"He didn't give her a chance to say anything, just left the room. You can't really blame him for feeling that way about her."

"I don't. But what he did crossed a line."

"Yeah, and imagine how that's made her feel. She thought Tao was her friend and she's already had enough going on in her head today. Go to her, make sure she's okay. Tao's suffering enough just by having to see you guys together." When Trey continued to hesitate, Dante sighed. "Tao or Taryn. Decide."

It was as she was rinsing the conditioner from her hair that Taryn felt a chill on her back followed by the presence of a warm muscular body behind her. Trey's scent swirled around her, comforting both her and her wolf. Without saying a word, he took the soapy sponge from the shelf, tipped her head forward, and washed every inch of her back. Then he moved onto her arms, her a.s.s, her legs. Never was his touch anything but gentle. Then he turned her to face him and washed the front of her body in much the same way. At no point was his touch seductive, but somehow she was as turned on as all h.e.l.l by the time he'd reached her thighs.

Abruptly Taryn knotted her hands in his hair and tugged his head down as she mashed her lips to his. He didn't require any coaxing. Groaning, he plunged his tongue into her mouth and made the kiss his own. There was nothing gentle about it, the selflessness of earlier had gone. He took, he dominated, he devoured, he conquered. She had never felt so taken in her entire life and he was only kissing her.

Trey honestly hadn't joined her in the shower with the intention of seducing her. Not today when her head was full with all kinds of c.r.a.p. All he'd meant was to offer her some kind of comfort, to make sure she didn't feel alone, to ensure that she knew she wasn't alone. Any other day he might have had a little willpower, but not today, not when his own mind was all messed up.

The second she'd joined her lips to his, all his good intentions left him. All his pent-up arousal escaped into the kiss, into the way that he clutched her to him, into his groans and growls. The flirty scent of her arousal washed over him, luring him and urging him to taste her.

His entire body clenched as one of her hands trailed down his body and her soft fingers curled around him. She swiped her thumb over the head, smearing the drop of pre-c.u.m as she did. He sucked in a breath as she then began to pump. Her grip was just how he liked it, firm and sure. Every wicked stroke intensified his need for her, his need to taste and f.u.c.k his mate the same mate who was sneakily attempting to dominate him, to control the situation. His wolf approved of her attempt, of her feistiness, but just like Trey he wasn't going to allow her to have the control.

A shudder ran through Taryn as a powerful fist tangled in her hair and s.n.a.t.c.hed her head back before sharp teeth raked down her throat. The move was dominant and possessive and much approved of by her wolf who quivered at each demonstration of his strength. Her back arched and her b.r.e.a.s.t.s pushed out, pressing her hard nipples against his chest and making her inhale sharply.

Looming over her, Trey seized her gaze. "I need your taste in my mouth, Taryn." He really did need it. Needed his senses to be full of her, his mate. His mate who was there with him, not Tao or anyone else, but him. He watched as defiance flashed on her face and she growled. Trey gripped her wrists, backed her into the tiled wall and pinned her there with his body, keeping her hands high above her head. His rebellions little mate struggled just like he knew she would. "Yeah, baby, fight me. Fight me all you want but you're not going to get dominance here."

Trey was coming to understand a few things about Taryn. He was learning that her problem with submitting went a lot deeper than her just being an alpha female. She didn't want another person to have any power over her, didn't want to be vulnerable to them or else they could hurt her the way everyone else had. The only two people who had ever protected her in any way had been the same two people who were taken from her when she was just a kid. She hadn't been safe in a very long time. h.e.l.l, her own dad hadn't even protected her.

Trey's theory was that if he could get her to understand that he wouldn't abuse any power she ever gave him over her then just maybe she wouldn't fight him so hard. Oh she'd still be fiery and obstinate and spit strings of profanities at him, but she might just be more accepting of his dominance.

"Move you piece of s.h.i.t!" she growled as she squirmed wildly, snapping her teeth at him. She met his gaze boldly and unflinchingly, trying to stare him down.

"Keep fighting, baby. Shall I tell you what's going to happen when you stop? Shall I tell you how I'm going to reward you when you submit?" His voice low and calm, he spoke at a slow and steady pace. "I'm going to carry you to the counter and sit you on the edge. Then I'm going to tell you to spread your legs. And you will. You will because you know how good it will feel when I taste you and f.u.c.k you with my tongue. Would you like to know what's going to happen after that?"

