Story Excerpt

“Jay,” the first man said through gritted teeth. “For god’s sake, don’t piss him off.” He turned to Rhys. “Sorry about that. Jay is an omega and used to—well, pretty much to doing whatever he wants.”

Jason didn’t seem worried. “Never mind Murray. He’s still rattled because he had to go in your club.” He smirked at the other man. “I told you I could have done that.”

He grinned at Rhys. “Murray is, well, how would I say that? Slightly homophobic?”

Murray, that was how his friend had called him, groaned. “I’m not.”

Laughing gray eyes found his again. Rhys smirked. So he had read Murray correctly. “You mean, still in denial?”

The grin widened. “Something like that.”

“My sex life isn’t important here,” Murray cut in.

“What is important here?” Rhys turned to the other man. “You said you wanted to talk with me?”

He had brought an omega with him, presumably to lend credence to his proposal. Rhys was rapidly sobering. This was an important meeting.

“We want you to kill our alpha.”

Rhys’s lips parted in surprise. He hadn’t expected this. He paused, then said, “Why?” Murray looked serious. Deadly serious, because this was a serious matter.

“Because he is nuts,” Jason said. Murray threw him a warning glance.

“What? He is nuts.”

Murray rubbed his forehead. “That would be the gist of the thing.”

Rhys leaned back on the wall. “Why me? Why not someone from your pack?”

If he was reading Murray correctly, he was pretty strong. Murray shook his head. “It’s not that simple. No one is strong enough. Zane didn’t get his position because he was incompetent.”

Rhys didn’t answer right away. “You could petition Silver Moon for his removal if he is as dangerous as you say.”

Murray smiled without humor. “What’s Silver Moon going to say? They won’t meddle into pack internal things, not until they have proof he is over the edge. By then it’ll be too late.”

Rhys had to agree. Silver Moon couldn’t be seen undermining alphas’ authority. The alphas wouldn’t stand for that, so Silver Moon was delegated to political games.

“Besides,” Murray continued, “even if we did ask for help, they would do something similar to what we are doing now, find someone strong enough to defeat him.”

Point to Murray. It was the cleanest way to deal with the matter. Rhys pursed his lips.

“That still doesn’t explain why me. You are, of course, aware that I lost my last challenge?” he drawled.

Jason snorted. “You are going to be clean of bloodrun this time.”

Rhys’s whole body went rigid. “I’m sorry?”

Jason frowned at him. “Come on. We were honest with you. You could be honest with us.”

“How do you know it was bloodrun?” Rhys demanded. Coldness spread through him. The pack was going to be in trouble if that fact became widely known.

“It wasn’t that hard to find out,” Murray said. “Remember, there were members of other packs present during the alpha fight.”

“So? That’s tradition.”

Anyone could witness an alpha fight. It was one time when all old grudges and difficulties were put aside. It also served to help ensure the fights were clean and fair.

“They were there. They saw the fight. Most, if not all of them, had to have noticed that something was wrong,” Murray explained. “You were bleeding too much. If your opponent tried to kill you on the spot, it might have gone unnoticed. Instead, he gave you many small wounds, probably hoping you’d cede defeat. You didn’t. The rumors are already flying. There aren’t a lot of potions that can make a wolf bleed. Bloodrun is one of them.” He watched Rhys carefully. “I would say it’s a matter of time before Silver Moon finds out and comes sniffing.” He smiled tightly at Rhys. “Does it matter?”

Rhys blinked, surprised at the question. But Murray was right. It was Little Ridge’s problem, and he didn’t belong to Little Ridge anymore.

He crossed his arms over his chest. “Not particularly. However, let’s address one thing. If I kill your alpha, I get his position.”

They exchanged looks. “We are aware of that.”

“And you do know that I’m gay?” This time his tone was mocking.

Jason rolled his eyes. “We picked you up from that club, didn’t we?”

They did at that. He gave them another measuring glance. “And that’s not a problem?”

Murray shrugged. “I’m not thrilled. I’m also the one who suggested you. You do your job well, I don’t care who you fuck. No one else will.”

There was one other way to resolve the matter. “What stops you from trying to kill me once you have what you want?”

Adult Excerpt

“Come here,” Don repeated, a hint of impatience in his voice.

Still staring at him suspiciously, Rhys carefully inched closer. Don grabbed his arm and pulled. Rhys yelped as he landed on his back on the couch. Pinning his arms next to his head, Don crawled over him, nestling himself comfortably between Rhys’s legs. Rhys sucked in a sharp breath. He wriggled, only to freeze as Don’s cock rubbed suggestively against his thigh. He gulped, his eyes searching Don’s. They were darkened with lust. His lips, swollen from the kiss, curled in a teasing smile.

