7. Aurelia

Chapter 7

Aurelia

" I thought you said the dragons eradicated Granny's product from this kingdom?" I asked Hadriel as we continued through the center of the cute little village. Bright and cheerful homes were nestled close to each other with little pops of color from blooming flower boxes. The cobblestone lane at our feet was so clean it almost looked scrubbed. The area had a lovely, welcoming feel, like a community that stuck together. It was so different than the place I'd lived, the contrast stark.

"What can I say? People keep bringing it in. That trick with the blanket—how'd you know that would work?"

"I made the stuff, remember? I baked in fail-safes. I told you that. I had to, or Raz would've driven me mad."

"So you've had a lot of experience talking people around?"

"A lot, yes. I tended to cause the nightmares with Raz and many of those who routinely sampled the batches to make sure they were okay. Others just lost their way. It's a lot easier and faster if a closet is close by, or the person hasn't been incensed by wolves foaming at the mouth."

He raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips. "Harsh."

I shrugged as he slowed near a little building with a large window at the front. Hadriel knocked, then opened the door and motioned me in before following behind me. The natural light shone across his sparkly, colorful jacket; he was allowed to dress how he preferred now that he was back in his home kingdom.

A man sat at the desk, paused in putting a piece of paper into a file.

He looked up as Hadriel approached. "Yes, how can I—" His eyes rounded and he stood quickly. "Hello. What can I do for the royal court?"

Hadriel stepped aside and motioned me forward. "This woman needs a quick moment with the village head. Beta's orders."

"Oh! Yes, of course. The beta is back, then? Was he successful?"

"Yes and no." Hadriel put his hand to my back, guiding me.

"When did you return? I hadn't heard."

"Just now. We're stopping in on the way to the castle."

Butterflies swarmed my middle as the man opened a door and stuck his head in, repeating what Hadriel had said.

"Yes, of course," I heard from inside the room. The butterflies in my stomach started to speed up their flight.

The man pushed the door wide and waited for us to enter. Hadriel didn't move.

"I'll be right out here," he told me, rubbing my back. "Do you want the door opened or closed?"

I shrugged one shoulder as I took my first step. "I don't care." I swallowed as I entered. Fear had bile burning up the back of my throat.

I'd always wanted this. I'd wanted magic, an animal, a way to fit in. Now that I faced the possibility, I was terrified of what the man would say. I was terrified my dream wouldn't come true, knowing I'd be devastated. But I was just as afraid, if not more, that it would. Because of what it would mean about my past.

The village head was a short, squat man with graying hair and brown eyes. He sat at a messy desk in a room lined with books.

"Yes, how can I help?" he asked, leaning back in his chair.

"I've come to ask if I have magic," I said in a firm tone. "An animal, I mean."

The man's brows knitted together as he stood. "Of course, yes. But didn't I hear that you had come under orders from the court and the beta? Surely you didn't have to stop to see me if you've traveled with him..."

"It's complicated. I preferred to speak with someone who didn't know me."

He stepped around his desk. "Well, sure, but I'm not one of the more powerful alphas. I'm in this position because I know how to run a budding town, not a pack."

"That's fine. I just need you to check and see."

He shrugged and approached. "Well okay, if?—"

His eyes turned sharp, and he stopped, glancing at the door.

"Is this a joke?" he demanded. "Is that Hadriel out there? Am I the punch line?"

Hadriel stepped through the doorway. "Like she said, it's complicated. She just needs a stranger to tell her, without a doubt, if she has an animal or not. Then yank it out and we'll be on our way. My jokes are never this simple."

The man's brow pinched together in a frown at Hadriel's explanation. "I don't believe you. Look, I've always been very upfront about my lack of power. I said it just a moment ago, didn't I? I'm good at my job. I don't need?—"

"I've been told my whole adult life that I don't have any magic," I interrupted, tingles of unease making my nerves dance. "My mother didn't have magic. I believed the person who told me that I didn't either. I'm not convinced I can believe the alpha?—"

"Beta," Hadriel corrected me.

"Beta, whatever, when he tells me that I do. I just need a second opinion from someone who has no vested interest in the situation and who doesn't know my past. Please, can you tell me—do I have an animal in there?"

The man's expression cleared of doubt, kindness taking its place. He stepped a little closer.

"Sweetie, you have a very powerful animal in there, yes. Trust the beta—he would know." My heart started thumping. "I don't have a lot of power myself, which is why I thought Hadriel was making fun of me, but I can certainly feel it, my dear. Who is this person who told you that you didn't? They must not have had much power."

