Alpha's Virgin Pup (Puppyville Pack, #2) (6 page)

“Brick’s well liked in the community and the long timers remembered how wrecked he was when Lorenzo stabbed him in the back,” Trig muses. “They see what Brick sees in you Bobby.”

“What’s that? Because honestly, Trig? There’s nothing special about me. I’m average and a nobody.”

“Don’t ever say that again,” Trig warns, suddenly turning from a growly but warm bulldog, to a hound from hell.

Jolly nods. “Brick didn’t pick you for no reason, Bobby.”

“You’re cute, sweet, honest and determined. Most importantly, you’re head-over-heels in love with our alpha. Everyone in the pack saw it yesterday,” Blue points out.

Trig looks at me over the table. “By standing up to Lorenzo when no one else dared to for fear of Brick still having feelings for him, you’ve already won some of the hearts of our pack members. We’re not going to let that fucker kill you. Even if you don’t win, give it your all.”

Logically speaking, it’s easy to argue Lorenzo has numerous advantages over me. He knows how to play dirty, and wins most of his battles that way. But the sneaky bastard’s got to know when to stop.

Lorenzo ruined Brick’s life once. The difference this time is me. I’m not going to let him get in the way between Brick and I. Even though there isn’t a ‘we’ yet in there...I realize that’s what love really is. It’s never easy. Could turn ugly in a second, but in the end, we do what we can for those we love.

I’ve always known the moment I laid eyes on Brick that he’s the one. Before that, my life was average. I was content in the little comfort zone I’ve built for myself—working at the local bookshop, heading out to the movies, dinner or occasional pack meeting with friends. In general, you don’t notice guys like me. I’m the quiet one, the one who lingers in the shadows, but I crossed that line the moment I sold my virginity to Brick.

The spotlight’s now on me. Eyes will be on me from now onwards, but I need to remember why I did this all in the first place. Go back to the basics. Would I be content, never letting Brick know how I feel? Would I let him slide through my fingers, despite seeing him day in and day out?

Did I regret selling my body in the hopes Brick would see my outstretched hand, holding out my heart?

The answer my friends, is hell no. Win or lose, I’m walking forward.

T
rig steers his truck and parks it by what passes for a parking lot. The dirt space is already packed with other cars. Some I recognize, some I don’t. The turnout for my little fight with Lorenzo is a lot larger than expected. The thought of most of the pack witnessing my little display of humiliation makes me feel queasy. I feel like throwing up the mega burrito I shared with my dog that morning.

Seated beside me in the back seat, Jolly suddenly delivers a sharp slap that makes my head reel.

“What the hell, man?” I grumble, rubbing at my cheek.

“Stay focused,” Jolly warns.

“If I wasn’t seated up front, I’ll slap you silly too,” Blue says.

The reminder my friends are with me helps boost my confidence a little bit. We get out of the car. Trig takes me aside before we walk over to the clearing of the duel.

“Don’t over think, Bobby. Pay attention to what’s in front of you, and try to anticipate Lorenzo’s moves,” Trig says. The sound of his voice calms me.

“I will. Thanks, Trig. I owe you big,” I say.

“I hope he did his job,” a new and familiar voice adds.

Seeing Brick getting out of his car, I almost run up to him, but I stop when I realize Rover is with him along with two other enforcers. Brick’s here on official capacity and I can’t afford to show weakness.

Instead, I nod. “I’ll do my best.”

Brick surprises me by striding up to me, and pulls me to him to a hug. Without hesitation, I wrap my arms around his huge frame. His solid feel and warmth is a calming comfort I never thought I’d need so badly.

“Remember, Bobby. No matter what happens I won’t let you die. I don’t care if that breaks the rules.”

Brick doesn’t say anything else. He doesn’t need to speak. I know aside from our pack, members from the Grizzly Fall pack are watching every move we make. The fact Brick tells me he’ll break the rules to save me makes my insides melt. Brick’s the alpha. If he interferes in the fight, it won’t just weaken his power and hold over the pack. The pack has the right to choose another alpha, and I can’t let that happen.

“I’m ready,” I tell Brick.

He nods and I can tell he’s torn between wanting to say more or letting me go. Rover clears his throat politely and Brick steps back. They head to the waiting circle first. I square my shoulders and lead the others to the gathering. Nothing about an officially issued challenge between two shifters is complicated.

