The kitten claims her mate (complete)

Betty and Jax

Betty blinked sleepily and stretched her arms, only to wince in pain. Why did her arm hurt? She looked around and jumped when she realized she wasn't in her house. This realization led to memories of the awful man who bound and gagged her. She looked at her hands and feet just to make sure, but she was free.

She started shaking when all the details came back. He'd asked her questions about Jax and his pack, which she didn't know the answers to, and then he'd hit her around a little trying to convince her to talk. It hadn't hurt that bad, she'd been hit many times before as a child. Then he'd dragged her upstairs by her hair and that had hurt. It felt like her scalp was going to rip off. She'd tried to fight, but her stupid cat was wrong. They were not fighters.

She'd been terrified waiting for Jax to come. She couldn't move and she kept imagining spiders and mice moving along her skin. When Jax rescued her she finally agreed with Kilala. He was wonderful.

Thinking of Jax, she remembered that she needed to talk to him urgently. She jumped up and ran downstairs. Jax was prowling in the kitchen, talking to his friends. He looked up when he saw her and rushed over.

"What are you doing up? Get back to bed," His wolf growled.

"I decide when it's time to get up, not you. We need to talk. That man gave me a message for you. He said that he's going to keep killing your pack until you hand leadership over to him. He wants to be Alpha."

"That's what he's after? Why doesn't the coward just challenge me? Then I could kill him quickly and be done with this. Instead he's threatening my pack? When I catch him, I'm going to rip his head off and revel in the dripping of his blood."

"There's more," she said, interrupting his tirade. "I took his picture on my cellphone. It's at my house."

"That's brilliant," he said kissing the top of her head. She blushed and cleared her throat, embarrassed by his affection. "But it doesn't let you off the hook," he finished.

Jax sent Luke to grab the phone and then led Betty to a chair. She sat and gratefully accepted the coffee Jason handed her. Jax resumed prowling.

"There's some things we need to discuss. First- why the hell did you run into my house if you knew there was an intruder? Second- how did you know? Third- really, what the hell were you thinking?" He glared at her and waited for her reply with his arms crossed. His eyes were blazing and she knew his wolf must be vying for control.

"If you want to blame someone, blame Kilala. She's so infatuated with you that she can't think straight. I wanted to call 911, but she had me running into your house completely unprepared." She scratched the back of her neck nervously and continued, "I thought you were responsible for killing that guy in the woods so I was watching your house for evidence. I wanted to prove to Kilala that you couldn't be trusted."

Jax leaned forward, catching her eyes and growled. He looked pissed. She looked around him and saw Jason trying to stifle his giggling. She smirked, which must have a angered Jax more. He gripped her chin and tilted her head until she was staring at him again.

"I am this close to losing my temper. I would really appreciate it if you could pay attention to me and not my stupid brother. You thought I was a murderer? Then why did you go after that bastard in my house? And don't say Kilala made you do it because that's bull."

His stare was too intense. It felt uncomfortable to be this close to him and stare into those blazing eyes. She blushed and said, "I... I didn't want him to hurt you."

His voice gentled and he asked, "Why was that, sweetheart?"

She frowned at him, annoyed that he was going to make her say it. " I don't completely hate you."

He grinned and leaned closer, his breath fanning her skin. "I don't completely hate you either." He stepped away, making her feel both relieved and sad. When he wasn't growling it was kind of nice being close to him. Kind of tingly and exhilarating, and that smell! God, why did he have to smell so good?

She shook her head to dispel her lustful thoughts and reminded herself why she didn't trust him. She crossed her arms and frowned at him. "We still need to talk about how you pretended to be a dog and don't for one second think I've forgotten your behavior!" She blushed and looked at Jason who was still looking amused. "Just not right now. Later, when we are alone, I am going to really rip into you. You are in so much trouble mister!"

Jax just grinned wider and winked at her. "I still remember too, sweetheart. I remember you dancing around without-"

"Shut up!" She screeched, her face flaming. "I'm still mad at you!"

"And I'm still mad that you put yourself in danger without even a plan or a weapon!"

"I had a jacket!"

Jason cleared his throat and interrupted, "As much as I'm enjoying your conversation, let's focus on catching the murderer. You two can decide whether you want to kiss or yell at each other later."

They both denied wanting to kiss each other and crossed their arms. Of course, Kilala chimed in with her two cents. She really was a dirty cat.

Luke returned with the phone and soon every pack member had a picture of the rogue and the car he was driving. Jax left to deal with pack business with Luke, leaving Betty with Jason. She was nervous and wondered if she should go back home. She didn't want to overstay her welcome, but she also really didn't want to be alone.

"Hey, you want to play Call of Duty with me? I have gummy bears, milk duds and beer."

"Sure, why not."

They settled on the couch and soon she was trying to figure out how to play. She really sucked at it and ended up killing herself over and over. Jason just laughed at how bad she was and switched to a racing game.

"So, when are you going to stop fighting yourself and realize that you love my brother?"

She choked on her beer and shook her head vigorously, "I do not!"

"If your little kitten is anything like our wolves - you don't have a choice. He's your mate. You belong together."

"Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut the hell up," she grumbled and threw her pillow at him. "No wonder Kilala finds you annoying."

"Hey, she loves me too. We have a whole thing going on. I love her madly and she hisses at me and chews on my fingers. It's a rock solid friendship."

Betty rolled her eyes and told him to shut up. She wondered if they were friends. She kind of hoped they were. Jason was really funny and easy to get along with, unlike Mr. Grumpy Pants. It would be nice to have friends her own age.

It was all so complicated. She hadn't spent much time with them as Betty. They didn't really know a lot about each other. She still knew nothing about werewolves, except they growl a lot and their wolves are cuddly- at least Jax's was. Ugh she was thinking about him again. Which led to thoughts of kissing.

When he came back she was going to kiss him. A bet was a bet after all. The thought both warmed her and scared her. Maybe it was good to be a little scared? She'd lived a safe life for several years, avoiding all risk. Maybe it was time to take a risk on Jax.

Nah, she thought internally. She wasn't going to let Kilala call the shots anymore because she obviously made bad decisions. But still, she would kiss him and probably even be friends with him. He had saved her after all and he obviously wasn't a murderer. But he was not her mate. Maybe if she told herself that enough then she'd actually believe it. She smiled and thought of his smell. Damn cinnamon cookies.