Alpha vs Alpha

by Channing Sheffield

  Blade was his what, goddammit? I puffed up my chest like a rooster ready to crow hearing my soon-to-be mate’s acknowledgment, until I remembered Raleigh’s foreign phrase sounded derogatory. “Did you call me something filthy, butthead?”

  “Asshole, noser,” he replied. Raleigh would be a formidable opponent—tall, muscular, palpable contempt shining in his black eyes, high threat-level—but not powerful enough to whip an Alpha. Or he would be chief of his own pack.

  Blade stepped between us. Claws short of gouging our chests, he said, “Not another word out of either of you. Raleigh, I want Hamm onboard. We might need an outsider’s critical eye and nose.”

  Now wait a minute. Outsider? I shoved his hand away for making that shitty remark. I was no longer a frigging outsider. My future mate had damn well better understand we were not only lovers, as Alphas we were equals in every respect. I refused to fade into the shadows or become a subservient, backseat lackey in this relationship or any other. I opened my mouth to state the damn facts.

  “Calm down,” Blade advised. “You’re not a lackey here.”

  And damned if he hadn’t read my frigging thoughts. Oh hell, yeah, we were definitely going to have a what-the-fuck sit-down before anything else went down in this place.

  Dammit, we will, Hamm. In time. For now, we have other problems. You see, I think the latest troubles circulating through the region might be an insider job of my company—with outside help.

  All right then. So now I could hear him?

  “Where the hell’s Ursula?” Blade snapped to the group as they sat. He grabbed several manila folders from his desktop, tossed them onto the conference table. Two emptied of their contents, papers scattering across the slick glass surface. Needing sex and unable to get fulfillment caused nagging frustration to settle in many a male.

  “Not able to join us, my love,” Saba replied sweetly. She stared at me then cut her eyes back to her damn love. “Ursula gave me a copy of her report. The kids were still frightened and clingy because of this…this babaca.”

  Baba-what? It sounded filthy to me, and I let my sinister growl quietly loose.

  So now, it looked like three frigging competitors were staking a claim, which had the potential to turn this fiasco into an all-out brawl. Cat and canines. No doubt in my mind, two wolves might as well be prone today. Putting them down permanently was cake. Flaying a jaguar chick wide open, whose playground buddy happened to be a mammoth liger? Fuck.

  Gloomily, I wiped a hand over my face then pinched the bridge of my nose. How did my life come to this? And when did jealousy become part of my foot-loose-and-fancy-free agenda?

  6

  In quick time I was overwhelmed and overloaded with information. Blade Villere had embraced a well-thought vision and somehow made things happen.

  He’d built legitimate mega-operations—aptly named Villere Enterprises—over the years, spanning the continent. Aside from the resort and its high-end amenities, other prosperous companies managed farming/ranching territories, shipping/receiving services, and Blade’s ultimate accomplishment, VRC, Valley Rehabilitation Center—specifically for feral shifters of all breeds. The facility was located on meadowlands not too far away. He’d taken time to invest in treatments when no one else gave a rat’s ass.

  Near the end of Drake’s project report on VRC, the sly wolf stopped to ask, “Got fleas, Fairchild?”

  “Not,” I snapped, scratching furiously at my chest. This shit had to be taken care of soon, before I did something as lewd and undignified as humping somebody’s leg. Or crazier yet, fucking Blade into delirium on the tabletop in front of everyone. My body overheated and my jeans’ zipper scraped against my throbbing cock. I shifted in the chair, hoping to ease the discomfort, which didn’t help worth a damn. I looked over at the main reason for my torment. He ignored me, continued writing notes. Why was I the only miserable one here? “Not that it’s any of your damn business. The irritation’s caused by—”

  Blade slapped the thick glass tabletop, startling everyone. “Are you finished, Drake? If so, Saba, you’ve got the floor.”

  Director and Management Consultant, she ran the resort with an iron fist…or steel claws. The resort rarely closed. It was now, luckily, for extensive housecleaning and minor repairs before the holidays. Hearing her report seemed to lift Blade’s spirits a notch. The uplift paled quickly. Saba read Ursula’s sketchy testimony—the grizzly was overlady of the woodworking facility—word for word. Feuds amongst the felines, and their fights were vicious, destroyed the new wood. They’d clawed and sprayed everything, leaving the facility uninhabitable until a thorough cleaning and disinfecting took place. Damn cats.

