"Alpha Reyn!" called a voice Ethan did not want to hear at this moment.
He glanced at the platinum watch on his wrist - the latest gift from his mate. It was an identical replica of his own, initialed, engraved, and with a matching belt buckle. Brent often joked that Jan's habit of gifting expensive and visible accessories was his subconscious way of marking the alpha to let the world know he was taken. The thought always lit a fire in Ethan's heart, making his yearning for his mate much fiercer.
However, the position of the hand-crafted dial caused him to frown this afternoon. It read two-thirty-seven.
"If I don't get to my room in five minutes, I'll murder someone," Ethan grumbled at the warriors in the community hall.
"Well, you better kill me then," Zyga retorted. "I'll tell Emily you did it, and she'll never bake for you again."
Ethan ground his teeth, wishing dearly to stuff that old grouch in the closest garbage can. Unfortunately, he could not because he had recently found that no one bakes a chocolate cake like his old classmate, not even his beloved mom. Revitalized by his mate's awakening, his appetite had come roaring with a vengeance. Between her two teenage sons and the alpha's bottomless belly, his mother spent more time in the kitchen than out of it.
To make it worse, Ethan had recently developed a sweet tooth. Zyga had seized on this weakness, often using his stepdaughter's dessert to blackmail him.
"Aren't you supposed to be retired? Why're you here?" Ethan grumbled, pouting as he turned to face Zyga.
The old tracker had dressed casually in jeans and a jacket like everyone else. This gathering was a quick regroup of their delegation ahead of the main event for tonight.
The alphas of Gray Oaks and Snow Pines and scores of their warriors had descended on an estate in Virginia called a Marked Motel. Apparently, it was an exclusive lodge for vampires. But Jan and Ivan pulled some strings, and now the wolves have overrun the place for a landmark summit with the vampire council.
"I helped to make this conference happen. I won't miss it for the world," Zyga answered, a proud twinkle in his eyes. "The first meeting is in less than six hours. The Washington Wolves insist we include them in tomorrow's discussion, and knowing Alpha Aiyana, she might just show up in the middle of the night. We'll have to change the agenda, and I need you to approve the new plan. Where're you in a rush to, Alpha?"
Ethan groaned, rolling his eyes as he turned.
He had not wanted to have this meeting in the first place. The only reason why the alpha came was to tell the council to back off his mate. He certainly was not interested in turning it into a national summit.
"Kitten," Eri bit off, answering Zyga with the nickname the wolves used for Jan. He glared at the beleaguered alpha as he snapped his black leather folder closed with more forcefully than needed. The beta was decidedly not amused with his best friend because he had failed to ask Jan of his political leanings.
But Ethan had more important issues - like getting back into his mate's pants. No matter how hard he tried, Jan's waistband had grown tighter than a chastity belt since that disastrous attempt a couple of weeks back.
At least Brent sympathized with him. He understood the alpha's plight was of higher priority. However, Ethan's other beta was back home, manning the helm while the bulk of his leadership was away.
Bruce chortled, straightening the army-green eyepatch on his face. "Good luck getting him to sit longer than ten minutes. Aww, don't be mad, Eri. You're still young. There're some things you probably don't know. The old vanguards have a saying - a wolf who just found his mate is worse than a tomcat in heat."
Ethan scowled at the commander, then winced when a familiar ache spread through his gums. He quickly eased the pressure on his jaws and tongued his teeth, fighting the urge to cup his jaw and prove the old warrior right.
Unfortunately, Zyga had not missed that grimace.
He chuckled heartily, drawing tears in his eyes. The tracker positively glowed. His marriage to Emily's mom had done him a world of good.
Unfortunately, Ethan was not in a charitable mood. "Go over it with Eri. You two can handle it. I have a headache, and I'm going to bed. I'll bet Levi's cabinet don't harass him like you lot."
The room burst into laughter as the alpha stormed out.
"Blessed Luna, it brings back memories," Bruce wheezed.
"Buckle up, Eri. I went through the same thing with his father..." The door shut on the rest of Zyga's words.
Ethan griped bitterly under his breath as his long legs carried him out of the community center to the villa he and Jan shared.
"Everything alright, Alpha?" Captain Simmons enquired. He had replaced Bannerman as the leader of Ethan's honor guard. The fourteen warriors spread around him, matching his pace as they watched for potential attacks.
Ethan sighed. "Yeah, Simmons. It's just been a long day."
"Well, it looks like it might be a longer night," the warrior added.
"That's what I'm afraid of."
