Reluctant Mate

by H Q Kingsley

“The next time I catch you on within our borders it will be war,” I threatened.

  Rami waved me off with a callous laugh as he turned back to continue walking away. “I’ll try to remember that.”

  I scowled after him. This was not good. Every hair stood straight up on the back of my neck. Something terrible was coming. It wasn’t just Alpha Adrian’s challenge, it was something else, some sinking feeling in my gut telling me there was more. There was always more with Rami. He was borderline diabolical. He’d always given Elspeth a run for his money, even when we’d been children.

  I turned back to my men, not caring about Elspeth’s decree that they train till they dropped. I could deal with his anger later.

  “Everyone,” I started, raising my hands above my head for their attention. “Return to your homes for the time being. Rest and recover, and spread the word to those under your command to prepare and be ready on a moment’s notice. Our Alpha will call you back when he has returned and decided on a course of action.”

  The Clan nodded and left the training area. I waited until they’d all cleared out before returning to the mansion. The only thing left for me to do was to wait for Elspeth to return home.

  I stood up on the mansion’s front steps as I watched the black limo pull through the gates.

  The car stopped in front of the house and the doors opened.

  I sighed when Iosefa stepped out. The look on his face told me all was not well, and I felt guilty about the fact that I was about to pile more on them.

  “Alpha, did everything go well at the doctor's?” I asked.

  Elspeth tensed. “It’s nothing,” he said, shaking his head.

  He turned and went to meet Iosefa on the other side of the car, and I watched him with interest. He was different in the way he handled him, as if he were handling the most fragile and precious of gems. It was unprecedented. Elspeth didn’t handle actual glass so gingerly.

  “Thank you,” Iosefa whispered to him. He leaned into his hold, seeming to feed on all of the attention Elspeth doted on him.

  My brows furrowed. These were definitely not the two people who had left the mansion that morning. These were actual mates who seemed to share affection.

  I cleared my throat, feeling like I was intruding on some intimate moment between them. “Alpha, we should speak in private,” I said.

  Elspeth shook his head. “I need to be with Iosefa, figure it out, Dimitri.”

  My mouth dropped open. Elspeth Callum did not walk away from work. Not ever. What the hell had happened to him today?

  “Alpha…” I hesitated, knowing that what I had to say would ruin this new and gentle Elspeth. I knew the second I said it, a switch would go off in him, and the cruel and twisted Alpha I knew would return.

  I sighed. “Rami was here,” I finally said.

  Elspeth stilled, his face draining of color. “What?” he asked tightly.

  “Rami. He was here,” I repeated. “He crossed the border on behalf of the Astro Shade Clan to issue a challenge from Alpha Adrian.”

  Elspeth whirled on me, his eyes flashed with the anger I’d come to know as my Alpha, but then it disappeared. The tightness in his shoulders relaxed and he turned back to Iosefa.

  The gentleness in his gaze left me stunned. He reached out a hesitant hand and brushed his fingers easily through Iosefa’s hair.

  “I have to tend to this, my sweet wolf.” He brushed his thumb across Iosefa’s cheek and Iosefa let out a soft, sweet sigh. “Do me the favor of staying in your room for the time being. I’ll be up as soon as I can. I promise.”

  Iosafe nodded, lingering for a moment under his touch before he headed for the house.

  Elspeth watched after him, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. He was just so different. But then he turned back to me and reminded me of exactly who he was.

  “We need to kill Rami. Once and for all. And his shit Alpha too,” he said, his eyes going dark.

  I jumped as my phone chimed and buzzed across the table. We’d been strategizing for hours. Going over and over what to do about the Astro Shade Clan.

  I hadn’t realized it was nearly two in the morning until I looked down at my phone to see my mate calling.

  I held up a finger to Elspeth as he launched into his ninth rant of the night about “the traitorous Rami.” I couldn’t decide if we were actually strategizing or just ranting and raving.

  “I have to take this,” I said. “It’s Mishel,” I added when Elspeth gave me a face.

  I climbed to my feet and stepped out of the room.

