Page 14 of Alpha's Chosen Mate (Wolf Billionaire #2)

CHAPTER 14

LEILANI

T he clash of steel and bangs of rifles do nothing to drown my despair or rage. My heart thuds in my ribcage, seeking a way out of my chest, and my breaths are panicked. I hold Christian’s note clenched in my fist as I make my way across the yard.

I hadn’t bothered with a bath. I just threw on the first clothes and boots I could find and came straight here, where I correctly assumed I’d find Talon. He rounds his opponent, Gerald, the pack’s delta, but he pauses when he sees me.

Greetings fly at me, but I barely hear them. I stop in front of Talon and slap the note onto his chest. “Is this true?”

Talon frowns and plucks the paper off his sweaty skin, but when his gaze touches the paper, his eyes widen, wild with panic. I see the truth in his gaze. How could they have kept this from me? Last night, Asher looked me in the eye, listened to me speak about my childhood, and let me believe everything was fine. He couldn’t have deceived me this way. My father can’t be dead .

“The car keys,” I whisper. The yard has fallen silent, all eyes following our exchange. “Give them to me.”

Talon’s jaw tightens. “I’m afraid that’s out of the question.”

For the first time in a while, I feel Fiona’s temper flare, her rage becoming one with the betrayal I feel, and raw power flows through my veins, nothing like I’ve ever felt in my entire life. My brows pull together as I take one furious step forward. “I’m very well aware that you all despise him, but he was— is —my father! He’s the only family I have left, and it is not your place to tell me whether I can go see him or not.”

Talon remains undeterred. “It’s the alpha’s orders. You’re not allowed to leave the pack?—”

I snarl, and a gasp runs through the crowd. Talon stiffens, a sweat breaking out on his forehead as he battles an invisible force. He stares at me with eyes full of fear, and I glare back at him. He hisses a breath, his eyes lowering to the ground, and it isn’t quite enough.

The taste of his fear is intoxicating, and I try to draw more of it out of him, humiliating him like he did me. His back hunches, his hands grabbing for his knees as he fights to stay on his feet, but nothing works. He looks up at me again as he falls to one knee, his hands trembling.

A blur of colors bursts into my peripheral, and someone grabs my arm. My focus on Talon breaks and he drops onto his second knee, panting and gulping for air. Having alpha blood running through my veins makes me stronger than a regular beta, but as Asher’s beta, Talon is incredibly strong. Forcing his submission should have been impossible for me.

“Have you lost your mind?” Juliana hisses under her breath, rushing to Talon’s side. A pair of keys lands at my feet. “If you’re so eager to run back to a pack that abandoned you and cruelly judged you, then be my fucking guest. It won’t make a difference, because you’re too late.”

Tears burn my gaze and a painful lump grows in my throat. “You knew. You...knew.”

I look at every face, at the pity in their eyes. Everyone knew. I grab the keys from the ground and bolt out of the courtyard before they can see the tear rolling down my cheek.

Abandoning the car, I sprint across the unusually crowded driveway. It’s too small compared to Asher’s, too packed with people whispering in hushed tones while others cheer loud enough to make my head pound. They’re all focused on something in the center of the yard.

“Camille?” I call out, recognizing the blonde woman standing on her toes at the edge of the commotion. She turns, her eyes widening when they land on me. “My lady!”

Her voice carries, drawing shocked stares, most of which quickly morph into scorn and hatred. I spot Madeline among them, looking more miserable than I’ve ever seen her. A black dress hangs off her too-thin frame, her eyes red-rimmed and her lips pale. She makes no move to approach me. I wonder if it’s guilt that keeps her away—guilt for fucking my mate, or for her own infidelity. But I can’t ignore the grief in her expression.

“I didn’t think you would come,” Camille says, rushing over and taking my hands. “Especially not after the rumors about you and the Dark Alpha. I’m so very sorry for your loss.”

My lips quiver. “My father...” How does someone go to sleep the happiest woman in the world and wake up an orphan? “How...? ”

Sadness fills Camille’s gaze. “The Dark Alpha’s men attacked us a few nights ago. He died defending us.”

My breath catches. “Asher...he did this?”

