Her Mates by Tamara White
Seventeen
“Hey, Dani, you ready to watch us do some training?” Jason calls when he sees me coming down the hallway from my room.
He’s casually leaning against the wall outside his room, as if he’s waiting for something. Maybe he’s waiting for me? Nah, he wouldn’t do that.
“Yeah, it should be good. I have a lot of energy to burn. Moving around hasn’t been the best for exercising. I haven’t been able to really train since we got here. I’m looking forward to seeing if I can take you down as easily as the others.” I smirk at him.
“Hmmm, are you sure you can handle it? I’ve been training a lot longer than the others,” he taunts with a cheeky grin in place. If he thinks that’s going to scare me, he’s wrong. Cam was easy to take out, so Jason should be no problem.
“You’re on!” I grin.
“The boys won’t be out at the training arena for another fifteen minutes if you want to test this out now. Though I don’t blame you if you’re scared,” he teases, a light in his eyes I haven’t seen before.
His confidence and playfulness are a little disarming. He seems like such a serious person, so it’s nice to see this side of him.
“Alright, let’s go,” I challenge.
He laughs, grabbing my hand and running through the house until we’re outside. We follow a small path until we’re in an arena that’s clearly used for training. It’s obvious because it smells like blood, sweat, and tears.
They’ve cleared it of trees and grass, so it’s just all dirt. Trees surround it, making it look like a boxing ring. There’s enough room between the trees so you could set chairs around for entertainment. I wonder if this is where they will have the fighting trial or if they have another arena somewhere else. There’s a small shed built off to the side—I’m guessing for any supplies they need, like for wounds or spare clothes.
The arena is huge, almost big enough for the house to be placed here, which makes it the perfect place to train when you have a pack of wolves.
“First one to surrender wins,” Jason declares, lunging for me.
I stumble backward, almost tripping over my feet, before gaining ground and coming back swinging. He blocks me punch for punch and kicks out, trying to unsteady me. Stumbling, I fall, landing on my side. Jason pounces, making me roll and leap out of the way. I sweep my leg behind his knees, causing him to drop. I tackle him, and we struggle on the ground until I end up planted firmly on top, holding his hands down.
Looking down at him, I see the smile on his face, and I know he let me win. My wolf could tell he lost the fight on purpose, which was really sweet.
Staring at him, I feel the urge to kiss him, and it’s so strong that I lean forward to do exactly that when I hear the voices of the others. I jump up, worried about being caught. I shouldn’t have let things go like this. I don’t want Jason to get the wrong idea, and I don’t want the others to get jealous.
“Dani, you okay?”
Crap, I must have zoned out again. The boys are all running training drills and here I am just watching on the sidelines. It made my mind wander a lot more than I thought it would. Once the others arrived, we all sat down to have a picnic the guys brought with them.
It was pretty sweet that they carried lunch out here rather than having to sit around a table with the rest of the pack. Members had been dropping by the house all morning in a bid to meet me. I’m just not ready for all of that one-on-one. The party was easier to navigate and quicker to escape.
I’ve been thinking about each of the guys, trying to figure out what to do. Jason is so sweet and kind that I couldn’t bear to break his heart. Pete makes me laugh and feel light. Jonnie and Mitchell both make me feel strong, bringing out a need to protect those around me. Nate…where do I start? He makes me feel like a flame is burning inside me, and without it, I would crumble to ashes. Then there’s Cam—so fierce, so loyal, and one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. He endured so much trauma, and yet he never said anything. He waited until his friends unwittingly discovered him being tortured before he shared his story. That’s a strength even I don’t have.
“Yeah?” I answer, unsure who exactly asked. My thoughts are still swirling around.
Cam breaks apart from the others, despite the fact that Jake and Rick are in the middle of instructing them.
When they got out here, Rick and Jake reluctantly admitted they weren’t actually my mates, explaining that Tim didn’t trust anyone else to protect me. Well, besides the boys. Not that I didn’t already know that part.
It worked out well though. The first trial means they face off against other enforcers. What better way for the guys to train for a trial than for them to fight against the enforcers in their pack?
“What’s going on? You’ve been out of it since we got here,” Cam questions, plopping down beside me.
