Magnus

I can't take my eyes off Antiope and I don't want to. If the goddess would grant me a wish, I would never have to stop looking at the woman talking to my pack members. But deep down I know I probably fucked this up with her.

If I were the man I am now, after she brought life into my lifeless body and colorless routine, I would have handled it better. And by better, I simply mean not dragging her sister into this and threatening her.

But before the Mating Hunt I have forgotten how to be a man and not an Alpha. I have forgotten how I enjoyed cooking for others, how it is to have someone you respect to talk with. And more than anything I forgot how it was to be a male, to be intoxicated by a female's scent, to feel my wolf stir by need.

I am sipping on my beer when Antiope turns and as if by instinct finds me. I go on fire instantly and Henrar growls in my head, practically ordering me to drag her out of here and take her as I have been dreaming since I left her behind.

"Do I need to vacate the premises? I am sure the pups don't need to be scarred for life," Egil jokes by my side.

"Fan ta dig," I snarl at my Beta.

"Have you two... You know?"

"None of your business, Egil."

Egil chuckles and leaves to pick up his niece and Sonja's best friend and put her on his shoulders. One day, when he finds his mate, my Beta will make a wonderful father.

The thought makes me go back to Antiope that is talking with Inge and Astrid, both women listening to her every word with attention. It's not a fake interest just because she is their Luna. They really like her. I suspect it is because I am not yelling at everyone or being shut in my office most of the time.

***

Antiope may not know this, but this the first party we had in the packhouse for a while and no one is willing to let it finish. The kids are sleeping on couches and pillows exhausted but everyone is still in, talking, joking, eating, mingling. I have forgotten how that was. I have kept my pack in fear of me and my temper for too long.

I haven't talked to Antiope as much as I wanted. Everyone wanted to meet her or talk to me so it's been hours since I last spoken to her. But I know where she is all the time, her scent dominating all others in the full open area. And then I catch her move, excusing herself and going out through the sliding doors. I drop what I am doing and I follow her.

She is not out on the balcony but when I lean over, I see her walk slowly along the shore, her head held high, looking at the moon above. Like a schoolboy with a crush, I am drawn to her.

"Tired?" I catch up with her.

"No," she is surprised to see me here. "Just... overwhelmed."

I nod.

"My pack likes you and respects you," I say.

"They do. And they are nice people."

"We have been through a lot," I look away and clench my jaw.

She says nothing, just nods in understanding and continues her walk. I know she needs some alone time, I can tell but I can't leave her. Not when I ran like a rabid wolf to be by her side.

"May I join you?" I ask.

"Uhm... Sure," she shrugs then leans to take her shoes off.

She walks and I fall by her side, close enough so that my hand touches her by accident each time we move. The night is sweet and weirdly hot for this time of year. Unless it's me who's hot.

"Astrid told me about what you did... For the widows."

Everyone is congratulating me on that. For the fact that I led my own people astray into a battle I should have gathered more intelligence on, just to fuel my inner rage. I clench my jaw and look out into the forest and away from her.

"It is a noble thing you did. You shouldn't blame yourself," Antiope tries once more.

"And yet I do," I chuckle cruelly.

"They were warriors. They knew the danger."

"They didn't," I turn to her. "They thought the enemy, the rogues were our enemy. Their true enemy was their own Alpha."

"Guilt is a heavy burden to carry."

"I know."

She chuckles and I turn to see a smile on her face. Is she making fun of me?

"You know, I thought... Never mind," she stops.

Even under the moonlight I see her cheeks blush. Goddess, that woman looks breathtaking all the time. Talking, eating, insulting and now blushing.

"What did you think, Antiope?"

"Nothing," she is embarrassed. "It was stupid."

"Antiope?"

She stops and turns to me with a defeated face. She looks more and more relaxed being here, close to me, the two of us alone. She lets more of her true self show.

"Well?" I lean my head.

"Well, I thought that you and Astrid..."

"Me and Astrid what?"

"You know... That you were... with her."

My jaw drops. I never saw Astrid or any other woman in my pack as nothing more than a member I had to protect. Yes, there had been many to try and gain the place of a Luna by getting onto my good side but I never... Wait? Was she jealous?

"She was," Henrar confirms. "Our mate was jealous."

"I have told you before, Antiope," I take one step closer. "Why would I want anyone else when I can have you?"

She gasps and takes one step back, not too far, not too fast. Her bare foot steps on a thorny twig and she falters but I don't let her fall. I catch her and pull her in my arms. The moment I feel her body on mine I stop thinking once more. She is so close, so perfect, so warm.

"Magnus," she pleads for something I yearn to give her.

