Only Pretty Betas: A Shifter Paranormal Romance Series (Rebel Werewolves Book 2)

by Rosemary A Johns

  And when had those words ever meant anything good?

  My shadows wound out, stroking down Amadeus’ chest and running over his nipples as light as feathers, until he arched; in every touch, I whispered just how much he pleased me.

  When Amadeus turned to look at me again, his smile was soft. “I forgive you, see, as long as you want me still.”

  I cringed with guilt. “I’ll always want you, remember?”

  Moon blinked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. “By my fur, enough angst, furless. There’s cuddles for everybody.”

  When Moon stretched his long pale limbs, he looked angelically beautiful amongst the satin. The memory of the knife slicing into Moon’s neck and matting his fur scarlet had me launching myself into his arms like he was a year’s free supply of soy lattes.

  Cuddle time…hmm, addictive.

  To my surprise, Emperor also dived into Moon’s hug, as quickly as Amadeus who snuggled down with a slinky wiggle of his hips. Yep, I wasn’t checking out my brand on Amadeus’ cute ass…except, duh, of course I was.

  I wrapped my shadows around all of my Charms, caressing across them, whilst they held onto me. Moon’s curls were ticklish against my nose, and his chest was hard beneath me, but nobody could cuddle like him.

  Mischief snickered. “Am I suddenly counted as nobody? What happened to me being your god?”

  Ramiel pushed up, stalking to Mischief, before caging him against the wall. “Will I do?”

  Mischief stiffened. “I believe you may have misunderstood the definition of a cuddle.”

  Ramiel’s hair fell across his face, as he tipped Mischief’s head back to kiss down his throat. “And perhaps you’ve forgotten our discussion about not demanding worship?”

  When he rested his long fingers warningly on Mischief’s hip, Mischief squirmed.

  Maybe Mischief should be renamed the Spanked God…

  This time I couldn’t hold in the giggle.

  Mischief sniffed as he eyed me. “I’m delighted that I’m providing entertainment for the witch. My mistake, I hadn’t assumed that requesting I be held and loved equally was worship. I’ll remember my place—”

  Instantly, Mischief was smothered in a feathery embrace, as Ramiel kissed across his cheeks. “I’m sorry, please, I’m sorry. Forgive me?”

  Mischief blinked at him. “It’s no matter. I love having my heart torn in two by my lover’s see-saws of unpredictability.”

  When a tear trailed down Ramiel’s cheek, Mischief bent forward and licked the tear, before it could fall.

  Ramiel’s soft gaze was anxious. “I worry about the fanatics of this kingdom and how they intend to worship you. Even this shrine feels…” He shivered. “…dead. You more than any of us know the hollowness of worship. But sometimes, I act too much like my strict Glory, and I never wish to be cruel.”

  Mischief snorted. “Don’t fret. You couldn’t be cruel, even if your pretty pink-hair, poetry books, or savior over there depended on it.” Then he touched his hand to Ramiel’s wing, which had been clawed by the mechanicals and swayed as he took the pain, healing it. Mischief’s skin was clammy and ashen, as he rasped, “Do you perceive now? It is I who worship you.”

  “Zophia, you don’t need to prove anything,” Ramiel chided, although his voice was laced with affection.

  Ramiel supported Mischief to the ground, cocooning him in his wings in what looked to be an epic cuddle. So, all it took was courage, sacrifice, and pain to get into the angel cuddle-zone.

  Angels were demanding assholes, go figure.

  “I said everybody.” Moon flailed around in the cushions. “Moth? Aquilo? Get your behinds into this cuddle fest.”

  I froze.

  How on Hecate’s tits hadn’t I noticed that they weren’t with us? Okay, I had just awoken from a drugged sleep in an entirely new wolf kingdom, after a battle in which I’d seen my aunt torn apart. So, hello trauma alert here. Except, it was more like I’d been so relieved that any of us were still alive that I hadn’t paused to take a headcount. I mean, did I need to start taking a register now?

  The Alphas had upheld their bargain about healing my Charms, but they’d only promised that Aquilo wouldn’t die. My heart beat against my ribcage so fast that my chest ached. Why had I been so trusting? My uncle had always drilled into me to be precise in business and never to leave loopholes because there was a disturbing amount that could be done to a person that wouldn’t end up with them dead.

