The Threat

The man let out a maniacal laugh and used his cheating wolf speed to cut me off at the end of the next aisle. I tried to run back— but then he wasn’t the only one there.

A tall woman who looked like working out was her thing blocked the other end. She was beautiful, with flawless skin, but her teeth were sharp, her claws out, her eyes red.

She had a tattoo that combined all three territories, vines wrapping around a tree and turning into a wave over it on her chest that was only covered by a crop.

Her hair was dark and piled on her head, her eyes surrounded in smoky makeup that looked like the same charcoal I drew with back in the village.

She was stunning but looked every bit as lethal as the guy who had a scar in his eyebrow and a lightning bolt in his buzz cut.

I backed up into the side of the shelf as they cornered me, my heart racing so fast I thought it was going to break right through my ribcage and leave me behind.

“Don’t come any closer. I’m here for the alphas,” I snapped, gripping a book in my fingers behind me.

The girl narrowed her eyes at that as the guy let out a booming laugh.

“Oh, they got a new toy, did they? Their usual choices are a little more durable, but I’ve always wondered what a human would feel like around my cock,” the man taunted, and I threw the book at him as hard as I could.

He dodged it, and my fear tightened in my chest.

“Well, you can keep wondering because I won’t be doing anything with you or your cock.” I stepped away, but it was closer to the girl, and I realized my mistake when I bumped into her chest.

She snickered and looked over me. “You lie, little human. The alphas would never take a human.”

I frowned at that, then saw the hint of jealousy flash in her eyes and smirked. So female wolves were just like humans. I was guessing one of the alphas was her usual territory. Not anymore, bitch.

“Go ask them then,” I challenged, and she looked at the man.

“Garrett, their scent is on her.”

“Not just their scent,” I interrupted, lifting my skirts to show off the three bites.

It was meant to prove that I was theirs, but it backfired because it had the girl gripping my throat and lifting me against the bookshelf, so her snarling fangs were right by my face.

I scratched at her wrist, trying to pry her away as Garrett laughed that evil laugh that had my fear trying to make me cower.

But I wouldn’t—because then they would only ever see me as a weak little human.

I grabbed another book and swung it across her face. She dropped me and I dipped away from them, running down to the tables, hoping the bathrooms were close and Hank was close because I knew there was no way I was outrunning two werewolves.

I was right.

Garrett’s hands shoved me into the table, and I coughed as it sucker punched me. He pinned me against the table with his body, shoving my face onto the wood as I struggled against him.

I screamed out as he scraped his claw down my cheek.

“We’ve got ourselves a fighter, Taylor,” he taunted, and I kicked his shin, stomped on his foot, but he didn’t react, only gripped my wrists tighter.

“This one’s mine, Gar.” She chuckled darkly and bent down so she could look at me, where my face was mushed into the table, his hand on the side of my head, pressing me into it.

I was bent over the wood, his weight pushing me in with his hips. He had my wrist pinned with his other hand, and I couldn’t get out.

It had me writhing, grunting as I fought. I had no idea what they were planning to do, but I felt the hostility and hatred that poured off them.

“Why are you doing this?!” I screamed out, tugging on my wrist to see if his hold could be loosened, but it couldn’t.

His claws dug in and tears welled. Angry tears that I detested.

“Because a human doesn’t belong here. Even as a slave. What do you think happened to the last humans who tried to infiltrate our city?” Taylor snarled, and I smirked, the taste of blood from the cut she had left on my cheek leaking over my lips.

“I am not just human, assholes. I’m winter born,” I taunted.

She froze, and so did Garrett. Before they could react to my revelation, there was a glass-shattering roar from the door.

The room vibrated with the force and Taylor whimpered, falling to her knees. Garrett looked like he was trying to fight it, but he reluctantly let me go, stepping back, glaring.

I snapped up, backing away from the table, turning to Kai, who looked scarier than I had ever seen him. Scarier than the offerings, scarier than what I had imagined wolves to look.

His entire body shook, the bare muscles of his torso glistening with sweat, his eyes bright red. His claws were long at his side, his canines elongated, salivating.

His eyes raked over me and I backed up against the wall, holding my wrist where it ached from Garrett’s grasp.

