Brand of the Pack

by Tera Shanley

  Through the trees, the cabin appeared, homey and comfortable. The smell of food emanated from the open front door and she looked around with a grin. Lifting her dress, she bolted, racing the others, their laughter filling the woods. Winner would get the first pass on the fragrant buffet.

  With her plate and champagne flute filled, she found a spot in the fray at the elaborate dining room table. Eating outside in the dry July heat was out of the question, but the rustic appeal of the kitchen made a beautiful setting for the wedding celebration.

  “I should have bought an eating dress,” she joked, shoveling another bite of tenderloin into her mouth. “One with an elastic waist so I could eat what I want.”

  Grey chuckled as her mother shook her head in disapproval.

  “I can’t believe how much you eat. I don’t understand where you put all of it. You are getting older, Morgan. It won’t always be so easy to keep your tiny figure.”

  Mom’s tone of reproach only made Morgan want to shock her more. Mid-twenties wasn’t anywhere near old, and she was a buck-ten of highly metabolized werewolf. Her figure would hold just fine. She sat back and clunked her feet comfortably on the empty chair beside her.

  Grey eyed her wedding shoes with a smirk. “Are those cowboy boots?” His tone said he didn’t mind her ornery streak one bit.

  “You didn’t expect me to walk out in the woods in three inch heels, did you? I would have broken my ankle. At least one, probably both,” she added dramatically.

  Mom sighed. “Are Lana’s bags all packed up?” She would be taking care of her for a few days so they could enjoy a short honeymoon.

  “They are. Let me go ahead and load the bags in your car so we have one less thing to do later,” Grey offered.

  Mom tossed him the keys and he headed upstairs.

  “Wife.” Grey said quietly from the top of the stairs. “I love you.”

  He was leaning against the railing watching her. Her gaze collided with the liquid pool of gold in his eyes, and she smiled.

  I love you, too, she mouthed.

  Wife. Memory of the word against his lips sent a trill of excitement down her spine.

  After the bags were loaded and the cake cut and served, Dean and Marissa made their toasts. An hour more found the guests trickling from the cabin.

  “Grey, you take good care of my girls,” Mom said, rolling down her car window.

  “Will do,” he said with another wave to Lana, who sat blowing kisses from her car seat.

  “Bye, baby!” Morgan called.

  Lana giggled and fidgeted like she was on her way to Disney World. She loved visiting her Mimi. It eased Morgan’s heart to see her excitement, but she ached with how deeply she would miss her over the next few days. Lana would likely come back full of cookies and completely spoiled.

  Dean, Rachel, and Marissa were the only ones left and were lounging around in the great room together. The remote clicked away as Marissa worked to clear off the DVR. Morgan sunk comfortably into the large, leather sofa and stretched out.

  “You know, it wouldn’t be such a bad idea for you to take a round of pain medication right now,” Rachel advised Grey. “You would have plenty of time for it to wear off before the full moon hunt.”

  The day had obviously taken its toll on him. As the hours passed, the injuries he’d sustained last night seemed to affect Grey more and more. Though Wolf would never allow him to show so much as a limp around the others, he had slowed over time, like a snake on a cold day. He had been doing an impressive job of hiding his pain, but the wolves were more sensitive to the subtleties of posturing.

  “It’s not a bad idea,” he admitted.

  Grey slid a glance to Dean, whose eyes had lightened to an inhuman color. He grinned unapologetically at his wolf’s obvious calculations of just how inhibited Grey was.

  “Dick,” Grey murmured.

  Dean laughed. “I can’t help it. Your wolf brings out the worst in mine. I bet I could take you right now.”

  Morgan stretched bare toes onto the arm of the dark leather couch. “I think it will be the same in ten years, don’t you, Rachel? A decade from now, I bet their wolves will still be competing and their humans will still be struggling to be friends in spite of them.”

  “Agreed. I don’t think it will get better. I haven’t seen any improvement thus far.”

  “No faith,” Dean said shaking his head as he put his arm around Rachel.