“Your husband did this,” a hateful voice sneers from behind me. I turn to see my father’s gamma approaching, his eyes blazing with fury. One eye is swollen shut, and his shirt is half undone, exposing bandages underneath. “He killed your father, and what did you do? You welcomed him home and spread your legs for him. You’re a disgrace. A stupid, ungrateful whore. Mardoc kept trying to save you. He was going to step down as alpha to protect you.”

He looks down at me with disgust. “The least you could’ve done was attend his funeral.”

My world tilts violently and a ragged sob escapes my lips. “His...his funeral?” My chest constricts, pain squeezing the breath from my lungs. He’s already been buried?

Cheers erupt again, and the gamma’s head jerks up, his face twisting with displeasure before his eyes return to me. “He’s crushed every man who’s refused to accept him as alpha. This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

He brushes past me, his shoulder knocking into mine hard enough to make me stumble.

Camille lets out a small cry, steadying me. “It’s not that bad. Gavin’s just angry that he lost to Alpha Asher in the duel. He’s been good to us?—”

I ignore her words as I wrench myself away from her and push through the crowd, following the scent that has become my home in the past few weeks. Each step fuels my rage, deepening the eviscerating pain as I move closer to the thickest part of the crowd. How could he keep this from me ?

Did they celebrate, raise glasses, and toast to his victory? After I trusted him, let him touch me, kissed his lying mouth—was he laughing at me the whole time?

I make it to the front just in time to see Morris tossed across the yard, blood trickling from his lips. He grunts, clutching his midriff. I follow his angry gaze to Asher, who stalks him with the casual grace of a predator who knows he’s already won. He’s unruffled, perfect in his business-casual attire, not a single hair out of place and not a scratch on him.

“It’s unfair that an alpha can be that strong,” a warrior murmurs nearby, his voice tinged with awe.

Asher scans the crowd. “Anyone else? Fighting me won’t change the inevitable. Your alpha is dead, and he left no heirs to take his place. Every alpha here has dueled me for his title, and none have won. Only I can lead and protect you. The little left in your coffers won’t help when the next wave of rogue attacks hits. Your warriors are healing. Your defenses are weak. I’m extending a hand to help in this dire situation?—”

“So you can pick us off one by one, like you did our alpha!” Morris shouts, a fresh cut on his brow bleeding down his face.

The crowd roars in agreement, fueling Morris’s defiance. Even I know this isn’t a fight he can win. He pushes to his feet again and lunges at Asher, who sidesteps effortlessly, kicking Morris’s feet out from under him and sending him sprawling to the ground.

Before I know it, I’m snarling as I throw myself in front of Morris, protecting him with my body. He raised me alongside my parents, and I won’t let Asher hurt him. I can’t let him hurt anyone else I care about .

Asher blinks, the only sign of surprise he shows. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“This is my home! How long were you going to hide the truth from me?” My voice cracks with anguish. “You’ve made a fool of me.”

His expression remains unreadable as his eyes flick over the crowd. He’s displeased with my public outburst. He tilts his head and regards me coolly. “It was for the best that you didn’t find out sooner?—”

“That you killed my dad?” My voice is broken. “When did you do it? After you tucked me in at night? Did you laugh at my ignorance?”

A muscle works in his jaw, but that’s the only reaction I get from him. I clench my fists, chancing a look back at Morris. His jaw sets with determination, as does mine. I look to my husband and say the first thing that comes to mind, even if it’s stupid. “I’ll duel you for my father’s seat. It’s mine by birthright.”

Asher gives me a flippant look. “Contrary to what you might think, in the Dark Fangs Pack, hitting a woman is punishable by death. You want a duel, pick yourself a champion, wife .”

My body responds to the deep, rich timbre of his voice, and tension tightens around me like a cord. Asher turns his back on me, dismissing my challenge, and my wolf doesn’t like that very much.

I run.

Asher looks over his shoulder, stumbling back just in time to avoid my swing as I try to bash his head in with a stone. He catches my wrist, smashing it against his thigh, and the contact reverberates through my entire body, forcing me to drop the stone.

I swing for his perfect face next, ignoring the sudden swell of noise coming from our growing audience. We must be quite the spectacle, a mated pair fighting before two packs with such open violence.

He parries my blows, but never attempts to strike back. That just pisses me off even more. The desperation to hurt him like he’s hurt me fueling my every move. But all Asher does is make me look like a fool, catching my wrists and ankles before they can touch him and untangling our limbs in what seems like a respectful dance.

