5 - What Kind of Alpha

~Dex’s Point of View~

*Damn I’m so full, now we need a nap,* Kent says, nearly falling over.

Our eyes wander to our mate who is licking her paws clean, happy with a full belly. While a massive sense of pride fills me for providing for my girl, I need to get her away from this deer, and the corpse that isn’t far. Kent pushes with all he’s got to stand, then we find the clothes and pick them up. Thankfully, Dakota’s wolf gets the hint and we take off.  

When we find a new overhang just before dark, another boom echoes in the forest. We both shift immediately, and take in our surroundings. It’s the ever constant reminder that I need to keep my focus, but my heart doesn’t get that message. The useless organ only wants to cuddle up with our mate, and do things that are dangerous.

“I don’t even know how many that is now. Four? Jeez,” she whispers as she gets dressed. 

It’s a solemn feeling. Each cannon boom should make us excited, but it doesn’t. Not everyone here will die on the mountain, but it's likely half will. My father said ten went out pretty quickly during his first week, and then they went a week with no one dying but many getting hurt. 

Literally everything I expected, has completely gone out the window. Because of finding my fated mate. I have no clue how to handle all the emotions swelling within me.

*I seriously stand by the question I asked you years ago when you explained all this stupid camp stuff to me,* Kent whines. I shake my head slightly and quiet him. He doesn’t understand all this human shit and I get that. He does like the thrill of the fight but now that we have Dakota…

“Come here,” I say, stepping toward my mate. 

She instantly wraps her arms around me and for the briefest of moments we’re somewhere else. Things are normal, we’re just like any other couple. A few raindrops hit my shoulders, only encouraging me to get her under the makeshift shelter. It’s a small space but it does cover us completely.

*Need to mate,* Kent says, almost in a grunt as he draws in a deep breath of her hair. 

Oh I know there’s nothing better than a good fuck after a successful hunt. But then everyone will know. She’ll reek of me for a good day, and I know once I have a taste there’ll be no going back. No way to keep Kent from marking her either. Not only that, I could get her pregnant. Definitely no rubbers out here.

For a moment I reflect on the day, and the fact that my girl killed two males without batting an eye. At least, she didn’t act like it bothered her. And I’m not sure what to make of that. I’m weirdly proud but also terrified. None of my sisters have killed a human, and I don’t want them to. It weighs on you, and you carry that. Taking away someone’s light, their hopes and dreams. It’s a heavy thing.

*I’d have gotten that damn gray wolf, but he had to be a coward and run off. I know his scent though,* my wolf adds, matter of fact. He’s bitter about it, but we needed that deer.

“Are you okay,” I whisper, as she pulls back. 

I can tell she’s putting on a brave face. She’s holding it together. I don’t even know how old she is but I have to have a couple years on her. She seems so young.

My hands immediately hold her face, and she relaxes with my touch. She closes her eyes for a second, and the rain picks up a bit. I pull back but reach for her hand, and gently bring her down to the ground. I tell myself I’ll get up in a bit and put out some twigs, but I probably won’t.

“Dakota…” I whisper. My voice is extremely needy, and rough. It doesn’t even sound like me. This escalated pretty damn fast.

“Kiss me,” she says, taking me by surprise. 

I mean I hoped for it, but I also know it puts us on the spot. Shines a light on us that neither needs. But at the same time, we have to get to know each other. Our wolves will demand it.

But even a few minutes of teenage hormonal distractions to forget why we’re on this mountain can be lethal. I can’t afford for us to get too carried away. But she’s my mate and potentially scared and vulnerable, my body simply won’t allow me not to comfort her.

*There’s no getting away from it, jump in Dex,* Kent says, nearly in a whisper. He doesn’t want to over excite me and scare her. But he wants me to damn well know he needs this too.

Looking into her emerald green eyes, that are both sad and curious at the same time, I can’t possibly deny her. I take the same position as last night, cradling her in my arms and shielding her. Though this time she’s facing me, and our eyes are locked. 

I have her positioned in toward the wall of the rocks, and my back facing the forest. It would be a dumb move for a normal human, but I have Kent’s senses to be my eyes. To warn me of a threat. 

I’m also not about to be the damn little spoon.

When I cup her face with one hand, she blushes. Her entire body heats. She’s so innocent, so adorable. While it’s undeniable that we have an intense bond, we’re basically strangers.

There’s time for all that later.

She closes her eyes, and I know what she wants. What she expects. So I move in slowly, tilting my head to the side. When our lips touch, she moans softly, and it goes straight to my dick. 

I know I’ve kissed girls before, but suddenly I don’t remember any of them. This isn’t some teenage fuckery. This is the real thing. The connection I’ve heard fairy tales about. The electricity. The feeling that there’s another person who is literally the other half of your soul. A new found heat courses through me unlike anything I’ve ever felt.

When her fingers move into my hair, I’m pissed my mom talked me into cutting it a few months back. It used to be longer, it was kind of my thing. In a world where I’ve controlled so little in my life it actually meant something to me.

Her mouth parts and I carefully lick her lip. She’s soft and tastes kind of how she smells. Sweet, maybe a little fruity. She shifts and pushes her leg between mine, making me groan. My hand moves off her face and into her hair, as we continue to move our lips as one. I swear our heartbeats synchronize, but maybe I’m just wanting them to. Goddess I’m already turning into a total wuss. Next I’ll be spouting poetry and picking flowers.

Kent draws a deep breath through me, bringing her in and holding her there. She pulls back slightly, and rests her forehead against mine. She’s got a lazy smile that just kills me. I honestly don’t know if I’m even here right now. With her. It doesn’t seem real. Maybe I’m dreaming.

