Marked and Mated

by Delta James

  Bianca nodded. “Oh, and Josh formally claimed Anna, but I think you knew that. She too seemed very happy with her mate this morning. Come on, let’s go up to the main house.”

  * * *

  Dylan had returned with Darby’s mate and the alpha from Atlantic City as well as a representative of the Ruling Council. Dylan sent Skylar up to get Darby. She explained to her as they came down the stairs what Dylan needed her to do in order to protect her.

  “You trust him, Sky?”

  “I do. I don’t like what he did to tear our pack apart, but I do think he’s trying to make the best of a bad situation.”

  “Your mark looks like it hurt.”

  “It did. As you know, when an alpha marks you, the wound is much deeper and more permanent than when any other male does it. And partly he was eradicating Micah’s mark.”

  “Doesn’t that bother you?”

  “No, I understand it. When your alpha marks you, just remember that he’s getting rid of the last vestiges of your previous union.”

  “Sky, I don’t want to be mated again.”

  “Darby, let’s get through one thing at a time. Keep in mind, Dylan is making a stand for you. He should just hand you over, but he won’t. If he has to, the pack is prepared to fight to keep you. He’s worthy to be your alpha.”

  “But you are my alpha.”

  Skylar turned her so that she was looking directly at her. “I am no longer anyone’s alpha. I am mate to an alpha… to your alpha. Do you understand?”

  “You know he had his beta spank me last night. That man has a wicked hand.”

  “Yes, but he only spanked you. He didn’t beat you, right? In a lot of packs it would have been far worse. I’m not necessarily a fan of our male-dominant society, but Dylan does seem to be fair and he does care.”

  “I don’t trust any of them. But I trust you. If you tell me this is what I have to do, then I’ll do it.”

  “It is, Darby. It’s the only way we can protect you.”

  They entered the study. Darby’s mate moved toward her. Skylar stepped in front of her and growled.

  He jumped back. “See? He hasn’t any control over her. She growled at me. She’s a woman and she can’t growl at me. I demand he punish her and make her apologize.”

  Darby suppressed a grin. What that toad didn’t know was that Skylar had more than enough bite to back up that growl.

  Dylan laughed and moved to stand beside his mate. “That’s enough, Sky.”

  Skylar looked at him in disbelief.

  He continued, “I won’t have you growling at those who are beneath you.”

  Skylar smiled.

  “Now give me a kiss and behave yourself,” Dylan said.

  She took his face in his hands and kissed him deeply. “Yes, Alpha.”

  He kissed the tip of her nose and then bent and kissed her mark. “Do you need something for the discomfort, love? I can have Thomas get you something.”

  Darby stared in disbelief. She realized they were playacting for the outsiders, but under the act there was true feeling. Skylar had succumbed to the charms of the alpha of Calon Gwyllt.

  “Thank you, but no.”

  He turned to Darby. “This,” he said, indicating her mate, “says he is your mate and your alpha and thinks you should be returned to him. What do you think?”

  Darby looked at Skylar, who nodded. She took a deep breath and then announced quietly, “He was a cruel and abusive mate. I would ask to call you alpha and put myself in your care.”

  He turned back to the three uninvited guests. “That settles it, gentlemen. The lady is under my protection. Should you wish to claim her, you may issue a formal challenge and I will answer it.” He wasn’t quite growling, but the level of his voice and the grumble behind it left no doubt that he was deadly serious.

  The other men all backed away. Skylar linked her arm through her mate’s. “If he issues a challenge to the death, can I kill him?”

  Dylan laughed. “Sky, what have I told you about weapons and threats.”

  “But he is neither a member of our pack nor a guest. The rule doesn’t apply.”

  He laughed and kissed her. “That’s true. What do you say? Care to take my mate on in a fight?”

  One of the Council members said, “You need to get her under control.”