When they got to the cottage-style bungalow, Ethan waved him off and walked into a pitch-black room. It took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust for him to navigate through the cozy living area and into the bedroom.
A familiar fragrant, earthy, pinewood scent engulfed him, lifting all the troubles of the outside world off his shoulders. His frown flipped upside down as he shut the door behind him. Ethan toed off his sneakers with renewed vigor and shimmied out of his sweatshirt and shirt in one swoop.
He licked his lips hungrily as his eyes roamed over the seductive curves of his mate in bed. He placed one knee on the California king-sized bed and paused, frowning.
"Hey, that's not your place!" Ethan barked at the white wolf comfortably ensconced in his mate's arms, exactly where he wanted to be.
"Shhh! She's trying to sleep," Jan hissed at him. His hands moved in smooth, even strokes, gently petting the fluffy white fur.
Me? Shush? Ethan choked, hardly believing his ears. I'm the alpha, and she's in my spot!
However, as unfair as the situation was, he could not be angry at his mate.
The miffed alpha glared at the native, who opened a lazy eye, wagged her tail once at him, and then went back to sleep. Groaning in frustration, he rounded the bed and slipped under the sheets on the other side of his mate, taking care not to slip off the thin sliver of space he was left with.
Finally, Ethan wrapped his arms around Jan's slender waist and buried his nose at his nape, where the foresty scent exuded the strongest.
His mate threaded their fingers together and then shuffled until his back snuggled firmly against him. As Jan's smell washed over Ethan and his warmth flowed into him, the ache in his gum reduced and eventually disappeared.
Ethan heaved a sigh of relief. Then, he leaned in and kissed the smooth, satiny skin on his mate's shoulder, flicking his tongue over that spot.
"Mng." Jan moaned beautifully and arced his neck for more, even as the rest of his words said otherwise. "Don't start. We can't, Ethan."
"Yes, we can, love." The amorous wolf murmured, tracing a moist, heated path up the graceful, extended nape. Then his lips brushed over the curved shell of his cute ear. Tempted, he opened and drew the soft flesh into his mouth and suckled on it.
Jan gasped, and his spine arced, grinding his soft behind against the alpha's growing hardness.
"No. No! Stop!" The slender vampire jerked out of Ethan's arms and sat up. His chest rose and fell as if he had been running a marathon. "We can't. I don't want to lose control again. I could kill you."
"You can't kill me, Jan. Just as I can't kill you. We're bonded."
The molten silver eyes dropped low, and there was a slight pause in his mate as if the vampire doubted the fact. Ethan frowned, not liking that possibility at all.
"I could still hurt you," Jan insisted, pulling himself further away from the wolf.
The alpha dropped his head, face down into the cotton-covered pillows, and groaned. Life really isn't fair.
There was no use pushing. He had tried that, but his mate's fear shut down every attempt. There was no way forward until they worked through this new psychological block.
"I'm so sorry," Jan repeated for the millionth time since that night. Ethan could not tell if he was apologizing for not giving in to his needs or for the guilt he still carried from that incident.
Either way, seeing his mate be so hard on himself raked through Ethan. He could not sit back while Jan suffered.
"Shh, it's okay, love." Rising up, he wrapped his arms around the vampire, who stiffened against him. "It's not your fault. I shouldn't have pushed when I knew you weren't ready. I can wait. I just want to hold you right now."
"I'm so sorry."
"It's okay."
They repeated those phrases until Jan relaxed enough to lie back down. When sleep finally descended on the room, they only had an hour or two till sunset.
Needless to say, as the alpha of Snow Pines walked into the hushed grand hall of the luxury hotel in Virginia, he was in a pretty foul mood.
The high arched ceilings displayed a gorgeous geometrical mosaic crowned by an enormous three-tiered glittering chandelier gracing the center of the room. Its soft lights shone on the long red carpet under it, which was the only plain thing here.
The secluded conference room boasted wealth from every corner.
However, it was not the glitzy, right-in-your-face, nouveau-riche kind of wealth.
The affluence here was more subtle and classy, like the nature-carved, fine-art-crafted doors made of thick espresso-stained mahogany, which did not allow any sound from the room to escape. And the larger-than-life Renaissance painting that needed no expert appraisal to tell it was an original. And the fifteenth-century embroidered tapestry depicting a noblewoman accompanied by a lion and unicorn hanging on the wall opposite it.
This was old money, far older than Jan.
It was as if the vampires intended to intimidate their guests with their wealth.
Unfortunately for them, their deep pockets had little impact on the irritated alpha. Besides, Ethan's inclinations lay with the open pine forests rather than artificially carved spaces.
