by E A Price
“Is she okay?” asked Britt, tearfully.
His wolf whimpered slightly, and the taint of resentful anger he felt for his family melted, just a little. Well, she was his baby sister, after all. Acksel clasped her shoulder as he walked past her. “She’ll be fine. You can apologize later.”
“You see?” hissed Hans, a picture of barely contained rage. “This wouldn’t have happened if you weren’t acting like an idiot.”
“I take full responsibility,” said Craig puffing out his chest. He was technically only fourteen, but the only part of him that seemed to be that age was his sense of humour. In his mind, he was about eighteen. His body was nearing twenty-one.
Hans bared his fangs. “Yeah, actually you should. My sisters were good pups before they started hanging out with you Tanner morons. I forbid you or any of your brothers from coming near any of my family.”
“You can’t do that!” howled Gwen.
Greyson, an uncle to the Tanner boys, held his hands out in a placating gesture. “Okay, guys, let’s take it easy. I’m sure both Craig and Britt are sorry, but this was all an accident…
“Which wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for your nephew!” Hans’ eyes flashed, and he flexed his claws.
Britt’s bottom lip wobbled, dangerously.
“Enough,” roared Acksel, feeling his own wolf prowling on the edge of losing his temper. He looked around the room accusingly and was only a little pleased when a couple of pack mates looked away in submission. “Hans, take it easy. Britt feels bad. Craig feels bad. Simone’s okay. Everything’s going to be fine. All I care about right now is making sure Simone has everything she needs. Mel, you said something about food earlier?”
Melanie nodded making her brown curls bob, completely unconcerned by his snippy tone. “Esther brought over some stew, and I made some cornbread, I’ll get a tray ready for her.”
“Her car?”
“I spoke to the garage,” said Felicity, a no-nonsense she-wolf and his second in the pack enforcers. “They said it’s a write-off. I spoke to the Alpha; he says we’re to give her a check for the price of the vehicle out of the pack earnings.” Felicity produced the check and handed it to Acksel before looking at Britt and Craig. “He said you two are to go to the Beta for punishment first thing tomorrow morning.”
“I deserve it, no matter what it is,” said the martyr, Britt.
“I volunteer to take Britt’s punishment,” chimed in Craig, almost as quickly.
“Oh for the love of fuck!” exclaimed Hans.
“Hans! Outside!”
Everyone blinked in surprise. Acksel’s wolf, who had been readying to shift and put his brother in his place, cocked his head to one side. The command hadn’t come from Acksel, or Greyson or even Felicity. It had come from Melanie.
“What?”
“You’re too angry right now. I want you to go outside until you’re calm enough to be around people.” She pointed at the door.
A few of the pack mates snickered. Hans glowered at her before his expression warped into disbelief, and then finally settled on amusement. “You’re giving me a time out?”
“Damn straight,” she said, folding her arms and giving him a severely bossy look.
Hans smirked. “Fine.” He left and surprisingly didn’t even slam the door. Everyone seemed a little relieved.
Melanie gave Acksel a small smile and disappeared upstairs with Esther following. He watched them go, his wolf growling and an uneasy feeling settling in his stomach.
He trusted Melanie and Esther, but for some reason the thought of anyone near Simone other than him, even mated pack mates, irritated him.
He didn’t want anyone near her. Only him.
*
Simone stared at the phone. Her tiger prowled wondering where Acksel was. She could call home. What was taking Acksel so long? Just a quick message to say she was okay. Had Acksel left without saying goodbye? Calling was the responsible thing to do. Was Acksel bored with her already?
“Ugh! Just keep quiet for one minute, I can’t hear myself think” she snapped at her tiger. The beast gave her a snooty huff and turned her back, resentfully.