  And that was just another one of the fascinating things that I’d learned this week: from painting to degrees of pain.

  They wouldn’t truly hurt my fiancé, right?

  Yep, that didn’t even sound convincing to me.

  Merlin’s balls…

  Moon struggled out of the pile of cushions, hurling himself against the door. When there was no bang or clank, I realized that it must be padded, which made me feel like we’d been tossed in a cell for crazy people.

  Maybe this whole kingdom was one big padded cell?

  “Let me out, you rotten bastards!” Moon hollered. “Where’s Moth? Moth, can you hear me? Moth…?”

  At Moon’s anguished yell, Okami woke up with a growl, burrowing his way out of the pile of clothes. He poked his silky snout over Emperor’s waistcoat, snuffling against the dank of the cavern and joined his howls to Moon’s.

  Okami had never bonded with anyone but me. But Moon had been the first true wolf that Okami had ever met; I didn’t doubt that he loved him.

  “Silence that howling and calm yourself,” Mischief’s cool drawl cut across their distress.

  Mischief pointed at the lights, whilst leaning his head against Ramiel.

  I scrambled out of Emperor’s hold to stare at the lights, which were tracking Moon. “What am I looking at here?”

  Mischief’s brow quirked. “Smile at the nice cameras.”

  Moon’s rude finger gesture and raspberry definitely wasn’t either a smile or princely.

  Mischief gave a delighted laugh. “Close enough.”

  I strolled to Moon, tipping his chin back with my red. He bit his lip, hard enough to break the skin. I didn’t blame him because it was his brother somewhere in this kingdom, which from what I could figure was far from cozy with his own, just like it hated my mage fiancé. But violent behavior triggered Big Brother, and the only way to be taken as not hostile…well, was to act not hostile.

  In the Wilds, Moon had been sent to re-education, whilst I’d been thrown down a well. Here, my pack and I had been stripped and imprisoned in luxury with fountains, cushions, and cameras. I figured that the Gods were so far winning on the host front and I didn’t want to test it by rebellion that didn’t change anything.

  Because that was something, which I’d learned from my Charms: rebelling was how you acted, not what you said. But it was also about what you changed. We could have tried to free the other Omegas at the Re-education Center along with Moon, but it wouldn’t have freed all the Omegas.

  And Moon and I would free them all.

  Right now, however, we had to convince the Kingdom of the Gods that we weren’t a threat, then we could escape this room and find Moth and Aquilo.

  I was locked in with three naked wolf princes, how could I show the peeping toms that the wolves were under my control and hey, have a little fun at the same time?

  Sexy decisions, sexy decisions…

  I smiled. “What do you say, we give the voyeurs something to watch?”

  Emperor stretched his arms above his head, which rippled the muscles along his chest. “Kinky.” He snatched Amadeus’ hand, pulling him up. Then he prowling towards us, towing Amadeus along with him. “I’d say: not without us you don’t.”

  Moon rubbed his curls against my neck, clutching my shoulders like I might disappear the same as his brother. His nod was tentative, but the way that he licked up my throat wasn’t.

  Emperor’s fingers played down my spine across the fabric of my dress, teasing so lightly that I bit my tongue at the barely t
here touches, as I almost begged him to rip my new dress and just touch me already.

  But only almost because hey, it was a gorgeous dress.

  I didn’t expect the way that Amadeus wrenched Moon’s head away from me and pressed his finger into the thin cut along his neck hard enough to make him wince. “Look you, did something happen last night, whilst the rest of our sexy behinds were gassed, that you’d like to confess?”

  Moon blinked with pretend innocence. “No fair, what happens in a witch’s house, stays in a witch’s house.”

  Amadeus growled, nipping Moon’s ear; Moon yipped, casting his best sad face at Amadeus, which had no effect. Unless the desired effect was to make him nip his other ear.

  Moon yelped, before rubbing at both his ears.

  Mischief raised his eyebrow. “I’m sorry, does that hurt? Let me assist you: your neck is cut because last night you had every intention of sacrificing yourself to save the rest of us. Oh, I wonder if the incubus prince will bite anything more interesting this time?”

  “Thank you, oh helpful god,” Moon huffed.

  Mischief inclined his head. “You’re welcome, most grateful subject.”