Frustration rips a snarl out of me and I abandon trying to hit him, choosing instead to launch myself forward with a force that should’ve had us colliding and rolling in the dirt.

But Asher plucks me out of thin air by my waist and breathes against my ear, “Stop this now, Lei—” He releases a sharp groan as my knee connects with his groin. His ears redden and his expression darkens. It’s all the warning I get before something hard slams into my forehead.

Stars explode in my vision and warmth trickles down my nose as I blink. Twice. I can’t see shit except the stars swirling across my vision. The bastard head-butted me and tossed me on my rump like a sack of supplies.

Seeing takes more time than I’d like to admit, but when my vision clears, there’s a, murderous edge in Asher’s eyes that tells me this fight is about to take a much darker turn. This is what I wanted, but I don’t think I’ll survive it.

He stalks toward me with a predatory gait and I shuffle back, grabbing a fistful of sand, and when he’s close enough to grab me, I throw it. His head snaps back and his eyes shut, an annoyed snarl slipping from him. Or an amused one. I can’t really tell with Asher.

I use the distraction to jump to my feet, and Asher’s eyes are open now, though they’re red and moist. His lips twist in a feral smile and excitement shines in his eyes. Common sense is screaming at me to stop, but I’m past that point. I lunge for him again. And again. Every effort is thwarted, and it soon dawns on me that Asher is toying with me.

Still, I don’t stop—I can’t stop. I have to do this. If I don’t, I’ll crumble. The grief will tear me apart. The guilt I feel for dreaming of the man who killed my father fucking me, will overwhelm me. I trusted Asher, I gradually opened my heart to him, and if I stop fighting him, the pain will kill me.

I throw myself at him with everything I have. “I hate you. I hate you. I fucking hate you.”

Tears spill down my cheeks, and the only sounds that echo through the yard are my sobs.

Asher’s arms lock around my ribs, lifting me off the floor as easily as if I were a rag doll. I half expect him to throw me to the ground, but instead, he carries me, his voice calm and soft as he looks over his shoulder. “Handle things here, Cayden.”

“Let me go!” I scream, my nails digging into his arms, desperately trying to break free. But his grip is ironclad, tightening around my ribs as he carries me through my father’s home, taking the stairs like he’s done it a thousand times before. Each step feels like a betrayal, the familiar walls closing in on me, suffocating me. My breaths turn into ragged, heavy sobs as my body thrashes in his hold. “Let me go or I’ll fucking kill you!”

We reach my bedroom and he kicks the door open, not bothering to be gentle as he tosses me on the bed. I scramble to the edge, but his head snaps back, his finger pointing at me with a cold, restrained fury. “Stay on the fucking bed, or I swear I won’t be responsible for what happens next.”

I sneer at him, the pain and anger swirling in my chest turning my voice into a venomous hiss. “I don’t take orders from you, you conniving bastard.”

“I didn’t kill your father!” he fires back, his voice sharp.

“Let’s say I was stupid enough to believe that you didn’t kill him. You still kept this from me! Every day, I let you in—I let you see parts of me I’ve never shown anyone—and you deceived me! Everyone knew but me, the one who actually lost her father! You had no right to keep that from me! None! I wasn’t even here when he was buried because of you!”

“There wasn’t much left of him to bury!” Asher’s voice cracks, his eyes blazing with a mixture of anger and pain. “I’ve wanted him dead for so long, but when it finally happened, all I could think of was how you would feel! How was I supposed to tell you that he was torn apart, limb from limb, flesh from bone, and…and…” His voice falters when he notices that I’ve begun sobbing, ugly and snotty. His eyes widen and panic flares in his gaze. “Leilani.”

He reaches for me, but I grab the nearest vase, hurling it with all my might at his head. He ducks just in time, the vase shattering against the wall behind him. “Get out!” I scream, my voice breaking. “Get out of my life, you heartless monster!”

A deep growl rumbles in his chest and he pivots so suddenly, I have no way of escaping him. I should be so used to his hand on my throat whenever he’s mad that it shouldn’t have any effect on me, but it does. Always. His grip tightens, and I feel my pulse pounding beneath his fingertips as his face hovers inches from mine .

“I’m done with your accusations and insults. You will learn to communicate with me properly, using your words, not raving like a lunatic. You will learn to ask me questions when you do not understand, instead of listening to strangers who know nothing about me or the things I’ve done for you. You will learn to talk to me instead of throwing things at me , because I’m the last person on this fucking planet you want to fight. Do you understand?"

