by J. E. Cluney
That explained his scent, and pie sounded good. It was mid-afternoon now, and I’d had the odd tidbit and bite at the homes I’d visited. It was the polite thing to offer, but for ‘Wolves, it was a sign of acceptance and trust. It made me feel more confident in this new position.
Ruben sauntered over and hugged me in greeting, and then proceeded to punch Ray in the arm.
They bantered and laughed as they headed inside, and Regina nodded politely before following me in.
The cottage was quaint and cozy, a small flat-screen TV in the corner of the living room, but it looked rarely used. The plush floral printed couches looked old and worn, but the forest green cushions decorating them looked new.
I followed everyone through to the kitchen and combined dining area.
Ray rounded up another seat, a wooden stool from one of the rooms, before he perched on top of it at the small wooden table.
I took up the seat beside him, enjoying the way Ruben goaded his father about a group game they’d played a few days ago. Ray had told me how some of men and boys got together for a game of football every few weeks.
Ruben was paying out his father’s lack of sports athleticism.
Charles just waved him off with a grin as he argued that he was a builder, not an athlete.
“Pa makes the best pies. Momma handles the main meals, but my Pa makes some awesome desserts,” Ray murmured as Ruben joined us at the table. “Ma says he’ll be the death of her with all the sweets,” he chuckled.
“Drink? Juice, milk? We’ve got some cola too,” Regina offered as she shot Ray a displeased look at his remark. He just grinned at her and she rolled her eyes.
“Juice would be great,” I smiled and Regina shuffled over to the fridge while Charles cut up the pie after removing it from the oven.
“Pass the custard too hun?” Charles asked.
Regina handed him the custard before pouring glasses of juice and setting them around the table.
I chugged down a few gulps of the orange juice, the warm weather making me a little parched.
“So, Taylor, what should we expect tonight?” Charles asked as he served up some bowls of pie and custard.
“Just a meet and greet, and dinner. I’ll let everyone know the ideas I’ve got to make this Pack even greater, to offer more comfort and peace to the people here,” I stated.
“Change isn’t always easy for everyone to accept, it’ll be a rough few months I’d imagine,” Regina said as she slid into the seat on my other side. Ruben sat across from me, and Charles would take the remaining seat between the two boys.
“I don’t doubt it. But I hope it’ll make everyone happier and more relaxed. The way it’s meant to be,” I said as Charles brought the bowls over.
I thanked him as he set one down before me, the warmth and a delicious aroma wafting from it.
“What’s the schooling here like?” I asked as I picked up my spoon. I hadn’t yet asked anyone yet.
“Some of us home-school, Francine sometimes takes some of the children on for a day each week to do some classes. She always wanted to be a teacher,” Regina smiled sweetly. “Would be nice to have a proper classroom though.”
I smiled at the hint and nodded as I dug into the incredible pie doused in custard. It was cooked to perfection with just the right amount of cinnamon. The custard was just the cherry on the top.
We followed the afternoon tea with more light conversation. Charles informed me that Ray loved photography, that he’d take many great pictures with a small canon camera that he’d gotten on his eighteenth birthday. They could only afford a second hand camera, but it did the job. This led to Regina shuffling around and pulling out photo albums to show off his beautiful shots.
My favourite was a perfectly captured scene where one of their young quarter horse geldings was rearing up. Ray informed me he’d been watching two geldings play and dash around the field, and took his time waiting for the perfect shot.
The sunset that filtered through the flaxen horse’s mane was utter beauty, and the quality despite the aged camera was incredible.
Ruben pointed out a picture of wolves tussling in the dirt, explaining that it was the teens that had just come of age. They were testing out their wolf bodies in a supervised play time.
The scene made me smile, and I sat for some time slowly going through the photos of various Pack members. Some he’d captured prepared for the photo, others were not posed for. He’d caught May laughing as she and Mark sat on a picnic blanket with the children reading books. The tender moment that he’d caught made my heart squeeze. He was capturing the true beauty and emotions in those he loved.
