“An alpha can’t be an island, son. You have to take a mate,” Craig Beaumont, Adam’s father, said as they sat in Adam’s office.
Adam exhaled sharply, trying not to growl. “I’m not just going to randomly pick a female from the pack and mate her.” In truth, he fucked one of the females every full moon. It was part of par for being a wolf — the need to fuck and shift and hunt, to give into the primal urges that they kept under wraps the other days of the month. There were only ten single females he wasn’t related to in the pack, and they serviced all of the unmated males as well, more than forty now. It wasn’t a pretty job, but the females knew what it meant to be a wolf, and in their culture, females were sex objects or they were mates. There was no in-between.
“You don’t want a she-wolf, that’s fine. You should reach out to the coven. We are in need of a new witch for our full moon ceremonies. We haven’t communed with our spirit ancestors since Lit left.”
He growled under his breath. The last time he tangled with a witch, she’d twisted his heart out and stomped on it, as if he had no value. He had pretended as if it hadn’t mattered at the time, but it had mattered a great deal. He hadn’t loved Elizabeth, but he could have, if she’d just opened up that part of herself. But she was content to keep him and a handful of others on the leash for full-moon sex. There was a part of him that understood it. She was young; she liked her freedom. But there was only so much that a man could take and still keep his dignity.
“I don’t think I can take a witch, Dad,” he said finally.
“You need to do something. The females are restless because they have no one to lead them. Your mother is doing what she can, but she’s not the alpha’s mate.”
After their conversation, his father had left him alone to think and that was why he’d ended up at Lykos that night, thinking about females and mating. The circular booth that was reserved for Adam and whoever he wanted to join him was currently filled with his closest friends and packmates, Brick, Solan, and Joe. They knew he wasn’t in the mood to chat, so they kept the drinks coming and the conversation to a minimum.
He looked across the crowded club with a lack of enthusiasm. Same old club, same old music, same old females looking for love, or a lay, or both. If the situation were different for him, if he weren’t alpha of the Delta Park pack, maybe he could grab one or two of the scantily clad females and take them in one of the back rooms for a little fun. But that didn’t appeal to him anymore, not really. Approaching his true age of twenty, which meant that at wolves’ slow aging of one body year for every twelve years that passed, he was now closer to middle age even though he still looked like a college kid. He didn’t feel like a college kid, though. Disillusionment colored his perception now.
Being alpha was a brutal business. He’d been third in command before Lit, their former alpha, had started to slip in his duties to the pack. He had family troubles that included a wild teenage daughter and an unnatural witch wife who had friendships with some extremely unsavory males. To prevent the pack from disintegrating, Adam overstepped their beta, Brick, challenged Lit, and won. Lit and his family left town to join another pack somewhere away from their problems, and Adam hoped the problems hadn’t followed them there. Adam became alpha, keeping his cousin Brick as his second. Adam’s parents were elders of the pack, ones who had been around for a long time and wanted to share their wisdom with the pups. They helped the pack without getting caught up in rank fights, with this lifestyle becoming a form of retirement for wolves.
Adam’s only sister, Angie, was eighteen plus five, just old enough to think she knew everything when she’d hardly lived her life yet. Just as he was about to give up and head home for a date with his right hand and some serious shut-eye, he caught the sweet scent of pure sugar. His body tightened and froze. His wolf rose inside him until he felt his fangs pushing out of his gums. Closing his eyes, he scented further until he located its source. When his eyes opened, he saw the object of his desire — a petite blonde wearing a black corset and a very short skirt.
He had only one thought as he prepared to rush to her side: to throw her over his shoulder, take her home, mark her, and make her his forever. There would be time for talk later, much later, after he fucked her soundly.
As he stood, he saw an arm slide around her shoulders and tug her forward. A head lowered and dropped a kiss to her mouth. His hackles rose immediately. Someone was touching his woman.
Then he grinned when he saw who was touching her: Leo, one of his lowest-ranked wolves. Sitting down, he nudged Brick and said, “Go tell Leo that I need to talk to him now.”
Adam leaned back against the cushioned seat and smirked, making plans to learn all about his woman from Leo before asserting himself as alpha and forbidding Leo from seeing her again.
It was good to be the king.
Cinder checked her cell again, for the tenth time in as many minutes. She just didn’t understand what had happened to Leo Friday night. After they’d danced and rubbed obscenely against each other, teasing with low voices about what they were going to do to each other later, they’d headed to the bar to cool down. Someone from his pack had pulled him away, and when he returned, he had taken her home immediately. All teasing was gone; his face that normally always had a big smile just for her had gone very serious. For the first time since they’d met, he kissed her cheek and left her at her front door.
Three days later, he still hadn’t returned any of her calls. She didn’t think he had found someone else. They were close enough that he would have felt comfortable telling her he was ready to drop the sex from their friendship and move on. She could handle that. She loved him, but she wasn’t
in love
with him. But this was a new and unsettling development.
She leaned back in the navy-blue office chair at the Whalen Family Clinic’s reception desk. The clinic was located just outside downtown Cleveland where she worked three days a week in the early evenings. Because she was a hybrid, she was comfortable around shifters, and they were comfortable around her. If she were completely human, they wouldn’t necessarily trust her when they were weakened with injury or illness.