Sighing, I lean my head on his arm. “I’m okay. Monique gave me a letter my mom wrote for me. I guess it just hit harder than I thought it would. I mean, I didn’t even know her, so it shouldn’t have affected me like this. Somehow, though, it’s making me feel as if I’ve lost her all over again.”
“Of course it did. That’s some mind-blowing shit. What did she say?”
“Just the usual, ‘I love you, you have to save the world, look after your father.’ You know, the typical things a mother tells her daughter when she knows she’s going to die,” I tell him, smiling when his jaw drops.
“Save the world?” he questions.
“Yeah, it’s a long story. I’ll tell you later, okay? Now, how about I do some training?”
“What’d you have in mind?” he asks, smirking.
“Well, I was thinking about giving you all another ass whooping. Besides, I need to practice too,” I reply, grinning.
Pete overhears me and calls from the practice arena, “Whoa, looks like my little firecracker wants to have some fun. Maybe you should try the enforcers first. You really do need the practice.” He grins mischievously. Little does he know, I’m confident I can take them.
I’ve trained my whole life to be able to defend myself. After my incident with Trey and his father when I was fifteen, I pushed myself to the limit to make sure I could fight off multiple foes. There is no way I’ll ever leave myself weak enough for them to try again.
Maybe they need to see just how strong I am? They need to know I can protect myself from any threat.
“Okay then. Jake, Rick, no holding back, got it? I want the guys to see exactly what I’m capable of,” I order, smirking as I watch them hide expressions of surprise. It’s strange. Their Alpha Pair is supposed to be powerful, but they all treat me like I’m weak. Monique’s and Walter’s performances yesterday showed they are powerful, but maybe Luke and Carrie aren’t dominant enough for the packs? Maybe that’s the reason why they keep underestimating me.
“Alright. When you want to give in, just say the word,” Rick offers, taking off his shirt. You’d think it would be distracting, but even though he’s hot, it’s not.
“What word?” I ask, not sure what he means.
“Hairy pineapples is the safe word,” Pete calls out, chuckling and setting off the others’ laughter. I sigh, knowing that if I have to say, “hairy pineapples,” I will never forget it.
“Hey, what’s up?” a voice says behind me. It’s Trey. Stephen is with him, but that doesn’t stop the hair from rising on the back of my neck.
They must have heard us and decided to join us. Great. Even more of an audience. I just hope Trey stays far away from me.
“Our mate,” Cam begins, laying a thick dose of sarcasm and possessiveness on the word mate, “is going to fight these two.” He gestures at Jake and Rick.
“Does she know they’re enforcers?” Trey questions, obviously doubting my ability to beat them.
I’m loving the encouragement from the douche. Maybe I should give him a beatdown. I smile at the thought, enjoying the idea.
“Don’t even think about it, Dani,” Nate scolds, seeing the evil grin on my face.
“Yep, she knows,” Jonnie states, barging past them and coming straight to me. When he reaches me, he grabs my hand and leads me away from the others until we’re just out of earshot. I look at him, confused as to why he wants us to go so far, when he leans in and rubs his cheek against my own. This is a weird time to be rubbing up against each other. I’m about to tell him so when he whispers against my cheek, keeping his voice so low that I strain to hear it.
“I’m not sure what their intentions are, but we’re worried about why they would come to watch. They were hanging around all morning but didn’t approach until you showed up. The best thing you can do is beat Jake and Rick as swiftly as you can. Maybe if they see how strong and quick you are, they’ll back out of the next trial,” he whispers softly, causing me to shiver.
I’m trying to listen, I swear I am, but his voice is so calm and soothing that I want to melt into a puddle at his feet. Damn it! I really need to stop swooning!
“Don’t worry, it’ll be over in ten minutes,” I assure him.
He walks back so I can take my place opposite Jake and Rick. Now that I know they’re enforcers, I feel stupid for not realizing it sooner.
Jake is built like the boys and has tattoos running all the way up his biceps. His buzz cut makes him look exactly like what I’d imagine someone in the human military looks like. His eyes are a deep brown color, showing how troubled his soul is. The only downside is I’m not attracted to him or Rick.
Rick is just as tough and attractive, but neither myself nor my wolf are interested. Rick has more of a boy next door look though—blue eyes, sandy hair, six-foot-five, and a wall of muscle.
