One wolf in particular stepped out of the group before it shifted and she was staring at a naked, stitched up Brody Jericho. To be honest, Fallon really didn’t mind the nakedness. Impure thoughts about neighboring wolves does not a faithful mate make!
Both Cree and Cade paced back and forth, obviously looking for a sign of aggression but Fallon shook her head and they ceased, sitting patiently as she shifted and raised a brow at the man, “You look like a Home Ec. project.”
He didn’t crack a smile. “That’s due to Mason. We had a...disagreement or sorts.”
Fallon folded her arms across her chest. “About?”
“Wilder land.” He answered simply.
Growls rose from the wolves behind her and she put up a hand to stop them. “You may want to find your point quickly, Jericho.” This debate was getting really old really quickly and although she hadn’t heard anything out of Mason or Aaron for a few days now, that didn’t mean shit wouldn’t hit the fan soon enough.
“The disagreement ended with me pushing him out of the pack, Fallon.” Brody softly retorted. “Both he and Aaron are gone.”
His admission led to silence. Head tilting, Fallon questioned, “Why would you do that?”
He shrugged. “Wilder land is just that—Wilder land. That battle happened before any of us were even here so it’s no one’s place to try and rewrite history. Your territory is your territory. Point. Blank. And I rather have you as an ally than an enemy.” Brody scratched at the stitches on his chest. “Besides, my brothers are assholes.”
Her lips curved. “Look at you, Mr. Diplomat.” The newly positioned alpha had always seemed to have more sense than his siblings, now she was realizing just how much.
Winking, he replied, “Not diplomatic, just opportunistic.” He then lifted a hand and snapped his fingers. His pack mates all turned and walked back into their side of the forest. He started to follow but turned back, gold eyes glittering at her beneath thick rust colored hair, “Also, just because I pushed them out, it doesn’t mean they won’t still try the bullshit they had planned. They’re stupid and desperate. What they may perceive as a betrayal by the rest of the Jericho pack could turn into a vendetta against us all. Watch your back, Fallon. ”
She nodded and with a small smile Brody shifted once again before taking off and disappearing into the copse of trees surrounding them.
With a hard exhale, she turned back to her pack mates. “Let’s go find that buck again eh?” The howls that answered let her know that her plan sounded good enough to them.
***
“So you want to mate our little Fallon eh?”
Ransom lifted wide eyes from the tray of food before him, thanking God and whoever else would listen that he’d chosen to come to this wonderful, wonderful place. Fallon’s pack mates had taken him and Maddox to a little bar that they had set up deeper into the lodge; complete with sports on every T.V. and beer. The wings weren’t even chicken, they were turkey! Effin’ turkey wings! And the sauce had an unholy amount of honey in it! When they brought out the deer wontons he thought he would start crying.
Makya obviously hadn’t been shitting him about the wonders of their food. And Ransom hadn’t been kidding when he’d sworn his loyalty. How could he not? The man handed him nirvana on a plate!
“I don’t want to mate her,” He said finally answering Anoki’s question. “I’m going to mate her.”
The wolf snorted and looked to his older brother. “Paddington is quite sure isn’t he?”
Ransom pointed a finger at Anoki. “I’m not loyal to you.” He swung that finger to Makya. “I’m loyal to him, because he’s chosen to feed me. I’ll rip your little furry head off and keep it as a keychain charm...like a rabbit’s foot...or a monkey paw.”
Makya started to laugh. “Fallon needs to keep him. He makes me laugh, and not just at him.”
Maddox, who’d been face first in a gallon of that honey-berry ice cream, looked up. “Can someone convince Cree to keep me too?”
All three men gazed at each other before answering with a simultaneous, “No.”
Ransom’s brother threw up his hands. “Why not?”
“Because she doesn’t like you.” Anoki candidly replied. “And when Cree doesn’t like someone she gets annoyed quickly at the sight of them.”
“And her annoyance is scary.” Makya added.
