25

Aspen

I was grumpy before I even opened my eyes, already aware I didn't get enough sleep. My stomach growled as a deep hunger gnawed at my insides.

And my boobs were heavy and sore.

Great.

I called on my wolf, but she was still asleep. No doubt saving her strength. I took a deep breath to calm myself. At least it smelled amazing in here with Ranger's masculine woodsy scent filling my space. Too bad his arm was as heavy as a tree branch and currently pinning me in place.

The events of last night came to me in snippets. The spanking. The orgasm. The run. The sex in an open field. More orgasms.

Who am I anymore?

My cheeks flamed bright red.

Red like Cindy's coat…

She. Freaking. Ate. Him.

I clasped my hands over my mouth to hold back my scream. The movement caused Ranger to stir. His head shot up, but his eyes were still closed. Black hair stuck out in every direction all wild and mussed. There was a deep rumble in his chest as his nostrils flared and he sniffed the air.

I scooted up slowly until my back hit the wall of the shed and my legs were straight on the bed, careful not to make too sudden of a movement.

Ranger mumbled something incoherent as his heavy head landed on my stomach and his arms wrapped around my hips in a vise-like grip. He moved his leg over mine, turning me into a body pillow, as the beastly male snuggled back down to sleep. It was… kind of nice.

The early morning air was still chilly even though Ranger shut the doors last night. He'd carried me straight to my nest and put me to bed with a stern command. These flashing red flags were getting easier to deal with–especially when he looked all soft and sleepy like this, clinging to me like he feared I'd escape.

His body was too big for the mattress and his feet were on the floor. It was probably a good thing the cheap bedframe broke because it definitely wouldn't have held up his weight.

I shivered as my body warmed with thoughts of all the things I'd like to do on this bed.

Mating season had officially begun.

At least I still had my wits about me this morning. I knew I should go check my traps and refill the water. Restock my food supplies.

I ran my fingers over the swirl of black ink tattooed on his shoulder. It had to be magicked to survive the shift and probably hurt like hell to get. My touch was light as feathers as I traced the raven's wings. The first rays of sun peeked through the window, casting a soft golden glow to his bronze skin.

Shadows lined his sharp jaw and Grecian nose as the sun inched its way over his face. I kept tracing lightly, memorizing and studying each dip and divot of the muscles on his shoulders, his arms, and his chest. This was art. He was so beautiful it was scary.

He's mine. My wolf woke with a sleepy yawn.

"What are you doing?" Ranger whispered, almost scaring the piss out of me.

Seriously, he was lying on my bladder and it was uncomfortably full.

"Um…" I'd been caught red-handed.

He grabbed my fingers, pressing a soft kiss to the tips. "Words, Aspen."

"Fine," I grumbled. "I was admiring."

"Admiring me?" His brow furrowed.

I couldn't help but laugh. "In case you haven't looked in a mirror lately, you're hot."

"Hot?" he repeated, turning his head so he was looking up at me from my lap. "I don't think I've ever been called hot before."

He absolutely did not need his ego stroked.

I was going to do it anyway.

Sighing, I rested my head against the wall. "Handsome then."

"Mmm," he muttered as he kissed the flat palm of my hand and let it go.

"Attractive."

"Maybe."

"Sexy?"

"Was that a question mark?" He pressed himself up with his arms caging me on either side and held his body in a plank position so we were at eye level. The heat between us radiated from him. Or maybe it was coming from me.

"Question mark?" I licked my dry lips and his eyes tracked the movement. "More like an exclamation point."

Ranger's smile was downright sinister. "One day I want to put you in glasses and bend you over a desk while I spank you with a ruler. I always had a teacher fantasy."

That doesn't sound too bad. I closed my mouth to make sure I wasn't drooling. "You do know that not all teachers wear glasses."

"I know." He dipped his biceps, lowering enough to drag his nose up the side of my neck. "But imagine those big brown eyes magnified as they stared up at me while those pretty lips opened wide for my cock."

Goddess, the mouth on this beast. My thighs clenched as my core spasmed. And my stomach chose that exact moment to rumble. Loudly.

Ranger stilled, narrowing his eyes as if the sound personally offended him.

"I think I've got some energy bars left, but I need to go check my traps anyway," I tried to play it off like I wasn't totally embarrassed.

Wait. Why am I embarrassed?

It's hunger .

A girl's got to eat.

My wolf shook herself fully awake, all fired up and ready to go get some meat. I checked my forehead discreetly as I tucked my hair behind my ears. Things were definitely starting to warm up.

Or as Clara would say:

"Shit's about to go down."

A cold rush of air washed over me as Ranger jumped to his feet and growled.

"Where are you going?" I scrambled out of bed after him.

He grabbed a bottle of water. All the playfulness from earlier was gone, replaced by a stone-cold determination as he pressed the bottle into my hand. "You need to eat. I'll get something for you. And I need to go check on things outside before the season goes full swing. Stay here. Drink your water. I'll be right back."

Perfect. My wolf laid down again. He can hunt for us.

I didn't realize she was such a pillow princess.

"I'm not staying here and waiting," I marched after him like a tick on his flank. "And I need to go check my traps."

Ranger spun around. He sniffed the air as his tongue darted out to taste it.

I flushed and put my hands in my pockets.

"My heat is only just starting," I whispered, mortified like I was some teenage girl and not the empowered, boss-bitch that I really was.

He sighed as he stood in front of me, tilting my chin up so he could see my eyes. "What's it going to take to get you to listen and do what I say?"

I thought about it.

Really, I did.

And I couldn't come up with a single thing.

