"Brinley," he repeated, letting the word fall off his tongue, as though tasting it. "A beautiful name for a beautiful wolf."A fierce blush painted my cheeks. I looked down and then back up at Langdon through my eyelashes, mumbling, "Thank you."Topaz eyes danced as his grin widened. Thankfully, he released my arm. I breathe a huge sigh of relief because I was confident if he didn't let me go, I would combust in the next thirty seconds.The rest of the dinner went smoothly, with Langdon only making a few sly glances my way, with the occasional wink. Each time, heat crept up my neck, and I felt my face flush. He seemed to enjoy the effect he had on me.Once the wolves disbursed from dinner, everyone gathered in the backyard under the stars, to enjoy a bonfire and music. I continued my serving duties, walking through the crowd with a tray of drinks.Langdon hadn't said anything for the past twenty minutes. I assumed he'd moved on to the next shewolf.I was wrong.Making my way to anothe
PunishmentBrinleyI couldn't breathe. I couldn't seem to remember how to force air in and out of my lungs. I'd been the unfortunate recipient of many physical altercations with members of the pack and had received less severe punishments, but I'd never been whipped before.Coal faced his father, his expression a cross between absolute fury and guilt, the deep timbre of his voice much closer to wolf than man, "You can't do this! I'm not going to let her be punished when I antagonized her. This was my fault, not hers. She was just defending herself!"I was surprised Coal interjected on my behalf. Maybe he thought it would help, but I had no hope Alpha would change his mind. I knew better.Exactly as expected, Alpha spat, "You know her status in the pack-she doesn't have any status! The circumstances are irrelevant. She doesn't get to speak out, causing disruption. She was well aware of that rule and chose to break it."A small crowd had gathered around us.Several Onyx Moon warriors au
No, not a lucky wolf.My legs quivered out of control.I could no longer hold myself up. My body sagged, a rag doll to be abused for Alpha's pleasure. Tears streamed down my cheeks. With each kiss of the whip, my resolve to remain silent became more and more impossible, but I held on. Blood dripped freely from my mouth, where my canines had gnawed my lips to keep me from screaming.My Wolf was crying out in my head, howling her pain, hurt and devastated. She didn't understand how her mate could do this to her. How could he just stand by and let her be beaten? I didn't have any answers for her.Almost continuous low growls came from my audience. Both Langdon and Coal voicing their displeasure, but neither could help me......not without challenging Alpha.Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the strikes stopped coming. Beta Ford stepped forward and cut my bindings. I fell to the ground in a heap, groaning loudly at the impact.Calla sniveled impatiently, "Coal, let's just go. It'
Behind the WaterfallCoalI fucked everything up. All of it. I couldn't control myself when I saw Brinley talking with that Onyx Moon warrior...and I just lost it. I acted like a complete jackass. And once again Brinley paid the price because of me.During her punishment, the battle not to shift had been fierce. My Wolf raged. He wanted the Alpha's blood. On that, we agreed.Somehow. Someway...sooner rather than later.I would make it happen.I thought I could give her up. I thought I was strong enough to let her go, but tonight brought startling clarity. I couldn't stand the thought of her with someone else, nor could I stand the idea of being with anyone else...especially Calla.Calla's behavior had been shocking. I knew she was a little insecure and jealous of Brinley, but to agree that any shewolf deserved such harsh punishment for a crime that wasn't even hers, was unacceptable. Calla was no Luna. And she wasn't the wolf I wanted.There was only one wolf for me Brinley. Now I ju
I held Brinley to my chest and walked toward the cave where we would stay the night. She was wrapped up in a fur blanket to protect her from the elements. Had she been in her wolf form, the frigid temperature would not have affected her, but she would be unable to shift until she healed.After several minutes, we reached the waterfall. Brinley's closed eyes fluttered when I shifted her weight into one of my arms so I could use my other to climb up jagged rocks. She tucked her head close to my chest to avoid the condensation coming from the falls.Fifteen feet up, we reached a small ledge. Pushing the thick foliage that covered the entrance out of the way, I slipped through.Brinley lifted her head and looked around. Carved inside the mountain, the cave was about ten feet wide by eight feet deep and just tall enough to accommodate my height. Solid rock on all sides except for an eight-foot expanse where the waterfall rained down, hiding our location."Where are we?" her voice was raspy
Instantly, my Wolf focused on his task. Brinley's healing came first, and he could help. He nipped the edge of the blanket and pulled it away, revealing her lithe naked body. She laid flat on her belly, with her cheek resting on her crossed forearms.With meticulous care, he swept his large tongue gently along each stripe on her back. When he had given the wounds sufficient attention, he moved on to the rest of her back, her cute rounded butt and down her legs.Eyes closed, Brinley's breathing was slow and deep, completely calm and relaxed. I wondered for a moment if she'd fallen asleep.Once complete, my Wolf nudged her with his big head, wanting her to roll over. She accommodated him, slowly moving to reposition herself on her back. Hands resting on her belly, and eyes half-mast with her continued calm and drowsiness, Brinley remained relaxed and made no move to cover herself....until my Wolf pushed his head between her legs and licked her folds.Then, Brinley couldn't have had a m
Don't Test MeCoalThe sun was barely on the horizon when I approached Calla's home. Anxiety swept over me. I wasn't nervous about breaking up with her, just forcing her silence. She could be strong-willed when she wanted to be. I had to ensure that she didn't say or do anything that would cause Alpha to look at Brinley with even more suspicion or hatred.I had no idea what Brinley or her mother had done to incur my father's wrath. I'd approached him about it once. His only reaction was to fly into a fit of rage and take his irritation out on my chest with his fists. I remembered hearing the distinct break of bones and feeling the familiar burn of cracked ribs.I was no stranger to broken bones. Even from a shockingly young age of four, my father had felt physical punishment was a much more effective learning tool than words.But this event had been worse. He'd been binge drinking for days. I was fifteen at the time. Brinley was only ten, and her mother had just died. There had been n
"Brilliant!" I hissed, throwing my hands in the air. "You don't even have a clue, do you?""Coal..." she tried to speak her soothingly. Her voice grated my ears. "Let's just talk about this. We've had fights before. All couples have them. I know we can get through this. I'm sorry I got angry. Just start at the beginning. I'm listening.""You are no Luna!" I snapped.The lip quiver was back. Calla waited for me to continue. Shockingly, she really had no idea.I growled, "How could you? How could you think any shewolf deserved to be punished so severely, for something you knew wasn't her fault? I attacked her. She defended herself! As she had every right to, and yet, you insisted being beaten was what she deserved?" Just hearing the words made me angry all over again.Understanding came to her eyes. "So, this is about her!"I didn't appreciate her tone or her stupidity, and snarled, "Once again, my feelings are not relevant to this conversation, nor are they any of your business anymore