“I know they said you must have a mate by the time the council reconvenes Benedict. Ebony, I don’t have a problem with you as his mate, so please don’t take offense because it’s not about you I have any objections about. I have a problem with them pressuring you at this moment to mate. You lost someone close to you and another left you. That means you are grieving, and it’s not right or fair to force you like this. It muddies the waters, so to speak, about how you feel about your relationship going forward and the ending of the other two. That’s what concerns me.” Alpha Hayle said. Dinner had finished and everyone was leaving. His words stopped everyone in their tracks. This wasn’t something their father did often. Speak out about his dislike for a decision or command from the council. A council he was a member of. “I understand, and I’m sure Ebony won’t hold it against you. We know that every day we wait could complicate the mating process and cause it to fail
Ebony trotted out behind Benedict. It appeared most, if not all, of the pack were there for the run tonight. That meant the field behind the packhouse was full of vehicles and a mixture of wolves and humans. They were all wolf shifters or mates of shifters. It looked much like a tailgate party except for the excess number of partygoers wearing fur. The back patio had built-in barbeques and even a food preparation space. A metal shuttered window to the kitchen lay open, which created a safe pass-through space for food and supplies. Everyone milled as snacks were prepared for the run. Music played on speakers, and it appeared everyone was happy. Benedict, however, stopped when he saw the sheer number of pack members. Ebony forgot how he’d reacted to her family appearing at the tower, and later when he met her pack. He’d not met them on mass like this, but he’d not felt comfortable within a crowd of shifters. These were a lot more wolves in a single space than he’d probably ever seen
This wasn’t how she ever thought her mating could go. Lots of sex, focused on each other to excluding others, and an earth moving knowledge that everything was. Ebony didn’t question if Benedict was her mate. Even if she hadn’t felt that intense, that’s how it should be. She knew they were mates. Maybe Franco and Peter muddied the water for them? But she didn’t have it in her heart to blame them or felt any anger toward them for this. Tonight, they were going to make it final. From now on, mate. The stories Ebony knew that referred to mating were always mentioned it as spontaneous and memorable. The council forced them to plan it. Could it ruin their experience? Could it set their relationship in the wrong direction for the rest of their lives? She didn’t want to hate her mate in the end. Benedict deserved better than that. She deserved better, too. They got ready for bed and sat there on the bed beside each other. “We’re doing this.”
They fell back on the bed. Benedict climbed on top of Ebony. His legs leaned against the side of the bed, anchoring him between her bare, open thighs. Her scent filled his senses when she leaned into him, and it triggered his need for his mate. Benedict thought this part of their mating ended weeks ago, and the surprise of its return had him eager to see where it took them. He felt the crown of his cock thrust hard toward its goal at the juncture of Ebony’s thighs. Benedict expected a significant encounter tonight. He’d be here all night, taking them to heights of passion many times. Benedict could feel his wolf’s animal need for his mate finally come forward. Ebony must know by his scent, too. If her hands and thighs communicated anything to him, she would soon experience her wolf’s primal desire to mate with him, maybe already present. Benedict told his lips from Ebony’s and smiled down at her as a manic smile lit his face. When he w
Ebony awoke in a bed that looked like a battle had been lost in it. But her body told her that it was otherwise. She could feel her heat now. Dang it. She’d forgotten about it. No one even mentioned it. But Ebony found herself reaching for Benedict. He slept right beside her. They didn’t have any blankets in the way, and she could see he was ready for another round of coupling. He may be asleep, but his inner wolf wasn’t. It wanted its mate and with her in heat it wanted to provide her with what she needed.It wasn’t the best decision, but Ebony’s instincts told her what she needed, and she didn’t think twice about what she did. Her mate lay on his back, with his shaft at the ready. What male wouldn’t want to be awoke by his mate riding him with a pleasurable wakeup call. So, she did what her instincts told her. It didn’t matter if she felt sticky or sore. She needed more. Her body demanded satisfaction now. It wanted him, inside her and wouldn’t be happy with anything else.Ebon
Benedict felt it now. What Ebony struggled with before they mated. It was done and permanent. He didn’t regret that, but after convincing himself he’d share her with the others Benedict felt guilty for his selfishness. He knew it didn’t make sense, but that’s how he felt. The morning came too fast for him. He’d laid awake for a long time after Ebony slept thinking about what they’d done. He didn’t feel guilty about doing right by Ebony. There wouldn’t be a bond between them now if it’d been wrong. They would have gone on their way without a care about it if they weren’t mates.No, he felt guilty because Peter couldn’t be here, and Franco didn’t want to be a part of this without Peter. For Benedict he didn’t see the reason he felt guilt about this. Though he did want to ensure that Franco didn’t lose himself in his grief. That would gut both Ebony and him. But Franco was an adult, and they couldn’t expect to control him like that. It was the most control a being could have over t
