by Sophie Stern
“Hey, Alpha,” she says, drawing out the word “Alpha” so it sounds super fucking sexual. How does she do that? “I’m sorry to bother you, but it’s just…”
Only, her words drift off as she starts to trace her fingers down Nash’s arm. Tessa has the biggest natural breasts I’ve ever seen with the tiniest waist I’ve ever seen to go with them. Her long blonde hair hangs straight behind her back and I bite back the urge to slap that stupid smirk off her face.
All I can think is that she’s the perfect wolf-mate and I’m so human.
I’m so imperfect.
I’m everything he doesn’t need and she’s everything he does. Tessa knows the pack. She knows the wolves. She can go hunting with Nash and spend time with him and be everything she needs him to be.
Why would he even be with me if he could have someone like her? Oh, we had an amazing time together at my grandmother’s cabin. Sure. Who wouldn’t? We were locked up together while I hid from my brother and while Nash decided what to do with his future. Only, now he has his future. Our little fairytale is over.
What does he even need me for?
“So that’s why we need you right away,” Tessa finishes, apparently exasperated. She shrugs her shoulders, but doesn’t remove her hand from Nash’s arm.
“Okay, I’ll be right there,” he turns to head back into the room, presumably to put some clothes on, but Tessa pulls on his arm.
“No! Alpha! We need you now!” She pulls him and he gives me a frustrated glance, like “What can I do?”
“Sorry, baby. Rain check?” He asks.
Rain check?
Is he serous?
Before I can nod or speak or do anything at all, Tessa is pulling Nash down the hallway with her perfect body and I’m left alone in our suite.
Slowly, numbly, I close the door and retreat to our empty bed. Dropping the robe, I climb in, pull the blankets over myself, and start to cry.
Two
Nash
“You have to stop touching me like this, especially in front of my mate.” I peel Tessa’s hand from my skin, cringing at the way her touch makes me feel.
“She’s not your mate yet, Alpha,” Tessa says, blinking up at me through thick eyelashes. She’s beautiful, but she knows it. Worse: she flaunts it. Tessa is the kind of girl many men would kill to have, but I’m not one of them.
She’s not the kind of woman I want.
I only have eyes for Red. Scarlett. My one and only. Ever since I found her at her grandmother’s cabin, ever since we were locked up together, ever since I saved her, I’ve known we were meant to be together. While I may have saved Red from the wolves, she saved me from someone greater.
She saved me from myself.
Before I found her, I was lost. I was a broken man. I had lost my cousin and my way. Distraught, sad, lonely: I had nothing left to live for.
And then there was Red.
She rescued me from the darkness.
Chances are Scarlett doesn’t even know just how lost I really was before she wandered into the darkness of the forest. She gave me something to live for when I had nothing else, no one else. I may never actually be able to repay her. I’m sure as hell going to try, though.
“She’s my mate. Tessa, get your hands off me.” My words come out as a growl, and I’m sure I sound meaner than I intend to because she immediately withdraws her hand. Tessa’s eyes go wide and she pouts, but I ignore her and continue walking down the hallway toward the common area. This problem had better be fucking good. Tessa thinks there is some sort of argument happening, but I’m almost to the lounge and I don’t smell any fear or anger. The only scent I smell, actually, is annoyance, and that’s mingled with the lust radiating off Tessa.
What a long-ass day.
The hunt went great, but I want to return to my mate. With all of my new duties as Alpha, we’ve hardly had any time together. When I’m in the cave, there’s always someone who needs my help or attention. In reality, all I want to do is spread Red out on our bed and feast on her sweet pussy. I want to lap at her soft folds and lick her clit until she’s coming for me, crying out my name. I want to eat her sweet juices until she’s screaming so loud everyone in the damn pack can hear her.
But I’m not doing that because someone needs me.
We reach the main gathering area of the cave. Tessa is trailing close behind me, but she’s definitely behind me, which is good. I don’t want to have to look at her right now. It’s bad enough that she interrupted me when I was about to make love to my mate, but the fact that she showed up looking like that, well…maybe the pack needs to come up with some new guidelines for nudity.