  Dylan advanced on him. “But I do, didn’t you hear her ask my permission to kill him?” When the Council member backed away, he returned to her and nuzzled her neck. “Such a good mate. Beloved, why don’t you take Darby and see to our other, invited guests. I will show these men to our gate.”

  Darby had heard that instead of simply auctioning them off, he had gone to the trouble to arrange a weekend house party. The invited guests would include unmated alphas of packs that had either voted with Calon Gwyllt or at least were sympathetic and wouldn’t be unkind to any of the women from the rogue pack at Bae Diogel.

  Skylar wrapped her arm around Darby’s waist and walked out of the study to join the party. Once they were out of hearing, they both burst into laughter.

  “Sky, when he praised you for asking permission before you killed him, I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from losing it. But I don’t want to cause you trouble.”

  “Don’t worry, Darby. We kicked that guy’s ass when it was just our household of women. I think he’d fare far worse if he comes back without an express invitation from Dylan himself. Why don’t you come and join everyone? Thomas is a wonderful cook. Someone told him my weakness for strawberry blintzes. They are divine.”

  * * *

  The rest of the day passed uneventfully. As the other women from Bae Diogel had caused no further issues, Dylan allowed that they could leave their residences and roam the grounds either around the houses themselves or with one of his pack members as an escort. They bristled a bit at having their freedom curtailed, but both Roz and Skylar tried to soothe their feelings by repeatedly pointing out they could still be confined to their rooms.

  Darby seemed the most distressed and Roz tried to speak with her.

  “I don’t like it, Roz. I’m glad that you, Sky, and Anna think you can live with these men and find some kind of happiness, but it doesn’t negate the fact that you were forced.”

  “No, Skylar and I had a choice. We chose to run. We just weren’t able to outrun them.”

  “And Anna?”

  “She too agreed to become Josh’s mate. Have you seen them together? She seems to be quite taken with him and he positively dotes on her.”

  “I won’t agree to be mated again. I won’t.”

  “Then you put Dylan in the position of having to select your mate and if you still refuse, he’ll force you to run.”

  Darby shook her head. “I’ll kill any male who tries to take me. I swear it.”

  “Darby, please, try to calm down. Dylan isn’t going to give you to someone who will abuse you.”

  “He doesn’t know that. I won’t live that way again, Roz. I won’t.” Roz watched her walk off with a feeling of dread.

  Chapter Four

  The remainder of the week was quiet as the pack of Calon Gwyllt prepared for their guests. Darby was moved up to the main house and remained polite but aloof. Her feelings of anger and resentment grew daily, but she kept them smoldering in private.

  * * *

  On Friday morning, Roz and Oliver finally took their leave. Roz had asked her new mate if she could say goodbye to the women of Bae Diogel and he had given his permission. Roz had assured each of them that she was incredibly happy, was looking forward to her new life in the Hamptons, and that Oliver was the best lover she’d ever had. She also went out of her way to make sure all of her former pack mates knew that when done correctly, being knotted and tied to your mate was the best feeling in the world.

  * * *

  Jean-Michel was happy to have arrived at Calon Gwyllt. While he and Dylan had never been close friends, the two alphas certainly knew each other by reputation, respected each oth
er, and had been on the same side of the Council’s vote in the matter of how to deal with the women of Bae Diogel.

  Dylan’s new mate, Skylar, had arranged for an informal BBQ for all of the arriving guests for the weekend house party. Jean-Michel smiled to himself. It was a good strategy to set things up so that both invited guests and the women of Bae Diogel could mingle and get to know one another. Certainly it should make the women feel less like they were being offered up for sale. Jean-Michel was impressed as it seemed the other women of Calon Gwyllt were trying to be supportive and understanding.

  Things seemed to be going smoothly until Jean-Michel saw one of Dylan’s men rush out of the house, clearly distressed while trying to hide that fact. He watched as Dylan quickly directed his men in an effort to resolve whatever had gone awry.

