Chapter Four
Darkness had fallen in earnest by the time Aubrey left the school, having straightened everything she could think of, and she really couldn’t dilly dally any longer. Besides, she wouldn’t put it past him to come looking for her and to drag her off like some sort of caveman.
While the thought of being at his mercy had her pussy clenching in need—really, what was that about—she hadn’t come this far to meekly submit. Alpha or not, mate or not, she wouldn’t make this easy for him. How dare he show up at her place of work like that, as though it was his God-given right to do so.
And with flowers to boot.
Damn the man.
Aubrey grabbed the beautiful, extremely colorful bunch she’d left in the sink to water them, and made for home. It was only a short walk to her cottage. Normally speaking, having to cut across the church cemetery which stood between the school and her cottage didn’t bother her, but tonight the fine hair on her arms rose. Her deer raised her nose in the air and froze. The unmistakable scent of wolves was in the air, and it wasn’t the reassuring spicy scent of her mate’s. Like it always did when she thought of him, the mark just under her hairline throbbed, and she took strength from that connection. Besides, this was her domain, and she’d be damned if she let some she-wolf frighten her on her own turf.
The sickly sweet smell, which had decidedly wet dog undertones—a thought, which made Aubrey grin despite the malicious intent she sensed from the shadows surrounding her—intensified. Had she not been so hyper-aware tonight, she would have screeched and dropped the flowers in her hand, when the big gray wolf jumped into her path.
Not as big as Raphael by any means, and clearly female, this she-wolf was still a formidable presence as she growled low in her throat and barred Aubrey’s path. Other smaller wolves appeared until she was surrounded. Deathly quiet in their approach, they sniffed the air. Aubrey swallowed hard and tried her best to stare down the myriad of glowing eyes around her.
She wouldn’t show them fear. They might smell it on her, but she would conquer this. How fucking dare they do this? Aubrey had left all this intimidation shit behind when she left the Verene deer, and hell would freeze over before she gave in to these wolves.
“Get out of my way, wolf.”
She spun round in a circle holding that blessed bunch of flowers in front of her like some sort of shield. Not that it would do her any good if they chose to attack. To do so would break countless rules, however, and she could only hope they’d simply come to intimidate her.
This was the very reason she’d stayed out of the forest, after all. She’d known the wolves wouldn’t be happy about her mating to Raphael.
At least that answered one question she’d been pondering. His bite on her neck clearly did mark her as his, otherwise they wouldn’t have been here.
How fucking typical that was? She might very well be torn to pieces by a mob of angry wolves for being mated to their hot-as-hades Alpha, and she only had one kiss and erotic dreams for her trouble. One would think if she were to snuff it, the universe would at least have granted her a good shag with him first.
Aubrey couldn’t help it. A somewhat hysterical laugh bubbled up and burst forth. Once she started, she couldn’t stop laughing, and the wolf directly in front of her shifted into an athletic, middle-aged woman. She glared at her, arms crossed under her still far-too-perky boobs. She had to be in her fifties if the streaks of gray in her dark hair were any indication, but she was in excellent physical shape for a woman her age. Of course, she would be. Aubrey mentally rolled her eyes and sobered.
Damn bitch. That just wasn’t fair. Here Aubrey was all soft and wobbly in places she could do without, and this woman, a good thirty years her senior, was all trim and bloody perfect.
“What’s so funny, little doe?” The woman snarled that question, her eyes glowing menacingly in the dark.
Hearing those words come from her, made Aubrey see red. “Don’t you call me that, bitch.”
The older woman growled and advanced on her. Hands formed into claws, she made a menacing sight, one that would normally have made her deer cower in the corner. Sure enough, there was no way her animal was inclined to come out and play, but that was a good thing in the circumstances.
She didn’t want to taunt the wolves with venison a la carte, so to speak.
Aubrey threw the flowers at her, not that they made contact due to the she-wolf’s fast reflexes, but she had to do something.
The she-wolf laughed.
“That the best you got, you frightened little soul?”
Her handbag was next, and as the blasted woman clearly hadn’t been expecting that, it made heavy contact with her shoulder, before it clunked on the ground.
Should have put an extra brick in that.
The wolf snarled in anger, but Aubrey wasn’t done. What possessed her, she would never know, but instead of backing away, she advanced on the other woman. Hands on hips, she got right in her face until her sickly scent almost made her gag.
