CHAPTER 22

 

Following the situation outside in the woods, Ryan had acquired a pledge of allegiance from all of the Alphas. In return, he’d granted them sanctuary inside the military compound. There were thousands of wolves to put up, but the compound spanned several acres, so there was plenty of room. He’d briefed his pack and they all knew the score. No wolf pack liked to invite outsiders into their home, but Ryan had explained that the situation was bigger than all of that.

As King, it was his job to protect them all.

He’d spoken with every male pack and settled them into the compound. Now, it was time to deal with the women. He wasn’t relishing the prospect. They were far more difficult than male wolves. Whilst the male wolves accepted his orders without question, the women liked to test the waters and question every damned thing. Also, the revelation about him being Wolf King wouldn’t help matters. He knew exactly what he’d be walking into as soon as he slid aside the heavy titanium door that separated them from the rest of the compound housing the male wolves. It would be a sexual frenzy. But he had no choice. He needed to lay down the law immediately to ensure that they could all coexist together without any major issues.

He heaved aside the heavy door with ease and took a calming breath as he stepped inside.

As soon as he was through, all eyes turned to him. Hundreds of wolf women looked his way, their attention riveted on him. Their eyes were hooded with desire as their gazes raked over every inch of his body. He heard several low growls fill the room.

Oh, fuck!

They lunged at him.

The force of them all coming at him at once drove his back against the wall.

They were wild, ravenous, in a sexual frenzy.

“Ladies!” he thundered, quickly following it up with a warning feral growl. He held up his hands. “Release me! Immediately!”

“Enjoying yourself?” a voice came from the doorway.

His gaze snapped to the door, as he fought against hands roving all over his body and the women crowded around, all trying to get a piece of him.

His wife stood there.

To his surprise, she didn’t seem mad, or jealous. Instead, she was grinning at him with amusement.

“Just getting things under control here, my love,” he said, pushing away a woman licking his neck.

He watched Cora stride into the room. She forced her way through the crowd until she was standing in front of him.

He gripped her hips and held her tightly against him as she stood between him and the women. Yes, thank fuck. He was startled when she started speaking to him with her thoughts.

I’m surprised you’re not hard from all of that.

Only you get me hard these days, darlin’.

Scared, were you?

Maybe a little. You saw what was going on in here when you walked in.

She chuckled to herself.

Then, she thrust out both her palms.

The room echoed with a collective gasp and the crowd immediately stepped back a good few feet.

She held her magic tightly to her and Ryan knew that meant she wasn’t intending to strike anyone. It was just a much-needed deterrent. She seemed to understand that it wasn’t their fault. Their reaction to him was instinctual, a primal reaction to him and the revelation of his true power.

“Pull back the wolf for a moment and think,” Cora said. “He is already mated.”

Ryan watched as the women responded to her words. Whispers and glances of realization filled the room for a good few moments.

“She is my wife,” Ryan added.

He watched the women hesitate. He saw the disbelief in their eyes. He knew why. Cora wasn’t wolf. They didn’t believe that the King of the Wolves could be mated to a non-wolf.

This isn’t working. Time for a demonstration. Maybe I’ll fuck you right here in front of them.

He felt her tense against him. He had no intention of taking things so far. He just needed to do enough to bring out the glow. The sure-fire confirmation to them all that Cora was, indeed, his mate.

Before she could stop him, he slipped his hand inside her leather pants. She gasped as his fingers brushed her clit. She was already soaking wet. Mmm. Always so ready for me. He teased her with all of his fingers, spreading her wetness, while his thumb gently flicked her clit.

Ah, yes. Yes. Take me now. Fuck me, baby.

Be careful of your thoughts, my love. I just might do it.

He laughed aloud and then pulled his hand out. A whimper of protest escaped her.

“You see?” he called out to the room.

He drew Cora’s gaze to his and he saw what he knew he would. Her eyes were glowing silver. He could feel his were afire with gold, too.

The crowd gasped as they witnessed the proof of their bond.

“Okay, my love. I’ve got this now. Get some rest,” he said, kissing her chastely on the top of her head.

She broke from his hold and spun around. “No. I’ll help them get settled in.”

Ryan scoffed. “I don’t think so.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I do.”

He released a frustrated sigh and rubbed the rough stubble on his chin, before saying, “I’m not leaving you here alone.”

I will be fine.

Not happening.

I breached Dark Realm magic to escape Luca’s mansion, overpowered Roy, and saved your life with my blood. I think I’ve got this.

“Cora!” he thundered.

It took him a moment to realize that he’d said it out loud. Shit. He glanced around the room. All eyes were on him. Eyes of fear. Dammit. He didn’t want to keep his wolves in line with fear. That was the mark of a bad ruler. A failure of a ruler.

He drew in a breath and pulled Cora outside with him, kicking the door shut as they went.

Pressing her against the wall, he told her, as calmly as possible, “Look, I’m sorry I yelled. I just… this… what’s happening is a lot. Right now, I just need you safe. And then I can figure out how to deal with the rest. Just let me handle it.”

“You don’t get it.”

“Get what?”

“I am your wife.” She spun him around, slamming him into the wall. Her hands fisted in his shirt, jerking him towards her. “We do this together. Starting right now. You can’t handle all of this on your own. You’re about to declare war on an entire species, Ryan! You need all the help you can get. And, lucky for you, I’m a pretty powerful ally. So, suck it up and stop being such a chauvinistic, stubborn asshole. Let me help you.”

Ryan took her words in and then he looked down at her hands gripping his t-shirt. He couldn’t help cracking a smile. “Nice moves, darlin’.” He gripped her hands gently and pried them off his shirt. “That almost hurt.”

He pulled her back into the women’s compound area.

“All right, ladies. My wife is gonna help you all get settled in,” he said pleasantly. “I have three rules. One. You stay in this area of the base. Do not go beyond the titanium door. There’s plenty of room. This area of the compound stretches for more than half an acre. There’s plenty of food and provisions. I’m used to catering living arrangements to guys, so if there is anything you need that’s not here, let Cora know and we’ll take care of it. Two. No fucking my boys. As for the other packs, you ask permission of that Alpha first. Three. You touch my wife and you die. Now, are we clear?”

“What if one of your boys is one of our mates?” a familiar voice came from the crowd.

He knew immediately that it was Alyssa. “You come to me first,” he responded, coldly.

He was expecting many of those cases to arise. All the wolves in the human realm were here now in his pack’s base. The likelihood was great. But he also knew that some of them—the female and male wolves alike—didn’t care about finding their mate. They just wanted to have fun and fuck. He had to make sure that didn’t happen, especially not with war on his doorstep.

He heard a low hum of acknowledgement. And then he leaned into Cora and whispered, “Be careful, my love.”