Jordan's Marked Mate [The Ward Brothers] (Siren Publishing Allure)

by Mackenzie Williams

  Jordan cocked his head to the side. “We chose to live our life as simply as possible.”

  “Ha!” The hazy sunlight seemed to swirl behind Dark Leader’s head. “You aren’t even allowed into the shitty nearby village. The day a lowly human makes rules for the Dark shifters will be the day of their death.”

  Brody interjected while stepping up to the man in jeans. “There is a big fucking difference between peaceful and cowardly. You come into our forest and threaten us, you’ll find that out.”

  The shifter in white laughed while turning his hat around so the bill was backward. “Threaten you? If we were threatening you, you’d be half dead already.”

  “Why the hell are you here, Buio?” Jordan was well aware that the Dark Leader preferred his title over his given name, so he emphasized it.

  Jordan then exhaled a rough breath. His control was nearly gone.

  Buio narrowed his eyes, obviously annoyed with Jordan, but then he quickly regained his cockiness. “Oh, well, my cousin, Evan,” he pointed at the shifter in white, “has his Prime birthday in a month and I just wanted him to see how much better he has it. He was starting to get a bit lost. You know?” He squinted at Jordan in an intimating way. “Evan needed a reminder of where he’ll end up if he doesn’t obey me.”

  Brody leaned into the man in front of him and narrowed his eyes. “Great. Now take your shit-eaters home. They are stinking up our forest.”

  Dark Leader smiled at Jordan and stepped back marginally, speaking to his crew. “I mean, they only take their marked slave. Can you believe it?”

  Jordan didn’t like that smile. Does he know I have Riley here?

  “Seriously?” Evan put his hands on his hips and then flexed his pecks repeatedly. He smirked at Jordan before facing Ryan again. “When I reach Prime age, I’ll take my marked one plus at least one more. Maybe two. A dominant wolf shifter shouldn’t have to simply have one slave sucking his dick.” His smirk grew.

  “Yes, Jordan. Maybe we should meet your little one so she sees how much she’s missing out on.” Dark Leader looked from brother to brother before returning his glare to Jordan. “She doesn’t want to be here and you don’t even have the balls to force her to. You’re too fucking soft for a shifter.”

  That was the final straw. Jordan reached up and shoved Dark Leader hard in the chest. “Don’t you dare speak about my slave.”

  Dark Leader took a shaky step back from the shove, but his smile didn’t fade. “Oh, sensitive subject? See, men? If you put too much stock in your slave’s happiness, you let them run you. Let this be a warning.” Dark Leader’s smile left and he narrowed his eyes again. “Slaves are meant to be just that. Slaves, not wives.”

  Chapter Twenty

  “You asshole.” Jordan clenched his jaw tightly.

  He reached back with his fist, but before he could land a punch to Dark Leader’s jaw, Ryan cried out a battle call. Ryan yelled loudly while tackling the man in white to the ground. Jordan watched his brother land a few of his own punches.

  A fist then blindsided Jordan. Dark Leader connected his fist with Jordan’s cheek. Jordan flew backward just before a fist smashed into his gut. He huffed out a deep breath and went down on one knee. Something soon caught his eye. He turned his head to find Brody shifting back into his wolf form.

  “Fuck.” Jordan swore under his breath. This was getting bad much quicker than he would have liked.

  Brody jumped onto the Dark clan member in the jeans. As the man fell to the ground, he effortlessly shifted back into his black wolf body. The two animals growled loudly as they started to thrash around, each biting and scratching the other wildly.

  Jordan was momentarily frozen as he took in this unwanted scene. The two wolves were throwing each other back and forth as Ryan and Evan were wrestling nearby, taking and landing punch after punch.

  Dark Leader got Jordan’s attention back when he landed a quick kick to Jordan’s side. He groaned as his breath rushed from him. He rubbed his side and quickly started to stand. Jordan reached his fist back but was stopped a second time. This time he wasn’t stopped by his enemy, though. It was a sound.

