Alpha Awakening

by Diana DeRicci

  “Until the turban comes off, then I’ll have univision. I’ll have a patch for about a week until the swelling and God only knows what else is healed. The bastard deserves meeting the grill of a Mack for this. Is there anything bigger than a Mack?” she mused, not at all repentant for wishing bodily harm on Steven.

  “Wait.” Sheridan’s eyes pinned Rush from the other side of the coffee table where she’d stood from the couch at their entrance. “You’re the girl that was roughed by the ex at the Hut? I didn’t know this was what Rush meant.”

  Kay’s hand lifted and gingerly cupped her jaw. “Yeah,” she answered. “And my best friend is out of town on a mission, so Rush took in the stray.”

  Sheridan shook her head, her dark curls bouncing with her. When she lifted her eyes again, she looked apologetic, almost stricken with remorse and realization. “I’m sorry,” she mouthed for his benefit, walking around the table. “Here, come sit down. Coffee okay?”

  “Su-re,” Kay replied, sounding confused. She wasn’t alone. The abrupt disappearance of animosity from his sister made no sense. Rush had expected it to be a lot worse.

  “I’ll get some, too,” he said, bewildered at his sister’s sudden turn around.

  Once Rush made sure Kay would be all right resting on the couch, he followed his sister into the kitchen. “Okay, explain what just happened.” He leaned on the counter, watching his sister prep mugs and coffee.

  “I owe you an apology. I thought the girl at the Hut and your find were two different people. When you told me about her yesterday, I was under the impression that Girl A had been hurt and you had found Girl B, who was…is…your mate.” She spoke quietly, in a rush of guilty words. “You bring home injured Girl A and practically screw her in your r—”

  His growl of warning cut her off and dark blue eyes swept to his, dropping quickly in deference. “Sorry. But now do you see why I was upset? I know you, Rush. You are as organized as the Library of Congress and here you are, playing with someone who you shouldn’t be when—”

  He lifted a hand to stop her rambling. “I get it. Sorry I confused you. One and the same.” Sheridan had been studying when he’d left in such a hurry, hearing the dispatch call on the scanner the day before. She hadn’t known a thing until he’d called and asked her to set up the spare room. “Right now, the bastard who hurt her is in jail, but I don’t know for how long. He was arrested on assault charges, but had nothing else outstanding.” Scumbag Steven’s last stint behind bars had cleaned his latest crime slate.

  Reaching for his cup, he said, “But I thought you were upset that I had found her. You weren’t dancing in circles yesterday.” He sipped, waiting.

  It took her a minute to answer him as she stirred her coffee slowly. “You’re right. I wasn’t. I remember Mom, too,” she said distantly. “I know that’s why you live the way you do, but there’s something about that woman out there.” Glancing up, she asked, “Can I speak as pack, and not as your sister?”

  “You know you can!” he answered quickly, surprised she’d think she had to ask.

  She tipped her chin, a deeper deference than she’d shown all morning. “As your chosen second, you need more than me. You need your mate, and if she’s the one, then don’t screw it up.”

  Rush was pretty sure his mouth was swinging wide. He’d had no idea. This was his sister? “Do you mean that?”

  Her touch on his arm was light. “I always knew you were a strong male, and an alpha, but you’ve hidden it. I think me being here has done that. You don’t do anything without weighing how it will affect the both of us. You think you took Tays’s place by default, but you didn’t. Maybe a little sooner than anyone may have expected, but you are whole with the wolf. He’s an alpha, because you are too, and vice versa. Whether you knew it or not, your wolf did, and that’s why you challenged him so young. No one else was ready then, and they wouldn’t think of challenging you now. You’re not an animal, but you are intelligent, loyal and compassionate to those under you. She’s living, breathing proof.”

  Suddenly she smirked and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know why. But without asking, she was going to tell him.

  “I’ve never heard you laugh like you do for her,” she said. “I’ve never seen you be alpha like you are for her. You couldn’t see your expression when you came into the room. You were prepared to fight for her, even against me,” she finished calmly, with a total lack of tonal inflection.

  He studied her, trying to wrap his mind around what she was telling him. “I knew you weren’t happy.”

  “It was all over your face, too. And you had already decided who you would stand for,” she told him without heat.

  His hand paused on the rise with his cup. Had he? Was he already taking Kay over Sheridan? Had his loyalty shifted so quickly? His chest heaved with a drawn breath, eliminating a tightness he hadn’t known existed. He couldn’t deny the blatant truth behind what she said, not when it stood up and smacked him with a foot thick brick wall.

  “You’ll always be my sister,” he said, his voice trying to crack.

  “And you’ll always be my brother,” she returned, blinking hard. “It’s time you became the alpha you were meant to be for this pack. I’ve always known you could do it and beating Tays was just the beginning.”

  “You’re staying?” He didn’t want to chase her out of his life, and he needed her to know that.

  “Until you choose otherwise, I’m still your second.”

