but just as he said, she is flailing like a fish, trying to climb over his shoulder and singing some sea shanty at the top of her lungs.

Her voice is deeper, a bit slurred. Even Val is drunk right now.

“How much did she have?!” I shouted, angry when I noticed how provocatively she was dressed, her breast almost out of her top, knowing she was just at the brothels.

“Not that much. Well, no more than some others.” Cherum looks away guilty, then Lira manages to kick him in the jewels while his focus is elsewhere. “Bloody crotch fire, that hurt!”

Killian snarls through me. “ He gave her the coffees,” Killian accused him.

“ This isn’t just from a few spiked coffees. Lira can hold her liquor better than that.”

“This isn’t the work of ‘not that much’. Why weren’t you watching her?” I asked Cherum, not taking my eyes off Lira’s fierce face.

“I was, idiot." When I narrowed my eyes at him for the name-calling, he rolled his. "Alpha, sir. I’m her Delta, not her dad. If she wants to bloody drink she bloody well can. She seemed accustomed enough to the act. She was living with pirates, you know.”

Val snarls at Cherum with Lira’s body when he tries to get an arm locked around her. She is trying to tug on his beard now.

“Is she always like this when she drinks with them?” I am too scared to even imagine what she might have gotten herself into while wasted at sea.

“The flirty lass with grabby hands said no. She said this was her first time seeing Ela this belligerent as well.”

I looked around Cherum for a sign of the woman Lira left with or that damned Captain I know was also at the bar. “Where’s she at?”

“The arse smacking lady pirate? She was dealing with the captain. He is much like Ela here right now. I think he downed 3 bottles on his own. No coffee to offset the rum.”

“Sheesh.” I smelled liquor on his breath, but didn’t think he was that irresponsible.

Lira, or should I say Val, turns her head in my direction, a snarl ripping through her chest.

I cringe back, readying for her anger, but then she launches herself at me, and I’m forced to stop to catch her.

“You!” she snapped. “Come out!” She started knocking her fist against the side of my head, the force more painful than I thought it would be. Her little fists are strong.

“Ow, Lira. What are you doing?” I tried to grab her fist before she punched me again.

“Give me that mongrel! Killian, come out!”

Killian whimpered in my head, not wanting to be on the receiving end of his mate’s anger. That’s usually reserved for me.

“Damn it, you bastard! Get out of there and brush my hair!”

I freeze, and Killian perks up, a tinge of excitement traveling through him.

“Brush your hair?” I asked.

“Yes!” she huffed, exasperated with me. “It’s night time. It’s my kissing brushing time with that jerk. Give him to me.”

“ I want to, but I’m scared,” Killian admits. “ She’s mad.”

“ She might be more mad if you don’t get out here and do it,” I told him.

He huffed, then pushed forward, taking over for me and carrying her inside back to our bedchamber. Cherum is following closely behind, and stops a maid on the way to ask her to help ready my mate for bed.

Holding her in my arms again, even with her singing off-key and waving her hands in the air in her drunk tirade, feels absolutely amazing.

I never thought I would get this chance again.

After what happened earlier, I knew her coming home to me, or coming back to the packhouse at all for sleep may never happen, but here she is.

Yes, she’s not entirely with it and her scent is overpowered by booze, but she’s still here in my arms. It’s where I always want her to be and I’ll take it any way I can.

When we get to our room, I sit her on the bed as I pick up the brush, and she immediately starts to undress.

“What are you doing?!” Killian stops her hands.

Val chuckles deeply, then moves up on her knees, flattening her tongue on the side of my face, surprising all of us as she runs it from my chin to my hairline before shifting into her beast form.

She ripped the clothes right off Lira, which is probably why she was trying to undress.

“Oh, the lass is going to be mighty embarrassed to hear of this tomorrow,” Cherum grumbles, letting in the maids as Killian begins the process of running the brush over Val’s furr. She is lying across the bed, purring with each stroke.

“ I missed this,” he admits to me, watching her finally calm frame relax into the bed with such tenderness. “ I missed mate.”

