Chapter Four

The full moon celebrations lasted all night, and this was the last damn place she wanted to be. Tala’s cheeks ached from holding her smile in place. She resisted the urge to rub her tired eyes, made worse by the smoke rising from the massive crackling bonfire. Her pretty blue sundress, the color of Marrok’s eyes, was now saturated with the scent of campfire.

At least the mark on her face from when Marrok essentially shoved her into that tree was gone. What had been a baseball-sized bruise on her cheek had been smaller and reduced to green rather than black and purple by the time she’d gone to Astra’s room to dress. Thank the gods for accelerated healing. Likely even that was gone by now.

Right in time for the party she didn’t want to attend.

Wolf shifters celebrated every full moon—or more accurately, their ancient history, through the lineage of werewolf ancestors, of being held in its thrall, though they could now shift at will—with a night of revelry held deep in the wilderness. Wisely, she and Marrok hadn’t allowed anyone to shift, deeming it too dangerous yet for both packs to shift together. Relations needed to improve before that happened. Instead they’d hunted in separate groups earlier and come together to cook their prizes over open fires. Astra had also brought beer and fixings for s’mores. A small gesture of friendship Tala appreciated.

Exhaustion hung heavy over Tala’s body. Gods, she was dragging like a swimmer caught in a riptide.

Marrok stood across the clearing from her. Usually glued to her side, he seemed to have read the giant Give Me Space sign practically written in neon across her forehead.

Tala turned her attention away, gazing around the meadow, beautiful in the full moonlight. Such a setting was idyllic, as wolf shifters preferred to surround themselves with nature. The full moon, the rhythms their ancestors used to be tied to, radiated a cool, calming glow over everything. A night for celebration.

That was, if they didn’t all kill one another first.

“No bloodshed.” She whispered the prayer to any gods listening. She lifted her gaze to the moon with a particular plea for those goddesses.

“What’d you say?” Her sister’s voice broke into her plea.

Tala winced. Damn wolf shifter hearing. “Nothing.”

“Yeah, right.” Though Tala had moved apart from the others, needing a minute to herself, her sly sister had snuck close and now stood beside Tala, peering at the wolf shifters around them. “Do you think it would help if I slept with one of the Banes? As a gesture of goodwill, of course? They do have a tasty selection of male wolves.”

“Astra,” she hissed.

In response, Astra wiggled her provocative backside, covered in a pale turquoise dress that barely covered her ass, and continued as though she hadn’t been warned. “Marrok looks particularly fuck-worthy tonight. You lucky girl.”

“Gods save me.” Tala dropped to sit on a felled tree, using it as a bench of sorts.

Astra sat beside her. “Tala Canis Banes, you can’t tell me you don’t want your mate. I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

Terrific. Tala lifted a shoulder in a shrug.

Astra shook her head, returning to her perusal of the gathered shifters. “I’d be all over that tall hunk of man-cake if I were you,” she muttered. “I’m surprised your wolf isn’t dry humping him every second of the day.”

“Lower your voice.”

Astra hooted. “If a man looked at me the way he looks at you, I’d spontaneously multiple-orgasm.”

“Orgasms aren’t the problem,” Tala snapped, making sure to whisper, not wanting to be overheard.

A wicked smile graced her sister’s features. “I’m glad to hear it.”

Her wolf, meanwhile, snarled in her head.

Dammit.

Sandalio walked by where they sat, nodding at them both, but with a face like he’d smelled something rotten.

Astra flipped him off behind his back as he moved away. “He’s going to cause problems,” she warned.

“Welcome to a show already in progress,” Tala muttered.

Marrok glanced over, gaze glittering in a way she now recognized, and her traitorous body leaped in response.

Tala uncrossed and recrossed her legs, trying to ease the ache of desire, then scowled at the action. She didn’t fidget. Alphas couldn’t afford to fidget—it made them appear nervous. A nervous alpha was a dead alpha.

Apparently, she didn’t do a great job hiding it, because Astra sent her a smirk. “Got an itch you can’t scratch?”

Unamused, Tala let loose a soft snarl of warning. Astra held up her hands. “Sorry. Too soon?”

“Maybe I should find you a mate so you can enjoy it and tell me what you think.”

“Hell no. A mate is the last thing I’m interested in.” Astra shuddered.

Me, too. Only the thought didn’t hold the conviction it once had. Which made no sense. This mating was arranged, for the benefit of the packs. She didn’t love Marrok. She respected him. Needed him to make this truce work. She could even admit that her desire for the man had turned into a heady, uncontrollable urge, a need only he could assuage. That was just physical.

Nothing more.

Her wolf turned up her nose, taunting. Calling Tala all kinds of liar.

She couldn’t help glancing in her mate’s direction again. As she watched, a child, no older than five or six, approached him.

Tala tensed. Most wolf shifter males, especially alphas, couldn’t be bothered with children. She’d seen kids get snapped at, growled at, even cuffed or shoved, for approaching their alpha. Look at how, earlier today, he’d stood back and let her deal with the child frightened by the cougar shifter.

This child wasn’t part of the Canis pack, but Tala wouldn’t let anything happen. Intending to intercept, she started to her feet, only to stumble to a halt. Instead of scaring her, Marrok knelt down to the little girl’s level and listened to her with all the focus he afforded any adult wolf shifter.

Unable to turn away, Tala observed how the girl, obviously one of his pack, had no fear of her alpha. After several long minutes of earnest conversation, the girl giggled. Shock sizzled through Tala, and her mouth went dry as Marrok chuckled and tapped his cheek. The child gave him a sweet kiss before she ran off into the night.

