Scattered Siblings 3: To Mate a Werewolf (11 page)

Joel kept to rocky outcrops, trying not to leave an obvious trail. More pine trees covered this part of the valley, backed by sheer limestone cliffs that were dotted with hundreds of caves. Caleb could be in any one of them.

A faint trace of King Caleb’s scent drifted toward Joel, and as he crossed a field full of scree the scent grew stronger, then faded to nothing. The tricky wolf king had turned primal and leaped upward. Climbing that rock wall would be hard for a human. It was damn near impossible for a wolf.

Joel padded his way up the slope, and as he reached the first ledge, Caleb’s scent overwhelmed him. It was as if the Lykae king had lost his balance and rubbed against the rock face. To Joel, that seemed too obvious. Especially for the warrior king.
The sneaky bastard’s laid a false trail
. When he picked his way to the far side of the rock face, he sniffed the air. Again he caught the faint scent of his king.

This was Joel’s home turf, and he felt certain he knew where the king waited. He leaped down and ran. Soon the cliff was behind him, and trees lined his route. He crashed through low-growing branches, heedless of anything but being the first to find his king. Ahead, there was a natural clearing where the first settlers had erected a stone circle when they’d made peace with their families. Joel had played hide-and-seek there as a pup.

Joel’s tongue lolled between his lips when he burst into the clearing. It was exactly as he remembered, except for the thick woolen blanket spread on the ground in the center of the stones.

King Caleb reclined beside his wife, feeding her tidbits from a picnic hamper. He looked up as Joel approached. “You made good time. I felt certain you’d spend hours searching that rock face. Sylvie and I had things planned.” Caleb rubbed his mate’s swollen belly. “I’ll make it up to you later, sweetheart.”

Normally, displays of affection embarrassed Joel, but today Caleb and Sylvie’s connection fascinated him. For an instant, he imagined Ellie, her stomach growing as she carried his child. When he pictured himself nibbling on her ear tips, he almost groaned. Every time he thought about her, he got the boner from hell. He’d never hear the last of it if King Caleb or Queen Sylvie noticed.

He owed Ellie for that warning. She’d helped him beat the others, Marcellus included. He needed to thank her for that. And he’d have to keep his hands off her when he did.

King Caleb pulled his half-Fae queen up against him. When he kissed the sensitive tips of her ear—left first, followed by right—she sighed. Joel stayed in natural wolf form and curled up at their feet.

A few minutes later, Marcellus crashed into the clearing.

Caleb stood up and glared at the new arrival. “Another wolf that didn’t follow my false trail. Damn, the sight of four wolves climbing a rock face was guaranteed to make me laugh.”

Marcellus shifted back to his human form. “No offense, sire, but I followed Joel’s trail rather than yours. Once I figured out that Joel knew a shortcut across the river, I was certain he’d know where to find you.”

“Sensible as well as pretty.” Apparently Sylvie couldn’t resist teasing her mate. She snuggled closer to Caleb. “Of course he’s not as ruggedly handsome as my mate.”

Caleb glowered at Marcellus. Joel could almost hear the king’s inner wolves snarl. A beetroot-red blush crept up Marcellus’s cheeks.

Instantly Joel wondered if Ellie thought he was ruggedly handsome. She might have once, but after the way he’d treated her, she’d probably have changed her mind. Elves’ blood, she probably hated him. He didn’t care for that idea one little bit.
Whenever I hear the word
mate,
I think of Ellie. She can’t be? Can she?

His inner wolves howled and demanded he seek out Ellie. He’d thought of her constantly, ever since the time in the Lykae camp when he’d lusted after her. He swallowed hard. His heart pounded. He needed Ellie the way he needed air and food. His natural wolf whimpered as he finally faced facts. Ellie was his to cherish and protect.

I’ve already ballsed that one up, haven’t I?

He prowled the clearing, then leaped onto a tall rock and kept watch. He remembered when Caleb first met Sylvie. His king hadn’t immediately recognized her as his mate, and despite her being the Fae King’s half sister, Caleb had treated her…badly. Sylvie had eventually forgiven him.

Maybe Joel still had a chance with Ellie, but he’d have to grovel first.
I must be the first wolf to deliberately drive my true mate away
. His stomach churned as though trying to digest bad meat, and even in wolf form, he started to sweat. Joel’s tongue lolled and he panted hard, more from panic at the way he’d treated Ellie than being weary from the challenge.