She typed the first few numbers into the phone and froze. She’d call, they’d pick her up, and she’d go home. That was what would happen. That was what was supposed to happen. Yes, she should want that, but…
Simone let her eyes wander to the pictures on the wall. Acksel said this was his mom’s room. There were various pictures of smiling faces, featuring a mixture of Acksel, three pretty, young blonde women, Melanie, who had delivered her food and another heavily tattooed male scowling like there was no tomorrow. She guessed that was Acksel’s brother. He didn’t look happy and carefree like the rest of his family, but even in his scowl he didn’t look miserable.
Simone didn’t bother with family photos at home. The house was depressing enough.
Even though she could hear arguing downstairs, and various thumps, it didn’t detract from the warm, family feeling that pervaded the house.
Her tiger let out a rawr as there was a soft tap at the door. Acksel appeared and smiled. She melted like an ice cream. “Hey.”
“Hey,” she cooed, fearing the coquettish sound of her voice. Her tiger reveled in it.
“How you feeling?”
“Good.” She had all but forgotten about the accident at that point. The only reminder was an ugly, egg-like bruise on her forehead. She really shouldn’t have looked in the mirror.
He noticed the empty bowls that had been licked clean by a very zealous tiger, only pausing to assiduously suck up any crumbs of cornbread that escaped her mouth. It had been a long time since she’d eaten anything that good
“If you’re still hungry I can get you some more to eat.”
“Oh, it was delicious, but I don't want to put you to any trouble.”
He looked pleased. “It’s no…”
“Well if you insist,” she cut in. No point beating about the bush.
He chuckled. It was a throaty, deep sound that came right from his chest. “Be right back.” He paused at the door, hesitating over his words. “Did you get through to your… ah, home?”
“Yeah,” she said automatically.
He looked. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I told my… family, I was being taken care of. I told them there was no need to come get me for the moment. I hope that’s okay.”
Acksel beamed. “Of course. You’re welcome to stay as long as you need.”
He really shouldn’t say things like that. Her tiger was already considering placing tomorrow night’s dinner order as it was. “Yeah, yeah, it’s the least you can do,” she teased.
His face dropped, and his eyes bore into hers. “Naw, it’s… my pleasure.”
She smiled as he left. Her silly cat swooned. She’d call her pride eventually, she would. Maybe after she’d relaxed just a little bit.
Chapter Six
Acksel watched as Simone ate a sandwich and fries. Or not so much ate as ‘went Godzilla on it’. His wolf barked in approval, and he felt an odd sensation of arousal. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met a female who enjoyed food so much. She might eat even more food than he did. He wasn’t sure where she was putting it - she as slim as anything - but it sure was hot.
He tapped his chin when a dollop of mayonnaise fell onto hers.
Her lips curled in amusement as she wiped her chin. “Sorry, I really like food.”
“Don’t be sorry,” he said, eagerly remembering that he had some chocolate cake waiting in the refrigerator. “I hate women who are demure about eating.” She licked her fingers, and Acksel withheld a groan. Perhaps he should forgo the pleasure of feeding her chocolate cake. He was already struggling to control his desire. Seeing her drop chocolate down her chin would really turn him into a lecherous wolf shifter.
Simone smacked her lips with satisfaction. “Not a problem I’ve ever had,” she told him with no shame. “Tigers tend to eat a lot.” Mayonn
aise dribbled down the front of her shirt. “Damn, sorry.”
He averted his eyes as she started dabbing at her breasts. His wolf howled. Maybe she was doing this on purpose. He’d never known mayonnaise to be so damn sexy. “Ah, that’s Britt’s shirt, I think she’d give you her entire wardrobe if you wanted it.”
“Poor little pup.”
Britt had given Simone a long and teary apology earlier, and Simone gave her a hug and soothed her. To say Acksel was pleased was an understatement. Britt had been irresponsible - that was for damn sure. She knew the pack rules about staying away from the road, and she could have been hurt. The idea of losing his baby sister was horrifying, which was probably why Hans was so angry – even if he wouldn’t admit it. But, Simone had been forgiving and patient about the whole situation and had even made Britt feel better. She was amazing.