"Hop on," Ranger growled as he squatted.

"You can't be serious."

"I've never been more serious in my life." His jaw clenched as his fist rested against the ground. "If you're going to leave the nest smelling like that, then you'll be physically attached to me the entire time."

We really needed to work on his bossy nature.

But also… this sounded kind of fun.

I jumped on his back and clung to him like a spider monkey as Ranger hiked down the mountain. It was an awesome way to travel. He may have grumbled a bit about safety and brats, but I could tell he liked gripping my thighs as he adjusted my weight and the random kisses I placed on the back of his neck when I felt like it.

My traps were empty. I'd expected as much with the scent of Ranger's piss marking the area. He must have gone out last night when I'd slept.

Worthy mate.

Stop swooning already.

I pressed another kiss to his shoulder and felt him tighten his grip on my thighs.

There was a faint scent that didn't belong near my nest though. I inhaled, cataloging, but Ranger didn't comment so I wasn't going to be the one to talk about it.

Beau's wolf ran alongside us as he clued Ranger in on the events from the night and morning. At my prodding, Ranger relayed the information to me. Jones and Foster were taking Sarah to Denver to a heat clinic. Thank the Goddess that all worked out.

Some of the other mated members of packs who came with their Alphas went with Foster and Jones to get food for the week. Either the show wanted us to be safer in a less gamey area or intended for us to starve if we didn't have sponsors coming through. Knowing Molly, I suspected hunger was an easy way to increase ratings.

There was no sure way to tell who had supplies and who didn't without calling shifters out so Ranger made sure everyone was getting the same amount. I'm not sure the show considered how Ranger would react. Maybe they thought he'd be driven by the rut and cause some real drama on TV. I could only imagine a beast of his strength and caliber tearing apart everything in his way. But they didn't know him. Not like I did. He was always in full control. Though the other Alphas' teams were helping, Ranger took charge by doing things his way this season.

Beau was pretty proud of himself as he explained the level of organization he'd planned throughout the night and how quickly he was to follow orders. The tone of Ranger's deep voice giving directions and praise freely had my ovaries basically begging to get pounded.

Nests were knocking as we went past them while Ranger checked on things and finalized plans with Beau for dropping off food and running patrols. I clung tighter to Ranger's back grateful he insisted I wasn't allowed to walk. Already, I could feel my core swelling as more blood rushed to it.

Things were really heating up.

The camera drones followed us as we neared the pond. I frowned when we saw the Tulia nests. Both of them were quiet and their scent trail was old.

"Beau says Chad's team left this morning," Ranger said.

I nodded. That didn't explain the scent I'd picked up, but maybe I was wrong. I wasn't totally feeling like myself.

Every random touch from Ranger had my insides melting and I must have gone through the rest of the granola bars and jerky in Beau's saddlebag. I asked to walk a few times, but Ranger wouldn't let me. He hurried to check on the rest of the nests as if he was leaving his scent in the area as a warning.

Even with the annoyance radiating from him, I could tell he was a good Alpha.

Our Alpha.

I fell in love with him a little more as I held to his back while he made the hike uphill. The lull of sun peeking through the tree branches and the cool breeze in the shade made me sigh as I rested my head on his shoulder.

"That's just about everyone," Ranger said gruffly. His skin was coated in salty sweat. I pressed my lips to his neck again.

"Trenton's gone too," I said.

"I know." He motioned for Beau to run ahead.

"I'm glad you didn't kill him." I closed my eyes. "Trenton isn't bad. Just stupid."

"If you're stupid, you should be taught to keep your mouth shut."

I thought of the past which seemed more like a dream now after everything that had happened lately. "He knew how to do that."

Ranger seemed to sense there was something more to this, but when I didn't elaborate, he didn't press. "Well then I hope he gets smart enough to learn when to speak up someday."

"Me too." I peeked over Ranger's muscled shoulder. "Are you ready for this?"

His hand rested on my knee and he gave it a gentle squeeze as he stepped over the babbling brook. "No."

He took a few more steps and came to a stop. Fallon's nest was a few yards up ahead. Ranger made a gagging sound as I sniffed the air.

"I can't." He shook his head.

"Let's go the other way." I laughed as I slid down off his back and grabbed his hand, tugging him toward my nest while the sounds and scents of Fallon in heat and John in rut filled the air.

*

"Are you ready to go in?" Ranger stood outside my nest. He seemed perfectly calm and in control, but I could sense the blood flowing warmer through his body and the way his heartbeat increased.

"I think I am." I wiped the sweat from the back of my neck as I looked to the forest. "Can you do me a favor first, please?"

"Anything." He smiled.

Good answer.

I wasn't sure if Ranger could sense the heat burning hotter in my core now. He hadn't tasted the air recently, but I was throbbing as the ache continued to build. I was barely holding it together when I motioned to the trail cams.

"Can you take the cameras down for me?" I stood on my toes to press a kiss to his lips, making sure the whole world saw me make my claim a final time. "I'll wait for you inside."

Ranger growled his approval as he went to do my bidding.

A girl could get used to this. My wolf stretched out languidly. Do you want me to take over?

Let's do this one together.

A sense of peace and rightness washed over us as we entered the nest. I peeled the layers of scratchy human clothes off my burning skin. Taking my time, I braided back my hair to keep it from getting in the way. Then I flipped Gram's quilt around to hide the rip and smoothed out the wrinkles on the bed.

Naked and soaking wet as my core pulsed, I dropped to my knees and rested my hands on my thighs. I wasn't sure exactly what to do, but this position felt right.

Then I closed my eyes and waited for my mate–my Alpha–to come to me.