Chapter Eight
Mating
I hide in Bruno’s room for the next two weeks. The guys come in, ask how I’m feeling, bring me food and drink, and then leave. They are respecting my wishes and never getting too close. In the middle of the night, one of them always sleeps in here, but never on the bed. They don’t get close, and since the hug, in the forest, no one has touched me.
Nile has been different though. He’s been the only who will come in and talk about his day even if I don’t reply. He tells me bits and pieces about his childhood. He confessed to only following orders when Bruno told him to ignore me. His gut was saying something else, but alpha command making it impossible to explore.
One day when we were alone, I needed to ask him a question. It’s the first time I’ve talked in those weeks. “What did you feel when you doubted the command?” It comes out as a whisper and he’s so shocked at it that he stumbles with his words. Clearing his throat, he answers.
“My wolf was addicted to your scent. Every time you came near me I had a feeling of complete loss of control. You drove me crazy and I’ve had to adjust myself more than a few times,” he says, his cheeks blushing into a nice shade of pink. I look away in embarrassment, but his words affect me, and I rub my legs together a bit.
“You resolved to survive, no matter what this pack did to you. Your ability to take on the alpha and look him in the eye that day gave me a sense of pride. I never thought we’d have a female mate, and when Bruno declared it, my heart made room for you,” he continued. I turn, looking away from him. It was more than I could handle. I feel the crack of my resolve for him in my chest, and tears form in my eyes. He gets up from the chair and closes the door softly, allowing me the cry I’ve needed since this all happened.
The next day I get out of the bed, stretching and planting my feet on the floor. It’s sunny out again today, and my wolf wants to run. As much as I’d like to continue this pity party I have going on, I need to get some stuff out in the open. I’ve decided since my choices have yet again been taken from me, there is only one way out of this — to gain control. Making my way over to the bathroom, I shower and dress in new clothes that the guys bought me. They are trying, but my human self is still unsure of what to do. It took a skevy wolf with bad manners and some violence to make them see who I really was. To make them appreciate me. My ego is too hurt to allow them in.
“Going somewhere?” Nile asks, as I step out of the room and walk down the main corridor to the front door. I’m no longer going to be using the kitchen door.
“Yeah, for a run. My wolf is getting cabin fever,” I say, walking right past him. I don’t even acknowledge the expression on his face by looking at him. All he said to me, made my feelings so raw. I try not to start to care for him, but all he’s done and all he’s confessed makes my wolf nudge me in the direction of possible trust.
“I’ll come with you,” he says, using his long legs to keep pace with me.
“I’d prefer to go alone.”
“I can’t let you leave without someone watching you. It’s too dangerous.”
“Because one bear attacked in the woods? It wasn’t even on our land. I’m just going to the garden and back. I’ll return in a couple of hours.”
“I’m going with you. I’m sorry, Clara but I can no longer let you be without one of us.”
“Let me be?” I ask, staring at him with daggers in my eyes, and then I do the one thing that is never suspected, I punch him in the face. He’s so stunned that he forgets to follow me. I take off at a run for the tree line and shift mid-jump. My new clothes tear as my wolf comes forth. She’s even a bit pissed at Nile, but just a little.
The scent of the forest wraps around me, and I continue on my mission to get to my garden. All is quiet, except for a few birds and some small animals scurrying away from the big bad wolf. The warm breeze runs through my fur, and for the first time in days, I’m happy.
When I approach my garden, I find it exactly how we left it the other day. The beds are all cleaned and weeded; the vegetables look just about ripe for the picking, and my watering can is placed to one side. I turn back into human form and put on the old clothes I have tucked into a crevice of a tree.
Walking down to the stream, I fill up the canister and go back over to the plants. I give them all a bit of water, doing this several times. Once everything is taken care of, I pick a tomato off the vine, and have a seat in the grass. As I take a bite, the juices dribble down my chin, and an explosion of tangy sweetness coats my tongue. I love tomatoes especially when they are freshly picked.
I’m enjoying the view and looking out into the horizon, when I hear footsteps behind me. I know it’s Nile, through the bond, so I don’t bother to turn around.
“I told you I didn’t want you here. Or was me punching you not enough clarity?” I ask, twisting my torso to look at him. His eye is pretty puffy, but it will go down in a little while due to his rapid healing. My heart pangs a bit, and I think maybe I was a little too harsh.
“And I told you, you can’t be alone out here. You’ll find that I’m very stubborn,” he says, taking a seat next to me. I can feel his tension and hesitation as he crosses his legs and spreads his body alongside mine. He’s beautiful, once you really look at him. My wolf agrees wholeheartedly. My human side gets a rush of desire as I look over at his face. His eyes are closed, and his head is tilted to the sun. I wonder what it would be like to lean over and kiss him.
“I can feel you staring,” he says, still with his eyes closed. I gulp down the rising anxiety as I lean in and place my lips on his. It’s soft and squishy. Nothing that I thought a kiss with him would feel like. His eyes open wide in shock as he pushes up from his elbows and grabs my face with both hands.