Up until now, the pack has basically run wild. With Jeffrey in command of The Silent Canines, the wolves got to do what they wanted as long as they stayed out of his way. As a result, disciplined behavior wasn’t a big priority. Even now, there’s not a lot of organization. The single wolves all bicker and argue and the mated couples stay away. They keep to themselves. I don’t blame them at all; they don’t want their cubs around that.
Still, this kind of behavior has to end. I can’t have a pack that’s completely crazy. We don’t have many enemies left now that Jeffrey is dead, but it’s not uncommon for a rogue pack to try to take over another when a new Alpha is chosen. Now that I’m in charge, I might have to fight again to keep my place. I don’t want to, but it’s part of being the Alpha and I’m up for the challenge.
“All right,” I enter the room and look around at the wolves who are gathered. “What seems to be the problem?” I’m in my damn robe. The other members of the pack are in various stages of undress, thanks to the fact that we just returned from hunting. About 40 people are present, or close to half the pack. Last count there were around 100 wolves in The Silent Canines. We could get more if we’d get our heads out of our asses long enough to be appealing to other wolves.
“He’s the problem,” one of the single males, Lex, says. He’s pointing to another, younger male who is also unmated. The wolf, Jam, looks completely confused. Jam is basically spinning in circles, looking around the room, and holding his hands up.
“I don’t know what I did,” Jam says. He turns back around. “I just started butchering the meat.”
“My meat!” Lex cries out, and starts to jump at him again. Fortunately, Ryder grabs him and holds him back by the scruff of his neck. “Hey!” Lex protests loudly, but Ryder holds him firmly. Jam just looks lost. He turns around once more and I pop him on the side of the head.
“Stop moving,” I tell him.
Jam looks stricken. Maybe no one has ever slapped the kid before. I don’t know. I certainly didn’t hit him that hard. I just want his damn attention and I’m not going to get it if he’s spinning around like a top.
“Your meat?” I ask, approaching Lex. “Ryder,” I snap to my beta. “Release him.”
Ryder lets go of Lex. He immediately begins rubbing the back of his neck, acting as if Ryder has somehow done permanent damage to his precious skin. I clench and unclench my fists, silently promising myself I won’t hit this sorry piece of shit. Lex has always been obnoxious, but since I returned to the pack after a few months away, he’s been positively whiny.
“What do you mean ‘your meat’?” I repeat.
“Well, you know,” Lex says, suddenly looking around. For the first time, he seems unsure. All eyes are on him, so he’d better make this good. “The deer I caught. He was butchering it.”
“You mean the deer you caught on our group hunt?” I clarify.
“Well, yeah. It’s mine. I caught it.”
“Is that a fact?” I step forward, getting in his space. Lex holds his head up, though. He meets my gaze for a moment, then looks down, around at the floor.
Submission.
I’m the Alpha.
He’s not.
We all know it and he has to be the one to concede. If he didn’t look down and break eye contact, it would have been the same as him challenging me in a situati
on like this. After being torn away from my mate after a lengthy hunt, I’m not exactly in the mood to be challenged. Oh, I’d fight Lex with all I’ve got and I’d kick his ass before I kicked him out of the pack, but this is something so small, so stupid, that it would be ridiculous to waste my time or energy on a fight right now.
“Yes, Alpha,” he mumbles quietly.
“No,” I say harshly. “That is not a fact. When we hunt as a pack,” I turn to the wolves who are watching, raising my voice. “We feed as a pack. Look at us,” I wave my arm around, motioning at the children sitting with their mothers, at the fathers bouncing babies, at the unmated wolves lounging around, at the teenagers perched on the edges of the sofas. “We are one. We are one pack, one unit. We hunt together and we share together.”
Now I turn back to Lex.
“Not everyone in this pack can hunt. Not everyone in this pack is supposed to hunt. Those of us who can, do. Those who cannot hunt are able to perform other duties. You are one who hunts. Jam is one who butchers, who prepares our meat. Do you understand this?”
