The Omega's Mate:
Authors: E A Price
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Genre Fiction, #Horror, #Occult, #Romance, #Fantasy
The Omega’s Mate
(Book
8, Grey Wolf Pack Romance Novellas)
By E A Price
Copyright ©2014 by Elizabeth Ann Price
All rights reserved.
Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.
Disclaimer
This
is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Thank you to Linda Garrison Gray for providing editing suggestions on chapters one - three
Front cover
Both images used to create
the front cover have been deemed to be in the public domain, and available for reuse. No offense is meant in the use of them.
The wolf picture ‘lonely wolf’ is by
Gethu Daniel, found on Flickr at
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ghetzu/3535994578/
The embracing couple was posted by
Bryan Brenneman
on Flickr
at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23401759@N00/3751354690/
Table of Contents
January 18th
“
Come on! Hit him!”
“Tear him to shreds!”
Don Cross and Hans Lucas raised their eyebrows. They had no idea they’d mated two quite so bloodthirsty witches.
“Come on, Cain, kill him!”
Kayleigh Cross and Melanie Ramirez were bouncing up and down, and screaming their hearts out. Don and Hans were wolf shifters, and members of the Grey wolf pack that resided in Rose, VA. Recently they had met and bonded with the two witches, Kayleigh and Melanie, respectively.
In their spare time, the two wolves helped a friend of theirs, a Kodiak bear shifter called Cain, train for cage fights. Tonight the two couples were attending one such fight.
When Don suggested it, Kayleigh demurred; she said there was no way she would like such a barbaric display, and Melanie had stated she couldn’t imagine enjoying seeing blood flying around. But they had eventually agreed, on the basis that they could force the wolves to do something they wouldn’t enjoy either. Kayleigh already had her sights set on the ballet.
The thought of taking her gruff, older, Texan mate to watch people dancing in tights was irresistible.
Surprisingly, Kayleigh and Melanie seemed to be enjoying themselves more than anyone else present.
Cain was fighting a rhino shifter. At seven feet, Cain dwarfed people with his towering height and bulging muscles. But the rhino was even bigger. He was at least seven foot six tall, had a shaved head and tribal tattoos covering the whole of his back and neck. He looked like an overgrown gargoyle; it actually looked as if his face might crack if he tried to smile.
In the first round, Cain had taken hit, after hit, after hit, from the brutal rhino. When the bell finally rang, Cain looked half dead. His face was puffy, and blood was pouring from his nose. At that point, their friend and pack Omega, Carly Finlay, had looked green and excused herself, and Hans’ brother had gone with her, to make sure she was okay.
Carly had recently broken up with her boyfriend and was still upset. Hans had said ‘good fucking riddance’, and although Melanie had slapped him for being insensitive, she did actually agree with the sentiment. In spite of Hans’ growling disapproval, Melanie had invited Carly to come with them, and also invited his brother, Acksel, in the hopes that the two might get together.
Hans had tried reasoning with his stubborn mate. Carly and Acksel had known each other for years and had never been interested in one another.
But Melanie wouldn’t hear of it
. As far as she was concerned, they were two of her favorite people, and they deserved to be happy. Impishly, Melanie had played on Hans’ jealousies and reminded him that it might be better if Acksel were settled with a mate… When Melanie first came to town, Acksel asked her out on a date, and Hans still hasn’t forgiven him.
Wolves were irrational and possessive when it came to their mates
. Grudgingly, Hans did have to admit that he would feel better if Acksel were mated to a woman.
To any woman, really.
So Melanie was very pleased when Acksel left with Carly. She gave her mate a haughty look, and he scowled at her. He told her it didn’t mean anything. Acksel was the pack’s Chief Enforcer. He cared for all his pack members and would do the same for any of them. At that, Melanie raspberried and wiggled her butt, leaving her mate crying in laughter.
In the second round, things started to pick up. The rhino’s arms were a little tired from repeatedly hitting such a hard target, and Cain made his move. From then on it was Cain’s show. Cain ruthlessly hit, punched, kicked and wrestled the rhino. In shifter cage fights, pretty much anything goes. Cain took advantage of the fact that he was faster, and lither to dodge out of the tired rhino’s grip. He twisted back and launched a barrage of devastating blows. With a huff, the rhino fell to the ground. The referee counted him out and named Cain the winner.