Astra appeared at her side. “Those pheromones must be set on boil.”

Tala peeled her eyes from her mate with difficulty. “What?” Then she shook her head. “That’s only during the mating. It’s been weeks.”

Astra gave her a pointed look, one she recognized from playing tricks on the elders as kids. One that meant her next words were a ruse. “That’s the word. But it makes sense that they’d last longer after your mating, because you’re both alphas. Your heart could start its own drumline about now. I’m turned on just standing next to you.”

Holy hellhounds! Astra was right. Her heart beat a strong tattoo against her ribs.

She never allowed herself to show inner turmoil in public. Never. With more effort than the ability typically took, she forced her heart to calm. What a chump. Here she was all worked up over her mate treating a child with kindness. Granted, she’d never seen anything like that with other alphas. Didn’t mean she needed to go all gushy on him.

What was wrong with her?

Thank heaven for Astra, who’d covered brilliantly. She’d mock-whispered the words, but loud enough that those around them could hear perfectly. Attributing Tala’s reaction to the mating call was quick thinking.

“When is it supposed to wear off, anyway?” Tala grumbled, playing along.

Astra laughed. “With that as my mate”—she nodded to Marrok—“I wouldn’t want it to.” She turned an assessing eye on Tala. “Especially given the glow you’ve picked up.”

“I am not glowing,” Tala muttered between clenched teeth.

Marrok glanced their way, a knowing smirk playing around his mouth.

“I think he heard you.” Tala turned her head to hiss the words. A glance at her mate told her he now watched them openly. As soon as he caught her gaze, he gave a sexy-as-all-get-out wink. Damn the man. How could he have her body leaping with anticipation with a silly wink? Especially when she was still mad at him?

With powerful strides he came around the fire to where she stood, and Tala remained where she was, rooted to the spot, unable to look away.

“Astra,” he greeted.

“Brother.” Astra glanced between them. “You two might want to go bleed off some of the sexual tension.”

Marrok choked a laugh at that and finally turned his gaze to her sister.

With a tip of her chin, Astra indicated several couples rushing into the cover of darkness and trees.

Oh, hell. Everyone could feel that? Feel their rising desire? She’d heard of the alpha couples’ emotions having a direct impact on the pack but had never experienced that herself. Was that what this was?

Astra must’ve caught the gist of Tala’s thoughts because she shrugged. “Yeah. I’m almost in pain standing this close to you. In fact, I’m thinking I might go see if that tall drink of yummy across the way wants to play.”

Marrok glanced in the direction Astra was looking. “You don’t want to mess with Rafe.”

Astra pouted. “I’m not going to mess with him, brother dear, I’m going to play with him.”

“He doesn’t play nice.”

Tala held back a groan. Worst possible thing Marrok could’ve said to her bad-boy-loving sister.

“Goody.” Astra pursed her lips suggestively.

Marrok covered his mouth with his hand to smother a laugh. “You’ve been warned.”

Astra tipped her head and stared at the man until he happened to glance up, stilling as he caught sight of her. She sent him a saucy smile, but instead of going over to Rafe, she wandered off into the night, leaving Tala and Marrok alone together.

Tala turned to her mate, trying to keep her heart steady and her face without emotion—until she encountered deep blue eyes crinkled at the corners as though he could read her thoughts. Was he struggling, too?

Marrok ran a hand down her arm in a brief, almost comforting, caress. Since the mating, he’d done this a lot, as though he couldn’t stop touching her—not overtly, just constant contact. Her body itched to touch him back in the same manner, but her wolf held her back.

What’s with you? Tala prodded. But the fickle creature yawned and turned away, shutting Tala out. She ignored her animal side and focused instead on her mate.

Her mate who watched her, an oddly intent light in his eyes. If she hadn’t known better, she’d say concern had replaced amusement, darkening the color. At her confused frown, he smiled, and Tala found herself distracted by the crinkles around his eyes. Laugh lines she found seriously sexy when combined with that knockout grin of his. And when he was kind, like now, she could lose her heart to that sexy, sweet side of him.

But none of that changed the fact that his behavior was losing her the Canis pack.

She glowered. Her alpha mate was going to have to learn to share soon, and consult with her, and allow her to be alpha half the time, or she would have to make him.

His eyes flickering in the firelight, he stared at her, and she stared back. He held out a hand. “Join me in the woods?”

Tala knew what he was asking. She licked her lips and shifted on her feet. She shouldn’t.

He leaned forward, lips by her ear. “Yes. You should.”

Tala gasped, though only Marrok caught it. Probably. How had he known?

A quick check told her the rest of the gathering weren’t paying them any attention. For once. Damn her body and damn him for being nice to that little girl. The sight had left her panting. Even her wolf had perked up for a second, tail twitching.

Hiding a deep breath, Tala put her hand in his and allowed him to lead her out of the circle of warmth and light cast by the fire into the cooler, darker night beyond.

Every cell of her being focused on her mate, Tala was ready and willing for what he had in mind. They wound their way through the pine trees, the fresh, spicy scent surrounding them. A good distance from the revelers, Marrok slowed and pulled her softly into his arms, his body wrapping her in warmth, hard against hers. He lowered his head, and she lifted her lips, eager for his kiss.

“I hate that we fight,” he murmured against the corner of her mouth.

Words guaranteed to soften her heart. “I—”

A shout rose up from the people they’d just left, angry and getting louder by the second.