Huntress and The Alpha King

Yearning

Quinn

After a long chat with my guys, I felt like we had a better game plan than before. Our act of dodging the council was ending and we’d formulated the next step to keep them away from Irina.

Zena, our witch, was travelling, but she promised to be back should we need her for Irina’s defence. No one was convinced she’d get a fair hearing. Irina wasn’t one to endear herself to others either. The triplets were out hunting Caleb. Hopefully delivering his cold dead body to the council would go a long way in Irina’s defence. I wanted more than anything to involve Irina in this, but I didn’t want to add more pressure to her. She’d lost the most constant thing in her life so far. I suspected Alec did more than we would ever know to keep the darkness that haunts her at bay.

I stood and stretched out my muscles, they positively creaked from sitting so long. They were angry from the onslaught of Irina’s training this morning. I crossed to the window. The training grounds were quiet, and the sky was overcast. I rubbed at the weight in my chest.

“You look deep in thought, big bro.” Al’s voice came from the doorway. She skipped in and wound her arms around me in a side hug. “I miss them,” she whispered.

“I know the feeling,” I said and kissed the top of her tiny head.

She peered at me. “But Irina is here?”

“Sure, physically.” I ran my hand down my face.

“I’d noticed you weren’t touching much. She seems sad.”

“Yes.” I sighed; my limbs felt heavy.

“Understandable. I miss Alec, I didn’t know him long, but he was super fun.”

I forced a laugh and hugged her. “Yes, he was super fun. Super smart too.”

She grinned up at me suddenly. “You’re super smart too.” She tickled me.

I jumped away and knocked a coffee mug off the desk.

“Oh, you always were a big ticklish wolf!” Al screeched and ran after me.

I was deathly ticklish under my arms and the little minx knew it. I’d made Dad use his alpha voice as a kid to get her off me after I nearly wet myself during one of her attacks. In my defence I was only twelve, but still, it wasn’t a good example for an alpha to pee his pants.

“Don’t make me use my alpha voice on you!” I warned her as I rounded the desk.

“You can run but you can’t hide.” Al cackled with an evil grin. The self-same one she wore when my brothers pinned me, and she tickled me within an inch of my bladder control.

“Listen, just because you’re missing your three mates doesn’t mean you can come in here and disturb me.”

“Disturb you!” She laughed as she circled my desk and tried to get closer. “You were standing there, mooning out the window! You weren’t doing anything.”

“I was stretching! I’ve been working all day.” I replied indignant as I edged back around the desk.

I was going to have to pin her or use my alpha voice. I would not be subject to tickling again!

“Sure, sure brother. I’ll keep your secret. Just let me get a little tickle in!”

“You’re crazy. No wonder the goddess gave you three mates. You are too much for just one!”

Her face crumpled and she stopped circling. “Do you think that?” Her bottom lip wobbled.

Oh s**t.

“No Al, it was just a joke. I’m sorry.” I circled and gathered her up into a hug. I couldn’t stand to see her upset.

She snuggled closer then gripped me in my armpits and tickled me. I leapt back but she was attached like a spider monkey. Laughter ripped from me unbidden.

“Argh!” I stumbled backwards and tripped over the rug.

She landed on top of me, breath whooshed from my lungs and Al continued to mercilessly tickle me. I regained my breath and twisted away, laughter still being forced from me.

“Stop!” I issued an alpha command.

Al went still, out of breath she laughed like a hyena on my rug. “Gotcha.” she said, between peals of laughter.

My ass was sore from landing on the floor, I rubbed it as I stood up. “I stand by my original statement.”

“My bears say they aren’t ticklish, ‘we aren’t soft men, little one,’” she imitated their accents. “But I know that’s not true. Just gotta find the right spot.” She made tickle hands in the air at me, and I shivered.

Evil child, those poor bastards didn’t know what they were facing. Not soft men! I scoffed internally. They were in for it.

She dropped into a chair, and I deemed it safe to return behind my desk and take mine.

She smirked at me. “Big bad alpha king, squeals like a girl when tickled.”

“I did not squeal!”

Did I?

“You squealed,” my wolf confirmed helpfully from the back of my mind.

“Next time I’m filming it! Blackmail for later use.” She fell about laughing again.

“I’m glad I amuse you.”

