by Leila Vy
After his warriors went behind us, I had nowhere to look but what was in front of me—a bunch of trees. Therefore, I turned to the next best thing. I looked at Titus.
“How long are we going to run for?” I asked as I watched his soft silky black hair flowing back as he ran.
“We are almost to our vehicles. From there, we will travel to human territory and take a plane back to Paris,” he said.
“Is your hair naturally black?” I blurted out as I watched the way his face twitch to almost a smile before it was quickly gone again.
“Yes,” he said.
“It’s beautiful,” I replied.
“Mate, it is anything but beautiful. I am not a beautiful male,” he said with a frown on his perfectly sculpted face.
“Can you put me down so I can run with you guys?” I asked.
“No.”
“Bu—”
“No.”
“Wh—”
“I said no,” he said heatedly, and the muscle in his cheek twitched. Angry temperamental alphas. I huffed and turned to look at the scenery in front of me. If he didn’t want to listen, we could remain silent all the way. I just wanted to get to know him better.
There was no denying that the moment Titus touched me at the game, there was a strange bond between us. It was almost as if he was my mate. When Kyle touched me, it left a cool tingling sensation after, but when Titus touched me, it was like a burning trail of heat. This was definitely different and something I couldn’t figure out on my own.
After staring and counting how many trees we had passed, I fell asleep. It was like counting sheep.
When I woke up, I was on a soft bed. I realized we were on a plane. I stood up and felt a little dizzy before walking to the door and sliding it open. The minute I stepped out, I was met with people staring back at me.
I felt intimidated under their heated gaze, but I held my chin high and walked towards one of the empty seats across from Titus. I thought I was handling everything well until I tripped on an object and went tumbling right into Titus’s lap.
He let out a growl, and everyone turned away. I was pretty sure I was blushing beet red by now.
“I am so sorry,” I said, trying to get off his lap.
“Remove your hand, Patience,” he said, his voice deeper than normal. I glanced down and saw just exactly where they were. The sudden thick large hardness I felt underneath had my face on fire. My hands pulled away immediately.
“Oh, god.” I covered my face with my hands. I heard him chuckle, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I turned around on my feet and walked back into the cabin I had originally emerged from.
When I was safely inside behind the closed sliding door, I fell onto the bed and buried my face into my blanket.
“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid,” I quietly muttered as I pounded the bed.
“What are you doing?” Titus asked. I whipped around to see him staring at me, his lips twitching in amusement. Goddess, even with him fighting off a smile, he was gorgeous. This man was sinfully created to tempt me.
“Nothing,” I said quietly and stood up to meet him head-on. What was done was done. I had to face my embarrassment.
He smirked, and his blue eyes stared right into mine as if he was seeking the truth from me or willing me to blush again. Either way, I was not bending.
His eyes sparkled with laughter, and he looked at me as if he could see me completely naked in front of him.
“I am sorry that I—I touch your thingie,” I stuttered and mentally kicked myself for sounding not confident.
“Thingie?” He arched an eyebrow as he moved, so he was standing only a hairsbreadth away from me, forcing me to embrace the heat of his body and the seductive sensation radiating between us. I swallowed the embarrassing lump in my throat as I looked up at him.
“Yes, your thing. Your guy thing,” I said, and his lips turned up into a devious smirk as he leaned down, so his lips were barely touching mine.
“I don’t understand, mate. What guy thingie?” He prodded further. I huffed and ran my tongue over my teeth in annoyance. His eyes dropped to my lips as I did so.
His sweet scent wrapped around me and I was feeling a little light-headed.
“Interesting. Care to elaborate, ma cherie?” He teased further.
“Oh, for Moon Goddess’ sake, your cock,” I spat out, and his eyes lit up as he threw his head back and laughed. I pouted and moved to step away from him, but he wrapped his arms around me. I felt his chest rumble as he laughed. He hid his face in the crook my neck, and I leaned into his body.
