Bought By Their Alpha

by Bonnie Burrows

  Trevor shrugged, “You can’t hunt something if you don’t know how it breeds, lives and dies. It’s like going into battle – you don’t do that blindly, do you? Why should hunting be any different? I see you finally got your she-wolf.”

  Quinn grimaced; he’d been hoping to avoid that particular topic.

  “Yes,” he hedged.

  “She makes you happy,” Trevor noted, almost absently as his eyes followed the younger hunters as they prepared to go out for the day’s hunt.

  “She does.”

  “She’s still the spitfire she always was. It’s good. It will keep you on your toes.”

  “If she doesn’t sweep my feet right out from under me first,” Quinn replied.

  “I think it’s too late for that, Quinn,” Trevor chuckled.

  “Indeed,” Quinn smiled at the thought of his she-wolf, a broom in one hand, and his heart in the other.

  “Don’t make the same mistakes I did, Quinn. Love more than she does – don’t ever be afraid to show it.”

  “I don’t plan on it. She deserves more than I can give her.”

  “Then you’ve got the right measure of love.”

  Quinn glanced at his father, whose eyes were still firmly fixed on the activity of the hunters. He could have sworn something between pain and regret had etched its mark on his father’s face in those last few moments. His eyebrows knitted together, as Quinn wondered if his father did in fact regret what he had done.

  “I forgive you, you know,” Quinn said softly into the silence that seemed to stretch between them, widening the rift between them.

  “I wish I could forgive myself,” Trevor replied, still not taking his eyes off the hunters.

  “You should. It’s very cathartic. Take it from my she-wolf – she taught me that.”

  “I’ll work on it, then,” Trevor nodded.

  “You should join us for dinner,” Quinn said suddenly. “I think Eva’s cooking again, and God only knows I refuse to suffer alone.” He knew he might end up regretting it, but he found he couldn’t handle the sadness that was emanating from Trevor.

  Trevor smiled slightly, “Sounds divine. Thank you for the invitation. Tell your she-wolf not to go to trouble on my behalf.”

  “That might end up making it more edible,” Quinn laughed.

  “Well, I look forward to it, regardless. It will be nice to see her again. She grew into her ears, thank God for small mercies.”

  Quinn and Trevor looked at each other, both fighting their laughter.

  “Just don’t tell her that; she’s still sensitive to being called ‘Dumbo’,” Quinn chuckled.

  “I promise to be on my best behavior.”

  “Don’t be. Eva doesn’t like well-behaved people. They bore her.” Quinn shrugged slightly.

  “Oh, thank God. I wasn’t sure that was a promise I’d be able to keep.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to.”

  “I found her, you know.”

  “Who?” Quinn asked, puzzled.

  “Your mother. She moved to a tribe in the Denali region. She’s well enough.”

  “Did you see her?” Quinn felt his head spinning slightly.

  “No, Quinn. I wouldn’t do that to her. She deserves to let the memory of me rest in peace. A friend of mine went through there a few years ago, and found her.”

  “I wonder if she regrets it.”

  “Of course not. At least, not leaving me. Leaving you, that was the hardest thing she ever had to do. I didn’t give her a choice though, did I? You should know she loved you more than life itself. You were the only reason she put up with me for as long as she did.”

  Quinn nodded, not trusting himself to speak past the lump in his throat.

  “I’d best get out there, Quinn. I’ll see you later; don’t forget to tell your she-wolf. She might not like it if I show up unannounced.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Eva only smiled when Quinn told her that Trevor would be joining them for dinner. At Quinn’s raised eyebrow, she shrugged and told him she’d expected no less.

  Quinn could never quite understand how Eva could always see the best in him, and better yet, know what he was going to do before he did.

  By the time the front door bell rang, Quinn’s nerves were shot. He wasn’t sure he regretted asking his father to join them, it was more that he wasn’t sure it should have been so soon. There was no going back at this point, so Quinn squared his shoulders and opened the door.

  Quinn and Trevor exchanged pleasantries, as they made their way to the kitchen where Eva was furiously stirring a pot of rice that appeared to have congealed on the stove.

