My Shifter Boss

*****

The wedding was actually almost an hour and a half later. Kayla had rushed in and handed Lucy a bouquet of lilies, Lucy’s favorite flower. Lucy hugged her best friend, who immediately began helping Maryann with her makeup and hair. Lucy watched in the mirror as they transformed her from her regular self to this beauty sitting in the chair.

“Oh, honey, I can’t wait to see Nathan’s face when he sees you,” Maryann said, tears in the corners of her eyes.

“Let’s do this, Mom,” Lucy said bravely before she started with the waterworks as well.

Maryann left and took her place at the front of the conference room. They’d decided a somewhat private ceremony was in the cards. The only attendees were Kayla, Sarah, Matt, and Belina. Frank, via Skype, watch with tears tracking down his cheeks as his only child walked down the aisle to her future. She blew him a kiss as she walked by Sarah, who held the laptop up for him.

Nathan gasped when he turned to look at her. Her chocolate skin glowed with happiness, and her brown eyes shone with unshed happiness. The dress she and her mother had chosen flowed down her body in glorious white silk, matching the lilies in her hand perfectly. Nathan couldn’t look at anything but her, even as Maryann began the ceremony. He watched her, the love of his life, as he spoke his vows and she spoke hers. When asked about the rings, Lucy gasped.

“Oh, Nathan, I don’t have one for you!” Lucy looked devastated. She’d given Matt her engagement ring to take to Nathan, but had never even thought about one for him. She looked at her mother. “What do I do?”

“It’s ok, honey. The two of you can buy him one later,” Maryann comforted her.

Kayla hopped up and handed Lucy a ring. Lucy raised her eyes in question. “This is my dad’s. I wear it around my neck to remember him by. He’d love it if you used it to show your love for Nathan.”

Lucy said, “Kayla, we can’t take this. What if you want to give it to your husband someday?”

“I never intended it for that,” Kayla replied. “I knew one day I’d find its use. This is it. Please take it and marry this handsome man beside you.” She kissed Lucy’s cheek and returned to her seat.

Lucy placed it on Nathan’s finger; it fit perfectly, as if it had been made for him. Kayla beamed. The ceremony ended with a loud, smacking kiss and cheers from those around them. Lucy was disappointed that they couldn’t sneak away for an hour or two for a little loving, but she wanted her husband to be well-prepared for the mission that night. They settled for a quick, catered early dinner before returning to the planning.

At fifteen minutes to eight, Nathan, Matt, and the small group of weres were prepared with weapons and Mission Impossible black outfits that looked right for Tom Cruise or possibly ninjas. Lucy stared at them, grumbling about the insanity of the plan. Her nerves were on fire.

As they prepared to leave, she stepped forward. “Please be careful. Watch for any traps.”

“I will, my loving wife,” Nathan replied and kissed her nose. “I’ll be back before you know it.”

“I love you.”

“I love you.” He kissed her once more.

Matt rumbled, “Y’all are making me sick. Can we get this done with?”

Nathan laughed and slapped his back. “Let’s go.”

*****

Nathan, Matt, and their team silently scaled the building beside Marissa’s headquarters. A catwalk extended from the roof over to Marissa’s roof, and Bobby had assured them that the catwalk was not guarded because the building next door was condemned and dangerous. When they reached the roof, Nathan silently pointed at the hatch that was supposed to be open for them.

Matt walked over, and with the help of another were, they lifted the heavy door, which, as promised, was unlocked. Matt lowered himself down first and did a scan of the room in which he found himself. Piled high with outdated office equipment, it was clear the only person who had been up there recently was the person who had unlocked the door for them. He motioned for the other to join him. Two would stay at the opening leading to the roof to guard their escape route.

They enabled their night vision goggles so they wouldn’t have to use flashlights and wouldn’t trample over everything and cause unnecessary noise. Nathan located the stairs to their left, but that wasn’t the set that led down to Marissa’s apartment. Matt indicated the footprints and they followed those to another set of stairs further away from the hatch. Nathan realized what a pain it was going to be to get Marissa out without alerting anyone and considered knocking her out.

Silently, with Matt in the lead, Nathan and the other two following, they made their way down the stairs and into a hallway. Nathan did a quick surveillance for cameras, but there were none. The building was ancient and didn’t have the proper wiring for that.

There were only two doors, one on the left, one on the right. Marissa had commandeered both of these apartments for herself, but Bobby had assured them she would be in the one to the left. Matt put his ear to the door and listened. He nodded when he heard voices. The other two weres nodded at his signal to stay and guard the hallway while he and Nathan went in to get Marissa.

Matt stepped back and kicked the door with all his might. It burst open and into a living area with older furniture. Marissa had jumped up at the sound and was moving toward another room, while Bobby rose more slowly and stepped out of the way. Nathan followed Marissa; there wasn’t an escape back that way, but she might have a weapon back there. Matt was fast on his heels. They rushed through a door and heard the explosion of a gun.

Nathan jerked back but Matt barreled past and knelt on the ground, his own weapon drawn and aimed at Marissa’s chest. Nathan peeked around the corner and looked at Marissa.