Miles Away from Home, page 6
The meaningful way Dex spoke was code for lone wolf. I looked at the man a little closer. He was tall and bulky, most likely a Grey. His arms were covered in deep-navy markings barely visible over his dark-brown skin. Some packs out West used markings to tell the history of their pack, but I didn’t recognize his symbols. I took a few steps closer before I breathed out. Not an alpha, but his energies were strong, most likely a beta.
His coffee-colored eyes jerked up when he sensed my presence. A nod of the head and the lowering of his eyes indicated he was no threat. “Up for a game?” I asked when I stopped next to the table. There was a beat of silence as he regarded me. Not wanting to scare him off, I held out my hand. “I’m Miles.”
A slow smile spread across his face revealing perfectly white teeth. “Name’s Xan.” He looked around seeing how close the humans might be. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen a pack. Heard there were a few out these parts, though.”
Dex grabbed a stick and chalked up. “If you want to see other wolves, you came to the right place, man. At least three main packs frequent here. This is what we call the neutral zone.”
Caius racked up the balls, interrupting Xan’s game without asking. “I think of it more of the hookup spot myself,” he leered. “Human girls aplenty if you can’t find the right tail, if you know what I mean.”
Xan took our muscling in on his spot in stride. “I’m a bit of a drifter myself, but it’s nice to sense other Wa’ya. Females would be preferred, though.” He chuckled.
“Why are you away from your pack then?” I questioned.
“Grew too large,” Xan sighed. “With no new alpha pairs in the area to break up our numbers. I volunteered to leave for pack safety.”
I nodded my acceptance of his statement. It was common to hear. Packs were either dwindling with no females able to shift, or swelling with no new alpha couples emerging to split packs up. Packs getting too large were bad for business, increased the risk of getting caught, made hunting grounds overused, and often drew in poachers. In short, packs with over fifty shifters spelled out danger. Pack bonds became unstable. When bonds were not strong, many young men in their early twenties were filled with restless energy, causing them to wander. Either they found another pack, found a mate, or stayed a lone wolf unable to ever settle.
“Are we playing or not?” Caius complained. The man knew nothing of patience.
I pulled another stick off the wall. “Let’s shoot some pool.”
Caius broke and sunk the four-ball in. “Solids,” he called out.
Xan watched Caius move around the table to get to his next shot. “Are you part of a larger pack?”
I shook my head. “Just the three of us.”
“Our old pack is about a few hours’ north.” Dex grimaced. “But I’m sure you can tell Miles here is an alpha. Dude is always pushing out serious waves of energy. Since his pop is still alpha there, we aren’t heading back quite yet.”
“I heard a rumor this was close to Red territory?” Xan probed.
Caius missed his next shot and cursed. Xan stepped up and hit the eleven and twelve balls in quick succession.
“That’s why we’re here.” Dex had a bit of an evil gleam in his eye. “Miles’s mate won’t accept him and the dude is a glutton for punishment.”
“Watch it, Dex,” I warned.
The announcement I had a mate caused Xan to miss his next shot. “Wow, you found your true mate?” His interest level in me skyrocketed. I could feel him taking in my measure.
“Alpha Austin’s niece turned twenty-one today. We are here to liven up the party,” Caius said and grinned. “So, there should be plenty of she-wolves in one of these bars tonight.”
The way Dex and Caius both laughed sowed a few seeds of doubt about me bringing them along. “I’ll not ask you to keep your dick in your pants, Caius.” I gave him a pointed look. “But please don’t tell any of them they’re your mates.”
“Hey,” Caius said, shrugging. “You never know till you try, right?”
Xan raised an eyebrow looking puzzled. Dex howled with laughter. “Caius is truly brilliant. In his last pack he went to all the shiftless females and told them he felt the mate bond and just like that,”—he snapped—“they all jumped into bed with him.”
Our new friend looked a bit bothered hearing about the act of feigning one of our most sacred things. Made him rise more in my opinion. “That couldn’t have ended well?”