“Yes, but…”
“What?” I hiss.
“Nothing Alpha,” Lex says glumly. “I understand.”
“See that you do,” I say, and jerk my head for him to leave. Then I turn back to the rest of the group and cross my arms over my chest. Tessa comes over and places her hand on my shoulder. I had completely forgotten about her. Now I jerk my body away and glare at her. Despite her obvious lust and desire, she has the decency to back the fuck off.
“There are going to be some changes around here,” I say loudly. “Starting tomorrow. I’ll make an announcement in the morning, but for now…” I let my voice trail off as I look around the room. Finally, my gaze settles back on Tessa. “Wear clothes when you’re in the caves. Unless you’re in your own suites with your mate, wear fucking clothes. There are children around.”
Then I turn to return to my room. I hear the whispers and the voices as I leave. They’re confused, to be sure, but I also hear murmurs of approval. I hear a few “Jeffrey never would have stood up like that” or “the old Alpha would have killed them both!” It just makes me glad that fucker is dead. Jeffrey is never going to bother anyone again.
Most of all, he’s never going to go after Red.
Red. My beloved. What must she be thinking right now? An insane headache is building, but I know there’s nothing I can do about it. Not right now. She might not think I saw the look on her face when Tessa showed up, but I did. I felt it. I felt her fear, her sadness, her overwhelming sense of not belonging. Worst of all, I realize I probably should have stayed with her and comforted her before I left.
Unfortunately, as Alpha, I’m not always going to have that luxury. I’m not always going to be able to make sure Red is in a good place before I have to run off and take care of my pack.
I know she can handle it. She can. Red is the strongest woman I’ve ever met and there’s nothing she can’t take.
I just hope she knows how deeply I really do care for her. These past two weeks have been difficult, to say the least. We’ve both had a hard time adjusting to our new roles within the pack. Since Red is my mate, the other wolves will turn to her for advice, for help, for running programs and things like that. Since she’s not a wolf, others will despise her and try to ruin our relationship. Sadly, it’s the natural order of things, and right now, I’m really not sure what to do.
I’ve never been in this place before. I only hope Red and I are able to find some sort of new normal that works for all of us.
“Alpha,” I feel a rough hand on my shoulder and turn to see Ryder striding alongside me, matching my pace as I head back down the hall to my suite.
“What is it, beta?” I ask him gruffly.
“You handled yourself well tonight.”
“Thanks. Could’ve been better. I’m tired as fuck, though.”
“Me too. It was a good hunt, though I’m guessing that’s not the only reason you’re tired.” Ryder has always been observant. That’s why he’s my man. I don’t have to fill him in on every detail. He can read between the lines.
“What happened tonight? Why wouldn’t Jam just wait until tomorrow to start on the meat? And why was Lex so up in arms about it?”
“That’s what I want to talk to you about,” Ryder says, lowering his voice. He keeps following me. I’m still in my stupid robe walking barefoot on the stone hallway. Some parts of the cave still have dirt floors and some are fashionable enough to have wooden floors, but the hall we’re in is pure rock. I love it.
It feels like home.
“What about it?” I ask. We’re almost back to Red, almost back to my girl. I just want to wrap my arms around her and lose myself in her for a little while, but if Ryder thinks something is wrong, I need to hear it first.
“I know you were gone for awhile and you’ve been busy since you came back,” he starts. He’s referring to the fact that I was essentially banished from The Silent Canines after my cousin was killed. Jeffrey tried to pin her death on me and I was in hiding for a few months, trying to get my head on straight and figure out what to do. Then Red found me.
Saved me.
Made me whole again.
“Yeah? So?”
“Lex and Jam don’t usually fight, Nash. They’re usually buddies. Something happened tonight, though. I think someone wanted them to fight, wanted to cause dissention.”
“What do you mean?”
“Someone wants to stir up trouble in the pack, Nash. Someone doesn’t like you being Alpha.”