Ebony and Benedict went through the next days with celebrations that included both their families. They had to spread the celebrations out because there were too many alpha wolves scattered among the relatives and they feared conflicts might occur. Knowing a reputation was something different to coexisting in the same space for any length of time.“I don’t get this Ebony. It’s so easy to like everyone. Yet I still feel like I should leave.” Benedict lay in the grass beside his mate. They’d gone for a run for most of the day. After all, this should have been their honeymoon. The month after their mating where it should have been just them together adjusting to life together. But it would have to wait until they understood their future. That wouldn’t happen until after they’d settled things with the council tomorrow. “Well, I think we’ve discussed this to death Benedict. You’ll adjust in time. This is your family, and they want you here. Albeit they are a little too possessive of
“Thank you, Benedict, for being so obedient with our demands. I wish we could have been more forthcoming with why we demanded these things of you. We are in a unique situation. As one of the largest extended Packs in the world we are held as an example of how resilient we are and how we can still function with nature within so many environments. With the eyes of humans now on us, we’ve found humans who run some of the world’s leading industries looking to us to see how we run things and maintain our environment. This has led us to discover we could do better. Far better. What we have in mind is you and your mate may be one of the few who right now have the skills needed to manage this new endeavor. We need a Pack where we can train wolves to manage the forests in a safe and sustainable manner. We also need wolves who can enter emergency situations and help get disaster victims out. Right now, we have you and a small group of wolves who need an Alpha couple. They have th
Ebony took Benedict to the closest healing center she had her Beta call ahead to explain the situation to explain that they weren’t having an emergency but they did need extensive healing for a leader. Her Beta sent a file that Benedict’s Beta received from the healer about his condition so that they could understand what to expect when they arrived. They wouldn’t book an appointment until the healer received it. But when she received the file it took minutes to receive a response. Ebony wasn’t happy that they didn’t seem to accept their words and explanations. It wasn’t until someone recognized Ebony’s last name and connected it to her mother then things changed. “Why did you have no one say anything about it Luna?” A junior healer who worked as a senior administrator and was working as the leader of the group managing Benedict’s needs while was there. “I love my family but I’m not a shadow or a facet of anyone of them. I’m
“When when last spoke and I told you I hadn’t received injuries I wasn’t lying. We had a freak accident nothing that we could have predicted or accounted for. They misplaced truck and the ground was too wet under it. When a second vehicle moved out while they were moving a skid of equipment into place. The earth under the rear wheels shifted off the back of the truck in seconds and I was beneath it. The skid was no longer full but heavy enough to break my femur and three ribs.We had a healer there, so they patched me up. The planes needed several repairs that would take days. I didn’t want them to take time away from the repairs to take me to a healing center then it would take longer to get home. Before you say anything, I didn’t believe I was that severely injured.” Benedict hadn’t believed he’d been that injured until after the Druid had stabilized his breaks and the pain had settled in when his adrenaline had faded. He’d been embarrassed by his response to that, but it was to la
Benedict didn’t tell Ebony that he stayed away an extra two days because he had gone to the front lines to review the damage to their equipment and vehicles. Fate got him and he ran right into a freak accident and a human skid slid off the back of a flatbed truck. There was no question about it the accident being an accident. Wolves and humans were working together to pack the truck at the time. But the mud under the truck shifted when another vehicle started and moved out.He’d left with a broken leg and three ribs. At least they’d had a druid healer here who could start his healing process. But he wouldn’t be able to shift for a week. Benedict would walk home though a little slowly.Benedict knew he’d lied to Ebony, but he didn’t want to explain it on the phone. Not when she was so close to giving birth. His people had to make several repairs on their vehicles there in the field to get it home anyway. It took a day longer and it didn’t hurt Benedict’s recovery. Even though h