“Or better still, I’ll tell Rina your secret. They’ll be no need to go for the jugular, just the armpits!”

“Laugh it up. You’ll need two extra sets of arms to take those bears on.”

She stopped laughing and frowned. “What am I going to do with three mates though?” She bit her lip

Oh no! Tell me we weren’t going there? Sweat broke out on my back.

I squirmed in my chair and cleared my throat “Well Al, there’s no need to rush into anything physical.” My voice came out high-pitched.

She blinked at me then burst out laughing. “Oh, your face! Seriously I don’t want the birds and the bees talk with you! I’ll talk to mom, or better yet I’ll talk to my new sister. She’s experienced.”

I coughed. “What do you mean?”

Having her talk to Irina about our s*x life wasn’t much more appealing than having her talk to me about her three mates.

“She was called the black widow, silly! She must be experienced.”

My wolf growled and it rumbled through the office.

“Calm down neanderthal! That’s all in the past. Anyway, remember your psycho ex-bedwarmer is languishing in grandads’ jail right now!”

Neither of those things were helping calm my wolf down.

“There are too many psycho ex-bedwarmers lurking about.”

Al’s face darkened. “True.”

“Anyway, I don’t think now is the best time to be asking Irina for advice, she’s not in the best place.”

And we aren’t exactly physical right now. She won’t let me even touch her. I added silently. Al seemed to register my subtext.

“We’ll have to remind her what a Casanova you are then.” She winked at me.

I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.

“Seriously Al, I’m not going there with you.”

“Well, you were the one that had his mind in the gutter. I only meant; what am I going to do emotionally with three mates. You were the one that imagined I wanted advice on foursomes.”

I groaned. Need to turn off my mind. Will not think. Will. Not. Think.

“That look on you is a new one. It looks like constipation mixed with lumpy vomit.”

I just stared at her. She was crazy.

“Not sure why I’m even asking. Well, I know, it’s because Aiden’s dropped off the face of the earth and usually, I talk to him.”

“Where’s Aidan?” I asked, desperate for a change in subject.

“No idea. His roommate in the city says he’s not been back. I’ve not heard from him through the link either.”

I sat up straight. Aidan was missing?

“Why are you only telling me this now? How long has he been gone?”

“I haven’t seen him since about a week before you got raisined, but Lan saw him just before. He spends more time over there.”

“Raisined?”

“Drained dry by hunter scum.”

Oh right, raisined just about covered it.

I gave myself a mental shake. “We need to start searching for him then.”

Aidan was often in and out. He kept a place in the city and a roommate, and he spent more time at Lan’s pack, technically being a member there.

“Well not yet.”

“What do you mean not yet?” I was confused.

She picked at her top. “Well, he often goes off in the sulks.”

“The sulks?”

“Yeah, he might act like a big-bad-alpha around you and Lan but he’s actually a bit of diva.”

I knew this about Aidan from when he was younger but honestly at nineteen, I thought he had grown out of it. Guilt assuaged me that I’d grown distant from my brother.

“He used to sulk a lot as a kid. How long does he drop off the grid for?”

“Months sometimes.”

“Months!” I was screeching again, fairly sure dogs could hear me.

“Yeah, sure where did you think he went?” She looked confused.

“I just thought he was at Lan’s or in the city.” I dragged a hand through my hair.

“Sometimes he is but he closes his link and stops talking to me.” She pouted.

I shook my head. How did I only just know about this?

“I’m going to ask my mates to help me look for him once they are back. This time I’m going to chew him out for ignoring me. A lot has gone on and I need my twin.” Al looked sad.

I went around the desk and pulled her into a hug. “Come here. I’m always here for you.”

“Yes, but you work so much. Now you’ve got a mate and you’ll be king soon. I still need my twin.”

“Nothing is more important than family, Al. Never forget that. Your tickling notwithstanding, you are always welcome in here. My link is always open.”

“Except when you are being drained of all your blood.”

“Raisined?”

“Yep, that.” She laughed and gave me and extra-long hug. I braced for more tickling.

She pulled back. “Let me help you with Rina.”

She outlined a plan for tonight, then took off to get some things sorted. I wasn’t sure it would work but quite frankly I’d settle for anything right now. Irina had barely slept the past few weeks. She would stand on the balcony for hours and nap on the sofa in the alpha suite. She told me she needed very little sleep to survive, but that’s all it really was. Surviving. We were never going to work on getting our bond back if we couldn’t even sleep in the same bed.