“Nah…” Caius had the grace to look sheepish. “Got me beaten and kicked out of my old pack.” The grin reemerged while he spoke. “But it was a hell of a way to go!”
The front door opened with a riot of female laughter. The constant ache in my chest lessoned minutely. My mate was nearby.
“Hot damn,” Dex shouted gleefully. “Let the games begin.”
Turning slowly, I zeroed in on my prey. It felt like my tongue swelled in my mouth, I was finding it hard to swallow. Akela was wearing a short slinky dress that reminded me of a rainbow-colored oil slick. The tight black shiny number barely covered her ass, showcasing mouthwatering toned long legs. It had a high neck held on to her body by a flimsy gold choker. The entirety of her back was exposed. I was torn between admiring what was mine and wanting to rip out every human male’s eyes that ogled her.
Her friends were cute, but not Akela’s level of hot. Two brunettes and one strawberry-blonde were also dressed as if this was Las Vegas. None of them had Akela’s alpha confidence or came close to her beauty. Barring a Victoria Secret runway model, not many could compare to my Viking goddess. Her friends headed straight for the bar, but Akela placed her hand over her heart and searched the place with wild eyes.
I froze completely when they landed on me. I could see her nipples pebble under the thin fabric of the halter dress, her breathing turned heavy as her chest lifted and fell in the most mesmerizing way. She unconsciously licked her lips. I went rock-hard instantly imagining that sweet mouth covering me.
“Get your ass over here, girl, and take a shot with us!” the strawberry-blonde hollered, oblivious of me and the other Wa’ya in the room. It was enough to shake Akela out of our moment. She turned away without acknowledging me yet again.
“I sure as hell don’t see the ice queen you keep mentioning,” Caius breathed out shaking his hand like he touched something hot. “The heat coming off her stare could light a fire.”
“What are you talking about?” scoffed Dex. “That bitch disrespected him yet again.”
I was going to tell Dex to shut the hell up about my mate, when surprisingly, Xan did it for me. “That seems a bit unfair, man. She’s young. Female alphas are not always ready as early as male alphas to leave their home pack. Clearly, she has feelings for you, Miles. If that’s your true mate, it’s just a matter of time.”
“Maybe…” I pursed my lips. “But I feel like I’ve waited long enough already.” I sized up Xan. “There are four of them and four of us. Looks like fate invited us to the party.” I felt a predatory smile split my face.
I didn’t wait for an answer. I turned and sauntered over to the bar. My alpha pull would most likely have all the guys following behind me. As much as we were individuals, we were also a pack like people. It was hard to go against our natural inclinations. My instincts, right now, were telling me to go and lay claim.
I watched the girls clink their glasses together and down the first shot. Akela grimaced and covered her mouth. “That was awful.” She giggled. “What was that?”
The shortest brunette answered, “Jägermeister! It’s my favorite.”
“It tasted like cough syrup mixed with moonshine,” she said pretending to gag. “Do not order that for me again.”
I reached her then. My hand splayed across all that exposed skin on her lower back. She tensed up immediately when I leaned in to whisper, “Allow me to buy you a drink.”
“That won’t be…” She started to reject me, but I cut her off.
“Bartender!” I signaled. “We’ll take eight B-52 shots.”
Akela glared at me, but her friends were making appreciative eyes at Pretty Boy Caius and Xan. Dex was a mean-looking son of a bitch and tended to frighten most everyone on first inspection. He continued to hold back and glower.
“Listen, it’s just us ladies tonight,” Akela started but her friends quickly chimed in.
“We can make an exception, of course, if you continue to buy the drinks.” She batted her eyes at me. I inspected the girls closer then, they were not from Austin’s pack, but rather from a few other packs located farther away. Friends Akela probably made at the summer gatherings, and less likely to hate me on sight like her family would.
“Darling, I do believe that can be arranged as long as the birthday girl agrees to dance with me.” My hand slid from touching her back to curling around her waist and drawing her closer to my side.
