“Her wolf trusts us.” That much has been evident since the start.
“And you keep telling her how important it is to listen to her wolf, yeah?” Caius gives me another knowing look. “Perhaps you should take that advice, T.”
“I am listening to him. I’m just making sure he’s right first.”
“Except mating is meant to be animalistic. The drive to claim is stirred by our carnal needs, not our mental ones.” He tilts his head. “You can’t be strategic about everything, T. At some point, you have to let the wolf out.”
“Stop trying to psychoanalyze me, C.” It’s a half-hearted statement. He’s good at reading people, especially me.
“Just trying to help you find your way out of your ass,” he replies conversationally. “You stuck your head so far up there, I’m surprised you can even see right now.”
I snort. “Fuck you.”
He grins. “Only if Clove is between us.”
I consider that a moment, my lips curling of their own accord. “V and I tried that last night. Three times. Definitely recommend it.”
Caius’s gaze glitters. “I’m knotting her first during her next heat.” It’s a bold statement, one I can absolutely counter as lead Alpha.
But I nod instead.
He’s been denying himself that sweet pussy all week, taking her mouth instead.
I know it’s part of his kink, his game of delayed gratification. However, it only seems fair to agree since he wasn’t given the opportunity during her short estrus period.
“Oh, it seems we’re missing a fun conversation, sweetling,” Volt says, returning to us. “Caius wants to knot you. I think he’s jealous about last night.”
Her cheeks are pink on the phone screen as Volt turns her toward us. Alpha Ebony is right beside her, studiously ignoring us. But I see the tick in her jaw that says she wants to grin.
“Hi, little one,” I say to Clove. “We’re all thinking about you.”
“We are,” Caius agrees. “I hope you’re being good, gorgeous.”
“I was sleeping,” she says, the sheets still wrapped around her in a nesting-like manner. “So I can’t guarantee I was being good in my head.”
Caius grins. “Oh? A naughty dream, then? Tell us more.”
“I will when you get back,” she replies, baiting us.
“Hmm, no,” I tell her. “I don’t want to hear about it. I want you to demonstrate the naughty dream instead.”
“Yes,” Caius murmurs. “Yes, I like that plan more.”
Her face is bright red now.
And Ebony’s lips are no longer flat, but tilted.
“We’ll see you soon, little one,” I say to Clove, loving that look on her face.
Caius takes the phone rather than hanging up, asking if Clove can give the phone to Duncan for a minute. She does and the two of them start talking about the surveillance update in Richmond.
I listen idly as Volt settles in across from me. “She’s ours, T,” he says again. “Your wolf knows it. Listen to him.”
I don’t reply.
Because I don’t need to.
We both know he’s right.
Claiming her is a risk.
But it’s a risk I need to accept.
Caius wraps up his conversation as the plane starts to descend.
The show is about to begin.
29
CLOVE
Alpha Ebony sets a plate down before me, her brown eyes smiling. “Eat.”
My stomach churns, the notion of food making me ill. But I know she’s right. I haven’t eaten all day. My nerves are all tied up in knots and my mind is fully focused on Tieran, Volt, and Caius.
They checked in again about an hour ago before turning off their comms.
We’re all waiting now for the trap to play out.
Alpha Pan and Alpha Lance are in position.
Alpha Duncan has them up on the feeds.
And Alpha Ebony is busy trying to distract herself by feeding me.
I can sense her concern, the scent subtle but there. So I try to calm her by picking up the sub and taking a bite. She has her own plate as well, one she focuses on when she sees me eating.
Alpha Duncan wanders over to press a kiss to her head, his lips going to her ear. “He’ll be fine,” he says, the words low but easily heard via my enhanced senses.
I pretend that I didn’t overhear it, though, not wanting to intrude on their moment.
Their clan is different from Tieran’s. Mainly because the Alphas are clearly intimate with each other. I saw Alpha Ebony kiss Alpha Pan goodbye and it was a lot more than just a peck on the lips. It was hungry, reminding me of the way Volt likes to kiss me.
I like their dynamic.
But I also like that Tieran’s clan is more brotherly than romantic. They don’t seem shy about sharing me, but they don’t appear to be sexually into each other either.
It just demonstrates that not all clans are the same. And I rather like that about the Carnage Wolves. Actually, I like a lot of things about the Carnage Wolves.
Including Alpha Ebony.
She’s down-to-earth and tells it like it is. Which she does now as she says, “I know Pan will be fine. But I don’t like leaving him to do this on his own.” The words are for me since Alpha Duncan has already walked away.
“I know what you mean,” I tell her. “I understand why I couldn’t go with Tieran, Caius, and Volt, but I don’t like it, either.” The moment they explained it was about their wolves not being able to handle my nearness during a fight, I halted all my arguments to the contrary.
Because they were right.
But that doesn’t mean I’m fond of the outcome.
They seemed to be trying to keep me as involved as possible today with their frequent calls, telling me where they are, showing me around the jet, allowing me to watch as they prepared their weapons.
Well, it was mostly Volt.
But Caius and Tieran both spoke to me as well.
And that helped calm my nerves a little.
However, they’re firing to life again now as the monitor shows Alpha Pan scaling the fence of the property.
He does it with an ease that impresses me and makes Alpha Ebony grin. “He has such a fine ass,” she says, sighing.
Alpha Duncan grunts. “No distractions, Ebs.”