The Alpha's Mate (8 Sexy, Powerful Shifters and Their Fated Mates)

by Lynn Red

  A nervous giggle escaped me. “Panthers never have formal affairs.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind, but for now...” In a blink, he had taken me off my dresser’s stool and had me up against the wall. My arms and legs automatically wrapped around his body.

  “You remember what I said?” he purred.

  “No?”

  He smirked. “You can do better than that, little kitty.” His head moved forward, giving me a short hard kiss. It was the briefest contact, but it was more than enough to have me gasping. When he lifted his head to look at me, I could only gaze back at him, knowing my eyes couldn’t hide how much I wanted more of his kisses.

  “Do you want me, princess?”

  Warrior brides had to be virgins in their marriage bed. But warriors didn’t lie.

  The latter won, but I had to say my piece first. “I can only do this with a consort,” I told him breathlessly.

  He smiled. “I’m sure you do.”

  The words confused me, but by now I wanted him so badly it didn’t matter. I moved my head close, taking the initiative for the first time. His lips curved into a smile, content to wait. I blushed at my boldness, but my embarrassment didn’t stop me from moving closer and closer. I wanted his kiss so badly.

  Our lips touched.

  It was magic.

  Alejandro groaned against my mouth, and that was the extent of the control he allowed me. He took command again, and I was more than eager to have him in control. He swept me into his arms without breaking the kiss, carrying me to my bed.

  He only broke the kiss when he laid me down, and I couldn’t stop staring at him as he started taking off his clothes. His emerald gaze didn’t leave mine as he shrugged his jacket off and laid it on the bedside table. I would have giggled at how neat and proper he was being if I wasn’t so nervous. Things were happening so fast. A part of me wanted to put a stop to it, but the larger part of me was just swept away by the excitement of it.

  Moonlight filtered into the bedroom from the open doors of the balcony. It cast silver streaks of light on his hard chest, which he revealed inch by inch as he worked on the buttons of his shirt next. This, too, he lay next to his jacket, making me smile again.

  When he looked back at me, he caught sight of my smile. “What are you smiling about, little kitty?”

  “You’re so neat,” I confessed. “If it were me, I’d probably throw...” My voice trailed off as I took in the full sight of his half naked form. He was smooth and hard all over except for the light smattering of hair on his chest. Somehow, it made him seem manlier, more warrior like.

  And then he started taking off his pants, and all semblance of rational thinking left me.

  His legs were hard and muscular. I had seen men’s naked legs, too, of course. Lots of them. Back in the day, part of our warrior training required us to swim against the tides in the middle of winter. When we’d come out of the water, those parts of men that stood were, well, standing. So, really, the sight of an erection – or at least hints of it – was something I was impervious to.

  But apparently not this one.

  Alejandro was naked now, and his erection jutted proudly against his belly, steel sheathed in silk. He saw me looking and smirked. “Like what you see, princess?”

  “I’m not sure,” I said weakly. Common sense told me it would fit, but common sense also told me it would likely hurt like crap. Serious crap.

  “I’m sure I would like what I’d see when I have you naked.”

  And then he was joining me in bed, and I couldn’t help but gulp as he loomed over me. Unlike him, I wasn’t wearing a host of clothing. With one swipe of his hand, he had my nightshirt over my head. Since I never wore a bra to bed, I was immediately naked save for my panties, and that Alejandro disposed of just as quickly.

  And just like that, I was naked.

  “My little kitty’s so beautiful.”

  His whisper made me want to curl up and rub myself against him. I held my breath as he leaned down. I expected him to take my mouth in another wild and rough kiss, but instead his lips landed gently on mine. He nibbled on my lips for a long time, and by the time his lips moved down, I was completely relaxed.

  My arms wound around his neck as he nibbled on my shoulder blade, and I sighed with sheer pleasure when his lips moved even lower and nuzzled the valley between my breasts. I was vaguely aware of his hand parting my legs open, and then he was settling between them, his weight resting against my body.

