His mate's secrets

Chapter 2 - Past infatuation

Ten years ago

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The bead of sweat that trailed between her breasts was due to the late humid evening rather than the activity Flic was semi-partaking in. Disappointingly, watching it travel across her bare t**s and drop to the floor drew her attention more than the guy behind her. Her hopes had been high for the evening, but they had fallen quickly as the couple progressed. She had been approached by the recently made warrior at a party he was hosting for the newly shifted wolves of the pack and was game for a bit of fun. Things got exciting when he led her outside but after a clumsy make out session, with some half-hearted attempts to get her aroused, her interest dwindled.

Flic was sure her crotch would catch on fire, if he thrusted any faster inside of her, and not in the good way. She was pushed up against a tree, with one of his hands fumbling at her breasts, whilst the other held her hip so tight she couldn’t move without feeling the tips of Jack’s nails breaking her skin. She chewed her lip; she thought his name was Jack. The party had been loud enough that she hadn’t heard it fully, but she didn’t care to ask him again when his lips had crashed to hers once the evening air hit them.

“You like that?” Possibly Jack asked with a grunt as his hand dropped from her breast to between her thighs. She knew what his intended target was, but she’d be lying to say he hit it, no matter how she tilted her hips to help him.

“Yeah.” Flic muttered.

It wasn’t like it was terrible, but her initial flare of desire had been sparked by words of domination and the promise to bring her to her knees. Being hastily f****d against a tree, with all the eagerness of a pup’s first taste of meat wasn’t what she had in mind. Still, Possibly Jack had some staying power which was a nice surprise, maybe with some training he could be some fun.

Flic was smirking at the thought of whipping the poor warrior into shape when she felt a prickle against her skin. It started off as a light brush but, as if she could feel the attention grow, the sensation quickly became a tingle of a gaze. Her eyes swept around the area and when she saw a pair of red orbs glowing in the night, she felt her breath catch. She didn’t know what surprised her more, her ability to lock eyes with the Alpha or that he didn’t look away when she saw him.

Damon was on the pathway leading to Possibly Jack’s home, and she quietly wondered what he was doing turning up to the party. Surely it was beneath an upper rank wolf, especially one five years older than the rest of them. His face carried a subtle shock but, as it slowly morphed into amusement, Flic’s upper body jerked up, pressing against the completely unaware Possibly Jack’s chest. She didn’t know why, but she didn’t feel any need to cover her exposed breasts, and she watched the Alpha’s gaze turn darker as he lazily glided his eyes over her curves.

Flic’s lips parted, her skin aching under the slow perusal of the Alpha, as if his gaze was a feather light touch. A tight heat curled in her abdomen and, for the first time that night, a moan whimpered from her. It quickly turned to a hiss when Possibly Jack mistook the noise as encouragement and gave an especially hard thrust, hitting her core at the wrong angle.

“Who’s there?” The Alpha rumbled.

The reaction from Possibly Jack was immediate and Flic had to stifle a laugh as he hastily slipped out of her and yanked his trousers back up, almost falling over in the process. As Damon approached, he jumped away from her, as if they had been doing something wrong, and sobered up. His body tensed and his gaze dropped submissively to the floor. Wearing just a dress, her recovery was more casual, the material easily covering up their indiscretion in time for her to see Damon’s eyes sparkle with interest whilst she slowly buttoned the front closed.

“Jake, Alpha Damon.”

Jake! That was his name, Flic silently chastised herself as she also answered. “Felicity.”

“The baker’s girl?” Damon stood in front of the pair, but his eyes were only on her, watching her toy with the buttons of her dress, in no hurry to hide.

“The one and only.” She smirked, though with her crimson hair it wasn’t like he didn’t already know who she was.

“Don’t you have an early start in the morning?”

“No earlier than yours... Alpha.” She added after a beat. The warriors always woke early for training, and she’d see them every morning that she helped her dad in the shop. If she remembered correctly, Damon’s preference was a strawberry tart, but he only ordered one sparingly. She saw some of the other warriors almost daily, though sometimes she doubted it was for the baked goods.

“Jake. I had a noise complaint about the party. Reign it in or everyone will pay tomorrow.” Still, his eyes didn’t leave her, and Flic found that she enjoyed the thrum of her challenge as she met his gaze. It was like a shiver beneath her skin, a compulsion to drop her eyes that she fought to maintain the sight of his red orbs. “Now.”

Jake scarpered without giving her a second of thought, rushing to complete his Alpha’s order. Flic didn’t expect much more but still sighed as she watched him leave. The night really hadn’t turned out like she had hoped.

“Come on.” Damon dipped his head back to the path.

Flic crooked an eyebrow at him, letting a grin cross her expression. “A bit forward, don’t you think?”

The Alpha snorted, not a sound she had ever heard from him before. “Calm down, Doll. I’m just walking you home.”

Flic hummed and fell into step beside him, rolling the name he had called her around in her mind. It somehow caught her tongue, halting any response and she sat with that, feeling oddly receptive to it.