There’s a rough circle, roughly half the size of a basketball court,  drawn on the ground. Two wolves enter, one victor leaves—pretty much like Thunderdome. Rules haven’t changed for centuries. Humans might find our ways brutal, but most shifters will tell you it’s effective.

I get pats on the back and encouraging words from pack members who’ve never spoken to me until today. There are only half a dozen faces I don’t recognize standing beside Lorenzo on the other side of the circle. The burly bunch looks sullen and too serious for my liking. The usual cockiness I expect from Lorenzo is gone. He looks at me impassively, if a little nervously.

Whispers and conversations are cut when Brick lets loose a loud howl more animal than human and tugs at our pack bonds to keep us all in line. It’s a bold show of power to our guests. To let them see we’re a disciplined bunch.

“There’s no need for additional ceremony. Both wolves know the rules,” Brick says.

Lorenzo sheds his clothes without care. Seeing his flawless frame, I wince. No time to be bashful about my nakedness though. I strip down, trying not to look at anyone in the eye. Appearance doesn’t matter anyway and I can’t let my self-consciousness pull me down. I reach for my wolf and begin to shift.

The movies make it easy, but shifting hurts like hell. That’s why I avoid it at all costs except during the full moon, when the pull of our beasts is hard to resist. Bones pop, insides rearrange themselves and fur replaces my human skin. No surprise Lorenzo finishes before me. The less powerful the shifter, the longer it takes, but Lorenzo can’t attack me until I’m done.

In wolf form, Lorenzo’s pelt is the color of plain chocolate brown. I might be a weak wolf, but I take pride in my coat—not muddy red-brown, but a fine rich auburn. Once on fours, I enter the circle. In our intense three-day training session, Trig only made me shift on the second day. I understood why. He wanted to prepare me mentally, because in our second forms we constantly need to wage an inner battle between our animal and human halves.

“Begin!” Rover yells and the watching crowd goes wild.

The faces of our witnesses fade from my line of sight. I can barely hear their yips and yells. All I see is my opponent, circling me, eyeing me for my weak spots. I do the same.

We close the distance between us slowly. Lorenzo might have measured me in terms of physical ability. He knows when it comes to a fight, his more powerful wolf can overpower mine, but he’s badly underestimated two things.

One. His arrogance might make him slip.

Two. How desperate I want to win.

I was desperate enough to sell my virginity to get Brick’s attention. I’m not about to lose him just when I’ve gotten him in my grasp. You see, the weak should be feared, not scoffed at. We’re the real survivors. When you lose so often, you learn to fall and get up again. Those who’ve never lost have never tasted defeat. When they fall, they fall hard.

I shock everyone by making the first move. Lorenzo’s inches from my face, but I lunge at him from the side.

He dodges at the last second and my claw draw minor scratches on his side. Lorenzo snarls, twisting to leap at me. Sharp teeth scrape against my throat, but I manage to dance away to keep my distance. My advantage disappears and my weakness becomes evident as Lorenzo comes at me again.

I’m slow to react. Speed and I aren’t good friends. I back away, but he sinks his teeth around my left paw, crippling me. I snarl in rage. Before he snaps the bone, I grit my teeth against the pain and drag myself backwards, tearing fur and muscle. Agony streaks up my bleeding paw, but I can’t stop to examine the damage, not when Lorenzo comes at me again.

This guy’s relentless. Going on the defensive won’t be getting me anywhere anyway, so I meet him midway and we tangle, a blur of claws and teeth. Reduced to animals, adrenaline sings in my veins. My wolf doesn’t want to give up. It wants to keep on going until we tear out Lorenzo’s throat, but the human part of me argues it’s insane going this way.

The high of the fight hinders my ability to think, to look at myself and know my body’s a mess. So is Lorenzo. It occurs to me Lorenzo’s acting out of character. Instead of resorting to tricks, he’s fighting me to the bone. Desperate. I suddenly remember how nervous he looked around the other Grizzly Falls wolves. The insane way he came up to Brick.

My train of thought shatters when Lorenzo goes for my injured paw again. Unbelievable fire thrusts into me. Sudden rage erases any notion of defeat.

I can’t go out like this, like some rabid animal because I can see the doorway to the future, blazing bright in my mind. A tomorrow which contains both Brick and I. That sliver of hope gives me the edge I badly need. Lorenzo’s too focused on winning; he won’t see me taking advantage of his blind spot. I feint, letting myself fall after he releases my leg.

