Page 26 of Curvy Alpha Bride (Wolfshade Brides-for-Hire #4)

My entire existence is pain. I’m aware of parts of my body I’ve never felt before—the place where my skin meets my bones, the edges of my veins, the marrow deep within. Every single cell screams with agony, a terrible ringing through my soul.

The witch moves ahead of me, and I can see that I’m attached to her by a long silver string. She dances along, her feet barely touching the ground as she twirls and shimmies. Every now and then, she comes close, and the pain eases, and I see her as the most beautiful creature on earth.

“You love me, don’t you?” she whispers, her honey-sweet lips brushing against mine. “You’d do anything for me.”

“I would, my goddess,” I answer, my hands aching to touch her as desire rages through my blood.

I’ve never been this aroused before, my cock aching and my body trembling with need.

I imagine grabbing her and hurling her down to the ground so I can fuck her with all the strength in my body and the ferocity of my unchained wolf.

“Yes, lover,” she whispers. “Soon. Soon you can have me. We have a little task to take care of first.”

Ivarra dances away. I hurry to follow her and almost fall flat on my face. I feel clumsy and stiff, as if my limbs are stuck in deep, thick mud.

“Come along, Xavier,” the witch beckons.

I focus on her, and suddenly I’m able to run, keeping pace with her, even as the pain slices through me again, like hundreds of red-hot razor blades shredding my flesh from my bones.

As we reach the rim of the forest, Ivarra pauses, looking out across the moonlit plain. The moon is directly above us, the pure, perfect light illuminating the valley as bright as midday.

“I don’t like the light, Xavier,” she says, her voice small and fearful. “Will you protect me from it?”

“Yes, my queen,” I answer. “I’d do anything for you, even cut out my own heart!”

“Not quite yet,” she giggles. “But that’s a lovely gesture, and I would love to let you indulge in it. For now, though, I need you to be my strength and protect me from harm in the light.”

A thought flickers deep in my brain that she is going to be weakened out there, and I could attack her and fight back. Almost as swiftly as the thought comes, it’s taken over by horror.

Why would I hurt her? I love her.

“Good boy,” Ivarra says, stroking the top of my head. “You are very loyal and obedient. You will be rewarded.”

Heat rushes to my inner thighs and lower belly, making me groan as my cock hardens again.

“You’ll let me have you?” I moan.

“Yes, lover,” she whispers, teasing my lips with hers again. “Soon you can spend all that desire within me. We can fuck on the shores of the lake for hours, and if you survive it, you will be the first consort. I’ll have others, but you’ll always be my first.”

Jealousy flares through me, and I reach for her, but she stays maddeningly out of reach.

“I will satisfy you!” I gasp. “I swear it. I will earn the right to be your first, above all others. I will pleasure you in a way none of them can!”

She giggles. “Oh, Xavier. I’m a woman of some appetite. I told you, you may not survive it.”

“I don’t care,” I mutter, reaching for her again. “I will die to serve you!”

“Excellent,” she murmurs, slipping away again.

Why can’t I touch her? I will go mad if I don’t touch her soon.

With only the slightest hesitation, Ivarra steps out from the shadows and begins to move across the clearing. She doesn’t twirl and dance now, but takes a straight line towards a figure on the shore of the lake.

They confront each other, and I don’t really hear the words. All I can think about is dealing with this task, then spending my desire between the witch’s thighs.

She moves to the side, and I see the figure in front of us. Nothing registers about it—only that it’s a person, and they intend to do my queen harm. I’m already lurching towards the figure, ready to tear out their throat when my lady commands me to do just that.

“Xavier,” the person says very softly. “It’s me.”

I don’t bother to answer, solely focused on the throbbing pain between my legs and how badly I need to satisfy it. The person doesn’t back away or try to fight, just watches me as I finally get close enough to grab her.