  He frowned, not sure if that was the answer he was honestly expecting from her. She rolled a shoulder, pretending unconcern that he knew wasn’t entirely real. Then he had to think about it himself. What was he asking?

  “Damn.” He choked on the word.

  “Love you, too,” she whispered, not looking at him, giving him his pride. “Now go, before she thinks she’s been abandoned.”

  She handed him the third cup in silence.

  Chapter Eight

  She called Stacee on the ride to her apartment. “Well, crap,” Kay muttered, closing her cell phone after only a few minutes.

  “What’s wrong?” He slipped it from her hand, and she heard him flip the clasp on her purse, putting it away. The man was sweet on sweet.

  Kay knew Rush probably had a good idea from her side of the conversation what the problem was. “She’s not coming home. Well, she is, but she’s going with Jonas somewhere and won’t be home until late because of it.” Her chin fell forward.

  “Hey, I’m not going to dump you off at your door.”

  “I’m glad,” she replied weakly. “I’m sorry I’m being so much trouble.”

  “Quit it. You are no trouble.”

  She harrumphed. “Your sister doesn’t agree with you.”

  “Sheridan apologized.”

  “She left.”

  She heard Rush’s exhale. His hand threaded through hers. “She was giving us privacy. She thought you were someone else and was royally pissed at her brother, not at you.”

  “Who is older?”

  “I am, by six years.”

  Kay shook her head. “You’d never know it.”

  His laugh was warm. “I know. She pointed that out this morning too.” She felt the truck slow down and then stop. “We’re here.”

  Kay turned to find the door handle, but his hand stopped her. “Come here,” he purred, that low, sexy rumble that had her melting from the inside out.

  “Hm?” she asked, swiveling on the seat, though she hoped she knew.

  She wasn’t wrong. The warmth of his kisses started beneath her jaw, dropping heated surprises with every touch. Damn! She wanted to see. Her fingers inched upwards, memorizing the hardness of his muscles, the slope of his shoulders. A gentle tug brought them thigh to thigh on the seat. Her fingers delved into the loose curls she remembered.

  “You taste so good.” A shiver shot up her spine then rocketed goose bumps down her arms at the rough heat of his tongue gliding beneath her ear.

  “Kiss me,” she p
leaded.

  The swirl of his tongue paused. “I don’t want to hurt you, baby.”

  “Please. Unless…” She ducked down, her forehead landing on his broad shoulder.

  “Unless what?”

  “The bandages. I know they’ve got to be the last thing anyone wants to see.”

  “I’ve dreamed of ripping them off. I want to see you again.” The pulse of his breath against her skin, sliding through the strands of loose hair, warmed her. She felt safe in the circle of his arms.

  “I want to see you too,” she admitted.

  A tender finger lifted her chin, the heat of his breath right in front of her on her lips. “Kiss me. You’ll know when to stop, before it hurts.”

  Her heart pounded. Blood thundered against her ears. Lifting trembling fingers, she found his mouth. Caressing the shape of his lips with the tip of her fingers, she swore she could hear both heartbeats, his and hers, within the truck.

  Easing herself forward, she found his lips. Kay had never explored the adventure of sex with a blindfold. The experience of kissing Rush without being able to see him was beyond anything she’d ever felt before, more titillating than any skin to skin caress that she could remember.

  That morning had been explosive, both their desires so raw, so ripe she was surprised they didn’t tear each other’s clothes off and finish what they’d started, what they’d both so badly wanted. She wouldn’t have said no. Rush did something to her, made her want; want sex, want his body, want him, period. He made her forget when he held her, touched her, kissed her.

  Without being able to see him, the sensation of his lips, the male form of his mouth against hers, drove her right to the brink of no return. She craved to feel him naked beneath her hands, the solid shape of his chest beneath her palms as she caressed him, teased him. Yet the gentleness of the kiss was a sweet torture in its own way.

  Cautious of her limits she pressed closer, her fingers holding herself steady in the thick curls of his hair. The taste of his kiss erupted on her senses when he let go, letting her take control of the moment. She felt it, the way he let her make every move, every step forward. Wanting spiraled through her, winding tighter like a coiled spring just waiting for the chance to explode into full desire.

  Tentative caresses turned into a wanton seduction when she slid her tongue across his lip. Heat blossomed, filling her being with his scent, the feel of his lips against hers. The fingers holding her tight dug into her hip, screaming his own growing hunger held back in restraint. His chest rocked, fleetingly brushing against taut nipples in a give and take dance of breath. He played with her, stroking her tongue as she learned his shape, sucking lightly, giving her every chance to stop him or pull away.

  She didn’t want to. The twinges of discomfort were low, the pressure miniscule compared to the pleasure. A slow burn had taken root, and her only hope of surcease was the man tenderly worshipping her in a way she’d never once experienced.

  Swept up into the rise of desire she went too far, wanted too much and gasped. He stopped instantly. “Kay?”