“Damn, look at the time. We best let you two go and prepare for tonight. May put the word out that we should all be there around six tonight,” Charles remarked as he glanced at the clock. It was nearly 5pm, and I knew my father would want to go over tonight with me.
“Right, thanks Ma for getting these out,” Ray thanked his mother with a sweet kiss on her cheek.
“I can’t help but be proud,” she chuckled as she tussled his hair.
“They’re stunning, Ray,” I smiled, causing him to look away bashfully as his cheeks flushed.
Then we were heading outside, waving goodbye as we climbed into the truck.
“Hey, when you guys have your communal dinners, do things change to more... adult stuff afterwards?” I asked hesitantly. If they didn’t follow our same customs there, I wouldn’t throw that curve ball at them.
“Ah-ha, um, well,” he chuckled nervously as he scratched his cheek. The truck pulled away from the quaint cottage as Ray chewed his cheek while he chose his words.
I just watched him with an arched eyebrow.
“It does, I’ve never partaken,” he said as he cleared his throat.
“So, couples start having sex? Do the children go home?” I pushed.
“One of the lone wolves or older couples usually take them away for a few hours. Give them puzzles and board games in one of the designated homes,” he said. “Sometimes I’d even watch over them.”
“So what did you do when that happened?” I asked with a puzzled look. I was genuinely curious as to what he did while everyone else was getting their sexy on.
“Me and the lone guys usually have some beers and stay around the bonfire. We would sometimes...” he pursed his lips together as his hands tightened on the steering wheel.
“Sometimes... what?” I coached him.
“Watch,” he mumbled in embarrassment.
I grinned as his ears reddened, something I was beginning to notice happened before his cheeks flushed.
“How did it make you feel?” I purred, the thought of tonight kicking my body into drive once more. It was hard to fight it, Ray just had a unique attractiveness that caught me.
He grunted as he flared his nostrils, refusing to take his eyes off the road.
“Not going to answer?” I pouted.
“It made me... hot, horny,” he growled.
“It does that to everyone,” I shrugged, but I couldn’t keep the devious smile from my face.
“We need to get back for the dinner,” he said firmly, but it sounded more like he was stating it to himself. It only interested me more.
“Does my scent make you... interested?” I murmured.
Ray clenched his teeth as he gave me a sideways glance.
“How can it not?” he answered honestly.
“Do you like me in that way?” I asked as I looked vacantly out the window, pretending the question was innocent.
A moment of silence passed before he replied.
“Yes.”
I grinned as I turned to him. I had something devilish in mind. Something to thank him with, while not making us lose too much time.
“Pull over up here, please?” I said.
He obeyed with no question, pulling off the side of the road and into the pines. It was far enough in to obscure us from any passerby’s. Besides, the sun was setting soon, and
we were falling into shadows.
“I owe you, and I want to do something for you, if you don’t mind,” I said sweetly.
He didn’t say a word as he stared at me with wide, dilated eyes.
“Is this okay?” I asked as I rested my hand on his knee.
He tensed, and an inkling of doubt seeped into me. But then he nodded, and I relaxed.
“How about this?” I murmured as I moved my hand slowly up his thigh. “You can stop me any time, I only want to do this if you want to,” I made sure to tell him.
He was breathing harder now, and I couldn’t help the devilish smirk at the bulge in his jeans.
“Do you want me to stop?” I asked sweetly, not taking my eyes from his as my hand moved to dance over his arousal straining against his jeans.
“No,” he finally answered, breathless as he just watched me. He was trembling, and I leaned over to kiss his neck to try to relax him.
He moaned as I unzipped his jeans and littered soft kisses down his neck.
He caught my chin and moved me so that his lips brushed mine. I couldn’t contain the soft moan as I kissed him deeply, my hand sliding into his jeans and feeling the rock hard erection jammed beneath his briefs.