  Grey squinted at her neck for the tenth time in an hour. “Where did you get your necklace?”

  She frowned and sat up. “I thought you gave it to me.”

  “I’ve never seen it before.”

  The necklace suddenly became terribly cold against the warmth of her skin. She fumbled with the clasp as chills raised the fine hairs on her arms. She dropped the bauble onto the coffee table and tried to steady the uncomfortable dread that had snaked its way inside of her.

  Dean picked it up and studied the jeweled Silver Wolf Clan emblem. “Delivery guy brought it by. Said it was important Morgan get it,” Dean said. “I brought it straight to you when I came to apologize.”

  “Where’s the packaging?” Grey asked. His eyes blazed, making him look downright predatory.

  “I left it in the guest bedroom we got ready in.”

  The room was as silent as the dead when he returned with the box and a letter on old parchment, written in elaborate calligraphy. His eyes were wide with shock when he handed the note to Dean.

  The alpha cursed and handed her the letter. The frail paper made a crackling sound as it passed to her hands. She read it twice to try to understand the words.

  In honor of your special union.

  -Dragon

  She couldn’t get rid of the old paper fast enough. “Who’s Dragon?” she asked, handing the letter to Marissa.

  “He’s trouble.” Grey sniffed the necklace with a frown of concentration. “What did the delivery guy look like?”

  “Well, I didn’t really get a good look at him,” Dean said. “He wore a beige uniform and had his hat pulled down to cover most of his face. He looked down the whole time so I couldn’t tell you what he looked like, but I did smell him twice. He wasn’t wolf but he smelled…cold. Different for a human.”

  Grey sighed. “Because he wasn’t.”

  His words dropped the temperature of the room and silence was the chill’s companion.

  “Okay,” Dean said decisively. “This means trouble, no doubt, but there’s nothing you can do about it right now. Focus on the task at hand, and Wade and I will look into it. Get through the next couple of days and relax with your new mate. We’ll hit this hard when you get back to pack property. Let us worry about this until you get your new wolves under you. Take advantage of our alliance.”

  She wanted to demand them explain what was going on, and why some guy named Dragon sent her a very expensive and extravagant gift in the shape of the pack emblem from a legendary clan only werewolves were supposed to care about. She opened her mouth to beg answers, but one look at Grey silenced her questions. He was staring at her with such an intense gaze, the air seemed to thicken around them. He’d tell her, but it needed to be when he had more control. The crackle of power hit her like wind, and the other wolves hunched into themselves.

  It was brave little Marissa who cut the tension. “Rachel, I think I’m going to go to your place for a while. I’ll come back here tonight in time for the hunt, but I do believe I need to give these two some alone time.” With the last two words, Marissa winked at Rachel, then turned off the television and stood.

  Morgan recovered enough to rip her gaze from Grey. “Nice and subtle.”

  “Why thank you. I’ve been practicing.”

  “Obviously.”

  “All right,” Rachel said. “We’ll go ahead and load up the chairs and get out of here. Congratulations again, you guys, and good luck tonight with the pack initiation. The next time we see you, it will be off
icial. There will be two Dallas packs.”

  “Have fun, you two,” Dean said with a wink before he closed the door behind them.

  Grey let out a pained sigh and shifted uncomfortably. The faraway look in his eyes only intensified with the absence of the others, and she wanted to cling desperately to the happiness he’d found in the hours of their wedding. The day was theirs, and she’d be damned if some dragon asshole was going to maim it.

  She touched his leg lightly. “Come on. Let’s go up to our room. I’ll get you pain medicine and we can get some sleep before tonight.”

  He looked at her for a long moment, as if he didn’t really see her, then nodded. The blue in his eyes said he was beginning to come back to her. Wolf’s golden eyes usually shone through, but the ocean blue color was all Grey. There he was. With a contented sigh, she turned and headed for the stairs but paused when his footsteps didn’t follow. She spun as the full force of his body bore down on hers. She barely had time to react before his mouth was on hers, his strong hands gripping her waist as he pushed her back up against the wall. She panicked for a split second, but this was Grey, her mate. Her husband. Pulling herself closer to the crushing weight of his body, she clutched his back and opened her mouth.