  “Hello, my gorgeous—”

  “Nu-uh, don’t even give me any of that.” Mishel cut me off. “Where the hell are you?”

  I frowned at the phone, already knowing the kind of reaction I was about to get. “You know where I am,” I said. “Something came up with Elspeth—”

  “Something always comes up with Elspeth,” Mishel complained. “We’re supposed to be trying. I thought you wanted this. I thought you wanted a family with me.”

  “Baby, I do. You know I do, but—”

  “But you already have a kid.” Mishel sighed. “He goes by Elspeth.”

  “Mish, that’s not fair.”

  “It’s not fair? What’s not fair is that I’m sitting at home, waiting for you until two in the morning. No phone call, no text, nothing, because this doesn’t matter to you like it does to me.”

  “Mish,” I started to protest.

  “I don’t mean it as a jab, it’s just a fact. You have all these other things going on for you, babe. But me, I have this. I have making a family and taking care of my home.” His voice broke and it shattered me. “But I can’t seem to do that. I’m an omega. I have one job. Making babies. The one thing that I’m supposed to be able to do I can’t seem to do.”

  He sniffed, and I blinked back the tears burning at my eyes. There was so much pain in his voice, and I didn’t know how to fix it. I didn’t know how to show him that he was so much more than a baby factory. I didn’t know how to pull him out of that dark space I could see him slipping into more and more every day.

  I cleared away some of the tightness in my throat. “I’m sorry, baby. Okay. I’m going to tell Elspeth I have to leave, okay? I’ll be home soon. Just wait up a little longer for me. Please?”

  Mishel let out a shaky sigh. “Okay.”

  “I love you, Mishel. More than anything.”

  He sniffed. “I know, babe. I love you too.”

  10

  Iosefa Henare

  I frowned as I sat up in my bed. I’d fallen asleep waiting on Alpha Callum to come up, and some part of me had expected to wake to find him watching over me. But he was nowhere to be found.

  God, that was just like him. Every time he made me consider the possibility that maybe I could be happy here with him, he turned around and let me down.

  It was probably for the best anyway. What kind of person would I be if I could find happiness with a man like Alpha Callum? What did it say about me that he was the man chosen by the goddess to be my mate?

  I pulled off my covers and climbed out of my bed to pace. My bed?

  I shook my head. I’d gotten way too comfortable. I’d let Alpha Callum burrow deep into my head. I’d let him manipulate me into thinking this could work. But I knew the truth. I didn’t belong there. Capri was not my home. And whatever challenge was about to go down, I had to use it. I had to use the distraction to get back home.

  I pushed down the gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of my stomach, pushed away the thought that continued to circle in my mind. What if Alpha Callum gets hurt?

  “Shut up, wolf!” I shouted at myself. That had to be the wolf talking, not me. I didn’t care about Alpha Callum, and I certainly didn’t care if whatever trouble he’d brought down on himself and his clan killed them all. But then why did the mere thought make me so sick to my stomach?

  I stopped pacing as I heard something tap against my window.

  “Alpha Callum?” I wanted
to kick myself for the jolt of excitement that rushed through me for a moment before realizing Alpha Callum wouldn’t come through the window.

  I stilled, fear overtaking me.

  “H-h-hello?”

  I started to back toward the door, ready to make a run for it.

  “Tsk, tsk, tsk. Don’t try to run little wolf.” A tall, dark man emerged from behind my curtain.

  I turned, ready to do just that. In an instant, the man flashed to my side, gripping tightly at my wrist that was still sore from all the training.

  I sucked in a sharp breath, tears burning at the backs of my eyes.

  “So, you must be the great Shadow Moon Clan Omega,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. His eyes rolled over me, and I was suddenly more terrified than I’d ever been. I tried to scream but no sound came out. My throat was dry and my entire body seemed to be paralyzed.

  “You don’t have much fight in you, do you little omega?” He laughed to himself, a deep and brutal laugh that was loud enough to tell me screaming would do me no good. Who would hear it? The house was the size of a small village.

  “W-Who are you? What do you want?” I finally managed to stammer.