“Tell me, alpha—and we both know you are more dominant than me—why didn’t you resist?”

Rhys opened his mouth to answer. Huh. He hadn’t actually objected to Don manhandling him. With anyone else he would have been at their throat before consciously thinking about that. But his body seemed to have no objections to lying under Don. In fact, he was pretty sure he enjoyed it. Don leaned in, his lips brushing Rhys’s ear. “I love your hair,” he whispered. Then his tongue darted out to lick Rhys’s neck. Rhys felt his pulse speeding up. Don growled in answer, the vibration sending small jolts of pleasure through his body. He bucked under Don, but instead of throwing him off, he rubbed against him like a cat in heat. He gasped, unable to resist the quickly building desire. Just like that, pieces of the puzzle clicked into place. “You are my mate.”

“Very good,” Don purred in answer, his lips still busy on Rhys’s neck.

“Why didn’t you—” He was cut off as Don’s mouth once again captured his.

“For an alpha, you certainly talk too much,” Don murmured, then pulled back, grinning when Rhys let out a moan of protest. He pulled his shirt over his head then went on to unsnap his jeans. Rhys rose on his elbows, his gaze latching on Don’s wiry, muscular body. Standing up so he could get rid of his jeans, Don glanced at him. “Roll over,” he requested.

Rhys obeyed, twisting his head immediately to stare at Don over his shoulder. He was too late, though, because Don immediately settled behind and above him, tugging at his hip to bring him up on his hands and knees.

Don pushed his sweatshirt up, and Rhys obediently shifted to allow Don to take it off him. He shivered as cold air nipped at his skin.

“Easy,” Don murmured. He put a hand on Rhys’s belly and nipped at his shoulder. Just his touch was enough to put Rhys on fire. His cock jumped. He resisted trying to push back.

Don reached between his legs to squeeze his swollen organ. Rhys growled in frustration, the touch not nearly enough for what he wanted.

Don laughed, his lips trailing over his shoulders and back, making Rhys arch wantonly in his arms. Don used his hand to press him into the couch. Rhys turned his head to look. His eyes narrowed as he noticed Don ripping a small package of lube.

“I thought you said you didn’t go out to get laid,” he accused.

Don’s lips quirked. “I wasn’t.” He pulled Rhys’s sweats down.

“Why do you have lube in your jeans, then?” Rhys objected, even as he spread his legs to allow Don to rub his fingers against his anus. “And what makes you think I’m going to let you fuck me?” he added.

He got what was definitely an evil smile in return. “You assumed the position before remembering to bitch about that?”

He hissed as Don slid his fingers inside, twisting them sharply. “You made me crazy,” Don whispered, leaning over him once again. “You don’t know how much I wanted you to wrap those legs around my waist while I fucked your ass.”

Rhys’s fingers curled into the couch. He let out a low moan. “I think—that’s enough,” he said, panting.

Don didn’t answer. He pulled his fingers out, though, and deftly positioned himself.

Rhys gasped as he pushed in. He screwed his eyes shut, enjoying the feel of Don’s cock stretching him inside. “That feels—great,” he finally managed, pushing back to encourage his lover.

“Glad you agree,” Don answered darkly. He gripped Rhys’s hip while his other hand pushed Rhys’s hair out of the way, pressing at Rhys’s neck. He snapped his hips, breaking his rhythm and causing Rhys to buckle under him. His cock, pressed between the couch and his belly, was leaking and ready to shoot. His balls tightened. He shivered, a heady rush of anticipation signaling orgasm.

Don slowed his pace, his hands gripping Rhys’s hips, holding him in place. Rhys whimpered. He’d been about to come. “Bastard,” he complained, trying to push back.

Don, infuriatingly, pulled back. “Oh, no,” he said in a warning tone, “you made me wait for almost two weeks. We are not finishing that fast.”

Rhys panted, the throbbing in his groin increasing with every second that passed. “That doesn’t count. I didn’t know.”

Don hummed, apparently satisfied with himself. “You want to argue with a man who has his cock in your ass?” Rhys growled in frustration, reaching down with his hand to tug on his cock. Don was still inside him, wonderfully warm and full, his thick cock stretching Rhys’s hole. He growled in frustration as he realized it wasn’t going to be enough.

“I wouldn’t have if you would just fuck me!” He growled, arching his back in a futile attempt to get Don moving.

Don leaned down to lick at his sweat-covered skin. His lips teased Rhys’s earlobe. “Was that an order?”