Heart of the Alpha

by Mia Rose

  Declan put his hand over his mouth to stifle himself. Maria frowned, but Declan calmed himself. “It sounds kinda funny you have to admit, a pack of meat eaters popping supplements,” he said. “But, if there’s a chance we can come out injured —rather than dead, that’s fine with me. Check it out, but be quick, any pill is only gonna start working after a week, at least.”

  “I’ll do it tomorrow when I pay the bills,” Maria said. “Now, I’m gonna go and chat with Dustin for a while before the pack meeting.”

  “I’m going to have a rest. Its hard work being the alpha again,” Declan said. He gave a smile.

  Maria laughed as payback for him sniggering at her idea. “Are you sure it's being an alpha that’s hard work, or your interesting relationship?”

  Declan turned into the hallway and shook his head. “These walls have ears, so I’m not going to answer that.” He gave a wink before making his way to his own apartment. “Thank you, Maria.”

  “Just take care of you.”

  Declan opened the apartment door and was met with silence. He saw no sign of Noelle and guessed she must have been in the bedroom. Declan kicked off his boots and walked to the bedroom door. He pushed it open, and he saw that Noelle wasn't in there, either.

  "Noelle, are you here?" he called out, becoming frustrated. He stood in the bedroom doorway and glanced back into the living room. "What the fuck, she can't have gone out," he mumbled.

  Declan heard a creak in the bedroom. He spun as Noelle launched herself to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Admit it, you were worried I'd run off and left you, weren't you? You were really worried. I can see it in your eyes," Noelle yelped in a playful tone. "I was hiding in the closet, and I'm surprised that you didn't smell me, being an alpha with heightened senses."

  "Sometimes you're a real pain in the butt, you know that," Declan proclaimed, now walking to the bed with Noelle wrapped around his neck and waist. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with you." Noelle pushed her chest forward. Her bra-less breasts pushed against Declan, and he glanced down and grinned. "It seems you have something in mind for us before the meeting, I see."

  Noelle grinned as she dropped herself to the bed and pulled on her t-shirt and lifted it over her head. Her exposed breasts got Declan right in the mood, and he felt his manhood stirring deep inside his pants. Noelle fell back onto the bed and pulled the button on her jeans. She dragged her zipper down with her thumb and forefinger. She lifted her ass and wriggled free from her jeans, slowly, just to tease him.

  Declan pulled his t-shirt over his head and grabbed hold of his belt buckle. He popped the button fly of his jeans and pushed them over his muscular hips and thighs. Noelle sat and reached forward and dug the tips of her fingers inside the elastic of his shorts. She pulled him closer to the bed as his manhood freed itself and hung before her. She gasped at the chemistry between them.

  "Mmm," she murmured as she lifted her other hand and pulled Declan's shorts to his knees.

  Noelle raised her hand and cupped Declan's balls and started to massage him. Her other hand wrapped around his shaft as she hugged him and brought him to a semi-erection.

  "You drive me insane," Declan murmured in a soft tone.

  Noelle pulled down on his hard cock and revealed the taut skin of his swollen head. She looked into Declan's eyes and could see a hint of the silver color from when he had turned into his inner wolf. She adjusted herself and got onto her knees and rested on one hand. Declan pushed his hips closer as Noelle stuck out the tip of her tongue. Her hand pulled back on Declan's hard shaft as she circled her tongue around him, using it to tease him.

  Declan sighed and groaned in pleasure as Noelle caressed his full erection. She pushed it toward his belly and tickled the sensitive skin. Declan's hips and body shook as her tongue flicked back and forth. He rested his hand on her shoulder and drove his hips further forward. Noelle looked up. Declan stood with his hard, muscled chest stuck out. His abs were tensed as she gave him more pleasure. She opened her mouth and slipped the head of his hard shaft inside her full, plump lips. She sucked on his head and swirled her tongue around the rim. Declan dug his fingers into her long hair and pushed her head closer to his loins.