  The man leaned into me, so close that I could feel his hot breath on my neck. He inhaled deeply, getting a good whiff of my scent, and a sadistic grin spread across his lips.

  “So this is the reason why the Alpha was too busy to see me then?” His pupils dilated. “Can’t say that I blame him. You do smell awful sweet.” His grin widened, and he reached up to tangle a hand tightly in my hair. “Sweet enough to eat.”

  His tongue licked up the side of my face, and I shivered and struggled to get out of his hold.

  “Oh, yeah. Fight me. I love them when they’re feisty,” he said with a laugh.

  He yanked me in closer to him and pain shot up my spine with the force of his pull.

  “P-please,” I said, tears spilling down my cheeks.

  He let go of me for a moment to unbutton his pants.

  My blood ran cold, and I turned, once again trying to run, but unsurprisingly, he caught me. He was faster and stronger than me, that much was clear.

  “P-please,” I said again, hoping maybe he didn’t really have the will to hurt me.

  “My Alpha is going to kill yours,” he said, and I suddenly knew who he was.

  “Please, Rami,” I begged, recalling the name I’d heard. “I have nothing against you or your Alpha. I have no allegiance here.” Even as I said the words, they didn’t feel true. Despite it all, I felt guilty betraying Alphan Callum to someone as clearly evil as Rami.

  Rami pulled down his zipper. “This isn’t personal, little one. But your Alpha is strong. The only way to beat someone as strong as Elspeth is to cheat. And defiling his mate, now that… that would be enough to break him down. That would make him easy prey.” Rami met my eyes. “Don’t you think?”

  Terror overtook me, and despite knowing it was useless, I let out a wail, a howling sound that tore from my throat in an agonizing, long cry of peril.

  Rami yanked my head to the side to shut me up and threw me down onto the floor.

  I whimpered, unable to stop myself from crying. This would be the worst thing to ever happen to me.

  I sucked in a shaky breath, sniffing and sobbing as Rami reached down to pull my pants from my hips.

  He stopped as the doors to my room burst in, tearing from their hinges.

  I quickly scrambled across the room, away from him while he was distracted.

  As I turned to see what was happening, I gaped in surprise at Alpha Callum standing in the entrance where my door once was. His eyes flashed with rage as they fell on Rami.

  Rami seemed unfazed. He clapped his hands together in sarcastic applause. “Well, now who has decided to make an appearance.” Rami chuckled. “What took you so long?”

  Elspeth growled as he charged for Rami. He pulled his fist back, landing it squarely into Rami’s jaw.

  Rami slammed into the wall near the window, a loud cracking sound filling the space when his body made contact with the stone, and I wasn’t sure if it was from the two colliding or his bones breaking from the force of the impact.

  Rami lips were spread into a wide, bloody grin, the red liquid spilling out from the corners and dripping off his chin.

  “You know, you came in at the right time,” he said, wiping at his chin with the back of his hand. “I was just about to get a little taste of your sweet omega here.” He spat out a glob of blood and teeth. “But no worries. If not today, I’ll have his tight little ass another time.”

  Rami looked over at me and gave me what might have been a wink if not for the swelling of his eye.

  Elspeth stormed over to Rami, his teeth bared and the light glinting off his sharp fangs, and he reached down and yanked Rami off the floor, lifting him high in the air. My eyes widened as I watched him fall into an out of control rage.

  The Alpha Rage.

  I’d heard of it before, but never thought I’d see it. But this was clearly an Alpha Rage, and I was almost certain it was going to end in Rami’s death.

  “I will bury you,” Elspeth growled as he tossed Rami into the window. He tangled in the curtain, pulling it down along with the rods that clattered to the floor.

  Rami quickly untangled himself. “Too bad I have to leave. I think I’ve overstayed my welcome,” he said as he climbed to his feet.

  “You aren’t going anywhere—”

  Alpha Callum barreled for him, his rage blinding him to Rami’s intentions.

  “Alpha Callum, watch out!” I shouted at the top of my lungs. I could see Rami’s leg lift in the air, and before Alpha Callum could react, Rami had kneed him in the groin.

