Page 2 of Clash of Kings

An owl hooted outside her window. Dakota had learned long ago to listen when other animals called out. This wasn’t an “I’ve spotted a rodent for dinner hoot” but an alert to something bigger than the bird. Dakota sat up, opening her shifter senses. The hair on her arms stood on end, and she prepared herself for what was to come. Within seconds, footsteps sounded on the porch, and Dakota scrubbed her hands down her face. She didn’t want King in her home, so she strode to the door, flipped the locks, and opened it before he could knock.

“You ran off,” her Alpha griped. Dakota scrunched her nose when she caught a whiff of familiar perfume and sex on the male.

“You seem surprised. Why is that? I have made my intentions clear, yet you continue to ignore them.”

King pushed the door back and strode in like he had a right to be in her space. As Alpha of the pack, he did, but Dakota didn’t have to like it. Instead of following, she remained by the open door. If he wouldn’t leave, she would.

Maybe that’s not a bad idea.

The more her Wolf pushed for them to leave the territory, the more Dakota thought about it. She had money saved, and she could start a new life somewhere else, but she wouldn’t leave her mom. Not yet.

“I don’t understand you, Dakota.” King sat in the middle of her sofa and stretched his arms across the back.

“I don’t understand you either. You reek of sex, which means you left the bed of a willing candidate, Tinsley by the stench of cheap perfume, yet here you are. Is it the thrill of the chase? If I said yes to your advances, would you add another notch to your bedpost and move on?”

Kingston arched a dark eyebrow. “Are you offering?”

“No. I don’t know how to make it any clearer to you that I am not interested in becoming the Alpha Mate, nor am I interested in becoming another one of your conquests. Don’t push me on this.”

King rose to his feet, stalking toward her. The male towered over her by a foot, and even if he didn’t, his power as her Alpha threatened to bring her to her knees. Dakota lowered her gaze, but it took every bit of strength she possessed not to bare her neck. The moment she did, it would be game over.

King reached out and snagged a strand of Dakota’s hair, twirling it between his fingers. “I could push you, Dakota. I could demand your submission.”

Her head snapped up. “You would rape me?” she whispered.

King snarled and released her hair. “Get some sleep, Kody.” King brushed by her, and as soon as he hit the porch, he shifted and bound off into the dark, his shredded clothes scattered. Dakota left them where they landed, slammed the door, and relocked it. She leaned against the wood and blew out a breath. Maybe it was time to go. She would miss her mother, but Dakota couldn’t keep spurning her Alpha’s advances before he snapped.

Her house now stank of someone else, so Dakota went to the kitchen and found the air freshener she kept for this reason alone. She sprayed the sofa, then set the can on the end table. It would probably take a few more applications before the stench was fully covered. Sighing, Dakota climbed the steps to her loft and plopped down on her bed, not bothering to pull the covers down. She already knew it would be a long night. Every night after a pack run ended the same way, with her tossing and turning. Her dreams would be a mixture of trying to outrun her Alpha while desperately seeking the one she wanted to catch her. Dakota turned her eyes toward the window. Her room was situated so the full moon was visible. As she gazed at the orb, she prayed to her goddess that the teen had somehow been saved and he was now somewhere out there, staring at the moon as she was.

Chapter 2

Sebastian shivered ashe stood at the spot where his life nearly ended when he was a teen. The trees, the dirt paths, and the mountains hadn’t changed. Bas couldn’t say the same about himself. A lot could happen in ten years, and for him, it had. Bas was no longer a kid living in his father’s shadow. His father, who was King of the Gargoyles, a successful business owner, father, mate, and friend to many. Bas was most of those as well, but the one he wasn’t, the one that hurt the most, was mate. Coming back to Utah was bittersweet. Sebastian understood why his papa wanted to have the ceremony to hand over the crown somewhere large enough to accommodate their closest Clanmates, but this place had an impossible hold on Bas.