  Noelle widened her mouth and slid her mouth down the full length of his shaft, her mouth took all of him inside her. She gasped for breath as her head bobbed and the tip of his hard manhood pushed against the back of her throat.

  Declan pulled her head back. "I want to taste you now," Declan mumbled as he pushed Noelle backward on the bed.

  She rested her head on the large pillow and watched as Declan parted her legs and kissed her right, inner thigh. She bit tightly on her bottom lip as his tongue got closer to the sweet mound of her most-sacred place.

  Noelle cupped her breasts and tugged on her nipples, she felt her pink tips, and they’d hardened under her touch. She sucked in short, shallow, erotic breaths as Declan parted the lips of her center.

  “Mmm," she whimpered as she pushed her hand firmly on the back of his head. Declan pushed his extended tongue deep inside. Her back arched like a cat as Declan curled his tongue and lapped at her sweetness.

  This makeup sex is fantastic, I can't wait until we have a real argument, she thought.

  Declan lifted his finger and slipped the tip inside the wetness of Noelle. She reached down and grabbed ahold of his wrist. "No, Declan, I want to do something different," Noelle said. She used a provocative tone as she licked her lips.

  "What do you want to do?" Declan asked.

  "I want us to come, without sex. We have to make ourselves come," she said with a smile. Declan furrowed his brow a little. Noelle could see he was a little behind her current thought process.

  "Masturbation," she said as she parted her legs and rubbed herself with her middle finger. "You better get stroking yourself before I finish."

  Declan stood at the end of the bed and wrapped his fingers around the middle of his shaft. His eyes were fixed on Noelle as her fingers spread her lips wide and her other finger teased her nub. Noelle stared at Declan's hardened shaft as his hand's tempo increased. His hips rocked as he thrust his manhood harder into his grasp. Noelle licked her lips as she slid two fingers deep inside herself. She bit her lip, enjoying the pleasure. Declan heard the faint slapping as her wetness crashed into the palm of her hand.

  Her hand moved in the same tempo as his, he thrust his hardness deep into his hand as Noelle watched him. Her hand thrust harder as she whimpered, and her hips bucked as she felt the pumping caress of her fingers. Declan sucked in breaths through his gritted teeth as his legs quivered. He exhaled as sensations flooded from his core and filled the pit of his stomach.

  "Noelle, God, are you close to coming?" he whimpered as he watched her pleasuring herself.

  "Almost there," she replied. She pulled on her nipple and bit down hard on her bottom lip. "Declan, get ready, I'm almost there. I can feel it building inside me."

  "I'm gonna come," he groaned.

  "Good, me too," Noelle replied as she raised her hips and arched her back.

  Her body was bucking and writhing under her thrusting fingers. Noelle panted as her eyes rolled then stared at the end of Declan's hardness. His hips locked as he thrust sporadically. He exploded over Noelle's hand and belly. She yelled with pure satisfaction as her body quivered in time with Declan’s. He fell forward and pulled himself level with Noelle. She panted as her body regained composure.

  Declan pulled a pillow under his head and turned to look at Noelle. "You know, that meeting with Maria was nothing you couldn't hear, really. I think she was just being over-cautious," Declan said.

  Noelle rolled her body and she rested on her elbows. Her head sat on the palm of her hand. "I do know I'm not a pack member and some are gonna hold this against you and me. There's nothing we can do about what they are thinking, at least not at the moment," Noelle said.

  "Yeah! The other thing was that; all the tenants haven’t paid any rent for over three months. We're
lucky. She's found some cash that covers most of it," Declan explained. "I do want to make a go of this between you and me. The pack will hold it against me, but in time they might see you’re okay."

  Noelle slapped her hand on Declan's hard chest. "I'm only okay?" she asked.

  Declan sighed. "You're more than okay, your freakin’ awesome. Does that satisfy your ego?"

  "Yeah, I suppose it does."

  “Create the highest vision possible as you become what you believe.”

  Chapter 5

  Nature’s Course

  “How you react emotionally is a choice —in any situation.”