I started to sweat. "My guardian. She is quite powerful, hence my uncertainty. Can you tell what kind of animal it is?"

His confusion was evident, but he didn't ask questions. Instead, he shook his head. "No, that can't be known until you shift, and you shouldn't shift without guidance. The first time can be very dangerous. Don't worry, though, you've come to the right kingdom. The queen herself has only been shifting since the curse fell a year and a half ago. Many people here are new to their animals." He smiled at me warmly. "You aren't so far behind. The beta was smart to bring you here. Would you like me to end your suppression?"

A rush of sweet adrenaline ran through me. Tears crowded my vision. My mom would be so proud, so relieved. She'd always wanted this for me—for me to have magic, to belong. She'd be singing and dancing if she were here right now, hugging me endlessly.

Granny had kept this joy from me. I'd been treated like shit all my life, spat on, avoided, kept from having friends... She'd watched me endure the censure from the village, isolated because of their prejudices, picked on as a teen, taunted by her own employee. That whole time, she had said nothing.

No, that wasn't true.

She hadn't said nothing.

She'd looked me right in the eye... and lied.

That wasn't love; it was cruelty. If I'd needed any more evidence, this was it.

Tears overflowed as the enormity of this news threatened to pull me under.

I blew out a breath. "Yes, please."

It was time to get on with my life.

He nodded, and I felt his power reaching into me, taking hold. A flash of panic froze me up. This felt wrong, unnatural. It almost felt intimate, but in a violating way, slithering through me. I was used to Weston's power, not this. I wanted his delicious feel, not a stranger's.

"What the?—"

The man windmilled his arms as he fell backward. It was only then that I realized I'd shoved him.

"Oh my—I'm sorry!" I stepped forward, reaching out to catch him. He'd hit his desk, though, then toppled over it.

Hadriel bent over in a fit of hysterical laughter.

"It's not funny," I told him, hurrying to the desk. "Gods, I'm so sorry. I panicked. I've only ever felt the alpha—beta, I mean—Weston! I've only ever felt Weston's power like that, and feeling yours tripped me up. I'm so sorry! I think I'll just have him grab my animal, if that's okay. I'm sure he'll do it."

"Oh yes, he'll do it. Let's go." Hadriel reached for me, still laughing.

The village head picked himself off the ground slowly. His eyes were wide. "You'll have a bright future ahead of you, young lady. A real bright future. I've never seen someone without their animal move so fast."

"Uh, thank you. And again, I'm sorry." I offered an awkward wave as we left his office.

"At least he wasn't mad," I muttered, looking over my shoulder as Hadriel guided me out. The man was straightening his desk while watching us leave.

"He's probably wondering who you are, given you use the beta's first name so casually and know his power so intimately."

"He'd probably be shocked to find out."

"He definitely will," Hadriel said, and for some reason I couldn't put my finger on, I didn't get the impression he meant because of my affiliation with Granny.

We walked in relative silence back through the center of town to rejoin the group. We passed the spot where the wolves had cornered the intoxicated man from earlier. The man remained under his blanket. It didn't look like he'd moved at all, which was what I'd expect if he was left alone. An aging woman sat on the ground by his head, her back bowed, sightlessly looking at her feet. It was so sad to see her waiting for him, worrying as he lay stuffed under a blanket after a display of wild behavior from unlawful drug use for all to see. I hated being responsible for that. I hated my part in tarnishing the people of this lovely little village with the kind village head.

I crossed her way without thinking, stopping beside her and putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I'll fix this," I said, the enormity of my situation still churning within me. This moment felt monumentally important. Helping her, everyone Granny had affected, felt more important than anything else in my broken, tattered life. If I had to beg the dragons to postpone my punishment, possibly my death, I would more than grovel. "I will fix this, I promise."

Tears leaked out of the woman's eyes. She didn't ask who I was or what I'd fix, just nodded gratefully.

My head was in a fog as we walked out of the village, my thoughts swirling as I ruminated over the product, about the coating. I'd need to learn how to create it so I could develop something to dissolve it. I needed to render it ineffective, both as a poison and as an addictive agent. The dragons already had an idea about the latter, but it needed to be better, work faster. It needed to be cheaper—free, if possible.