  Exchanging a glance with Quinn, who had sat down, resigned to his fate, Trevor made his way to the stove. After hugging Eva, Trevor looked into the pot to affirm what he had expected. Grabbing a spoon, he blew on a bit of rice before eating it.

  “You know, there’s one thing Miranda could make well – and that was rice. She taught me that one skill before she – anyway – next time, try less water and stir less. Your salt is perfect though,” Trevor winked at Eva, who smiled in return.

  Quinn was mildly impressed, as Trevor took a seat at the table opposite him.

  “Wine, boys?” Eva asked, her nose deep in the fridge.

  “Yes, please,” they quipped in unison. There was one secret to making it through an Eva-special – and that was alcohol. Copious amount of alcohol.

  The meal itself was, as Quinn had feared, up to Eva’s usual standards. The one difference was watching her interact with his father – she seemed to read him in a way Quinn never could. She took his cajoling in stride as if she’d always had to endure it.

  “You’re a terrible cook,” Trevor had remarked at one point.

  Eva’s eyebrows shot into her hair, as Quinn kicked Trevor under the table.

  “Look at me, going back for seconds. You can try again, girl. It’s better than it smells. I never go for seconds,” Trevor grimaced as he dished up his second helping.

  “You’re welcome back any time. I’ll cook your favorite – Quinn says you love lamb?” Eva glowed at the prospect.

  Quinn groaned, as Trevor’s face blanched.

  “Oh, I wouldn’t expect you to go to that sort of trouble for me, you’ll ruin lamb –” another kick hit Trevor square in the shin. “I mean, you’ll ruin anyone else’s chance at making lamb for me again; nothing will compare.” Trevor shot a glare in Quinn’s direction, who was motioning that he stop talking.

  “It’s no trouble, just bring your appetite.”

  “And wine,” Quinn quipped, grinning at his father’s evident discomfort.

  “Lots of wine,” Trevor nodded his agreement.

  “It doesn’t even need to be the good stuff. That stuff in the big cartons will do,” Quinn nodded.

  “Yes. I’ll bring two of those with.”

  “That sounds lovely,” Eve beamed at Quinn, nodding in Trevor’s direction, his second plateful had somehow disappeared in that time.

  Quinn laughed inside, as he offered Trevor thirds. Trevor was about to say something, but thought better of it as he rubbed his shin. The third plateful disappeared as soon as Eva’s attention was distracted.

  By the time Trevor left, Quinn felt marginally better about having him around again. Eva had a lot to do with that, and Quinn told her as much. He would never have made it through a meal with Trevor on his own, but having her there as an ice breaker had only made it that much easier to bear. Eva smiled knowingly, and told Quinn not to overthink it.

  Eva, for her part, was only happy to see Quinn and Trevor at least attempting to build a relationship after all the time they’d fought against each other. She felt the need then to phone her own father again; they spoke as often as they could. Eva just couldn’t shake the feeling that Angus was planning something – and she wasn’t sure she was going to like it. Nevertheless, there wasn’t much she could do about something that was just a feeling.

  Quinn found Eva in the bathroom,
a bath filling while she brushed her teeth at the basin.

  “Thank you,” he said simply, as she rinsed her toothbrush.

  “Nothing to it,” she smiled, as he gathered her into his arms.

  “Regardless, let me show you how thankful I am,” Quinn all but growled as he claimed her mouth, his own hot and heavy against hers.

  Eva felt herself melt into him in that moment – she could spend an eternity simply fitting into the curve of his body; two halves of the same whole.

  Eva’s hands tangled themselves in Quinn’s hair, as the kiss deepened. Eva moaned against his mouth, a deep heat burgeoning deep within her soul for the man she claimed as hers. Hands tugging at his shirt, she lifted it over his head, her eyes and hands exploring the expanse of his chest. Quinn growled deep in his throat, his lust threatening to overwhelm him just as surely as it was doing the same to Eva.

