Protecting the Pack Read online

  Chris himself was useless. He could play host, but that was about it. The new wolves would be on their guards whenever Chris stood nearby. He had to trust his wolves and his friends to have his back.

  When Alex showed up, Chris tried not to stare. She wore a slinky black dress and had bright red lipstick on those kissable lips. She totally outclassed the place. As she wandered the room, a group of wolves made room for her to sit. Chris wished he didn’t feel threatened when one of the males put his arm around her shoulders. But he did.

  Dana stepped up beside him and put her hand low on his back.

  “You out did yourself,” he said. “Thanks.”

  She preened. “You know you can count on me.”

  Snagging her around the waist, Chris planted a kiss on her cheek. She deserved the thanks. “I sure can.”

  Dana slipped her arms around his neck. “On my cheek? You can do better than that.” She kissed him, long, slow, deep.

  Problem was, he didn’t feel like taking it any further. Not anymore. He had a feeling they were headed for a break-up. And this time it’d be permanent.

  “Later,” she said. “When the party’s over.” She must have totally misread the look on his face. With one last kiss, she sashayed away to join a group of wolves choosing tunes on the jukebox.

  He could always count on her for something like this—planning this party last-minute. And yet, he hadn’t trusted her enough to ask her to help with spying on the new members. He’d told himself it was because they’d assume she would tell him anything she overheard and would be as on guard with her as with him. But that wasn’t it. Deep down, he didn’t really think she had his back. Not unless there was something in it for her.

  Chris needed to mingle. But first, he’d order one more beer.

  ***

  Ben was late. He’d spent the day job hunting then joined a local gym some of the other wolves had recommended. He hadn’t had a good workout in a couple of weeks, what with leaving the Army and coming to Marysburg, so he decided to workout right then. And then he’d had to find dinner. Just as he was finishing up, he realized it was already eight o’clock. The woman, Dana, had said to be there at seven.

  He raced back to his room, quickly changed his clothes, thankful that he’d showered after his workout, and walked the few blocks to the bar.

  Even from outside, he could tell the place was packed from the noise. Talking, laughter, music. He pushed open the door.

  All of a sudden, Ben smelled the most amazing smell, like sex and chocolate and first-thing-in-the-morning coffee, only better. He’d heard about this. There was only one thing it could be.

  He’d found his mates.

  Chapter 5

  Ben’s gaze swung to the bar as though pulled there. Chris sat on a stool, eyes wide, staring at him. No wonder Ben had felt comfortable talking with Chris. His mate. His fricking mate.

  Chris looked at Dana and said something to her. As far away as he was, Ben could only imagine what he was saying.

  She looked confused.

  As Chris stood, he shook his head, still speaking. Then he left Dana behind and plowed his way through the packed room to get to Ben.

  They clasped arms, holding onto each other at the elbows and staring into each other’s eyes. The smell was so much stronger now. Ben had no doubt. He’d spend the rest of his life with this man.

  And with their female.

  “Where is she?” Ben said. He swung to look at the room, one hand still gripping Chris’ arm. All he saw was wolves, wall-to-wall.

  “There couldn’t be a worse situation to try and find somebody,” Chris said.

  “We just need to follow our noses.” Ben stepped forward, pushing through a group of people to get to the other side, and Chris followed him. Excitement jumped in Ben’s stomach.

  The scent grew. Ahead of them, someone was pushing through the crowd, coming in their direction. Someone else stepped aside, and a body ran into Ben. It was her.

  Alex.

  The air left his lungs. She was so beautiful. Everything he’d ever wanted. He reached for her.

  Alex’s eyes were wide. “No,” she said. “No, this isn’t happening.” She dove into the crowd toward the door.

  Ben reached after her but came up with air. “What the hell?” He headed into the crowd behind her, Chris on his heels.

  They were still a good ten feet away when the door opened and Alex bolted out. Ben growled, pushing people out of the way, but another minute passed before they got to the door themselves.

