Mated To An Enemy

“Another hour, and they will be here,” Bell sighed, looking out the window of Ashleigh’s bedroom.

She shook out her hands nervously.

“Remember the last time Summer wolves arrived?” Ashleigh asked playfully.

Bell blushed at the memory of not just the first, but the second time she had greeted Galen by immediately shoving her tongue down his throat.

“Maybe you should greet him like that again.”

“That is not going to happen,” Bell stated firmly.

“Why not?” Ashleigh asked.

“Because his surrogate mother wasn’t standing beside him last time,” Bell replied with some irritation.

“So… then if Fiona wasn’t with him, if say, he came earlier, and Fiona wouldn’t be here for another hour or so… would you greet him like that?” Ashleigh asked.

Bell furrowed her brows.

“That is a weirdly specific scenario to throw out there….” Bell said.

Bell turned suspiciously to see what Ashleigh was up to and received a happy surprise instead.

Ashleigh stood at the door of her room with a wide grin. Beside her, just walking into the room, was the man himself.

“Galen!” Bell squealed with delight.

He laughed in response.

“Hi,” he said as he kept walking toward her.

Bell ran at him, stopping just short. She got a panicked look on her face. Galen’s smile fell as confusion fell over him.

“Bell?”

Bell looked past him, but no one was there, not even Ashleigh. In fact, she had closed the door and left.

“Is no one else here?” Bell asked.

Galen laughed and reached out for her, pulling her into a warm hug.

“Only Caleb. We left early. Fiona and the others will be here in another hour or two.”

Bell looked up into his green eyes.

“Why did you come early?” she asked.

He brought his hand to her chin, lifting it towards him as he leaned down to meet her. He kissed her gently.

“I missed you,” he whispered. Another soft kiss on her lips. “I wanted to greet you privately.”

She smiled against his lips and kissed him back.

Just as she was preparing to deepen the kiss, he pulled away.

“But if you don’t want me here…” he smiled as he backed away from her, just out of reach. “I can always go find something else to do.”

Bell growled at him. She ran and jumped into his arms as they both laughed.

Galen caught her happily. He supported her waist as she wrapped herself around him tightly and resumed their enthusiastic greetings.

***

Caleb waited at the bottom of the staircase. He felt her approach and looked up just as she reached the top step.

She was in jeans and a t-shirt, her hair pulled back in one of her usual loose braids. Ashleigh wore a look of satisfaction. He assumed that meant Bell was sufficiently surprised by their early arrival.

As she started down the stairs, her eyes landed on him. The change was instant. The delighted grin was replaced by a heated gaze that ran over the length of his body as she bit her lip in a way that made him suppress his own hungry growl.

Ashleigh took her time coming down the stairs, watching his expression as she moved closer to him. The dark desires swirled in his eyes, the hunger she could feel through their bond.

The full moon was less than twenty-four hours away, and they felt it.

Her eyes trailed over him slowly, committing to memory every feature of his body. Every part of him that she wanted to claim as her own.

Ashleigh stopped, grabbing hold of the railing. She took a deep breath.

Caleb was clenching his jaw, holding tightly to his mental faculties.

They were no more than a foot apart, but it might as well have been a mile for the longing they felt between them.

Caleb had hoped not to need it, but it seemed that it would be necessary to make it through the next thirty-six hours. He opened his jacket and pulled a bottle from his inside pocket. He opened it and immediately swallowed one of the pills inside.

“What are you doing?” Ashleigh asked. _{ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀ​ꪶ​}

He held up the bottle.

“Bond suppressant.”

The visible pout on her face was almost enough to undo his resolve. She took a step closer, and he took a step back.

“We need another minute,” he said.

Ashleigh lowered her chin with a mischievous grin. Then, she let out a low growl as she jumped at him. Though surprised by her actions, Caleb caught her with ease.

She wrapped herself around him with all her might, feeling the heat of their proximity wash over her like a summer rainstorm.

