“I would like to meet him.”
Magda turned around, her movements so sultry and graceful. A thin strand of dark hair had slipped free of her cap and fell in a gentle wave alongside her face to her neck. She looked up at him with dark eyes. The glow in them had dimmed. Her long, thin nose and high cheek bones with her scar-free smooth skin, and perfectly pouty lips created a vision of beauty that stole his breath.
“I can have him here tonight.” There was no doubt in his mind that Anthony would drop everything and run to Ayden simply to have his insane curiosity appeased. “I’ll arrange to have us stay here at the Hampton’s for a bit longer.”
She gave him a stiff nod. “Meeting him will honor me—as your new mate,” she added, hesitating a moment before adding that last part.
He cleared the distance between them and pulled her into his arms. “As will meeting your litter,” he whispered.
“I wish I could honor you that way.” Her voice cracked and sadness clogged the air between them when she tilted her head back to stare into his eyes. “Leisa and Katrin would both love you.”
“You don’t want to run to the mountain where they are?” Ayden frowned. Pressing his hands on both of her hips he gripped her, willing her to keep focusing on him. “I didn’t smell any lies when Jaeger described the location where your littermate and her mate have built their new den. I’m sure I can sniff out the location. I know all of this mountain range fairly well.”
“I bet I’d be able to sniff them out, too.” She lowered her head and her ball cap blocked his view of her face. “You don’t know what it does to me knowing both of them are together, happy and safe.”
Ayden needed to see her face. A fresh wash of emotions came off of her. He didn’t smell pity but something almost as bad. It was a bitterness and had a foul smell to it. Grabbing her cap, he pulled it off her head. Instantly the thick ball of hair at the back of her head began slipping. She dug her fingers into her hair when he tried moving his hold on her to her arms.
“I don’t like how this is smelling,” he told her.
“How do you think all of this makes me feel?” she snarled.
“I would think it makes you happy.”
“It does, Ayden,” she said, and sighed. “Like I told you, this news is overwhelming. I’m very grateful to Jaeger Alger for hunting me down to howl the happenings of my litter to me.”
“It’s more than news. This is a change of plans.”
He was ready for it when she shot him a pained look.
“We are not still running to Colorado.” And if she tried growling otherwise, Ayden was ready to show her the hierarchy of their new litter—the litter of the two of them. “Your litter wants you with them. You are my mate. I’m going to see to it that I build our new den close to where you can run with your littermates as often as you wish.”
Magda pulled free of him. Ayden released her reluctantly. When she walked over to the other side of the room where they had initially sat and listened to Jaeger Alger howl his news, he waited when she pulled one of the few remaining beers from the ice bucket.
“If only it was able to happen like that,” she mumbled, then bit the cap on the beer bottle and twisted it off with her teeth.
“It is going to happen like that,” he stressed.
Magda stared up at him a moment before lifting the bottle to her lips. Another time he might have enjoyed how her mouth circled around the bottle and how she held it there, swallowing. She continued watching him when she licked the alcohol from her lips.
“I understand that you want to run toward a life that smells normal. It’s what you know.” She took another drink, downing almost half the beer. “It’s what I once knew, too. And I’ve been thinking hard of a way to have it again. But—“
“What I know is that this smells like a safe place for us to live,” he interrupted.
“No! It’s not,” she yelled.
The bucket of ice and remaining beer bottles began rattling on the table. Two empty bottles, the ones he and Jaeger Alger had finished off while the male had been there, began a wobbly dance until one crashed to the floor. Ayden got a strong whiff of her anger right as he leapt to catch the second bottle before it also fell and shattered.
“Magda, listen—“
This time she interrupted him. “It’s a safe place for Katrin and Liesa. Katrin looks like you. She was able to enter a Cariboo lunewulf pack and pass herself off as one of them without suspicion. Liesa isn’t as dark as I am. Her hair has a reddish tint to it but there are some darker streaks. She is a mixture of me and Katrin,” she offered with a dry laugh. Magda didn’t smell of humor though. “I do believe both of them will be safe on the mountain. Jaeger seems honorable and I’m sure Katrin’s mate is, too.”
“You will be safe there as well.”
“That’s what you don’t get,” she roared and the bucket with all of its ice and beer bottles slammed against the wall.
If she was trying for theatrics, he wasn’t daunted. Ayden glared at her, ready to dismantle any argument she tried howling. He’d heard exactly what Magda had heard and running to the mountain with Jaeger Alger smelled like a much smarter plan than the dangerous trek through the states to Colorado.
“If I run to the mountain as Jaeger wishes me to do, I will endanger my littermates. They are happy. They are safe. The way that male smelled when he mentioned Liesa, maybe eventually he will mate with her. Both Katrin and Liesa will have wonderful dens and a great life. But that life can’t be with me. Not anymore.”
“Enough!” Ayden roared, willing to throw and break a few things too. He slammed his fist down on the table. Since Magda had already sent the bucket flying and two bottles to the floor, all he was able to do was make the table rattle under the impact. “I have heard enough of your fears over being Malta werewolf.”
“Those fears are very real,” she yelled, leaping toward him.
