"The subject of today's gathering is that each of you must submit your market research reports and regular design submissions by the end of this lunar cycle," Felicia's voice carried through the conference room, precise and commanding, her words slicing the air like a wolf's teeth. "Anastasia and Alice, prepare yourselves to participate in the jewelry competition at the month's close."
Alice's lips curled in irritation, her pack instincts bristling. "Felicia, isn't there a rule in the pack hierarchy that outsiders cannot wander into our territory at will? Why do Anastasia's family, friends, and… her mate, get to enter freely? It's not in line with the Alpha's code!"
Felicia shifted uneasily, glancing at me with that subtle hesitation humans mistake for indecision. "Anastasia, remind your mate not to frequent the pack grounds so often. Even gifts like flowers can disrupt the balance and unsettle other pack members."
Heat surged across my cheeks, a flicker of irritation mingling with the natural flush of pack alertness. Does everyone really assume Nigel is my mate now? My body tensed under the weight of multiple gazes, primal instincts alert to the shift in energy.
Then, a sharp, teasing voice cut through the room. "That's right! Just seeing that bouquet makes me envious! Anastasia, your mate is so commanding and handsome how dare you bring him here? Aren't you afraid someone will challenge your claim?"
I exhaled slowly, the room buzzing with the undercurrent of jealousy and territorial instincts. "Fine," I admitted, letting my voice carry the authority of someone claiming her pack. "Yes, Nigel is my mate." The truth rolled off my tongue, and the room stilled slightly, sensing the finality of my claim. It would be less complicated than fending off endless questions and whispers.
From the corner of my eye, I caught Elliot's gaze. His dark eyes were sharp, calculating, and full of the dangerous curiosity of an Alpha assessing another Alpha's mate. Memories flickered in his expression Nigel and I at the airport, the embrace that had stirred a thousand subtle pack instincts, my own lack of resistance in that moment. Now, he watched as I openly claimed my bond with Nigel, and I could feel the storm of conflicting emotions behind his controlled exterior.
When the tedious meeting finally drew to a close, Elliot's voice broke through the murmurs of departing pack members. "Anastasia stays. The rest of you may leave."
A ripple of unease swept through the room. Even the bravest of the pack left quickly, sensing the undercurrent of dominance and the unspoken threat in his words. I remained, though, caught between the fascination and wariness that came with standing before a fellow Alpha.
The door clicked shut, sealing us in the quiet hum of the office. Elliot pivoted in his chair, the air around him thickening with his raw, unfiltered dominance. The room seemed to shrink under his presence. He fixed me with those icy eyes, the weight of his Alpha aura pressing down on my senses.
"You should be aware of my bond with Nigel," he said, his voice low, almost a growl that vibrated through the room.
I met his gaze evenly, instincts sharpening, but my posture remained calm. "I am," I replied, letting my voice carry the subtle steel of one who understood the pack's hierarchy. "What is it that you want, Elliot?"
He leaned back slightly, though the tension in the air did not ease. His dominance was palpable, and yet there was something more a flicker of interest, of challenge, that made my instincts prickle. In this modern pack, among humans and wolves interwoven, the rules of territory, bond, and loyalty played out in every glance, every word, every breath. And now, he had made it clear: he was watching, assessing, testing the strength of the bonds I had chosen.
Elliot's gaze darkened, a shadow of raw dominance sweeping over the room. "Remember that you owe me something?" His eyes locked onto mine, and I could feel the pull of his presence danger wrapped in power, like a wolf scenting an unclaimed territory.
I frowned, searching my memory, but nothing came. "Do I owe you anything?" I asked cautiously, my pack instincts bristling at the intensity in his stare.
"You've forgotten?" His growl rumbled low, a vibration that set the air around us trembling. The sheer dominance radiating from him made my fur rise and my heartbeat quicken.
"Give me a hint," I muttered under my breath, trying to steady the primal awareness rising inside me. I had no time for forgotten debts that seemed trivial, yet my instincts warned me that this was no ordinary claim.
Without warning, Elliot's movements became sharp, predatory. He rose, long limbs carrying lethal grace, and his hand clasped my wrist with the force of a pack Alpha asserting control. Before I could react, he pressed my waist against the edge of the table, his body radiating heat and raw energy that stirred something deep inside me.
Instinctively, I leaned back, heart racing, but his other hand moved to the back of my head, holding me steady. Then, with a cold precision that made my blood hum, he pinched my chin and lifted it, eyes locking onto mine with a hunger that bordered on feral.
And then his lips crashed onto mine.
It wasn't gentle. It was a mark of dominance, a claim, a surge of aggression laced with unspoken challenge. My senses reeled this kiss was raw, territorial, demanding acknowledgment. The world shrank to the heat of him pressing down, the scent of his wolf essence overwhelming my senses.
My eyes widened, shock mingling with disbelief. In the middle of the office, under the invisible watch of the pack hierarchy, Elliot this stranger, this Alpha was staking some claim over me.
I pushed, but my strength felt almost irrelevant against his unwavering hold. "Elliot, what are you doing?" My voice carried authority, but beneath it, my instincts flickered with confusion and irritation.
"Didn't you ask me to remind you?" His voice was low, hoarse, a growl threading each word. "This is what you owe me." The mockery in his tone stoked a primal fire in me, anger mingling with the magnetic pull of his presence.
I drew in a trembling breath, stepping back to wipe my lips with shaking hands, mind racing. Memories of Hayley, of his past touch, surged unbidden, and revulsion mixed with an inexplicable thrill. "Don't kiss me!" I shouted, eyes blazing like fire in the dark. "If you do this again, I will make you regret it."
Elliot didn't flinch. His gaze held me like a wolf's on its mate, dark and unyielding, yet flickers of something deeper shimmered within possession, memory, desire. My lips, soft and alive, had triggered something primal in him, a memory of a touch five years past, and yet… I was a stranger, a human among wolves, and still he couldn't let go.
Why does she make me feel this way? His thoughts pulsed with the confusion of instinct and reason clashing. Her scent, her presence, her fire everything about her demanded attention, claimed his focus. Even knowing her rejection, the Alpha inside him ached with the desire to assert, to bind, to own.
The office seemed to hold its breath, the tension between us taut and electric. My pack instincts screamed at me to fight, to defend, yet the awareness of his Alpha presence made every muscle tense with conflicting urges.
This was more than a kiss. It was a claim. And whether I wanted it or not, the pack's unspoken law had already marked me under his dominance.