  He pulled her against him, hands exploring her back under her shirt, his mouth trailing hot kisses down her chin, her neck, her collarbone. Quinn lifted her shirt above her head, as the steam started to fill the room, and hoisted her up until her legs were wrapped around his waist. He pushed her against the wall, as his mouth continued to nip and suckle at her throat. Eva groaned, grinding against him, as her hands gripped into his hair tighter.

  Quinn lowered his mouth, then, to one perfectly formed nipple, pulling it into his mouth. As he teased, flicking it with his tongue and nibbling lightly, Eva gasped at the heat of his mouth on her hot skin. She bucked against him again, as Quinn pulled her away from the wall, and carried her to the bedroom, laying her down on the bed, steam from the bathroom filtering into the bedroom.

  Quinn lay down on top of Eva, holding himself up with his elbows, and kissed her deeply. Her hands ran up and down his back, sending shivers of electricity through him. He moved then, trailing kisses back to her breasts, nipping and licking and kissing as he went. Quinn took her other nipple into his mouth, biting softly until Eva moaned her pleasure.

  Quinn undid Eva’s button on her faded jeans as he trailed kisses down her stomach and sides, the heat of his kisses causing a frenzy of rushing blood in Eva’s ears. He tugged down her jeans, mouth never leaving her skin, as he brought up one hand to brush against her through her underwear. Eva groaned, her breaths coming in shorter intervals, hands worrying in Quinn’s hair. He brushed against her again, lightly, with his fingers, and Eva could feel herself pulsating at his touch.

  Quinn pulled Eva’s underwear off, as he kissed her on the mouth again, sliding his index finger into her. Eva moaned against him, her attention divided between the heat of his kisses and the heat of her own body.

  Quinn teased Eva, slowly, excruciatingly slowly. As he worked another finger into her, her wetness welcomed him. Quinn groaned against her mouth, asking if she wanted more. Eva nodded, barely capable of forming a rational thought. Quinn worked his fingers inside her, slowly teasing her, bringing her to the edge of her pleasure, only to slow down and pull her back.

  Trailing kisses down her body again, Quinn placed his tongue next to his fingers, adding the warmth of his mouth to the sweet torture Eva was already experiencing. He licked and sucked at her from the outside as his fingers teased her from the inside.

  Eva bucked and moved against him, begging for release while begging for more at the same time. A wave of heat rushed through her body, as her pleasure built within her; Quinn held her on the brink for as long as he could, building her orgasm as he teased her to its heights, only to bring her back from falling over the edge.

  Eva gasped against Quinn, begging him to stop teasing her. Quinn looked up at her from where he was still teasing her with his fingers, asking if she was sure, to which Eva gasped and tried to nod, as he found her pleasure points again. Quinn pulled out his fingers, leaving Eva feeling bereft, until he placed his tongue where they had been. Delving in her with his tongue, he teased and nibbled her until her orgasm broke around her. Eva cried Quinn’s name as the power of her orgasm shook her core; lights flashed in her mind as she shattered into a million pieces under him.

  Before the last wave of her orgasm had left her, Quinn had thrust himself inside her, pushing her to a new height of pleasure as he drove into her, gently at first. As Quinn moved inside Eva, she moved against him, wanting more, needing more.

  Quinn pulled himself out as far as his length would allow, before driving back into Eva’s welcoming heat, their breaths coming in short gasps as they drowned in each other’s bodies. Eva gripped Quinn tighter against her, as he thrust deep within her. Her breaths came in shorter and shorter gasps, as Quinn’s own breath matched hers. She wrapped her legs around him even more tightly, as she lifted herself up to welcome his length deeper within her.

  Quinn pulled Eva up, and she moved as she sat on top of him, chest to chest, heart to heart. Quinn placed his hands on her waist, as she moved up and down, trailing kisses down her neck and collarbone, as she gasped against his ear. She drove down harder, deeper, faster.

  Their orgasm came in the same moment, as Quinn finally released himself into Eva, waves of heat and pleasure breaking over them. Quinn’s release was powerful, as Eva turned to Jell-O in his arms, gasping against him. Stars danced in his vision, as the power of his pleasure drove them both over the edge.

