Bully mate, p.25
Bully Mate, page 25
Who would have thought?
Tristan fell down to his knees beside Cat and turned to stare at Claire with disdain in his eyes. Claire readied herself for another attack, but it didn't come. He backtracked out of the courtyard and disappeared into the woods.
When Claire glanced around, she realized most of the lycans had fled or had died in battle. A few wolves were scattered amongst them, and it hurt her soul to know she was the reason for all of it.
Claire felt a warm palm on the back of her neck, and she shifted, catching herself on her hands and knees on the ground. Axel helped her up, staring at her face, he leaned in and kissed her.
It felt warm and heated. A desperate plea in the way his mouth moved against hers. "It's over," he whispered when he pulled back.
Claire wasn't sure it was. Tristan had vanished along with a handful of lycans.
"Are you sure?" she whispered.
He lowered his hand down her back, and a slight breeze brought her back to reality. "I'm naked," she whispered.
Axel lowered his gaze and smirked. "That you are."
"I need clothes. I'm not used to this."
He nodded and pulled her up the stairs and into the castle. The silence crept along her skin like needles, and each step she took felt like a lucky one. It'd been her first battle, and she felt lucky to be alive.
Axel led her toward the closet in her bed-chamber and found a simple white sundress amongst the slew of fancy dresses Tristan had made for her. "Put this on. I'll go see if the perve had underwear picked out for you, too."
Claire slipped the dress over her dirty body, feeling dizzy from being back in her own form.
We did good, her wolf whispered.
"You did good," Claire said. "I'm proud of you."
Axel returned with a sports bra and underwear for Claire and had changed into a pair of basketball shorts he'd found somewhere.
"How many didn't make it?" she asked.
Axel pushed his fingers into his hair. "Eighteen wolves died, and ninety percent of the lycans were killed."
Claire frowned.
"Hey," he said softly, pulling her into him. "You did good, Claire. Your wolf … she's beautiful and strong. I was stunned when you first shifted."
Claire nodded but didn't meet his gaze. "I'm sorry about your pack."
"It's part of being a wolf, Claire. It's not something that we want to happen, but it's just something that happens. Their lives didn't end for nothing. We saved numerous people they would have killed, and we saved our pack. I have my luna, and the pack has their future alpha."
Claire smiled half-heartedly, still feeling bad that all of the wolves didn't make it. She slipped into her underwear when the floor creaked from the bedroom.
Her dad filled the doorway, and reality hit her hard. She hadn't spoken to him about any of this, and she had tons of questions for him.
"Do you have a minute?" he asked her.
Axel leaned in and kissed her cheek, leaving her alone with her dad.
"I think we're going to need more than a minute."
Chapter Fifty-Two
Axel
Axel left Claire so she could speak to her father. They had tons to talk about, considering they hadn't spoken since Claire found out about her bloodline. Axel found his way out of the castle into the aftermath of the chaos outside.
Most of his father's pack were dealing with the wounded and resting amongst the havoc of the kingdom. Axel's dad stood in the midst of a group of wolves, directing them on where to check for any injured pack members.
"Dad," Axel said, stopping beside him.
He turned to face Axel. Placing his palms on Axel's shoulders, he stared at him. "Are you okay? You're in one piece. That's good. Where is Claire?" he asked, glancing around the courtyard.
He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder. "Upstairs with her dad. They have some stuff to talk about. Is everyone accounted for down here?"
"Mostly, yes. Besides some lycans that made a run for it."
Axel looked at the wooded area surrounding them. "Yeah, Jaxton—my roommate—was one of them. Do you think he'll come back and get his stuff out of the dorm room?"
His dad cracked a grin. "Probably not. Looks like you have some free stuff." He shoved his shoulder into Axel's. "Claire did amazing out there. She's beautiful, son. I know it's messed up, but in a twisted way, I understood Tristan's want to build an army with her. She's perfect. The perfect blend of lycan and wolf."
