Book 3 - Chapter 12 - Family
Melanie ran as fast as she could, cutting in and out of the streets. It was dawn, so the sky was transitioning from black to blue. She was thankful it was still dark enough to hide easily. When she approached the end of the street, she looked behind her and saw no one there. She knew she needed to get to the hotel. That would be the first place they'd look for her, and she had to keep the cubs and Saxon safe.
She walked out onto the main street, which was a little busier with shops preparing for the day. Melanie looked around and realized she knew where she was. The hotel was just down the street. She ran until she got to her destination.
When she walked inside the hotel, the lobby was mostly empty. Before she got in the elevator, she looked around to make sure she didn't see anyone she recognized. Knocking on the door of the suite, she had a moment of panic, thinking Saxon may have taken the cubs somewhere else. When the door swung open, she fell into Saxon's arms, sobbing.
"Lanie, how did you get here?" He asked, pulling her into the room and shutting the door. She looked up into his blue eyes and felt like she was home. Before he could say more, she brought his mouth down to hers and kissed him. The sparks that flew around them took their breath away almost as much as the kiss. When they pulled apart, they both smiled.
"I'm sorry, Sax," Melanie whispered, holding onto him like her life depended on it.
"You don't have to apologize. I know your emotions got the better of you. I'm not going to push for more." Saxon had many questions, but he wanted to reassure her first.
"No, I'm not sorry about kissing you. I'm sorry I'm the reason you were dragged into this mess, and I'm sorry I resisted you so much. I won't pretend anymore. I want you. I love you." When she looked into his eyes, he could see she was speaking from her heart. Wrapping his arms around her, he swung her around.
"I love you too. As much as I want to talk about this and celebrate, I need to know how you got away." Saxon put her on her feet and kissed her forehead.
"I pretended to still be asleep when the drug wore off. Karlee and Ava were the only ones in the room with me. They didn't have me tied up, so when they started fighting, I was able to take them by surprise and knock them out. I ran, but an alarm went off when I went out the door. They're probably after me, so we need to get out of here." Before she could say more, there was a gasp followed by excited squeals behind Saxon.
"Mommy," Lisa and Alex yelled while running to Melanie. She looked at Saxon with tears in her eyes.
"Did they call me mommy?" She asked as she knelt down to hug them both.
"Yes, they did. These two little ones have decided to adopt us as their parents." He beamed down at her as she held them tight.
"Is that okay?" Lisa asked, stepping back a little to look up at Melanie.
"That's more than okay, sweetheart. I'm so glad to see you guys, but we have to get out of here. Did you both get a little bigger while I was gone?" She asked, noticing they seemed to have changed. Alex and Lisa burst out in giggles.
"I got my bear, and Lisa got her lioness. They said we'll be getting bigger and stronger every day." Melanie hugged them again.
"That's wonderful news." Just as she stood up, there was a knock on the door. She grabbed the cubs in fear, looking at Saxon. He held his finger to his lips, and they all nodded. When he looked through the peephole, he looked back at the others with a big smile before opening the door.
"We made it. Do you have any news about Melanie?" Cat asked as she and everyone else walked into the suite.
"Mom," Melanie ran over to her mother as everyone stopped and stared in shock.
"Saxon said they kidnapped you. How did you get away?" Melanie quickly explained everything to the others. Saxon looked around, blown away by how many were there. Besides his parents and Cat and Trey, there was Theo and his mate, Caitlin. Melanie's sister, Emily. Kitty and Aiden with their daughter, Elicia, and their son, Tyron. Daniella and Chip, with their son Michael and their daughter Hilary, with each of their mates. They weren't kidding when they said they were bringing lots of help.
"Wow, okay. You've both been busy the last few days." Janel said while hugging her son. She looked past him and saw the two little cubs standing behind him and Melanie. They were holding hands with tears running down their faces. Saxon looked at them and went over to pick them both up.
"Everyone, this is our werelion Lisa and werebear Alex. They've adopted me and Lanie as their parents." The cubs looked at the other wearily.
"They're adorable. How old are they?" Kitty asked, waving at them. Saxon nodded at Lisa, letting her know she could tell them.
"We turned five yesterday. I got my lioness, and Alex got his bear. Please don't take us from our new mommy and daddy. We love them." Her words were so heartfelt everyone in the room wanted to hug her. Cat walked over to them with Trey by her side.
"My name is Cat, and this is my mate, Trey. We're Melanie's parents. We're not going to take them from you. In fact, if they're your mommy and daddy, that means we're your grandma and grandpa. Would that be okay?" Lisa and Alex looked at each other, their eyes as big as saucers. They wiggled to get down from Saxon and walked over to Cat and Trey, who squatted in front of them.
"You want to be our grandparents?" Lisa asked softly. Cat opened her arms to them, and they instantly went to her.
"Of course we do. Do you see those two over there?" She pointed to Janel and Thatcher, who walked over. Lisa and Alex nodded. "They're Saxon's parents, so they're your grandparents, too. Everyone in this room is now part of your family."
"We have a family now?" Alex stared at all the smiling faces before he and Lisa walked around to meet each of them.
"They're precious," Cat whispered to Melanie and Saxon. They reminded her of so many of the children in their group homes with no family. She turned to the couple, who seemed closer than they were a few days ago.
"So, mommy and daddy, I take it you're a little family now?" Trey laughed at his mate, putting them on the spot. Their faces turned bright red when everyone shifted their attention toward them. Lisa and Alex walked over, smiling.
"We're not a little family; we're a big family. Look at all these people." Everyone laughed at Lisa's observation. Trey picked the little lioness up and threw her in the air, catching her as she giggled.
"You remind me of Melanie when she was your age. She had a lot of sassiness too." He said to the little lioness. She clapped her hands excitedly.
"See, that means she's supposed to be my mommy," Cat and Trey's hearts melted to see how happy she was. Alex pulled on Trey's shirt to get his attention. He was a lot quieter than Lisa.
"Do I remind you of anyone?" Alex asked hopefully. Cat leaned over and picked him up, hugging him tightly.
"You're just like Saxon. He was quiet and super smart. I can tell you are too." Alex beamed at her and wrapped his little arms around her neck.
"Thank you, grandma." Cat's eyes filled with tears. Hearing them call her grandma pulled at her heart. Alex wiped her tears off her cheek. "Don't cry."
"These are happy tears. You and Lisa are making me so happy." She kissed his little cheek.
"Alright, do you two want to tell us what we need to do? I don't think we came all this way just to hop back on a plane and go back home." Theo asked while his mate shook her head at him.
"I'm sorry for him, Melanie. You know how he gets when he's somewhere new." Caitlin said with a small smile. Melanie really liked her. She was the only one that could keep the usual sour puss in check.
"Don't worry about it. We'll let him get away with it this once." Theo frowned as Melanie stuck her tongue out at him.
"Okay, children, let's get back to why we're here," Cat said in her sweet voice that made everyone quiet down immediately. She and Trey were the unofficial leaders of their unique family, and it showed by the amount of respect everyone had for them.
Melanie had been ready to get out of there and hide, but now she hoped Vincent and the others did show up. She'd like to see how they handled a whole family of werelions and vampires.