  “Don’t want to go to sleep. I want you to smell like me,” Grey growled as he nipped the uninjured side of her neck.

  He turned her around until she faced the wall and yanked the ribbon that held her dress in place. She stepped out of the dress that had pooled at her feet. Morgan spun and pulled herself up to wrap her legs around him. Pulling his hair until his neck arched back, she brushed her teeth against his throat and held them there for a moment. “Mine,” she said.

  He splayed his hands against the wall on either side of her head, groaning deeply in his throat. His chest smelled of injury, but he didn’t seem to feel anything. Good, because she wasn’t inclined to be careful. She wanted him to feel her tonight.

  Lowering her feet slowly to the floor, she ran her palms over the starched fabric of his dress shirt, tracing the contours of hard muscle over his chest. Grey’s black silk tie was soft against her palm as she pulled and led him up the first two stairs. She paused and turned. The buttons of his shirt made popping sounds as she ripped it open to expose the hard planes of his torso. Rigid muscle, flexing under his ragged breath, called to her fingertips. His gaze was ravenous as she trailed her touch down to the buckle of his belt. Leaning forward, he gripped the railing on both sides of her as she pulled him free of the soft leather. Dark, smooth skin contrasted with the white of his dress shirt. Standing to his full, imposing height, he rolled his shoulders to shrug out of the crisp material. She’d meant to seduce him like she saw in the movies, tugging at his clothes as she led them up the stairs, but the sight of his muscles rippling across his chest as he moved to undress had her frozen and staring. Warm tendrils of desire stretched through her, filling her until it settled at the apex between her legs. All that remained was his black dress pants, which hung low across his twin inguinal creases that delved across his hips and under the starched fabric. Those would look beautiful thrusting against her.

  A slow smile crooked his lips and his nostrils flared slightly. “I can smell how much you want me,” he murmured in a husky voice that made her knees go wobbly.

  He leaned in slow, like a stealthy hunter, and hesitated just before his lips touched hers. Whatever he was waiting for, she couldn’t take it. Snaking her arms around his neck, she closed the space between them. His hands were everywhere that mattered, touching, caressing, drawing her inner goddess from her. God, she felt beautiful when his long, strong fingers brushed her waist, her breasts. His jaw worked as he kissed her, becoming harder and more urgent as he cupped her ass and pulled her against the length of his erection.

  With a helpless sound, she pulled at the snap of his pants and rushed to release him from the constraint that separated their skin. His thick shaft, red and swollen with desire, fell free, as he shucked the remainder of his clothes. She swallowed hard as she raked her gaze across his Adonis body. She couldn’t shimmy out of her panties fast enough, but he stopped her fumbling fingers.

  “Let me,” he rumbled against her lips.

  Hell. Yes. Right now, he could do anything in the world and she’d be on board with it.

  Shifting his weight from foot to foot, he pulled her to him and pressed the palm of his hand under the elastic of her panties. Down and down he went until the tips of his fingers pressed against her wet sex. Her breath caught as he pressed a long finger inside of her. As he withdrew it, she knew her knees wouldn’t hold. Not like this. When she rested shaky arms on his able shoulders, he chuckled. Hooded eyes, canted head, sexy smile—he was annihilating any defenses her mishandling in Montana had caused.

  He cupped the back of her head and kissed her, biting her bottom lip as he plunged his finger into her again. “Mine,” he growled, then withdrew from her sex and folded her into his arms.

  His chest was hard against her cheek, his body rigid as he carried her up the stairs and down the hall, his gate slightly hitched but quick. Kicking the door closed, he set her down, spun her, and pressed against her.

  The lacy, white lingerie still clung stubbornly to her body, but from the frantic way Grey nipped at her neck, it wouldn’t be on for much longer. She trailed hungry hands over the musculature of his chest as he lowered her to the bed. He was breathtaking as he stood over her in the waning evening light that filtered through the windows. Golden eyes blazing, swollen cock twitching as he raked his gaze down her body.