Weston stood at the tree line, leaning against a trunk, watching as we approached. His gray eyes were laser focused on me, and suddenly I couldn't help but feel everything crashing down around me. The emotion churning inside me bubbled up, and before I even realized it, I was running at him, hitting his chest with my fists, crying angry tears. I was behaving like one of those women I'd read about and always thought was ridiculous, but I got it now. I wanted to hit him but not do any damage. I wanted to be incredibly dramatic, to flail around as I wailed, forcing him to crush me to his chest. I needed him to make me be still, to calm me, to contain me. I couldn't handle it on my own, not this. I didn't want to.

"It's okay," he said softly, his strong arms around me, his cheek on the top of my head as he rocked me gently back and forth. "It's okay. Shh, shh, shh, " he cooed, as if trying to comfort a child. And maybe he was. The part of me that hurt worst of all was my inner child, the one who'd mistakenly loved the caretaker who had been hurting me all along.

"It's okay," he whispered.

I stilled against his now-wet shirt, sinking into him as he continued to rock me.

"Why didn't he pull out your animal?" he murmured.

"His power felt gross. I didn't want him to do it. He... he wasn't you."

He kissed my head. "It's time for you to meet your animal, Little Wolf."

I blinked away my tears and looked up at him. "How do you know it's a wolf?"

His answering gaze was open all the way down to his soul. "I just know, baby. We'll work on actually shifting after we get your situation at the castle sorted out. You're not going to wait any longer to feel your magic, though."

His power reached down into me, familiar and tantalizing. I closed my eyes as the lava seeped into my middle. I sucked in a breath as power coursed through my veins. I blinked at the feeling of another being stretching into my skin.

My senses were immediately overloaded, his scent going from mouthwatering to utterly devastating, making me salivate. My vision crystalized, the image of his face clearer than I could have imagined as I noticed little flecks of green dotted within his slate-gray eyes. His touch felt so natural, so necessary, so primal, like there was no one else in the world that could feel this perfect under my palms.

"Mate," a voice within me said, its recognition evident. The lava within me throbbed in time with the word.

I clutched him, dragging his head down so that I could connect my lips to his. His tongue swiped through my mouth as a pounding need to mate with him stole my breath. It was stronger than the chemistry we'd always felt between us, stronger than the previous pull, stronger than any drug that existed in the world. He was life, and I needed to taste it, to feel it, to bond with it.

"I need him," the voice within me said even as I said, "Hurry!" I ripped at his belt. "I need you inside me. Gods, hurry!"

His pack was still behind him, sitting on their horses or standing in line, watching the display. I'd never so much as been nude in front of them, having always been bashful and covered up.

I didn't fucking care right now.

I didn't care that he was stripping me out of my pants and feeling along my wet pussy. I widened my legs, dragging him with me so I could lean against a tree trunk, moaning when he plunged those fingers into my depths.

"I need you, Weston," I groaned, sliding my hand along his hard length. "Fuck me. Fuck me hard."

I was so wet his fingers squelched; I was dripping for him. His thumb made circles around my clit, and then he shoved me down to my knees, quickly feeding me his cock. I sucked it in greedily, running my tongue over the crown and taking it all down deep until his balls slapped against my chin. I hollowed my cheeks with suction as I pulled off before sucking him deep again, over and over.

"I need this done quick so that I can go slow," he labored out, holding my hair with one big fist as he looked down on me.

I didn't need a reason. He tasted like fucking candy and felt like delicious sin.

I watched that handsome face as my head bobbed on his cock. His gaze was heavy and wicked, his pupils blown wide with raw need. I felt up into his shirt with one hand, running my fingers over his rippled muscles.

He let go of me and yanked his shirt off, exposing that perfectly cut torso dappled in sunshine.

I moaned on his cock as he fucked my face, his movements ever faster.

"I'm going to come," he warned. Then he tensed, grunting through his release.

I sucked it all down. I'd never be able to suffer giving anyone else head, not when he tasted and felt so damn good.

He pulled me up to standing, peeling me out of the rest of my clothes as I rose.

"Mine," he growled as he picked me up, wrapping my legs around his waist. The creature within me writhed in glory hearing him say that. He leaned me back against the tree, rubbed his cock head against my opening, and then stilled. He looked into my eyes and growled, " Mine, " then thrust his hips, filling me in one motion.

His animal moved within him. I felt it, like it was rising to the surface. My animal was right there, too; I could feel her continuing to stretch within me, as natural as breathing air.

"I feel her," I said in excitement. "I feel her, Weston. I have magic!"

"You have a lot of magic, baby," he murmured, seated within me, holding himself there. "I hate that I had to keep it from you for so long."

"They will pay for that," the voice inside of me said ominously, and I knew she was talking about him and his wolf. "But later. Right now, I need to connect with my mate."