  His eyes widened and he glanced around from nothing to nothing as an eerie sound filled his ears. It was almost like a dying horn. Dark Leader gave him a confused look, staring up at Jordan’s fist that was still unmoving in the air. Dark Leader took his shot and landed a quick fist to Jordan’s jaw.

  Jordan stumbled backward as the noise in his ears sounded one more time and then went silent. He bent forward.

  “Riley,” he whispered just as Dark Leader stepped up to him.

  The eerie sound had been in his head alone. It was his alarm spell. Someone had entered or exited his house. Jordan could no longer waste time with this pointless fight. He needed to get back, but he couldn’t leave his brothers. Jordan needed this over. Now.

  “What was that? Your little one?” Dark Leader leaned down over Jordan.

  Jordan turned his head unhurriedly up to face the other man. He glared at him while his jaw clenched tightly. He took a deep breath before starting to stand up straight.

  “I said, don’t you fucking dare talk about my slave.” Jordan swung.

  His fist connected with the other man’s face. Dark Leader stumbled back a step, but Jordan didn’t let up. He stepped with him and landed two more punches, both to the man’s gut. Dark Leader huffed out a deep breath just as he went down on his ass.

  “And stay the hell out of our woods!” Jordan pointed down at Dark Leader.

  Jordan started to raise his fist again, but his attention was ripped away from the man on the grass. A wounded whimper came from Brody. The black wolf on top of him was chewing on the back of Brody’s neck. Jordan cried out as he turned to run at them.

  Jordan jumped and magically transformed in midair. He landed as a white wolf right next to the fighting animals. Without hesitation, he sank his teeth into the back of the Dark clan wolf. The black animal whined and instantly let go of Brody.

  Just then, chaos broke out. The rest of the shifters behind him all took their animal form, including Dark Leader. The animal sounds were almost deafening as they growled and whined. They tackled, bit, clawed. The haze of the morning was starting to give way and Jordan felt like everything was in slow motion.

  Finally, he grabbed Dark Leader by the back of his neck with his strong jaw and sharp teeth. He flung him as hard as he could. The black wolf flew through the air before rolling across the ground. He hit his back on a nearby tree. It was hard and violent. When he came to a rest on the forest floor, there was no movement.

  His two clan members stopped fighting and scurried to him. Normally, Jordan would have stayed around to finish the job or maybe simply check on the other wolf. Not today, not now. He let out a message-filled howl. The other two white wolves started to walk toward the wounded animal but stilled to look back at Jordan.

  Riley! Jordan howled again and he could see instantly that his brothers understood.

  All three white wolves turned away from the intruding animals and started a fast pace toward Jordan’s home. As he ran, scenarios played out in Jordan’s head. Maybe Riley simply disobeyed him. Maybe she went outside to investigate, but maybe she went outside to run away again. Jordan growled and narrowed his eyes as he continued to dash home.

  What if it isn’t her leaving, though? What if another one of the Dark clan members went to my house while I was distracted by the others? Jordan hoped it was the first scenario that was true.

  He heard his two brothers’ heavy breathing right behind him. That did little to comfort the anxiety that was growing inside him.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Jordan slid on all four paws on top of some fallen leaves just feet from his home. Before he was completely stopped, he effortlessly shifted back into his human body. He heard his brothers skidding to a halt behind him but didn’t wait for them.

  Jordan ran the short distance to find his front door open a crack. Shit! Eve
n though the alarm spell had been broken, he had desperately hoped that he was wrong. He had hoped that either the sound was just in his imagination or that his magic was too unreliable. It seemed it had worked perfectly.

  He slowly pushed the door open. “Riley! Riley?”

  Jordan took a few steps inside. Ryan came up behind him, bumping into his back. Jordan ignored it and took a few more cautious steps forward, listening intently.

  “Do you hear that?” Brody asked.

  Jordan turned slowly to see Brody standing just outside the open door. He was staring at the ground with a hand around one ear. He turned his body toward the way they had come from, before slowly turning back the opposite direction.

  “What?” Jordan whispered.

