by Delta James
Realizing that she had no chance at all to outrun him as a human, Roz shifted and ran down another alley of the maze. She could sense his closing the distance between them. She felt the tail end of one energy wave and then a few moments later, a stronger one collided with her from behind causing her to yelp. It hadn’t hurt as much as startled her.
She bounded into the center of the maze. It was beautiful—myriad impeccably groomed flower beds around a central fountain. There were another five alleys leading off of the center. Roz heard and felt Oliver call her again. The wolf in her wanted nothing more than to return the call of her mate. The urge to do so was almost overwhelming.
Roz shifted back to her human form. She needed to think her way out of this; out of this maze, off of the estate, and how to get away without any clothes. She smiled. That’s one thing neither she nor Skylar had anticipated—what they would do about clothes when they shifted back.
There was a great crash and Oliver, in his wolf form, entered the center of the maze. Seeing her, he advanced on her. Roz was mesmerized. She hadn’t noticed when he’d run her to ground before that his wolf form was as beautiful as it was powerful.
Roz remained on the ground. She didn’t have the strength either physically or emotionally to get up. The wolf approached her and stood over her watching. He pawed her shoulder to push her onto her belly. Having no way to refuse him, she complied. He stood over her as he had that afternoon at the beach and grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, indicating she was to change back. Roz knew he mean to claim her as a wolf.
“Please, Oliver, don’t.” She knew she likely only had one chance to get through to him. “I know you have every right to, but please don’t claim me as a wolf.” Roz started to cry quietly. She could feel him shift back to his human form.
He pulled her into his arms there on the ground beside her and let her cry.
“It will be all right, my Rozalyn. I am your fated mate. You are safe with me. I know you heard me howl.” She nodded. He nuzzled her hair. “You were a naughty wolf not to heed my call, weren’t you?” Again she nodded and continued to cry. “You know I’m your mate, don’t you?”
“Yes,” she said softly, trying to stop her weeping. He took her face in his hand and kissed away the tears.
“Will you come back to the house with me and accept my claim as your mate?”
“Why do you want me?”
“Because you are difficult and stubborn; proud and defiant; intelligent and courageous; loving and kind. Why wouldn’t I want you? You are my mate. I was born to love you and you alone. So will you yield to me?”
“Do I have a choice?”
Oliver nuzzled her again. “Do you really want one?”
* * *
Greg had left clothing for them outside the maze. Oliver helped Roz into her clothes before donning his own. He took her hand in his and started back toward the main house. Roz stopped just outside the light cast by the illuminated windows and outdoor patio lights.
“I can’t do this,” she said, shaking her head. “If you won’t let me go, then take me back to the Hamptons tonight. Don’t make me do this here.”
“No, sweetheart. This is where you defied me and this is where you will surrender. It will only be a small group. Skylar will be there and she too will have to acknowledge Dylan’s claim. Once the alpha and the hellcat beta of Bae Diogel have been brought to heel, the rest should fall more easily into line and the Ruling Council will get their twisted knickers straightened out.”
“They hate us, don’t they?”
Oliver chuckled. “Yes. But more than that, they’re afraid of you. That you existed as long as you did right under their very noses has shaken them to the core. Our society has always existed and thrived as a male-dominated society. I can’t see that changing. But some alphas, Dylan and I among them, realize that some have gone too far. Some have become so focused on male superiority and their rights as such that they forget we are nothing without our females. All-male packs are no more effective or healthy than an all-female pack. There must be a give and take. Although there needs to be an ultimate authority within the pack. That alpha will function best if he is wise enough to listen to the council not only of his beta and omega, but his mate as well.” He leaned down and kissed her. “I will see you happily mated to me, my Rozalyn, whether you initially like the idea or not.”
He took a step forward, but Roz did not follow. He stood holding her hand, waiting for her to make a decision.
“Give me one small concession?”
“If I can.”
“Tell Greg I still have my trusty scalpel and if he smirks at me just once, I’ll use it on him.”
Oliver laughed. “I will do no such thing. And if you brandish a weapon at anyone in our pack again, you won’t be able to sit down for a week. I heard about your obnoxious behavior when last you were at home. I will expect the mistress of the Hamptons pack to behave in a manner more appropriate to her position.”
“I wouldn’t count on that,” Roz said in a softly defiant voice.
Oliver ran his hand down her back and patted her bottom affectionately. “What I am counting on, sweetheart, is taking you in hand and making you behave.”
Chapter Eleven
Roz and Oliver had entered the main gathering area prior to Skylar and Dylan. As the alpha of Calon Gwyllt and his lady entered the room, Skylar started to speak to Roz, but Dylan shushed her then said, “Oliver, good to see you. I’d hoped I would before you left in the morning.”
Oliver smiled at him. “I wanted to wait until you were here as you are alpha of this pack. Roz, I believe you have something to say?”
Roz glared at him, causing Oliver to growl low in his throat at her. Dylan was surprised to see Roz’s demeanor change immediately. “I’m sorry. This isn’t easy for me.”
Oliver hugged her close. “I know, sweetheart. But you know what you have to do. Be a good girl.”
