Page 21 of Alpha Wolf’s Arranged Bride (Rose Hollow Wolves #1)

Scarlett writhes under me, pinned between my body and the table. All the teasing has made me hard and eager, but I hold myself in check as she climaxes again underneath me.

As her inner spasms settle down, she stretches back, linking her feet around my hips. I keep a tight hold of her wrists as I thrust forward slowly, moving with her rhythm.

She keeps her legs firmly wrapped around me, her heels digging into my ass as she stretches against the pressure of my hands on her wrists. My cock slides even deeper inside her, as far as it will go, and Scarlett grinds against the pressure, her small movements building up to another orgasm.

This time, I can barely hold it together. The sight of her pinned under me, her dress open down the front, her round, firm breasts tossing back and forth as she writhes, her hands tugging against mine as her heels dig in, forcing me deeper—it’s enough to undo the strongest man alive.

As her breathing slows, she relaxes, her arms going limp in my hands as her legs slip away from my sides. A smile slowly breaks across her face, and her eyes shine with excitement.

I lean down, holding her wrists against the table, and kiss her very gently. I keep the pressure light as I work my lips against hers, flicking out my tongue to tease her and make her bend forward as she tries for a deeper kiss.

Pulling back slowly, I release her wrists, running my hands down her rib cage until I get to her hips. Digging my fingers into her flesh, I thrust forward a little, feeling my cock move deep inside her.

“Yes,” she gasps. “Fuck me, please, Rex. Fuck me!”

“As you wish, my love,” I whisper, bracing my hands even tighter on her waist as I start to thrust.

At first, I keep my strokes slow and long, pinning her between the pressure of my hands and hips. Then I increase my pace when I feel her spine bend and her thighs open further.

Scarlet has her hands over her head, clinging to the other end of the table as I thrust into her harder and faster. I feel her hook her heels against the wooden edge beneath me as I tighten my grip and begin to thrust as hard as I can.

As my cock thickens inside her, Scarlett moans, bracing against every stroke as I ram into her.

Her pussy spasms deep inside, and a low cry rips from her mouth as my cock finally swells and blows as deep inside her as I can possibly be.

I fall against her, gasping for breath, and she wraps her entire body around me as tremors continue to run through her body.

It takes a few minutes for her heartbeat to slow, and when she looks up into my eyes, the smile on her face is the happiest expression of love I’ve ever seen.

“I love you,” I whisper, touching her cheek. “I always have, and I always will.”

“I love you, too,” she answers. “I’ve never been so happy, and I really understand now that everything happens for a reason.”

Her words trouble me, but I don’t let it show as I gather her into my arms and take her to bed. Even though I understand there is some great mystical force in the universe that balances harm against good, I’m not sure it always works in our favor.

If it did, Uncle Azarian would be planning on winning the grand prize with his pumpkin patch this year, not planning all-out war on us—and possibly everyone else within striking range.

As I carry Scarlett upstairs, my mind works over a few other worrying details. Even though Eccles have been invited to guild meetings, they’ve never come. Some of our people even set up online meetings so no one would have to travel, and not a single person from Eccles clicked the link.

Bringing our produce together to share is fundamental to our pack. It builds connection and goodwill. It’s pretty obvious that Eccles have no interest in doing so.

Scarlett is dozing in my arms by the time we get to the bedroom, and a more alarming thought strikes me as I settle both of us under the covers.

Maybe they can’t respond! Is Eccles in on this plan to summon ancient spirits, or does Azarian personally silence them?

It’s a terrible thought. I lived there for a year, and the place seemed fairly normal. No one acted like they were secretly invested in gathering supernatural power, and I was very close with Scarlett and her friends. Azarian was a prick nobody liked, but we also didn’t think he was dangerous.

The idea that some people in Eccles are innocent and need to be rescued definitely complicates things. I wonder if anyone in my squad has intel on that?

Scarlett’s breathing deepens as she snuggles against my chest. My mind is churning too much for me to sleep, and now that I’m really looking at the problem, I’m discovering angles I’d never thought of before.

If there is a percentage of Eccles working with Azarian, we might end up fighting a small army of super-powered warriors. Do we have enough firepower for that?

As the threats stack up in my mind, it all adds up to one thing—we have to find out what Azarian is doing with these ancient spirits.