Of course, Acksel was getting a perverse pleasure out of having Simone there. He wouldn’t admit it, but a dark part of him was glad the accident happened – otherwise they may never have met. He suspected she was important to him, and his wolf was circling the ‘m word’, but Acksel was trying to hold him back for the time being. Although, he wondered if part of the reason Simone was so forgiving of the situation was because she felt the same feelings for him. She didn’t even seem to be concerned that she was in the house alone with a strange wolf. After the apology to end all apologies from Britt, Melanie had whisked her and Gwen away, saying that she would look after them that night. She did it with so much authority that Hans didn’t even argue.
“Britt will be fine,” he said. “She’ll feel better when the Beta metes out her punishment.”
Simone stopped mid-chew and gave him an odd look. She swallowed her huge mouthful, almost choking in the process. “Punishment?” she spluttered. “I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“My Alpha wouldn’t agree. Pups need to be put in their place.”
She clasped his arm, but his pleasure at her touch was marred by the pleading look in her face. “Please, Acksel, don’t let her get hurt because of me. It was an accident, and I’m fine.”
His wolf grumbled in worry. She was really concerned about Britt. Did she think they were going flog her or something? “Simone, it’s fine, she’ll be grounded for a while, and the Beta will think of a few creative punishments, but probably just running errands for elderly pack members and cleaning houses. He won’t hurt her if that’s what you’re thinking.”
Simone visibly relaxed. “Oh, good.”
It was what she was thinking. His beast growled, unhappily. He wondered what her situation must be like if she would immediately jump to the conclusion that punishment meant violence. He had made a few comments about her home life, but she hadn’t exactly given him any information. In fact, she had been a little evasive about telling him anything.
“I wouldn’t hand her over if I thought he would actually hurt her. The pack is important, but she’s my sister and she’s only a pup. I wouldn’t put her in any danger.”
“No, you wouldn’t would you?” she said, softly. Her voice wobbled a little and Acksel could hear the emotion in it.
“Besides,” he chuckled, trying to lighten the mood, “Alec - our Beta - seems to be having a bit of trouble handing out punishments to females ever since his pup was born. Can’t look at them without thinking about baby Daisy. The Alpha ribs him about it, mercilessly.”
Simone’s eyes widened. “He teases him about it? Isn’t he angry at your Beta?”
Acksel shrugged. “Adam’s a fair Alpha. He trusts Alec to do what is right by the pack. If Alec really couldn’t perform his duties as a Beta, he’d step down.” Yeah, they were just a bigger, hairier version of The Waltons. His wolf snorted at that. With a lot more swearing and hunting, he added.
Simone munched in silence for a few moments, seemingly mulling over his words.
“I take it things are different where you live,” he tried, hoping to coax a little information from her.
She focussed on her meal and only relented when Acksel wouldn’t stop staring at her. She sighed. “It’s just, when you’re taught a lesson, you remember it.” She nodded at a couple of vanilla cupcakes Carly the pack Omega had sent over. “May I?”
“Sure,” he said, trying not to let his frustration show. His wolf was annoyed, but Acksel told him to be patient. He’d only known Simone for a matter of hours, and she was probably still addled from the car crash. He was trying to stop himself from being too pushy.
“Mmmm,” she groaned in near orgasmic pleasure. Acksel closed his eyes. This was verging on torture. “All your food is so good! This cupcake, that stew earlier – ugh, how are you not all fat?”
“Good metabolism. Carly our pack Omega made the cupcake; she has a bakery in town, and Esther made the stew.”
“The she-bear? She seems nice. Is she part of your pack?” she asked with undisguised curiosity.
“She is. She’s mated to my second, Felicity. I’m the chief enforcer of the pack.”
Simone’s brow creased. “Felicity, but that’s a female name.”
Acksel leaned back in his seat and regarded her cautiously. There were a lot of shifters even now who couldn’t accept same-sex matings. Thankfully, his Alpha wasn’t one of them. “She’s a female.”
“Oh.”
“You don’t have a problem with that?”
“Of course not!” she said, quickly and with a little embarrassment.
“But I take it that it’s not really accepted where you’re from.”