No, Taryn didn't want to know because she could feel his sensual voice full of temptation beginning to weave a smell around her and she didn't trust herself not to succ.u.mb to his wicked promises. His tone was deep, commanding, controlled and dominant, much like that of a hypnotist. And it was making her wet. Her body was such a traitor sometimes.

Although she was still writhing she had stopped snapping those teeth. Even better, Trey knew he had her full attention. "I'm going to slowly sink my c.o.c.k into you, fill you up, and then I'm going to f.u.c.k you raw." Moving his mouth to her ear, he spoke in the same low, calm voice. "It'll feel so good, Taryn. It's okay to submit to me, because I'll respect that submission. I won't hurt you. You're safe with me." Instantly she froze and he guessed he'd surprised her. "You know that. You can feel it. Your wolf knows it."

Okay so it turned out that it was actually possible for something to shock Taryn more than anything else that had happened today. The amount of a.s.surance in those few words 'You're safe with me' told her that Trey was fully aware of just how much her resistance to submitting was fuelled by self-protection. He was right, she did believe she was safe with him just as her wolf did. She was confident that he would never physically hurt her. It gave her a thrill to know that this strong, powerful male could easily hurt her but he didn't.

"I don't want you to be a submissive wolf, baby, that's not what this is about. You're an alpha female, I acknowledge that and I respect it. But I need you to respect that I'm an alpha male. A very dominant alpha male who wants you to submit to him not become submissive, just submit to him in this."

Again he had surprised Taryn. He didn't want to change her, wasn't disregarding her own strength the way others had before him. Instead of making their battle for dominance all about physical strength and proving his will was stronger, he was promising to give her what she'd missed from her life since it became apparent that she was latent respect and protection.

She knew he couldn't offer her the one other thing she was missing just plain old someone to care about her but he could give her those other things if she would trust her safety to him. And with that acknowledgement of who she was and what she needed, he had just earned hers and her wolf's submission in a whole other way.

For a moment Tao's words came back to her, his implication that by giving in to Trey she was allowing him to use her. They were already using each other in a sense though, weren't they? Their mating was based on a mutually beneficial deal. Would it really be such a huge thing to include s.e.x in the mix? s.e.x that just happened to be the best she'd ever had. Was it really so bad that she wanted to lose herself in Trey for a little while? Not lose herself in the mating and forget it wasn't real, no, never that. She just wanted to enjoy this mating bond that she might never have again.

Trey felt as the rigidness slowly began to leave her body, but he sensed that her defences weren't down yet. "You can do this, baby, I know you can. I know you're strong enough to let me lead here." She swallowed hard and her jaw lost its tenseness. Almost there. "It's okay, baby. You're safe, I swear. It's okay." When she inhaled deeply and the spark of defiance left her eyes, triumph shot through him and his wolf. "That's a good girl. My good girl."

So d.a.m.n turned on it wasn't even funny, Trey ravished that carnal mouth, drinking her in. Having this strong alpha female submit to him like that sent a ravenous hunger like nothing he had ever known before blasting through his system. And not just any strong female, but Taryn.

Surely it was wrong that even though Taryn was imprisoned between him and the wall and could barely move she was so unbelievably close to climaxing. His implacable voice that oozed supreme confidence hadn't helped and now she was writhing and whimpering as she ground against him. Suddenly he cupped her a.s.s and hoisted her up, urging her to curl her legs around him. Keeping her pinned to the wall, he rubbed his c.o.c.k against her c.l.i.t, making her groan into his mouth.

"Is this what you need?" he asked.

"Not enough. Want you inside."

"Not yet, baby. You can have my c.o.c.k a little later."

Not liking the teasing expression on his face she kicked her legs wildly, trying to escape his hold. He only pinned her more firmly against the wall. "You said it was mine. You said I could have it whenever I wanted it."

"And you can. Just as soon as I've tasted you I'll give you what you want." He turned off the spray, carried her out of the shower and slid her down his body to stand on the mat. Then he curled a towel around her and began to rub her dry before then drying himself, never once moving his gaze from hers. Gripping her by her waist, he lifted her and placed her on the counter near the basin before uncurling the towel.

"Spread your legs and lean back, baby. I want to see how wet you are." Unsurprisingly, she stared at him uncertainly, not finding it easy to totally submit. "Taryn," he growled, "spread your legs and lean back." Still staring hard at him, she slowly did as he'd asked. "Very good." He swallowed at the sight of her pink, swollen, glistening folds. Her scent urged him closer like a magnet, luring him to glut himself on her, to take what was his.