Maybe I can subconsciously tell who my mates are? That could be why I’m not attracted to the others.
Everyone backs away while Jake and Rick size me up. I can tell they’re not quite sure what to expect, so I decide to take them for a run. I love sparring, and I want to make sure Trey’s afraid of me.
Watching them, I wait for them to make the first move and almost miss it. They flow together and have obviously worked with each other before. Jake tries to grab me from behind, while Rick lunges at me, throwing punches and trying to hit me any place he can.
Ducking under Jake, I kick out, knocking him to the side. Rick keeps coming at me while Jake’s hunched over his gut, trying to catch his breath. Time to show them I’m not just good at defending myself, I’m exceptional at attacking.
I start punching Rick back, using my speed against him. They may be fast and strong, but so am I. He blocks me while I feint right, punching him straight in his jaw. It sends his head flying back, spraying blood all over the ground. Rick growls and shifts into his wolf, making the guys freak.
“It’s okay. I can handle him,” I yell out, keeping my eyes on Rick’s wolf. I have to admit, he’s beautiful with a tawny brown coat and black shadings around his face. He’s growling at me, clearly pissed off, so I need to knock him out quickly. If his wolf is this mad now, it will only get worse the longer I prolong this.
Jake seems to have finally regained his breath and joins Rick, his eyes flashing amber and letting me know that even though he’s human right now, his wolf is in control.
Rick jumps, almost landing on me. If it wasn’t for my reflexes, I wouldn’t have been able to dodge him, but Jake’s already moving.
He grabs me around the neck, and the force of it nearly snaps it in two. My wolf growls, close to the surface, and I’m sure my eyes must be flashing amber. I kick out, hearing his shin crack. Jake screams before dropping to the ground, and I spin around, delivering a roundhouse to his head, knocking him out. I don’t get time to celebrate though, because Rick is on me, gnawing on my arm and pushing all of his weight against me.
My wolf is in control, letting loose a growl so ferocious it scares even me. Rick whines and lets go of my arm, shrinking back. I walk on all fours toward him, letting my wolf make me as tall as she can, growling low in my throat.
He drops to the ground, laying his head on his paws, and releases a whine so pitiful it brings me back into my mind. My wolf is still there, but she’s pissed and hurt that he injured us. I straighten out of the crouch, wiping the dirt from my hands. Glancing over at the boys, I see them all wearing looks of pride and wonder on their faces.
Stephen and Trey, though, are in their human forms, lying on the ground much the same way Rick is.
Mitchell rushes over to me, picking me up and swinging me in his arms. I laugh at the joy on his face, and the others all swarm around me, taking turns hugging me.
Jason has been surprisingly quiet since we sparred, but when it’s his turn to embrace me, he whispers in my ear, “You did such an amazing job. You were definitely made to be our Alpha Queen. I will help you no matter what it takes to get you on the throne where you belong.” His declaration is so sweet that my heart literally skips a beat.
“I agree, that was fantastic!” Pete praises, hugging Nate in his excitement.
“I know. It was so hot!” Nate exclaims, making me blush.
“I understand you guys are excited, but don’t any of you find it strange none of us had to submit?” Jonnie asks, glancing at Mitchell first before looking at the others.
“Honestly, it makes sense. We’re her mates. The others technically aren’t, they’re just trying for something they’ll never get. As for you, Dani, you were brilliant! I’ve never seen someone take out an enforcer so fast,” Cam says, stepping to my side and offering me a squeeze.
A slow clapping starts, and I wonder what they’re clapping for when I notice the sound coming from behind me.
Tim, Laura, Monique, Walter, and my dad are standing at the tree line, clapping with other wolves from the pack behind them. It’s embarrassing knowing that they must have been watching for at least the last half. I’m glad they didn’t submit to me like the others. That would have been worse.
“Well done, Dani. When I assigned Jake and Rick to protect you, it was because they were the strongest enforcers to come from any of the packs in the past five years. What you just did proves you’re strong enough to be our Alpha Queen,” Tim declares, dropping to his knees and bowing his head to the side, submitting.
What is he doing?
One by one, all the wolves drop in an act of submission, including my mates. While everyone bows to me, I take it all in.
This is real. I will be Alpha Queen.
