Chapter Ten
Erica knew it was the right thing to do. Every time they’d made love the past few weeks, it got harder to avoid, and with Tank here now, she had to make sure she and Caleb were bonded. There was no way anyone would question them.
“Are you sure?” he asked her.
“More sure than I’ve ever been.”
He groaned and kissed her again. Erica let her wolf close to the surface and opened herself to Caleb, body and mind. He growled and she felt his wolf meet hers in a connection that transcended the physical. Her body throbbed with need for him and she pulled him down to the floor with her, not even bothering with the bed a few feet away.
They ripped at each other’s clothes, nipped at each other’s skin. When they were both naked, Caleb pushed her onto her back and dove between her legs. She was so wet already she didn’t need it, but when his tongue circled her clit, she gripped his hair and ground her pussy against his face. He growled against her, the vibrations sending her into her first orgasm.
Caleb flipped her over and tugged her ass up, entering her in one swift, smooth thrust. He pounded her at a furious pace and it wasn’t long before she felt another orgasm approaching.
“I’m going to come! Caleb, do it now.”
He leaned over her back and sank his teeth into the side of her neck, just as he exploded inside of her. The heat from his cum triggered her orgasm, and as they came together, their wolves united. Still buried inside of her, Caleb rolled onto his side, holding her tightly against him.
“I love you,” he said.
“I love you, too.”
“Now let’s get ready to deal with this ex of yours.”
****
Erica and Caleb made it to the meeting area before the others. They curled up together in their wolf forms as they waited. Soon, other pack members began to join them, forming a circle around them. It wasn’t long before a huge number of wolves had assembled, all sitting quietly and waiting. Finally, a distant howl signalled the impending arrival of the elders with Tank. Erica’s stomach hurt and she hoped this was resolved quickly. Now that they’d joined their souls, she couldn’t bear it if something happened to her mate.
The wolves parted to let a group through and Erica recognized the hulking form of Tank among them. When he and the elders shifted to human, the rest of the pack shifted, too, with Caleb and Erica the last to do so.
The mating mark throbbed on the side of her neck, more obvious in this form, and she heard a murmur spread through the crowd as the others noticed it.
“I’ve come to challenge you for the right to take Erica back to her pack where she belongs.” Tank’s voice echoed through the clearing.
Caleb stepped forward. “She is my mate. My soul mate. We are a bonded pair and you cannot break that.”
Tank laughed. “I can if I kill you.”
“Then she’ll die, too. Either way, you lose.”
Unseen hands pulled Erica back to the edge of the clearing as Caleb and Tank began to circle each other. She chewed her lip as she waited. When Tank lunged at Caleb, she gasped, but her mate easily side-stepped and landed a blow to Tank’s face. He grunted and fell back, the circling continuing.
They continued in this manner, exchanging blows, and while Caleb proved to be a skilled fighter, he couldn’t avoid every hit. After one particularly powerful blow, Caleb went down, his blood staining the snow beneath them, but just as Tank went in for another, Caleb grabbed his leg and yanked the other man to the ground. He jumped on his back and wrapped his hands around Tank’s throat. Tank bucked and tried to throw Caleb off, but he couldn’t. Tank’s movements slowed as his oxygen supply dwindled. His face became red and puffed as he struggled to get air.
Tank met Erica’s gaze, and in spite of the situation, he smirked at her. She frowned, and then her eyes widened when she realized Tank was shifting. It was against the rules of fair engagement, but Tank had proved many times he didn’t really care much for rules.
Fearing for her mate, Erica shifted and leaped into the circle between Tank and Caleb, but Tank surprised her when he turned and ran. Erica tore after him, but he had a head start and he’d always been faster. Within moments though, several wolves from Caleb’s pack, including Caleb, sped past her. They pursued Tank as far as Caleb’s parents’ house, but they were too late. He’d made it into his car before they got there and managed to peel out of the driveway and down the road.
Caleb and his enforcers shifted back to human and stood watching. Erica caught up a moment later and went to stand beside her mate.
“Should we try to chase him?” Caleb asked.
Erica would have loved to say yes, but at this rate they’d never catch up. “Let him go. He’ll have to live with himself and his cowardice.” She slipped her arms around him and squeezed. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
He kissed her forehead. “I had something worth fighting for. There was no way I was going to lose.”
“He’s already taken so much from me, I couldn’t help but worry.” She buried her face against his neck, inhaling his scent to reassure herself.
“I was thinking,” Caleb said. “Maybe we should go down and get your sons. Bring them back here.”
Her breath caught. “Are you serious? Even though they’re not yours?”
He stroked her cheek and she leaned into his touch. “If they’re part of you, they’re part of me. I know how hard it must have been for you to leave them.”
Hope filled Erica. “I love you, Caleb.”
“I love you, too.”
As they made their way back to their house, Erica felt like maybe she’d get to have her happy little family after all.