He could almost feel the heat from her cheeks. In fact, he could probably warm his hands over them. “It’s just where I’m from, there are so few female tigers that it wouldn’t be allowed.”
Acksel grunted. He didn’t agree with that, but he wasn’t going to argue, and she didn’t exactly say it with a lot of conviction. Plus, she hadn’t said it, but he was now certain that she lived in a tiger pride. Which was interesting. There weren’t that many tiger prides around. In nature, tigers tended to be solitary creatures. But tiger shifters over the years have banded together more because their human sides crave companionship, and also for safety. However, due to their animal natures, tiger prides could be quite unstable without good alphas, and were just powder kegs waiting to blow.
Simone smiled at him. “Tell me about you, I want to hear all about your pack,” she said, shyly.
His wolf softened. Talking about her pride would have to wait.
*
They talked for hours. Acksel told her about his pack, the good, the bad, and the downright hilarious. He spoke with such pride about his family and pack mates that Simone felt ashamed for the dark feelings she felt about her own pride mates. Of course, it wasn’t true of all of them. She had her mother, and she cared about Parker – although not in the way she was supposed to, and there were some nice females in the pride like Lauren, who weren’t cheap carbon copies of Nita. It’s just she wasn’t proud to be part of her pride. Which was why she was making plans to get away from there.
Her tiger chuffed and told her that Rose seemed to be like a nice place to live. She ignored her and instead focussed on telling Acksel about happier times with her pride. Such as learning to hunt with Parker, Parker sitting on an anthill in his tiger form, Parker sitting on a cactus in his tiger form and Parker accidentally batting a bees’ nest in his tiger form - none of the incidents ended well. Yes, she did have a lot of good memories growing up, particularly with Parker, even after she realized that things weren’t quite fair in her pride. It's just that the good couldn't outweigh the bad.
Acksel, on the other hand, was devoted to his pack and his family, even to his older brother who sounded like a nightmare.
“You’re lucky to have such an Alpha,” she commented before she could stop herself. Thinking such things was bad but saying them out loud was disloyal, not to mention dangerous.
“Yeah, we weren’t so lucky with our old Alpha, he tried to kick my mom out of the pack after my dad died.”
>
“Why?”
He smiled, but it was forced. “My mom’s human. The old Alpha never wanted her in the pack in the first place, but she mated my dad, and my dad was the chief enforcer, and he wouldn’t back down. The Alpha didn’t want to lose my dad, so he had to put up with my mom.”
“But she stayed even after he… uh…”
“Yeah, my mom is pretty determined. She managed to get Hans all the way through high school even though he came close to expulsion about eight times. The last time was because he shifted into his wolf and… well, he left some steaming presents on the principal’s car.”
Simone slapped her hand over her mouth, and even her tiger found that distasteful. “Eeuw! How did she manage to persuade the principal not to expel him for that?”
He chuckled. “She threatened to home school him. Hans bucked up and acted like he was sorry, and the principal was actually more scared of my mom than Hans. My brother figured that at least in School he could get away with more, and not attend classes. His teachers actually preferred it if he skipped classes.”
“She sounds like quite a woman,” she marveled. The females in her pride didn’t even stand up to their mates never mind anyone else. “So, humans and a bear in your pack?”
“Yeah, we’ve got bears, pumas, witches and even a leopard who’s also a witch, although, don’t ask her to show you her powers, she’s still learning and keeps changing wine into water.”
“More than one bear?” If bear shifters even came into their town, the pride forced them to move on. The Alpha didn't like having other predators anywhere near him.
“Yeah, you should see the bear that’s mated to our Omega. Seven feet tall and too broad for a lot of doorways. Carly reckons he’s a cutie on the inside.”
“I’ll bet.”
“Maybe I could introduce you…”
“Right, but I really need to get home as soon as possible.” Her beast snarled in objection, but what could she do? Simone knew she couldn’t hide there forever. The longer she was away, the worse it was going to be when she went home. And it was already pretty bad.