They walked close enough to brush arms, but they never did. In the silence that fell, her focus was on the inch gap between them, feeling her stomach tighten each time the space almost disappeared, just for it to release in a rush when they continued with no contact. Flic didn’t know what she was waiting for, but the undeniable buzz of anticipation was skating across her bare arms and spreading through her body.

Her home was built above the bakery, sitting on the outskirts of the pack’s township. It allowed a great view of the warrior training grounds in the morning and was often a place where families would gather in the afternoons to socialise. It made the bakery a staple for the pack and everyone enjoyed a tasty treat or two of her or her dad’s creation each week. However, their home was otherwise out of the way of the rest of the Red Valley territory and, as they drew closer, the small sounds of life drifted behind them.

Flic cast small glances towards Damon, pretending to be looking around at the blanket of night that had fallen on the pack, but each time she soaked up more of his profile. Of course, she knew him from around the pack, but they’d never truly spoken and they had never been alone. It was a truth that hung around her when she realised it, making the moment feel potent. He was a handsome man, a little bit older than her and had been the Alpha of the Red Valley pack for five years. His black hair was shaggy and unkempt, framing around his face to brush against the stubble lining his jaw. If he noticed her looking, he didn’t comment, nor did his eyes stray from the path ahead.

A swell of disappointment turned her stomach as the pair drew closer to the bakery. He wasn’t going to say anything else, an underwhelming change from the attention he had given her minutes before. Another hope fell by the wayside, as Damon stopped a short way from her home. With a forced smile, she dipped her head in thanks before leaving his side.

“Why did you do that?” His voice stopped her dead. With no other sounds disrupting them, Flic noticed the low timber of the Alpha’s voice and enjoyed the way it worked through her, effortlessly making himself heard.

“With Jack?” She turned with a frown.

“Jake.” He corrected, a smirk ghosting his lips.

It was an easy mistake to make but she echoed his smile and allowed it to turn flirty under his gaze. After losing his attention before, she wanted to keep it this time. “It was just a bit of fun at a party.”

“It didn’t look like fun for you.”

A bubble of laughter pushed past her lips. “Well, it wasn’t quite what I was expecting.”

This seemed to heat his gaze, but Flic wasn’t sure why, though when he prowled towards her, she found she didn’t care. “Oh? What were you expecting?”

Damon’s voice dropped lower, a mere vibration that tingled across her skin as he drew so close she had to crane her neck back to meet his gaze. The answer fell from her lips like a whisper. “More.”

A flash crossed those red eyes as if the Alpha had heard her every desire in that one word. Her breath hitched. She wanted to step back, feeling a steady pressure rising around them, but something about him coaxed her to stay. Flic forced herself to remain still, the urge to move growing stronger like a taut string being pulled until it would inevitably snap, but the look in his eyes was heavy. If she ran, he would chase her. She stifled a shiver as she wondered what if would feel like to be hunted by an Alpha wolf, and, better yet, what he would do when he caught her. Flic didn’t move.

She was vaguely aware that her breaths were becoming laboured. Each time her chest rose, she’d feel the barest brush of his body against hers before it was taken away. Damon, however, looked composed as if there was nothing happening between them. No sizzle of electricity in the small spaces separating their skin and no tension winding between them, daring them to close the gap between their lips. For a moment she wondered if she was just imagining it, but then her tongue flicked out and wet her bottom lip and his eyes darkened. The confirmation in his intense gaze sent a shiver of pleasure through her. The Alpha held an authoritative aura, in full control of himself and her, and it was exciting to see it crack.

A hand lifted, hovering just above her cheek, before a finger reached out and curled around one of her crimson locks. Damon twirled it around the digit, letting the smooth strands glide over his palm as he teased down the length of her hair. His hand ghosted over her chest, as the lock dropped from his grasp and returned to her, before it reached up and cupped her cheek. Flic thought he would be gentle, but his grip tightened as he tilted her face to the perfect angle of his liking. Its rough jerk shocked a gasp from her, but she didn’t pull away from his touch as a bloom of need twisted in her abdomen. Her cheeks flushed as she felt arousal pool between her thighs, but it wasn’t from embarrassment. A warmth was spreading through her like her body was flammable and the Alpha had just lit a spark.

Damon smirked and dipped his face closer to hers as he inhaled her scent. His eyes bled to black, starved and looking at her like she was his next meal. His hand held her face in place, not allowing her a single inch to close the gap between them, as he skirted his lips across her cheek. His breath chased across her skin, scattering tingles through her nerves that made her body quake for him. She fought against his grip, desperate to feel his mouth devour her, but he held her firm.

“Goodnight, Felicity.” The Alpha spoke her name with a purr, vibrating against her ear.

Without another word, Damon stepped back from her and walked away, leaving her frozen and dazed watching him go. Flic felt like she was about to melt in a puddle on the floor, already feeling bereft of his attention. She wanted to follow him, but she couldn’t move. She couldn’t get her mind to catch up to what had happened. He had barely touched her and yet she had never been so turned on in her life. If he came back and demanded anything of her, right then and there, she’d say yes and let him take everything from her, but all he had done was walk away. It was frustrating but a smirk pulled at her lips. She knew she would see him around the pack sooner or later and she was happy to play this game. She wanted to, and she could wait.