***
By the time I finally return to our suites, I’m exhausted. Worse of all, I can feel Red’s anxiety from the hallway. I stand outside of the door and press my hand to it and just feel.
Wolves are great with scents. We can smell anything, track anything. We can do whatever we need to when it comes to our noses. One of the reasons hunting in a pack works so great is that as shifters, we essentially smell as one.
But now I’m smelling my mate, and she’s hurting. Her emotions are loud and clear as I touch the door that separates us.
I was out dealing with pack business and she was home alone, by herself, wrestling with her heart. Red and I haven’t talked much about her acclimation to the pack, but I’m a man. I’m not blind. I’m not dumb. I know exactly how much trouble the wolves have been giving her and I intend to stop it. It’s just that running a pack, especially when you’re the new guy, takes time. It takes patience. Unfortunately, it also takes pain.
And tonight it kills me to know that my position as the Alpha has caused my wonderful mate pain. She doesn’t deserve to hurt. Red has seen enough darkness in her life to last her five lifetimes. She doesn’t need to feel like the outcast or the one no one wants.
I wait outside the door for another minute and just think about her. I’m still wearing the stupid robe and I just want to be out of it, want to be with her. I want to go back in time and pretend we’re still in the hot tub, still tangled up in each other, still about to come together the deepest way possible.
I have to go to her.
My heart needs it. My body needs it. I need her. She’s what I need more than anything else.
So I push open the door, not knowing what I might find inside. I know she’s not asleep. Her anxiety is filling the room too strongly for her to be unconscious. Besides, if she was sleeping, her emotions wouldn’t be so strongly negative.
Surely she’d have some good dreams.
I step inside the room and close the door behind me. The entire suite is spotless. I know Red cleans when she’s stressed, so the fact that I can see my reflection in every flat surface is really saying something. I lock the door to our suite and look around quietly, then I move toward Red.
All the lights are off in the suite except for the one beside the bed. She left the night light on for me. That’s Red: always the thoughtful one. Even when she’s hurting or upset, she’s thinking of others.
And I know s
he’s in pain.
I can smell her frustration, her fear, her sadness. Slowly, I drop my robe next to the bed and climb in next to her tiny figure. She’s curled up on her side, facing away from me, and I gently run my hands up and down her back.
“I know you’re awake,” I whisper. “I can hear you heartbeat racing,” I tell her. Red sighs, but doesn’t move, and I know she’s beyond mad.
Probably because of Tessa.
“I love you,” I tell her. “You’re the only one for me. I’m sorry I had to run off, but the pack needed me.” Finally, Red rolls over to look at me, and I keep running my hands up and down her sides.
“What about that…that woman?” She whispers, and I know we’re at the heart of the matter. Red and I haven’t had a lot of time together. She probably feels like I give more attention to other pack members. She probably feels like I’m spending time with everyone but her.
“Tessa?” Red isn’t wearing anything, and I let my hands wander over her front to her sweet, perfect breasts. Pinching a nipple, I feel her soft bud harden. Damn. She’s fucking gorgeous. “She’s nothing to me, Red. Nothing is going on between us, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“She wasn’t wearing any clothes.” Her voice is a soft whisper.
“I know. That’s part of pack life, honey. You know this. We can’t have clothes on when we shift.”
“I know…” her voice trails off, and I wait for the invisible “but” that is surely going to follow, but it doesn’t.
“Red, I’m going to change some things around here. I’ll start with that.”
“What? The slutty blondes? Really, Nash. I don’t think Ryder and Thorn are just going to let you throw out all the females.” Her face softens and Red smiles lightly.
I can’t help but chuckle. Even when she’s angry, my Red manages to help me relax. She always puts me at ease, no matter where we are or what we’re doing.
“The clothes, honey. The clothes. Starting tomorrow, everyone will be wearing clothing when they’re in common areas. Unless we’re preparing for a hunt or just coming back, wolves will need to dress appropriately when they’re in their human forms.”