“ I missed them too, buddy,” I said, watching his movements.

The maids and Cherum stand by as Killian works through her fur, and when I’m about halfway through, Val is deep asleep and unconsciously gives control back to Lira.

There she is, completely naked in my bed, mumbling something about shoe laces in her sleep. Killian, scared of his restraint, retreats back into my head, giving me control.

Cherum and I avert our gazes away from her, and he directs the maids to get her in a dress or gown. When they try to touch her, her eyes fly open and she snarls ferociously.

“It’s hot!” She snapped. “Get off me.”

“Lira,” I went up next to her and tried to help the maids, but it was to no avail. She was dodging every attempt to get the dress around her neck. “Come on, Lira. You will hate me tomorrow if you wake up naked in the packhouse.”

“It’s hot!” She snapped again, this time almost biting one of the maids.

“Let her go,” I told them. “She isn’t going to let you near her face.” I’m going to have to do this.

“I don’t want a dress,” she grumbled when I tried again. “It’s too hot. Where’s my tunic?”

It’s in a hundred little scraps on the floor.

An idea comes to me, and I slip out of my shirt, shrugging it off my shoulders and offer it to her. “Would this be better?”

Her eyes aren’t on the shirt. They’re on my chest, her hand coming out and touching me, then trailing down to the waistline of my pants. I notice the shiver that travels up her arms from the sparks, and I almost smirk.

Almost.

“You’re very good-looking for such an arrogant bastard,” she sighs.

“Thanks,” I muttered dryly, before somehow managing to finally get her in my shirt.

She is just staring at me, and I think it’s at my chest, but then her hand lands on the necklace hanging off my throat. “This is mine.”

“I know,” I took her hand in mine, then kissed her fingers still wrapped around the pendant. “That’s why I keep it close to my heart.”

She grins. “Even your words can be pretty,” then comes a heavy sigh, “so why are you such a jerk?”

She rolls over, as if she is about to fall asleep, but I know better than to leave her here. She will slit my throat when she wakes.

I lifted her in my arms, and tried to pass her off to Cherum, who looked more than a little exhausted. “Take her to a guest room and stay with her until morning, please.”

He is about to agree, but then her eyes open again and she snarls venomously. “No! I want to go to bed!”

“That’s what we are trying to get you to, lass. Just come with me and I’ll…ACK!” His hand gets too close to her mouth, and she snaps at it, landing the bite and sinking her teeth into his hand before he can pull it free. “Ela, dammit. That’s not nice.”

“You’re not nice! This is my bed!” She tries to wiggle out of our hold.

“Lira, please,” I begged, getting my arms tightly around her again. She stops fighting and looks up at me, then a brilliant smile spreads on her face.

“There you are. It’s bedtime,” she wraps her arms around my neck, gripping me tight.

“I know, so go with Cherum!” I tried to unravel her arms from around me, but she wouldn’t let me.

“I don’t think it’s going to happen, Alpha. Just let her stay here for tonight.”

“I would love to, but she will murder me when she wakes up in the morning.” I need to keep my head at least until her uncle is dead.

“You deserve it,” he grunts. I furrowed my brows at him, wondering what he’s angry about with me. He shook his head. “We can hash that out tomorrow. Let the lass sleep here tonight. You two could use a good fight anyway. I’ll come fetch her for breakfast unless you call for me sooner.”

Lira’s arms go lax around me, and then her soft snores start to come out. It’s a familiar sound that has my heart racing, because this time it’s not a memory or in my dreams. I am really hearing her snoring in my arms once again.

“She hates me,” I tell Cherum as he walks towards the door. “This isn’t a good idea.” No matter how much I love it.

“She doesn’t hate you, though she should. Goodnight, Alpha. Watch for her teeth. She’s got quite the bite.”

Shit.

I stood there, holding her and wondering what to do. I could just lay her down and sleep in a chair, but when I try, she wakes just enough to latch on to me again.

I have no choice but to lie with her, and I can only pray she is somewhat understanding when she wakes up.