  The lay then, in each other’s arms, as their heart-rates normalized.

  Quinn hadn’t realized he’d managed to fall asleep until Eva woke him up in the early hours of the morning, her head under the covers, mouth now teasing him. He groaned, as he asked if it was like that now, to which Eva responded by taking him fully into her mouth, sucking harder than she had been a moment before.

  He moaned in pleasure, as Eva thanked him in return, tongue teasing and lips forming pressure around him.

  Quinn spent the rest of that day with a smile on his face, as the thought of Eva tortured him pleasantly.

  His she-wolf would drive him to the edge, he thought to himself.

  By the time Quinn returned home from checking on the activities around the village, it was to a waiting Eva. Unable to contain themselves, they raced each other to the bedroom where they replayed their favorite moments from the night before.

  Quinn knew he could drown in Eva’s body and mind. There was a power between them that brought him back to her like a magnet. She was everything he had ever hoped and more – what she didn’t say with words, she said with her body.

  Eva was a warm and adventurous partner in all aspects; she gave as much of her physical body as she did her emotional being. Quinn knew in those moments, where he was deep inside her, that there was nowhere else he would rather be.

  A feeling of completeness filled them both as they devoured each other’s bodies until they were satiated. Quinn and Eva knew they could never tire of the feeling of their bodies against each other, of the movement against each other.

  Like magnets, they would find their way home to each other, each time. No matter what happened. They were built for each other. Eva could imagine nothing more perfect than the feeling of Quinn inside her, as surely as Quinn knew he belonged with Eva, for as long as she would have him.

  Their passion for each other drove them to the perfection that was the love they felt for each other. Eva and Quinn brought out the best in each other, even as one challenged the other. They would always push each other to be the very best version of themselves.

  Quinn had never known a passion like that which he felt for Eva could exist, while Eva had never known that her passion could be matched by another’s.

  CHAPTER 15

  “Could you stop that, please?” Quinn sighed in exasperation.

  “Stop what?” Eva asked, the perfect picture of innocence.

  “You know what.”

  Eva smiled, as she stood up from her yoga mat. She had decided to do her daily yoga routine in Quinn’s office, a fact that he felt was more to torture and punish him, than to center her core. He had been struggling his way valiantly through reports the entire time she
’d been pulling what he refused to believe were legitimate yoga moves.

  No, they were moves designed to attract and hold his attention, as though she needed to even try. Now that she was standing in front of his desk, trailing her fingers along the top of his desk, that naughty smile on her face, Quinn knew he was right. The she-wolf was going to drive him crazy, he knew that for a fact.

  Yet he couldn’t help but find himself mesmerized by her, the form-fitting outfit she was wearing definitely not helping the situation.

  “Are you trying to get me into trouble here?” he asked, eyebrows raised as he tried to pull his attention away from the thought of the soft, supple skin hiding under her clothes.

  “With who?” Eva laughed. “You’re the alpha, or had you forgotten that fact?”

  “I have a very pushy beta standing at my elbow every time I turn around.”

  “Does that mean your she-wolf stands second to your beta?” she quirked an eyebrow.

  “Only in the queue to detaching my toes for not performing.”

  Eva grinned slyly, and Quinn realized he’d stood on a landmine of some sort before she opened her mouth to reply.

  “Speaking of performance. I think you’re up for a performance review. Right. Now. Or do you not like your toes?”

  “You’re incorrigible, you know that?”

  “I’ve been called worse,” Eva shrugged nonchalantly.

  “Is that true?”

  “I get what I want.”

  “And what, pray tell, do you want right now?”

  “You.”

  “You do realize you have to let me concentrate at some point, right?” Quinn asked, as he stroked Eva’s hair.

  She looked up at him from where she’d been resting her head on his shoulder, a single eyebrow pulled up.

  “Why would I ever do such a thing?” she asked, as though the very thought was pure madness.

  “You’ll get bored of me if you’re not careful.”