He let her clear the space and grabbed her arms, pinning them to her sides when he caught her mid-air. “I know the laws as well as you do,” he sneered. Rage pumped through him. More emotions too. At the moment, with fire burning in his veins as the change stormed to life inside him, he ignored his feelings and simply let the words spill out. “There is nothing either of us can do about your breeding. You are who you are, as are your littermates. I’m sorry as fucking hell that our laws have outlawed your species. It stinks of ignorance, but we will work our ways around that. You and I will run to that mountain. We will agree to live with your littermates. If, once we are there it no longer smells safe then we will decide together our next move.”
“Kind of like the way we are deciding right now what to do,” she said, relaxing in his grip. Her eyes radiated from her anger, though. They were streaked with fragmented lines of silver that accentuated her natural dark coloring. “Smells like you’re doing all the howling and I’m supposed to submit.”
The laws all species of werewolves ran by were antiquated at times. Other laws were downright ignorant. Ayden and Magda were mated. It didn’t require a ceremony, or signing of any official documents the way humans insisted it be done. Fucking in their flesh and in their fur embedded each of their scents into the other. In a normal functioning pack, a male would approach the sire of the female he wanted and ask for his approval. That was tradition more than law. In their case, Ayden and Magda had howled the truth of their mating to Jaeger Alger. Had Magda lived with her mated littermate, and with her sire and mother both dead, Ayden would have requested their approval. In the end, the truth was the same regardless of how it came to be.
The two of them were mated for life. Again tradition put Ayden at the head of their new litter. As with many of their traditions, Ayden knew many litters didn’t work that way. A strong female quite often bared her claws at her mate. Magda was definitely one of the strongest females he’d ever met.
That didn’t mean he ever planned on submitting, especially when she was hell bent in doing something that might prove dangerous
enough to get them both killed. Not that he had ever taken an easier path to avoid danger. Living with her litter just smelled right to him.
“You’re the one who just howled that we were going to Colorado.” He spoke with his teeth clenched together. More to keep his anger in check than to make a show of displaying his temper. “I didn’t smell anything close to it being a suggestion, or a thought you brought up for discussion.”
“I’m the one who knows this life,” she retorted, and shook from side to side to free herself. “You don’t.”
“I have just about had enough of your continually informing me that my life has been privileged, while yours hasn’t.”
“I haven’t—“
“No. I haven’t been hunted by other werewolves. You’re right. No one will kill me on sight because of the blood running through my veins. But I do know what it’s like to be hunted by humans. I have lived with the smell of fear because someone else misunderstands who I am.” He put her down and walked away, needing space.
In spite of her outrage, sense of betrayal, and bittersweet happiness for her littermates, Magda’s scent also proved she was his mate. Ayden stalked across the room, blowing out a breath. He wasn’t opposed to tossing her over his shoulder and hauling her up that mountain to her littermates. No one would stop him from doing so. However, he’d rather not give her the satisfaction of howling the unfairness over their laws and traditions if he pulled rank on her.
“Ayden,” she said, her voice softening. “Jaeger told us about this mountain. He said he and his littermates had run off of it after humans burnt out so many dens. And he agreed that all of them know the risk in returning to rebuild in the exact spot where their previous den once stood. They have returned to their hunting ground, to the land they know and love. It makes sense. And hopefully it will work for them. I understand that there is no place where we will always be free of threat. We are hunters, predators, but there will always be those out there willing and eager to hunt us down. But, my running to their mountain,” she continued, but then took a breath, watching him as if to make sure he was listening, “will add danger to all of them. They are safer without a female living among them who by all appearances is a pure bred Malta werewolf.”
“By your argument, there is no point in running anywhere because you will always be who you are.”
Magda shook her head. “The Malta werewolf pack in Colorado has created a sanctuary for themselves. The American government helps protect them. I want the chance to run without being in fear, to hunt without being hunted, to have a litter and know my pups are safe.”
“We will have all of that,” he promised. Ayden walked to her and pulled her into his arms. Her small hands rested on his shoulders when he brushed his lips over hers. “But tell me, ma beaute noire, do you not want to see your littermates ever again?”
Ayden knew he’d made the right decision. The cold night, mountain air lifted his fur on his back, and it was as if his entire body was rejuvenated. He made the first leap. Magda was right beside him, jumping from boulder to boulder as they began climbing the mountain. No matter where their den was, he knew if they remained in the mountains both of them would be more at home.
His brain cleared while they continued their ascent, leaving the town filled with its mixture of species and humans. He would give Magda everything she wanted. Her den, pups to raise together, safe hunting ground where they would also run and play. And before they settled into their life as a mated couple, they would sniff out and know each other’s litters.
The round boulder he’d just landed on shifted under his weight. He spread his legs, balancing his large frame on the large rock. Then watching Magda make the leap from where she was to land next to him, the two of them then continued their trek, both jumping in unison to the next flat surface. His beautiful black bitch definitely knew how to rock climb.