He moaned in delight against my lips as I teased him, tracing his arousal through his briefs. I could feel a spot of dampness on them. Someone sure was excited.
“Pull them down for me,” I murmured as I broke the kiss.
He was more than happy to oblige as he shifted awkwardly in his seat to pull his jeans and briefs down.
I bit my lip at the huge shaft that bounced free from his briefs, standing tall and ready.
He caught my mouth again, desperate and needy as I ran my fingers through his dark curls down there. I gently touched his length, chuckling as he quivered and moaned.
He gasped as I wrapped my hand around his length, lolling his head back as he gripped the door.
“With one this big, I’m surprised you haven’t been with anyone,” I purred as I brushed my lips against his earlobe.
He gasped and moaned as I began stroking his cock, pumping my hand gently as he rocked against my hand.
“You saved my life,” I breathed as I licked his neck, a shiver coursing through him from my touch. “I want to do this for you.”
He moaned and murmured soft curse words as I ducked down, licking the tip of his throbbing penis.
“Fuck,” he breathed, and I took it as a signal to keep going.
I drew his engorged length into my mouth, sliding my tongue around it as he stiffened and arched against his seat.
I wanted to play with his balls too, but from this angle, it wasn’t too easy, so I resigned to just holding his thigh in one hand as I used my other hand to pump him while I sucked him.
“Oh God,” he growled, drawing in sharp, shaky breaths.
I wanted to drag it out a bit, give him one damn good orgasm if I could. Each time I felt him tensing and readying himself to unload, I slowed my movements despite his groans and hisses.
Not until he was practically begging me for his release did I allow it.
“Fuck, please,” he gasped as I slowed one final time.
I sped back up, pumping my hand and twirling my tongue along the underside of his shaft as I bobbed my head.
He moaned and rolled his head back, arching into my mouth as he exploded his seed. I drank him up, sucking down the not too amazing tasting semen. I loved getting my boys off, but I would never enjoy that unique tasting, thick seed.
I cleaned him off with my tongue before moving back and sitting up. He just looked at me with hooded eyes as I licked my lips.
“God damn,” he murmured as he sucked in deep breaths.
“Haven’t had that before?” I teased.
“Hell no,” he managed a chuckle as he relaxed back into his seat.
“Beats the hand any day,” I grinned.
“Yeah,” he agreed, still breathless and recovering from his intense orgasm.
The only thing I could think about was having that hard cock inside me.
Not now, I scolded myself.
“We should head back when you’re ready, we’ve still got to make the dinner,” I reminded him.
“Right,” he sighed, coming to his senses as he blinked. “I hope your guys aren’t upset about this.”
“They’ve accepted that I want all of them, they’ll be okay,” I waved him off. But it did sit funny with me. I wanted Ray, I wanted to ride him and show him what he’d missed out on, I wanted to take that innocence from him and show him a world of bliss and love.
Guilt twinged inside me and I pushed it aside. I’d deal with that later, for now, I had to focus on addressing my Pack.
Ray started the truck back up, and I couldn’t keep from smiling as he kept giving me stunned glances, as if he couldn’t believe what had just happened. And the newfound lust and desire in his eyes, it only made me more determined to make him mine as well.
I wanted him, and I’d have him.
Before I headed into the living area to greet my father and Aunt Neema, I made a pit stop in the kitchen to toss back some blueberries from the fridge to mask my little heated session with Ray. He’d dropped me off and was eager to see me again later. He’d wanted to kiss me, but withheld when he spied Scott and Jaye finishing the last touches of the marquees.
I dodged them, thankful that May had them too pre-occupied with placing fairy lights up. She was guiding them excitedly, instructing them on where to hang them.
When I came into the living area, a grin spread across my face. The whole area had been cleared and blankets and pillows strewn about in an orderly fashion before the projector screen.
“Nathan went and picked the projector up from home, along with a few other things. Reggie let us borrow the van so we could bring over the marquees,” Neema explained when she spied me standing in the kitchen doorway. She was sitting on the edge of the wooden table that was pushed to the wall to make extra room for the children.