My instincts are beginning to scream at me that there isn’t much time left. Shit is going to hit the fan soon, and I don’t want to be sitting around on my ass still thinking about the problem when the bomb drops.

WS needs to do something—soon.

With that, another problem pops up in my head. I can’t just call in black-ops guys because even my pack doesn’t know anything about Wolf’s Shadow—nor should they.

A secret organization becomes pretty useless if all of a sudden, it isn’t a secret.

I hold Scarlett even closer to me, and just her scent and the rhythm of her breathing comfort me. I feel much stronger than I did before, because even though there are still secrets, lies, and danger, Scarlett is with me now, and there are no secrets between us.

My woman—my mate! Finally, standing beside me, knowing me, and loving me.

I look down at her sweet, sleeping face, brushing a bright red strand of hair from her forehead. Even though sleep is a long time coming, holding Scarlett brings me peace, and I’m able to rest.

Before dawn has fully broken the sky, my eyes are open, and my mind is already running through the questions I need checked off. I hurry downstairs and start making breakfast, taking great pleasure in the fact that I get to make my son a meal, and I know what he likes.

Scarlett and Jarrod come downstairs together, and Jarrod immediately demolishes his pancakes and downs his hot chocolate almost in a single gulp.

“Whoa, there, little man! Slow down! Sensible bites.”

“I’m sorry, Dad. I’m just super-hungry today.”

“Would you like something else? Maybe a bacon and egg sandwich?”

“That sounds great, Dad, thank you.”

“That is a big appetite for you,” Scarlett remarks, sipping her coffee. “You must be having a growth spurt.”

As I put bacon and fried egg into a roll for Jarrod, Scarlett’s words break through my other worries, giving me something else to think about.

What if he’s approaching his first shift? That would be just what we need, on top of everything else.

I watch Jarrod chew through the sandwich in just a couple of bites, then bounce around the house until we put him in the car to take him to school.

“He’s full of it today,” I say to Scarlett. “Is this normal?”

Scarlett shakes her head a little, and I can tell by her expression she’s worried about the exact same thing that I am. When we pull up at school, she gets out with him.

“I was going to see Delia and start a sewing circle,” she says. “But I think I’ll stick with Jarrod for a while. What’s your day look like?”

“Seeing the elders now,” I answer. “Then some… other business.”

Scarlett winks, turning towards the school with a wave. I drive down to the café, where Celeste, Dorian, Galant, and Cody are waiting at our private booth.

“Rex,” Celeste says, getting up to give me a quick hug. “Thanks for coming in so early. We really need to talk.”

“Okay, sure,” I answer, sitting down. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s the patrols,” Cody says. “Last night, you put out ten new guys and spread our net to the south. Why?”

“I had a warning of a threat in the area,” I say coolly. “You didn’t find any tracks or scents?”

“No,” Cody replies. “And it’s got us all spooked.”

“Well, you should be,” I say gravely, trying to impress my urgency onto him. “There is a threat in the forest, and we have to be on guard. I’ve got a new formation for you to follow tonight. I’m putting on another six warriors—”

“Rex,” Celeste cuts me off, taking my hand. “Stop.”

“Excuse me?” I ask, surprised.

“Don’t make trouble with Eccles,” Dorian says. “I know you want to do your job as alpha, and that’s great, but we need to embrace the treaty.”

I frown. “What are you—”

“Come now, Rex,” Galant says. “Spreading a closing net to the south? Scouts on the high ridge and the edges of the gully? Obviously, you’re expecting an ambush from Eccles.”

“Look,” I say, sighing. “I know what you’re thinking, but I know these guys. I want us to keep an eye on them, that’s all.”

“You don’t know them any better than I do,” Dorian says. “We only spent one night there.”

Shit… they don’t know I lived there for a year!

“Okay,” I answer. “I hear you. “But there has been movement from them—”

“No, Rex, there hasn’t,” Cody interrupts. “We combed the forest and found nothing. I’m afraid that our movements are going to look hostile now.”

“But…” I think carefully about what Brad told me.

He said they were using stealth to get closer, but it sounds like they’re actually… invisible.

“Rex,” Galant says, patting my hand. “Your father would be proud of you for being such a protective alpha. But you have to scale down these movements, or it will look like an attack. Eccles is dangerous, but we finally have a treaty in place, and we need to trust it.”