I flinch at the anger in his tone, but I don’t back down. “Go fuck yourself, husband .”

His nostrils flare, and he moves so fast, I don’t realize what’s happening until something sharp sinks into my neck. I cry out, my eyes squeezing shut against the pain, but instead of recoiling, my thighs press together. What should have been a scream turns into a breathy moan. Heat floods between my legs, and I hate him for being able to make me crave him even in my anger.

The mattress dips under his weight as he crawls atop me, his mouth still latched onto the puncture wound, sucking hard on the tender skin. I swear softly, my legs spreading of their own accord to accommodate him. His hands aren’t idle. They’re everywhere, touching every part of me, and I gasp when my shirt rises up my belly and my bare breasts pop out.

Asher’s eyes are wholly black and filled with hunger as he stares at my hardened nipples. He doesn’t ask for permission or hesitate, as his lips find my jaw, sliding across my neck and collarbone, trailing ravenous kisses down my chest, his teeth nipping at my skin in ways that should hurt, but awaken a pit of hunger within me, so vast and deep that it makes me feverish with need.

His lips circle around a nipple and his tongue flicks once. My body responds with an arch so perfect, Asher groans, the sound deep and primal. His hands grab my ass and haul me against his hips. The hard length between his legs pushes against the V of my thighs, brushing against my heat in a way that shatters my thoughts into pieces.

Another flick of his tongue, and I unravel completely. My fingers tangle in his hair desperately as he undoes the buttons of my pants with effortless precision. He pulls them off, tossing them aside, and his grip tightens as he cups my ass, his fingers slipping between the cheeks, brushing the wetness trickling from my entrance to my asshole. His cock grows harder against my thighs and I ache to get him inside me.

I grind my hips against his, eliciting a sharp hiss from him as he digs his nails into my hipbone. “Impatient,” he growls, his voice thick with raw desire.

There’s nothing gentle about the way he rips my panties off, and my breath catches as he does. My body reacts before my mind can catch up, arching up into him. Two fingers find my entrance, pushing in with a possessive force that sends shivers down my spine. I clench around him, greedy for more, for every inch of him, and his raspy chuckle skitters over my skin.

“You’re soaking wet for me, Leilani,” he murmurs, and I gasp when a third finger pushes against my inner walls. “So...” He breathes hard. “Fucking tight. Will you strangle my dick like this, Leilani?”

I’ve never had a man talk me through it like this. His filthy words make me clench so tight, my body spasms. “Asher,” I moan, fisting his shirt as release tears through me, swifter than I’ve ever experienced. He hooks his fingers and I twist, already needing more of him. I thirst for him beyond reason. But all he does is pump his fingers into my heat, slowly, drawing out my orgasm and fanning the flames with his unending teasing.

I pull him down by his shirt and rear up to brush my lips against his. “If you’re scared of fucking me, then I suggest you get out. I can take it from here.” I pinch my left nipple for emphasis, moaning louder than necessary.

Asher stares at me with wonder before pulling his fingers out of me. “You’re a goddamned crazy woman.”

I grin, leaning in to nip his bottom lip. “You’re welcome.” I kiss his strong jaw, breathing in his scent as I lick the strong column of his throat. His pulse pounds against my lips and my mouth waters. “Leilani, wait?—”

My teeth graze his skin and a sudden hunger overwhelms me. I can’t control the inexplicable need to mark him as mine. Fiona’s voice flitters through my mind, speaking the one, miserable word I never thought I’d hear again. Mate .

I bite him.

Asher jerks, gripping my shoulders and pulling me off him. I blink, dazed by his reaction and what I’ve done, what it means, what Fiona said. “You’re my mate!”

Second-chance mate. I’ve heard of those, but they’re so rare, most people don’t even believe in them.

There’s no surprise at my admission. His eyes are a dazzlingly clear blue as he watches me process the fact that he’s kept yet another secret from me. I inhale sharply. “I’m going to...w-what are you doing?” I stutter, watching him tug at his tie.

“As much as I’d love to hear you threaten me with death all day, my patience has reached its end.” He shoves the tie in my mouth when I open it to yell, gagging me. “I wasn’t sure I wanted my mate to be the enemy’s daughter, but holding back every damn time might just kill me. So fuck it, Lei. I need you.”