  Our bodies brushed against each other and I gasped, every nerve in my body jumping in excited awareness. He was hard all over. Unbelievably hard, and it made me feel so wonderfully womanly. In his arms, I forgot that I was the human monster.

  When his mouth moved over my nipple, my fingers dug into his shoulders. And when he started to suck, my legs went around his waist. I found myself gripping his head, pulling him closer so I could have my nipple deeper into his kiss. Oh, God, how he sucked.

  After a while, he moved to my other nipple, sucking it passionately in his mouth. I writhed in his arms, feeling like I was about to explode if I didn’t have something I couldn’t quite name. I felt his hand moving again, and I tensed. When I realized where his hand was going, I tensed even more but there was no stopping his questing hand.

  The first brush of his fingers against my folds had me gasping, and I gasped yet again when he started stroking my folds. I was making so much noise that surely the guard outside my door had heard me by now. I blushed, knowing that he might think I was pleasuring myself. But I forgot all about it when I felt something push into my folds—-

  Oh.

  Alejandro slid one finger in. It was strangely beautiful, the feel of having a part of him inside of me. When he started to move his finger in and out of me, it was in rhythm with his kisses on my nipple, sucking hard as he pushed his finger back inside me. Being pleasured in two different ways simultaneously had me breathless, and my head began to twist against the pillow.

  A long moan erupted from me when I felt Alejandro sliding a second finger inside my body. The pleasure was more intense now, and I couldn’t imagine how much better it would feel if it was his cock entering my body next.

  His thrusts became harder and faster, and his mouth worked more fiercely on my nipple. With each stroke, with each tug of my nipple, I gasped, the pressure building inside me until suddenly I was there. I screamed as I came, the pleasure of my orgasm taking my breath away.

  When I opened my eyes, Alejandro was lying next to me on his side, propping his head up with his hand while playing with the bangs of my hair.

  He smiled. It was his sexy, cocky smile and my body tingled in complete awareness of it. Dawn was breaking outside, making me realize with shock that I had slept for hours.

  “Yes,” he said. “I pleasured you so well you passed out.”

  I turned red. “I didn’t pass out,” I mumbled. “I...fell asleep.” But honestly, it did feel like I had passed out. Crap.

  “Your Stefano came knocking on your door earlier.”

  My eyebrows shot up. “My Stefano?” Oh my God – did that mean Stefano knew I had a man in my room? Did that mean Venetto knew, too? If they did, why weren’t they raising a fit?

  Alejandro’s voice was distinctively cool when he answered, “Yes, your Stefano.”

  I finally noticed how he had stressed the word ‘your’ and I shook my head quickly, realizing how he could have misinterpreted things between Stefano and me. “We’re like siblings.”

  “Of course.”

  “No, I mean it,” I insisted. “He doesn’t like me that way and I don’t like...” Seeing the inscrutable expression on his face, I told him exasperatedly, “I don’t lie. Warriors don’t lie.”

  Alejandro’s lips slowly curved into a smile. “And since my little kitty’s a warrior, I guess I should take your word for it then?”

  “Yes.”

  He looked at me for a moment. “Then I believe you, little kitty.” He reached for something b
ehind me, causing his body to press against mine. When he pulled away, I was breathless, my nipples erect at the brief brush of contact with his chest.

  He grinned.

  Oh, crap! He had deliberately—-

  “Cocky wolf.” But I couldn’t help sighing when he only bent close and took my lips with a quick, deep kiss.

  “Beautiful little kitty,” he purred against my lips, “And you’re all mine.” He pulled away and handed me a sealed envelope. “This came from Stefano.”

  It took me awhile to get my senses back, my fingers trembling as I tore the envelope open. The first part of his message had me frowning. Stefano and Venetto had gone away to one of our northern territories. It seemed my father’s nephew, Raoul, was starting a rebellion there. If Venetto hadn’t adopted me or my sister, he would have been next in line to the pack’s leadership. But he would never make a good pack leader, not even if he was a natural born shifter. He cared too much for himself and too little for the pack.

