Sugar Creek: Marigold's Werewolf Mates Part 11

"No sleep," Stefan said before yawning big and resting his head on his moms shoulder and closed his eyes.

"Hes just like his father." Tessa rolled her eyes and walked away.

Mari began packing up the toys and putting them away. When she was finished, she folded the rug and placed it on top of the toy box. Shed just sat on the sofa when she felt the hair on nape p.r.i.c.kle. Turning her head, she saw a man standing in the doorway staring at her.

"Uh...Hi."

"Hi, you must be Marigold?"

"I am. And you are?"

"Con." He walked into the room until he was standing in front of her. He smiled at her and offered his hand in greeting. Even though Mari didnt want to shake his hand, she didnt want to offend him either, so she took his hand and shook it. The mans smile didnt reach his eyes, and she got bad vibes from him. She withdrew her hand as quickly as possible, and although she wanted to wipe his touch away on the side of her pants, she refrained.

"Nice to meet you." Mari said but didnt mean a word of it. The guy gave her the creeps.

"Hi, Con," Tessa said as she came back into the room.

"Tessa." Con bowed his head and then left without saying anything more.

Tessa sat down beside her, but her eyes were on the empty doorway. After a few moments she turned to face Mari again. "I really dont like that man. He makes my skin crawl."

"Me too," Mari said. "I only just met him but he doesnt really smile when he smiles."

"I know exactly what you mean. Hes the only man from the Nomad Pack that I cant take to."

"Thats Taylors pack, isnt it?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me about what happened? The men have been pretty closemouthed about things, and they were supposed to explain some stuff to me after breakfast, but we needed to come here."

Tessa explained about the Nomad Pack and the previous Alpha and how Taylor had challenged him.

"I heard my men say they needed to keep me safe. They were supposed to tell me what was going on, but it either conveniently slipped their minds, or theyve decided I dont need to know. Im not sure which yet."

"The men can be so overbearing sometimes. They take the protection of their mate, the women and children, and the pack very seriously. I cant see them not telling because they dont think you shouldnt know, but they tend to keep things back so we dont worry."

Mari snorted, making Tessa smile. "Dont they realize that not knowing something could be more worrying than being in the know?"

"Men dont think like we do, Mari."

"Aint that the truth!" Mari moved closer to Tessa as she remembered what good hearing they all had. "So are you going to tell me?"

Tessa nodded and started explaining.

"So someone has it in for Taylor because he thought it would be safer to merge his pack with yours?" Mari asked once Tessa had finished telling her everything.

Tessa nodded again.

"Thats f.u.c.ked up."

"Yes."

Mari sat quietly, digesting everything Tessa had told her. "I could be a target because Ive mated with Taylor."

"Yes," Tessa whispered.

"s.h.i.t. Thats not good. There is no way I could take on a werewolf and win, let alone one of those big brutes as a man, and come out unscathed."

"Do you have any idea who the dissension is coming from?"

"No, not really," Tessa answered but she looked away.

"Yes, you do." Mari reached out and grabbed her hand. "You need to tell...Con. You think it could be Con, dont you?"

"That would be my guess."

"Do the other men know?"

"I havent said anything, but Lucien isnt stupid."

"Theyre watching him?"

"The Omegas are watching all the men from the Nomad Pack. They arent willing to take any chances on one of us women getting hurt, let alone any of our kids."

"Do you think hes the only one not happy about the merge?"

"Im not sure," Tessa replied. "There could be others."

"How many Nomad Pack members are there?"

"Twenty."

Mari sank back into the cushion. "And theyre all living here?"

"Yes."

"Arent you scared?"

"Not scared, just anxious. I know that my men would die to protect me and Stefan. Not that I want that happening, but they will do everything they can to keep me safe."

"d.a.m.n, I dont want anyone dying on account of me." Mari frowned and then sighed. "I couldnt imagine..." She couldnt finish her sentence as pain pierced her chest at the thought of losing one or all of her men. And although she wished she was strong enough to defend herself so her men would be safe, she knew she wasnt.

An idea began to form in her head, but she needed more information before she could make a decision.

"How long does it take to transform into a werewolf?"

"It depends on the person and what type of injuries she has."

"Injuries?"

"The only reason a mate is changed is if she is mortally wounded."

"And what if shes not? What if shes healthy?"

"Are you thinking about- "Thats exactly what Im thinking. Who would I need to talk to?"

"Lucien, Rafe, Gabe, and I."

"So what do you think?"

"I think youre very brave."

"No," Mari said. "I just dont want to die. Ive barely had any time with my mates. I dont want to be taken from them before weve had a chance to live."

"Let me talk to my mates," Tessa said.

Mari watched as Tessas gaze hazed over and knew she was talking to her men. She just hoped that the Alpha and Betas accepted her proposal. Then it was going to be up to her to convince her own mates to change her.

She wasnt looking forward to drinking blood. In fact, just the thought of doing that made her feel ill, but she was determined to go through with this. Especially if it meant she would be able to help protect her men and herself from any threat.

Mari wasnt nave and knew she could still very well be hurt or killed, but if she had the added strength of a werewolf at least she would have a fighting chance.

When Tessa met her gaze again, Mari held her breath.

"My men agree. Lucien isnt sure how long the change will take on a healthy woman. All the other women whove been transformed were dying and slept for a couple of days at least. He said that although theyve given you their approval, its going to take some convincing on your part for your mates to accept your idea. They arent going to want to do this."

"d.a.m.n." Mari sighed. "So even if I can get my mates to agree to this I could still be out of it for a couple of days. I would be vulnerable and so would they."

"How do you figure they would be?"

"They would stay by my side while I was asleep. Anyone could take advantage."

"You could come and stay in a guest room here," Tessa suggested.

"But that would put you and Stefan in even more danger."

"We are already in danger, Mari."

"Yes, I know, but I cant do that to you and your son. Id rather die than have something happen to Stefan."

"If you can convince your mates to agree, do you still want to go ahead with the transformation?"

Mari nodded her head slowly, ready to do anything to protect her mates.

Chapter Twelve.

"Your mate is amazing," Lucien said.

Taylor frowned at his Alpha but nodded his head in agreement. He wondered where that statement had come from and was about to ask, but Rafe started talking before he could.

"She is very brave."

Taylor shoved back his chair and was about to go look for Mari, but Lucien placed his hand on his shoulder. "Shes fine. Shes in the living room with Tessa."

"Whats going on?" he asked as he sat down again.

"Marigold has just asked to go through the change," Gabe said.

"What?" he, Sin, and Michael all said at once.

"Why would she ask to do that?" Taylor snarled.

"Calm the f.u.c.k down," Lucien said. "If you give me a chance, Ill explain."

Taylor, Sin, and Michael listened as Lucien explained what the women had been talking about and Maris conclusion.

"We dont know how the change will affect her," Sin said once Lucien had finished explaining. "She could die. What if her body rejects our DNA?"

"Sins right. I dont think changing our mate is a good idea." Taylor leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.

"We could have Ashton on standby the whole time," Rafe suggested.

"No," Michael said emphatically. "This is not happening. Weve only just found her."

Taylor nodded in agreement. "It could kill her. I am not willing to risk her life."

"Her lifes already in jeopardy," Gabe said.

"Well just make sure one of us is with her all the time." Michael looked toward the empty doorway.

"Even if she does survive the change, none of us know how long sh.e.l.l sleep for. She will be vulnerable. If something happens and we have to leave her..." Sin swallowed audibly.

"Did you agree to this?" Taylor asked Lucien.

"I did."

"d.a.m.n it. You-"

"I havent finished." Lucien held up his hand. "I said she would have to convince you three first."