  The pack filtered into the basement and took their places. A few pulled chairs to sit on, while some stood at the back as they watched the stage in anticipation. Declan made his way through the crowd, with Noelle and Maria both standing at the side of the stage.

  Declan took his old position in the center of the stage and raised his hand. “I know the past few months have thrown you all into a pit of turmoil, and much of that was down to me having to leave for a while. I had good reason because I wasn’t in a fit condition to lead the pack.” His voice boomed over the pack and into the darkness that sat behind them. “I’m back, so I hope things can get back to normal, and for what you’ve all been put through I'm personally, very sorry.”

  A few mixed mutters rose from the pack members as they jostled themselves. Declan could see that a few were apprehensive and unsettled. “How do we know you're fit to be the alpha now; you don’t have a mate?” he heard a loud voice yell from the rear of the crowd.

  “This is very true, and most of you know that Cassidy left us all early, God rest her soul. Having a mate shouldn’t affect my ability as Alpha. At the same time though, it’s something I'm working on,” he replied.

  “Are you gonna choose one of us?” he heard a female voice shout out.

  Declan paused for a moment as he considered the question posed to him. He hadn’t even thought of choosing one of the female pack members as an alpha mate. And, if any asked for the truth, he wasn’t taken with any of the pack members that were there.

  A dark-haired girl stepped forward. Declan remembered her from before, yet he wasn’t sure of her name or of her background. “Yes miss,” he asked. “You have a question?”

  “Yeah! A few of us have noticed you're pretty close to her,” she said pointing at Noelle. “Are you considering her as your mate, and if so, why? After all, she is a HUNTER.”

  “I want to set the record straight regarding Noelle. Indeed, she was a hunter, and she came from a long line of hunters. This was until she found out that she was a hybrid-wolf. The ones we’ve heard of, but never seen. She was betrayed as much as the rest of us, and I might add, she was betrayed in a way that’s much worse than most of us. Her inner wolf was taken from her and she was taken back to being a full human,” Declan said as a few boos rose from amidst the pack. “Not only that, she was dumped in the middle of the Arapaho forest and left for dead. She survived, and was taken in by a lone wolf from that region, and he never had a problem with her, so none of us should have a problem, either.”

  “I know you're the alpha, but we don’t know if this lone wolf is alive or dead. Have you seen him, or are you just going on her story? What if she’s sneaking her way into the pack to inform the hunters of our preparations for war?” Declan heard a few cheers coming from her questioning.

  “You're correct. And I need to apologize. I don’t know your name,” he said as she introduced herself as Tandy. “I’m going on information given to me by Noelle, and that is for one reason (and one reason only) —I trust her.”

  Tandy tutted and waved her hand at Declan before she pushed her way back into the middle of the crowd. She was unimpressed but knew her place, all the same.

  “Does anyone have anything else to add?” Declan asked the silent pack. “Good. Now, Maria’s going to take you in teams —starting on Tuesday. You’ll be going to the area where we will face off against the hunters. I’m not going to let them attack here, that would be the end of us all.”

  “What about silver?” he heard a voice yell.

  “Good question; that’s something Maria’s looking into. We might not be able to prevent the full effects of being hit by a silver bullet, but we might be able to lessen the impact a little. At the moment, we aren’t sure if it’ll work. A couple of days and we should be able to give you more information.”

  “As long as we don’t die,” a voice yelled to loud cheers coming from the pack.

  “As a final note, I know Gabriel had kept you here as prisoners in effect. You're now free to do as you always did. You can work, roam around, and hunt —as long as you keep clear of any known places the hunters visited. Noelle has a list of places that are safe,” Declan said.

  Noelle turned to Maria and whispered. “I don’t have a list of areas that are safe.” Maria giggled as she leaned to Noelle.

  “It’s time for you to write one up then, especially if they’re gonna trust you, this is a good way to earn that trust,” Maria replied.

  Noelle still had a puzzled expression on her face. “And why do I get the feeling all this talk of alpha mate is directed at me? I can’t be an alpha mate.”