He’d rejected her twice, even tried to pay her off like a whore, and on top of all that, he’d refused to sponsor her into his pack.
Could I have found more ways to insult her?
Thank the gods she’d turned up in his bedroom anyway, and even when Olivia had been on the horizon, he’d never been so pleased to see anyone.
But did I tell her that? Hell no.

He’d not been able to keep his hands off her. That blowjob had been amazing—the highlight of his life—and he’d never come so hard as when she’d had his cock between her lips.
Then, as special a treat, I insulted her again
. To cap it all, he’d flashed her out of his parent’s home and abandoned her on the road. When he remembered that bewildered, hurt look on her face, he growled. He’d behaved abominably, and only a fool would have hurt her like that.

He’d go on his belly, and beg for her forgiveness if that was what it took. He deserved horsewhipping for hurting her the way he had.

His primal beast wanted to carry her off over its shoulder and fuck her senseless; not that its giant cock would fit her Elf-sized pussy. No, he’d have to be subtle to win her back. His sneaky, natural wolf approved of that. Then he realized there wasn’t time for subtle. The instant the tournament finished, she’d leave. He had two nights to woo her.

Suddenly he understood why he’d heard her voice when he couldn’t hear the others. Ellie was his true mate, the other half of his soul, and he’d always be able to pick her out from a crowd.

His wolves seethed inside him, eager to head back to the village. He’d track her down and seduce her, but the first challenge wasn’t over. He was stuck here until the other challengers arrived, but waiting was hard.

Finally Lysander and Titus crashed into the clearing. Instantly, they shifted into human form. If Joel didn’t know better, he’d think Titus hung back and let Lysander claim third place, but that didn’t make any sense. The pair of them stared at Joel and Marcellus, and even though they were in human form, they howled their distress at being beaten.

Close by, Caleb muttered just loud enough for Joel to hear, “I must be losing my touch. No one climbed that rock face, and I took pains to lay that trail."

Sylvie grinned at the newcomers. “Let me guess. You did the same as Marcellus, and followed Joel’s trail not Caleb's.”

Titus growled, his primal wolf almost showing. “How the fuck did that pair get ahead of us?”

Joel and Caleb turned primal. Joel’s dark blond beast leaped from the boulder to stand beside Caleb, ready to defend Queen Sylvie and the pup she carried. Marcellus grinned at the losing competitors. “I think that’s a warning to watch your manners around our queen, gentlemen.”

Lysander pulled Titus back. Both men raised their hands and dropped their heads in a gesture of submission. Caleb’s beast punched the air. He drew back his lips and growled. Once he’d shifted back to human form, he gathered Sylvie in his arms, and planted a kiss amid her curls.

Joel waited until the royal couple flashed away, then took his human form and followed. Finding his mate in the middle of a tournament sucked. He should concentrate on winning back his birthright, but winning back his mate mattered more.

Chapter Eleven

Outside the Great Hall, someone had erected a giant scoreboard marked up with four vertical columns. A sign writer had just finished painting the competitors’ names.

King Caleb waited until all the contenders returned. Finally, arms still wrapped around his mate, he called, “Four points to Joel. Three for Marcellus, two for Lysander, and one for Titus.”

Titus growled. “Not fair. Joel Blackheart knew a shortcut.”

Lysander tried to drag him away. King Caleb bellowed, “Hold! You, Titus. Didn’t you listen? This morning, I stated the obvious when I said an alpha must be clever and know his territory. You have been here a week, and that cave is common knowledge among the pack. The next alpha needs to work with the Tundra Toughs, not against them. Even without that knowledge, Marcellus figured out how to beat you. Either accept the result or withdraw your challenge.”

Alexander and his lieutenants stepped forward, ready to silence Titus. They didn’t get the chance. Titus apologized immediately.

Joel scanned the crowd for Ellie. His inner wolves howled when he didn’t see her. He’d wanted to make her proud, but her absence showed how little she cared about today’s result. Ellie’s affection was another thing his arrogance had cost him.

Caleb led Sylvie inside and closed the door. Joel made a note to order the conference table scrubbed later. He knew just what Caleb and Sylvie were up to in there. He’d be doing the same with Ellie, if he hadn’t behaved like a fool.