“I haven’t even started yet. Get out my way. This is my home, and you have no business being here, let alone try and threaten me. I’m your Alpha’s mate.”
Surprise registered briefly in the she-wolf’s eyes before she growled right in Aubrey’s face. It was enough to make her want to gag, but she forced herself not to react.
Around her, the mood shifted. It was an almost imperceptible change of surprise and grudging respect.
The wolf tried again, but a menacing and all too familiar growl from behind her made her drop her head in submission.
Raphael appeared, looking edible and murderous all rolled into one. Aubrey breathed a sigh of relief at his appearance.
“Serena, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” He gave the woman a shove as he went past her, and placing his hand on Aubrey’s nape, he took up a protective stance next to her. She couldn’t help but lean into him a little, and his wolf growled low in his throat as the man’s hold on her softened. Hells bells, the way his thumb caressed the sensitive skin under her ear… It sent all sorts of delicious shivers across her skin.
“She’s not worthy to be your mate.” Serena drew herself up to her full height and did her best to glare Aubrey into submission.
Too bad the bitch was straight out of luck, because with the scent of her mate surrounding her, his strength, warmth, and protection enveloping her, even her deer stopped being frightened.
Aubrey shook Raphael’s hand off and took a step toward Serena.
“Says the bitch who needs a breath mint and a good wash. You smell, and not in a good way. Eau de wet dog doesn’t work for canines let alone wolves.”
Serena reared back at the insult, but Aubrey wasn’t done yet.
“I told you once, and I’m not going to tell you again. Get. Out. Of. My. Way. I’m your Alpha’s mate and I demand the respect due to me. Now move.”
Heart pumping inside her chest so fast, Aubrey wasn’t at all sure she might not be in danger of fainting—which would have completely ruined what she was going for here—she waited. Much to her surprise, Raphael hung back and didn’t intervene.
His intense focus on her made her skin tingle, and she sensed his silent approval of her actions loud and clear, but he must have decided that she could handle this. In truth, Aubrey knew she had to get the other woman to back down, or this would never work, and she desperately wanted it to work.
Like it or not, she was his mate, and that meant something.
It seemed to take an interminably long time before Serena dropped her head and stepped out of the way.
Aubrey offered her a tight smile and bent down to pick up her bag and rescue her bunch of flowers, but a pretty young girl, who bore a remarkable resemblance to Serena, beat her to it. She handed her the items, bowed her head, and smiled at her.
“Here, let me, ma’am. Forgive my mother. She doesn’t take to change well. For what’s it worth, I think our Alpha chose well.”
A loud huff came from Serena before the air around her shimmered and she changed back into her wolf. The pretty young thing, too, changed back. Clutching her possessions to herself, Aubrey resumed her journey to her cottage. If she walked much faster than she normally would have done, then surely she was allowed. There was only so much confrontation and nakedness she could take on an empty stomach, especially when every one of those damn wolves was such a perfect specimen in their human form.
It just wasn’t fair and, holy crap, she was mated to one of them. After her very public declaration, she would never get rid of him now. Far more worrying was the fact that she didn’t really want to.
****
Raphael watched his mate sprint away with mixed feelings. He was so damn proud of her he thought his heart might just burst. He was also itching to tear a strip of Serena’s hide, but that would have to wait.
He had a mating to complete.
Serena bowed to her knees and presented her throat in a clear sign of submission which calmed his agitated wolf. He waved her away with a snarl, and one by one, his pack disappeared until only Collins remained behind with his new mate.
He approached head down in his wolf form and nudged Raphael’s leg.
This wasn’t my idea, boss, just so you know.
Raphael responded to him as his wolf.
I know, it’s done now. She did well, my little doe, did she not?
Raphael couldn’t keep his pride out of his response and Collins laughed, while his mate sighed.
Aye, boss, that’s she did. I take it we will not see you until the Hunt?
Raphael laughed and shook his head.
Maybe not even then. It might be too much for her yet.
Collins’s mate cleared her throat.
Speaking as a mated female, Alpha, I think she may well surprise you.
Raphael grinned and once the two wolves had sprinted off, nudging each other in the playful way only newly mated and in-love wolves were apt to, he slowly retraced his own mate’s steps.