The other girls cheered when the shots arrived. “Pretty!” the strawberry-blonde exclaimed. “Look at the three layers in the glass all separated! How do they do that?”
“Well…” Caius leaned in and handed the girl a glass. “I can’t tell you how it works but I can show you the best way to take a shot. You put your lips all around the edge and seal them real tight, then drop your head back and swallow.”
I groaned outwardly, while the brunettes giggled at his vulgarity. The blonde was ready to party. “You mean like this.” She slowly raised the glass to her lips and practically deep-throated the dang thing before tipping her head back and downing the shot. She finished by slamming down the empty glass on the bar and daintily wiping the sides of her mouth with just her pinky.
Caius’s jaw actually dropped. “Marry me.”
The girl stuck out her tongue and slapped him playfully on the shoulder. “Let’s just start with a dance, Pretty Boy.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the dance floor, leaving the rest of us to grab our shots without them.
“Cheers to the lovely birthday girl,” I shouted over the music. Everyone took a drink, and I watched Akela look at her glass warily before she knocked it back. Her eyes lit up when she was done.
“That was actually good,” she sounded pleasantly relieved.
I leaned in close, speaking so only she could hear, “I could make many things good if you would only give me the chance.”
She sucked in a breath and swallowed. Her ocean-blue eyes devoured my face with as much longing as I felt every day for her. My original plan for the night was to ruin her evening by sticking to her side like glue weather she liked it or not. Change of plans! My girl was acting like she was ready to be seduced.
My lips drifted softly over her ear. “Dance with me.” It wasn’t a request, but she still nodded dreamily, the shots loosening up her normally rigid attitude.
When we reached the dance floor, a fast techno beat thumped through the room. I ignored it completely and brought her body in flush against mine. Dancing with her slowly, I leaned down and nuzzled my face on the side of hers. In the six years I’d known Akela was my mate, this was the first time I’d held her for more than a few seconds. My heart was beating faster than the music. The constant ache in my chest from being far from her finally dissipated. She sighed at the same time I did. She’d felt it too. I wanted to demand why she fought so hard against this, but knew it would end this moment of peace if I did.
One song faded into another and we continued to sway. Her arms circled around my back and she rested against my chest. Even wearing three-inch heels, she was still at least a half-foot shorter than me. I’d never seen her as delicate, yet as I held her all I could think about was how I would make sure nothing and no one would ever hurt her. My hand skated down her spine causing her breath to shudder, before I rested it on the small of her back just above the curve of her firm ass.
That moment was pure heaven, at least until her girlfriends found us. The strawberry-blonde was dragging Caius in our direction as the two brunettes stepped right up beside us. A quick glance back showed that Dex and Xan stayed at the bar. It was too much for me to hope that Dex could keep the ladies entertained. No one would call him a charmer.
“What music are the two of you listening to?” one of her friends laugh-shouted at us.
Akela pulled away. A lovely pink blush settled on her cheeks as she blinked and took in the scene around us. A mixture of intense pride and profound anger hit me. My mate had found simple bliss just being in my arms. She had even forgotten for a moment where she was. It changed nothing, though. She took a few steps away and laughed apologetically to the girls, while avoiding looking into my eyes. I knew she was more embarrassed that she felt that bliss with me than zoning out on the dance floor.
The tallest brunette had brought her another shot that looked like a lemon drop. I should have asked for their names earlier, but the moment had passed. Akela knocked it back smiling at her friend. I worried all the mixing would affect her later, but that’s what twenty-first birthdays were all about. She started dancing alongside her friends, Caius signaled he was heading toward the bar. I leaned down so Akela could hear.
“I’m going to get you a water,” I spoke loudly over the music.
“Boo!” heckled the strawberry-blonde. “Your boy is getting rum and cokes! That’s all the water she needs.”
The girls started grinding on each other and giggling, not in a super-sexy porn star way. They were genuinely sillier about it, like a parody of being in a music video. Akela had never looked more adorable. I hadn’t known she even possessed a goofy side.