  Amadeus’ ruby eyes glittered dangerously, although he stroked through Moon’s hair gently. “You want to take a guess where I’m imagining biting you?”

  “Aye, right,” Moon grumbled, even though he leaned into Amadeus’ caress, “like I’ll choose the method of my own destruction.”

  Amadeus’ stern face slipped, and he snickered. “You wouldn’t have to, see, if you weren’t always trying to sacrifice yourself.”

  Moon grinned. “Fur and fangs, it’s what I’m here for.”

  When Amadeus growled, I tensed.

  Wow, the Prince of the Wilds had the trick of pushing the other princes’ buttons, and he knew it too.

  “Bad, bad, wolf…” Amadeus dived on top of Moon, tumbling him to the floor, which was padded in soft ivory satin, the same as the door.

  Moon whined as he fell, landing underneath Amadeus, but his claws and fangs didn’t lengthen, only his hardening dick. I remembered from pinning him down in the stream, after hunting him to Wolf Bite, just how much it excited him to be caught.

  “Get off, wee idiot.” Moon bucked his hips but then hissed as that only rubbed his dick against Amadeus’.

  Amadeus winked over his shoulder at the hidden camera in the closest light: sin wrapped up in alabaster perfection. “How about we both get off?”

  He writhed like a snake along Moon, whose eyes were now glassy. When Moon whimpered, I was right there with him.

  I watched a bead of sweat trace down the curve of Amadeus’ spine between the silvery scars, which made me tense just a moment because it reminded me that someone in this kingdom had whipped Amadeus to mold him into this seductive creature: my pretty Beta prince. Then I kind of lost concentration on the thought because the bead slid teasingly between his pale ass cheeks, and I caught the way that Emperor had been watching the same thing, and his tongue darted out to swipe his lips…

  I twisted to Emperor, catching his tongue with mine, before swiping his lip in imitation of him. He hummed with contentment, dragging me closer against his powerful chest, and my shadows turned their attentions to his butterfly tattoo, tracing across the patterns and playing with the dark magic woven inside.

  When I drew back, my heart was thudding as hard as I could feel Emperor’s was. He curled me against his side, whilst eying the two wolves who were still struggling against each other on the floor.

  Moon appeared to have remembered that this was a fight, but although he was larger than Amadeus, you could tell that he didn’t want to hurt him, which put him at a disadvantage. It also flooded me with warmth that even roughhousing, he was protective of the other prince, just like Emperor and he had been in the memory that I’d witnessed of them as kids. Plus, Amadeus had a dancer’s agility, which made him as fast as a ninja; he coiled around Moon nipping him with as much relish as Okami would have.

  Maybe he had a biting fetish too.

  Two wolf princes fighting shouldn’t have been this hot. Then again, since they were naked and both panting with desire, whilst pretending to ignore the way that they were rubbing against each other at the same time, maybe it should.

  Which one of my Charms would break and come first? I had my money on Amadeus because Moon’s pleasure was feeding his incubus side; Amadeus’ eyes glowed dangerously with the fresh power.

  “Should we help?” I asked.

  Like Emperor couldn’t tell that what I actually meant was: shouldn’t we be dragging off my dress and diving into this hot wolfie orgy?

  I was the bad, bad witch…

  Emperor gave a lazy smile. “Which one?”

  I circled my thumb across the softness of his hip. “Both of them?”

  Emperor clenched his jaw, although he quivered. “Why would I give up watching this adorable show?” Then he raised his eyebrow cockily. “Hairpulling and biting only. No kneeing in the balls because you may want them later.” When Amadeus and Moon both froze, glaring up at Emperor, he swallowed. “Remember what I said about no kneeing…?”

  I eeped, as my legs were pulled from under me at the same time as Emperor’s. Moon caught me, whilst Amadeus pulled Emperor’s arms above his head. To my surprise, Emperor held them there without needing to be told and like he was simply choosing to sprawl on the floor.

  Amadeus grinned down at Emperor with way too much smugness.

  Just how much had Moon’s power strengthened Amadeus?

  Mischief chuckled, although his voice was commanding and dark. “I believe that the prince negotiated hair pulling. Pull his hair hard, incubus.”