  His triceps flexed as he lowered himself to the bed. Leaning forward, he took one taut nipple into his mouth and gently sucked until she groaned and spread her legs in invitation. Her stomach clenched with every movement of his tongue. Light fingertips slid down her waist and hooked into the thin elastic of her panties. Slowly, he pulled them down until they tickled her ankles and fell to the floor. She was ready to take all of him now, but Grey seemed to have other plans.

  Sucking, biting kisses dotted her stomach, traveling lower and lower until she wondered if she could come on anticipation alone. Biting the tender skin at the inside of her thigh, Grey brought her knees up and spread them wide. Just the feel of his lips so close to the warmth he’d conjured between her legs made her roll her hips toward him.

  “Good,” he murmured. “Tell me what you like.”

  Everything. She liked every freaking thing he was doing. He apparently didn’t need any help because the man touched her in all the right places. And oh! He plunged his tongue into her, drawing a cry of ecstasy from her lips. Gripping his hair, she arched toward him as he lapped her again and again.

  Grey grabbed her ass, and pulled her to him, and from the frantic way his fingers dug into her skin, he was enjoying this almost as much as she was. Too soon, the pressure built to blinding and she threw her head back and cried out his name as she came.

  “Want to feel it,” he rasped. His eyes were entirely gold now and his voice had taken on a gravelly tone.

  Pulling on the backs of her knees, he slid her to the edge of the bed and pressed the head of his shaft into her by inches. Damn, the man was going to make her beg for this. Her body clenched around him as he sank a little deeper inside, still pulsing from the aftershocks his clever tongue had caused.

  He closed his eyes, like he was savoring the feel of her orgasm around him, and eased out of her again.

  “Please, Grey,” she panted. She couldn’t think anymore. Couldn’t put coherent thoughts or words together. All she knew is if he didn’t bury himself inside of her, she’d go crazy with want.

  He opened his eyes slowly and pressed his hips forward, sinking his thick shaft deep inside her. It smarted as he filled and stretched, but he’d prepared her well. The pleasure overshadowed any discomfort. As he withdrew and pressed in again, he lowered his lips to hers and drank her in.

  The pace he set was too slow, too punishing, so she writhed
and begged for him to take her like she knew Wolf wanted. Pulling her wrists over her head, he rumbled, “Stop tempting me, woman. You need me gentle this first time. Next time you can have me how you want.”

  “I don’t want gentle,” she rasped, easing back to show him how serious she was. “I want you.”

  He froze and searched her face with those inhuman eyes of his. “You’re sure?”

  Scars ran in a crisscrossed pattern across his torso, a long jagged one delved from shoulder to hip. Red and silver marks in different stages of healing and they’d all been for her. His body was marred because he loved her. Because he put her own safety above his. Every imperfection across his skin made him look like a warrior. Her warrior.

  Running her hands up his stomach to his sculpted chest and around to the curves of his strong arms, she inhaled his alluring, heady scent. Leveling him a look, she said, “Claim me.”

  His weight covered her, and his lips crashed onto hers with astonishing force. He plunged deeply, then eased back, only to buck into her again. A growl took his throat as he shoved her toward the headboard with the power of his thrusts. She gripped his taut shoulders as pressure began to build in her again. She loved him like this. Raw, dominant…intoxicating. This was the Grey she wanted in her bed, in her body. The Grey who didn’t hold back what he was. The man who hid who he really was from everyone else but her.

  Where his earlier strokes had been languid, they now turned frantic, and he rolled to pull her onto his lap. Straddling him, she rocked against him as the muscles in his arms bunched and tensed where he gripped her waist. He lifted his gaze to hers, and for a moment, she could see him. The blue-eyed man in the woods who’d given everything to save a stranger—to save her. She loved him, body and soul, and now he was giving her all of him again. He growled as he clenched her, his pulsing jets of warmth filling her just as her own climax crashed through her. He clamped his teeth onto her shoulder, and she cried out and clawed his back, marking him as he’d marked her life completely.