  Breathing through the sharp pain, it began to recede almost as soon as it hit. Her hand caressed him, drifting over his ear to form to his cheek, her heart aching while her jaw reminded her why she needed to be careful. “I did that. Not you. I’m fine.” She sensed his doubt and pressed a finger to his lips. “Heaven,” she murmured, meaning it.

  “Sweeter than candy,” he replied. And she smiled halfheartedly, absolutely crushed that she’d had to stop, and worse that she knew he was blaming himself.

  * * * *

  Rush sat outside, watching the sunset behind his house, something he hadn’t done in months. Except he couldn’t tell anyone anything about the glory of the colors of the fading sun. His thoughts had kept him mired since they’d arrived back at his home after the stop at her place.

  Kay was inside, resting in the spare this time, insisting she couldn’t kick him out of his own room twice. The day had been long and tiring on her, and even though he was positive she hated taking the pills because they literally knocked her out, it was for the best. They both needed time. She needed time to heal; he needed time to think. The list on his mind was easily long enough to rival Santa’s naughty and nice list.

  Sheridan had still been gone when they’d returned and she wasn’t back yet. Not a huge problem, but she usually told him where she was going. Taking advantage of her being gone, Rush had been camped out on one of the bleached Adirondack chairs in the quiet, trying to sort through the changes his life had taken on over the last twenty-four hours.

  Amazing how much had changed in a day.

  Twice today, Kay had literally bowled him over. He dragged a finger in memory over his lip, the essence of her body imbedded into his very pores now. If it weren’t for the ramifications of a bonded mating, he’d have stripped her there on the bed and pleased her for hours. That was something he couldn’t do without her knowledge. If instinct was going to bend his will to take a mate when he’d had no idea how he could, when he’d avoided it as much as catching the measles, the least he could do was give her the chance to refuse. Once she was his, there would be no others. The thought of loving her, tasting her body, caressing her soft skin for the rest of his life sent a hard shudder down his torso. A low heat boiled in his gut. Nothing he’d thought or done had eased it.

  And then she’d kissed him. He shook his head mockingly. He’d told her to do it. What did he expect? Snorting at himself, he slouched a bit on the wooden seat, one leg bent on a slat at the knee. To be honest, he hadn’t known what to expect, but any idea he may have held had been obliterated by the sweetest seduction she gave him. Her lips were more potent than any liquor, sweeter than any candy. If lightning had a source, she was it. He could still taste her, sweet as fall apples, and find her sunshine scent on every breath.

  He shifted in the chair, adjusting his cock beneath his jeans, without an ounce of relief. If he didn’t know it wasn’t possible, he’d swear that his condition hadn’t changed one iota since the first sound of her voice, the first glimpse of her thunderhead gray eyes, a sultry gaze that he longed to see again.

  A rattle between the trees in front of him below the deck’s edge dragged him to his bare feet, annoyingly hunting the growing shadows for the coming visitor. Wanting to relax as much as he could, he only wore his jeans, when he’d normally be in nothing if he’d been alone. Either way, he wasn’t in the mood for interruptions, or visitors.

  Not surprised to hear them nearing with the loud warning they’d offered, a pair of wolves loped from the trees. With his permission, they lost their skins, standing on two legs. He welcomed them with a nod. “Trevor, Zackary.”

  They both dropped their gazes in quiet respect. “Alpha,” Trevor said.

  “What brings you here?” He wasn’t concerned with their nudity. Within the pack, it was normal, and he knew if either of these teenagers had shifted before being a hundred percent aware of their surroundings, they would pay their faults to him. They didn’t know about Kay, but Rush knew she was out like a light, and thankfully, out of sight. He wasn’t quite ready to share her with the pack.

  “Zoe is lost. We were running and hoped she’d come this way.” Trevor looked ready to puke he was so anxious as the words tumbled from him. His skin was waxen with exhaustion. They’d been running, and looking, for hours by the sight of the pair.

  “Your sister?”

  Trevor nodded.

  “How long?”

  “We came out this morning. Dad dropped us off and told us not to leave the Dale’s land, but we all did and now we can’t find her.”

  Rush frowned at that news. Mr. Dale was Zackary’s uncle. He had a large wooded spread just east of Rush’s property. It was prime real estate for the pack to kick up their heels. Their territory was wide spread, but individual wolf families had territory, too. Some were better suited for the wolf and were open to pack use. Rush knew Trevor and Zackary were out there often. This was the first
he’d heard of his little sister running.

  “Where did you last see her?” He studied both, hoping they had an idea of where to start. The Dale’s property was huge and if they didn’t stay on it, the odds weren’t good they’d find her tonight.

  “On the southern ridge. It’s my fault,” he admitted. “She wasn’t up to the distance, and I got impatient with her.” Shamefully, his entire body folded in, most likely wanting to crawl into the ground and stay there. “Zoe turned and ran back the way we’d come from, but she’s not able to track scent yet. She never made it back to the house. She hasn’t eaten since this morning.”

  Rush’s impatience died a little for the youngster, his heart and tears in his eyes.

  “I have to find her.”

  Zack rubbed shoulders in comfort with his best friend.