  Then they were on the street. Her curvy figure disappeared from the sidewalk into the parking lot. Ben and Chris sprinted to catch up. They caught her fumbling with her keys, trying to get her car door open.

  “What’s going on?” Chris said.

  Ben took the keys from her, to stop her. “Why are you running away?”

  Alex took a step back from them. “This can’t be happening.”

  “But it is,” Chris said.

  “No. No, it can’t be happening. I’m in love with somebody else.”

  Ben felt his heart clenching in his chest. She couldn’t have just said what she’d said.

  ***

  Alex grabbed her keys from Ben. She felt torn in two, and couldn’t think straight. Every instinct in her body screamed at her to go to these two men, to go with them, to rip the clothes off their bodies and ravish them. But Brett…she couldn’t just let go of him. She had to fight this. “This isn’t happening. I love him. You understand? He’s my mate.” She’d thought saying the words would remind her but they didn’t change a thing. She wanted Chris and Ben. But she couldn’t go there.

  Ben growled, his eyes flashing yellow. “He’s not. We are.”

  “No,” she said. But despite her words, she wanted to wrap herself around him and kiss away his anger. How could she feel like this? What kind of person was she that she could want them so much when she was with Brett?

  Chris stepped closer to her. His fingers slid down the side of her cheek. “You’re ours, now. I’ve seen how bad things get when mates can’t accept that they’re meant to be together. Don’t do that to us. It’ll hurt all three of us.”

  A tear rolled down her cheek. She felt so torn. She didn’t even know if she was crying because of Brett or because she wanted Chris and Ben so badly and wouldn’t let herself go to them. “But I love Brett.”

  “Stop saying that.” Ben’s voice had taken on the low rumble of a wolf about to change.

  Rather than feeling scared by his reaction, in a crazy backwards way it turned her on even more. Which made her feel even more guilty.

  Chris gripped Ben’s neck. “Hold it together. We’ll be all right.”

  Ben’s bones began to pop with the change. “She’s our mate. I’ll kill him.”

  Alex couldn’t take any more. She had to get away. She had to figure out what the hell was going on. Ben stood close enough to the door that she couldn’t get inside, so she pushed him back, catching him off-guard. He stumbled a few steps, taking Chris with him. While they righted themselves, she got the car door open and got inside.

  Ben slammed the palm of his hand against the door frame. “No!”

  She turned on the car. “I’m sorry,” she said, but she felt sure he didn’t hear her. Her heart broke as she peeled out of the parking space. They had to jump to get out of the way.

  As she drove, every muscle in her body screamed at her to turn around and go to them. How, how could she leave them behind?

  ***

  Ben ran after her car for a few steps then stopped. He watched until she turned a corner and disappeared from sight. A sick feeling of wrongness crept over him, chilling his skin from the inside. All of his anger fell away. He just felt empty. So empty.

  Chris pulled Ben into a hug.

  “She’s ours,” Ben said. He didn’t move, didn’t even return Chris’ hug. “Ours.”

  Chris rubbed Ben’s back. “I know. We’ll get her. Just not tonight.”

/>   ***

  His mate loved someone else. Chris couldn’t believe it.

  She should’ve known better. Women almost always found their mates. There were too few of them not to. To fall in love with someone else before she found her mates was sheer stupidity.

  And why hadn’t she mentioned this guy when she approached Chris about joining the pack? Hell, why hadn’t he been with her?

  Chris held onto Ben and fought the urge to run after Alex, the same urge Ben was no doubt fighting. “We’ll get her,” he said again.

  Ben rested his head on Chris’ shoulder, his face turned toward Chris’ neck. “How can I feel so shitty and so horny at the same time?”

  Chris gave a short laugh. That was exactly how he felt. “Let’s go someplace.”

  “Yeah.”

  Technically, Chris couldn't take Ben back to his place. Ben was still in his so-called trial period which meant he couldn't go onto pack territory. Not that the trial period mattered anymore. No way would Chris let either of them join some other pack.