Axel scratched the back of his head. "I know. It's unreal to think that was hiding inside of her all these years. Just a few days ago, she didn't even know she was anything other than human, and now, she's a freaking queen."
"It is surreal," his dad said, his gaze traveling across the quad. "What's going on over there?"
Axel followed his line of sight to Kerry and Demetria in the midst of what looked like an argument. "Ah, hell. Who knows," Axel mumbled. "I'm not sure she's down for the mate thing."
"That sucks for Kerry," he mumbled. "Especially due to his luck with mates. What about the witch? The other one. Where is she?"
"Here."
His dad turned on his heel, coming face-to-face with her. She looked sicklier up close, with hollowed cheeks and the eyes of someone one hundred plus years old. "Don't let the skin and bones fool you. I've been denying any food to keep from having to do Tristan's bidding." She glanced at the castle. "But since he's gone now, I'll be on my way—"
"Wait," Axel's dad said. "Why did he have you imprisoned?"
She clutched the sides of her ratted dress. "He'd been planning on taking Claire for years now. He wanted her to bare his mark and his alone. This isn't something new for him. He just didn't realize he wasn't as powerful as he thought."
"Do you think his brother will come back?" Axel asked.
She chuckled. "Yes. Not now, but one day, I do. He loved his brother deeply and will hold a grudge against Claire for this."
Axel's stomach dropped at the thought of anyone seeking revenge against Claire. He'd kill anyone that thought twice about hurting her again.
"But …" she said, eyeing Kerry and Demetria behind them. "I'd say those two will cause you problems before Jaxton will."
"Those two?" Axel asked, looking at his dad before looking back at them. "What do they—"
When he turned toward Cynthia, she was gone. "Super witchy," his dad mumbled. "That gave me chills."
Axel watched as Demetria pulled from Kerry and stormed toward the castle. She wouldn't leave without Claire, but it didn't look like she wanted to leave with Kerry. Kerry tugged on his long blonde hair that had fallen from its holder and stalked over toward the two of them.
Axel pretended he didn't notice their argument, but his dad wasn't as subtle. "What the hell was that about?" he asked.
Kerry grumbled beneath his breath. "Nothing. Just one hard-headed woman. You'd think my second chance would at least like me. She borders the line of wanting to kill me at any moment and kiss me. She's very exhausting, as if I'm not already tired. Are we ready to leave now? I want to go take a shower and rid myself of her dramatics for the night."
"We're waiting on Claire to finish talking to her dad," Axel said. "Are all the wolves ready to go? We probably should rally them up."
Kerry took it upon himself to do it, leaving Axel with his dad once again. "What are we going to do with Cash and Tibbs?" his dad asked.
Axel hadn't completely forgotten about them, but they'd slipped his mind. Especially due to the fact someone wanted his mate so badly. "I don't know, Dad. We can't let Cash go freely. We'll have to train him to control himself. Maybe Demetria can come up with something for Tibbs. Dude is traumatized, for sure."
"What about Delia?" his dad sighed. "She's back at the pack house, and I'm sure she'll be heartbroken her king is dead."
Axel glanced at the castle and the top room where Claire was with her father. "I don't know. Maybe Demetria can help with her, too. I'd hate to wipe her mind, but I don't see another way out of this. She was obviously some sort of human pawn to him. I don't know if she grew up here or just fell into his trap. Either way, we need to figure something out. But not tonight. Tonight, I want to go back to my house and be with Claire.”
Without any chaos or threat of destruction over them.
His dad wrapped his arm around his shoulder and tugged him into a hug. "You're going to make a great alpha, son. And Claire is going to make a perfect luna. But I want you both to enjoy college first. Enjoy yourselves. Get to know your relationship and each other. Now there is nothing standing in your way of moving forward with her."