Later, I entered the alpha suite and was assaulted by the smell of rose petals. They were everywhere, on the floor, adorning the furniture, and in a heart shape on the bed. Champagne was on ice and a trolly of food covered with steel lids sat next to a fully laid table. A note in the middle of the table read,

‘To my favorite couple. Enjoy.’

It was Al’s writing. The hot tub bubbled, and candles were set across the deck. Irina sat in a white robe on a chair out on the deck. The moonlight played across her skin and made it paler. Her hair was pulled back into braid and her long neck and council brand were on display. I watched her for a moment, lost in her beauty.

“Al thought we needed a bit of romantic stimulation,” she said, as she looked out across the forest.

“Al is a menace.” I loosened my tie.

“She told me you are ticklish under your arms. She said it was the only weapon I needed for your full submission.” Her voice was wistful.

“She’s a pain in my ass.”

“I didn’t know that about you.” She added, almost to herself. She stared at her hands as if imagining them tickling me.

Hell, I’d take tickling right now just to feel her hands on my skin.

“You’re welcome to try out the theory.” I held up my arms and left my armpits defenceless.

She turned and searched my face. “I’ve never tickled anyone before.” Her gaze fell to her hands again.

A pang went across my chest. “I’m sure you know the mechanics of it.”

“These hands weren’t made for generating laugher. Only generating screams and guaranteeing silence,” she said as pain danced behind her eyes.

Was that what she really thought?

I walked over and took her hands in mine. She flinched again and I tried not to wince.

“You choose what you do with these hands going forward. Your past does not define you.” I stared into her eyes. Her pupils were deep black wells of pain. They reverberated distress through me. My soul shuddered in acknowledgement of her internal wounds. Ones I wanted to help her heal.

“We are all defined by our actions, Quinn. Pretty words won’t change that.” She pulled away and walked to the table. She cleared her throat. “This only just arrived, and it smells nice. Come and join me.”

It was a deflection but at least we’d graduated to sharing a meal. It was a win, I’d take it. I settled at the table and tucked into a perfect tasting Moroccan lamb. Knives and forks were the only noise that broke the silence. I watched her like a starving man.

“Grady was bitching about ‘dying’ at the end of your training.” I finally breeched the silence.

Her eyes were far away and took a few seconds to come back to me. “He’s strong but he needs to run his mouth less and focus on what he’s doing.”

“His eternal problem.” I smiled around a mouthful of apricot laden chickpeas.

“Duncan is a great fighter.”

“Really?” I said, surprised.

“Yes, he’s fast and many underestimate him. It’s a great starting position. Gives the element of surprise.”

“He’ll love lording that over Grady.”

“Tell him, it might make him work harder.” A wry smile curved her lips.

I chuckled at the thought of throwing that particular cat-among-the-pigeons.

“I bet you always had the element of surprise.”

“Maybe at first but eventually most knew I would come for them. Their fear made them sloppy so I didn’t need the surprise a nine-year-old girl could create.”

I inhaled a piece of lamb and choked, coughed it back onto the plate. “Nine?” I spluttered wiping sauce from my chin.

“Yes. Hunter children are effective for luring out a certain type of criminal and for the element of surprise.” Her voice lacked inflection.

A certain type of criminal. A shiver passed up my spine. I closed my eyes and tried not to think of Irina so young sent to lure and kill. Using children to draw out predators of the worst kind was a new low for the council in my eyes.

“Is that how young you were when you first killed for the council?” I worked to keep the disgust from my voice.

She looked away and placed down her cutlery. “I always was good at killing, even polite conversations aren’t spared, I’ve not lost my touch.” She stood and wiped her mouth on the napkin.

I launched myself out of my seat. “Please Irina, I want you to tell me. I was just shocked. You were so young!”

“Well, you met Demetri so you shouldn’t be surprised at his methods.”

My fist shook at the name of the pig who took so much from us.

“Things need to change at the council and with the hunter’s organisation.” My anger rose again.

“Good luck with that.”

“We can change it once I become king.”

She moved back farther and stared at me. Regret filled her eyes. “You’ll make a great king.” She turned and walked back out to the balcony.