  Jean-Michel suspected it had to do with the women from Bae Diogel as he watched a quiet but heated exchange between Dylan and Skylar. Whatever the cause, Dylan seemed to resolve the matter by giving his mate a brief, discreet spanking and then sending her on her way with his beta, Nick.

  Jean-Michel turned to JD, his lifelong friend and the beta of the New Orleans pack. He told him to gather the other two members of the New Orleans pack and join him. Jean-Michel headed off to intercept their host.

  Jean-Michel watched as Dylan stepped away from his omega, Matthew.

  “Jean-Michel,” Dylan said in a falsely hearty voice, “welcome. I hope your accommodations are acceptable?”

  “Other than being away from all those beautiful women—both from Bae Diogel and from your own pack—they are lovely.”

  Dylan smiled. “Yes, I am surrounded by beauty in all its forms. I’m sorry that my mate is indisposed.”

  Jean-Michael laughed. “From what I saw, you seem to be the cause of your mate’s indisposition.”

  “Saw that, did you?”

  “I see and know most things, my friend. I take it there’s trouble? Uninvited guests or naughty girls?”

  Dylan chuckled. “The latter. Three of them decided to absent themselves from the party.”

  “As you know, several of my unmated pack members insisted on joining me. We can be discreet and are happy to be of help.”

  “That would be most appreciated. Some of my men have already shifted and will pick up their trail. Perhaps you and one of your men could join one group and I could take the other two members of your pack and join the other?”

  “Sounds like an excellent division of labor. Lead on,” said Jean-Michel as he motioned to his men.

  Jean-Michel watched as Dylan’s men shifted and picked up the girls’ scent. He had brought three of his unmated pack members with him. It was his hope that he would be allowed to take at least two of the girls back with them to New Orleans. His pack was heavily weighted with unattached males. They needed to start bringing females into the pack if they were to remain strong and healthy.

  He wasn’t opposed to human females being turned, but not unless and until they had given their informed consent. He’d had to oust one pack member for turning a girl without her consent. They had seen her through the change. She had been furious about what had been done to her. She’d left the safety of the pack for a brief interlude but had then returned asking to become one with them. She was now happily mated to another male from the pack and was expecting their first offspring in the next few weeks.

  Jean-Michel was jogging after the shifted wolves as they tracked their quarry. There on the wind he thought he got the whiff of something for which he’d been searching for many years. He stopped and scented the wind. Yes, she was here. The faint smell of crepe jasmine mixed with her unique aroma. He smiled. He removed his clothes and smoothly shifted to more readily run down his prey. Jean-Michel began to howl what he hoped would be his last mournful song in search of his mate.

  * * *

  Darby heard members of Dylan’s pack closing in. The women who had run had separated, hoping at least one of them would be able to get away. Darby stopped and listened intently. She heard the group of wolves trailing them separate into two smaller groups. Darby shifted and headed toward the beach. They had chosen low tide as a time and means to escape from the Calon Gwyllt’s estate.

  She heard a lone howl and felt it reverberate through her bones. No. This cannot happen to me. I will not be mated again. I want to be free. The howl sounded again, changing to a baying sound toward the end. Whoever he is, he’s got my scent. Damn. She heard the two smaller groups go after Summer and Gina but felt the lone wolf behind her in hot pursuit.

  Darby ran, willing herself to find more speed. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She heard the mournful song again; it caused her to stagger. The pull to return his call, reverse her course, and find her mate was strong. She shook her head; she refused to heed his siren song. She ran down the incline from the bluff above the beach and down to the dunes.

  She had just reached the sand when once again she heard him call. Only this time, she felt the tail end of an alpha roll reaching out to her. He knew she was close and knew she was resisting him. If he got any closer, the alpha roll combined with his song would literally knock her off her feet and he would be on her before she had a chance to recover.

  Her paws had barely touched sand when his alpha wave hit her at full force. Combined with the song he continued to howl, Darby had her feet swept out from underneath her. The air was expelled from her lungs and she rolled onto the beach in a heap. Before she could regain her bearing or shift back to human form, the large, powerful wolf was upon her.