“Very, very, scary.” Anoki shuddered. “We choose not to say what happens to those who annoy her.” His dark stare seemed to be examining Maddox’s face. “But I’m guessing you’ve already gotten a taste of that.”
“Just twenty-five or so stitches. Nothing to bitch over.” Maddox shrugged before going back to that ice cream.
Makya’s brows rose as he looked to Ransom who simply shook his head. “If you ask the question that you’re thinking of, the answer will scar you.”
“I have this one as a sibling.” He gestured to Anoki. “There’s not much that can disturb me.”
“I choose to take that as the compliment I know it was meant to be.” Said sibling responded. “Because I understand that your love for me runs deeply and sometimes it’s hard for you to express it.”
Makya’s mouth twisted as he put his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “And I understand that sometimes you need a hug...from the floor.” Then he shoved the younger wolf out of his chair, causing him to bang his head on the table as he went down hard.
“You son of a bitch!”
Ransom barely refrained from choking on a wing as he laughed.
“Now,” Makya stated calmly. “You’re going to mark Fallon right?”
He nodded. “If she’ll let me, yes.”
The wolf smirked. “She allowed you to carry her in daylight through the lodge, and your legs still work so I’m thinking, yes, she’ll let you.” He leaned forward and his eyes slowly changed into the same canine gold that Fallon’s did when she shifted. “But be aware that if you ever make her regret that decision, I will fuck your existence up beyond all recognition, Pooh Bear. Then I’ll wipe you from the face of the Earth and use your coat as a snuggly blankey for my young when I finally settle down. Are we understanding each other?”
Impressed more than annoyed by the low threat, Ransom nodded. “Completely and totally, Balto.”
Anoki pulled himself up. “And that goes double for me, Koda.”
Ransom didn’t really mind it when Makya kicked the little bastard back down to the floor again, ignoring his bellowed, “You should’ve been smothered as a pup!”
Chapter 15
“What do we do now?”
Mason’s lip curled as he swung around to face his brother and the rest of the pack members that had followed him as Brody and his band of pussies pushed them out and off Jericho land. “What?”
Aaron didn’t flinch from his barked question. It seemed the little bastard was gaining some confidence. Mason would have to crush that. His baby brother was pliable, easily controlled. He’d always been that way and Mason needed him to stay as such if he were going to put his plans into action. Whether he meant to or not Brody had ironically paved the way for him to continue on with what he’d originally intended—catching Fallon off guard. If he wanted this to go smoothly, he’d need to keep the leash tightened on his sibling.
Aaron was weak, had always been a follower, Mason’s personal toy that he could play with at any time; manipulate the same way he’d do an action figure. That was the only reason he hadn’t snapped his neck and left him behind.
“Don’t question me, boy.” Mason growled. “You follow and keep your goddamn mouth shut.” They’d been wandering through the countryside since the sunset, looking for a good enough place to settle down and hoping for a cave that was far enough away from Wilder and Jericho territory that they wouldn’t be noticed. He was in no mood to deal with an ungrateful whelp.
The younger wolf drew himself up to his full height. “You can’t just tell me to—”
Mason had his hand around Aaron’s throat before Aaron could
say another word, shaking him the same way Brody had shook himjust hours ago.
The surge of power from this one act of control overrode the embarrassment that motherfucker had caused. “I could kill you and leave your ass to rot here before walking away like you never existed. Don’t think because I let Brody slip past with that shit he pulled that I won’t take your throat right now!” He shook him harder, resisting the urge to go with his instinct to kill. He needed to hurt something; make it bleed.
The other wolves around them stared but didn’t speak, obviously choosing to watch the scene play out before they decided their next course of action. They’d followed him this far and if he wanted to remain the alpha here he needed to exert control. Mason may not have been stronger than Brody but he was damn sure he was the strongest one out of this group. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t rise against him at the slightest sign of weakness.
“Alright...” Aaron croaked, clawing at his hand to make it release. Mason pressed down harder until he thought he made his point, then he let him go.