"Little girl," I take her lips and pull her to me.

I remember the last time I did this. I remember how she almost let go but then she came to. I am not going to let her go that easily this time.

When I left, I thought it would be for the best, that I would forget about her. But I was wrong. The more space and time I put between us, the more I longed for her.

I pull her legs to wrap around me and I carry her against the closest tree. I grind against her and I drive my tongue over the seam of her lips, pleading her to let me in. Slowly, timidly, reluctantly she does. Mine! I growl, half-taken by my wolf.

I deepen the kiss and I tighten my grip on her legs. And then she moans. My mate lets out a low, sensual moan into the stillness of the night that makes me want to howl in joy. Instead, I drive my hand up her waist, round her breast and to her neck, caressing that sensitive flesh and driving my fingers through her silky hair.

"By the Goddess, Antiope, I want you so much," I say over her lips.

She says nothing but she leans in and licks my upper lip in such a slow, erotic way, that I go instantly hard and am thankful I am not undone right away. Mine, the same chorus is repeated in my head over and over.

I go for the simple t-shirt she is wearing and I fall on her naked neck. I aim for the place where her shoulder meets her neck, that sensitive spot that smells so much of her that drives me wild. She doesn't stop me, she just throws her head back to the tree and tugs on my hair.

My hand goes round her back and I unfasten her bra. With slow moves to keep my trembling hands from going completely insane, I pull down the straps and bare her to me. Only then I stop to look into her eyes. Her irises are shot and her eyes are the blackest black. Her heartbeat is racing and my nostrils are filled with the unmistaken smell of her arousal. She wants this.

"Let's give it to her," Henrar is barely holding back.

I barely hold back as well as I lower to take one peaked nipple in my mouth. Her breasts are juicy and fit my palm, spilling out of it just enough to make hungry for them. I can't get enough of them. I lick, I suck, I bite. I use the flat of my tongue and the tip of it, I use my lips and my teeth. And the more I give, the more she wants. Her body is shaking in anticipation, her moans get deeper, her touch is desperate. The only thing I can do is give more.

I slide down her body, holding her by the waist, leaving kisses everywhere. Then I drop on my knees and I unbutton her jeans. I drag them down and off and I throw them on the earth, near the rest of her clothes. Her scent is filling me, making Henrar in my head go wild.

"I will have you, little girl," I snarl and I look up into her eyes.

She is breathing heavy, her breasts moving at each breath but she still says nothing. She doesn't need to. Her eyes and that smell say it all. She wants me to have her, take her, own her. I grab the strap of her underwear and I pull it apart.

"Ah," she gasps and she flexes her thighs together.

I frown and I sniff her. Fuck! Henrar is pacing restlessly and now howls loudly in the front of my head, pushing me for control. This smell is all her. Not even the faint trace of another male. My mate is a virgin!

"Take her!" Henrar commands.

But I am still in control, the man not the animal. I smile up to her and her panicked look dissolves only to come back tenfold when I push her legs apart. She is ready to protest but I am not giving her the chance to.

I shift closer and with one fluid lick, I take her all. She bucks and her knees give but I hold her up.

"Magnus, don't..." She begs and tries to close her thighs.

I give no heed, just do the same thing over and over again, each time tasting more of her trickling juices, each time putting more pressure on that little knob that is her undoing. And when her sighs are coming more and more shallow, I focus on her clit, licking slowly while I let a finger caress her folds gently.

"Magnus!"

I smile against her core but I don't stop. I am betting no one has ever gone down on that untamed, ferocious Beta female before. I am about to show her how good I can make her feel. I take my rhythm up a notch and now her whole body is rippling with shivers. My mate is going to come and I am going to be the bringer of her pleasure.

"Goddess," she tugs on my hair hard but I don't stop.

And right when I suck her hard clit between my lips, she lets go and comes, my finger feeling her core spasm. I hear her breath caught and the loud moan she lets out right after. My face is coated in her juices, my hand drenched in her, her smell all over me.

"Take her!" Henrar growls, crazy by lust.

"No!" I order him to submission. "Not here, not like this."

If my mate wasn't untouched, I would have taken her hard against that tree and poured my seed inside her, letting everyone know that she is mated to me. But I am not all a savage animal and she has enough reasons to hate me already.

So, all I do is climb up to her, the same way I went down, leaving kisses on her skin till I reach her lips. Her breath is still hard to come, her lips are trembling and her cheeks are flushed. All in all she looks perfect and satisfied.

"Mm... Magnus, I... We..."

"You taste divine, mate," I lock my lips with hers and kiss her till she gasps for breath.