Cain threw up his hands, bellowing triumphantly, and the crowd went wild. Furious shouts and cheers shook the building, and women screamed that they loved him. Melanie and Kayleigh jumped around hugging each other, whilst Don and Hans roared in support of their friend.
After leaping about in victory, lording it over the rhino, Cain eventually allowed himself to be led away by his manager.
Kayleigh wrapped her arms round Don and planted a huge kiss on his lips. “Cowboy, that was awesome.”
Don ran his hands down her back. “Glad to hear it, darlin.'”
Hans pulled his own mate flush against him, smothering kisses on her neck. “What about you sugar? You enjoy yourself?”
Melanie wriggled against him. “Hmmm, it was okay, I guess.”
Hans nipped at the bonding mark he had placed there, and she shuddered delightfully. “Tease.”
Don and Hans excused themselves to talk to Cain, whilst Melanie and Kayleigh went in search of Carly and Acksel.
*
The wolves found Cain in the locker room. His manager, a particularly cut-throat jackal, called Bailey, was pacing and berating the huge bear. Cain sat flexing his considerable muscles, whilst a weary looking squirrel shifter tried to tend his wounds. A slightly smaller brown bear shifter, Ethan, was hovering around, watching Cain avidly.
“For heaven’s sake, you didn’t even try to hit him in the first round!” railed Bailey. “That fucker could have knocked you on your ass. At least he had the sense to hold back for round two. He knows people want to see more than one round.”
“I won didn’t I?” drawled Cain.
“You were awesome man!” grinned Ethan.
Bailey rolled his eyes. Ethan was Cain’s biggest fan, and, considering how much competition there was for that spot, it was really saying something. In spite of Cain’s indifference, Ethan practically worshipped the ground he walked on, which also meant Ethan was prepared to do anything for the Kodiak bear, and Bailey was happy to take advantage of that.
Cain snarled as the doctor pinched his nose. “Your nose is broken,” sighed the squirrel. “Hold still, this is going to hurt.”
Cain roared as the doctor snapped his nose back into place. Bailey ignored them and kept ranting.
“People don’t pay to see you getting your ass handed to you; they pay to see you handing other people their asses.”
Cain stood up and stretched his battered limbs.
“Are you even listening to me?” demanded Bailey, ignoring Ethan.
Cain rolled his massive shoulders in a shrug. “I don’t know; you said something about asses… hey guys!”
Cain broke out into a toothy and bloody grin, as Hans and Don strolled into the locker room. The wolves returned the greeting and congratulated him on the win.
Tiring of Cain’s constant fidgeting, the doctor gave up and half-heartedly told the bear to go to the emergency room if he didn’t fully heal in the next few days. Bailey slipped the doctor a few bills before he shuffled off.
Cain rummaged in his locker for clothes. “So O’Neill’s to celebrate, right?”
“Ugh, you shouldn’t be out drinking all night,” snapped Bailey. “You have another fight in two weeks; you need to train.”
“Lighten up, B, I just earned you a lot of money. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll only have one beer.” Yeah, right.
Bailey scowled and jabbed a finger at Ethan. “You make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid. Last time he was celebrating he turned up naked in Orlando.”
Cain grinned remembering that night.
Not
that he could remember very much of it
. “Don’t get your panties in a bunch. I’ll be fine.”
Bailey stormed away muttering furiously while Cain sniggered. Ethan hovered around Cain, staring daggers at the wolves. It irked him that Cain persisted in training with the two smaller wolf shifters. Ethan was more than happy to do anything for Cain; he would be a much better sparring partner and friend than a couple of dogs. But Cain continued to hang around with them.
Don cleared his throat, ignoring the young brown bear. “You want us to wait for you?”
“Nah, you guys go ahead.” Cain licked his lips. “Are Mel and Kay here?”
“Why?” growled Hans suspiciously.
“Just wondering. I was thinking about going to the bar shirtless; women go crazy for the bruises, but if your mates are there, I won’t. Wouldn’t want them fainting at the sight of a real man, and kicking you guys to the curb.”
Don, by far the calmer of the two wolves, restrained Hans and dragged him out the room.