He waits for all of five seconds to gauge my reaction. I don’t resist when he flips me onto my belly. I readily arch my ass, pressing my face into the pillows. His belt jingles behind me before it lands with a thud on the ground. For a second, I don’t hear him, until he says hoarsely, “I won’t be gentle.”

“Don’t be,” I try to say, but the gag turns my words into a meaningless garble.

My ass lifts in anticipation, and when he grabs my hips, I feel the sensation deep in my curling toes. “Hold the headboard.”

I obey him, but my hands are only halfway there when Asher plunges into me. I choke on my breath, shutting my eyes in pain. He stiffens, but he doesn’t pull out. “Does it hurt?” I hate that he doesn’t sound as undone as I feel. It fucking hurts, but I squeeze anyway.

Heat sets every inch of my body aflame. I cuss into the fabric, pushing back against him to take in more.

“Goddess,” he breathes, bucking his lips. His thighs slap into mine, making an unholy sound. The bed creaks as he thrusts deep and true into my slickened core, stealing a moan from my lips. I roll my hips as I arch back into him, and it goes on like this until he’s deeply seated inside me, until I feel him in places no one else has touched.

Sex with Asher is wild and uninhibited. We wrestle with our bodies, every thrust, every push like a tug of war with one of us on each end of the rope. What will give first? My defiance or Asher’s dominance? The Goddess couldn’t have created a worse pairing. I’ll never submit to Asher—not as my mate or my husband.

I swallow those words when the next orgasm washes over me, violent and wickeder than the first. My pussy quivers around Asher’s cock, but he doesn’t relent in his pace. He tells me in detail about how much he’s wanted to do this since he abducted me. He tells me I’m the only woman who’ll ever drive him this mad. He describes everything he wishes to do to me when we’re back in the confines of his home, where he can fuck me as thoroughly as he wishes, for as long as he wants. He tells me that now that he’s touched me, no one else will. I am his . I struggle with that part, but my body concedes, succumbing to yet another climax.

He pulls out of me then, flipping me onto my back so he can look at me as he fucks me slow and deep, raising my legs to rest on his shoulders. He hits places that make my eyes water. I’m so wet that I’m dripping onto the sheets, and the sounds my pussy makes fill the air. And still, Asher keeps going.

His eyes flash from black to blue, and sometimes they burn gold. He hunches over me, bracing his hands on either side of my head as he takes in every expression I make. “Stop...” He groans. “Fighting me, Lei. I don’t want to coerce submission from you. I want you...” Another groan, followed by a deep thrust I feel in my abdomen. “As an equal. I won’t settle for a woman who bows her head because I will her to. Fight me. Throw vases at me. I especially love it when you threaten to kill me. It makes me unthinkably hard.”

I clench,feeling the pressure rise again, cresting to an impossibly high point. His name tumbles from my lips, audible even through the gag as I come around his pulsing cock. Asher’s eyes shut and his veins bulge, and my name is on his lips as he spills into me, filling me to the brim. I feel him leak down my thighs.

His body jerks repeatedly, much like mine, and we remain there for a few moments, panting and sweating. I reach up tiredly, feeling fuller and more sated than I’ve ever been, and pull the gag out of my mouth. “Asshole.”

His eyebrows rise in amusement as he looks down pointedly at where we’re still joined. “Give it a minute.” He instantly hardens. “Or less.”

I squirm. “I didn’t mean?—”

He chuckles softly, and the sound goes straight to my heart, thawing the ice around it. “I know.” He presses a kiss to my forehead. “Let’s go home.”

I swallow, the events of the whole day hitting me at once. My father is dead. Everyone’s been deceiving me. I shouldn’t be in bed with Asher. Asher is my mate. He’s been keeping secrets from me because he doesn’t think I can handle them. I push back, immediately missing the fullness of him inside me, and reach for my pants. I scramble off the bed, my legs weak and unsteady.

Asher watches me with a chilling intensity as I dress. “You didn’t trust me enough to be able to handle any of this. How does that make you any different from Christian, making decisions for me, for my future, while leaving me in the dark? That is how you’d treat an equal? Like an invalid with the fragility of glass? You couldn’t wait a week before trying to claim his seat?”

“I thought only of you,” he says, like that’s the only answer I need.

“You sound just like him,” is all I say before walking away from him and slamming the door shut.