Page 46 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha
I gripped the armrest of the couch unconsciously. My hand had shifted, and my claws drew lines through the upholstery as I clenched it into a fist. Bryn was human, so it shouldn’t matter to a wolf whether she was a virgin. He was probably saying that just to remind me of the way I’d found Bryn. It was a tactic to get inside my head—to intimidate, to make himself sound like the big, bad Alpha he wanted everyone to believe he was.
But all the idiot had done was piss me off.
“That sick fuck doesn’t deserve an honorable death,” I said quietly. “He deserves to die as slowly and painfully as possible.”
Dom leapt to his feet. “Then let’s go and murder the fucker. Why even do all of this?”
“As much as I want to watch him bleed out at my feet, it isn’t right to just assassinate him, the deal?—”
“Screw the fucking deal! Let’s forget all about giving Bryn back, and let’s go rip him apart. Tonight.”
I glared at Dom. “Then what was any of this for, Dom? Why go through the trouble of kidnapping Bryn and setting the terms of the deal? We have the eyes of other packs on us now. The deal is done.”
“Night.” Dom met my glare. “I have never questioned you about anything. I would lay down my life just to carry out your will, but I can’t condone this.”
“You’re letting your affection for her cloud your senses, Dom.”
“The hell I am. I wouldn’t force anyone back into the hands of someone who wants to do any of the batshit awful things that Troy said he wanted to do to Bryn. It’swrong, Night.”
Dom and I held each other’s stare until we both looked away. I heaved a sigh.
“I hear what you’re saying, Dom. I really, really don’t like the idea of Bryn being anywhere near Redwolf, but I won’t let him hurt her.”
Dom scoffed. It was an extremely disrespectful thing to do to an Alpha, but I knew emotions were high. “How do you plan to follow through on that, Night?”
“He won’t have time to do anything to her. We take her back, and the challenge starts. I’ll have sentries keeping an eye on her the entire time. Nothing will happen.”
“Any time that she has to spend on the Kings’ grounds is too fucking long. What if one of our sentries loses sight of her? What if they kill her the moment Troy has eyes on her? Anything could happen, Night. Anything.”
Dom was right. Even though I had no intention of letting Troy spend any time alone with Bryn, there was a lot of risk to this plan. I hated leaving anything up to chance, but the terms were set. We had just over two weeks to come up with a solution to make sure Bryn was safe.
“Dom, do you think I don’t hate this? You know just as well as I do that our pack is renowned for being uncivilized. Violent. How would it look if we went back on the deal? How would anyone respect us if we proved the worst things they think about us are true?”
“We’ll be strong enough to keep anyone who doubts us quiet.”
I shook my head. “Then we’re no fucking better than the Redwolfs. You’re getting too wound up, Dom. Don’t forget thatwe have the Kings’ pack lands within our grasp. We just need to see the rest of this through.”
Dom wasn’t impressed by my words. But then, he wouldn’t be. He’d heard this explanation before, and he understood why we had to do things this way, but that didn’t take away the sour taste from the back of my mouth.
“Whatever, Night,” he said, walking toward the door. “You just better hope you win.”
“IknowI’ll win.”
Minutes after Dom left the cabin, I shifted into my wolf form. After that intense argument and after hearing what Troy had said about Bryn, it was time for me to check in with my sentries. It was good timing because I had to shift to reach the border of my territory quickly, and I longed to get rid of some of my pent-up aggression. As the change took over me, forcing me onto all fours as fur sprouted along my body, my thoughts became less structured. Instead of thinking of Bryn or Dom or worrying about the future, I could focus on the moment—on the simple task of running.
I sprinted into the forest, and the trees seemed to part around me as I zipped by. I stopped to check in with my sentries to make sure the borders were safe. In my wolf form, communicating telepathically with my team was as easy as communicating verbally. According to them, the Kings hadn’t had the chance to injure any more of my pack, though they continued to sniff around the borders.
After I’d checked in with everyone, I yawned and stretched. It seemed I could allow myself to relax a bit and release the restof my frustration. I could hear the quick steps of rabbits and foxes around me—time for a bit of a snack. My wolf whined for control, and I didn’t fight him, letting him take over for a bit to give myself a few minutes of rest.
When I came to, I skidded to a halt. I was back in the village, the taste of rabbit still warm on my tongue, and I was standing—shit. I was standing below Bryn’s bedroom window.
My mom’s cabin was a dark, comforting silhouette against the night sky except for the light coming from Bryn’s room. She had a candle lit, and her arms were stretched over her head. She was naked, and her smooth back and perfect ass were on display in the warm, flickering light. As I watched, she turned a bit to the side, revealing her profile as she reached for the candle. Seconds before she blew out the light, I watched her hands move down from her hair to her breasts.
I had to bite my tongue to keep from howling.
Immediately, I shifted into my human form. I shivered and crouched on the ground. Seeing Bryn like this…it was too much. My wolf wanted nothing more than to run to her and claim her right then. I wasn’t sure I would have been able to stop it.
I stuck to the shadows and ran quickly to my cabin. The stealth wasn’t necessary—I sensed no wolf nearby enough to see me—but I didn’t want to risk the embarrassment of someone catching me all alone, naked, and fully erect.
