Hunted Down by His Alpha (8 page)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Tobias

“He’s been biting everything. We’re going to have to get all the legs replaced on the furniture so everything doesn’t suddenly come crashing down to the ground one day,” Seth said with a sigh as he passed Lyall to me and set Austin down on the soft grass. The pup rolled onto his back and then flipped back onto his legs as he crouched down low and snarled and snapped at Seth’s foot playfully. Seth shook his head and reached down to ruffle the small dark head before the pup barked happily and went to play with his brothers and sister.

I jumped as the baby in my arms suddenly became a squirming bundle of fur as he leapt from my arms and with a bark, shot off after the small cavorting bundle of pups.

“Shit, it still terrifies me every time they do that,” I said as I leaned back against the seat. Seth and I were taking a breather on the soft, padded chairs on the patio while we watched the pups. They cavorted and tumbled around the lawn in front of us, happy bundles of excess energy.

“You start to get used to it though I screamed and thought my heart was going to drop the first time it happened to me. I was terrified I was going to drop Rune,” Seth said as he handed me the mug of hot tea.

I took it with a “thanks” and sighed happily as I sipped on the hot beverage. Winter was locking in and the days were getting damn cold. But the pups liked playing outdoors and it was nice sitting out here watching them. It’d been over a month since Hayden had brought me here and since I’d gotten pregnant. The pregnancy was progressing well and it seemed that I’d outdo Seth and would be having six pups. It was no wonder I was already starting to look so big. Who knew what I’d look like at the end of the five months.

Hayden didn’t seem to mind, though, and he couldn’t seem to get enough of my burgeoning body as he held me in his arms each night and spent hours talking to the pups and waiting for them to kick in response.

I knew if he could, he’d have kept me plastered to his side, day in and day out not wanting to miss a moment of my pregnancy and a moment with me, but his responsibilities as an alpha kept him busy and his investigations into that night five years ago were hitting a brick wall and frustrating the hell out of him. I’d urged him to let it go, the only one who knew about that night and remembered it was Michael and he was gone. I was with Hayden again, pregnant with our pups, and that was what mattered. But I could still feel his fear, knew he worried about our future when the past remained like a yawning black hole.

“How is everything? Still no morning sickness?” Seth asked as he passed me the plate.

I shook my head as I took the sandwich. Kenneth had taken Gabby and Rosie into the city for the day. “Still no morning sickness but the cravings have started hitting hard and fast.”

Seth grinned around his mouthful before swallowing. “It was pickles and cereal for me.”

I scrunched my nose. “Not as bad as ice cream topped with onion chips. I’m going to be craving raw meat coated in crushed candy canes next the way I’m going.”

Seth snorted and started coughing. I handed him his tea and waited for him to set it down before I pounded on his back.

He flinched and glared at me. “Sometimes I forget that you’ve got shifter-blood and then you go and do that and I have no doubts.”

I grinned. “But you’re no longer choking.”

He rolled his eyes and resumed eating.

Seth had taken one of the Lyall back into the house and I was still outside playing with the others when I felt a sudden chill come over me. I looked up as I saw Roman stride across the lawn. His white-blonde hair glinted beneath the sunlight and a smile curved up his wide mouth, but he could have been snarling and snapping the way I instinctively responded to him. As though the pups sensed my sudden change of mood, they quietened down and gathered behind me as I hastily stood up. 

“I went over to your place, but no one was home. I remembered Hayden mentioning that you usually come over here to have lunch with Wyatt’s mate,” Roman greeted as he stopped in front of me.

I forced my hands to unclench and pasted on a smile. “You were looking for me?” This was the first time I’d been alone with the wolf.

He’d come by a couple of times since he’d suddenly turned up on Hayden’s doorstep, but only once had Hayden allowed him into the house and the meeting had been quite brief. Hayden had explained to me that he didn’t like other wolves near me, couldn’t quite trust them yet around me, even though he trusted some of his packmates with his life—just not mine—and I was grateful. I hadn’t told Hayden how I’d felt about Roman and wondered if that was the right choice.

“Let me just get the pups inside and then you can tell me what you need me for,” I said as I turned towards the house. I stumbled back as his hand suddenly shot out and gripped me hard around my upper arm.

“No, this won’t take long.”

I nodded and looked pointedly down at the hand on my bicep. He let it go, but didn’t step back.

“Hayden told me what happened. That you don’t remember what happened to you five years ago, but that it was Michael who kidnapped you.”

My brows snapped together. “He didn’t
kidnap
me. He saved me.” Going over what I remembered of my past and what Hayden knew, we’d both come to this conclusion. The old wolf had loved me and had never judged me for my background when he’d taken me in, he would never have hurt me—especially not by taking me from Hayden without good reason.