  * * *

  Jean-Michel felt triumphant. He had her! To feel her so near was sweet… He accelerated and saw the force of his alpha wave hit her, knocking her to the ground. Jean-Michel closed the distance between them and pounced. He grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, pinning her to the ground. Jean-Michel had no desire to mark and knot his mate in her wolf form. He shook her by the scruff as she fought to free herself from his possession. He pressed her into the ground so that she could feel his need. Jean-Michel wanted her to understand that if he chose to, he could mark her and make her his and no one would challenge him. The bitter taste of another alpha’s mark filled his mouth. His need to remove it from her body was almost overwhelming.

  He shook her again. He felt her yield and shift back to her human form. She was beautiful. Of medium height, she had beautiful pale blonde hair, blue eyes, and a decidedly feminine figure. Her breasts were a bit larger than average with enticing areolas and nipples. She had a lovely, rounded, firm bottom, a small waist, and long, lean legs. Jean-Michel shifted back as well, ensuring that she was still pinned beneath him. He desperately wanted to mark and mate with her, but he could feel both fear and anger emanating from her being. Jean-Michel nuzzled her, inhaling her scent deeply.

  He chuckled. “What a naughty mate you are. You heard me calling you, but resisted my call,” he said in a pleasant and soothing voice. Darby would later tell him that she thought his voice sounded like molasses.

  “I am not your mate,” said Darby, shaking from both anger and fear.

  He chuckled and nuzzled her again, happy to have finally found her. “Be still, mate. I won’t hurt you. Well, I suppose that’s not really true, is it? After all I will have to discipline you for both disobeying Dylan and then for not coming to me when I called you. Then there’s the matter of ridding you of another’s mark and giving you my own. But then, sweet, I will take you to my bed to knot and tie you. I will make you forget how I had to punish you.”

  He ran his hands down her flanks as he whispered kisses along the back of her neck and her shoulders. How he would have preferred not to have to spank her before they mated for the first time. She, however, had left him little choice in the matter. He would need to see to her punishment for this mischievous little run. She would be mate to the alpha of New Orleans and would come to love her life and him… of that he had no doubt.

  His cock was hard and a knot was already forming in anticipation of the nig
ht ahead. She struggled against him as it made contact with her naked buttocks.

  “Get off me, you bastard.” She bucked and struggled, which did nothing to improve her position but did bring her in closer contact with his groin.

  He wrapped his arm around her middle and pulled her tighter against his body, while his other hand went up to fondle her breast. He cupped it and squeezed it gently and then rolled her nipple between his thumb and forefinger. His possessive handling of her infuriated her. He rained more kisses along the tops of her shoulders. She continued to struggle and tried to get away from him. He pinned her more closely, rubbing his engorged cock along her buttocks. Jean-Michel knew it was best for her to become comfortable being in close proximity to his cock and the feel of it inside her body. Both her wolf and human form were very appealing to him. He anticipated many hours spent within her warm embrace proving that she was his and his alone.

  “Get off and get that thing away from me.”

  He chuckled. “Before long, you will be well pleased to have my thing as you so charmingly named it nestled in your wet, silky warmth, stroking you to ecstasy before I force my knot and then tie you to me.”

  Jean-Michel looked back over his shoulder and saw Dylan, JD, and the other men approaching. Jean-Michel growled a warning to keep clear. His mate was naked—from this point forward he would be the only one to see her in that state. Between Dylan and the other men, the naughty girls who had thought to escape them had been retaken.

  “So that’s the way it is,” said Dylan, grinning.

  Dylan had originally earmarked Bae Diogel’s omega, Lacey, for the alpha from New Orleans. When they had spoken before Jean-Michel accepted Dylan’s invitation, Jean-Michel had confided that he believed that his mate was among the women that had once been the Bae Diogel pack. Dylan had suggested that Lacey, as a proven omega, might be someone he should strongly consider.