Her Forbidden Alpha

by Tabitha Conall

  Being polite to him was a far cry from agreeing to be his mate, though. And as a human, she didn’t feel what he felt—this overwhelming need to claim her, the desire to take her to his bed and make her scream with pleasure, the determination to never be far from her side, ever again.

  She kept glancing in his direction as though checking to see if she still had his attention. He longed to tell her she’d never lose his attention. She had it for good.

  No. He needed to focus on the negotiations. He and his wolves still sat in enemy territory. He couldn’t let his guard down, even if the most amazing thing in his life had just happened. He had to stay alert—for her sake as much as for his.

  She placed a plate of meat in front of him. He knew it smelled good, but he could only smell her, filling his senses and drowning out everything else. He just barely kept from touching her before she moved on to his brother.

  Then all too soon, the women left, Aislinn with them. She put her platter on the table and hurried into the kitchen, giving him one last glance before she disappeared.

  He was under her skin. Nothing had ever felt better in his life.

  Darius picked up his knife and fork, prepared to dig into the food his mate had given him, when Killion put his hand on Darius’ left wrist.

  “Smell it,” his brother whispered.

  Darius took a deep breath. Underneath the spices and meaty scent, he could now detect something wrong. He couldn’t pinpoint it exactly, but every wolf knew better than to eat something that smelled like that…it was diseased or decaying or worse, poisoned.

  Chapter 2

  None of Darius’ wolves were eating. All watched him, waiting for orders.

  This was the food his mate had served them. A sick feeling settled in his gut. What had she done?

  He couldn’t think about that now.

  The guards still stood around the room, watching them closely. No doubt the General expected the wolves to keel over without a whimper. Would the poison kill them or just incapacitate them? It didn’t matter. There could be no peace now. Not for a good long while.

  What kind of man did something like this in a holy place like a church?

  Darius had to get his people out of here without bloodshed. He spoke under his breath to Killion, knowing several of the wolves around them would hear it too. “You’re going to get sick. You’ll need to go to the restroom. Take at least two of the others with you. Go now.”

  As a plan, it was weak. But at least getting a few of his number out of the room would help keep them from being surrounded. And Darius knew from childhood games that Killion could fake vomit better than anyone.

  Killion made a huge retching sound and thrust his arms out, hitting Darius and their sister Jennalyn who sat on Killion’s other side.

  Jennalyn jumped up. “Oh my God, Killion.” She slapped her chest.

  Darius thought she’d overacted a little, but the guards didn’t seem to realize it. They fidgeted but otherwise didn’t move.

  “Take him to the restroom,” Darius ordered.

  Jennalyn hauled Killion over her shoulder while one of the other warriors rushed to his other side. They half-walked, half-dragged him toward the hallway door.

  Two of the guards stepped in front of them. “You’ll have to stay here.”

  Darius rose, the other remaining warriors standing with him. He motioned with his eyes for them to fan out.

  “Can’t you see he’s sick?” Jennalyn nearly screeched. “If you don’t move, he might puke all over you.”

  One of the guards skittered to the side but reluctantly returned to his spot when the other guard glared at him.

  “This is ridiculous.” Jennalyn stormed forward. “Move.”

  The two guards pulled handguns out and trained them on her, the other guards quickly following suit.

  No one breathed for a full second. Darius put his arms out, palms down. “No need for trouble. We just need to use the restroom. You can put those guns down.”

  “No one’s leaving the room,” the first guard said. “The General’s orders.”

  “We don’t want any mangy dogs running around the compound,” another said.

  Darius just barely kept his lip from curling back. If they called him a mangy dog one more time, he’d show them what a changed werewolf really looked like.

  Breathe. He had to breathe. His wolves felt echoes of every emotion he had. If he gave in to his anger now, there’d be a massacre.

  “Fine. We won’t leave the room. Killion, puke over by the wall,” Darius said.

  “Hey!” one of the guards said.