When he was done laughing, he turned me around with his arms still wrapped around me.
“It is completely fine, Patience. Je suis tout à toi. (I am all yours.) You can touch me all you want,” he whispered huskily before his lips came down on mine.
Chapter Ten
When Titus pulled back from the kiss, I looked into his stormy blue eyes that were staring down at me intensely. His eyes were roaming my face as if he was memorizing everything by heart. His hand came up to cup both of my cheeks and pulled me closer so that our noses were touching.
“You are so beautiful, Patience,” he whispered huskily. His smell, his touch, and his words had my stomach all filled with crazy butterflies and my knees feeling weak.
“You are too,” I whispered, and the corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk.
“Alpha.” A male voice and a knock came from the other side of the door. We both turned to look at it before I stepped back from his embrace only for him to pull me back into his arms.
“What is it?” he asked, still looking down at me.
“We are landing in ten minutes.” He informed us. Titus answered him and then wrapped his arms around my shoulders.
“Let’s get you seated,” he said and walked me out the door into the seat next to him where he made sure to strap in my belt.
I looked at the group of warriors, and when Titus saw me watching them, he spoke, pointing the one to the right. “This is Gamma Noor, Aaron, Richie, Frank, Gerald, and Tom. My beta is not here with me. He is at home, watching the pack while we left for the game.”
“Everyone will be excited,” Noor spoke as he looked at me with amusement.
“Why?” I asked.
“We finally got ourselves a luna,” he said excitedly.
That reminds me, I still haven’t found out what happened to Titus’s mate. The thought of it brought a sickening jealous feeling in the pit of my stomach.
“It is gratifying to meet our luna first before everyone else,” Frank, who looked a tad older than everyone, spoke next.
“Every year, he goes to the hunting game and comes back empty-handed.” Tom, who had blond hair and what seemed like a broken nose, as it looked crooked, gave me the cutest grin that I couldn’t help but smile back. He was much younger than everyone else. Titus saw my attention on Tom a little longer than needed, so he threw a glare at Tom who immediately turned away.
I leaned into Titus as I whispered low, “Will you stop being so possessive?”
He pulled back and spoke loudly, “You aren’t marked. That means any male can still mark you. It is natural for my wolf to feel possessive over you. I can’t stop—”
“Okay,” I quickly butt in as I felt heat crawl up on my cheeks. He placed two fingers under my chin and pulled me towards him again.
“I will try not to be possessive, but it is in my nature. I am an alpha, and I am extremely protective of my mate and what is mine,” he said, and everyone nodded their response as they approved their alpha’s admission.
“We are also very protective of you. You are our luna. We will protect you with our lives.” Noor confirmed.
I feel like I was learning something new for the first time regarding mates. Was this why Kyle was feeling the need to keep me close to him? Thinking about him again and what had happened made me feel upset. Strangely, now that I was away from Kyle, the bond that I felt from him seemed weaker than normal. I co
uld still feel him but not as much anymore.
It seemed that my bond with Titus had become stronger like a glowing string that was brighter than the other. I couldn’t explain it, but I felt the pull more towards Titus, now that I was away from Kyle.
Moments later, I felt the plane preparing for landing. When it landed and the engine was shut off, we unbuckled our seatbelts and stood up to go to the side door. It opened, and steps that led down to the ground were set.
“Welcome to Paris, mate,” Titus murmured as he walked up to my side, dipping his head low to my ear.
“Does the whole pack live in Paris?” I asked, clearly confused.
Usually, werewolves are hidden from the human eyes and society. We like to keep to ourselves.
Titus shook his head. “We don’t live in Paris. Our pack resides in the countryside a few hours from here,” he said, and I nodded.
He spoke to some people in French, and Noor moved to join the conversation. Titus nodded and moved towards me, placing a hand on my back and leading me to the car where the other warriors were waiting.