Ebony waited at the Pack house. It had been three days since Benedict and their team had left for the fire. The pilots had come in for fuel and repairs. Several vehicles had come in baring injured people on the way to get care. They’d been found trapped within the fire or were injured during fighting the fire. But so far, their wolves, mages, druids, bears, and such had stayed safe and were still working toward stopping the fire. However, Ebony had heard complaints that magic was a disappointment by the human fighting contingents and not nearly as powerful or magical as they had believed it should have been. Which received sighs, warnings, and reminders of their that there were limits like anything within reality. Ebony used the time, or she tried to, to finish the pups’ suite. It wouldn’t be used fully right away. They would have the pups in their room first before they would use their suite. She wondered who these pups would look like. Ebony h
Benedict was teasing Ebony with names over dinner when the call came through. The first real call. They’d been watching a storm for the last three days. It’s winds were pushing thirty-five miles an hour and lightning was flashing randomly throughout the mountains. The problems they were having was the area the storm was in had been a dry zone for the last eight months. They were waiting for the lightning to start multiple fires, flash floods, landslides, and car accidents. Humans would need help it’s how these things worked. Extreme weather was becoming worse not better. Humans could handle a lot but it was adding up.“Go on, this is what we made this place for. Show them why we’re here and what we can offer.” Ebony all but pushed Benedict out the door. “I have enough people here to help me. I’ll be fine here missing you. Now go.”“Right. Don’t do anything crazy while I’m gone okay?” Benedict begged. He wasn’t sure what she would do. But she was pushing him out the door when he w
Ebony couldn’t get comfortable. Her stomach was so large now. She struggled to get out of the bed and chairs. Ebony avoided standing for too long. It had been months since she’d shifted into fur, and she missed hunting. She missed running and there wasn’t any way she was going to run like this. But her balance was off like her pups decided they wanted to sit only on one side of her body. That’s the only way she could describe it in her grumpy upset mood.Benedict was distracted by Ebony’s distressed attitude. She still had two months until she gave birth. He tried to ensure she had everything she could want and if she wanted to move then she had someone with her to help her. Preferably it would be him. He hated anyone touching her but him now. They spent more time together. “I have a few gifts here from the families and the Pack wants to set up the pups’ nursery. Are you ready for that or is it too early for you?”“oh no I’m great. Go ahead and have them bring me in the gifts
Ebony had her staff enter and between her staff as Marian’s staff they worked with the school’s staff. They had to brute force at times to get the documentation completed and wait times waived. To gain the testing schedules at a specific date and location. But between Marian and Ebony’s joint effort they were able to overcome the bureaucratic mess presented to them. Marian used the media and the public eye to keep the gears moving. While Ebony had the eye of the supernatural government on her through Benedict’s father and her father. So, there was no room to falter and no time.Even so it took months to achieve this and get this far. Now they were able to step back into their everyday life. Ebony’s baby bump was beginning to show now. Benedict was managing the building of the healing center and hiring of healers as many would also work as teachers, rescuers, emergency workers, and such.Benedict knew he had to have a certain amount of medical foundation up and running fast sin
Benedict moved through the Pack house searching for Ebony. He’d received word that Marian had arrived at the gates and was headed there right now. This was the first time she’d visited their territory and Ebony along with many others were abuzz with trying to make everything perfect for her visit. “Ebony, Marian is here. She wants to talk to you about the results of her PTA meeting.” Benedict leaned into her study and saw the stress on her face. “What’s going on? Do you think it went that badly?”“Badly? I don’t know. I mean come on. It can’t get any worse than they say no, and we carry on with our previous plans. No, they might want to limit where out pups can and can’t go after this. They might fear our pups can’t control their aggressive nature and might cause problems.” “I don’t know about that wouldn’t she have said something on the phone if it had been a no.” Benedict asked in an effort to point out the effort Marian was taking to come to their home.“I don’t know Ben
“Marian, I know in a perfect world we could plan this between the two of us and we’d have pups and children learning together without a problem.” Ebony went to a meeting luncheon with Marian to speak about Marian’s idea of the pups going to school in the town with the town’s human children.“Right. It would never happen that way, would it? Alright, so how will we do this?” Marian said a little chagrinned. Ebony shook her head and shrugged. She cocked her head to the side as she got a sudden thought.“We’ll start with talking to the children’s parents. We don’t have to talk to them. A questionnaire or a phone call. A town hall meeting or a PTA meeting. You can choose what would make the community feel more comfortable. I would hate to hear someone a year from now say that they felt they were left out of the decision and didn’t feel like a member of the community.” Ebony gave a vague idea. A blush crossed her cheeks when she realized how random and unworkable it was. But Marian did