Her phone buzzed, and she answered it without looking at the display. “Leo?”
Cyrus chuckled. “Sorry, Cinder, it’s just me.”
“Oh, hey, C. What’s up?”
“Just checking on you. Your pup hasn’t called yet?”
Leo was considered a “pup” because he was eighteen plus two.
“No,” she said and sighed.
The clinic was dead. Dr. Whalen, who had created the clinic when his wife had died of serious injuries sustained in a rank fight and no human doctors would help her, had been in his office all day, with the door locked and strict orders that he was not to be disturbed.
“I’m okay,” she promised, but she didn’t feel okay. She felt abandoned, and she hadn’t really felt that way since her father had come to see her on her eighteenth birthday. He had been non-existent her entire life until that moment, and he had taken one look at her, declared her a witch and her mom’s problem, and disappeared again.
“No, you’re not. I’ll pick you up after work and we’ll go out.”
“I don’t really feel like doing anything.”
“Whatever. We’ll grab a bite and go for a walk. It’s not up for debate, Cin. I’ll be there at eight.”
Cyrus hung up before she could say anything else. She put the phone back on the desk and turned to the stack of filing she’d ignored in favor of mulling over Leo’s behavior. Cyrus was right. What she needed was to get her head out of her ass and get back to her life. Leo was fine, she was certain, and whatever was keeping him from the phone was most likely pack-related and, therefore, the be-all and end-all of his existence. Wolves were very loyal to their packs, to the extent of ignoring all else. If she was actually dating him and he ignored her so thoroughly, she’d be pissed. Since their relationship was casual, she really had no right to be angry with him.
The hour hand swung around the clock several more times, and she shut down the computer for the night and grabbed her purse, ready to go out with Cyrus as soon as he arrived. The clinic was open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, but only ran a skeleton crew overnight for emergencies and any patients who might be staying long-term. She heard the familiar rumble of Cyrus’s Dodge Ram just as the desk phone buzzed. The display read Dr. Whalen’s extension.
“Yes, sir?” she answered, keeping an eye on the front door.
“Cinder, would you come to my office please?”
She glanced toward the front doors and considered telling Dr. Whalen that it was time for her to go. Instead, she said, “Right away, sir.”
She dropped her purse on the desk and walked quickly back toward his office, down the long, sterile white-tiled hallway, with pastel walls dotted with watercolor prints. His door was open, and she smoothed her hands down the front of her knee-length skirt. She was suddenly very nervous, and she didn’t know why.
Pushing the door all the way open, she stepped inside and came face-to-face with a room full of men. The scent of wolf was overwhelming in the room. Images flashed through her mind of deep woods and moonlit nights. She felt that primal part of herself stand up and pay attention. Her gaze roamed quickly over the men, but she didn’t recognize anyone.
Dr. Whalen, who sat behind his oversize mahogany desk, cleared his throat. “Cinder, I’d like to introduce you to my alpha, Adam Beaumont.”
He gestured toward one of the men who sat in a leather chair across from the desk. Adam stood slowly, gracefully unfolding his tall body. Dark slacks encased long legs and lean hips, and a black, fitted tee hugged clearly defined muscles. The hint of a tattoo peeked out from the edge of one sleeve. Tousled coal black hair looked deliciously just-rolled-out-of-bed, and ice blue eyes sliced through her like a laser beam, while her eyes stopped dead on the most perfectly shaped mouth she’d ever seen. Lickable. Kissable.
Her heart pounded loudly in her chest, a frantic rhythm not born of fear or worry but of good old-fashioned lust; the part of herself that she’d always considered so small — that wolfy, primal part — suddenly loomed inside her, filling the corners of her mind with dark and wicked whispers.
Her hand clenched on the doorknob and the lock clicked, startling her from her embarrassing fascination with Adam’s mouth. She cleared her throat and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Adam.”
She wasn’t sure why Dr. Whalen wanted her to meet his alpha, or why they had spent the entire day locked in his office. In all the months she’d worked for Dr. Whalen, she’d never seen a serious meeting occur in the clinic.
Adam reached for her hand and clasped it firmly, lifting it to his mouth to kiss the top. Tingles raced along her skin as his lips met her hand, and a swell of passion flared inside her at the small touch. Her breasts grew heavy, her sex flooded, and her lips parted as she panted for breath. A bewildering mixture of images flashed through her mind as his ice blue eyes locked onto hers — their naked bodies pressed together tightly, skin glistening with sweat. His fangs sinking into her shoulder. Furry bodies cuddled close for warmth.
She could have drowned in the emotions that swamped her – lust, passion, and desire like she’d never known. She felt him pull her closer and she was helpless to stop him.
“Yo, Cin? You ready, baby?” Cyrus’s deep voice called from down the hallway, and the spell was broken between her and the alpha wolf. She jerked her hand from his grasp and stepped back.
Clasping her trembling hands together, she avoided Adam’s gaze as she said to Dr. Whalen, “I have a date. If there’s nothing else, my shift is over and I’d like to leave.”