Before my hands can wrap around her throat, the moon winks above me, the full light suddenly glaring down on us as a cloud moves across the sky. Recognition shocks through me as I look deep into Mabel’s eyes, suddenly fully aware of where I am and what I’m doing.

My awareness is swiftly followed by panic. I can’t let the witch know I’m free, so I take the last step towards my mate and grab her by the shoulders, holding her against my chest.

“Easy there, soldier,” Ivarra says. “Don’t kill her just yet. I need her blood warm.”

“Fuck you!” Mabel screams, struggling against my grip. “You’re done, do you hear me? It’s over, and you’re fucked!”

The witch laughs, a high, horrible cackling that echoes across the valley.

“Oh, my, look at the little mouse. I’d be all trembly over here, dear, but you’re clearly delusional. Do you not see the situation you’re in?”

“I do,” Mabel answers. “And I don’t care. Come on, you bitch. And choke on me.”

My love for Mabel swells in my chest, and I almost loosen my grip on her, remembering at the last second to stay locked in place.

“I’m going to feast on you,” Ivarra says, drifting close. “I’ll tear you to pieces and shatter your bones between my teeth. I think I’ll do it slowly, so you can feel every single moment.”

Mabel gulps, trembling in my arms.

“Then I’m going to fuck your husband, right here on the shore of the lake. I might fuck him to death—I haven’t decided yet. He’s handsome, and I might like having him around. He’s also very loyal, aren’t you, little doggy?”

“Yes, my queen,” I answer robotically.

“And you can’t wait to sink your big, throbbing cock into me, can you?”

Even though my cock has shriveled up between my legs and my guts lurch at the very idea, I choke out my answer. “Yes, my goddess. I can’t wait to fuck you.”

“Wonderful!” she laughs, trilling with pleasure. “I’d like to fuck him first and make you watch, but I’m so, so hungry, dear. I simply can’t wait another moment. I have to feed.”

At that moment, everything becomes clear to me—the way the witch’s feet never seem to touch the ground, her brushing near me but not quite touching me, and how she needed me to grab Mabel for her.

She isn’t corporeal—and she won’t be until she consumes Mabel!

The witch has some substance, but hasn’t been fed enough to flesh out her form. Until she feeds, she’s weak, and that means there is a chance to beat her.

Mabel struggles, trying to break my grip.

I lean down, whispering right in her ear. “It’s alright, my love. Everything is going to be okay.”

I feel a ripple of shock run through her, but Mabel gives no sign that anything has changed, making sure the witch won’t suspect anything. I keep my mate pinned to my chest, ready to protect her the instant the witch opens her jaws.

She will have to put all her strength into becoming corporeal to eat Mabel, and the second she does, she’ll be vulnerable.

Ivarra comes closer, and her form solidifies. Her feet touch the ground, her hands take on substance, and her huge maw of teeth opens up, splitting her face in two.

“Hold still,” the witch growls. “This is going to hurt… a lot.”

I wait for her to lean over, the horrid stench of rotted blood so strong around us that I almost pass out. When her teeth are only half an inch from Mabel’s skin, I shove her to the ground and grab Ivarra by the head.

“You’re right, bitch!” I yell. “This is going to hurt!”

I wrap my big hands around her jaw and try to snap her neck, but she flows through my hands like water. Mabel reaches up from the ground, grabbing the witch’s feet and yanking her towards the ground. The witch comes down on her knees as I still hold her head in a death grip.

Ivarra howls, an awful, hollow sound, nothing like the call of a wolf. She bends and buckles in my grip, trying to change back into her wraith so she can free herself of our grip. I hang on even tighter, digging my fingers into her throat as I try to choke her.

The pitiful howl turns into a shriek of rage, and the beast solidifies in my hands, becoming fully corporeal. Her sharp claws slash at me, and I let go of her, staggering away as blood pours down my arms.

She cut my arms to ribbons!

