“Why the fucking hell did you think I’d agree to this foolishness of giving her to that bastard? And what the hell are they doing here?” Rygan snarls out in question to his commanders. “I have no clue. We got the message from Alvira. She must have intercepted it and got the elders involved,” Taz says, admitting that even though Alvira did not come, his face betrayed disappointment for Alvira as the elders trooped in. “I’m sure you mean to say that my dear child did right; after the attack on my dear Alana, I have the right to know what goes on outside the pack,” Adeline, Alvira’s mother, notes. She walks with deep pride in the room, her face cold and stoic, and immediately turns to one filled with contempt when she sees Elise. “And we are here to give our decision on the matter at hand; it’s our pack too, and it’s best to give her back to her betrothed,” another elder chimes in. “And you’d think I’d listen to these absurd orders? You dare tell me what to do?” Rygan snarls
After Elise and Rygan reached an agreement, they informed both betas about their pact and their plans for Elise to meet with Rygan for her shifting and sparring lessons. Kaide watched in disbelief and silence, knowing Rygan was seizing any opportunity to be with her, but he couldn't say anything. Rygan was a more experienced and powerful teacher than he was. When Elise left, the three males stayed back at Taz’s home to discuss their plans for tightening security before devising how to deal with Kyren. “I can’t believe she wants to meet that monster. Red has guts, I tell you," Taz muttered from the other side of the table while Kaide leaned by the window, watching Rygan, who sat by the couch, his hand resting on a cup of moonshine. “I can’t believe that Kyren dared to ask for this after what he did,” Kaide added. “We plan to kill him, yes?” Taz asked while Rygan quietly nursed his drink, recalling those barren months spent in Kyren's dungeon, tortured by his men. It was
Alvira stormed out of the room the minute she told Rygan that she was still going to fight for him no matter what. She hated to see that Elise was still on his mind even after the baby was announced. She couldn’t contain the anger in her heart when she left the moonhouse. She tried hard to keep a kind and gentle facade from the wolves who bowed at her. They still all believed Alvira was a saint. The minute she got into Beddor compounds, her anger knew no bounds. The family servants already knew about her secret tantrum, and they all tried their best to keep away from her chambers when it started. “Alvira, dear, you have to be patient,” her mom Adeline started, but Alvira didn’t want to listen to what she was concerned to say. She stops in her tracks, her eyes laced with tears and fury, as she shouts at her mother. “Mother, can you leave me alone? I thought I specifically told the exact words to say to Rygan to let him finally let that woman leave this pack, but now
Elise felt a heavy weight of pressure on her shoulders as she trudged back to her room, after her talk with Rygan; it took a lot of silent stare-downs before they’d agreed on her training alone with him. She knew Rygan was only trying to protect her and going out of his way to help her shift, even though she had tried her very best to avoid him, It still ended up this way with them being alone after all. Her wolf beamed with happiness from it. But she hated what this meant to her wolf; she would be close to him again, and Moon knew what kind of things his proximity would do to her heart. It left her tossing and turning all night with questions until dawn came. She made it out the door to Vienna's cottage, recalling that she left her training gear in Vienna’s care since her cottage had become a close comfort for Elise. She even had a cozy spare room kept for her, courtesy of Vienna's doting. She goes to the pantry the moment she steps into the warm, cozy house and the large f
Elsie had no idea why she felt so nervous—maybe because she was in the same close space as Rygan and they were alone, or just because his annoyingly handsome face was a few inches from hers. It took a good second before he let go and walked to the other end of the ring. Elise's gaze flicked to the arms resting on his waist; the gesture made his muscles flex as he looked deeply at her. “Get into your sparring stance, El; I want to see how much you’ve been trained,” he instructs Elise. She takes a much-needed deep breath as she gets into position, her hand forming a raised fist, protecting her core and face from any incoming attack. She made sure to let her feet hold down and planted them to the ground. Rygan was impressed by her quick reaction as he shifted into an identical stance. “I want you to pin me down. I want to know how much you’ve learned and how fast we can go to the next stage of your training. His face was stoic as the air calmed and the whole place was quiet.
“I want you to strip,” Rygan says to Elise. She looked at him like he’d grown another pair of monster heads, her thoughts too frozen to form a sentence as her eyes blinked rapidly. “You’re not serious.” “Oh, I am,” he replied. “This is how I train, and we will be spending hours, if not days, until your shift is successful, and I know you can do it, little wolf,” he said to her. She watched as he took off his underwear. She forced herself to look at anything other than his bare and hung member. “Moons have mercy on me; I'm not strong for this,” Elise muttered to herself. She forced herself to focus back on his torso. Elise contemplated how many seconds it would take for him to catch her if she tried running away from him and giving up on shifting, but as annoying as Rygan was, he was one tempting hell of a beast to admire. “Or are you afraid of a little skin, little wolf?” He teased Elise; she knew he was trying to play with her mind and tried hard not to react
“Tell me what you want,” Rygan whispered into her ear, his hands trailing down her spine. His touch felt like a drug, making her dizzy. She wanted more of it; she wanted him to consume her whole. She felt her claws sprout out, her canines sharpen, and a change in the air as her instincts heightened. She traced those claws on Rygan’s skin, her wolf greedy for more.an unchecked hunger for him sizzled in her system. Elise felt like she was losing herself, losing the battle between her and her wolf again. She couldn’t let it take absolute control like it did before, not again. “Tell me,” Rygan’s voice echoed, her hands fisting in his broad shoulders, pulling him in as she began to murmur softly against his skin. She wanted so much for him to take her roughly on the ground, to make love to her until she was full and sated. “I need...I need,” she whimpered. “I need to stop,” she whispered, finally gaining the courage to pull away from him. That dark tension shriveled up, and she
Elise couldn’t help but blink back in surprise at Rygan’s words, taken aback by the absurdity of his game. “I’m going to be hunting you,” Elise repeated, speechless as she watched the alpha take off his shirt, nodding in affirmation. “Yes, I’ll be training you to hunt today; it’s to hone and sharpen your senses, especially to know how to track your enemies. Thirty seconds ahead, and if you cannot find me before then, I win, and my wish will be very much intent on what I want,” he answered, his eyes darkened with those words. Elise couldn’t help but feel a shiver spread down her spine from his husky tone. A promise of his win. His pants came off next, leaving him naked. He strapped the oddly large bag to his chest as he shifted into his wolf form; now the bag hung snugly and more comfortably by his side. "Do not idly waste time, Elsie; remember, I am not your companion or friend right now but an enemy you need to face and fight because after two more howls, I wi