Page 42 of Her Wolf's Demands

Manual and Henry came to stand close by, clearly expecting backlash… or maybe even a riot.

“Hear me out.”

The disgruntled mumbling stopped. I still didn’t glance at Malone, too afraid of what I might see in his face. I was about to go on when my gaze was drawn to him, despite my attempt at resisting. Ah, okay. He wasn’t shooting fire from his eyeballs like I’d expected. Instead, he raised a questioning eyebrow.

“I know packs are all about pacts. So, how about we make a pact? I earn your trust by working alongside Malone to expand the pack and align his way of working with yours.” Glancing at Joe, I took a deep breath. “The old ways are gone. It’s time to come together to build a pack that you can be proud of. If I prove myself to you, you’ll accept me, regardless of what I choose to do.”

“She talks like a wolf,” one of the men said.

“And fights like one, too,” Rochelle added, “but has the magic of a witch. There’s no denying that she’ll be a valuable asset to our pack.”

Smiling my thanks to Rochelle, I wrung my hands in front of me. Several of the pack members got up to leave.

“Please, wait,” I said, licking my lips when they froze in unison. “Oh, fuck, I’m sorry. Why does that happen? I’m sure I’ve seen some of you disobey Malone.”

Shit, I had unintentionally ordered them, and because of my supposed alpha DNA, they’d had to obey me.

A chuckle among the younger members of the pack made my cheeks heat. I didn’t know how Malone led so many people. It was a lot of pressure, especially when they stared, judging your every move.

“An alpha trains himself to control his power,” Lionel said, biting his thumb nail and spitting it out. “He can choose to exert it or give his people free will. Malone demands respect naturally.”

“Well.” Smiling around at everyone, I shrugged. “It’s a good job I’m not your alpha because I’m crap at learning. I flunked school to look after my brother and when they tried to teach me to levitate, I dropped a chair on my rival's head.”

A couple of people giggled, breaking me out of my verbal diarrhoea. Oh, jeez, why did I have to embarrass myself?

“And now you’re an extremely powerful hybrid-witch,” Joe said. “Please tell me you’re better with your magic.” An amused expression crossed his features, crinkling the corner of his wrinkly eyes.

I tilted my head to the side and folded my arms across my chest. “Just be careful,” I joked. “Chairs are not the only thing I can drop on my enemy’s head anymore.”

“What about you?” Henry interrupted to speak to Malone. “Are you happy not to go ahead with the ceremony tonight?”

Drawing himself up to his full height, Malone came to stand beside me. I chewed on the inside of my cheek, my tummy twisting as I looked up into his face. His gaze was on me, searching the depths of my soul. My spirit wolf growled in appreciation when Malone put his arm around my waist.

“To all the males in the pack,” he said, slowly looking around, “please tell me how to resist my mate when she looks at me like that?”

The burst of laughter made me smile. It was nice to see the tension had eased around us both, even if deep down, they were still anxious. It took a lot of courage for Malone to stand up to them and declare that he wanted to be with me.

“I happen to agree with Della. Rochelle and Manual can attest to Della’s skills. She can bring a lot to our pack. However, you still don’t trust her. I won’t have you forcing yourselves to accept her for me. I want you to accept her for her.”

Glancing at one another, the others nodded, clearly happy with their alpha’s choice. My shoulders relaxed, almost slumping as the anxiety drained from me. If I wanted to be a part of their pack – which, I kinda did – I had to gain entry on my own merit. And Malone’s assurance that he would help me with Drake had made it easier to want to become a wolf in my own right. We just had a few conflicts to get through first.

“I was looking forward to a celebration,” Emiliah said, sticking out her bottom lip.

Lionel glared at her, scowling when she shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. There was tension between them, pulsing across the camp. Had they fallen out because Emiliah was excited and Lionel still loathed me?

“Oh,” Malone said, holding up a hand and wagging is finger. “We party tonight. After we’ve run, we’ll come back and get that BBQ on. Who needs an excuse to party?”

A few whoops sounded around the camp, followed by members dispersing to go about their day. I had no idea where they were heading. Some of them returned to their cabins, while others made their way to their cars.

Malone stepped away with Manual and Henry, talking under his voice as they discussed the change of plan. Running as wolves would have been part of the ceremony, but now that wasn’t going ahead, they would change the course and avoid the standing stones even more. Malone had already forbidden anyone to go near the stones the whole time the witches were coveting them.

“I told Emiliah about our escapade last night,” Rochelle said, smiling at me.

I grinned back, totally at ease with my new friend. She had softened towards me, her energy welcoming, even admiring.

“I have to admit.” Drawing closer to Emiliah, who came willingly, I lowered my voice. “Rochelle was the brave one. I just went along with her plan. I would say it was epic, but it was more stupid. Have you ever seen a pissed off hellhound?”

Blinking, Emiliah barked a laugh before shaking her head. “I can’t say I have.”

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