I grimaced inwardly at her use of the term mate . That was... awkward. She'd clearly gotten the wrong idea about things.

We could deal with that later, too.

I fell into his kiss as the two animals prowled within us. They felt like two halves of a whole. He pulled out and then thrust again, his body fitting so perfectly, so erotically against mine.

"Touch yourself," he murmured against my lips. "Play with your clit while I fuck you."

I reached between us, letting my head fall back and closing my eyes.

"You should send on your people," I said, breathless from his next thrust. "This has to be awkward for them."

"I want them to watch me fuck what is mine ." His tone was possessive and fierce, and delicious goosebumps broke out across my flesh as my animal basked in delight.

I went with it, circling my hips in time to his movements, working my clit so that I built quickly.

"Mmm, yes, Weston," I said as I felt his knot butting against me. We didn't have time for him to lock me, and I'd probably be incredibly embarrassed when I thought back on this, but I wanted it. My animal needed it. His animal was desperate to give it—I could feel it. "Yes, give it to me. Give me that big knot, Alpha."

He did, slamming me against the tree, shoving his cock deep into my slick pussy. His wolf stretched out toward me, and my animal reciprocated, the feeling almost like they were reaching through our chests toward each other.

"Can't . . . stop . . . them," he said, panting with effort.

I didn't know why he'd want to. It felt amazing.

He pushed against me. The rough bark scratched my back.

I worked with his rhythm, was consumed by his kiss. I had just enough sense to wonder why he felt so fucking natural, like his body was built specifically for mine. Somehow, this time was different than before. It felt better, more decadent. It just felt so... right.

"Tell me how bad you want it," Weston commanded, holding himself deep. "Tell me how badly you want your alpha's thick cock."

"Please, Weston. Alpha," I groaned, bucking on him while massaging my clit. "Please, fuck me. Mark me."

He reached between us, taking over for me and massaging while twisting just right. His lips grazed my shoulder, and I shivered in delight as he worked them up to my neck. His bite made me groan and clutch him even tighter. The animals surged toward each other, pulling us with them, swirling together as he filled me with his size. Power flowed from him into me, like a pathway had suddenly opened between us, connecting us. The power then flowed back into him, a give and take. A union.

"What's...?" My mouth dropped open, unable to finish the question as the incredible sensations washed back and forth between him and me, between his animal and mine, between all of us.

He held me tightly to him, locking us together, on full display in front of his pack. My animal preened, and his was full of smug pride.

His finger moved faster. I rocked and twisted, pinned against the tree, just on the verge?—

The explosion ripped a scream from my lips. He was right behind me, groaning, his ecstasy flowing through that pathway and making my high ten times better.

I shook against his delicious body. "What happened? What is that feeling?"

"A four-way bond," my animal answered. It was like she was circling his wolf. "I need to shift. I need to feel that wolf."

"Gross. No. We can't anyway. We have to have help. It's dangerous."

"It's instinctive. I'm not afraid."

"His dick is literally still locked within me. Even if we knew how and wanted to, we couldn't shift right now. Can we just... take a moment? What is a four-way bond?"

I could feel my animal's growl, which was kind of a trip. I could also feel her annoyance. Having magic was going to take a little getting used to.

"We are connected to our mate," she answered, and I was suddenly unsure if she really knew the answer. It was clear her thoughts were primal, innate. It seemed I was to be the logical one in our pairing.

Weston was still holding me against the tree, but he'd leaned back a little so that he could look down upon my face.

"What's a four-way bond?" I asked him.

"It's a connection between your wolf and mine, and you and me. The wolves initiated it. I wasn't able to stop it. Our wolves are powerful, and we were swept up in their moment."

"Wait." I tried to lean back, but the tree prevented me. I put a hand to his chest, pushing him away a little. He took a step back, and his cock yanked against me before throbbing within.

I groaned in pleasure. I couldn't help it.

"Wait," I said, breathing heavily as he sat down with me now on his lap. "Wait, wait."

I rubbed my hand across my slick forehead as the throbbing intensified. I gyrated against it without meaning to, another orgasm already building. They were never far away when Weston and I ended up like this.

"This thing that I'm feeling..." I motioned between his chest and mine. Wariness leaked in through that pathway we'd just created. "Wait, am I feeling your actual emotions?"

"Yes."

"And you're feeling mine?"

"Yes. And our animals are feeling each other's."

I shook my head in confusion. "When does it go away? When you release me?"

The wariness intensified. "It doesn't. A four-way bond is permanent."