  The second half of the missive had my eyebrows shooting up.

  “What is it?”

  I shook my head. “I’ve received a proposal from Pasquale, heir of the Hernandez pack leader.” I rolled my eyes, but when I looked at him, I realized that Alejandro was oddly tense. Maybe he thought I was being disrespectful to a peer?

  I said apologetically, “I’m sorry if I offended you. You see, this prince and I have a history. He’s a nice enough sort, but he’s made it clear if I were to choose him, he will not settle for being my Cavaliere. He wants to be my consort.” I shook my head. “It’s time I tell him...”

  “Tell him...what?”

  Alejandro’s question had me blinking. “That I’ve found my consort?” I expected him to smile. I expected him to make a joke. But instead, he was quiet.

  When he spoke, his words weren’t what I wanted to hear. “And who is your consort, little kitty?”

  Coldness wrapped its arms around me. I couldn’t believe we were having this conversation. “Who do you think it should be?”

  He didn’t answer.

  I whitened. “I told you last night, didn’t I? I could only do this with a consort.”

  He said flatly, “I thought you were playing hard to get.”

  Chapter Nine

  ALEJANDRO

  “You can’t be serious.” He spoke the words tightly as he swiftly put on his clothes. His little kitty was doing the same, and for a moment he imagined that those naked curves were being caressed by another pair of hands.

  His blood went cold with rage.

  No fucking way.

  Calys turned to him with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

  He cursed at the sight of it. She was obviously hurting, and she was just as obvious in her desire not to show her pain. With another muttered curse, he turned away and pulled his shirt over his head. He couldn’t risk looking at her any longer. The longer he looked, the more tempted he would be to change his mind about being her consort.

  Consort.

  That was just another term for husband in their world, just one step away from being a mate. Had he really thought she was just fooling around when she told him she would only go to bed with him if he were to agree to be her consort? The question made Alejandro uncomfortable. Guilt started to stir inside him, but he ignored it. Even if he had subconsciously known she meant the words, he had not taken her virginity. She was still pure, a worthy bride for any pack leader’s heir.

  Not that she needed to be anyone’s bride.

  He was her Cavaliere. She didn’t need anyone else to be by her side while she had him. Unfortunately, he had to make her see things his way first. Not exactly an easy task, Alejandro considered as he looked back at Calys, who was now fully dressed and still obviously hurting.

  “I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Frustration made him say the words. He had the strongest urge to haul her into his arms. Even though he had been the one to hurt his little kitty, Alejandro knew instinctively that he was the only one who could heal her as well.

  She answered with a brief smile, one that didn’t reach her eyes either.

  He wanted to curse again. She was so damn open with her emotions. Alejandro remembered her words. Warriors didn’t lie. God, she was so damn naïve. How could she believe something like that? Warriors were as human as the rest were. Warriors lied. Some better than the others.

  When his little kitty still didn’t say anything, he said finally, “You should think this through first.”

  “I am thinking this through. He wants to be my consort. You do not.”

  “It’s not like that, dammit.” He hadn’t meant to shout, but he did anyway. Fuck. He was sure there were still guards outside her room, and that meant they heard every word. He hated making a scene. The Moretti pack was already involved in too many scenes as it was. His pack didn’t need one fucking more.

  “Then what is it about?” Calys was shouting, too, and her body shook with each word.

  The question hung in the air, but Alejandro knew he would not be able to answer it. She might not have any problems letting him see how much control he had over her, but Alejandro knew he would not be able to do the same for her.

  This smacked too much of the same shit that his older brother went through with his own human wife, and Alejandro didn’t want that. He had known Calys for two days. Two goddamn days, and the connection between them was already too strong and powerful. Alejandro could only imagine how much stronger their feelings would grow once they’ve known each other longer. How much more would he want his little kitty if her body also belonged to him? How hard would he fall if he became her consort?

