by DJ Phoenix
Cynthia found herself passed from one set of arms to another as one by one the elders stood to welcome her into their pack. The most interesting of all being Natalia’s embrace. As the woman’s arms wrapped around Cynthia, she felt her wolf bristle at the contact, and cold settled in her bones. She knew then that Natalia would never accept her as Luke’s mate. It made Cynthia wonder if the woman had feelings for Luke. She really hoped not, a woman scorned was a force to be reckoned with, and Cynthia wasn’t going to roll over and let some hussy try and take her man. Her wolf agreed, and to Cynthia’s surprise growled in her head, “Ours.” Cynthia agreed.
The elders took their seats again and looked at both Luke and Cynthia expectantly. Luke’s voice, deep and baritone, rang through the room. “The pack as a whole will pledge their allegiance and fealty to their Alpha female right after the bonding ceremony. Then we will run as a pack. Festivities will take place after the pack run.”
They all responded in unison. “Yes, Alpha.”
Luke squeezed Cynthia’s hand gently but subtly. “You are all dismissed. Natalia, can you let my four and Margaret know that I’m ready for them now.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
The door closed and they were left standing at the head of the conference table. Cynthia let out a breath she hadn’t even realized she had been holding, and then sagged onto the chair behind her.
Luke kneeled in front of her. His eyes searched hers as his hands slid up and down her arms, giving Cynthia much needed warmth. “Are you alright? Believe that I meant everything I said. Anyone who neglects to respect you as their Alpha female will forfeit their life. They will die by my hand; I will not let anyone hurt you, directly or otherwise. You are my world and mine to protect. Do you understand that? I have a responsibility to protect and provide for my pack, but you come before any of them.” His knuckles graced her cheekbone and his gaze became intense. “I love you. You complete me. You drove away the loneliness and emptiness that I had been living with. Know that I will always be yours and you mine.”
A tear rolled down Cynthia’s cheek at his declaration. He swiftly caught it with his knuckles and gently pressed his lips to hers, his hands tenderly holding either side of her face. It was a tender and gentle kiss, but it was full of promises. Cynthia’s stomach flip flopped and she parted her lips, granting him entrance. Slowly their tongues entwined; they danced a slow seductive rhythm that mimicked what he no doubt wanted to be doing to her. She took it all in, hungry for all those promises he was silently making. She would remind him of them later when he could make good on all he had promised.
Chapter 19
Cynthia
A knock at the door pulled them from their kiss.
Luke stood, holding his hand out for her to stand. Understanding that it was a declaration to those arriving, that she was now above all other members of the pack, Cynthia took his offered hand. It was a way to take a stand and show she was strong enough to lead with her mate. As soon as they were both standing, Luke gave the command for whoever was on the other side of the door to enter.
A petite brunette opened the door, crossing the threshold with confident strides. Straight hair fell to her shoulders, layers framing her round face. She was beautiful, with a pert nose, delicately arched eyebrows, and long, full eyelashes that lined her kind eyes. She bared her throat to Luke, and then her aquamarine eyes took in their joined hands. She took a subtle sniff of the air and, instantly, a genuine smile decorated her full, heart-shaped lips. She looked at Cynthia and bared her throat to her, too, then walked toward the front of the table, taking a seat on the third chair to Cynthia’s right.
Two men walked in shortly after, baring their necks to their Alpha as they crossed the threshold. Both were tall, about the same height as Luke. Strong, wide shoulders and thick necks made both men look like wrestlers. Their legs were long with muscled thighs distinguishable through the denim of their jeans. One had sandy hair cut short at the sides, but had enough length on top to give it a clean, messy style. His eyes were topaz brown, lined by long eyelashes that grazed his cheeks when he blinked, and angular eyebrows that matched the color of his hair. He was handsome in that boyish look kind of way. He surreptitiously looked at their joined hands and took a seat on the second chair to Luke’s left. The second man had straight brown hair pulled back and tied by a leather cord at the nape of his neck. His eyes were an intense, rich amber. His face looked like it had been chiseled by a Greek god, except it had no hint of expression. He had an air of danger to him, and seemed a bit rough around the edges. He walked straight to the first chair to Luke’s left and took a seat.