The room to hold their inaugural meeting was divided into two. Dozens of stately, hand-crafted chairs arranged in curved rows behind a dark-covered table welcomed the vampire delegation on one side.
Councilman Adams had tamed his wild hair with a brush and gel. He stood softly conversing with Josephs as Ethan walked in, both clad in all-black formal wear. Blood-red jewels glittered Celine's neck as she turned away from Carson, accentuating the form-fitting evening gown that clung to her curves like a second skin. Eisenhower stood on the outside, twitching his bowtie while he listened to the murmuring of a black-suited vampire.
Behind them, a league of pale warriors waited in mock nonchalance: hand in pockets, a gentle smile here, a casual lean against the wall there.
However, their quick, furtive glances at the other side of the room gave away their anxiety. And the tension in the air betrayed them. It was so thick it raised the fine hairs on Ethan's hackles.
Opposite them, a similar arrangement was set up for the Lycans.
The Gray Oak warriors were already waiting. Snow Pines was the last to arrive.
"Ah, Alpha Reyn," Levi boomed, his face brightening with a smile. "I was wondering if I'd have to come pull you away from your mate myself."
"My apologies," Ethan responded simply to the room at large. Then, on a private link to his old friend, he said, "If you had tried that, I would let Aiyana know you denied her request to join us today, not me."
Levi snorted. "That's just foul."
"All's fair in love and war."
Like the warriors of Snow Pines, Levi's wolves wore their military uniforms: army green for vanguards, midnight blue for trackers, and a couple of bluish-gray for border patrol. Only the metallic oak tree and the two pined cone badges differentiated the warriors' uniforms. Levi's long braid trailed down the back of his white coat while Ethan's height traveled in the opposite direction.
As the Snow Pine alpha strode toward the Lycan side of the room, Ivan peeled away from their party, naturally heading for a seat among the vampires. Jan stepped forward, following his brother.
Ethan paused, grabbed his mate by the arm, and drew him towards his side.
The hushed whispers of the room died down as all eyes turned to him.
Jan's eyes widened as he stared at him, then glanced back at his brother.
"Ahem. Alpha Reyn, it's customary for members of the community to sit with their own council," Ivan advised. He had traded his regular turtle neck and blazer for a black suit and dark gray tie. However, the civil clothes could not wipe out the mafia look in him.
Ethan's hand tightened on the blonde vampire as he slowly turned and faced the Russian head-on. "Jan is my mate. The sooner everyone understands that, the faster this conversation will be."
Though the alpha spoke to Ivan, the message was meant for the entire room.
This was not a negotiation.
The alpha was not here to waltz to the council's tune for the right to his mate. He and Jan were one. It was the clans who needed to pander to them and vie for a position in their lives.
Not the other way around.
Eri lowered his head, trying to hide his first smile in days.
Celine's red lips twisted into a pout while Adams' eyebrows flew up in his hairline. Eisenhower sputtered, pointing at them, but no one was listening to him.
A rare look of uncertainty crossed Ivan's features as he glanced between the council and Jan.
The alpha arced one elegantly sculpted eyebrow at his mate's brother. When Ivan opened his mouth to object further, Jan shook his head slightly, and the Russian clammed up.
With a satisfied smirk, Ethan slipped his arm around his mate's slender waist and led him over to their table, leaving Ivan to choose between sitting with the council or joining his brother.
Louie made the decision for him. The French vampire quietly trailed behind his best friend, dressed quite conservatively tonight in a black tuxedo that Calvin had selected for him. A vein ticked in Ivan's jaw as he eventually followed his brother.
Furious whispers rose among the vampires, but for all the angry mutterings and wild hand gestures, no one spoke up.
As the alpha crossed his legs and placed a possessive arm behind his mate's chair, he wondered if the vampires had held their tongue because they genuinely wanted a peaceful meeting. Or maybe the sudden flash of amber in both Gray Oaks and Snow Pine warriors had silenced them.
Or perhaps it was the low growl of the deadly white huntress seated by Jan's feet.
A/N
Hi lovelies, thanks for reading.If you loved it don't forget to vote, comment and add to your library.
Sorry for publishing a few hours late today. I had a network outage. Anyway, I love reading all your comments. Forgive me if I don't respond to all, but I really enjoy scrolling through your responses to things that happen in this book. It's good to know what you think and helps me grow as a writer.
Anyway, I would love to hear your feedback on the story in general and this chapter in particular.
What did you like?
And what didn't you like?
What did you think about the characters?
Next chapter is already being edited. I will post it in a couple of days.
Ciao!