“Well that was well worth waiting for,” she says, pulling in her bottom lip. My gut reaction is to ask her if that was her first kiss, but her blush tells me it was, and I don’t want to embarrass her.

I’ve literally never even asked a female much about herself, my pack is small so generally everybody already knows everything anyhow.

“What are you thinking,” I whisper, as I move a piece of her hair behind her ear. 

She licks her lips and blushes yet again. 

“It’s really not fair that we can’t have privacy. That even being near each other puts us in so much risk,” she replies, as her eyes dart all over my face. 

I pull her into me, and run my fingertips over the back of her shirt. 

“I certainly don’t want to share you with anyone,” I say, and that’s the absolute truth. She goes quiet for a minute, and while it’s nice just to hold her, there’s so much I want to ask. 

That’s also a weird feeling for me. I rarely have much conversation with girls and I have probably already spoken more to her in twenty-four hours than anyone in the last week. I’ve been meditating a bit and trying to be disciplined, focused. But all that went out the window the minute I saw her wolf. Smelled her. 

Lost that freakin’ rabbit to her.

“So … don’t. Don’t share me,” she whispers, then pulls back to look me in the eye. I raise my eyebrow in question.

“Who says we have to do this? Play their game I mean. What if we don’t fight,” she whispers, in the lowest possible voice.

I clear my throat, half wanting to tell her that’s ridiculous and half questioning if she’s cracking already. While she may have made fighting look effortless, even the toughest guys can struggle with the mental load of death.

“If you can’t handle it here, we’ll have to find a way to smuggle you out,” I say. Since really… That would be the only thing she could do if she can’t hack it here. She’d go home disgraced and potentially face the wrath of the royals. But she’d live.

She shakes her head.

“We all want to lead our packs: we all think we’re the best and we probably are. Who’s to say we can’t stand up for ourselves and our people by not playing this stupid fucking game. Tradition be damned. Let’s rise up and say we’re not going to let them do this to us anymore,” she says, as her face turns completely serious. 

Without even thinking, I pat her on the head, as if she were a child.

“That kind of talk will get you killed faster than anything else. Put it out of your mind,” I whisper. Her head instantly jerks and her eyes narrow at me.

“Did you… Really just tap my head like I’m a house cat,” she snaps as she pulls away.

“Dakota… Be realistic. There’s a reason they don’t want us getting to know each other. They don’t want us working together or getting too cozy. They pit us against one another to weed out the weak,” I say, tightening my arm around her back and trying to rein her in.

She scoffs and makes a show out of turning over and away from me. She puts her hands under her head like a pillow.

*What did you do!! Stupid stupid Dex,* Kent whines. 

I let out a hard breath. My mind races but the more time that passes, the silence is deafening. Kent stirs in my mind, begging me to fix things. 

An Alpha leads. An Alpha does what he has to do but that also means following the orders given by the stupid royal family. 

What would my father think of me going against the rules of camp? If I fail here, he goes on being Alpha for who knows how long. Until someone challenges him. I can’t even fathom it. Our line has always been in control of Shadow Cove. Since its inception. My father’s in good shape but if someone my age wanted to fight him, I’m not confident he’d win.

It’s quiet for far too long, though I know she’s wide awake. I open and close my mouth at least a dozen times but everything I can think to say is only going to make things worse. Finally, she lets out a loud sigh.

“Those guys today, they didn’t have to die. The people I silenced to get here, didn’t have to either. All I see when I close my eyes is the proud faces of those who applauded what I did. The fact that I had blood on my hands for some reason was a positive thing. It’s beyond barbaric. It’s beyond--”

BOOM

I instinctively lurch forward, and jerk Dakota into me. I feel her body tense.

BOOM

I close my eyes and exhale slowly. When the night is quiet once more, I drop my chin onto her shoulder.

“With each boom it's like… How is this our life? Yes I want a mate who is strong, a good provider. All the things a good female is supposed to wish for… But a killer? Who will have pups that grow up to do this shit too? We have to break the cycle. It’s something I thought about constantly before I came here but I didn’t know what to do about it. Now that I have my mate, if we ban together we’ll be stronger,” she says, nodding her head.

“Don’t say that. It’s far too risky,” I whisper. She huffs immediately.

“Fine, I’ll ask Harley,” she says, as she tries to break from my hold. 

A growl rips through my chest unlike any sound I’ve ever made. In a split second I’ve flipped her onto her back, and I’m caging her with my ass hitting the roof over us. Kent pushes through my eyes.

“MINE,” I roar, enough to move her hair.

She cocks her head to the side, challenging me. I’ve never given a shit what any female thought of me, but none have ever called me out like this.

“What kind of Alpha do you want to be Dex,” she questions.

Kent whines like he’s been injured and I have to blink heavily to focus. Her once confident face is clearly torn, but serious. 

I roll off her and back to my spot, sighing. She faces me and we’re locked in a staring contest. When I finally reach forward to rub my thumb against her face, she lightly rubs her cheek into my palm.

This female I don’t even know, I already love with all my heart. Everything in my soul screams for her. Demands I be the male she needs and deserves. 

*Shut up already,* Kent moans, curling into a ball.

Her cheeks are a bit rosy from the cool night air, from the cold earth. But she’s warm under my touch. Without a word we nestle against each other and get into a comfortable position, as if we’ve always slept like this and just know how to fit together. 

“What do you want to do,” I finally whisper. She draws a deep breath.

“We be the Alphas our packs expect and deserve, no less. The royals literally never come out and see how we live. They give us nothing. Seems like they need us, not the other way around. The fact that we all blindly obey them gives them power,” she replies, then burrows under my arm.

Mind my races at her words. I don’t like them a bit. But if I’ve learned anything from having three sisters … once a female makes up her mind, that’s a dangerous thing.