Axel's wolf spun circles of excitement inside of him. They'd been through so much together. From their destructive past, to being ripped apart, and tossed one curve ball after the other, it finally looked like destiny was on the horizon.
The front doors to the kingdom opened, and Claire walked down the steps with her father on her heels. She looked distressed, but Axel could sense she was just frustrated at her father.
He lied to me for so long.
Axel smiled to himself, realizing she'd learned how to communicate with him via their mind link.
He thought he was protecting you, Axel answered.
She eyed him from the distance, rolling her eyes at his comment. He was sure her dad said the same thing.
Not you, too, she mumbled.
She stopped in front of him, her blonde hair blowing in the humid wind. "I don't know about y'all, but I'm ready to go home. Can we deal with the drama of everything else tomorrow?"
His dad chuckled. "Sure thing. Kerry is gathering the wolves. Dan … you're more than welcomed to spend the night at the pack house."
Dan looked dirty and worn. The random clothes he wore were too small, and by the grim look on his face, Axel could tell he didn't want to leave Claire.
"Yeah," Axel said. "Come on home with us tonight. We'll regroup in the morning."
He nodded. "I think I will. Where is Demetria?" he asked. "I saw her sulking in the castle. Can she ride with y'all? Because I'm not in the mood for her mouth tonight."
Claire sighed. "She can ride with Axel and me. The truck is back through the woods. I wouldn’t mind a midnight run through the trees."
Axel smiled, never realizing that he would love to hear her say that. "Beat you there."
Chapter Fifty-Three
Claire
Claire soared in-between trees, over brush and stumps, into the night with the moon as her guide. Aunt Demetria refused to ride home with Kerry in his truck, so Dad was forced to take her home before going to the pack house.
Claire was glad. She didn't want to ride in a vehicle with them for over an hour with so much tension. She wanted to run—her wolf wanted to run—with Axel. Though Kerry tagged along behind them, he didn't complain about taking the long way back to the truck.
Not that she would have cared if he had.
It'd been a long few weeks, and Claire felt her wolf deserved it.
After her talk with her father, her body felt tired. He'd lied to her for so long. How had she never noticed anything weird—or out of the ordinary—about her father? She felt foolish. And for him to keep so much bottled up … no wonder he was grumpy.
She wanted to forgive him, and she would, but she needed time. She had a freaking lycan-werewolf locked inside of her for years, and he kept her from seeing her true self.
That was big.
He'd admitted to being wrong, which was more than anything he'd done before. The look of sadness on his face when he mentioned her mother. He'd loved her, and the lycans took her away. It twisted her stomach into shards of regret that she'd never known her. It made her understand he wanted to protect Claire.
He'd admitted to her that he was scared to lose her to Axel, but that ship had sailed. The mark on her neck proved it. There was no going back now, and she didn't want anything else.
She'd always been the shy little girl that took everyone's crap. Now she felt empowered and free.
Then there was Jaxton. He'd gotten away with a handful of lycans. Part of her dared him to come back. She'd kill him just as she did Tristan. And the other part was tired and wanted him to tuck his tail in surrender.
Axel's wolf howled behind her, and she felt the sound of it send shivers over her wolf. She loved the sound of him, the feel of him running near her. It was a completely different universe.
What had she been missing?
They made it to Kerry's truck, and Axel swiftly gathered her clothes from the bed and tossed them to her. The being naked part would take some getting used to, though she didn't mind seeing Axel's toned ass every once in a while.
She slipped into a pair of too-big basketball shorts and an over-sized track shirt that smelled like Kerry.
It was odd she knew Kerry's smell so precisely, but she did. She smelled everything. The strong scent of pine and even the night. It smelled like home.
"Are we ready?" Kerry asked, stalking toward the driver's side. He slammed the door behind him.
Axel glanced over at Claire. "I don't even want to know."
"Me either," she said, reaching for the door handle, but Axel stopped her.
