Katie's Mates by Alicia White Page A

scared, and dreaming that she would accept them. This was a completely new world for her. He didn’t want her to be scared, and he definitely couldn’t deal with her rejection or disgust.
    Lucas stood naked before them, with his hand on his hips, staring at Katie. She wasn’t screaming, so Ryan took that as a good sign. He changed positions so that he could see her face, tucking her into his shoulder. She looked up at him, her mouth open and her eyes glassy. He wondered for a minute if she was in shock. Maybe he rushed this whole thing.
    “Let’s get inside the house. It’s cold. We can talk about this later.” He tried to give her a reassuring smile but knew he had failed. If she wanted to leave, he wouldn’t stop her. He just needed to figure out what to do so that his brothers didn’t get too upset. He didn’t want to let her go, but he wasn’t going to keep her against her will. She didn’t say anything as he led her into the house. He went straight to the roaring fire in the living room, wanting to get her warm and comfortable since she was shaking a little.
    He stood next to her, letting the warmth seep into his body. He helped her take off the layers of clothes and then took them to hang up by the front door. When he got back into the living room, Katie was sitting in one of the large, overstuffed chairs in front of the fire, her feet propped up. He felt confused and a little worried. If she was upset, then Nathan and Ethan would be even more so since they didn’t feel like she was ready for the whole truth yet.
    When he walked back into the room, he sat in the chair across from her, wanting to see her face. “All of you can do that? I mean…Nathan, Ethan, and you can all change? How?” She was looking at him now, and that made him feel a lot better. Perhaps he hadn’t made a bad decision after all.
    “We can all shift. We were born this way, and living up here in Alaska gives us lots of open space and freedom to be who we are. It makes it hard to find mates, though. Usually it’s the youngest brother’s job to leave home and find that special person to bring back to share with his brothers. It’s always been that way. I guess I got lucky that you came here.” He moved closer, wanting to touch her. He sat at her feet, holding her hands in his. The contact made him feel better, and he took a deep breath, enjoying her scent. She smelled like sunshine and pine.
    “Okay. That means that Conner could do that, too…right? He’s the youngest brother. He was supposed to bring Chloe here?”
    “Yeah. I’m not sure why he didn’t, and it’s too late to ask him. Now that she is here, Adam and Brandon have been working hard to get Chloe to stay and be their mate. They’ve waited a long time knowing that Conner found her. We’ve been waiting a long time to find you as well. Did it scare you, watching Lucas change?” He rubbed his thumbs over her knuckles, enjoying the contact. His heart beat a bit faster in his chest, waiting for her answer. She seemed to be handling everything well so far.
    “No. I wasn’t scared, more surprised. I’ve always dreamed that there was more out there in the universe. I know that I’m your mate, and it’s a lot of information to take in at once. Then I think about Lucas. I’m supposed to be his mate as well, and he doesn’t want me. Can mates do that? I mean, can they just decide not to have a mate?” He knew she would have questions. The fact that she wasn’t disgusted was a great sign. He had been thinking about Lucas since he had decided not to accept Katie as his mate. His brother seemed to be watching and following her from a distance.
    “Nobody has ever rejected their mate. I don’t think it’s even possible. I can’t speak for Lucas, but I can tell you how I feel. When I first saw you, my heart stopped beating and I was overwhelmed with emotions that I never thought were possible. I looked at you and I knew that you were meant to be with me, with us. I