His eyes were glued to the back of the sprite sized woman leading the group of brothers, a procession more than two hundred bikes strong and that did not include the people who had arrived in cages. In a sea of motorcycles and leathers, she was the only woman not supporting a property of patch. No, the woman ahead of him was different, the only one wearing full rockers and the first female ever in the history of motorcycle clubs to wear the president patch. This was not to say that any of the brothers would ever disrespect an old lady, but there were certain qualities one needed to be the president of the nations largest one percent club. She was the first and only female deemed to have met those certain criteria and this particular club's history stretched all the way back to when the first Harley Davidson rolled off the line in 1901.
She was insanely intelligent, frighteningly so when one was the target of her ire, but sometimes mere intellect was not enough in their violent world. A president had to be physically strong as well because they had to have the brawn to protect themselves and that tiny nymph was the first to pass the challenges. Her diminutive stature was beguiling and she used that to her advantage, relying on her superior stamina and agility. She used. their own size against them, turning them to her favor and she had never once lost a single fight. She was absolutely magnificent.
She had auburn streaked strawberry blonde waves that fell just under her tiny waist and it was currently encased in leather to stop it from becoming tangled. She had the perfect feminine physique, a well endowed chest with a slim waist that flared into voluptuous hips and perfectly toned legs. That was what captured most males' attention, but not his. It was her eyes that captured him, had always ensared him with their unusual color and the fact they were much too wise for her age. Their depths swirled the same color as liquid mercury shot through with the purest shade of amethyst that he had ever witnessed. No human could ever have eyes so unique.
He wished that there was some way he could take this pain from her. She didn't deserve any of the hardships that she had faced and losing her dad was just one more pain she was facing. Losing her father wasn't even the worst of it. She had taken over her father's club, but that was not all it was. The club was also a cover for one of the largest werewolf packs in the Northern hemisphere and that made her their Alpha.
She was prepared for all of the responsibilities of being the Alpha of this pack, but he suspected there was more to come and was forbidden from telling her. He had been drawn here by some invisible force that he'd been unable to deny and, after years of trying to ignore it, he had finally given in. He had stumbled upon this pack of wolves and been immediately enraptured by a fiery spirited 15 year old Phoenix Serrafim. He had done the most logical thing he could think of under the circumstances, befriending her father and became his vice president, the Beta of his pack. It was the only way to keep a watchful eye over her and, for reasons he was as of yet still unaware, her safety had been a biological imperitive. He had his suspicions as to why he was drawn to her, but until his hunch was proven true, he was sworn to secrecy and the punishment for speaking out was death.
So he stuck around, biding his time until he found out if his assumptions her were correct or not and got to watch her grow into the strong Alpha she was now. Each year passed, intensifying the electric pull that tethered him to her and each year it got more difficult to resist the magnetic allure of her ethereal silver eyes. All the while though he had to keep his distance because she was his best friend's daughter and he had sworn to be Steve's Beta, to always protect her. Somehow he doubted that his best friend's idea of protecting her was announcing her as his anima and dragging her into more violence. If she was what he suspected, then her mere existence in his world was forbidden and she would be forever hunted.
Will dragged his thoughts from their morbid rabbit hole, forcing his thoughts to the gorgeous angel at the head of their run and admired her strength. Steve had died four days ago, she had dealt with all the preparations personally and he'd yet to see her shed a single tear. He knew she was dying on the inside because her father had been her best friend aside from himself and Tyler who seemed to disappear when she needed him the most. If he could do anything for his best friend then he would be sure to do it because she had been through more than enough in her short life. Despite everything that she had endured, she forever remained the strongest person he'd ever encountered and he'd been around a long time. He might not be able to vocalize his suspicions, but he could damn sure watch over her and confirm whether or not he was correct. For the time being he would swallow his emotions for her and placate himself by protecting her as her father had wished.