I look at my shredded muscles with disbelief, seeing the glistening bone underneath. A bubble of nausea bounces in my guts, but I refuse to let it overcome me and hurl myself at the witch again.

Mabel is still holding the witch’s ankles, trying to bring her down to the ground while Ivarra slashes at her face. Even though my arms are useless, I just barrel into the witch, knocking her flat and breaking her hold on Mabel.

The witch jumps up on all fours, snarling at us with her teeth bared. Saliva drips from her mouth as she crawls closer to us, and for the first time, I allow myself to consider the possibility that we are fucked.

As Ivarra gets closer, I get ready to kick her in the face, wondering how long I can hold her back—and if I’ll bleed out before that. I’m ready to give my life in the final moment when Ivarra suddenly stops and cocks her head to the side.

“No,” she mutters.

I tilt my head slightly towards the mountain, then I hear it, too.

There is a great, undulating howl coming from the far edge of town, and it’s answered by another to the east, and another to the south.

“It’s the call of the alphas!” I exclaim, relief flooding through me. I look down at Mabel, and I know by her smile that she is behind all of this.

“No!” Ivarra screams, reaching for Mabel. “I will not let this happen! You can’t stop me!”

She reaches for Mabel, grabbing her head and dragging her towards her mouth. Mabel screams, grabbing Ivarra’s wrists and struggling against her. I slam into the witch again, trying desperately to use my ruined arms, but the muscles are shredded and won’t obey me.

The witch’s teeth break the skin on Mabel’s head, and my mate screams as if she’s been dropped into a pit of boiling steel. I force my arms to move, wrestling with the witch.

A massive wolf appears by my side, grabbing Ivarra’s arm between its jaws and hurling her to the ground. The witch shrieks as another wolf jumps on her chest and mauls her face. A third bites her leg, shaking its head so hard that the bone shatters.

Galen. Kit. Damon. They all came!

Under the twisting bodies of the alphas, the witch screams in fear and pain. The wolves don’t stop, tearing her to shreds with complete brutality. Scraps of pale flesh scatter through the air, and the stench of rotted blood returns in force.

Ivarra’s blue glow dims slightly, then solidifies and races towards the trees. I know that her physical shape has been destroyed, leaving only the barest flicker of her spirit.

Even though she can’t be hurt now, she can’t hurt anyone, either.

Watching the alphas chase her towards the forest, I try to reach for Mabel, but my arms don’t work. She struggles over to me, pulling me into her lap.

“You had me worried there for a minute,” she says breathlessly.

“Just a minute?” I try to joke.

“Shh, you damn fucking fool. Don’t try to move.”

“It’s okay,” I say. “Feeling is coming back into my hands.”

“I can’t imagine how. You practically have no arms left.”

“It’ll heal.”

“Yes,” Mabel says, stroking my face. “It will.”

I look up at her, and in the pale light of the moon glowing around her like a halo, she looks like the moon goddess herself, the ancient mother of our race.

“I love you, Mabel,” I whisper. “I’ve loved you from the first moment I saw you, and I’ve been a goddamn fucking fool. I don’t deserve you, but I need you. I can’t live without you.”

“Xavier, my love,” she answers, running her fingers through my hair. “I’m not going anywhere. Where do you think I’m going to go, all barefoot and pregnant.”

I blink stupidly, and she grins.

“Pregnant?” I ask.

She nods.

“Like, actually?” I ask again.

Mabel giggles. “Yes, my love. I’m going to have a baby—we are. You’re going to be a dad.”

Powerful emotion sweeps through me, stinging my eyes and making my heart race.

Even though my arms still hurt like hell, I manage to take Mabel’s hand and give it a weak squeeze.

The alpha wolves howl as they signal their return to the valley, and even though I struggle against it, the pain of my injuries catches up to me, and I can feel myself passing out.

But I slip out of consciousness with a smile on my face, knowing that the danger has passed, Mabel has accepted me into her heart… and we’re about to be a real family.