She glanced up at his dark eyes, and he smiled. He looked younger—lighter—most likely less stressed than before. "You were amazing out there, Claire. Your wolf is beautiful, and you're strong. I never would have guessed that wolf was hiding inside of you."
She chuckled. "You and me both."
Axel laced his fingers around the back of her neck and angled her mouth to meet his. "We won."
"We did," she said with a smile, but it turned downward. "What about Jaxton—"
"No," he said, shaking his head. "He won't be back any time soon. He's alone besides a few lycans. How much havoc could they cause? If he does come back, it'll be a while. It's our time to be together. To go back to school and start our lives."
"You're right," she whispered.
Kerry honked the horn, and Claire sent him a dirty look through the window. "Weird isn't it?" she asked. "Everything feeling normal?"
He chuckled and opened the door for her. "It's about damn time."
***
Axel's fingertips traced along her bare back, causing goosebumps to form on her skin. They'd had a lazy weekend at her apartment. The one she didn't have to stay away from any longer.
The campus fell back into a normal routine with no missing students or attacks. It'd felt nice to walk across the courtyard without fear that someone would try to kill her.
Not that she couldn’t protect herself now, but she didn't want to get a big head about it.
The autumn breeze blew in from her cracked bedroom window and made her smile into her pillow. Axel's woodsy scent enveloped her against the bed where he trapped Claire beneath him.
He had football practice in minutes and always made an effort to wake her before leaving. "You want coffee?" he whispered into her ear.
She pressed her face into the pillow, while lifting her bottom against him, making him groan. "I want something alright," Claire said, turning to look up at him.
She knew she looked disheveled since she just woke up, but it didn't matter either way. "Don't be greedy," he said. "I have five minutes, and you know that's not enough time to—"
"Definitely not," she said, shoving him off.
He looked delectable in his football pants and t-shirt. The veiny lines of his biceps sent her stomach into somersaults. She'd let him drag her back to bed if it meant spending another day there with him.
"I can make my own coffee. I have a late class this morning. You need to hurry, so you're not late."
He followed her into the kitchen and watched as she started the coffee pot.
"Tibbs still doesn't remember anything?" she asked.
He shook his head. "Nope, looks like Demetria did a good job with him over the weekend. Everything is back to normal. Besides Coach's desperate plea to find Jaxton. Poor guy. I wish I could tell him."
"I know," she said. "He'll eventually give up. Hopefully. I admire him for it, though. He cares about his players."
"Yeah," Axel said, grabbing his bag from the floor. He slung it over his shoulder. "I'll see you in class, and maybe we can grab lunch."
"See you then," she said, blowing him a kiss. He jogged out of her apartment and down the stairwell. She listened to him all the way to his truck and even hearing the door slam from the parking lot below.
Claire fixed her coffee, and sat on the couch while scrolling her phone. She had almost two hours before her class. Someone knocked mid-drink, and she glanced over her shoulder, knowing it was Aunt D, which startled her.
She could sense her unease from across the room.
"Just a second."
She walked over and opened the door to a distraught version of her aunt. "What's the matter—"
"I need to talk to you," she said, shoving her way inside.
Aunt D was in pajama pants, which was weird, and a tank top, as if she'd ran straight from her bed to Claire's apartment.
Claire put her palms outward. "What's the matter? Slow down."
Aunt D slicked her palms back over her hair and sighed. "There is a reason I can't act on my mating bond with Kerry, and believe it or not, it's not because I don't like him. I like 'im, Claire. I like 'im so much."
Claire lifted a brow and took her seat on the couch. "Continue."
"This is serious," she said sharply, giving her a look. She walked around and sat down beside her. "I'm in really deep."
Claire sat down her coffee mug. "It can't be worse than what I've been through. Tell me. We will figure it out."
Aunt D sighed and briefly closed her eyes. "Years ago, I got myself in trouble with a coven of witches and made a deal with a warlock to get out of it."
"A coven of witches? What kind of deal?"