I deepen the kiss and grab onto his shoulders. My body gets up on its own and before I know it, I’m wrapped around his body. A heat passes between us, and my core gets a tingly feeling. Before I came to Blackclaw, I had boyfriends and my last took my virginity. It wasn’t very good, but we did it often enough for me to understand what a man wants.
His hands move from my face to my shoulders and then down my back, squeezing me to him. I invade his mouth with my tongue, and we clash in a sensual dance, that holds promises of better things.
I move my hips up and start to rub on the hardness that is already between us. There is delicious friction and my arousal picks up even more. My hands run through his sandy hair, and I pull him closer. My breasts brush against his chest, and he lets out a low moan. I feel through the bond his excitement and disbelief. The feeling is so foreign to me, that I break the kiss to look into his eyes. They are teary with unformed tears, and his face is flush from our kisses.
“Why are you crying?” I ask, looking confused. I can feel his emotions pulsing, overflowing, making the walls I have for them crumble a bit more.
“I never thought this day would come. I never thought we’d find our female. I thought my heart would never be complete. Then we found you, and you hate us. Now you're kissing me. I’m confused, but also really grateful to hold you in my arms,” he says, not letting me go.
“I don’t hate you. I hate your actions. I hate all the trauma you put me through, but I don’t hate you,” I say. He kisses me then. His tears falling down his face and onto our lips. They taste salty and full of regret. It’s sweeter this time, less filled with heat and more with compassion.
My walls crumble, and my resolve for the question on whether I want this man right here, dissolves. I break our kiss and stand up. I take off all my clothes and stand before him. His eyes light on fire. He mirrors my actions and takes his off as well. We stand still, not moving just looking at each other. I make the first move. It’s a small step, but it gives him the go ahead, and he’s on me in seconds.
Picking me up and cradling me by my ass he walks us to a tree. The rough bark scratches my back, but his lips are on my breasts and I forget all about the pain. His hardness rubs on my sensitive areas caus
ing a slickness to moisten both of us. A growl rips through the air, and I look up to see who it is. Bruno is in the clearing staring at us, with Ralph at his side. Nile goes to pull away, but I grab his hair and keep him at my chest. The others don’t move.
Reaching down between us, I grab him with one hand, supporting myself on his shoulder with the other. Guiding him to my entrance, I stare as the alpha and beta cross the field. He plunges into me with one hard thrust, causing my legs to tighten on his back. My tongue darts out and I bite my lip as he begins to move inside me. Pulling his head back I place a kiss on his lips. All tongue and teeth. I let out a moan and whisper loud enough for the others to hear, “Harder.”
He picks up his pace, and the world falls away. Sex before was always just a chore. Something I did to keep my ex-boyfriend happy. This, this is otherworldly. Feeling myself come undone, I clench around him and squeeze my eyes shut. Sensations explode into tiny fireworks behind my lids, and a wave crashes down into my soul.
Nile releases soon after me with a groan so loud, that it almost sends me crashing down again. He rests his head on my shoulder when he’s done, and I kiss it and offer a huge smile. His hair smells like soap and man. It’s intoxicating and makes me want to repeat what we just did.
He lowers me down to the floor gently, and that’s when I notice the pain coming from my back. I dare a glance behind me and see the blood dripping down onto my ass. It’s not so bad, but it’s very uncomfortable. It was totally worth it though.
“Are you bleeding?” Nile asks, coming around to look at my back. He sucks in some air and I feel his concern.
“It’s fine, just some scrapes. They’ll be gone by tomorrow,” I say, brushing it off and going to move toward my clothes.
Looking up, I find Bruno and Ralph coming to approach us. Both of them are fully clothed, so they must have walked here. A nod to them and then detour for the stream. I need to wash myself before I shift and return home. Having Sex with Nile was a way for me to feel in control, but now I’m so confused. His feelings poured into me when we were together. His emotions mixed with mine and they were all over the place. I could feel the others too. It was like we were all a part of the act, feeding off of each other. It’s really too much.
The water's edge is rocky, and the soft pads of my feet hurt as I move deeper into the water. It’s only about hip high, but I can easily submerge my whole body. Once my back hits the water a yelp of pain comes across my lips, and tears spring to my eyes. Maybe it is worse than I thought. I quickly wash myself as best as I can with three shifters standing behind me before walking out of the stream. Looking at all three of them spooks me. I need time to think about this. To make a decision on whether to continue with this charade or to wise up and let it go. How could this be real? It’s only a matter of time before the other shoe drops and they show me their true colors. I want to be loved, with all the emotions they’ve shared, but I’m scared. I shift back into my wolf and stare up at them. They all look like they have a million things to say, and I couldn’t care the fuck less what they are. I take off for the cabins, leaving them to decide to either shift and follow or walk.
Chapter Nine
Becoming a Mate
Nile
That was the best fuck of my life. I have never had someone so raw and felt so in tune with their bodies. I’ve had sex with Bruno and Ralph so many times I’ve lost count, but to be with Clara totally changed me. The warmth of her pussy wrapped around my hard cock; it’s making me yearn for more.
After she took off, we started out on foot toward the cabins. As much as I want to be with her right now, I know this was a big step for her, and I want her to be able to think on it if she needs to. We can be a tad overwhelming.
