Page 121 of Smoke and Lure

Morlie and her crew had attended a couple of hours of the lunar moon celebration.On his way to his meeting, he spotted her laughing and dancing with Rudie and Amira as Lovel cheered them from the seat of the dunking booth—where Chanin was sure Bleddyn’s first mate had volunteered to sit.Lovel was a badass she-wolf who would do anything for the Pack.

That same vibe and excitement was palpable among everyone who had come out for the run.The senior wolves in the Pack didn’t usually participate, and if the Pack had pups, they would have remained with the Wise old Lupine.

However, none had been born in over twenty years; he glanced at his Beta’s mates and felt the same hope for his pride he always did when he saw Amira blossoming in her pregnancy.Amira still had a couple of months to go; female wolf-shifters carried for a blended term of their human and wolf selves, at about five months to full term.

Soon, that would be Morlie.

And in a breath, his gaze was back to his mate.

Morlie sashayed into the open space with her small group, the same she-wolves who had kept his mate occupied and away from him all day.She appeared refreshed, and he knew she’d rested.He had smiled at the exhausted snores of her wolf as it came through the mind link when he unblocked to check on her.He knew she had to be worn out physically if even her wolf had dozed so soundly as Morlie slept.

Their wolves kept a level of alertness even within them.In times of danger, a wolf could force a shift to protect its human.

However, right now, the primary threat to his Pack on such a night as this had been annihilated.The only current threat was to Morlie—Minsi.

Chanin scanned the crowd until he spotted Faolan gathered by a big tree beside the river's edge.The southern clearing was where the Pack met to run along the river that cut a path through his Pack's territory.With the water being fresh, it provided a source of hydration for the wolves throughout such a long night of running and lust.

He observed that even though Faolan was among his half-shifted Fang Warrior brethren, even chatting and laughing, the male stared out into the distance.Chanin hoped the warrior had taken his advice and planned to go she-wolf hunting tonight, for one in particular.

Chanin was betting on the fact that Minsi’s rage would be tempered if she were mated.However, even if that were the case, she’d publicly attacked Morlie, and that action still needed to be accounted for.

Having to deal with his cousin and now the preternatural council meeting at dawn were the only reasons he had not called Minsi out before the Pack to answer for the unprovoked assault.However, once he returned, it was a priority on his agenda.

Most of the Pack would be on the run tonight; it was a bonding time for his kind as a collective and mates.

In the large crowd, he hadn’t seen his parents, and they were still young enough and didn’t have grand-pups yet to keep them from the run.Something they loved to do, especially his father, Conan, since the run was the only time Rieka gave up control and allowed him to take the lead, hunt down a fresh kill to present to her; Conan and Wolcott had already released over twenty rabbits into the area.So, Chanin would have expected his father to be here to chase Rieka into the night.Chanin hoped his parents hadn’t decided to sit it out.

His father had linked with him after he’d met Morlie today.Like Chanin’s mother, who had approved of Morlie’s fierceness and bravery, his father approved of Morlie’s kind heart.

Yes, his mate was a perfect combination.

His gaze was drawn to Morlie again, even as he stood at the arc of the clearing that bordered the woods beside Bleddyn, Raul, Boris, Dolf, and Wolcott, who was at the run for the first time since he’d reached adulthood.

They had all been in a meeting, one they conducted before each preternatural council meeting, discussing issues Chanin would bring before the council, mainly the information from Farkas.However, they also had strategies to address other matters that might arise from the other entities, such as the situation with the Vampires that the Prince of Darkness particularly needed to bring to the council's attention.

When Chanin returned from the meeting the next day, he and his Pack leaders would get together again.

Now, though, he didn’t care about Farkas, the vamps, Minsi, or the damn meeting, because his mind, body, and wolf were all set on one thing—Morlie.

An incredible evening breeze blew and fluttered the hem of the dress's long, billowy skirt, giving him a teasing glimpse of Morlie’s bare feet and ankles, and his dick grew harder.

Fucking, impossible, he growled.

Because his damn cock had been a steel rod in his pants all fucking day.Not even at half-mast, something that he could cover up or shift to a more comfortable position.No.

The only thing that kept it from sticking straight out and operating like a damn homing beacon to his mate was the material of his jeans posing at least some level of resistance.

And now, Morlie’s fucking ankles were turning him on like it was the year 1850.He’d already spent days and hours licking and tasting her entire body.Still, his desire for Morlie and the need of his wolf to claim hers had him at such a high level that everything from her full mouth, perfect almond-shaped eyes, bare arms, and her ten toes had him in a frenzy to drive inside of her.

His wolf wasn’t any better.If Chanin could open himself up, he was sure he’d see track marks from his wolf’s extended claws digging into his core, eager to get out.And the dastardly beast was pissed at being tethered within.

But his beast was too primeval to recognize that Chanin also had a leash on himself.Neither could get what they desired until the time was right.

And time was ticking down to the last couple minutes before midnight, and Chanin, like all the other Lupine, could feel it.

“You ready, Alpha?”Bleddyn’s words came out rough, probably because the wolf-shifter wasn’t staring at him, but the male’s gaze remained locked on his two mates, who were constantly giving each other light caresses as they tossed Bleddyn wicked glances.

His Beta was in for it tonight.

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