She was silhouetted in the light spilling out from her windows and Raphael grinned to himself at the astonished expression on her face. Laying the table and adding candles to give it that romantic feel sure had been good moves on his part.
He shut the front door behind him with much more force than he needed to give her fair warning of his arrival. Even so, she still stood there, staring at the table he’d pushed in front of her open fireplace as though she’d never seen it before. The fire had gotten a good burn on it in the time that had passed for him to find out what was taking his mate so long and to get back here. She had to be too warm in the duffle coat she was still wearing over her clothes, and sure enough, beads of perspiration dotted her nose when he stepped up behind her.
“Let’s get you out of this, and I’ll put the flowers in water for you, too.” He tugged the now rather disheveled-looking bunch out of the death grip she held them in, placed them on the table with her handbag, and reached around her to undo the buttons on her coat.
She looked up at him briefly with the startled eyes of her doe and then continued to stare into the flickering flames. They threw shadows across her face, and Raphael wished he knew what she was thinking. He let his fingers linger over the buttons by her breasts, satisfied beyond measure to hear her soft inhale. The coat gave way and she helped him shrug it off her shoulders. He flung it over the back of the settee and, turning her by her shoulders, brought his hands into her hair. Another one of those soft inhales, almost a moan, came from his mate as he removed the hairpins one by one, until her glorious tresses tumbled half way down her back and hung into her cleavage. At some point, since he’d left her at the school, she must have undone the top buttons of her blouse. The creamy skin he could see, the glimpse of a shadow in her impressive cleavage, made his wolf salivate with the need to taste her. To truly make her his, until she was in no doubt that she was owned by this Alpha.
However, knowing the examples of mated ownership she would have grown up within the Verene deer, he forced the possessive animal to stand down and gently steered her to the table instead. She fell, rather than sat, in the chair he pulled out for her, and when he poured her a glass of wine which he’d left in a cooler on the table, she finally spoke.
“What is all this?”
Raphael filled his own glass and clinked it to hers.
“I would have thought that was obvious, little doe. You clearly had a hard day, and that was before that stunt Serena pulled on you.” He paused and smiled at her. It was beyond satisfying to see her this rattled. “So, I thought I would cook you some dinner and help you relax.”
He took a long swallow of the Sauvignon Blanc, and his wolf positively strutted at the way her eyes followed his every move.
“You cook, too?”
“You’d be amazed at my talents, little doe.”
Raphael winked at her, and the most endearing blush spread over her cheeks and into her cleavage. It made his fingers itch with the need to see how far down that blush went. Her breathing sped up under his silent scrutiny, and her nipples pushed against the cotton of her blouse. His dick, already at half-mast, gave up any pretense of behaving itself and punched forward with a speed that made him feel a little light headed. She noticed almost straight away, being that his crotch was in direct line with her face. Her little pink tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip, and Raphael growled a warning. Her eyes widened and her sweet musk increased, making his wolf want to explore the wetness he sensed between her legs.
The grip on the stem of his wine glass grew white-knuckled, and he forced himself to put that receptacle onto the table and take a step back, lest he gave in to the instinct to devour his mate.
“I’m going to check on our stew. It should be ready by now. Vegetable, of course, as that’s the only thing you had in.”
Aubrey’s mouth fell open in surprise, and she shook her head. “You cooked me vegetable stew, but that … surely you’re not a vegetarian?”
His wolf groaned in disgust, and Raphael forced a grim smile on his face.
“Of course not, but you are. Forcing you to eat meat would be as counterproductive as giving in to the urge I have to say “fuck the food”, bend you over this table, and bury myself balls-deep inside that nice, juicy pussy I smell all wet and ready for me.”
She gasped and went a little cross-eyed as he adjusted his dick away from his zipper with a groan of his own.
“However, that would make me a complete ass like the Verene Stags are to their mates, and I would never treat you like that.”
Aubrey blinked and went very still at that grudging admission.
“You won’t?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, but he heard her loud and clear, sensed her relief, and, if it wouldn’t completely blow his street cred, he’d have punched the air in triumph. He had read her reluctance right then.
“No, I won’t. I want an equal partner as my mate. One I can proudly call my own. A woman who gives me her submission freely because she wants to. One who challenges me at every step. One with intelligence and the inner strength to stand up to my pack and demand the respect due to her. In other words, I want you, little doe.”