“It looks great. They’ll love it!” I breathed.
“Nathan should be back any minute, he was getting extra supplies for the barbecue. Scott picked up a barbecue earlier too,” my father said as he strode over, having uprooted himself from the far couch.
“Great,” I nodded.
“So, did you want to go over what you want to say at the gathering?” my father asked, and I caught the amused glint in his eye. Oh, god, he knew. Somehow, he knew. Not even my blueberries could hide my little fun with Ray. Thankfully, he remained strictly business.
“A welcome to everyone, then a brief rundown on the changes that would benefit them. How there will be freedom now, so work opportunities for those wanting to go into the local towns. How this Pack is safe, and we’ll improve the border protection. Ray informed me there are cameras set-up around the border and manned checkpoints, but not all of the cameras are working and only Richard and one or two men were able to keep an eye on the screens. How I want to start up a proper schooling regimen, how a new main house, lodge, whatever, will be built in the old communal gathering area and will be the heart of the ranch. It will contain offices, a library, an art room, a theater, a commercial kitchen. We’ll build a proper barbecue area and expand the playground. And I guess I’ll name some betas,” I rattled off the rough speech I’d thrown together in my mind on the way over here. And I’d given more thought about who I wanted me betas to be. I’d chosen my three, and I hoped they’d accept the roles tonight.
“Good, it sounds good,” my father softened, the crow's feet tugging at his eyes as he smiled.
“Ray informed me that the communal dinners do take an adult turn, so that’s good. I didn’t want to accidentally upset them by assuming so,” I added.
“Yes, it’s pretty common for Packs,” he said.
“The dining area is set up, and Jaye will be doing face-painting when the children arrive. There is an activities table set up for the children too. Board games, coloring in pages
, books, and some toys for the younger children,” Neema jumped in.
“Dinner and desserts are nearly done, Scott’s making his famous cheesecake too, I know you love that,” my father grinned, and I lit up at the prospect of it.
“I’ll duck into the kitchen and see how May and the others are faring,” I said as I already started walking.
“No eating beforehand,” my father scolded me.
Ugh, I was Alpha and he was still trying to tell me what to do. It would never change.
I sat at the center of the main table as I looked out at the surrounding tables set up under the large main marquee.
The other tables were positioned so everyone could see me with ease, and I gulped as I stood, fighting the shakes that wanted to overwhelm me before the Pack. Many of the painted children’s faces were disinterested as they read their books or colored in pages, but those who had been playing board games or cards had been instructed to stop for a few moments when Neema had called for silence.
Standing before the Pack, my Pack, was nerve-wreaking, and I flicked my eyes around at all the faces I’d come to know over the course of the day. Many of them were intrigued, curious as to what I was going to say. I knew many of them doubted my ability even though they hadn’t stated that in my visits. I could see their misgivings due to my age, and female Alphas were uncommon. But at least I knew those faces now, and I could remember most of their names. I’d have to thank Ray for that, who was sitting at a close table with an interested smile. I could tell his mind was still caught on what had happened earlier, and the corner of my mouth curved up at the memory.
“As you all know, I’m Taylor Ashwood, daughter of Lawrence Ashwood. Richard brought me here to become his mate, but as things have turned out, I’m now your Alpha. I know this may be difficult, as change is never easy, and I know many of you may doubt my abilities. I won’t lie, I’m not experienced in leading, but I have some wonderful role models, and I intend to defend this Pack with tooth and claw no matter what. I want this Pack to become something greater, I want to bring peace and joy to all those who call this ranch their home.
I know that things were not run with your best interests in mind, but that ends here. From this day forth, we are all equal. The allowances will jump to a more comfortable amount, and you are free to come and go from this ranch as you please. If you wish to work in the local towns or travel, take holidays, then you are most welcome to. This place is your home and is meant to be a place of safety and love. I intend to make it as such.