Not far behind, another member of Luke’s four, as he called them, entered the room. He was the tallest Cynthia had seen so far, taller than Luke by at least two inches. His muscles were long and lean. He had a square jaw, thin lips, and a straight nose. His eyes were deep set and an astounding jet black, matching the color of his rounded eyebrows and close-trimmed goatee. His head was shaved bald, and he had a pierced ear where a diamond stud sparkled in the room’s fluorescent light. He, too, entered the room and bared his throat to Luke then took a seat to Margaret’s left.
Matt entered the room last, closing the door behind him. He smiled mischievously and strode to the front of the room, taking the first seat to Cynthia’s right. He whispered a hello to her then quieted when Luke growled low.
Luke cleared his throat and the new comers all looked to their Alpha expectantly. “I want to take this time to introduce you to your Alpha female, and my mate, Cynthia Whelan, and soon to be Cynthia Andrews. Cynthia, this is my second, Evan Yates.” He pointed to the first chair to his left. “This is my third, Dan Cruz.” He motioned to the second chair to his left. “And this is my fourth, James Randolph.” He motioned to the chair between Matt and the only other woman in the room. “And next to him is my assistant and pack secretary, Margaret Fairfax.”
They all nodded their heads slightly at Cynthia, and Luke unceremoniously moved on. “I’m sure you have all noticed we are blood bonded. This coming full moon Jack will officiate the bonding ceremony before the pack. As is customary, we will all shift and run together as a pack, and a celebration will follow the run. Because Cynthia is not full blooded, her wolf has been dormant. However, with the pull of the full moon and the magic of the bonding ceremony sealing our blood bond, her wolf will come forward. This will be Cynthia’s first time shifting. I will be guiding her through the process, and you will be watching our backs.
“Our pack has been peaceful, and we all have learned how to get along for a long time now, but I won’t take any chances when it comes to my mate. She will officially be your Alpha female after the bonding ceremony; she is above all others in this pack, and gets your unconditional loyalty, respect, and full protection. The pack will pledge their oath of fealty during the bonding ceremony. However, today I ask you to break tradition. Will you swear your fealty and protection to my mate today?”
Silence encompassed the room and, for a moment, Cynthia thought Luke’s request would go unanswered. Truthfully, she didn’t quite understand why this pledge was such a big deal, yet her wolf told her it was. When she was beginning to think no one would respond, Matt bared his throat once more and stood. To Cynthia’s surprise, he pulled his t-shirt over his head and kicked off his shoes. When his hands reached for his belt buckle Cynthia squeaked, and covered her face with her hands.
Luke chuckled and pulled her hands down. “It’s okay, love. He is going to shift so he can pledge his fealty. It is done in wolf form.”
By the time Cynthia reopened her eyes Matt was stepping out of his jeans. He stood naked as the day he was born. The others were in the process of undressing too, even Margaret; she had already taken off her blouse and was currently working on her pencil skirt. Cynthia tried not to stare, finding the concept of all of them being okay with undressing in front of each other absolutely odd. Cynthia couldn’t help wondering what she had gotten herself into, and most importantly, w
ould she have to do the same? She was by no means an exhibitionist, and would most definitely be mortified to stand naked in front of others.
The cracking of bones and a grunt pulled Cynthia from her worries. She turned to look at Matt, and where a man had once stood, a wolf with a gray and white coat was stretching. She swept her eyes across the room and embarrassingly found all of Luke’s four and Margaret in some kind of shifting phase. Knowing they were willing to welcome her even though she was not a full-blooded shifter like any other woman of the pack Luke could have chosen as a mate warmed her heart toward the five shifting wolves.