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The ride for Steve's wake had gone off without a hitch, now Will was waiting by the bar for Phoenix and he was not disappointed when she made her entrance. She was in a pair of black leather pants so tight they appeared painted on, matching halter neck crop top and Harley boots that laced above her knee. The strawberry streaks stood out against it's wheat mass in a loose French braid that fell to her waist and her mystical silver orbs were ringed in an ebony cat eye liner. She caught the eye of every unmated male in the building and, because of that, the wrath of many females, one of which was not intelligent enough to hold her tongue.
"The only reason she even matters is because her daddy was the president." She was obviously a human, a club w***e, or she never would have dared speak of her Alpha in such a disrespectful manner. "I busted my ass to get where I am in this club and she just gets it handed to her because daddy dearest died."
Will almost prayed that her sensitive hearing wasn't accurate enough to catch what the oblivious club wh*re said, but he wasn't nearly that fortuitous. Phoenix's sensitive ears picked up on the muttered dig so she threw her cut on the bar counter and spun on the wh*re with a vengeance as it escaped her grasp. "This cut doesn't mean j*ckhit, b*tch. I'll always mean more than you. Cross me ever again and I can promise you that you'll die."
He watched the wh*re's back stiffen at the threat and saw the confrontation Phoenix felt boil to the surface. Phoenix was in.desperate need of an outlet for all of her rage and, judging by the enraged expression on the wh*re's face, she was about to get exactly that. This human was utterly unaware that she was playing with fire or that the woman before her was completely capable of ripping her to shreds. "Those are big words from someone hiding behind literally hundreds of men. It's easy to act tough when you know that no one can touch you."
The words had barely crossed the brunette's lips when Phoenix's dainty fist connected with her face, resulting in a resounding and crack. "Who's hiding?" she snarled, flecks of red flashing in her silver eyes as she towered over the sobbing woman. She was nowhere near ready to be done with this fight, her wolf pacing aggressively in her mind and demanding she spill more blood. She hurt so badly that the only conceivable way to numb the pain was through bloodshed and she was nearly feral with the need.
Will could sense the bloodlust radiating from both Phoenix and her wolf and, luckily for everyone present, quickly leapt into action. He snatched her leather off the bar top with one hand, tossing her over his shoulder with the other and marched out of the clubhouse. He could sense her indignation easily enough as she pummelled his broad back with her delicate fists and demanded furiously to be released. He was well aware that if he did so the human inside would die so he made sure to only turn her loose once they were safely outside and faced her with an arched brow despite the fact she was his Alpha. Her friendship came before his duty and he was not about to let her destroy her life, even if it blew his cover. "Really, Nix? A human? I get needing to let off some steam, but ripping a human to shreds could blow all of our covers "
She could see his obvious relief when she didn't get angry, simply smiled guiltily, but how could she get mad at the best friends she'd had a crush on since he showed up on their pack's doorstep. He had been eighteen with swirling unusual tattoos spiraling his arms and at fourteen years old, she'd been utterly infatuated with the young man. He was at least 6"2' with a broad build akin to a hockey player, strawberry blonde locks that fell in waves half way down his back and sunkissed freckled skin. He was handsome and strong and reliable with aqua eyes a girl could drown in on top of being someone new and how could she not fall for him? His eyes were a deep turquoise with emerald, amber and fuchia streaks and she swore she could see the entire universe reflected in them when their gazes locked. So she did the only reasonable thing in her adolescent mind and tried to gain his attention however possible, even if it was dangerous.
Two weeks after he showed up, she'd stood up on her dad's pegs in gravel to wave at him just as her dad accelerated and she'd been unceremoniously flipped head over feet over the mid back sissy bar. Unfortunately for her, she'd been unable to find her boots and opted for ballet flats since their destination was so close to home and paired it with a white wife beater and jeans. She'd tucked and rolled just as she'd been taught, but the resulting rumble through gravel had left roadrash from her wrists to her shoulders and alomg the expanse of her ribs. The worst came when she noticed the blood on her jeans and lifted the hem to find she could see the delicate outline of bones where there should be flesh. She had refused to go to the doctor so her father had removed the gravel with a hard bristle tooth brush. It had all been going fine, although uncomfortable, until he reached her ravaged foot and the resulting pain made her pass out.