Page 22

S andra fainted.

The instance Alphose changed into a cougar, her eyes rolled back into her head and she dropped to the ground before Ismena was able to reach her.

Ismena couldn't even bring herself to blame her friend. Looking at the huge, gray mountain lion, she would faint in this situation too. She did faint in that situation.

The memory made her lips twitch. Her eyes rose towards to cougar a few feet away from her, "Well, you can shift back to your male form. As you can see, she is out like a light." She said the words nervously.

It might not be her first time seeing these changelings in their animal form, but they still make her very nervous.

The cougar shifted back into a tall, bulky man. Alphose walked forward to stand over Sandra, he watched her carefully .

"Well, I did advise her to hold that thought." He said, non-committally.

Ismena snorted, "Yeah, right. As if holding that thought was enough to save her poor heart. It's not exactly easy watching a man morph into a giant lion."

His lips twitched. "She said she had the balls to see it."

Ismena's lips twitched. "I knew she didn't."

"Well, we have to get going." Then, he bent and lifted Sandra into his arms. Her feminine scent caressed his nose, he had to bite back a groan of pleasure.

Damn. The woman might not have the scent of a potential mate but she does smell great.

With her in his arms, he made a half-shift then; growing a foot taller, larger, and hairs almost covering all over his body.

"Get on," his voice deeper, he gave Ismena his back.

Here we go. Ismena climbed him like a tree before her arms reached his shoulders. She wrapped her arms around him, holding on tight.

"It's a pity that Sandy is gonna miss this ride, all because of her stubborn ass." She mumbled to herself.

"You okay?" He growled, swiveling his head a bit to catch a glimpse of her.

"Oh, yes." She adjusted better, pressing closer to his soft furs. Being on his back made her miss Wolfaraine all the more. She couldn't help remembering how great it had felt to have him piggyback her in half-shift, twice .

Oh, God, she misses him too much. His touch, His always-frowning face, his deep voice, the feel of his body on her… In her.

Alphose inhaled deeply and stopped suddenly. The sudden movement—or lack of—jerked Ismena out of her thoughts.

"Do not think about the Alpha King now, Ismena." He groaned gently, his voice deeper, "I can smell you, and it is not helping me at all in keeping my hands off your friend."

"Oh...!" Ismena's cheeks went warm, "S-Sorry." Shit. Damn changelings and their big noses.

"I understand." Was all he responded.

"Y-You can go now..."

Alphose nodded.

Then, he took off in a dead run.

NEW YORK CITY.

A week later.

"I have signed the documents, Mr. Throne." The CEO of Yatch's Farmland announced, handing over some pieces of documents across the table.

Wolfaraine Daminor Throne reached across the table and took the documents from him. In the silence that followed, he signed them too.

"Thank you for giving in to our offers, Mr. Dior. You will not regret doing business with us." Wolfaraine stated, handing the documents over to Degar who was seated beside him.

"I know I won't, Mr. Throne." He rose from his chair at the same Wolfaraine did the same thing. "It still baffles me why a big company like yours would want those lands, but then again," he shrugged, smiling, "The offer is great for us, so..."

Wolfaraine did not return the smile, but he politely took the hand that the older man extended. They shook hands, spoke more casually to each other before Wolfaraine announced that he would be leaving.

Both teams bowed at each other respectfully. Then, Wolfaraine turned towards the door and made his way out of there, leaving his men to follow.

His leg throbbed as he walked. And, he was trying to leave the conference hall without the profound limp he'd developed over the week, which made the pain worse.

With each step he took, it feels like there's a hot cutlass embedded in his left leg, which is insistently sawing at his wounds. It was that bad.

Over the cause of the week, the pain has increased to an unreasonable amount. so bad that Wolfaraine was almost sure that it has become infected.

He made sure to hide it well from Degar because the Leopard Alpha was already too worried about him. He has been on his ass over the last week for them to go back to Naturiah to get his leg treated—even if it means forgetting about their business plans.

The leopard Alpha will freak out if he gets the slightest inkling that the wound has become infected. And with good reasons too.

A rhodium wound is a bad thing. An infected rhodium wound is an extremely bad thing .

Outside the conference room, the pain got to him and he almost lost his footing. Degar was instantly hovering behind him but he did so without touching him.

"Do you need help, Alpha King?" Degar asked worriedly, knowing their leader all too well, and how important it was for him to ask first.

"No. I am fine, Degar." He resumed walking, but this time, the pain was too much that his limp was back.

Degar noticed too. Unable to do anything, he just followed the Alpha King with the rest of the team trailing behind him.

"Alpha Cronus?" Wolfaraine called.

The Werewolf Alpha came out from behind Degar, "Yes, Alpha King?"