Then his eyes went to Garrett, who hadn’t knelt. Apparently that wasn’t acceptable because within the next blink, Kai was towering above him, his eyes glaring down into him, baring his fangs, growling loudly in a way that had my bones shaking.

“Kneel!” Kai roared, and Garrett gnashed his fangs back.

“I will not kneel for a human,” he spat, and Nikolai’s claws raked across the beta’s face, leaving three big gashes across his cheek, before his knee came up to his gut.

Garrett dropped, hanging his head as blood dripped down his shoulder and over his torso, covering the tattoo.

“You will kneel for your alpha!” Kai snarled, before looking over to Taylor. He bent before her, lifting her chin so her eyes met his. “You are nothing to me. Just another pussy that used to occupy my time.”

He pinched her lips together, his eyes not leaving hers still as she steeled her gaze against him. “Don’t touch my fucking human.” He shoved her away and stood up, finally looking at me.

“Lorelai,” he said, and I went to him. He curled me into him, kissing the top of my head as Taylor snarled. He glared at her, daring her to challenge him.

“Is it true? She’s winter born?” she asked, looking at me.

Kai laughed at that. “Who the fuck cares? Go get your shit together, pack meeting tonight,” he said, just as Brax and Derik stormed in.

I looked over at them as they took in what had just happened. Brax just smirked and shoved his hands in his pockets, shaking his head as Derik let out an exasperated sigh.

“Kai, any chance you didn’t mention Lorelai being yours or threatening these two before we tell the pack tonight about her?” Derik asked, but they knew the answer.

“I might have mentioned it. I was too busy teaching Garrett some respect to remember,” Nikolai snickered, looking over his shoulder.

Brax chuckled and stepped forward. “Well, that’ll definitely be around the city by the time we have the meeting tonight. It’s gonna be fun, boys. Good job, Kai.” He patted Kai on the back, then went to the other two.

“And you two, what in the world made you think you could attack a human under this roof?” Brax said, his friendly voice turning deadly.

I shuddered as Nikolai pulled me in tighter and began taking me from the room. Derik paused us and ran his thumb over the drying blood on my cheek.

“You okay, beautiful?” he whispered, and I nodded.

“Yeah. Where’s Hank?” I asked, and Derik’s expression grew darker.

“He’s learning how to follow orders,” Derik said, then looked up to Kai. “We’ll talk about this before the pack meeting. We’ve got to figure out how we take this on if you’re going to mutilate every member of the pack over her.”

Derik sighed, his eyes going to me again for a brief second before going back to Kai, who pursed his lips.

“And you wouldn’t do the same if she needed you?” he challenged, and it had Derik scowling before turning away from us and going to help Brax reprimand.

Nikolai pulled me out of the library and back down to my room. He slammed the door shut behind us, then pushed me against it, his lips finding mine in the next breath I tried to take.

His hands were already ripping off my dress as I backed us toward the bed, my mouth moving with his. He found my tongue, and I tasted his as he lifted me at the foot of the bed, chucking me onto it.

I gasped as he climbed over me, nudging my legs apart, resting between them as he claimed my mouth again.

“Kai,” I breathed, turning my head, but he found my neck, my collarbone, the top of my breasts that were still hidden in my undergarments.

“You screamed.”

He shuddered against me, and my mouth fell open, trying to find words in the scramble that my brain was. He was everywhere, overwhelming my senses with his huge body. His fingers slipped beneath my panties, sliding along me.

“I hate that sound,” he said, before he was thrusting them inside me, making me hot and breathless, pleasure filling my core so fast it had me crying out.

He captured the sound with his mouth before looking down at me, still stroking my wet walls with his expert touch. “Much better.” He grinned, then leaned down to kiss me again.

It wasn’t long before I was a mess beneath him, gripping his wrist as he pulsed his fingers inside me, bucking my hips into the pressure he had on my clit. I was sweating and tight, desperate for release.

Nikolai stopped just before he let me go and pulled down his pants, giving his thick length a few strokes. He was so damn big it was almost scary, but in the best way possible.

I wanted him to fill me to the point it hurt. And he did.

He lifted my hips to his, then sank inside me with a low groan as I gasped, my pussy welcoming the feel of him with shocks of pleasure to my core.