“Have a nice evening,” Adam said, and his words sounded more like an order than a nice suggestion.
She nodded stiffly and hurried out the door. She could still smell the scent of wolves, and she glanced behind her and saw that Adam was watching intently from the doorway. Ignoring the suddenly strong desire to go back to him, she muttered, “Fucking wolves,” under her breath and stormed into the reception area.
Cyrus was waiting patiently, leaning against the counter. He was smiling until she drew closer and then he frowned. “What’s wrong?”
She grabbed her purse from the desk and pushed open the front door. He followed close behind and opened the passenger door of his truck for her. A twist of her gut sent her to her knees as she gasped and pressed her hands to her belly. Her purse bounced on the sidewalk, the contents spilling as it tipped to the side.
“Whoa, you need to go back inside and see the doc?”
“No!” she yelled and then groaned as she tried to straighten but was unable to stand from a crouch. Her stomach felt wound tight as if she were hovering on the edge of an orgasm. Cyrus knelt in front of her.
“You’re acting kinda weird. Are you coming into heat again?” He tipped her chin until she was looking at him.
She shivered as his fingers touched her, and a sudden revulsion flitted through her. She pushed his hands away.
“No, that’s only twice a year, and I never had one hit so hard like it did a few weeks ago.” She felt another twist to her gut and took in a slow breath. As a partial wolf, she went through a spring and fall mating heat every year. “Do I smell like I’m coming into heat? There were wolves in the doc’s office who were acting really strange. Staring at me. The alpha was there.” She shook her head, closing her eyes at the mention of the alpha.
Cyrus pulled her close and buried his face in her neck. Her whole body lit up as if she’d touched an electric socket. That same revulsion speared through her at Cyrus’s touch, but at the same time, she wanted to rub herself against him.
“Holy shit,” he breathed the words, his fingers tangling in the ends of her hair and pulling slightly. “You smell incredible but not like you’re in heat. Do you want to fuck?”
She shivered in his arms, an uncontrollable urge to have sex pushing to the forefront of her mind like a freight train. “Get me out of here.”
“You got it,” he said as he pulled her to her feet.
She stared up at him. He was her friend. Her roommate. The one man she’d trusted to take her through her heat-cycle in September. Suddenly, however…he seemed like a stranger. She was half aroused, half aggravated. She wanted someone to touch her, but not Cyrus. Never Cyrus again.
“Don’t. Not you,” she whispered.
“What?”
She shook her head, trying to dislodge the image of ice blue eyes from her mind.
“I don’t know what’s happening to me.”
Cyrus growled abruptly and shoved her behind his back. The sudden movement caught her off guard, and she hit the edge of the open door with her shoulder and groaned at the sharp pain.
Cradling her shoulder, she looked around Cyrus to see what he was growling at and saw three males storming toward them. They were some of the wolves from Dr. Whalen’s office. She wanted to go to them. These males, who she didn’t know from anyone, suddenly seemed more important to her than her friend. Her wolf paced in her mind, the usually silent creature becoming more insistent that the wolves were the ones she needed to surround her.
She heard the soft sound of Cyrus’s claws unsheathing from his fingertips, and a deep growl rumbled in his chest. “Cin? Get in the truck, and I’ll get us home.”
One of the males, who looked like he could be related to Adam, stopped a few yards from them and held out his hand. “Let me take you back inside, Cinder. The alpha is waiting.”
Her wolf howled and tears pricked behind her eyes. She looked past the three males to see Adam standing behind the glass doors of the clinic, watching. Her arousal beat at her like a drum, the desire to see him up close was so strong that standing still was a study in determination. She could smell her own arousal. It was sweet and hot, like sunshine and sugar mixed together.
Cyrus snarled softly and spun, his eyes glowing with heat as he reached for her. One of the wolves grabbed Cyrus and jerked him away from her. The sudden movement made him reach out for her, and one of his claw-tipped hands wrapped around her upper arm. As the wolf gave a second violent jerk on Cyrus’s arm and his grip loosened, Cyrus’s claws dug into her flesh and then raked across her arm. She screamed in pain as his claws ripped through her flesh.
Cyrus hadn’t seemed aware that he’d hurt her as he spun on the male and attacked him. She opened her mouth to tell him to knock it off, but a wave of dizziness struck her, and she leaned heavily against the door of the truck. Her weight caused the door to close, and she lost her footing, landing heavily on her butt as her breath whooshed out in a pain-filled groan.
Cyrus and the wolf stopped throttling each other. Cyrus knelt next to her and so did Adam.
Where had he come from?
She blinked and her vision spun as tingles raced up her arm. Cyrus reached for her and Adam growled angrily. “Don’t fucking touch her, cat.”
Her hand went numb, and she felt the blood dripping down inside her silk blouse, with the tattered sleeve hanging in ribbons. “What are you doing here, Adam?” she asked, her head swimming.
He touched her arm gingerly. She tried to pull her arm out of his grip, but it was tingling too much, the numbness encompassing her entire arm. Without a word, he picked her up in his arms, and she didn’t want to sigh in relief and settle against him, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.
“Put her down, dog,” Cyrus growled.
“I’m taking her back inside.”