  Before Darius could say anything else, the door from the kitchen opened and several women streamed through.

  “I’m telling you, the General didn’t want us to wait on them so soon,” an older woman said.

  “What kind of servers are we if we don’t?” Aislinn’s voice came from behind.

  The guards swung around, the women unknowingly passing between them and the wolves. As a distraction, it was perfect.

  “Now!” Darius said.

  The wolves raced at the human guards, jumping over and around the women where necessary. Darius reached the guard closest to him just as the guard fired his gun. The bullet whizzed past Darius’ ear. Before the guard could take another shot, Darius punched him square in the face. Even without his werewolf strength, Darius spent enough time in the gym to punch a wallop. The guard crumpled to the floor.

  Killion and Jennalynn grappled with the mouthy guard while other wolves took on guards one on one or two on one. Darius came up behind one of the enemy and knocked him on the back of the head, taking him out of the fight.

  A couple of guards got off shots, but most were knocked cold or pinned before they could hurt any of the wolves. In less than a minute, the guards were subdued. Two wolves covered each door so none of the humans could get out and alert the General. Several of the women screamed and wailed, but Aislinn stood stock still and stared at him.

  He wouldn’t think about what she’d done. “Report!” They had to get out of here quickly before anyone realized what had happened.

  Three of the wolves reported injuries but said they could walk. Four of the guards were still conscious.

  Darius went to Aislinn and grabbed her arm. “Is there a door out of the kitchen?”

  “What?”

  He shook her arm. “Is there any other way out of the kitchen?”

  “Yes.” Her voice sounded soft, as though she were in shock.

  He kept hold of her as he turned to his warriors. “We’re going out through the kitchen. Get something to bar that hall door. Move.” He pulled her along with him.

  It wasn’t until they reached the kitchen door that she started to struggle. “Let me go.”

  He snarled. “Never.”

  He hadn’t thought it through but now he knew the perfect way for them to get out of here alive. If the General were smart, he had all of the outside exits covered. But if they had the General’s daughter, he wouldn’t fire on them. All the better, because no matter what she’d done, he wasn’t leaving here without his mate.

  She continued to struggle, so he slung his arm around her waist and picked her up, holding her against his side. While it was an awkward position, her small size made it possible for him to carry her like that through the doorway and into the kitchen. Behind them, one of his wolves barred the kitchen door.

  Shouts sounded from outside. The humans knew. For a split second, he wondered if they’d had hidden cameras in the room or if he should have taken the time to strip all the guards and women of their cell phones and walkie talkies and whatever else they might have.

  Too late to worry about that now. And he still had an ace in the hole—Aislinn. Darius would never hurt her, but the General didn’t know that.

  The first of his wolves hovered by the outside door, waiting for orders. The last of them jogged up and then he spoke. They all had their guns out and ready. “I go out first. All of you s
tay close behind me. With Aislinn, they won’t dare fire on us. Get to the vehicles and leave immediately. Go through the Humans Firsters if they get in the way. Aislinn and I will get in the vehicles last.”

  There were so many things he wasn’t saying, but his wolves were all trained warriors. They understood. If they strayed too far from Aislinn, the humans could pick them off. If they stayed behind after Darius had taken her out of the church, they’d be killed. They had to act quickly and get out before the humans had a chance to think.

  “Let’s move,” Darius said.

  Killion opened the door and Darius went through, carrying Aislinn in front of him. The kitchen door opened into a clearing behind the church with woods a good fifty feet away. The parking lot lay to the left. Thirty or forty Humans Firsters with machine guns stood in a large semi-circle, hemming them in from every side.

  Darius walked toward the parking lot. He hated using Aislinn like this, like a human shield. It went against every instinct in him, which screamed that he should protect her, not haul her directly into harm’s way. He trusted that the man who had acted so protectively toward his daughter earlier that day wouldn’t open fire on her, but with the General, who knew? All the more reason for them to act fast.

  “Hold fire!” The General’s voice boomed across the clearing.

