The ceremony was followed by an enormous feast. Every pack brought drinks and cuisine special to their groups and people flit about with tasting plates. Basileus had been standing resolutely at my side since the food had been dispensed. I had been gorging myself now that the most nerve-wracking parts were over.
"Don't you want to go talk to people?" I asked him, leaning my head back to see his face.
His glowing eyes dropped to me. "What gave you that idea? I am perfectly content to sit here with you."
I laughed in delight, sounding truly like a schoolgirl. Something similar to a purr rolled up his throat as he pushed his face into my hair. Reaching over my shoulder, I took his head into my hands. His hair glided through my fingers. His warm breath dewed along my neck. That was all it took for me.
He growled. "Anna."
"Don't complain to me," I groaned. "It's your fault."
The hot pulsing to my flushed sex was completely and thrillingly beyond my control. I felt his arms collect me from where I had been sitting on the grass. I laughed again.
The wolves nearby looked at us and simpered knowingly. Basileus began licking my face while he carried me towards the forest. Much to my shock, my finely-tuned ears could hear the guttural croons of other wolves nearby. This had quickly turned into a fuck fest. I couldn't be more entertained.
"It's our sexual energy," I was whispering into Basileus' ears. My hand dragged dangerously down his chest. "It's contagious I suppose."
"This is far enough," he said, abruptly dropping us both to the ground.
He cradled me to prevent any injury but I was far too gone to notice pain anyway. I laughed. My jeans were soon strewn off to the side, caught on a bush. Giggling, I eagerly grabbed for his manhood, massaging and gripping. Basileus groaned hoarsely.
"I need you inside me, my King," I whimpered.
"Oh, fuck." He gently yet hurriedly aligned himself with me, parted my petals so that he would move directly in.
Just as he breached my entrance, I bucked my hips up to steepen the angle. His dick slid in, slurping into my wetness, and stroked my clit perfectly. My breathing sharpened to a gasp. A wave of undulating pleasure warped my body, my mind. He growled. I knew what was to come and my pussy squeezed with hopeful anticipation.
His claws burrowed inches into the grass while he thrust himself forward. My head fell back with a cry of relief and fulfillment. I felt so full every time. I hoped this would never change.
"Flower," he croaked, nibbling on my neck. "I can't—"
"Hold it, big fella."
I kissed his wet nose and wrapped my legs around his rippling torso. Keeping him steady, I worked myself up and down his girth. He whined. When I touched his hanging sack, they twitched. I moaned. He was so ready to come. In seconds, I had him ready for me. I'd never experienced something so hot. My body flushed with rancor.
My hands held his face, our eyes peering into each other, as I rode him from the bottom. His breathing quickened gradually and then all at once. Right when he jammed himself fully into me, I reached between us and tapped my pearl. That was all it took. We both unraveled in each other's arms like it was the first time.
"I love you so much," I breathed into his furry neck, clutching him where he'd collapsed beside me.
We lay there, utterly vulnerable yet never felt safer. I wasn't worried at all by our numerous guests. Maybe it was a wolf thing. Mating came first, and I was perfectly fine with that.
"And I will always love you more." He licked my cheek. "All the lifetimes I waited for you."
"Imagine all your lifetimes squeezed into my little one," I said. "That's a lot of passion for a mortal."
He chuckled. "It is. You should have it. I am not an easy lover."
Running my fingers up his corded back, feeling the soft fur push back against my touch, I smiled. "Good thing you're not just my lover."
"You are right," he grumbled. "I am all you need."
It was craziness—I had never let myself believe that one person, one entity could control my happiness. But I still believed him. If I had Basileus and Matt, intertwined impossibly together, I could tolerate everything else.
A piercing howl shattered the heavy moment. Basileus and I both sprang up. The howl tickled the wolf in me, the part that knew and understood the inflection of a wolf's call. This was a cry of warning.
"Find Lee," Basileus ordered. Before taking off, he grabbed me. His claws scraped against my bare skin. "Get somewhere safe. Flower, I mean it."
"Okay, okay." I nodded breathlessly.
Then he was gone.
My body quivered and I let my wolf surge through me. We bounded back towards the field with panic. More howls lifted. What the hell was happening? Did some packs get into a fight?
When I broke through the wood line, the civilized atmosphere was completely upended. Wolves were fighting. My confidence in my body, in this animal form, wavered. I'd never fought in it. Could I handle myself?
A gray bullet with bared fangs came darting out of the crowd towards me. The doubts vanished. Instinct kicked in and my lips pulled back in a snarl. Right as the wolf leaped, I opened my jaws and lunged. Our bodies collided, hard. I was on my feet first and managed to secure the wolf by its throat. Her eyes shined at me in panic. I could smell that the wolf was female. I could smell that she was pregnant. My jaw unhinged immediately.
I stumbled back. Her eyes flashed and she was on her feet, charging me again.
She's pregnant! the human in me screamed.
Bitch is going to kill you! roared my wolf.
The instinct shrouded out my human sense. It killed my inside to know what I was about to do. There was no one coming to my aid, though. This was my situation, my choice. I didn't understand why she wanted to kill me, but I didn't have time to ask.
This time she buried her teeth into my shoulder, missing my neck by centimeters. I cried and then bent down to latch onto her leg. It crunched under the force of my teeth. She snarled in pain but didn't let go. Throwing my weight into her, on her bad leg, she crumpled to the ground and dragged me with her. The angle I thrashed at forced her to drop her bite but not without tearing out a hunk of my fur. Holding her body down with me, I fought against her thrashing legs and clamped my jaws onto her neck.
I closed my eyes. The human sentiments swirled around my brain. Guilt. Fear. There was no room for that in my wolf, though. She protected me with a vault of adrenaline, of innate power. Even though this wouldn't be my first kill, this was different. I wasn't trying to escape. If I didn't have my wolf, I wasn't sure I would be able to carry this out. My teeth sunk in until blood spurted out. Her body stilled under mine.
Shaking it off, I rose up and looked around. Why was everyone fighting? Tables were upturned, shredded clothes littered the ground. I took it all in with horror.
Find Lee, I reminded myself.
A piney brown wolf came into sight as if my thoughts had summoned her. She was small and round but fast. She wasn't attacking but fleeing. I bolted after her. The wolf following her was big, male, and reeked of sewage. That anyone wanted to attack my closest friend brought a rage into me that effectively pieces through the emotionless vault.
I caught up and flung myself at him, catching the bullish canine by the hindquarters. He yelped. I took advantage of his surprise to swipe his head with my claws. One perforated his eye and the others left deep, bloody canyons in his face. He sank to the ground but wasn't dead. I didn't have time to finish him. In truth, I wasn't sure I wanted to take any more lives today. Leaping off him, I staved off the emotions and bolted after Lee.