“I hate being a good girl.”
Oliver laughed at her. “That’s going to have to change or you won’t be sitting down much, will you?”
“Jerk.”
“Oliver,” he corrected as he swatted her backside with affection. “Now, get on with it.”
“You’ll speak to him?” Roz said, indicating Dylan with her head.
This time the swat held a bit more sting and caused Roz to yelp. “Do you want to behave or do you need me to take you upstairs and take my belt to your bottom before you decide to do as you’re told?”
“No, Oliver. I… all right. I, Rozalyn Kincanon, formerly of Bae Diogel, acknowledge you, Oliver Halsey, as my right and lawful mate and alpha.”
Oliver kissed her forehead. “See? That wasn’t too bad, was it?”
“It was, but it was better than the alternatives.”
Greg stepped forward and acknowledged both his alpha and his new lady.
Roz watched as her alpha was also forced to declare herself mate to a male alpha.
The room had been filled with tension and unshed tears on the part of both Roz and Skylar. Roz knew that for the two of them life would never be the same. Roz was a bit startled when Thomas, the cook, entered the room. He had prepared cake and champagne to make the occasion. Oliver had laughed when he asked Dylan about stealing his chef and Dylan had remarked Roz would no longer have a mate.
Oliver continued to smile broadly. “Don’t give her any more naughty ideas. She has plenty of her own, don’t you, sweetheart?”
“I refuse to answer on the grounds that you already gave me a spanking and I don’t want another one,” said Roz a bit petulantly, although her body language did not convey great duress.
Oliver arranged for Roz to have a chance to speak privately with Skylar. Roz had some concerns about being knotted and marked.
Chapter Twelve
Roz and Skylar had gone to sit in a small niche allowing them a bit of privacy but still under the watchful eye of their mates. “We had a helluva run, didn’t we?” Roz said wistfully.
Skylar nodded. “We did. And we almost got away from them.”
Roz said, “He’s going to fucking bite me? I mean I know they all do it, but I’ve always heard it’s worse from an alpha.”
Skylar nodded and pulled her hair back, revealing the residual scar from her claiming marks from Micah.
Roz shook her head. “So the whole alpha knot thing. Is it as bad as they say? Oliver said they need to do it at least monthly?” She shuddered.
Skylar took her hands in hers. “Only if it isn’t done right. Once they force the knot inside you, if your mate cares for you, and I can see Oliver already does, he’ll just be still and let your body accept it.”
“This does not sound good.”
Skylar grinned. “What Oliver said about them needing to do it monthly is true—usually around the full moon. What he didn’t say was that a lot of alphas’ mates request to be knotted more often than that. And generous bastards that they are, they’re willing to grant that request.”
“Why would anyone want to have to endure that more often than you have to?”
“Because it is amazing.”
“I take it Micah knotted you more than monthly.”
She giggled. “Usually at least weekly.”
“Why, you little hussy! Who knew?”
Some of the tension in each of them had been alleviated by being able to reconnect.
Oliver had joined them; putting his hand on Roz’s shoulder, he said, “Better?”
She smiled up at him. “Yes, and thanks for letting me talk to Sky.”
Dylan had joined them as well. “Was she able to alleviate some of your concerns?”
“You mean did she tell me that being marked and having that thing shoved inside me hurt like a sonofabitch?”
Skylar began to laugh. The two alpha males were not amused, which made Skylar laugh even harder. Dylan growled, which did nothing to alleviate her amusement.
“Skylar, what…”
Roz touched Dylan’s arm but looked to Skylar. “You forgot to mention alphas have no sense of humor.”
“Really? I thought you’d figured that out already. And I’ve always thought you were so bright,” Skylar said, giggling.
* * *
Before ascending the stairs, Oliver found the man who had been posted outside Roz’s room and let him know that he need not worry about Roz from this point forward. He walked past what had been Roz’s room. She hesitated at the door.
“I need to get some things…” she said, sounding more unsure of herself than she ever had.
Oliver turned back to her and gently took her into his arms. “You won’t need anything from there until tomorrow morning and I’ll have them moved over before we need to go downstairs.”
He put his arm around her and moved toward the door of what would now be their suite.
“Why am I so nervous?” she whispered. “I don’t like feeling this way.”
“I think it’s understandable to feel that way—you’re unsure of so many things. But I promise you everything will be fine.”
He opened the door. Before she could step through, he swept her up in his arms and carried her across the proverbial threshold.
Roz giggled. “Seriously? That’s a bit over the top, don’t you think?”
He chuckled. “Not at all. Wolves are big on tradition.” He walked into the middle of the room and set her down on her feet.
Roz looked around. His suite was half again as big as hers. The attached en-suite looked to be larger as well and his room had a balcony with a commanding view of the ocean. She started toward it, but then stopped and looked at him. He smiled and joined her, opening the door and allowing her to go through before him.
“You can’t do that,” she said.
“Do what, sweetheart?”
“Act all polite and chivalrous. How am I going to hate you if you do that and if Sky was telling me the truth about this whole knotting thing?”