In a matter of minutes five wolves stood lined against the wall to her right. From what she was able to tell, Matt was first in line and closest to her. Next stood a wolf with dark-brown fur and a black snout and paws that looked like he was wearing socks; she assumed that was Luke’s second, Evan. Next to him stood a fully tan-colored wolf with the same color eyes as Dan, Luke’s third. An almost fully black wolf, except for the slight gray undertones of its fur stood next in line; a look at the obsidian eyes staring back at her confirmed it was Luke’s fourth, James. A smaller brown wolf, the color of milk chocolate, with aquamarine eyes stood last in line—Margaret. They were all beautiful, and all radiated power.
Luke stepped away from Cynthia and approached each wolf, placing his large hand on the top of each of their heads. “I am your Alpha, and I am pleased with each of you, as I am pleased with the men and the woman you coexist with. You have all pledged your fealty to me and have done good on your pledge up until now. I ask you now to pledge that same fealty to my mate, your Alpha female under the blood bond rite. Do you pledge your fealty to Cynthia Whelan?”
Cynthia waited by the end of the table as Luke addressed the wolves in the room. She knew Luke would never allow any harm to come to her, but she could still feel the claws of the wolf that had attacked her digging into her flesh. The fear kept her rooted to that spot as she fought to overcome it.
After Luke had finished speaking, he motioned for Cynthia to come to him. Cynthia had a minute to doubt she could do what he requested, but her wolf chose that moment to take the wheel. Cynthia felt her presence in her mind and strength fill her muscles. The fear that had started when the wolves were shifting dissipated, and she confidently walk to Luke’s side.
Luke pulled away slightly and searched her eyes. He must have found what he was looking for, because he nodded and stepped away, grabbing hold of her hand. “This will be very simple. Each wolf just needs to sniff you to commit your scent to memory, and then they will roll and show you their belly, the most vulnerable part of the wolf. You just have to stand and let them do their part. Then when they show you their belly you must say, ‘I, your Alpha Female, accept your pledge of fealty and make my own pledge to care for you, to protect you, and to provide for you as my own.’ That will complete their pledge to you and yours to them. Ready?”
Cynthia nodded, and Luke placed her in front of the line of wolves. He stood beside her through the whole ordeal and never let her hand go.
One by one each wolf came up to Cynthia. She held on and took comfort in the warmth of Luke’s hand. Each wolf sniffed a couple times and, when they rolled to their back, showing her their belly, Cynthia repeated the words Luke had told her. As she acknowledged each wolf’s pledge, there was a tug in her heart; it wasn’t in anyway as strong or even comparable to what she felt for Luke. It was more like a light electrical current of sorts. A bond was being formed, and in that instant, she knew each of the wolves would give their life for her, and she for them.
By the time Margaret came up to pledge her fealty, Cynthia understood that she had never been meant to live the life she had headed off to after college. She had never been fully happy or whole because, in all that time, she had been missing the ties that come with being part of a pack.
Cynthia hadn’t realized tears had been streaming down her cheeks until Luke caught a stray drop with his thumb. She smiled at him, trying to reassure him they were happy tears. “I’m … just sentimental. I feel them … I feel a connection somehow.”
Luke smiled and pulled her into his arms. “It’s the Alpha pack bond. It will get stronger when we perform the bonding ceremony and the rest of the pack pledges their fealty. We share a special bond with each of them; that’s how we can care for them and protect them as is our duty.”
As Cynthia stepped away from Luke, the wolves were in mid shift again, each one by their folded pile of clothes. She averted her eyes, not wanting to stare at their nakedness, even though they were quite beautiful to look at. So far, every member of the pack she had met was gorgeous; it was like a shifter thing or something. There had to be something really odd about the humans that lived amongst them if they hadn’t noticed the whole lot of them looked like runway models.
Once in human form again, each wolf bared their neck to Cynthia. She wasn’t really sure what the protocol was for such thing so she did as she had seen Luke do, she nodded her head slightly, hopefully in show of acceptance. They each took their seats and fixed their eyes on their Alpha couple. What they waited for, Cynthia really had no clue. Thankfully, Luke addressed the group. “If there is nothing else …” He paused, waiting to see if any of them had anything to say.