The noise of the crowd becomes a buzz, but even lying there with my muzzle pressed to the dirt and my ear flattened, I hear it. The terror-inducing howl, a pure sound of beautiful fury that silences everyone there. Brick. Before he joins in and disrupts the fight, Lorenzo goes for the kill, aiming for my throat.

I wait for the perfect moment to strike, although each second feels like an eternity. When Lorenzo is close enough, I force energy back to my paws, ignore my injured one and meet his tackle. I fall on him, teeth ripping through his fragile underbelly. My wolf urges me to go further, to gut Lorenzo open and feel the spray of his hot blood and pulsing insides spill out, but I reel the beast back.

“Finish him,” says a voice. I lift my bloodied head to see one of the Grizzly Falls guests. Beneath me, Lorenzo lets out a pitiful whine. He also wants this to end, and I wonder why he’s gone through the trouble of coming back here if all he seeks is death.

I draw back, away from the smell of fresh blood and prey. Painfully push aside my rampaging inner wolf and force my body to shift. Once I’m human, I look up to see Rover, Brick and the Grizzly Falls wolf standing above me.

“Why didn’t you finish the job, little wolf? Mercy is a weakness,” says the guest.

“Something’s fishy here,” I tell Brick, ignoring the guest. “The way Lorenzo fought...how nervously he looked around the other Grizzly Falls guests...it’s shady.”

Okay. I didn’t sound all that eloquent, but fatigue’s beginning to hit my body and I’m covered with cuts and bruises. All I want is to snuggle next to Brick. The stranger takes a menacing step towards my kneeling form, but Brick comes between us, baring teeth. I settle for clutching at his left leg and leaning my head against his thigh. Brick absentmindedly spears his fingers through my hair, stroking me. The gesture’s nice, and I think a silly smile appears on my lips.

“Alaric, hurt him and you risk the alliance between us and your pack,” Brick says in a careful voice. “Bobby fought honorably and adhered to every law of the challenge. Whether Lorenzo dies or lives is up to him. Start explaining. I love Luka like a brother, but I won’t hesitate to send you to him in pieces for causing trouble in my territory.”

It  goes quiet. I can feel the weight of everyone’s gaze there. Scanning the faces, I notice some bare their teeth at Alaric and his crew. Others give them openly hostile looks. All Brick has to do is give the word and there will be a frenzy. Wolves don’t like being tricked, and the Puppyville Pack isn’t a pushover. In our territory, we’re the top of the food chain and the primal side of me recognizes that—so does Alaric and his chums.

Alaric takes the diplomatic route. He gives Brick a bow, and presents Brick his exposed throat. It’s a gesture submissive wolves give to those higher in the pack ladder. “On behalf of my pack, we’d like to apologize for the deception. You see, after Lorenzo broke our laws, Luka allowed him the option to transfer to another pack. He picked yours. We didn’t know until yesterday that Lorenzo would challenge your mate to the death. We mean no insult.”

“By sending that asshole here, you’ve already insulted us,” Rover said.

Gritting his teeth, Alaric doesn’t snap back. He takes deep breaths and says, “We underestimated how far he’d go, but we’d like to remedy the problem.”

I don’t know if Alaric is telling the truth, but I don’t sense any malice from him.

“What laws did Lorenzo break?” Brick asks.

Alaric makes a disgusted noise in his throat. “Screwing around with Luka’s mate. I told Luka to kill him. Instead, he showed Lorenzo mercy. Are you going to do the same?”

“Lorenzo is not my problem. He’s yours. So take him and get the fuck out of my lands. When my anger’s sufficiently cooled, we’ll talk,” Brick says.

“What about our request?” Alaric asks. So that part at least is true.

Brick lets out a threatening rumble and that finally forces Alaric and his flunkies to get going. Two of them haul Lorenzo’s bleeding form on either shoulders and they exited the junkyard. Once I hear their car engines fading, I sigh and rub my cheek against Brick’s jean.

He looks down at me, amused. Then alarm crosses his features. Brick kneels in front of me and I nearly topple over, but he catches me.

“Get me a fucking healer,” Brick yells.

Footsteps scramble. I’m about to tell Brick not to worry, but my vision swims and I lose control of my limbs. The next time I wake, I’m in Brick’s warm arms, still naked and surrounded by other anxious faces. Brick’s exchanging heated words with someone. It takes me a second to place who.