  Aislinn stopped struggling. “What did you do, Father?” Her words weren’t loud enough for the General to hear, but Darius heard them. Had her father not let her in on the whole plan?

  Grouped behind Darius, his wolves moved toward the SUVs while Darius walked sideways in front of them.

  The General spoke through a megaphone. “Let my daughter go and we’ll let you leave in peace.”

  Right. “You poisoned our food,” Darius shouted.

  Aislinn gasped.

  Darius continued. “We can’t trust you. She comes with us. It’s the only way we’ll know you won’t kill us where we stand.” He didn’t promise to let her go afterward, although he knew he should have. But he’d never let her go and he couldn’t bring himself to say he would.

  The General put the megaphone down but Darius could still hear him swearing. “We should have killed them when they got out of their vehicles,” he said.

  Everyone had told Darius he was a fool for trying to forge a peace with the Humans Firsters. Well—they hadn’t said “fool.” No one was stupid enough to call the Pack Alpha a fool. But they’d certainly suggested the idea had no merit.

  Seemed they were right and he was wrong. He hated being wrong just as much as he hated failing.

  When they neared the SUVs, the Humans Firsters who stood in their way didn’t move. After a tense minute of staring at each other, Darius said, “You can’t kill us all quickly enough. You open fire and I promise you’ll be the first to die.”

  One of them moved, then another, until the wolves pushed between them. All of the wolves twisted in place and walked backward so they could watch the Humans Firsters who followed, spilling into the parking lot.

  They reached the SUVs and five of the wolves climbed into the closest one. The vehicles were up-armored and could withstand a fair amount of weapons fire. Hopefully enough so they could get out of the Wooddale in one piece.

  The other wolves continued toward the remaining SUVs. Darius nodded at the driver, who started the vehicle and peeled out kicking up a cloud of dust.

  The humans immediately fired on the SUV. The General yelled orders but few seemed to be listening to him. With everyone focused on the one SUV as it plowed through the crowd of soldiers and screeched onto the street, the other wolves were able to jump into the last two SUVs and start up.

  Darius shoved Aislinn into the back seat of one vehicle and climbed in after her, slamming the door. “Go!”

  The driver took off. Unlike the other vehicles, they passed out of the lot without a single bullet pinging against the side of their SUV. In seconds, they thundered down the street and steamed out of town. They wouldn’t be safe until they’d reached pack territory but the immediate danger was over—Darius hoped. Humans First might have set up some sort of ambush or roadblock but they wouldn’t have bothered if they thought the poison and the firepower would do the trick.

  Aislinn suddenly jumped for the far door, climbing over Killion in the process. Killion grabbed her and held her back. “Let me go!” she screamed.

  His heart clenched at the sight of his mate trying desperately to get away from him but he quickly stifled it. He grabbed her around the hips and pulled her back against him. “You’re not going anywhere.”

  Aislinn froze. Darius took the opportunity to slide his arms fully around her waist and pull her onto his lap.

  Ah, Gods, to be able to hold her. He buried his face in her neck.

  “What is this, Darius?” Killion said. “Why don’t we just let her go?”

  “Mate.” When his voice rumbled out of his throat, he realized how close his wolf had come to the surface. He had to get it together. As Alpha, he provided the stability—or lack thereof—for the pack. All his wolves could feel his turmoil, and that was the last thing they needed right now. It was a magical thing, one of the few magics the wolves had.

  “Oh, shit,” Killion said.

  “What?” Aislinn said. “What does that mean?”

  “You’re mine.” His voice sounded only slightly more human. “You’re meant for me.” Darius squeezed her tighter, her soft body taut against him. Her scent surrounded him, and even though she tried to hold herself away, she felt so right. He could almost feel the molecules of his body adjusting to be in sync with hers. And no matter what he tried, he couldn’t help but get hard.

  Vi, sitting in the front, sighed loudly. She might be a tough warrior, but everyone knew she was a sucker for romance.