  “I can only be your Cavaliere, little kitty. Take it as you will.”

  The sound of a door slamming made him look up, but it was the scent of unshed tears that was his answer.

  Chapter Ten

  CALYS

  Tension filled the throne room of our keep when the iron doors were pulled open by the stewards and Pasquale strode in. Of average height, he was one of the few shifters who did not seem to have ever experienced bloodlust. Ever since we were kids, Pasquale had always stood apart. When we played battle games, he had always opted to stay behind, preferring to strategize rather than charging into a fight.

  Maybe this was destiny, I told myself. I was his exact opposite. Actually, he was the exact opposite of Alejandro Moretti, too. He could serve as a calming influence over me in a way that the Moretti prince could never do.

  Pasquale was formally attired, and it made me flush in realization that I was once again vastly underdressed. Even Alejandro, despite not having any change of clothes with him, looked more authoritative than I was.

  The thought of Alejandro had me biting my lip, but I valiantly resisted the urge to look at him. He had insisted on being with me during this meeting. He had made his demand in front of all the other Adelardi pack warriors, and not one of them had blinked. In fact, they were already treating him like my right hand, like my Cavaliere. The ease with which he took command of my men made me foolishly want to cry. Couldn’t he see how it would be if he was my consort instead?

  I came to my feet and walked towards Pasquale, meeting him halfway. “Thank you for coming so quickly,” I told him with a smile as I offered my hand to shake. But instead of shaking it, Pasquale brought it to his lips, making me start in surprise.

  Behind me, I could literally feel Alejandro’s cold deadly gaze sharpening towards us. I could feel his Lyccan half bristling, like a wolf ready to attack.

  When he released my hand, he murmured, “Thank you for the privilege of your prompt response, princess.” His dark brown eyes moved to Alejandro. “Is he Stefano’s replacement?”

  “No.” I softened my answer with another smile, but I was determined not to entertain questions I did not like answering. He was not my consort yet. I didn’t owe him any answers.

  “Your father and Stefano? Are they well?”

  “They have been called away on pack business. I expec
t them to return within the week.” Adelardi pack business was nobody’s business but us Adelardis. “Shall we proceed to the dining hall and have refreshments served while we talk?”

  Pasquale was silent for a moment before he answered, “If it does not displease you, princess, I would prefer we talk about my proposal in a straightforward manner. I have stated everything in the missive I sent to your father. Have you read it?”

  “Stefan has passed the missive to me, yes.”

  “And do you approve?”

  “I have certain conditions that I hope you will agree to, but other than that, yes, your proposal to merge our packs in one shared leadership between us is to my liking.”

  Pasquale gestured for me to continue. “State your conditions then. If they are not unreasonable, I will gladly agree to them.”

  Looking at him and no one else, I said, “The first is that I will have Alejandro Moretti as my Cavaliere, and I shall maintain his services even after we are married.”

  Pasquale’s tone sharpened as he asked, “Why would you need a Cavaliere when you already have me?”

  “He is apparently the only one who can...talk sense to me when I have one of my dark fits.” Like all other panthers, Pasquale knew what I was. But unlike the others, he at least had not called me “The Human Monster” to my face.

  “And why is that?”

  “The reason does not matter to me. He has already proven on two occasions that he is able to control me even in one of my dark fits. Such skills are of vital importance as in time, it may allow me to use my own skills for the good of the pack.”

  “I will not lie to you, princess. I don’t like you having a Cavaliere. It’s sure to cause talk. But that can be handled...” For a moment, Pasquale’s disdain for Alejandro showed on his face. “I know the likes of him. Being a younger son, he has no place in the Morettis. I suppose he thinks ingratiating himself to you will give him a chance to achieve a higher pack position.”

  I knew that wasn’t true. Whatever Alejandro Moretti was, he wasn’t like that. But I hardened my heart. Even though I knew it was wrong, I just couldn’t make myself speak. I wanted him to hurt...as much as he had hurt me.