  Maria rested her hand on Noelle's shoulder. “It’s a strange world, many things have happened —and can happen. Fate will decide the future for all of us.” Noelle listened to what Maria had to say and nodded.

  “Pack meeting is over,” Declan yelled. “And let’s be careful out there.” He walked to the side of the stage where Noelle and Maria stood. He smiled as he stepped off the stage. “Well, how was my first speech back, as Alpha?” he asked.

  Maria put her fingers in her mouth and pretended to whistle. “Bravo —Bravo,” she pretended to yell.

  Noelle laughed, yet she could see that Declan and Maria had a close connection. She also felt it was something that Declan and she were lacking right now. They had a connection in other ways, but was it as meaningful as that, or was it only sex? Hmm! That’s given you something to work on Noelle.

  Declan started to stack the chairs back at the side of the basement. It made a change to have it back to normal with no chemistry equipment. All of that was now pushed against the far wall and out of sight, and no blood-covered plastic sheeting that hung from the walls were there, either. The mess from the fights Gabriel had organized were untraceable now.

  Declan stacked the last chair and paused for a moment. I wonder how Gabriel’s coping as a human? He snapped out of the thought and asked Maria and Noelle if they were ready to leave. The time had ticked by, and they all had a big day to start off the week. Maria had planned to pay all the bills and check on her silver supplements, and Noelle would soon find out they were going to see her parents.

  As it stood, Declan had no idea what their reaction would be. Was it right that Edmund had wiped all of her family’s memory, and would they be able to remember anything at all?

  Maria walked ahead of them up the hallway to the stairs. Noelle walked at the side of Declan and he wondered why she hadn’t linked her arm through his —like she did on every other occasion.

  He picked up her arm and linked it through his and pulled her closer to him. “Don’t you think it feels better when we are together?” he asked.

  Noelle smiled, and Declan looked deep into her eyes. “Yeah, it does feel better.”

  “Good. Tomorrow we’ll see what your parents think about it all.”

  Noelle had a tear run down her cheek. “What, we are going to see my parents?”

  “We are indeed. Soon.”

  “Holy crap!”

  “Geez, Maria, you’re up early,” Declan said as he walked into his office.

  Maria looked up from the computer. She screwed her mouth up until a fine red line appeared where her lips were. “I was thinking about what I said about this silver thing. I've been doing some searching. Cure for silver doesn’t bring up many results in a search. But when I check for heavy m
etal poisoning I've found two things that can, or should I say, I hope they can help,” she explained in detail. “I found natural ways to help remove heavy metals and toxins, and it seems the best are modified citrus pectin, alpha lipoic acid, vitamin C, and two other natural ingredients. Dandelion leaf and milk thistle, too.”

  “Damn, that’s a lot to take in, and we have to take all of them?” Declan asked.

  “No, these are some of the best. I reckon we stick with just three. The alpha lipoic acid, the citrus pectin, and the vitamin C. All of these I can get easily, although, I might have to go to Colorado Springs,” Maria said.

  Declan stared at the computer screen as he leaned on his desk. Maria closed her eyes as the musk from his inner wolf wafted over her. Her mind flashed back to when they had their close encounter by the river, and how Declan had taken her into his arms. Maria would have to hold onto that memory, because that would be all it could ever be. Just a memory.

  “What about testing, how do we do that?” Declan asked.

  Maria lifted her head and grimaced. “I’ve volunteered myself as lab rat. I think what we’ll have to do is get some silver and then I'll touch it,” Maria explained to the shocked Declan. “Then I’ll dose myself up on these supplements and touch it again and see what happens. If there's a difference, we can get the pack a bottle each and we can all take them. If it doesn’t work, I’m gonna have some seriously sore fingers for a long while.”

  “This all seems rather drastic.”

  “It’s better than the other option —hopefully,” she replied. “I choose to be sore over dead, any damn day of the week.”

  “I shouldn’t let you test it on yourself. I do know, since the witch and Dustin changed me back, I have a little bit of immunity toward silver. I wish I knew how much, especially coming up to wartime.”