Chapter 3

Delaney

"I can't believe you are leaving," one of my best friends pointed out, sprawled on my bed while I paced across my bedroom.

"I am not going anywhere, Nyra. How the hell am I supposed to just leave the life I have known since I was a child?" I retorted, my voice rising higher than I intended.

"But the alpha kings said—"

"I don't care what they said, Nyra," I snapped, cutting her off. "They can go fuck themselves for all I care."

"Oh, we will be fucking, just not ourselves." Kai strolled in through the half-open door to my bedroom, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. I glared at him, trying to push away the feeling of his arms around me, and his cock pressed on my side.

"You must be Nyra; Alpha Thorne has told us about you," he spoke, walking over to Nyra as if he owned my bedroom. I watched as he extended his arm, stretching his hand to shake Nyra's hand.

"What is taking too long?" Ronan followed, hands in his pocket. For men around my father's age, they sure looked like they were in their early thirties.

"I thought you had already started packing," he added, looking at me, standing in the middle of my room. The two of them in my room was suffocating, now that my adrenaline had lowered.

"Goddess me, Del, you didn't tell me they look like gods!" Nyra whispered, getting off the bed. She attempted to stretch out her hand to greet Kai but instead bowed her head, letting out whimpers as her wolf recognised its Alpha Kings. The power rolling off them was too much in one room; I could see the waves pulling down Nyra to her knees before Kai.

"What the hell are you doing kneeling, Nyra? Get up," I hissed, walking to her side. I attempted to pull her to her feet, but she wouldn't move; it was like she was stuck there.

"I can't; too much po-wer," she stuttered, turning her head and bearing her neck, a sign of submission. I couldn't fully understand why she felt that way, maybe because even at 22, my wolf had still not manifested. That was the same reason my father ordered me to stay in the room back in the hotel. It was a secret we had sworn to keep between us. It was an abomination for any werewolf and especially the child of an alpha to be wolfless.

"Tell her to get up," I glowered, staring at both men.

"Are you ordering us, little mouse?" Ronan raised his brow, his lips stretching into a smirk.

"What's amusing here? She is kneeling before you, and you can't ask her to stand?" I complained, turning my attention to Kai.

"That is no way to speak to your alpha kings," Kai warned, his tone unreadable.

"Get up, Nyra. Any friend of Delaney is our friend," Ronan said, flashing a smirk my way.

"I am not your friend," I mumbled under my breath, helping Nyra up.

"What was that?" Ronan narrowed his eyes, while I shrugged, ignoring him.

"Now give us a minute, Nyra," Kai chimed in, not even sparing Nyra a glance. Nyra got up without a word and walked out of my room, head bowed.

"What the hell was that about?" I asked, placing my hands on either side of my waist.

"You need to learn how to tame that little mouth of yours, and I will gladly help you do so," Ronan stated, plopping down on my bed.

"Whatever," I mumbled, rolling my eyes. Yes, they were the alpha kings, but they did not scare me, maybe a little.

"If you don't pack, we will drag you out of this house as you are," Kai threatened, looking around my room.

"I am not going anywhere with you." I stood my ground, glowering at both of them. My father walked in at that moment, a vein on the side of his forehead popping.

"Honey, it is for the best. I thought we agreed that you would be safe with the alpha kings," my father remarked, looking apologetically at me.

"Agreed? You have not given me a choice at all. How do you all expect me to just pack and walk out of the life I have known since I was born?" I shook my head, shaking off the growing pain in my temples.

"If you stay, you will not have much of a life," Kai stated, his face void of any emotion.

"You know what's at stake, Delaney. Please do not make this hard," my father begged, closing the door behind him.

"What about my friends, the rest of the pack and you, Dad? Are you not deserving of protection?" I pressed, narrowing my eyes.

"This pack has warriors, plus me, their alpha, capable of keeping everyone safe," he responded.

"Then you can protect me too." My voice wavered, the mere thought of leaving my home weighing down on me heavily.

"No, whoever is controlling those rogues is specifically after you. Have you already forgotten that your name and your picture were found at one of their camps?" Ronan reminded me, looking straight into my eyes. For a second, his image tangled with the woman who crossed behind my eyes, distracting me a bit. I had to close my eyes briefly to pull my thoughts together.

"So that makes it right for you to force me into going with you? For the hundredth time, I am not going anywhere. I would love to see you try and carry me by force." I raised my head high, challenging them.

"Del-"

"We've got this, Thorne," Kai spoke, earning a nod from my dad, who looked once at me, then exited the room. I watched as Kai and Ronan exchanged a silent communication and then began approaching me.

"What are you doing?" I whispered, looking at them alternately, taking steps back.

"Kai is very patient," Ronan began, his voice neutral, still advancing towards me until my back came into contact with the wall beside the door.

"But I am not," he finished, putting his hand above my shoulder, beside my head.

"And while I am patient," Kai chimed in, lowering his face until it was level with mine.

"I hate being defied." His voice sent chills down my spine, and not the good ones. I gulped, closing my eyes at their proximity and the threat in their words.

"So little mouse, unless you want me to throw you on my shoulder and force you into the car, I suggest you grab what you need and willingly walk out of this house," Ronan ordered, his hand grazing my cheek.

"And if my brother ends up carrying you because you have refused to follow our command, I will put you on my lap," Kai whispered, trailing his hand gently to the curve of my hip and finally to my ass. "And spank you until your ass turns purple, and I will not stop until you cry out an apology," he finished, making me yelp as he squeezed the flesh of my ass gently.

"So what is it going to be, Delaney?" My name rolled out of Ronan's mouth in a way that made my heart leap.

"You have a minute and not more to decide. Do not test us, Delaney; you won't like it," Kai threatened, then stepped back, leaving me trembling against the wall, my mind and heart racing.