  While it would be easy enough for Ben to pledge fealty then and there, Chris didn't think the time was right. Ben was too distracted. And Chris wanted to do it in front of the pack, so everyone knew this strong wolf stood beside him. But not tonight.

  Which meant they'd have to go to Ben's hotel. Chris had no idea where Ben had been staying. He put his hand on the back of Chris' neck and gently pulled his head back so he could look in his eyes. “Where's your hotel?”

  “The Bluebell,” Ben murmured. He looked shell-shocked.

  Chris tugged him toward his car. He should probably be just as rocked as Ben seemed to be. But he was pack Alpha. That meant he'd had a lot of time to learn to compartmentalize. If he thought about what had just happened, he'd start screaming. Or he'd tear the city apart trying to find Alex. Or he'd kill the loser she thought she loved. So he didn't think about it. Needing to take care of Ben helped.

  He opened his side door and Ben got inside. Then Chris circled the car to get in the driver's seat. It took little more than three minutes to get to the Bluebell; they could have walked. Chris parked in the lot and turned to Ben. “Keys?”

  “Got 'em.” Ben pressed his lips together in a sad attempt of a smile. “Room twelve.”

  A few minutes later, they entered the room. Ben pushed the door closed and dropped the keys on the dresser. He still looked listless and distracted.

  Chris took Ben's face in his hands, his fingers brushing the soft hairs of his buzz cut. “We'll get her back.”

  “I know.” Ben wouldn't look him in the eye.

  “She's so young. She didn't know what she was doing. But we'll show her. It'll be okay.” Chris leaned forward and pressed his lips against Ben's.

  He'd never kissed another man before. He'd never imagined it could feel so right.

  All of a sudden, Ben gripped him around the waist, pulling him closer. Their heights were about the same which made it easy to kiss. Ben’s hands dug into his back, his strong arms holding Chris tighter than any girlfriend ever had. He loved it.

  Chris gave back as good as he got. He didn’t feel like he had to be gentle with Ben. His hands roamed over Ben’s body in rough strokes and squeezes. Ben did the same to him. Chris’ cock grew even harder.

  Ben pulled Chris backward and after a couple of steps, they fell onto the bed, Ben yanking Chris on top of him. Looked like his mate wanted to be the alpha in the bedroom. Chris was used to being in charge everywhere, especially in bed, but this felt different. He realized he finally felt like he could relax. Without any evidence at all, he knew Ben would always stand by him.

  But for now, Chris was on top. He pinned Ben’s wrists over his head before Ben could react. Then Chris ground his pelvis against Ben’s.

  Ben struggled for a second, trying to free his wrists, but he didn’t try very hard. Instead, he pushed his hips up against Chris. The sensation of their dicks rubbing over each other nearly made Chris come.

  Chris captured Ben’s mouth in a rough kiss. Ben moaned, a rumbling growl of pleasure. With a quick move, he twisted one way then rolled them the other way, so Ben ended up on top, his wrists loose.

  “Mine,” Ben said. One hand gripped Chris around the cheek, holding him in place for a kiss. Ben shoved the other hand between them to grip Chris’ aching cock.

  Chris fought not to come. He brushed his teeth over Ben’s throat, but hesitated. Should they mark each other with Alex not there? It felt wrong.

  So he pushed at Ben’s shoulder instead. “Clothes.”

  Ben stood, pulling Chris to his feet. They ripped at their clothes, shirts and jeans and socks strewn every which way. When the last piece of clothing had been removed, Ben advanced on him, pushing him back onto the bed. This time, when he lay down, he lay down to Chris’ side, so they faced each other.

  “This all feels good,” Ben said. “But I’m not quite sure…” His gaze skittered down Chris’ body.

  “This is my first time, too. I figure we just keep doing what feels good.” Chris rubbed Ben’s arm. “About marking each other—I was thinking we might wait for Alex.”

  Ben slid his hand over Chris’ hip. “Yeah, that sounds right. She should be with us.”

  “She will be.”

  “I know. Nothing will be able to stop the two of us when we’re working together. Not even Alex.”