Mat cleared his throat. “Luke, is there any reason to be concerned about this month’s run? I understand that, as all mates do, you want to protect Cynthia, but is there anything else?”
Luke tensed slightly next to Cynthia. “I have no reason to think anything is wrong, but … my gut tells me that I need to take every precaution possible. That is all.”
Mat nodded slightly. “Very well then, I just wanted to make sure we are all on the same page.”
Margaret opened a file she had in front of her, and pulled out a form. “Luke, I need your signature here; it’s the lease for the Deer Lane cabin. I also need your signature on this one …” She shifted another paper that looked like a bill. “This one’s the invoice for the supplies we ordered for the upkeep of the last three cabins.”
“Is there anything else?” Luke scanned the room, looking at each of his four and Margaret.
Evan leaned his chair back and cleared his throat. “Um … well, the prisoner has been asking to see you. She has been refusing food, says she won’t eat until she talks to you.”
Luke rubbed his hand over his face, and then rested his hands on the back of the chair in front of him. “I tolerated having her in front of me during the trial and I didn’t rip her throat out. She should be grateful for that. I have nothing left to say to her, and any pleading will get her nothing. She will eat eventually. If there’s something I know about our prisoner, it’s that she loves herself too much; she won’t let herself die. We will meet tomorrow at ten to go over pack business, and to review the up-keep of the rental cabins.” With that, Luke dismissed the meeting.
Mat stood and hugged Cynthia. “Welcome to our pack, Cynthia. Luke is a lucky bastard.” That made Cynthia laugh, and Luke frowned at Mat.
Margaret was next to pull Cynthia into a tight hug. “I am so glad he found you. If you need anything, and I mean anything, just let me know.”
Cynthia smiled back at the petite woman. “Thank you.” When Margaret released her, Cynthia noticed the other three males stood with Luke a few steps away.
They all approached her as Margaret walked away. Luke introduced the three males to her again. “Cynthia, this is my second Evan Yates, my third, Dan Cruz, and my fourth, James Randolph.” Cynthia shook their hands firmly and smiled. Dan had a warm smile that reached his eyes, but the other two were hard to read, their gazes so intense Cynthia could swear the predator in them stared right at her; it was disconcerting, yet somehow, she knew they would give their life to protect her.
Chapter 20
Luke
A weight had lifted from his shoulders as his four and Margaret pledged their fealty to Cynthia. He didn’t know why, but he knew it was imperative he had Cynthia protected at all ti
mes. He was going to have to leave her side eventually, so he could take care of pack business, but he would always have someone watching her; he had to, something told him as much. His pack had evolved from the primitive thinking they had clung to for so long. In the past one hundred years, they had become more welcoming of the humans they shared this land with, learning to value and see them as more than barbarians and a nuisance toward their kind. He just couldn’t shake the feeling that Cynthia being half shifter would not sit well with some. He knew Natalia was one of them; he had seen the irritation flash briefly in her eyes before she could hide it. He wouldn’t say anything just yet, though. He had to be sure of who posed a threat first.
For now, he couldn’t contain the pride he felt at having Cynthia by his side. She had an amazing inner strength hiding within, and he was going to make sure she embraced it. He knew someone had hurt her. That thought made him growl deep in his chest, but he quickly reined it in; it wouldn’t be good to scare her with his protectiveness. He would find the person or persons that had hurt her, though. He would find them and make them pay for hurting what was his. Nodding to himself, he focused on Cynthia again and pulled her into his arms. His four and Margaret had left the room, and he had promises to keep. So, he led his mate out to the hallway and toward his private elevator.
In his office’s private quarters, Luke made good on all the promises he had made earlier. As he held his mate skin to skin, he knew he would never get enough of her; he needed her, her touch, her scent, the peace that only she brought him, he needed all of it like he needed air. They stayed there, basking in each other’s warmth all afternoon until Cynthia’s stomach rumbled.