Hands abruptly slid under her thighs to cup her a.s.s and c.o.c.k her hips as his mouth closed over her c.l.i.t. Taryn cried out and thrashed as he suckled hard and pleasure rushed through her like a scorching hot wind. She practically melted when his tongue swiped through her folds and circled her c.l.i.t before flicking it with the tip of his tongue. He was merciless in his a.s.sault. He licked, nibbled, sucked, and bit, wringing moans and whimpers from her. He groaned and growled against her flesh, intensifying the pleasure until it was too much and she tried to wriggle free. "No more."

Growling, he grazed her inner thigh warningly with his claws, making it clear that he wasn't willing to part with her taste yet. b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Then he nestled his tongue inside her, swirling and stabbing and sending sparks of agonising bliss zinging through her. With each thrust of his tongue the friction built within her, threatening to shatter her. She wanted him to stop. She wanted him to keep going. Then a finger drove inside her as he bit down gently on her c.l.i.t and she virtually imploded, moaning and shuddering.

When Taryn was able to lift her head and open her eyes it was to see him staring at her, licking her juices from his bottom lip. "You're a teasing b.a.s.t.a.r.d." Her voice was coa.r.s.e. Wearing a very boyish smile, he gently but firmly collared her throat with his hand and urged her upright. Then his lips ravaged hers as his tongue drove into her mouth, forcing her to taste herself.

"Now I have the taste of you on my tongue, I want the feel of that tight p.u.s.s.y around my c.o.c.k. Do you want me inside you?" She nodded. "Tell me. I want to hear you say it."

Hadn't he made her wait long enough? a.s.shole. "I want you," she said sharply and begrudgingly. "Now do it."

Trey pulled her to the edge of the counter and angled her just how he wanted her. Then he locked his hands onto her hips and began to work his c.o.c.k inside her. He groaned as her muscles tightened around him, trying to drag him deeper. His wolf wanted him to ram into her, to f.u.c.k her hard and fill her with his c.u.m, but Trey simply eased himself slowly inside, controlled and smooth. He stopped after only feeding her a few inches. Her l.u.s.t-dazed eyes slammed to his. "Do you like that? Shall I give you more?" She nodded. "I want the words, Taryn."

"I'm pretty sure you promised to f.u.c.k me raw."

"My little b.i.t.c.h is getting impatient, is she?" he asked with a smile. "Then tell me, do you want more?"

"Yes dammit," she growled.

He gave her another couple of inches then stilled again. "More?"

Taryn wanted to wipe that superior look from his face. Even her wolf didn't like it. "If you want someone who'll make all the right noises and say all the right words when you tell her to then go find someone else!"

Trey nipped her lip. "I don't want anyone else, baby. I just want to hear my Taryn telling me she wants me. Shall I tell you how much I want to f.u.c.k this hot little body? How I've wanted to f.u.c.k you since the second I saw you? That's right, baby, I wanted you before we mated. What I want to do right now is make you come so hard you scream." At a sluggish pace he withdrew and then slowly sank back in, but he didn't go any deeper than before. She moaned irritably. "If you want more, all you have to do is say so. Come on, give me the words, baby. Give me what I want."

After a lengthy pause she said, "I want more." Abruptly he slammed into her, forcing her to take all of him, and she very nearly screamed. The sensation of his size stretching her was incredible. It was pleasure, it was pain, and nothing had ever felt better.

"So tight," he groaned. "G.o.d, that feels so f.u.c.king good." As he waited for her body to adjust, he ravished her lips, knotting his tongue with hers over and over. "I love your mouth. One of these days, I'm going to have those lips of yours wrapped around my c.o.c.k while I f.u.c.k your mouth."

"No way, a.s.shole."

"And that's another thing I'll be doing very soon. f.u.c.king your sweet little a.s.s."

"Could you come back from La La Land? At least 'til we're done here with the whole f.u.c.king me raw thing?"

Hearing the impatience in her tone, he said, "Don't worry, baby, I'll give you the hard f.u.c.k you want. Even if you didn't want it, I'd make you take it." He reared back and then began ruthlessly pounding into her at a furious pace. Her head dropped back and those husky sounds he loved began pouring out of her.

