Page 60 of Wolf Fated
I opened my mouth to argue. To say I couldn't and didn't know how to. Yet, part of me yearned to flee these men. These ones who smelled of wolf and forest and everything I craved. That I could be free on my own.
"You bound us to you," Nathan said. "You saved us. You are our Alpha now. Do not leave us when we've just found you."
My cry stuck in my throat, turning into a mournful howl.
"Join spirits with us." Drake inched closer, his hand almost touching my muzzle. "Bite me and the others. Create our pack."
That word rang like a gong in my mind.Yes. These were my mates, my pack... mine.And I didn't want to be without them. I was whole. Cherished and loved with them—more so than I'd been with any other male. Three men. Three wolves. Three mates.
There was still the lingering aftertaste of Stephen's dirty-tasting blood though and I wished I was human with a gallon of antiseptic to wash my mouth out with.
Hesitantly, I opened my mouth. Drake slid his hand along my tongue. Somehow, I knew that I didn't have to bite him hard or crush his hand. Slowly, my teeth pierced his skin and his blood trickled over my tongue. Rather than the bitterness of Stephen's, this blood was sweet like frosting. I wanted more, but I forced myself to let go.
Then Nathan tipped his head at me, his hat gone somewhere during the fight. "You bite me as hard as you want, Brook. I owe you for chomping into you."
I tried to smile, but I was sure it looked odd with my wolf mouth and all teeth and fangs. Nathan's blood tasted like the woods during autumn and cooked marshmallows. If this was how blood tasted to vampires, no wonder that was all they wanted to drink. But for wolves, I knew this was something more than substance for the body. This completed the ritual to make us a pack, make us whole. This fed my heart and soul. We'd never be apart. I finally had found happiness and love and I was going to hold onto it with everything I had. The truth of this beat through me like a drum that hummed through my entire being. I felt the rightness in it.
Axel. He was the only left. I had to complete the circle, close up our pack. Claim what was mine for all time. No way was I going to let them go after I'd found them, and they'd found me. Besides, as Alpha, I could boss them around the way they'd done me. I chuckled, shaking my muzzle at that one. Truth was, I wanted nothing more than to fall into their arms and smother them with kisses. To feel their bodies with mine and fill me up.
I turned to Axel, my furry paws hurrying to him. His crooked grin had my heart racing even as a wolf. I couldn't wait to taste his blood and how unique it was. To memorize it on my tongue so I could bond with him. I'd know where he was at all times. How I wanted to be human again so I could hug him and the others. So, I could tell them what was burning me from the inside out. How I wanted them and only them. I wanted to stay with them and learn more about them. How I chose them over everyone and everything else.
I loved them. Each of them. Individually and together in a unit—my family—my pack. I was never going to let them go. They were stuck with me now.
Stephen stepped between us. His gun pointed again at Axel.
"You should know by now, Brookie, that I always have a trick ace up my sleeve." The gun fired and my heart stopped.
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Axel! No, no, no!He was mine! Part of my pack. I leapt forward, but my legs wouldn't work under the weight of my heart cracking open like a fragile egg.
With a choked laugh, Stephen faced me. The triumphant look on his face felt like an ice dagger stabbing straight into my chest. Then a confused expression pinched his brows and he looked down at his shirt. A red stain spread across his stomach. He fell onto his knees. His hand shook as he raised his gun at me.
"Die, bitch."
Another gunshot blasted and I felt hot wetness coat my face. Stephen stared down at where his gun and hand used to be. His howls of pain grated against my mind.
"Never… never shot anyone before," the young man with the kind eyes said in a shaky voice. "I-I just didn't think it was right what they were doing. They said the wolves were monsters. Not—not like you."
"It's okay." Drake took the gun from him. "Forget what happened here. Forget what you saw and don't tell a living soul."
The young man looked ready to faint, but he nodded. "I promise." Without looking back, he ran from the clearing.
An overwhelming desire to chase him flooded me. But a stronger desire pulled me back from the current kept me in place.
Axel.The arrogant bastard who had beaten me at pool. Who had ignited my passion, first, out of the three of them. Who had been Alpha of this group before I took my place. But I wasn't Alpha either, no matter what they said. I wanted us equal as three strong kings with their queen.
I drifted forward on four wobbly feet.
"Bite him, Brook," Nathan encouraged. "We can heal him through the bonding and speed up his werewolf healing ability."
So, wolves were blood, claws, teeth, and a little bit of magic. I didn't care as long as we were whole.
Axel laid on the ground with blood oozing from his head. A sob broke through my wolf muzzle. He didn't look dead, and I prayed with everything I had that the bullet had merely grazed his skull. That any second now, he'd wake up and give me that cocky grin of his. And I missed seeing that, missed him, missed our growing closer and teasing like we all had during the pool game and then later individually with them.
I didn't waste time because I felt it like slippery sand through my fingers. My teeth sank down on his thigh. His blood filled my mouth and tasted like rich wine and chocolate truffles.
"Now," Drake said. "Find the link between us all. But you'll have to become human to do so."