I settled into the side of the car as Titus sat next to me, his thighs touching mine. Noor hopped into the passenger seat, as Frank was the driver. Tom sat next to Titus and Gerald next to Tom. We were cramped inside the car because these men were giants. I felt squished. I moved myself closer to the window only to have Titus shifted closer to me. I stared up at him, and although he wasn’t looking down at me, his smirk told me exactly what he was doing.
Titus was imprinting on me as much as he can, touching every inch of my skin from my shoulders down to my thighs. I sighed and turned to look out the window.
As we passed by the city, my eyes looked around at how beautiful Paris was. In the pictures and books, it was a mirror of it all. Everything was magnificent. I couldn’t stop looking, and when I saw the Eiffel tower for a brief moment, I turned around and touched Titus’s hand.
“Look! It’s beautiful!” I said breathlessly. “I want to see it one day.”
He smiled down at me sincerely and then spoke, “If you would like, after we settle down, meet the pack, and perform our mating ceremony, I can take you back here.”
My smile slipped from my face. I had to meet Titus’s pack. What if they don’t like me? What if they see me as not a fitting luna?
His eyebrows furrowed with concern. “What’s wrong?”
“What if they don’t like me?” I asked.
He gave me a gentle smile. “You don’t have to worry at all. They will like you.”
I saw Noor from the corner of my eyes, looking up at the rearview mirror with worry and uncertainty. Why did Noor’s expression contradict what Titus just said? I felt a knot form in my stomach as I gave Titus an uneasy smile.
Chapter Eleven
We drove for several hours in the vehicle until we reached a hidden gravel road where we turned. I observed as we entered deeper into the woods. My wolf eyes caught movements and blurs of wolf forms zipping through the trees. Curious now, I looked a little closer around that blurred body to see more running through the forest.
“Patrols,” Titus whispered next to me.
“They don’t know that it is us?” I asked.
“Yes, they do. A few of them are following us back while the other watched the border,” he replied. I nodded in understanding and watched the bodies zip quickly through the trees.
It took us a while before we reached a clearing and a huge home built with only wood, but it was beautifully built. Titus got out of the vehicle first, and I followed quietly behind him. The pack began walking out of the pack house when they saw us coming. Out of the crowd, a tall black man came walking out with a smile on his face as he looked at Titus.
“Alpha,” he said.
“How was everything while I was gone?” Titus asked. I stood behind him, staring at his back.
“Not much happened while you were gone. Border patrol didn’t report back any lurking of rogues at the edge of our territory,” the man said. I stepped out slightly from behind Titus. His eyes darted to me immediately, and surprise was clear on his face.
“Who is that?” he asked, pointing at me. Titus, as if he just remembered I was behind him, turned around to place an arm protectively around my shoulders.
“This is Patience. She is my chosen,” he announced loud enough for everyone. “Patience this is Christian, my beta.”
Christian’s eyes grew in surprise as he looked at me carefully before he gave me a smile. “This is a little unbelievable. Sorry for my reaction. I never thought that Titus would finally pick a chosen. You come as a surprise, I think, to us all.”
“I hope it is a good surprise, not a bad one,” I replied.
He chuckled. “Oh, it is a good surprise. It is nice to meet you, Luna.”
Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a redhead woman who was staring at us with hurt in her eyes. I tilted my head slightly and thought that maybe she was upset with Christian or she was Christian’s mate. Titus and Christian saw my brief distraction and also turned to see the redhead. When she caught us looking at her, she turned around and disappeared into the crowd.
“Who is that?” I asked.
“That is—” Christian began only to be stopped by Titus.
“That is someone whom you shouldn’t concern yourself with,” Titus said, and I frowned even more.
“But if she is a pack member, I should be concerned. She—” I started but was interrupted by him when he threw me a death glare. I pursed my lips in anger and turned away from him. I didn’t want to argue with him in front of the pack. I was going to let this go for now.