"You can finish up with the rest of our business with Yatch's Farmland. According to Alpha Josiah in the Oklahoma branch, everything is running smoothly. So, for now, my business with the human world is done."

Cronus felt incompetent. "I'm sorry for dragging you all the way here—"

"It is alright. Do not ever hesitate to place a call to me whenever situations like this come up."

"I'm truly sorry about the attack from the Wolfhunters. Damn bastards." He muttered, his eyes going to his left leg momentarily, "I am very glad to hear that you killed them all."

"It still baffles me though, how they were able to attack immediately he moved back to the mansion." Alpha Degar joined the conversation, his brows furrowed in thought, "The Alpha King was at a hotel for a week, but as soon as he went back to his home, they attacked. I find it suspicious. "

Sweat broke out in Cronus's palms. He had to put in a lot of effort to hide his discomfort. "I don't think it suspicious at all. With the way those monsters hunt us, the wolf clans, it's not surprising that they attacked the way they did."

"You think so?" Degar asked him, completely doubtful.

"Yes. They want the Alpha King, they always have. I won't be surprised if they camp outside his home every day waiting to attack and capture him. Being in the human world for a week, they were bound to find out."

Degar thought about it all the way out of the Yatch's company. Cronus, on the other hand, was so restless and he hated the feeling greatly.

Since he heard how badly his plans with the Facility had failed, he has been unable to get a good night's sleep ever since. Anger filled him most of the time, how one male can be so strong and hard to capture. The thought never ceases to make him rage.

"I can feel your wolf's rage, Cronus." Wolfaraine's deep voice filled the air, "Why are you in rage?"

Cronus almost stopped breathing.

The question was so unexpected that he drew a blank for a few seconds. For a moment, he'd forgotten how powerful the male in front of him, walking with the grace of a King—even with the limp—he actually is.

He thought fast, how to answer that question without giving himself away. "I apologize, Alpha King. I have not had sex in months, the strain is finally getting to me and my other half." He lied.

Wolfaraine stopped then, and turned to him, "A month is a long time for a changeling to go without sexual intimacy, talk more of months. "

"I apologize. I have been so busy that I haven't gotten around it." He bowed his head, putting a better suppression on his thoughts and his feelings. For a moment there, he'd made the mistake of forgetting that the one male alive who is undebatably stronger than he is, was close to him.

Wolfaraine turned away and resumed walking. "Try to get around it, Cronus. You know how dangerous it for a changeling male to abstain for that long, not to talk of a werewolf changeling."

"I will do that, Alpha King."

Much later, when Wolfaraine has settled in beside his car with Alpha Degar driving, he laid his head back and allowed the pain from his wounded leg to wash over him.

"Degar?" He groaned, exhausted. He has not been sleeping well for the past few days, not because of his nightmares this time around, but because of the pain from his wounded leg.

"Alpha King?"

"Tell the men to get the private jet ready. We are going back to Naturiah."

"Really? I thought you might want to get some rest first before the long journey—"

"No, I do not need to. What I need is to get home." For so many reasons too, apart from healing his leg.

Ismena. It has been hard, trying to keep her away from his mind all this time. The woman lived and breathed in his mind, which troubled him greatly .

He is not supposed to think of her the number of times he thought of her in a day. He should not be missing her laughter and playfulness. He should not be missing her voice, her presence, as much as he does.

And her body?

He is mature enough to admit to himself that he is obsessed with her body. He should not be thinking about it as much as he does.

Vivid images of everything he wants to do to that body should not be displaying themselves in his head as much as they do. He should not crave to fuck her so hard, he is embedded in her soul. He should not be thinking of living inside her for eternity.

Him. Not the wolf. Him.

He should not be thinking of her as much as he does. Reacting to her. Craving her.

Not when they agreed to just sex with each other, for their own benefits. Not when he does not plan to ever take a mate, or have children.

So, what are all these about? These need, these craving, to be with her all the time in any way and every way?

He took a deep breath, his eyes closed.

It's just sex, he said inwardly.

Lust. No matter how intense and obsessive these feelings are, they are just lust and they will go away with time. His lust will be satiated when he has gotten his full of her sexually, and the feelings will depreciate too.

Then, everything will be alright in his world again. Then, he will be able to let her go when the time for them to part ways comes.

It's just lust, so more sex with her will cure it. It has to .

"Alpha King?"

Degar's voice penetrated his thoughts.

"Mmh?"

"I just spoke with the men on the phone. They are getting the jet ready for our journey back to Naturiah."

"Alright. Thank you, Degar."

Fuck, even the way his heart fluttered at the thought of seeing her again in Naturiah is not a good thing. Shit.