  Pride bloomed in Chris’ chest. This was his mate. “Exactly.” Chris grabbed Ben by the back of his neck and pulled him in for a long, deep kiss.

  Ben’s hand slipped to the front of Chris’ hip, then gripped Chris’ cock once more. He moved his body back enough so he could stroke Chris’ cock.

  Chris kissed Ben even deeper. He felt an overwhelming urge to bite, to mark Ben as his, but held back. Instead, he took hold of Ben’s cock and mimicked his actions until they stroked each other in time.

  Chris felt himself getting closer and closer. He pulled back enough to say, “Gonna come soon.”

  “Me too.” Ben leaned closer and resumed their kiss.

  Chris’ body tightened, every muscle on edge. He felt the tension rising in Ben at the same time, rising tighter and tighter then Chris slipped over into an explosive orgasm, coming harder than ever before.

  He felt Ben’s cock jerking in his hand and the slight moisture against his abdomen.

  They touched foreheads, both breathing heavy.

  “Amazing,” Chris said.

  “Fucking amazing. Let’s do that again soon.”

  ***

  This couldn’t be happening.

  Alex drove far too fast through the sleepy streets of Marysburg, not even sure where she was going. Just away. Away from those two men who threatened everything she wanted. Away from the overwhelming desire to stay with them forever.

  She reached her house before she realized that was exactly what she needed. She’d tell Brett. Brett would know what to do. He’d tell her what to do and then everything would be all right.

  But Brett wasn’t there. The house sat empty, echoing the feeling in her body. Empty, without Brett. Empty, without her mates.

  What was she supposed to do?

  Even now, the need for her mates gripped her, tighter and tighter. She wanted to go to them almost as badly as she wanted to stay away.

  She went straight to her room then stood in front of her mirror, looking into her own eyes.

  Mates? She had always figured she could never feel more for someone than what she felt for Brett. How could she love anyone more? How could she want them more?

  But she did. And she didn’t want to. If she loved Brett, what kind of horrible person was she, to feel such feelings for two men she barely knew?

  It made sense, now. The way she’d felt about each of them from the beginning. Nature giving her a preview. But if she was destined to be with Ben and Chris, how could she feel this way about Brett?

  This was all wrong.

  She fell onto the bed, overwhelmed not just with the emotions running thro
ugh her, but the desire. Her skin burned. Her pussy gushed. Her breasts ached. And Brett wasn’t here to soothe her.

  She felt queasy at the idea of sleeping with Brett, but pushed that feeling down along with all the others. She would take care of herself.

  Chapter 6

  Alex’s hands moved over her body, rubbing. She peeled off her clothes and lay on top of the sheets, feeling bold just for being exposed to the empty room. Her nipples, almost sore, begged for attention, so she squeezed them and pulled on them until they were tight little buttons.

  Her legs squeezed together, her hips writhing. What she wouldn’t give for a man…Ben, licking her nipples…Chris, kneeling between her legs to kiss her pussy.

  Her eyes flew open. Brett. It was Brett she wanted. Not the other two.

  As her eyes fluttered closed, her hand moved between her legs. She pretended the fingers against her clit were those of her lovers’. Chris, gently opening her pussy lips before brushing his tongue over her clit.

  She wet her finger with her juices then slid it over her clit, over and over. No matter how much she pretended, it didn’t feel like Chris’ tongue or Ben’s fingers. It felt like her lonely hand.

  Alex clenched her eyes closed. To hell with them. This was her orgasm.

  She played with one breast while her hand continued to move over her pussy, teasing, torturing, building delicate pressure against her clit, on the top, on the sides, and deep inside.

  She suddenly pictured Chris looming over her, his cock pushing into her. Her hips lifted as though welcoming him in, and she shattered.

  ***

  In the middle of the night, Alex felt someone shaking her awake. She didn’t want to wake up. She had the feeling she’d remember something she didn’t want to know.

  But the person persisted. “C’mon, baby. I wanna fuck.”

  She opened her eyes to see Brett looming over her.