  Would his little mate be like that too?

  He sat breathing in her scent, trying to make that good enough for now when all he really wanted to do was seduce her and claim her and make her his own forever. Then he realized a long time had passed and she hadn’t spoken. Neither had anyone else.

  “Say something,” he whispered in her ear.

  She didn’t speak. A few seconds later, Killion said, “Her father’s the General.”

  “I know.” Darius didn’t want to think about that. In the back of his mind, a thought poked at him. Something about the mating fever clouding the thoughts of any wolf who’d found his mate but hadn’t claimed her yet.

  “Her father killed our parents,” Killion said.

  And that was what he hadn’t want to think about. He felt like striking out at Killion but knew it wasn’t his fault. “She’s not her father,” he snapped. But he didn’t know that, not really. He knew nothing about her at all.

  “We’re nearly at the airport.” Ollie was driving.

  Darius needed to be alert and that meant he needed to let Aislinn off his lap and back into her own seat. But first, he whispered in her ear. “Don’t waste your energy trying to run.” His wolf protested as he slid her into the middle between him and Killion. It bothered him that she still hadn’t said a word. “Any signs of the Humans Firsters?” Darius said.

  “Nothing.” Ollie signaled for a turn.

  Killion pulled out his cell and made a call. “Jennalynn. Any signs of trouble?”

  ***

  Aislinn’s head spun so fast from one thought to the next that she couldn’t get a handle on any of them. She’d heard the dark wolf call her his “mate” but that couldn’t be right. And had they really just taken her from the compound? He refused to let her go and just what was she supposed to do about that? And through it all, the most amazing thing was that she wasn’t afraid.

  She didn’t know when that had started, either. Seeing the wolves hurting—maybe killing—Humans First soldiers in the rec hall had been horrifying. Yet as soon as Darius had taken hold of her, she’d known he wouldn’t hurt her. That’s what had given her the courage to try to get away from him. Even when he dragged her out of the building,
she’d been more afraid that one of the men she knew would accidentally shoot her than that the big wolf would do anything to her.

  And later when he’d pulled her onto his lap…oh. ‘Safe’ didn’t come into it. Neither did ‘fear.’ All she’d felt with his face tucked into her throat and his arms around her waist had been a lust that eclipsed anything any man had ever made her feel before. The rumble of his voice when he’d said “You’re mine. You’re meant for me.” had made her melt.

  But the other wolf was right. She was the General’s daughter. And apparently her father had killed their parents. How could Darius even consider taking her as his mate in light of that? He had to let her go. And that was what she wanted—right?

  “No signs of any Humans Firsters,” Darius’ brother said as he slipped his phone back into his pocket. “They must have assumed they could take us down at the church and not put a backup plan into place. That right?”

  It took Aislinn a second to realize he was talking to her. “How would I know?” Her throat felt dry.

  “You’re the General’s daughter,” he said. “You poisoned the food for him. Why wouldn’t you know his whole plan?”

  Chapter 3

  “Poison?” Aislinn pulled back only to bump straight into Darius. “You said something about that before. What poison?”

  “The poison lacing the food you served us,” Darius said.

  “There was no poison in that food.” Was there? She suddenly remembered Margaret and Ruth whispering in the corner and adding things to the different dishes. But poison? She’d just thought they were spicing things up a little.

  “There was poison.” Darius’ voice held a growl.

  And then, for the first time, she felt a little afraid of him. She pulled away from him, as though the extra centimeter would make any difference. “If there was poison, I knew nothing about it.” Her voice sounded small.

  “You served it to us,” Darius’ brother said.

  She might be afraid, but she was tired of them accusing her of something she didn’t do. “If I knew about the poison, why would I come back out to wait on you? I would never poison someone, much less an entire peace delegation, especially when I’d been so looking forward to—” She’d been going to say she’d been looking forward to seeing real werewolves for the first time, and she’d been hopeful that they could find peace. But none of that seemed like a good thing to say at the moment.