He fell into me over and over, thrusting hard, breathing hard in my ear as he clutched me to him.

I wrapped my arms around him, holding him just as tight as I met his pace, panting to keep up, the tightness in my stomach becoming unbearable with the amount of pleasure trying to ignite inside me.

I found his mouth as I finally let myself fall into oblivion. I clutched his body tightly between my thighs, arching off the bed as he hit my G-spot, making my orgasm so overwhelming, I felt like I was going to pass out.

My head swam with all the sensations coursing through me at such a fast pace. Everything throbbed and trembled as he let go after me, fucking me so damn hard in those final thrusts before he stilled, emptying himself inside me.

I breathed hard as he lay against me before he rolled away, and I turned to him. He had his eyes closed, his damp chest rising and falling as he let out a contented sigh.

I wanted to ask him about everything that had happened in the library, but the door swung open then. Derik and Brax came in, arguing until their eyes fell on me and Nikolai.

Derik kicked the door shut and leaned against it as Brax grabbed the throw from the end of the bed and wrapped it around me.

Kai sat up slowly, tucking himself back in. He hadn’t even been fully undressed, but I wasn’t complaining.

“We’ve been planning all fucking day for the pack meeting tonight and in one moment, you destroy it,” Derik snapped.

“I didn’t destroy shit,” Kai bit back.

“Lori, might be a good time to get cleaned up,” Brax tried, but Kai growled.

“She stays.”

“I got that, Hulk. She still needs to shower for the pack meeting, which is happening now so we can try and beat Tweedledee and Tweedledum out there from spreading the word that we have a winter born human here,” Brax said.

Nikolai sighed. “Who cares if they know? They can’t do anything about it.”

“Kai! There are rules! And we had a fucking plan! She is the humans’ punishment for speaking to us the way they did,” Derik tried.

I felt sorry for him. I hadn’t meant to cause such an issue, not that it had been my choice. But I knew he was just trying to keep everything together, so I stood slowly from the bed and went over to him.

With the throw wrapped around me, I lay against him, and he wrapped his arms around me like I was hoping he would. His heart was racing in his chest, and I kissed the pec I rested on.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered against him, and he shook his head, kissing the top of my head.

“Not your fault. Go get cleaned up, beautiful, we’ve got five minutes before we have to go, and I need to talk to these two,” he said, and I nodded, stepping on my tiptoes to kiss him.

It was soft, and I only intended it to last a second, but he deepened it, cupping my face as he covered my mouth with his in a way that left me breathless.

When he pulled away, he was smiling one of those rare smiles. I smiled softly back, then went to the bathroom to clean up.

I wouldn’t admit it to them, but I was nervous for the pack meeting. Especially since I had to go after everything that had happened in the library.

Garrett and Taylor would be there. Would they turn the city of werewolves against me? Against the alphas?

I shivered as I stepped into the warm shower and rinsed off the sex. I had to learn how to fight or at least use my shadows if I really was going to stay here because I didn’t want any more confrontations like the one earlier.

I had felt too helpless, and I hated it.

A light chuckle echoed in the shower at those thoughts. “Then say yes. We'll give you all the power you need,” it whispered, and I clenched my eyes shut, wrapping my arms around myself.

“Fuck off,” I whispered, and blocked out whatever they had to say by turning up the shower to scalding, adding pressure until I couldn’t focus on anything but the way it felt on my tense muscles.

***

Fifteen minutes later I was dressed in another fancy dress, this one in cerulean blue with a corset front, with an arm through Nik’s, one through Brax’s, and Derik taking the lead.

I was their new lover, not a human hostage or prisoner, and the wolves were about to know it. Apparently it wasn’t going to go down well but was the only way to make sure I remained untouched.

Wolves couldn’t fight over a human, so the fact that Nikolai had physically reprimanded Garrett was a big deal. I hadn’t realized that but I did when I walked into the dining hall with the alphas.

I’d never had to resist the urge to run so much in my life. If looks could kill, I’d be six feet under for sure. But I steeled my spine and carried myself as if I was more than the human whore they had decided to keep.

And maybe by the end of the night, the wolves might actually believe it.