Alexander clapped his hands for silence. “Fellow Lykae, tonight we feast in honor of King Caleb’s visit. Some of you ex-soldiers out there have eulogized about Ellie’s cooking, so I’ve persuaded her to work in the kitchen. I believe we’ll have a fine buffet tonight.”

Joel blanched. Last night he’d told his mother Ellie was trouble, and now his father forced her to work in the kitchen. Winning today’s contest was nothing if Ellie suffered because of him.
Why do I turn heavy-handed and stupid around her? And why did it take me so long to realize she’s mine?

The only thing he’d ever done right around her was when he’d freed her from sexual slavery. Joel and his crack squad had sailed down the River Rojo to rescue what they thought was a captured female Fae.

Once, the Fae and the Elves had been the same species, but after a long civil war the Elves set up their new homeland in the Patria province. The Fae enhanced their magic when they bonded with war dragons, but the Elves’ powers waned as their homeland’s carnivorous flora slowly sucked their magic out of them.

The Fae and the Lykae believed in equality of the sexes, but the Elves treated their women worse than they did their dogs.

Two years back, a cohort of Elves died as Lykae overran their camp. Afterward Joel and his men searched the camp, but the only prisoner they’d found was Ellie. Thinking back, he’d wanted to drape her over the bed, spread her legs, and lick her pussy. He’d ached to make her come. Hell, his cock turned lighthouse-hard every time he was near her.

To get through that first night, he’d told himself she was his little sister and ignored the way his body reacted to her. He’d soothed and comforted her until the potion wore off, but he’d struggled to keep his hands off her. When her drug-induced libido vanished, she’d wanted to die of shame.

Ellie had looked so lost that Joel had conscripted her into the Lykae forces. It was the best decision he’d ever made. She was a world-class cook who filled the mess hall with good food and laughter. He’d never regretted his actions, but that night of abstinence shaped his feelings.

He’d looked out for Ellie but always kept his distance. The Lykae patrolled an area near the Fae and Elf borders and had done so for the last three years. It was about as far from Tundra Toughs’ territory as he could get. Not that it bothered his soldiers. They could flash home whenever they had leave due. Ellie had stayed put though, enjoying the easy acceptance his soldiers gave her but refusing to visit with her friends when they went home.

Eighteen months after the rescue, Joel had caught himself staring at a girl from behind. He’d lusted after her pert ass and lush curves. Once he realized it was Ellie, he’d turned away. No matter how much his boner ached around her, he’d ignored his feelings, but for a moment he’d been tempted.

He’d stayed away for months, but the sight of Ellie’s magnificent ass constantly tormented him. He’d tried to seduce other women, and while they’d been willing, he’d walked away rather than fuck them, unconsciously saving himself for Ellie.

Finally he’d given up on his lothario ways and stayed celibate. Maybe he’d needed Ellie near him. Maybe he’d dreamed of fucking her senseless, but he’d kept himself in check. Then she ran from him, and his inner wolves loved the chase—right along with hot sex when he caught her. He hadn’t been ready to mate her then. Now he’d sell his soul just to stroke his fingers down her cheek or taste her lips.

If he’d listened to his instincts, he could have brought her home in style. Instead he’d done his best to drive her away. Determined to do something right, he headed outside and made his way to the kitchens at the rear of the Great Hall.

The pack’s unattached males clustered around the doorway, eager to flirt with the cook or steal a freshly baked delicacy. Joel no longer commanded the military, and he wasn’t even the pack alpha. Until he won the tournament, he lacked any sort of status. Since he couldn’t order Ellie’s groupies away, he joined their numbers.

Taller than most Lykae, Joel stared over their heads and into the kitchen. Ellie wore a Lykae-sized apron, but despite the tucks she’d made in the waist, it hung almost to the floor. He’d never seen her look so sexy or so cute.

She put a tray of oven-fresh almond tarts on a side table outside the door. “Okay, guys, these are too hot to eat yet. Anyone who helps set up the tables for tonight gets one when all the work’s done.”

Her bribery paid dividends as the unmated wolves worked with cheerful good humor. Joel inhaled the smell of tarts and tried to steal one. Ellie rapped him on the knuckles with her wooden spoon.

He shook his hand and pouted like a small boy denied a treat. “That hurt.”

Ellie smile dripped saccharine. “It was meant to. You can’t pull rank on me now, Mr.
Former
Grand Marshal.”