  “It’s…something’s coming.”

  Jordan turned swiftly, pushing past Ryan. When he reached the door, he looked in the direction Brody was pointing. Jordan took a few steps out of his house and listened. He heard nothing for several seconds, but right before he was going to head back into the house, there it was. A faint rustling of dead leaves.

  Jordan took a few unhurried steps in that direction. The noise was faint but close which told him that the person or animal was small or light. It couldn’t be one of the Dark clan men. He started to walk toward the noise which was coming from just behind his house. His brothers were soon following.

  He was unsure if he should call out her name. What if the other shifters were still nearby, watching? If they knew Riley was out here, they may try to find her before he could. Jordan continued forward until he reached the back corner of his house. He clenched his jaw before stepping around it.

  Jordan inhaled a quick, deep breath as something came out of nowhere and almost smashed into his chest. It only took a nanosecond to realize it was the one he was searching for. Riley squeaked as she abruptly stopped herself from running into him.

  Her wide, brown eyes looked up at him with shock, but soon her expression fell into relief. That pissed Jordan off more than maybe it should. She’s relieved and not afraid of my reaction. I am too soft on her.

  “Jordan! I’m glad you’re ok. I heard this weird growl outside and I thought I saw you and-”

  He cut her off by grabbing her arm harshly. Without a word, he turned and started to pull her along behind himself. Jordan’s steps were large and swift. Riley pulled on her arm as her feet stumbled, trying to keep up.

  “Jordan? Seriously…”

  “Thanks for your help, boys. Now if you’ll excuse us, I need to work on my slave’s obedience.”

  Jordan brushed past both of his brothers. Riley pulled harder on her arm, digging her heels into the dirt. He barely slowed as he turned and lifted her onto his shoulder. She let out a small whimper of protest.

  Ryan followed him. “Jordan, what about the problem at the clearing?”

  He slowed but didn’t turn around. “Go make sure they’ve left peacefully. If you need me, you know where I’ll be.”

  “Jordan! Sir! Put me down.” Riley kicked her legs, pointlessly.

  He only answered with a deep growl as he started into his house.

  * * * *

  Riley lifted her head off Jordan’s back. His brothers were both staring at her. They both looked stressed, but Brody’s expression slowly turned into slight amusement as she was being carried away. Just as Jordan started to round the front of his house, the other Ward boys beautifully shifted. Riley only caught a quick look before Jordan was headed inside.

  What the hell was he so mad about? Yes, she had gone outside when he had told her not to, but she wasn’t running away. Shouldn’t he be happy about that fact? Riley really was just checking the surrounding area because there had been some strange growls outside. She was worried about him. Again, shouldn’t he be happy about that?

  “Jordan, I wasn’t running away. I was worried about you.”

  He kicked the door shut with a loud slam. Jordan walked back to his bedroom. “Don’t worry about me. Ever.”

  Riley bounced on his shoulder as he entered his room. “Look, you three left in a hurry. I didn’t know what was going on.”

  Jordan roughly pulled her off his shoulder, holding her out in front of himself. He let her feet touch the ground for just a second before he started pushing her backward. Riley groaned while frowning at him.

  What’s he doing?

  Her back then met the wall. Her eyes opened wider as she gazed into his. Jordan’s stare was so intense that fear started to cloud her mind. He grabbed both her arms and pulled them above her head. Jordan pressed them against the wall with one massive hand, pinning them tightly.

  Jordan narrowed his eyes. The gray seemed to darken as she watched him closely. His jaw clenched tightly and she heard his teeth scrape against each other.

  “I told you to stay inside or else I would show you what it really means to be my slave.”

  Riley took a shaky, shallow breath. “I…I’m not used to taking orders.”

  “Obviously, but that’s going to change.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Jordan growled and Riley felt it in his chest as he pressed his body further into hers. She whimpered as he squeezed her wrists harder, still against the wall.

  “You agreed to one week as the slave I wanted.” He exhaled through his nose.

  “Ok, but-”

  “You will work on your listening skills.”