A growl rumbled up Trey's chest as her claws pressed into the flesh of his back. She wasn't breaking the skin though, wasn't marking him. He knew that she wanted to leave her mark on him she was clenching her jaw against the urge to bite him just as he had done that first night. Unlike her, he had no interest in holding back. He liked seeing his brand on her body and liked knowing that others would see it.

Trey leaned forward and bit down hard at the juncture of her neck, groaning as her muscles tightened around him just as they always did when he marked her. Unable to help himself he swooped down and took a nipple into his mouth, sucking hard and then biting down to leave another mark.

Her head snapped up as she growled. "Stop branding me!"

He smiled. "Why would I want to do that, baby?" Without warning he dragged her from the counter, keeping her legs wrapped around his waist, and slammed her back against the wall. Then he plunged a finger into her a.s.s and she cried out. "That's where I'm going to be soon, Taryn," he promised as he continued f.u.c.king her feverishly.

"No," she bit out, ignoring the carnal bliss of the double a.s.sault to her body.

"Oh yeah your a.s.s is going to squeeze me so tight, just like this sweet little p.u.s.s.y I'm f.u.c.king."

She kicked and scratched even as she groaned and whimpered.

"That's it, baby, scratch me. Mark me. Your wolf needs it, doesn't she?"

The traitorous b.i.t.c.h did, but Taryn was resolute that she might scratch him, but she wouldn't break the skin, wouldn't mark him. She wasn't going to make the eventual separation more difficult for her wolf. It appeared that he, on the other hand, wasn't interested in exercising any restraint. He bit her earlobe, her throat, her shoulder, and the hollow beneath her ear. The worst part about it was that it had her groaning every time. At this point she was making noises that were somewhere between moans and sobs.

"Louder, Taryn. I want every person in these caves to know that I'm f.u.c.king you right now. I want them to know that I own you." When defiance again flashed on her face he thrust the finger in her a.s.s hard. "Don't you tell me no. You belong to me."

"Then you belong to me!"

"You're right, baby, I do." Sensing she was close, Trey reached a hand between them and parted her folds, exposing her c.l.i.t to the feverish motion of his pelvis as he repeatedly hammered into her. "Let me hear you scream, Taryn," he demanded, "let them all hear you scream. Now!" He locked his teeth over his mark and plunged a second finger into her a.s.s. She jolted and screamed as her climax tore through her, making her muscles close down on his c.o.c.k and milk him as he forcefully exploded inside her. "Fuuuuuuck!"

This female was going to kill him.

Not sure how much longer his legs would hold him but not wanting to leave her body just yet, Trey turned and slid down the wall until his a.s.s met the floor with a thump. She collapsed across his chest, panting and quivering with the aftershocks. "It's not normal to come that hard." He hadn't realized he'd said that aloud until she spoke.

"I was just thinking the same thing."

Obviously it was only due to their partially developed mating link and the temporary connection between their wolves. Ignoring that part of him that insisted what was between them was more than that, he let his head fall back against the wall. He grinned as his c.o.c.k began hardening inside her. This was going to be a long night, he had weeks to make up for.

CHAPTER TEN.

Taryn wasn't oblivious to the looks she was getting from the people in the diner. As this was a place where powerful alphas tended to congregate the kind who saw latency as a weakness the door had never been open to her. It was kind of like a school situation where only the popular kids got to hang out in a particular crowd. That wasn't why people kept looking at her though. It was because she was sitting next to a hulking great Alpha male who was known for being a violent b.a.s.t.a.r.d but was toying with her hair with the lightest touch as she ate her breakfast. The same hulking great Alpha Male who had a tendency to turn feral in his wolf form.

Their expressions ranged from curious to awed, probably due to the rumor that she had calmed him when he was feral or maybe just due to the fact that she was sitting with the local psychotic shifter. Of course they were quick to look away if Trey shot them a scowl, but he seemed to like the idea that other males might want her. Weird b.a.s.t.a.r.d.

Smiling at the sight of his tiny mate practically attacking a plate of bacon, scrambled eggs, toast, tomatoes and baked beans, Trey ma.s.saged her nape. "Enjoying that, baby?" Apparently too engrossed to give him any attention, she simply nodded.