A treaty they have no intention of keeping.

“Look, I’d just feel better if we kept a presence in the woods,” I say, putting some force behind my words. “I’ll change the tactics a little so it looks more like a training exercise, but I have a bad feeling, and I don’t want to be caught unawares.”

“That sounds fair,” Celeste says. “You are the alpha, and we trust your instincts. I’m glad we worked out a compromise.”

“Me too,” I answer, getting up. “I have another meeting I have to run to, but I’ll text you later, Cody. We can go over those details.”

“Sure,” he says, nodding. “I’ll wait for your orders.”

“In the meantime, we’re planning the fair!” Celeste says with excitement. “Won’t it be wonderful when Eccles finally join us?”

“Yes, it will,” I agree, giving her a kind smile that fades instantly when I turn to leave the café.

I wish the situation were as innocent as they perceive it to be. Not being able to explain the danger is so frustrating, I’m practically foaming at the mouth here!

I text my secure code to Brad, and he responds immediately. We mark a meeting point directly to the north, and I drive straight out of town, leaving my car and phone to shift and race into the thick forest.

My car, my phone—everything can be tracked these days. My wolf can still go completely undetected, and our changing location means we can’t be set up!

When I arrive at the clearing, Brad is there with a tall, older man with long gray hair.

“Malcolm?” I ask, shifting so I can shake his hand. “Is that you?”

“Sure is, boy,” he says in that distinctive drawl. “Good to see you.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with anything more than a buzzcut,” I remark. “What happened to your hair?”

“After I retired, I went feral for a bit. Let my wolf take over and run through the forest. Brad left scent markers for me, and I made my way back in without even realizing it.”

“Nice work, Brad,” I laugh.

“It was hard work,” Brad emphasizes. “I had no idea where the old bastard was. I was pissing on trees halfway to Vegas.”

“Well, ya found me,” Malcolm chuckles. “And I’m glad of it. I hear ya got trouble with Eccles again?”

“Yes, old friend,” I say. “My elders just told me to back off so we don’t upset the treaty, and it’s frustrating as hell not being able to tell them what’s happening.”

“Back off?” Brad asks. “Do you mean, pull back your defensive line?”

“That’s exactly what I mean.”

“Shit!” Brad winces. “I don’t like the idea of Rose Hollow being exposed like that when there are so many warriors from Eccles around.”

“My guys said they found absolutely no trace of them.”

“That’s surprising. I know they’re good at what they do, but I still thought they’d see something.”

“Absolute nada,” I reply.

“It won’t matter for tonight,” Malcolm says. “Wolf’s Shadow are moving in. They put a strike force together, and they’re going to take over the excavation site.”

“What about innocents?” I ask. “Some people in Eccles might be completely unaware of what’s going on.”

“That’s exactly why we’re moving now,” Brad says. “We want to separate the hostiles and protect the innocent. The constant work has really got the top brass on edge. They figure if they break Azarian from the site, he won’t be able to work his power ritual.”

“I hope you’re right,” I answer. “What do you need me to do?”

“Stay put,” Malcolm says. “Protect Rose Hollow, your mate, and that lil’ pup of yours.”

“How did you guys find out about that?”

“Smelled it all over you,” Brad says. “I think everyone else knew it before you did.”

“Har har,” I mock-laugh.

“I’ll be on the first ridge,” Malcolm says. “I’m the relay. My eyes will be on the assault, and I’ll report back to the head office and to you. We’ll get Azarian wrapped up nice and tight, then everyone can breathe easy.”

“I don’t like this,” I mutter, shaking my head. “I should be going with you.”

“No, you can’t,” Brad says. “We really do need you in Rose Hollow. Like I said before, we need a man on the front line with military experience so you can protect the town and act as our second line.”

“Okay,” I sigh. “I understand. I’m not happy about it, though.”

“When are you ever happy?” Brad laughs, and Malcolm joins him.

I’m happy with Scarlett…

I watch the others shift and race into the forest, part of me wanting to go with them, but I know now that my heart lies elsewhere.

Still, I’m going to be worried about my guys all night. I can’t see this operation going smoothly, no matter how good my boys are. Azarian’s got something nasty cooking over there, and it’s bad news for every wolf in the territory.