  Alpha Callum crumbled to the ground.

  “You should really learn to control your reactions, Alpha,” Rami said, circling him as Alpha Callum crouched low in pain. “Someone could really take you by surprise!” He raised his leg to deliver a roundhouse kick, but Alpha Callum reached out with his left hand and grabbed Rami’s leg before he could come in contact with his face.

  I gasped in shock and surprise that he was able to catch him so easily.

  “Nice move,” Rami said, seeming more amused than anything. “I would expect nothing less from an Alpha.”

  “You will pay for putting your hands on my mate!” Alpha Callum shouted.

  A bitter smell filled my nose, and I cringed knowing this was the smell of Alpha Callum’s full Alpha Rage.

  I watched as his fangs elongated further into razor-sharp, deadly points and his nails became lethal claws several inches long. His wolf’s fur began covering his bare skin, and his mouth elongated as he dropped onto four paws. His black wolf was even larger than I remembered. But the scariest change of all was his eyes. They were completely blood red, no trace of the clear green I’d come to enjoy. Just pure, raging red.

  “Well, if it’s that kind of fight that you want...” Rami began to say as he, too, turned into his wolf; a dingy, dark brown color to its fur.

  The two wolves tussled with one another, each trying to pin down the other. I flinched and jumped at times where Rami had attacked and bit down into Elspeth’s flesh, drawing blood, but he was by far the superior one, and he managed to overpower Rami.

  Rami scrambled out from under Alpha Callum’s paw, and somehow, even in wolf’s form, even when losing, he had an arrogant sort of air to him.

  He lunged for the window, jumping out of it in one quick motion and leaving a trail of blood across the room behind him.

  I rushed to the window, peeking out of it, just to make sure he was really gone.

  I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw him disappear into the distance, but my reprieve was short-lived.

  I turned back around to the snarl of Alpha Callum, still in a full-blown wolf rage.

  He growled, scraping his nails along the floor as he stared angrily up at the window.

  I quickly jumped, closed, and relocked the window, and then p
ressed my back against the wall.

  My heart pounded in my chest as I stared into the blood-red eyes of Alpha Callum’s wolf.

  Saliva dripped from his bared teeth onto the floor, and I couldn’t see any traces left of him. Only his wolf stood before me, feral and out of control.

  He let loose a howl before he went completely berserk.

  He charged across the room, smashing into any and everything in his path. Knocking over the tables, tearing into the dressers with his teeth. He shredded the rug and repeatedly launched himself against the walls.

  I watched him, completely stunned and at a loss for my next move.

  “Alpha Callum!” I called out to him, but Alpha Callum wasn’t in there.

  My eyes snapped up to the door to see Dimitri standing in the hallway. His eyes went wide as he took in the room and Alpha Callum.

  He launched forward onto Alpha Callum’s back, trying to put the wolf in a chokehold and failing. The enraged wolf was too big, too strong.

  He smashed Dimitri into the wall and then any other object that remained standing in order to shake him off until Dimitri exhaustedly released his grip.

  Dimitri flew through the air and into the canopy of my bed, where he ripped through, breaking the framing which collapsed on top of him in large pieces.

  “Dimitri!” I called, rushing over to him. His eyes were closed and he wasn’t moving except for the slight rise and fall of his chest.

  I let out a breath. At least he was alive.

  I stepped backward as Alpha Callum’s wolf rushed over as if he planned the change that.

  I shouted in a wild war cry as I jumped at him. Dimitri was the closest thing I had to a friend in Capri. He had been kind to me, and despite the show Alpha Callum put on, I knew he meant something special to him. I’d be damned if I was going to let Alpha Callum’s wolf kill him. Not without a fight.

  But instead of fighting him, my arms wrapped tightly around his neck in a trembling embrace.

  I clung tightly to him, finding myself sobbing into his fur for reasons I didn’t understand.

  “Alpha Callum! Stop! Stop fighting!” I yelled, struggling to hold onto him as he tried to wriggle free from my grasp. I wasn’t sure if he was holding back or if I was stronger when I was terrified, but I held onto him despite his effort to break free.