He chuckled, drew her close, and nuzzled her neck. There was something about the way he would nuzzle her that was intimate, erotic, and comforting. It made Roz feel aroused and yet safe. It was an odd combination that she thought she just might enjoy becoming accustomed to.
He kissed her forehead. “You will not be able to hate me, my Rozalyn.”
“I will if you don’t quit calling me Rozalyn.”
He chuckled again. “I will call you what I choose, my Rozalyn, and you will love me all the more for it.”
She snorted at him. “Oh, my God. You talk like some guy in a romance novel from either a long time ago or a distant galaxy far, far away.”
This time he laughed out loud. “I talk the way I talk; the way I was brought up. How would you have me speak to you—in curses and slang with a thick Jersey accent?”
She looked at him and could tell he was teasing her. “I don’t think you could pull that off for even an hour, but no. I like the way you talk, but sometimes it’s just a bit… I don’t know… too much. I’m from Jersey and proud of it. You’re from the Hamptons… the freakin’ Hamptons and you have your own island. Who has their own island?”
“Skylar did,” he said and then regretted it when he saw the shadow of grief cloud her eyes.
“And now she doesn’t. She doesn’t have anything,” Roz whispered, fighting back her own tears.
“She has everything, sweetheart, as do you.”
Roz shook her head. “No, we have what you allow us to have.”
Oliver considered her statement. “I’m trying to see this from your perspective. You feel as though we took everything away from you.”
“You did.”
“I understand that’s how you feel. And while I agree you lost the home and pack you had, you’ve been given another one. One I like to think is better. Better because you are no longer at risk of you and the rest of your pack being forced against your will into pairings…”
“But we are. Anna didn’t want to be mated to that guy. Skylar didn’t want to be with Dylan…”
“And you don’t want to be with me.”
“It’s not you specifically; it’s anyone. Why can’t I live my life the way I see fit? I didn’t ask to be made a shifter.”
“No, you didn’t. And those responsible for taking that choice from you paid the ultimate price for doing so. But the reality is that a lone wolf—male or female—is vulnerable to attack and has a tough road. Wasn’t it easier for you once you found Bae Diogel?”
“Yes, but you took that away from me.”
“I know, sweetheart. But I didn’t turn you out onto the streets with no pack. And the fact is most of our pack has considered you pack since you left and have worried about you. Greg wasn’t just making noise when he said they’re all going to be so happy when you come home.”
She searched his face and saw that he sought to hide nothing. “Even Bash?”
Oliver laughed. “Yes, even Bash. He’s worried about you being out there alone almost as much as I have. The difference was I knew you were my mate and fated to be with me. And you were being a difficult vixen and managed to avoid being brought home. And home has always been with me in the Hamptons.”
“You’re so sure about all of this?”
“I am. And if you’d quit fighting long enough to listen to your own heart and feelings, you’d be able to accept it too. Didn’t you feel me call to you? Not hear my call, but feel it deep within you?”
“Yes,” she admitted quietly.
“Then you are just being prideful and stubborn. Your sister can tell you that either one can earn you a trip over your mate’s knee.”
“Yeah, we need to talk about that. You are not going to spank me.”
“If you misbehave or are disobedient, and that includes being disrespectful, I most certainly will.” He ran his hand lightly down her back and rested his hand on her bottom. She winced slightly. “Good girl. You keep in mind how much you didn’t like having me spank you. Tonight, we will explore just how much pleasure I can bring you
.”
He leaned down and kissed her, softly at first until he could feel her respond and then deeper and with more passion. Roz returned the passion and molded her body along his hard length. She could feel his erection straining against his fly. Oliver gently took hold of her buttocks and pulled her into him. She moaned and rubbed herself against him.
“Think you can handle a Jersey girl, lone wolf?”
He chuckled and made a noise that was part growl and part something far more sensual… a sound that she could feel to the depths of her soul.
“Do not worry, my Rozalyn, I can handle you, be it over my knee or between your legs.”
Once again he scooped her up in his arms and took her back into their room. He put her down next to the bed and began to undress her. He pulled the shirt over her head and pushed the yoga pants down. She was then dressed only in a lace bra; Oliver unfastened it and let her breasts fall free. He cupped them with reverence as he leaned down to kiss her.
“God, you’re exquisite.”
Her nipples were hard, her eyes glazed with desire, and her breathing had changed its rhythm. He knew that when he slid his hand between her legs, he would once again find her aroused. He wanted to increase her level of arousal to an almost painful point with no relief so that his breaching of her with his knot would be the least painful he could make it.
“I’m also the only one who’s naked,” she teased as she reached for his belt. He allowed her to unbuckle it and slip it from its loops. The belt joined her clothing on the floor. She reached up and began to unbutton his shirt, kissing his bare skin as it was revealed.
His whole body was well muscled and had just enough hair that it tickled her nose. Roz had never liked men whose bodies were devoid of hair either naturally or through cosmetic means.
It took every ounce of self-control for Oliver to allow her to remove his belt and shirt. He moaned when she circled his nipples with her tongue, sucked on them briefly and nipped. She licked her way back up his chest and throat before kissing him deeply. As she reached for the button on the top of his trousers, he stayed her hand.