Roman frowned and his black eyes flashed hard and cold before his expression returned to looking benign. “Well we really can’t say that for sure can we? It seems we’ve hit a dead end in our investigations into that night. You’d say something if you remembered, though—wouldn’t you?” The question sounded more like a threat and I swallowed and stopped myself from taking a step back. My hand came up to wrap around my stomach protectively. I felt fear surge up, sudden and thick, as his black eyes followed my movement, zeroing in on my rounded stomach. His expression went cold and deadly, filling with hatred and I felt bile rise up in my throat. The pups whimpered behind me, swiping at my legs and I wanted to grab them in my arms and run to the house. I knew if I ran though he’d give chase and the knowledge that he’d hunt me down like a beast freaked the shit out of me. I needed to think of the pups first. I tried not to let any of my unease show as I contemplated how to get rid of the wolf giving me a big case of “get the fuck out of there!”—maybe I should just see what he wanted. He wouldn’t do anything out here in the open would he?

I
felt relief flood through me at the sudden sound of Seth’s voice.

“Roman? What are you doing here? Is there something wrong?” he asked as his gray eyes took in the scene in his backyard. He reached down and picked up two of his pups, holding them against his chest as he frowned.

“No, nothing’s wrong,” Roman answered smoothly as he tore his eyes away from me and smiled at Seth. “I just wanted to catch up with Tobias. Hayden keeps him locked away so much that I’ve hardly had a chance to see for myself his mate is doing fine. I better get going though, we’re looking at sending more wolves to the Savatore Pack to help with their rebuilding.”

“I’ll tell Wyatt you dropped by,” Seth said with a smile, but I blinked as something flashed across his face as we both watched the broad retreating back. “He’s a good enforcer, but something about him gets my back up,” Seth said uneasily as he turned to me and pushed the two pups into my arms. He reached down for the others and blew out a breath as they shot off towards the house, barking and batting each other, the mood of before forgotten. The two in my arms squirmed and I leaned down to let them escape.

“I thought I was the only one,” I said as I followed Seth back into the house. “I’ve been feeling uneasy since I met him when I got here, and just now, he was looking at me like he wanted nothing more than to…” I trailed off. I was about to say it looked like Roman wanted nothing more than to kill me, but I didn’t want to sound too paranoid or dramatic.

Seth didn’t seem to miss my trailed off words as he caught sight of Austin gnawing on the leg of the patio table. “Austin! You stop that right now or I’m giving you a mouth guard.” The pup’s head shot up at its father’s stern warning and grinned, its small pink tongue lolling out before it yipped and scampered back into the house.

Seth shook his head as he turned back to me. “Sorry, what were you saying? That’s right, Roman. I think you should tell Hayden if he’s bothering you, you know your mate will do something about it.”

“That’s why I can’t. He’s Hayden’s cousin.”

“And you’re his mate. Who do you think is more important to him? At least he can ensure that Roman doesn’t get anywhere near you.”

We walked back into the kitchen to find the pups piled up on the large bed Wyatt had made for them in the corner. It was like a large round doggy bed with a low wooden frame, and a plush, thick edged cushioned set on top. Two were already asleep while the other three batted each other and played with the stuffed toys that took up the rest of the space. 

“I’ll think about it,” I said as I reached down to ruffle the three heads and gently stroke the other two. I straightened up with a smile. “I better get back. Hayden said he’d be back early and I want to be there when he gets home,” I said as I pulled my jacket from the chair I’d dropped it on when I’d come in.

“I’m glad he found you, Tobias.”

I smiled softly as my heart filled. “I’m glad he did, too.”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Tobias

“Hungry again?” Hayden asked as he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled the crook of my neck.

I shivered as he pressed a wet kiss to the side of it and reached up to nip at my earlobe. I turned in his arms and grinned.

“When have I stopped being hungry since I got pregnant?” I asked ruefully as I took a bite of my spoonful of vanilla ice cream. A generous sprinkle of onion chips coated the white scoops in my bowl and the spoonful in my mouth.

Hayden laughed. “True. I’m going to have to start ordering vanilla ice cream and onion chips in bulk soon.” He leaned in to kiss me, his tongue sweeping into my mouth and swallowing my moan as I kissed him back. He wrinkled his nose when he pulled back. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the taste of that. But you as always, taste delicious,” he said as he brushed a kiss on the tip of my nose.

“Wait till you try raw steak covered in crushed candy canes.”

His face seemed to go a little green before he reached down and pinched my ass.

I jumped with a yelp and ended up spilling some of my bowl’s contents over my hand. “Hey, I was looking forward to that,” I said in mock consternation. I turned to place my bowl down next to the jumbo bag of onion chips and reached over to grab the dishcloth when Hayden wrapped his hand around my wrist.

“Let me clean you up, if you’re going to be craving this for the whole five months then I’ve got to start getting used to the taste,” he growled softly, his eyes dark as he looked down at me.

“You said you never would,” I pointed out thickly.

“For you? I’d try anything.”

I swallowed and stilled, feeling butterflies kick through my stomach as I watched him bring my hand up to his mouth. His tongue flicked out and traced the white trails, licking up the sticky sweet and salty remnants of the ice cream. He licked up my wrist, following the pulsing vein and then sucked on the web between my thumb and forefinger before pulling my finger into his mouth and curling his tongue around it, cleaning every inch. He did the same to my thumb and middle finger before trailing his tongue over me palm and nipping at the center.