“Don’t forget who rules here. I’m not our older brother. There’s no mercy in me.” He spat, turning his back and walking forward. “I’ll kill you before I let you believe you actually mean something in the grand scheme of things.”
Mason smirked a bit when he heard the other wolves chuckle as one said, “Guess we know who the omega is...”
***
It wasn’t the howling that woke her per se—although she was getting really tired of that being the reason her sleep was interrupted—it was the fact that it was bad howling at three a.m., courtesy of a grizzly.
“Jesus Christ.” Fallon stumbled from her bedroom towards her front door and swung it open to find two wolves and two bears standing side by side with their arms thrown over each other’s shoulders as they swayed and the one at the end threw his head back and howled.
“Lord on high...”
Ransom gave her a crooked grin as he broke apart from the men and wobbled towards her. “Anoki said...I should...I should serenade you.” His smile widened. “That’s how wolves do it right?”
Her brows rose toward her pack mate. “Why did you break my bear?”
“I’m not broken.” Ransom slurred. His eyes narrowed. “Or at least I don’t...think I am.” He swayed forward, then backward as he patted himself down. “Nope! Not broken!”
“Shh!” Fallon slapped a hand over his mouth and glared at Makya. “What did you do?”
The head beta of her pack grinned. “We gave him some man time!”
“Yeah!” Anoki and Maddox cheered, fists in the air.
“Before you lock him down...and...and...he’s not fun anymore.” Maddox added before sighing and mournfully saying, “He won’t be fun anymore.”
She rolled her eyes. When she’d looked for Ransom after her hunt and found a note saying that he was going to have a plate of nirvana and a little male conversation she hadn’t really thought much of it. Exhausted from chasing down that buck and finally catching it she’d simply showered and fell into bed, leaving the door unlocked being that she knew her grizzly would be back later. Now she was wishing she’d dragged him back herself because clearly he couldn’t be trusted in the paws of her beloved pack.
Anoki gave her a sad stare. “We all know what happens to a man...after he’s been mated.” He waved a hand and all four males said, “Dickless.” Even Ransom, whose mouth was still covered by her palm.
“Who said anything about mating?” Fallon hissed. “We haven’t even discussed it.”
“But we all know it’s bound to happen.” Makya wagged a finger at her and kept wagging it, seemingly unable to control his hand. “And once it does...”
Even though his voice trailed off all four men once again chanted, “Dickless.”
She prayed for patience. “All three of you need to go back to your cabins and sleep it off.”
“See?” Maddox spun in a circle, his arms out. “It’s started already. Getting rid of,” he hiccupped, “your mate’s friends when he was just having a little man time.”
And as a group, they shook their collective heads before all she heard was, “Dickless.”
“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Fallon rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Go before you wake up the residents!” Although she kept her pack’s cabins separate from the main lodge, she still didn’t want them stumbling around and disturbing the guests.
“Fine.” Anoki stated. “But we just want you to know—” He didn’t complete that sentence because he tipped over and face planted in the dirt.
“I got him...I got him...” Maddox waved his arms and shuffled over to the wolf. The moment he bent over as if to reach down, he pitched forward also, hitting the ground with a thump.
Fallon winced and looked to Makya who—to her annoyance and amusement—had passed out up against her porch.
“Jesus be a fence...” She muttered before turning her gaze to Ransom who was humming a song that distinctly sounded like a Barry White tune while he rocked with his eyes closed.
Sighing, she grabbed his hand. “Bedtime now, baby.”
He blinked those gorgeous eyes at her. “Are we going to be naked?”
Fallon could only smile.
***
He would never drink again. Okay, correction, he would never drink with those goddamn pack mates of Fallon’s again.
Ransom rolled to his side and tried to shield his eyes from the sunlight blaring through Fallon’s bedroom windows. He swallowed once then gagged. “God. The inside of my mouth tastes like sandpaper and ass sandwiches...”
