** Donovan POV **
Donovan wasn't sure what had come over him, but as soon as he had entered the Captain's room, his willpower to reject the Captain had left him. He could tell that the Captain was also being affected.
He felt the Captain tighten her arms around him. He lifted her even more, allowing her to wrap her legs around him. When he held most of her weight, she used one hand to grab his manhood from between them.
'Mate, now,' his wolf Nolan commanded.
Donavan wanted to take his time with her, but his wolf was growing impatient.
'It's her choice,' he reminded him as the Captain guided him to her entrance.
Donovan broke their kiss and looked up at her slightly. The Captain looked different than before; her hair was darker, and her eyes were an even darker shade of blue.
'Mate,' Nolan repeated, urging him to take her.
"I can't wait," he said softly.
The Captain nodded and leaned her forehead against his, bracing herself. Donovan looked at her face as he pushed himself inside. A small hiss escaped the Captain's lips, but otherwise, she didn't move. He felt a bit of resistance, but he slowly pushed forward. His instincts told him to keep going and not stop. To him, the resistance lasted a long time, but once he was through, he slipped in all the way. The Captain visibly relaxed in his arms.
He kissed her jaw and began moving in a slow tempo for her to get used to.
'Mine!' Nolan exclaimed, pushing Donovan out and taking over.
He heard Keira gasp, and his body shifted slightly. His wolf had started a small shift. Donovan's k-9s almost bit into the Captain's lips when he leaned up for a kiss.
All he could do was watch as his Nolan, his wolf, took total control from him and thrust against her. She felt nice, tender, and tight. Donovan didn't fight him for control since he, too, was enjoying the feeling.
He should feel guilty about his actions, but at this point, that didn't matter to him. Her scent was intoxicating. All that mattered was meeting his mate's needs. Her breath had quickened, and her body began to tighten around him. A new surge of power grew within his gut, but this one was different than before. The urge to mark her grew, and he started salivating.
Realizing what Nolan was planning on doing, Donovan tried to stop him. 'Don't!'
Nolan didn't stop. The only person he wanted to mate and mark was the mate given to him by the Moon Goddess. He disagreed with the mate that Donovan had chosen in Victoria.
Nolan quickened their pace, and when she climaxed, he bit her, marking her. He kept himself inside of her as he emptied himself. As Donovan's senses came back to him, he left a small amount of pain in his shoulder but ignored it. Knowing that the bonding would sap both their strength away and force them to sleep, Donovan quickly finished up in the bathroom and carried her to bed. Within a few minutes of lying down beside her, he fell into a deep sleep.
*
The air in Donovan's dream space was thick with the scent of damp earth and rage. He stood on a moonlit forest floor. Before him, a hulking figure began to coalesce from the shadows, its fur black as the night, eyes like burning embers. Nolan.
"You," a growl rumbled, deep in Donovan's chest, vibrating through the very ground. Nolan felt it in his bones. "You fool. What have you done?!"
Nolan flinched, even in this ethereal landscape. "Me? What have I done? You're the one who—"
"Marked her!" Donovan roared, taking a predatory step closer. His k-9s were bared. "You bound her to us. To me. When I explicitly commanded you not to! Have you lost your mind!"
"I didn't want to!" Nolan protested, his voice cracking with fear. "It wasn't me! The scent… the heat… it was too strong. I couldn't help myself. I had to take over."
Donovan's glowing eyes narrowed. "I felt the pull, yes. But you allowed the instinct to override the control. She was vulnerable, Nolan. And now, she carries our mark. Our scent. Every other pack will know. Victoria will know. I made a promise to her parents to take care of her. We chose her as our mate."
"You chose her," Nolan growled. "I didn't want her. You decided without consulting me."
Donovan growled in return. "I didn't want this for her. For us. I barely know Keira. It was a mistake. A terrible, irreversible mistake!"
Nolan remembered the raw, primal urge that had consumed him, the strange, possessive triumph he had felt even as his human self screamed in protest. He wouldn't admit it to Donovan, but he didn't feel guilty.
"A mistake we will live with," Donovan snarled, his voice with uncontained anger. "A mistake that binds us. To her. Forever."
The dream world around them began to ripple, the moonlight flickering. "Now, she is ours. And I will deal with the consequences."
The last thing Donovan saw before the dream dissolved was Nolan's triumphant, savage grin, a reflection of the primal joy.
Donovan woke with a gasp, the scent of damp earth and wolf still clinging to his senses, and the chilling realization that in this battle for control, he had truly lost. He looked over and saw Keira snuggled against him, sleeping soundly.
He looked up at the ceiling, feeling the strength and power beginning to flow through him. The result of the bonding.
"Alpha," Marcus said through mind-link. "You appointed a Luna."
"Yes," Donovan replied, reluctantly. "Nolan decided. I didn't agree with it."
"I can feel it through the pack bond," Marcus continued. "I feel a sense of stability. Many of the pack members will be grateful for the stabilization. I hope it's enough to keep them from leaving."
Although Donovan was beyond angry with Nolan, he had to admit that his pack was hanging by a thread. There were several pack members willing to leave if conditions didn't improve. It wasn't just about Donovan's promotion and moving the pack to a new territory; he wasn't lying when he told the Captain that he needed her help to stabilize the pack.
"Wake me if you need anything," Donovan said, closing his eyes and drifting back to sleep.