“I can’t believe you fucked her in front of us!” Ralph says, for the tenth time. His cock was hard as a rock after she left, and I was tempted to see what he would do with it. Just thinking about us all together, fucking one another has my pants busting at the seams.
“It’s not like I planned it. We were just talking, and then she kissed me. I showed her some of the emotions I was feeling, and before you knew it we were up against that tree fucking. It was fucking glorious,” I say, watching his face. He’s jealous, but it’s not because we had sex, it’s because we had sex first. Wolf shifters are ingrained since birth to respect the hierarchy, and Ralph has a hard time letting it slide. I could care less, and that’s why I’m gamma.
“We have to come up with a plan to get her to see us that way,” Ralph says, his brows furrowed in concentration.
“I think the first thing you need to do is make her see how you feel. Her emotions are so raw and confused at this point, she isn’t going to respond to much else. When we had sex, I could feel it. There was hope, but there’s a lot of stuff we need to atone for before we can be one big happy family,” I say, making sure both of them hear me loud and clear. My job as gamma is also to keep these two in line. Ralph’s magic might be similar to Clara’s, but my gamma magic helps our bond stay firm.
“You’re right,” Bruno says, taking a deep breath and letting it out. He tilts his head up to the canopy, and I can feel the anxiety seep out of him. He’s scared. We all are.
“Tonight, let’s take her out to dinner. She hasn’t left pack land in a very long time,” I say. I hate myself a little more as I realize what I just said.
“Manny’s?” Ralph asks. We both nod in agreement. Now that we have a plan, all we need to do is convince Clara to come with us.
Bruno
I find Clara in her old room making space for her new clothes that we’ve bought her. A pile of rags lie on the floor, and all the drawers are open in her dresser. She has a look of concentration on her face, and I want nothing more than to wrap my arms around her and comfort her.
“What do you want?” she asks, the ice back in her voice. A pang of sadness hits me as I think about the progress we’ve made, and now it’s thrown out the window.
“We’d like to take you out to dinner,” I say, moving closer to her. She stops what she’s doing and looks up at me. Her face scrunches up as if she can’t believe what she just heard.
“Why?”
“We know you haven’t left pack land in a while, and it would be nice to get out. We just want to spend time with you.”
“I…I don’t know. I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“It’s just a burger, nothing fancy. We can even get ice cream afterward.”
Her eyes light up at the mention of ice cream. I’m a sweets guy, so I understand her excitement.
“Alright, but this doesn’t mean anything. It’s just food. It’s really just about the ice cream for me. I love ice cream. Haven’t had it in ten years though,” she says. I wince at her response and guilt flashes over my face.
“We know. Thanks for accepting. I’ll be back to get you at six,” I say, walking toward the door. I notice the rags again, and my curiosity gets ahold of me. “What are these?”
“My old clothes,” she replies looking right into my eyes. Her shoulders are held high, and I know that she isn’t trying to hide who she was or what we did to her. We deserve every ounce of her anger. I don’t say anything as I slip out the door. There is nothing left to say.
Chapter Ten
Manny’s
Ralph holds the door for me, as we walk in from the parking lot. I was a little nauseous from the ride here, not having been in a car in so long. My eyes were wide the whole drive there. Cars are so different, the clothes, the town. It’s like I stepped into a time machine. The diner is small, but the smells are amazing. The dinner crowd is in full effect. People are seated everywhere. A chipper hostess comes up to us and leads us to a table in the corner of the room. She eyes at the guys with interest, and I let out a low growl. She looks at me like I’m a feral beast. I don’t blame her. My clothes are the only thing about me that seems normal.
“What would you like?” Bruno asks, glancing at me from the top of his menu. Everything l
ooks amazing, I don’t know how I am going to choose.
“I think I’ll start with just a bacon cheeseburger and fries. Oh, and a strawberry milkshake. I haven’t had one of those in so long,” I say to my menu. I’m so excited about getting some junk food, that I ignore their stares.
“I think I’ll have the same,” Nile says, with a wink. He places his menu under my menu, and we wait for the waitress to take our order.
The food doesn’t take long to arrive, and my first bite is better than the orgasm Nile gave me this morning. The meat is juicy and warm. The bacon mixes with the smokiness of the burger, and the pickles give it a delicious crunch. I moan so loud that half the diner turns to look at our table. I don’t even care.
“Enjoying that?” Ralph asks, as he shifts in his seat. I can smell his arousal and feel it through the bond. I’m not as disgusted as I thought I would be. I’m kind of intrigued. I just can’t let myself get too close. There is so much at stake here.
Shoving a fry in my mouth I think about where we are, and how we got here. It’s surreal to me to actually be sitting down to dinner with the three top members of the pack. I’m not serving, I’m enjoying the meal with them.
“Clara, I was thinking. Maybe we can all go for a run tomorrow? There is a mountain range not too far from here, and there is a lookout point where not too many humans go. The sunsets are amazing there,” Bruno says, trying to build a bridge between us. All the things I love. All the things that I need, they are offering. I swallow down my food and take a long sip of this delicious creamy shake.
Tormented: A Bully Romance Anthology Page 25