The moon was almost whole and its light shimmered off Magda’s long, silky black coat. She was so graceful. Only a lifetime of living buried deep in the Canadian Rockies gave her the skill she possessed today. Before the moon started its descent into the sky they had neared the mountain where his pack lived. He would take Magda to meet Anthony. Ayden kept a keen sense on the night air. They would travel as far as he dared with the two of them in their fur. When they neared his den, they would change and he’d walk with her the rest of the way. It was the best way to protect her, and give her what he knew she craved, the right to meet his litter as his mate.
His littermate also deserved the truth, and not delivered by a messenger. It was why he’d decided to bring her to his den before they traveled to where her littermates’ dens were. Ayden would introduce Magda to Anthony. Regardless of how Anthony might feel about the mating, Ayden knew his littermate well enough to know he wouldn’t dishonor Magda.
There was a decent chance that his littermate might be out chasing some tail on the mountain. Ayden wouldn’t mind it if they arrived at his den and they were the only ones there for the night. Watching as Magda made the final leap to stand next to him on the smooth plateau at the base of the his mountain, his desire to have his den alone with his mate grew.
She smelled the change in his scent. Magda circled half-way around him, then skirted to the side, curling her lip and growling. God damn, she was so fucking hot. That lithe little body of hers, the way her coat lay smooth over her slender waist and hips, the glow in her almond shaped eyes, and most especially his scent embedded in her fur, turned him on enough that thoughts of having her before they reached his den began sounding better.
He would fuck her now, then they would have intense, drawn-out sex in his bed when they reached his den. They would catch up with Anthony when they caught up with him. There was no rush. Sex right now, in the middle of nowhere, would invigorate both of them for the rest of their run.
Ayden took determined steps toward her. She danced around him again, this time barking her protests. He didn’t mind her fighting him a bit. It was all part of the foreplay. It would take nothing to leap through the air and land on top of her. He might force her to the ground on her side and take her that way. Then again, playing along with her sexual game, letting her dodge him a few times, then grabbing her from behind and mounting her as she stood sounded good, too.
Magda let out a series of barks. She curled her lip and bared her long, white teeth. Then turning with enticing agility, she raced into the darkness. Ayden tore up the frozen ground with his thick, sharp claws and raced after her at instant high speed. He slid to a stop when she hadn’t run as far as he thought she would.
Using his front paws, Ayden grabbed her by the hips and shifted his weight to stand on his hind quarters. Her aroma drew him closer and made his dick hard as steel. The moment he slid into her velvety heat would be a level of heaven he looked forward to repeating over and over again for the rest of their lives.
Not that burying himself deep inside Magda’s soaked pussy wouldn’t bring incredible pleasure. There was something about that first moment, though. Something about the initial contact when his cock first sunk into those tight folds.
Ayden came down on top of Magda. Her pleasure smelled as strong as his. He loved how his scent made hers sharper, especially when he breathed it in off her perfect, beautiful flowing black coat.
Magda braced herself, holding her position when he pulled her in underneath him. Letting all his weight down on her backside would force her to the ground. In spite of the tight pain it created in his muscles, he remained off balance, carrying the bulk of his weight with his hind legs. Having her remain standing when he pinned her underneath him would allow him to enter her fully. His brain boiled in anticipation.
Ayden wasn’t ready for Magda to squat to the ground. It threw him off balance. His sight remained fogged with incredible carnal lust when she slid forward on her belly and escaped him.
He pounced. Come back here, he roared. His primal nature demanded that his female be underneath him, ready to be fucked.
&nbs
p; It took a moment for Ayden to pick up on the change in the air around them. Magda slivered across the grass, moving fast and low so that her black coat floated around her just over the tall mountain grass.
Ayden landed close to her but Magda kept moving. She ignored his loud complaints. His head began clearing. He understood why. Before his determined beaute noire created any more distance between them, Ayden came to full alert. This time the low rumble deep in his throat stilled her.
A frigid breeze whipped down the mountain and around the trees. It reached Ayden like a splash of cold water in the face. Instantly his head cleared. The breeze carried a different smell other than the fragrance of the evergreens or various odors from the many living prey his kind feasted on. Ayden smelled werewolves.
Magda didn’t look to him for guidance. He would worry later about encouraging his female to know when to submit. Fortunately, she wasn’t on the move either. Magda remained crouched in the tall grass, her belly to the ground, and her ears alert. He watched her sniff the air, although only for a moment. The easiest thing to do was walk to her and stand over her. The moment he sensed her stiffen, he grumbled low in his throat, for only her to hear.
Don’t you dare move.
Magda remained crouched when he moved forward and stood over her. Ayden didn’t know yet if the smell he picked up on came from members of his pack, a rogue werewolf or two, or members from one of the other packs on his mountain. With the frozen breeze continually shifting down through the trees, it was too soon to determine how many approached. But the smell of his kind grew stronger.
It wasn’t until the air around them stilled that Ayden picked up on the animosity. Magda snarled, obviously smelling the same thing. He swallowed, taking a step forward and praying his brand new mate was smart enough to stay right where she was. Because now that the breeze was gone it was clear their company was a hell of a lot closer than he’d originally thought.
With Her Capture Page 16