“Asshole!” roared Hans.
Don led Hans away as quickly as possible. Don was confident enough to endure men trying to flirt with his mate. She was a 22 year old, curvy blonde who oozed sexuality. She garnered a lot of attention but was quick to shoot men down. Hans, in spite of Melanie’s adoration, wasn’t quite so secure…
The last time Cain made a comment about Melanie had been the Orlando incident.
Payback, courtesy of Hans
. Don could only imagine what the wolf was dreaming up for him now.
Ethan bristled at the wolves, but Cain just chuckled. Hans was a good friend, but damn was he stiff; the wolf needed loosening up now and then.
Cain looked to the brown bear. “Why don’t you go get a drink Ethan?”
Ethan fidgeted trying to think of an excuse to stay. “I could drive you to the bar…”
“Nah, you go on ahead. I insist.” said the Kodiak in a steely voice.
Ethan paled slightly, before nodding and leaving. Cain couldn’t decide whether he liked Ethan. Admittedly, Cain was flattered by the kid’s adulation, but the brown bear was kind of cloying.
Stripping, Cain ambled into the shower. He paused by the mirror to look at his bruised face. No permanent damage at least.
Stretching under the hot spray, he let out a hearty groan. His bear roared and rumbled. A good fight always satisfied his beast and made him as pleased as a cub.
For a little while anyway.
He lathered his big body in soap and watched as the blood swirled in the shower, turning the water pink. Cain stiffened, and his bear snapped to attention, as he heard a soft patter and the rustle of clothing. The unnatural perfume scent assaulted his senses, and he knew what was coming.
A soft hand walked its way up his spine. He spun round to find her smiling naughtily. She bit her lip and fluttered her eyelashes. She tried to affect the look of innocence.
Not easy since she was completely naked
. And also because she had done this after every fight he had in the past year. He’d found it exciting the first time, now it was just a matter of routine.
“Hey, Jules.”
“Hey, Cain.” She cooed and rubbed her hands over his chest, ignoring his soft snarls of pain.
His bear retreated grumbling; he wasn’t keen on the pushy hyena shifter. Jules came to all his fights and screamed the loudest of all his fans. He’d even had to change the locks on his apartment after
she stole a set of keys and let herself inside. He’d found her getting very comfortable in his bed. Not that he’d complained at the time, but it wasn’t something he wanted to happen on a regular basis.
“I saw you fight, and you were amazing.” She pouted. “I bet you’re really tense, maybe I can do something to help you with that.”
Jules slithered down his body. Kneeling before him, she looked up with desire hooded eyes. “You love me right, Cain?”
“Sure, babe, you’re my number one girl.”
*
Kayleigh and Melanie found Carly sat on the hood of Acksel’s truck, sipping from a bottle of water. Acksel stood by, arms folded.
Carly still looked a little pale.
On reflection, a fight maybe wasn’t the best place to bring an Omega
. Omegas were physically the weakest members of wolf packs, but they were connected to all members of the pack and could manipulate emotions. They could also soothe and sense strong emotions of non-pack members. The bloodlust of the crowd in the arena was just a little too much for the sensitive Omega.
Carly grimaced when she saw the women walking towards her. “Is it over already?”
“Yep, and it was great!” gushed Kayleigh.
“I’m sorry you missed the fight, Acksel.” Carly chewed her cheek.
Acksel gave her a lopsided smile. “No worries kiddo. Not really my kind of thing anyway.”
Melanie exhaled.
Kiddo?
She’d been trying to set Carly up with Acksel even before her dickhead boyfriend, Bryce, dumped her. But she had to admit, it wasn’t going to happen. Acksel treated her the same way he did his kid sisters. It killed her, but Hans was right. God he was going to be insufferable about this.
Kayleigh rubbed her hands together. “So, O’Neill’s everybody?”
“What’s O’Neill’s?” asked Carly.
“A bar in Darlington.” The generously named arena was ten minutes outside of Darlington, which was a town not far from Rose.
Acksel and Carly both protested with various reasons, but after the witches whined and needled, they gave in and promised to have one drink.
Carly really wasn’t in the mood, but she never could hold out for long. She was a total pushover.
Besides, what could one drink hurt?