  “Nothing else, bebê,” Saba finished.

  Hell, I knew what that shit meant. Baby. One more sloppy endearment out of her grinning mouth and I’d—

  You’d what? Shut up and sit down, Hamm.

  Well, hell. I didn’t realize I’d gotten to my feet. I dragged the chair up off the floor and, unceremoniously, dropped my butt into it. Who gave him the damn authority to tell me to shut up?

  “Fleas again?” my main adversary asked.

  Fuck you, I mouthed then shook my head. This jealousy thing would be a bitch to deal with on a good day.

  My nagging torture dimmed when Walker and a shapely shifter I scented as snow leopard, an elusive cat to most humans, rolled in trays of breakfast foods and drinks. Meats mostly. Raw. Organic, according to Walker, caught fresh this morning. Four-legged carnivores loved unsullied animal protein.

  While we demolished every morsel of meat, I revisited township details in my mind’s eye. I planned to investigate its surroundings and its businesses. The small municipality was filled with everyday workers employed at supermarkets, restaurants, the large handcrafted furniture/woodworking facility, and several other independent, goods suppliers. Many in the workforce, shifters and a few privileged humans, were dedicated employees providing health care at VRC.

  I understood the need for privacy, but damn. Every business endeavor had been buried under a subsidiary conglomerate only corporate attorneys possessed expertise to uncover. Blade’s unmapped district and company enterprises were justifiably tight-knit communities, considering a werewolf was owner, CEO, and hard-line titan in a climate unfavorable toward “demons,” as shifters had been labeled by some elite, middle, and poor classes of humans.

  Even the packs I communicated with had no clue about the goings on here, including Dad. Crap. I had to make contact with the family and the Branson pack soon, before they raided this place looking...

  Out of the blue, I winced at the twinge of regret and some other indefinable emotion. I looked over at Blade, wondering if the impossible had come to pass—linked mates. Huh. Guess not. Did I miss out on an important issue? I’d gotten the evil eye.

  “I’d planned to discuss the latest disaster before we were interrupted,” Blade said. The look in his eyes showed no signs of happiness. “Instead, I want to put it off until after the full moon, when I’m thinking more clearly. So, until then, Raleigh, add more patrols around the perimeter…felines and bears, no wolves at all. And no cheetahs unless it’s a three- or foursome. Don’t forget Nina said havelinas have ventured close to her home. Her pups are too young to deal with them. Send one of the wild dog families to the southwest side. You and Drake can join the powwow. Drake, I want VRC heavily protected. Same goes for wolves and cheetahs. We don’t need an infiltrator slipping under the radar. Saba, keep Tige with you for a day or two until…until after. Okay, meeting—”

  “Until after what?” I asked. The best time to consummate our mating was tonight, during the full moon. Powerful was too mild of word to define emotions and responses to stimuli between mates. Intense? Yeah, according to my brother, Nick. I couldn’t wait to get into Blade’s pants, his body, to mark him as mine, tossing the rest of these frothing animals out of my memory bank.

  “Adjourned,” Blade finished.

  “Wait a minute. I asked you a qu
estion. Until after what?”

  I expected Blade to announce our mating, needed him to accept the inevitable. Damned if he didn’t gather notes and file folders and go back to his desk, ignoring me. See, this was where I had a problem with Blade. Sure, he was head honcho of his companies and, yeah, he was leader over his clan of shifters, but I had rights as his mate.

  “Don’t walk away from me in the middle of a conversation, Villere. You can pull shit with the minions, not with me.” Still ignored.

  Saba grabbed my arm—damn, she was strong—and dragged me into the hallway. “Might want to bite your tongue, babaca,” she whispered, “when he’s in a mood.”

  “What damn mood?”

  “Think about it. Less than nine hours before the moon rises, Were, the reason he called this meeting early. Haven’t you noticed how short-tempered he is?

  Sort of. I hadn’t helped the situation by cornering Blade or leaving us both aching with want. “And?”

  “As the day goes on, his demeanor nosedives.”