  Amadeus’ wound his fingers into Emperor’s golden locks. Emperor flinched, before Amadeus had even pulled, and then I couldn’t help the snicker because I knew that it was because his style had been messed up. Moon soothed over Emperor’s chest as he nuzzled at my neck. Then Amadeus pulled...hard.

  Huh, Emperor’s moan was seriously one of pleasure and not pain. His lips parted, as his chest rose and fell rapidly; his pupils were blown.

  Moon snatched my hand, pulling me over Emperor, before he smiled that radiant smile that made my skin tingle and my toes curl.

  Ever-living witches, I needed him to smile at me like that every day.

  Moon cocked his head. “Aye, next was biting, right?”

  Emperor’s eyes widened, and his breath sped up. When his gaze met mine, I rubbed my fingers across his. Amadeus was the virgin here because this week was the first time that he’d been allowed to have sexy times in his male form. Before he’d become my Charm, he’d been forced as a Beta to transform and play as a woman. Yet Emperor, who I suspected had more experience than any of us in this room…well, possibly than Mischief because who knew how kinky angels were…was acting like the blushing bride on his wedding day.

  He hadn’t been like this when we’d been trapped down the well.

  What had changed?

  Curses and hexes, of course Emperor was freaked out. This was Moon smiling at him, being intimate, and loving him. How long had Emperor suffered being hated by his friend? And why?

  Plus, how hard was it for Emperor to give up his Alpha authority and play the submissive role in this set up? To lie here, pretending to be the Omega because this wasn’t simply me as Chief Alpha this time, it was an Omega and a Beta.

  Sometimes sacrifices weren’t so obvious, but they hurt just as much.

  When I squeezed Emperor’s hand, his gaze focused on mine, until his breathing steadied. Then I slipped my red around him, sliding over his skin, until he shuddered from my caresses. I eased him around, even though Amadeus never let go of his hair, tapping his shoulders with my shadows, until he lowered his arms and leaned against the wall. Now he was no longer under us but equal.

  Emperor grabbed my shoulders, crashing his lips against mine more savagely than he ever had before, as if needing to reassert his hidden Alpha status.


  Yep, there was no complaining from this witch.

  “On my fangs, I haven’t forgotten to bite.” Moon slid down to Emperor’s dick, blowing across its head. When Emperor jumped, he peeked up at him from underneath his eyelashes. “I might cock block you, but I’d never cock bite you.”

  Then he kissed down the skin joining Emperor’s hip and thigh to his inner thigh, sucking hard enough to form hickeys.

  I pulled back from the sweet vanilla taste of Emperor’s mouth. When I glanced over Ramiel, I noticed with a curl of warmth that unfurled deep inside me that Ramiel had one arm around Mischief, holding him firmly in place, whilst his other was wanking him slowly and edging him in time with Emperor’s own spiraling pleasure. Mischief purred in a way that was thrilling.

  It was no wonder that Amadeus was glowing with flushed power; my own shadows were thrumming with it through the bond. I clenched my fists to control the waves of heat that were washing through me. At least, until Moon’s fangs grew. Then my crimson seethed with possessive rage at the threat of somebody else biting my Bitten, even in play.

  My crimson wrapped around Moon’s chest, just as I yanked him back by his curls. “I’m the only one who bites my Charms.”

  Weirdly, that no longer sounded wrong. Maybe I truly was transforming into this Wolf Witch.

  The said Charms cast soft glances at me like I’d just said some romantic schmaltz like: no witch has ever loved a wolf with her last breath, but you’d be mine…

  Did wolves give greeting cards? The lines inside would be epic.

  When I met Emperor’s eye, his grin had returned to its usual cockiness level. “Bite my gorgeous self, and let’s have the wild, dirty, mind blowing sex that I know you’ve been dreaming about.”

  I knocked the cocky right out of him when my teeth clamped into the delicate skin of his inner thigh right over the purple hickey left by Moon. He quivered, as Amadeus pulled his hair, yanking his head forward this time so that he was forced to watch, whilst I bit down with deliberate slowness.

  Okami howled, darting across the Lunar Shrine to nip at the Charms’ necks excitedly, whilst his tail wagged.

  When I peeked up, I almost let go of the bite because — witches’ tits — Moon had lowered his lips over the tip of Emperor’s dick and was sucking at it with a fierce concentration, whilst he tentatively stroked Emperor’s balls.