Caleb’s heart pounded heavily in his chest; his breaths were rough as her scent fueled his desire to touch every part of her.

He pressed her shoulders into the wall, burying his face into her nape. He inhaled her scent desperately like it was his only oxygen. She moaned aloud as she felt his awakened excitement pressing firmly against her.

Ashleigh rolled her hips towards him. He snarled into her throat, biting her gently. She leaned her head back, giving him more access to her throat, which he happily accepted with kisses and flicks of his tongue that had her in soft moans within seconds.

Caleb held her firmly against him with his arms at her lower back. Then, with the support of the wall to keep her up, he took the opportunity to move one of those hands back towards her hip. He squeezed the toned muscle of her hip gently, drawing yet another soft moan from her.

His hand continued to move, slipping under the hem of her shirt. Ashleigh gasped at the warmth of his fingers touching the flesh of her stomach. She closed her eyes and bit her lip with anticipation.

And then it was gone. His touch, his warmth, was suddenly gone. Her reflexes reacted naturally to the sensation of falling, allowing her to catch herself.

Her senses came back into focus as the loud snarl rang out in her ears. Before her was the back of a very angry Alpha, but not the one she had expected.

“Get the fuck off, my sister!” Axel snarled.

Looking past him, Ashleigh saw Caleb across the room. He was hunched down, one hand on the floor. He had clearly been thrown and was able to stabilize himself on landing.

“Axel!” Ashleigh shouted.

Axel looked back at her with a rage she had never seen before. She stepped back and immediately got quiet.

Caleb sensed her unease and growled, drawing Axel’s attention once more.

Axel charged, and Caleb prepared himself for a blow. But it never came. Before Axel reached him, Galen appeared before Caleb, blocking Axel’s attack and redirecting him to the floor.

“Axel!” Bell shouted from the top of the stairs. “What the hell are you doing!”

Axel righted himself. He looked up at Bell. Her hair was disheveled, the buttons on her shirt were half undone, and she was flushed. He growled, looking back down at Ashleigh.

She looked away.

Axel turned to the two wolves in front of him, Caleb, whom he had witnessed with Ashleigh, and Galen. Who stood before him with no shirt to speak of.

Axel ground his teeth together. His rage was overpowering. He roared with such intensity that the house itself shook.

Ashleigh and Bell both felt the shockwave of his tone. The pressure of his intent.

Galen felt the pull, the demand to submit, but he did not give in. Instead, he clenched his jaw and stood his ground.

Caleb fought to control his own reaction. His anger and natural need to establish himself as dominant.

“Axel, please!” Bell shouted. “Calm down!”

He fought to control himself, to pull back on the power he had yet to understand. Axel took a deep breath.

When Caleb felt the power recede, he was able to calm himself.

“Axel, I understand that you are upset,” he said. “But there is no reason to overreact. I admit that Ashleigh and I got carried away–”

“Disrespectful,” Axel spat through gritted teeth.

Galen growled, an automatic response to any perceived threat posed to his alpha.

“Galen…” Bell whispered with a shake of her head.

“Arrogant,” Axel said, then turned to look at both Ashleigh and Bell. “Disappointing.”

“That’s too far….” Galen growled.

“You…” Axel growled back, “pretend to honor the traditions of Winter while you disrespect us behind our backs.”

Galen’s eyes widened. He looked down, only now realizing that he wore no shirt.

“Disrespectful,” Axel said, looking at Galen.

Galen looked away.

“Arrogant,” Axel continued, looking at Caleb.

Axel took a deep breath and sighed. He turned his back on the two men and walked toward Ashleigh.

“Axel…” she called to him quietly.

He walked past her to the stairs, only shaking his head.

“Send them away,” he said. “You and Bell need to prepare for the rest of your guests. Mom has been working on this reception all day.”

Axel continued up the stairs without another word to Ashleigh or Bell.