When he heard a snort from the doorway, he looked up to find his she-wolf there, a small smile in place as she stood in nothing but a basketball jersey that fell to the middle of her thighs. “There’s an extra toothbrush on the bathroom counter along with aspirin and a bottle of water.”
“Adore. You.” Ransom murmured, stumbling out of the bedroom and into the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, after a shower, what felt like a whole tube of toothpaste and an obscene amount of mouthwash, he lumbered back to bed and slid beneath the comforter.
Fallon came in and slipped behind him, putting an arm around his waist and she cuddled up to his naked back. “What lesson did we learn from this, baby?”
“Never drink with wolves because canines are evil?”
She pressed a kiss to his shoulder but he sensed it was more so to keep from laughing at him. “That would be right.”
He linked their fingers. “I knew it couldn’t go well when Anoki pulled out that bottle of 151 and screamed, ‘Tonight we drink like men!’”
Fallon did laugh then, rolling around until he turned over to glare at her. “It’s not funny!”
“It is!” She gasped.
Ransom pouted. “But I feel bad.”
Still chuckling, she ran a cool hand over his jaw. “My poor, snuggle bear.”
“You’re gonna start calling me that now aren’t you?”
Her grin was all mischief. “Mebbe...”
Smiling back, he pulled her to his side of the bed. “You know technically my last day here is tomorrow.”
Fallon’s eyes were focused on where her fingertips traced patterns on his chest. “Really?”
He nodded. “Yes, but I was thinking...”
“Mmm-hmm?”
“That I could possibly work something out with the owner,” His hands ran up beneath the hem of her jersey, grabbing the round globes of her ass and squeezing until her breath left her in a gasp. “And maybe she’ll extend my stay for a few days...weeks...months...”
Huge brown eyes focused on his as her lips tugged upwards into an indulgent expression. “Being that I know her personally, I may be able to put in a good word for you...talk you up a bit.”
“Will you now?” Ransom sat up, allowing her to straddle him as he lifted the one thing covering her and tossed it across the room. “I feel like there’s a catch.” He pressed his lips to her shoulder and suckled there before lightly bitin
g down.
Fallon moaned in his ear. “Oh, there is.”
“Which would be what?” He murmured, rocking her hips over his now hard cock and feeling her need wet his length as she moved against him.
That smirk returned in all its wicked glory. “A half a dozen orgasms or so should do the trick.”
The last vestiges of his control snapped and he ran a hand through her hair before pulling her head down so their lips could meet in a brutal kiss; teeth nipping, tongues dueling. He nibbled her bottom rim then sucked it into his mouth until she panted.
Ransom ran his hands up her sides before cupping her breasts in his palms, purposely keeping away from her nipples until she growled and pulled back from their kiss. “Stop playing with me.”
He firmly gripped her hand again and tugged her head back then worked his tongue up her throat. Reaching just below the lobe, he growled, “You dominate outside of this bed, baby. But inside is my domain.” He dragged her head down for another kiss and barely contained a groan when the evil she-devil reached between the two of them to take his cock in her hand, her grip unyielding as she stroked him from base to tip, moaning into his mouth.
Ransom took both her wrists and pinned them with one hand behind her back as he put his dick between her soaked folds and rubbed across her clit. “Now exactly whose domain is this?” He asked in a rough whisper.
Fallon gritted her elongated canines. “Yours.”
He rubbed her nubbin harder. “I’m sorry, baby. I couldn’t hear you. One more time please?”
“Yours!” She screamed as he pinched down on the bundle of nerves, causing her core to overflow with her essence; the sticky sweet substance running down his hand and cock.
Ransom reached over to her nightstand where he’d stored a fresh pack of condoms yesterday before leaving her cabin to get slightly drunk with his brother and those sneaky wolves. In seconds he had it rolled down his length and Fallon impaled on it as she rode him into her second orgasm.
By her third, he let go of her wrists and gripped her ass, spreading her further apart as he pounded upwards until she broke again with a small sob. “That’s only four, Fal.” He growled. “Give me two more.”
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