The first time he was there, Sebastian’s life had been turned on its axis.Hehad been turned, or transitioned, as the Gargoyles called their initial shift. Being a half-blood, Sebastian’s first shift didn’t happen organically like it would if he were a full-blooded Goyle. Half-bloods transitioned soon after meeting their mates, and Bas had met his in a little she-wolf. Met was the wrong term since they didn’t actually meet. He and Lydia were jogging through these very woods when Bas was attacked by a wolf. Since Bas had been down for the count dealing with a ripped open chest, he only knew what happened from his cousin’s recounting of the event.

Over the past ten years, Bas and his parents had visited the hotel at the base of Mount Emmons several times on the off chance his mate was there. She wasn’t, so he gave up on the notion of having a run-in like Connor had with Alyssa in South Carolina. Connor had met his mate as a child, and the gods brought them back together as adults. Bas wasn’t going to get his happy reunion. Not that reunion was the right term either considering he didn’t know what his mate looked like. He hadn’t even seen her wolf. Unless the gods stepped in, Bas would spend his life alone.

Ironic that his life was about to be changed again in the same location? Bas didn’t think so. His papa probably wanted to swap a bad memory for a good one, but Bas wasn’t sure it would happen. Becoming King of the Gargoyles was an honor, or it should be, but Sebastian wasn’t ready.

You know that isn’t true. He wouldn’t hand you the crown if he didn’t know you were ready.

Sebastian sighed. Arguing with his Goyle was a fruitless endeavor, one that happened more often than not these days. Bas had resigned himself to being mateless while his beast refused to give up.

When Rafael called Bas one day and asked to meet, Sebastian didn’t think anything of it. His papa had said he wasn’t planning on handing over the crown anytime soon, so when he told Bas he was ready to step down, it threw Sebastian for a loop.

“It’s time, Son. The world is changing, and our Clan needs someone who can lead us through those changes. Besides, Seven is grown, and I want to travel. Relax with my mate without worrying about the phone ringing every ten minutes.”

Things were changing. For most of Rafael’s reign, he only dealt with other Gargoyles. Now, though, there were all types of shifters, and it was up to Sebastian to meet with the leaders of packs, prides, dens, and whatever the other species called their clans. The changes that were upon them weren’t good in Sebastian’s opinion. Bas thanked the gods he had plenty of cousins to help, just as his papa had brothers and cousins of his own to help him rule.

Speaking of cousins, Lydia stood quietly beside Bas. When Bas said he was going for a walk, it was she who followed. It made sense considering she was the one who’d been jogging with him the day he was attacked. Lydia understood better than anyone what that spot in the woods represented. Sebastian didn’t mind having company. Even though he was a badass Goyle, the memories of that day ten years ago had him feeling anything but strong. He could get lost in his thoughts knowing his cousin and one of his best friends would watch his back.

After several minutes, Bas said, “I guess it’s time.”

Lydia slid her arm around his waist and squeezed. “You’re ready for this, Bas.”

Bas tugged at the collar beneath his tie. “Ready or not, it’s happening.” Unlike his father, Sebastian wasn’t a suit and tie man. He preferred his worn jeans, flannel shirts, and work boots. But today, he dressed the part of someone in charge. Someone important. Together, he and Lydia walked out of the woods and back to where a large portion of their family waited. Rafael’s brothers and cousins along with their mates and kids were in attendance. That number alone was staggering, and when he added friends to the mix? It was overwhelming, but Bas got it. Crowning a new King was a big deal. Rafael wanted to invite more of the Clan, but at Sebastian’s request, they had kept the number to less than two hundred.

With the hotel being closed to anyone other than their Clan, Rafael must have planned for this day well before he spoke to Sebastian about it. He should be pissed, but that would be disrespectful to his papa and his King. Rafael Stone was the best of the best, and Bas was beyond lucky to be his son. He should want to take the crown if for no other reason than to allow Rafael time to enjoy life with his mate without having to worry about leading their Clan. Rafael and Kaya had given so much of themselves, and they deserved to step down. Bas just wished he had a mate of his own to help him rule the way his momma helped his papa.

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