Caius was making his way back from the bar juggling four rum and cokes in clear plastic cups. Xan trailed behind with three beers. The girls cheered when they took the beverages. I chuckled wondering how much they would regret this bender tomorrow. Caius grabbed a beer from Xan and started trying to insert himself between the girls hoping they would then grind on him. I rolled my eyes. The dude was shameless.
“Thanks, man.” I knocked bottles with Xan as he nodded in response to the offering. His eyes strayed to my woman and I stiffened a little until he spoke.
“Congrats on finding you true mate, man,” he spoke quietly. “Dex says she can shift too.”
“Did he also gripe about her being a Red?” I asked.
Xan scoffed. “Who the fuck would care about that? You can have a real pack. I’ve known alpha males turned lone wolves because they never found ‘the one,’ and yours is right in front of you.” He slapped my shoulder as if I’d accomplished a great feat.
“She keeps running from me,” I grumbled the awkward truth.
Xan flashed his toothy smile. “Wolves do like to be chased, man.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” I muttered.
Akela was surely tipsy, but not quite drunk. It took a little more alcohol to put our kind flat on our asses. She looked my way with a flirty smile while she shook her hips. I took a long sip of my beer and handed it back to Xan. “Here goes nothing, then.”
It hadn’t taken much to convince Akela to step away with me for a break. She was glistening with perspiration, eyes slightly glazed from the combination of heat and drink. Instead of taking her outside like I had suggested, I pulled her into a large empty room the place used for private parties.
“I thought we were getting some air?” She glared at me, but in a playful way that encouraged me to keep directing her further into the vacant room.
“I’d say it’s much cooler in here than on the dance floor. Besides, there will be a bunch of smokers hovering around the front door, and I know you hate that.”
My comment surprised her. “You do?” A dreamy look flitted over her face.
“There is a great deal I still have to learn about you.” I cradled her face between my hands. “Like what your lips will feel like when we kiss?” Her head stayed angled up and I took that for consent. The kiss started off gentle, but when she moaned and opened her mouth, all the suppressed sexual tension built up over the last couple of years burst like a broken damn.
We were devouring each other’s mouths. Tongues evading, teeth clacking in our desire to be closer. My mate ripped the buttons off my shirt to get her hands over my chest. I reached around to grab her ass lifting her higher so I wasn’t leaning down. She circled her legs around my waist and locked her hands behind my neck, all the while never stopping our kissing frenzy. The little black dress she wore rode up to her waist, exposing her bare ass to my touch and her little lace thong to my sight.
I carried her further into the room and set her down on a raised booth right on the edge of the table. Neither one of us spoke as my hand circled over her soaked panties and she whipped off my belt and unzipped my jeans. She reached in to touch me and I pushed aside her panties to feel the soft skin of her folds. Our stuttered breathing seemed loud in my ears making the music from the club feel farther away.
The last six years had felt like a curse. Men my age are sexually active constantly looking to score. I had met my mate when she was too young and was forced to walk away, but my body had stayed loyal. The thought of anyone else made me physically ill, forcing me to remain a virgin still at twenty-five.
When Akela scooted closer to the edge of the table and guided my dick toward her wonderful heat, I didn’t think twice. I shifted her body back, angled her hips up, and pushed in. It was unlike anything I’d imagined before, only problem was my mate was a virgin too. Akela hissed out painfully. “Oh, shit.” I stilled. “Sorry.”
She shook her head. “No, keep going.”
I reduced my pace to agonizing slowness, kissing her neck, and rubbing my thumb over her clit until she relaxed and let me in all the way. My sigh, once I was fully sheathed, was a mixture of relief and ecstasy. Not only did my girl feel unbelievable on the outside, but our mate bond twisted us tighter together and pulsed. It was like an out-of-body experience. My pleasure fed into her, erasing her discomfort, and bringing her close to orgasming. That feeling bounced back into me, until I could no longer decipher which one of us was experiencing what.