Oh no, we weren’t going back out the f*****g balcony again!

I strode over to her and pulled her into my arms. I ignored the ever-present flinch as our bare skin touched. She shivered but didn’t pull away.

“I’ll make a stronger king with you by my side,” I said into her neck. Her scent filled my senses.

She scoffed. “Not with a wanted murderer by your side. That won’t endear you to your subjects.”

“f**k endearing me to people, you are my mate. They will yield to me. I will be the rightful king. If they want to challenge me for it then they can. I’ll meet them head on.”

“You don’t need to deal with detractors and challenges right out of the gate, Quinn.” She tried to twist away from me.

“No!” I held her tighter, and she went still. “Don’t pull away from me. You promised you would fight for us.”

“I never promised anything.” She looked down.

“Well, I promised your dragon when she gave me her life essence. I promised I would piece you back together, piece us back together and I will continue till my dying breath. I refuse to give up on us.” I ached for what we once had.

She took a shuddering breath. “I’m not worth it, Quinn. I burn everything I touch. You should never have come anywhere near Demetri’s craziness. My dragon paid that price.”

“Don’t tell me what you are worth. You are priceless to me. And don’t you dare blame yourself for the loss of your dragon.” I shook her and her head swayed on her tense shoulders. “Do you hear me, Irina?”

“I hear you Quinn, but you are wrong. It is all my fault. My dragon, Alec, You, Nina, Erik.” Her voice devoid of emotion.

I twisted her to face me and grabbed her face roughly. “No. Don’t do that. Don’t blame yourself and push me away. Damn it, Irina! We are a team.”

She looked at me with hollow eyes. “We were a team, but I’m better alone.”

No, I couldn’t let her do this. It was the most we’d spoken so far, and I couldn’t let her push me farther away.

“Let me re-mark you.” I blurted, the skin beneath my grip had blanched. I held her too tightly, my emotional control was all but gone. She had to listen to me. “We need to re-bond then I’ll help you heal.” I craved the ability to take care of her. I needed it.

She twisted away from me. “No, I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t.” I replied, my voice choked with emotion.

“Both.” She walked away back into the suite. Her movements were agitated, they reflected the way I felt. Under my skin needles tingled. We were still so close but so far away, I yearned to close the distance. I was desperate.

I followed her and grabbed her again.

“Get off me.” She slipped out of my grip.

“No,” I pulled her back into my arms and she stiffened. “You are mine. I hate not being able to touch you. To give you comfort. Pushing me away physically isn’t helping us move forward.”

She shoved me hard in my chest and I stumbled. “It feels wrong when you touch me! Like bee stings. The bond is tainted.” Her voice rose and she gripped her hair. “Demetri did something to it. I hate it, it’s a reminder of everything I did wrong.” She clasped her arms around her.

My muscles cramped. I hated that fucker with a passion. Had he tainted the bond for her not just broken it? I wanted to kill him all over again. I couldn’t take much more of this. I had no idea where to go.

“Let me be with her,” my wolf spoke in my mind.

He whined lowly as we watched Irina. Her arms tight around herself half hunched over as if invisible blows rained down on her.

“Let’s try something.” I approached her again and she watched me with wary eyes.

I began to strip.

“Quinn, I..”

I let my wolf forward. My bones snapped, the sound of my shift rose above the fizzing and bubbling of the tub. I landed on my front paws and watched Irina through my wolf’s eyes. She simply gazed at me at first then tentatively she held out a hand and rubbed my muzzle. I leaned into the touch. At last, she was touching me! I felt the muted sparks that felt nothing like bee stings. They felt like a reminder of home. A rumble of contentment came from my wolf.

After standing like that for a while. Eventually, although it cost us, we moved away and padded over to the huge bed. My wolf jumped up and circled like a cat. He settled in the centre, curled around into a semi-circle, he’d left space for Irina. He huffed and motioned down with his muzzle.

Irina stared, there was longing in her eyes now too. After a tortuous minute she came and settled in beside us. Her firm form pressed against my wolf’s flank as she settled her head into my front leg. A warmth filled me. This was the closeness we been missing these last few weeks. Irina relaxed against me all her tension fell away as if her whole body had exhaled. She fell asleep with my wolf curled around her.

Maybe it was better when we said nothing at all.