  Riley was surprised when Jordan grabbed her face and swiftly brought his lips to hers. The kiss was rough. She tried to keep up as he moved his lips over hers. After a few seconds, he pulled back. When he opened his eyes, they were swirling with emotions. Riley couldn’t breathe.

  “What would I do if something happened to you? Huh?” Jordan slid his hand off her face, down to her throat. “Do you think I’m joking or messing around with your safety?”

  “I-I…sorry. But I wasn’t running.”

  Jordan rubbed his hand over her neck before starting to move it down toward her cleavage. “While I appreciate that you weren’t trying to escape, I need to know that you will listen to me when your safety is in jeopardy.”

  “Sorry.” She didn’t know what else to say. Had she really messed up? “What was out there?”

  Jordan took a deep breath and Riley noticed a vein starting to bulge in his neck. He was stressed beyond what she had seen so far, which was saying a lot. She pulled on her arms, but he held them tightly against the wall.

  “Just know that there are things outside these walls that would love to hurt you.” Jordan again surprised Riley with a quick, rough kiss before he continued. “You’re here for me for the next few days, at least. You gave your word.”

  A sudden jolt of guilt ran through her, causing her arms to tense in his hold. Maybe he was exactly right. She had given her word and wasn’t obedience a key part of this slave thing? Besides, it wasn’t like he asked her to give his brother blowjobs or parade around naked. Jordan had simply asked her to stay put. She was starting to feel like an asshole.

  Riley wanted to please him. At least, for the next few days. “Master, I’m sorry. I was an idiot.”

  He exhaled a deep breath, closing his eyes for a while. Riley squirmed against him, but he didn’t move away from her. Jordan took a deep breath and held it. He was thinking. Maybe he was thinking that she wasn’t worth all this aggravation.

  “Sir?” There was a tremble in her voice.

  Finally, he opened his eyes. “I’m going to punish you, pet. I need you to know how serious I am. But I’ll reward you soon after for taking your due punishment.”

  Those words sounded sweeter to her than she would have thought. Punish, reward. Riley unintentionally licked her lips while squirming again.

  “Ok.” Her voice was just above a whisper.

  Jordan pressed his hips into her and her pussy responded immediately. Her breathing became uneven as his stare intensified on her.

  “Ok, what?”

  Her arms trembled. “Ok, Master.”


  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Jordan closed his eyes, breathing in her words. During all of those years waiting, he had been unsure how much he would like that word. Master. Hearing it come out of her pretty little mouth was causing his cock to harden, though.

  He opened his eyes. He wanted to see her expression as he grabbed her breast. Jordan massaged it harshly. Riley bit her lip and opened her eyes wider. Jordan continued to squeeze her harder until she had no choice but to give him a sweet whimper.

  “Good girl.”

  Jordan let go of her wrists but gave her little time to bring her arms down. He swiftly turned her around so her back was against his chest. She gasped as he pulled her hips back against his body quickly, his erection pressed hard against the top of her ass. Jordan had pulled her back more forcefully than necessary so she could feel just how hard he was.

  Riley gasped again, making Jordan’s lips slide into a crooked smirk. He ran his hands around her, sliding them up her stomach but stopping short of her tits. Jordan leaned into her neck. He let his hot breath run down her bare skin. She trembled just slightly. We can do better.

  Jordan opened his mouth and bit down on her neck. Riley leaned her head to the side and moaned. He bit down a bit harder, causing her moan to get louder. Jordan pulled his teeth off her and ran a hand up to her scar-like mark.

  He ran his fingers over it and she trembled again but more violently. You feel it, pet. I know you do. Her skin became hotter under his touch in an instant. Jordan ran his fingers over her soft skin for a little while longer before running his hand through her long hair.

  “Pet, you are mine. All of you. Your body, your heart, your mind.”

  She tensed against him and he knew she was thinking the words “for one week.” He was going to do his best to prevent her from wanting to leave, but he couldn’t stand for her lack of realization about how serious he was. Especially when it came to her safety.