He sighed, and I saw him run his hand through his thick black hair before he turned to Noor. “Can you take Patience up to my room? I have to speak with Christian.”
I curled my hand into a fist to contain the raging anger that was boiling inside of me quickly. Why was he acting this way? We were mates. He should be excited and introduce me to everyone. Shouldn’t there be any celebration tonight? Instead, he asked Noor to take me upstairs.
“Is Noor my mate then?” I gritted out.
He turned to me, and his eyes turned black. I didn’t step down. I don’t know where this newfound confidence came from, but I grabbed Noor’s arm and practically dragged him up to the pack house. We made it inside the house and up the steps before I turned to him looking a little uncertain.
He chuckled when he saw my expression. “You have no clue where to go, do you?”
“No,” I murmured.
“Patience!” Titus roared from behind me. I turned slightly to see him coming into the pack house. I grabbed Noor’s arm again and ran as fast as I could up the stairs only for Titus to catch up with me and removed Noor from my grip in one swift movement, sending him flying down a couple of steps until he straightened himself. I turned around to glare at Titus as I gritted my teeth.
“What?” I asked. “I was only doing what you asked.”
His eyes were still dark as the night as he looked down at me. His chest was heaving as he was trying to fight for control.
“Don’t,” he simply said. I sighed and moved my hand to touch his chest. The heated tingles vibrated immediately through us, and Titus closed his eyes, as his breathing returned to normal. When he opened his eyes again, they were his normal icy blue color.
“Better?” I asked, and he only continued to stare down at me. “Now that you have calmed down, I am going to let Noor lead me upstairs to our bedroom as you asked.”
His eyes flashed back to black. I saw the clench of his jaw and the rigidness of his shoulders. I sighed. Why was he mad now?
“I’ll take you to our bedroom,” he said lowly as he grabbed hold of my wrist and pulled me upstairs. I turned to look at Noor who was shaking his head with a grin on his face as he stared up at us.
Titus took me up several flights upstairs until we made it on the floor that only had one door. He walked me to it and opened the door. Inside, it was beautiful and big. T
he bedroom, of course, had huge walls, a king-sized bed, a TV set, a couch to the right, and a small beautiful carved fireplace to the left.
I felt Titus come up behind me and place his hand on my shoulders. His face moved to the crook of my neck where my pulse beat as he placed a soft kiss on that spot, and I couldn’t help the tremble that ran through my body in response. I could feel his soft lips trailing up the side of my neck, and I tilted my head to give him better access.
“Patience,” he said, and I couldn’t help but love the way he said my name in his French accent. “How you try me, mate.”
I bit my lip and noticed that my eyelids had drooped on their own, unable to stop the wonderful feeling inside me. It was like he had placed me under a drug and numbed my mind. He turned me around and trailed his hand from my arm up to my cheek and cupped it.
“Look at me.” He demanded softly, and my eyes opened to stare at his. How could anything icy blue look so heated? My chest was rising and falling fast, and my heart rate was skyrocketing as I silently begged for him to kiss me. As if he knew what I wanted, his lips descended on mine where he lightly sucked on my lower lip. It was heaven.
When he pulled back just enough so that I could see his eyes but still feel his breath on my lips, he spoke again, “There is just something about you, Patience. It pulls me like nothing I have felt before.”
I knew. I completely knew what he meant because it was how I exactly felt with him. So addictive, so beautiful.
Chapter Twelve
Titus left me, promising he would return as soon as he finished speaking with Christian. I took the opportunity to glance around his room and sniff his pillows. Yes, I sniffed his pillows. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t have to claw any female’s eyes out. When I only smelled his scent, I was satisfied. A faint knocking on the door caught my attention, and I walked over to open it.
A young female who looked and smelt like she recently shifted walked in with a tray of food. My stomach grumbled at the smell of roasted beef soup, and I followed her to the sofa as she set the tray down on the coffee table.