I moaned and instinctively leaned into him, the touch of his naked, hard chest against mine fueling the fire burning through my veins. I’d long since gotten over any shyness over my nudity when Hayden had seen and explored every inch of me and when we returned to the bedroom I was happy for the seconds we didn’t need to waste removing clothing.

“Kneel down above me,” Hayden instructed as he lay down on the bed and moved me above him. “Face my cock.”

I did and moaned as I felt his hands on my ass, squeezing and massaging the firm globes.

“I’ve never seen such a perfect ass,” he murmured as he pulled my cheeks apart and pushed them back together, playing with them.

I sent him a dark look over my shoulder. “It’s the only ass you’ll be seeing from now on.”

I hissed as he chuckled and swiped his tongue over my winking hole. “It’s the only ass I’ve ever wanted to see.” He pressed a kiss to my pouting rim before sending me a heated look.

Satisfied and more than happy, I turned back to his thick cock and wrapped my hand around the base of his turgid length. It still surprised me seeing how big he was—my fingers and thumb couldn’t even meet around the length of him—and awed me knowing that he fit inside my body. That he did so perfectly.

The long length of him was marbled in a thick map of veins and the head a dark plum, pre-cum leaking from the slit at the top. I dipped my head and flicked my tongue at the translucent beads of moisture, drinking in his taste. I hummed as I captured his cock between my lips and sucked on the bulbous head. He was like coke—addictive as hell and the taste of him like liquid sunshine running through my veins—as I lapped at him, running my tongue all over the head and beneath the ridge of the spongy cap.

I took him deeper, working my way down his shaft as Hayden continued to tease my hole. His thumbs brushed over the wrinkled opening, circling the entrance he wanted to invade and then nudging at it as though testing its resistance. I clamped down tightly, wanting to tease him.

“There’s no point in trying to keep me out mate, you know I’ll have you.” I could hear the grin in his voice and smiled around his cock in response to his sweet threat.

I moaned and drew a deep breath through my nose, breathing in his scent, as he pushed his thumbs into my anus. As though pushing home the fact that my surrender was imminent, he curled his thick digits against my soft walls and pulled me open as far as he could.

I slurped back up his cock and moaned as he aimed his tongue into my widened opening and stabbed it in. My swollen belly rubbed against his chest as I arched up, rocking back against his mouth as he began fucking me with stabbing motions of his tongue.

I dipped my head back and tried to concentrate on pleasuring the fat cock in my hand through the waves of pleasure coiling through me as I licked and kissed my way down his shaft. I nudged the length of him to the side with my nose as I curled my tongue around the base and palmed his heavy balls, cupping and rolling the wrinkled sacs as I licked a hot wet trail between them. I let my saliva dribble out, running down the crack as I continued to lick and palm him. I grinned, smiling against his shaft as I felt him jolt beneath me as I brushed my fingers of his rim. There’d been a lot of exploring in the last month and a half I was putting what I’d learnt to good use.

“Look how soft your hole’s gotten, and how wet you are,” Hayden breathed against my entrance as he licked at me and rubbed his thumb over the leaking slit of my cock.

I trembled and clenched down on his tongue, drawing it deeper into my ass as he began to pump me with hard, fast strokes of his hand.

I strummed my fingers over his rim, smearing my saliva over it and tapped his entrance before suddenly arching up and crying out. Hayden had yanked his tongue from me and swiftly sank three fingers deep into my ass.

“Such a needy, hungry hole,” he chuckled roughly, his own body rocking as he crooked his fingers and brushed them over my prostate. He did it again as he worked my cock furiously. I tried to continue teasing him, tried to drive him to the edge of pleasurable insanity as he was doing to me, but it was all too much. I pulled my questing hand away and fisted the sheets as I threw my head back and screamed Hayden’s name.

“That’s it, come for me, mate,” I dimly heard Hayden growl, his voice deep and harsh with satisfaction as he continued to fuck me in the back and front through my release.

I felt my elbows give out and would have collapsed onto his hard, slick body if he hadn’t rolled me onto my back. I opened my eyes to find him above me, his hooded green eyes watching me as he lazily cleaned his cum coated hand with flicks of his raspy tongue.

I opened willingly as he sealed his mouth over mine and kissed me. I moaned as I tasted myself on him and wrapped my around behind his neck to pull him deeper against me.

I was breathless and dazed when he lifted his mouth off mine. He leaned down and cleaned my cock with licks and kisses until I pulled him back up for another kiss.

“What about you?” I asked as he pulled me against his side and pressed a kiss to my forehead. I could feel his cock against my hip, still hard and like a searing hot poker branding my skin.

He nuzzled his cheek against my hair and inhaled my scent as he did every night—as though he still needed to confirm that I was really here with him. “This time was for you, little wolf. Get some sleep. I love you, mate.”

I closed my eyes as drowsiness swept over me. I wriggled as I curled into his side, finding the safety and peace I always found there. “I love you too, Hayden.”