  I knew all about petting and soothing the temperamental. Females, that is. Guys…getting some tail usually cured whatever ailed them. “So? I’ve dealt with bitchiness.” And if she didn’t get her damn claws out of my arm, we were going to blows.

  She tsked. “Raleigh, tell this fool what he’s up against.” She marched away with Drake following in her footsteps.

  Okay, werewolf mentality and their activities were beyond me aside from the cock-and-bull tales Old Doggie used to tell. Blade was genuinely a good guy. Surely, tonight couldn’t be any different for him than it would be for me. Hyperactive. Hypersensitive. Constant hard-on. ‘Til dawn. By then, cocks were sore, pussies and booties ached. Participants usually engaged in pity parties or soaked in hot tubs laced with Epsom salts afterward. Life was good.

  The wolf had a sneaky way of testing my hot buttons for proper functionality. “Well?” I asked shortly.

  “Heh. I think I’ll pass on this one. See ya,” he replied. “Oh, and good luck. We’ll miss you.”

  What the hell was he talking about? I had no plans to go anywhere. Not anytime soon anyway, and definitely not before I claimed my mate. I watched Raleigh swagger away before turning back to the conference room and Blade.

  Several sheets of paper, balled up into tight spheres, had been tossed to the floor.

  “You seem tense. Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “No.” Terse. Snappish.

  “Want to tell me what’s going on?”

  He raked long fingers through his hair, held it off his face. His eyes were closed, teeth grinding. If Blade unleashed his temper on me, I‘d handle it, but then his eyes fluttered opened as if from a dream, glowing laser-green. Hell’s bells.

  “Go away. Go home, Hamm. I don’t want you here.”

  Not when itchiness had started at the base of my spine. Not when said itch migrated through my torso, down both legs, and straight to my cock. Lasers or not, staring at the man gave me a boner. No, I was here to stay. “Like hell.”

  He squeezed his eyes shut again and when they opened, they were bright hazel once more. “You can’t handle what’s happening here,” Blade shouted. “Get out! Now.”

  Nobody bellowed at me and got away with it unscathed. I bristled beneath the surface of my skin and thick fur sprouted down my legs. I forced it back into hiding.

  Patience, Hamm. Find out what the problem is before you go ballistic.

  “What can’t I handle, Blade?” I asked calmly. “What put you in this weird frame of mind? Why do you think I should leave? I won’t, you know. I won’t leave today or leave tomorrow. You’ll have to tear me apart first and throw my remains to scavengers.”

  “I can. I just might tear you apart,” he said quietly. “You don’t understand, Hamm. I’m Were. It’s the full moon. We’re different.”

  I moved farther into the room, closer to his massive desk. “How? We breathe the same air, eat the same foods, and we’ll live the same way other mates do.”

  He drew in a shuddered breath, his chin falling against his chest. I heard him swallow thickly. “I...they lock me inside a cage.”

  Huh? “Who?” I demanded. No-goddamn-body locks up my mate and lives to tell about it. “Who?”

  “It’s necessary. To keep me from—”

  “From what?” I exploded, flinging my arms out. Having sex? These small-town idiots believed Blade would impregnate a female and pass on Were genes? “Bullshit! I don’t give a damn what the reason is. You’ll never be jailed again. I’ll stay with you. We’ll stay together. I give you my solemn promise, Blade. Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it as mates should.”

  He shook his head slowly. “We’re not mates, Hamm.”

  “Yet.”

  He was panting now, the rise and fall of his broad shoulders told a story I was unwilling to listen to or accept. “We’ll never be true mates.”

  On the verge of protesting, I knew there was a problem when he lifted his head and stared into my eyes.

  He’d started to shift without provocation; a thick, five o’clock shadow covered his arresting…um…changing face. Blade didn’t look like this before now, completely hairy and a downright wicked appearance. Then, he faded back to human form. Not his teeth…all gnashing and jagged behind peeled back lips. I sucked in a quiet breath. I sure as hell didn’t want those fuckers shredding my skin to ribbons; never should’ve mentioned Blade tearing me apart. Lucky for me, they returned to normal, but two seconds later, before the air finished leaving my burning lungs, his snout elongated, eyes glared an unholy red, and the most terrifying howl I’ve ever heard in my damn life raised the hair off my scalp.

  What time was the moon expected to rise?

  7

  You’ll need plenty of red meat,” Saba said. “And lots of water. Drake, make yourself useful for a change. Get a side of beef from somewhere. Who hid the gallon jugs of water? I can never find shit in here!” She stormed out of the kitchen, snarling, and left four claw marks on the doorframe as she rounded the corner.

  Everyone was in a tizzy with nervous energy spiking the air all around us.

  “Where’s Walker?” I asked. “He’s chef and knows where everything’s kept.”

  Like me, Raleigh kept his unsteady hands busy chopping veggies and fruits. I didn’t think Blade and I would need them, but Saba the Health Nut insisted. Did we give a damn about roughage and hypertension? Not. Grass wouldn’t be available, even though the grounds had plenty. Blade and I would be locked in until dawn. Alone.

  “Caged,” Raleigh replied after a few moments of distraction. I knew where his thoughts lingered.

  Huh? “Him too?” Christ. Why was I the last to know every-damn-thing? “How come you didn’t tell me this shit before now? Does he have to be caged? I mean, it would drive anybody insane.”

  “‘Til dawn, like Blade,” Raleigh added. “He’s rehabilitated. Walker was Blade’s first ‘healed’ patient. Found him the morning after a full moon ten or so years ago, down near New Orleans, and we brought him here. The guy was whimpering and clawing at his skin. You’ve seen his face. He was a wild, red-eyed mess I was skeptical of approaching even in wolf form. Somehow, Blade calmed him when no one else could. And, yes, he’s caged. Walker’s feral. Most times you’d never know it—until the full moon.”

  Gotta be another way to handle the anomalies Mother Nature created.

  “Most times?” I asked.

  The kitchen scene came to mind, the meat cleaver, eyes sparkling gold. Walker’s face was a mass of hellish scars, his hair black as night, streaked with dull gray. I figured he was much older than Blade and acne had ruined his skin at a young age, or some kind disease a wolf’s natural immunity failed at fighting off. Evidently, he’d endured a terrible way of life and he couldn’t handle the cards dealt to him. Few beings could.

  I didn’t get an answer from Raleigh. No problem. Like me and all other wolf shifters, the effects from the full moon’s onset wreaked havoc on our psych
es and bodies. Horny. Twitchy. Teeth grinding, gums aching. Heat boiling beneath the surface of our skin down to the bone marrow. Again, horny.

  Raleigh radiated powerful pheromones. They had zero effect on me; my mind was wrapped exclusively around one individual, my body in need of his. Blade Villere.

  Saba returned with four, gallon jugs of water, two in each hand. “If you think you need more, get it now. It’s in the storage room fridge behind the pantry. He won’t let you leave, Hamm, until—”

  “He’s worn down?” When the jaguar nodded, shudders sprinted up and down my spine.

  In Blade’s current state—a lo-res rage for now—I wasn’t sure I could control his strength or restrain him or wear him down. His temper approached uncontrollable: yelling, cursing, and snarling worse than maddened wolverines protecting a kill. He’d tipped over a side table, smashed the priceless figurine resting on top. Of course, his mind was tipping dangerously close to feral now. Later, it would be much worse.

  I continued staring at Saba. She knew so much more about Blade than I. “Were you and Blade—”

  She shook her head before I finished the question. “We were never lovers, Hamm. Unlike canines, felines only screw or mate with other felines. While domestic cats usually show mild contempt, shifter kitties have amazing egos. We treat all living creatures shitty."

  I’d seen as much, had watched a female leopard shifter verbally tear into a pair of male pandas the moment they put their hands on her. Weird. She had been in their faces, purring, teasing.

  “I know Blade well from watching him suffer during the full moon all these years. He’d roar and screech horribly if I left him alone. Caging Walker in the same area didn’t change anything. We would’ve let them mate or start a fuckfest if it was what they wanted to do, but Blade ignored him. I guess it’s a matter of whom he cares for, whom he’ll let soothe the beast. Evidently, Walker wasn’t his choice.”

  “Where’s he kept?”

  “At VRC. Safe.”