He hadn't ordered anything for himself other than coffee as he wasn't particularly hungry at the time, but the smell of meat so close was too much to resist. He took a slice of bacon from her plate and dipped it in her egg before taking a chunk from it. She froze then slowly swerved her head to face him, snarling. He knew why. He'd learned early that his mate was territorial over her food, but needling her was always fun. Surprising him, she abruptly leaned forward and s.n.a.t.c.hed the bacon from his hand with her teeth, making him think of a chameleon catching a fly with its tongue. His chuckle quickly died as the door of the diner opened and a familiar scent reached his nose.

Taryn looked up to see Lance Warner walking toward them flanked by Oscar and Perry. All three looked relatively nervous even though the meeting had been set up by Trey via Rhett. As Trey was convinced that forming an alliance with her father would upset her, he had earlier that morning offered to cancel the meeting. However, she had encouraged him to go. It seemed dumb for him to have mated with her for this alliance only to then refuse to even meet with her father to discuss the issue. As she always did when Lance was around, her wolf flexed her claws and growled although she recognised this wolf as her father, she didn't like him.

As Lance stopped before their table it was Trey's cue to stand, but he didn't something that was a lack of respect and made it clear that he didn't trust Lance. The old Alpha had the option of leaving, refusing to sit with someone who would show disrespect, or he could sit down and attempt to earn that respect. Trey guessed that Lance would want an alliance too much to just walk out. He was right.

The three wolves joined their table, sliding onto the bench opposite theirs, with Lance in the middle. The old man folded his arms across his broad chest. He was in good shape for his age, Trey thought. But both of them knew Trey could take him easy.

Lance's gaze finally flicked to Taryn who, apparently uninterested in waiting for her own father to acknowledge her, was focused on her half-finished meal. "I'm sure you'll remember Oscar and Perry so I don't need to introduce them. A few of my other enforcers are outside."

Trey heard the 'I'm not defenceless' warning within that sentence. "If you look behind me, you should see my Beta and a few of my own enforcers." He heard as Dante said 'Hi there'. He imagined that Tao, Dominic and Ryan would be giving Lance looks that said they hoped he gave them a reason to pounce on him. Each one of them despised the old Alpha for his treatment of Taryn.

Lance exhaled heavily. "It's fair to say we got off on the wrong foot."

"Are you referring to how you tried to take my mate from me?" Trey's wolf growled at the memory.

"I had every reason to believe that she wasn't your true mate. Considering that she's my daughter, taking her with me wouldn't exactly have been kidnapping her."

"Your daughter, huh? Biologically, maybe. In practice, not so much."

Again Lance's gaze darted briefly to an otherwise occupied Taryn. "I heard about what happened with Roscoe."

"Yes, it was all very sad."

"I also heard that you went feral and that Taryn managed to calm you down and bring you back from that." Lance's gaze focused solely on her and he seemed to be looking at her through new eyes. Almost done with her meal, she was eating what was left of her toast. d.a.m.n she ate fast and it always brought a smile from Trey. Not right now, though, because she was being ogled by her father's enforcer who didn't think Trey would notice.

Yeah he knew she was a very sensual creature and sometimes it gave him a kick to know that others wanted what was his, but not when those males were obviously daydreaming about that fantasy mouth of hers. "If you keep staring at my mate I'll rip your f.u.c.king throat out." Oscar double-blinked then quickly lowered his eyes. That didn't placate Trey or his wolf. As if Taryn sensed that, she rubbed her jaw against his shoulder and briefly patted his thigh. He calmed slightly at the bodily contact and, needing more, he resumed ma.s.saging her nape.

Lance frowned, watching them closely.

"It was wise that you didn't come along with Roscoe. I'll tear anyone apart who tries to take her from me, I don't give a s.h.i.t who they are or how many alliances they have." The look on Lance's face said he believed him. So he should. Trey decided not to think on the fact that it was more than his wolf's possessiveness and his mating instincts that drove him to make that very truthful statement.

Sighing happily now that she had demolished her meal, Taryn leaned back in her seat and rubbed her bloated stomach. "I'm stuffed."

"Not too stuffed for coffee, right?" said Trey.

"Never too stuffed for coffee." She reached out and gripped her cup, only then meeting her dad's eyes. "Well h.e.l.lo Daddy Dearest."

"Nice of you to finally acknowledge me."

"Really? I wasn't aware you'd give a s.h.i.t."

Puffing up his chest a little, Lance said, "Alright, let's talk alliances."

Trey held up a hand. "Firstly, let me be clear on a few things. I might agree to an alliance with you, but I'll never like you. You judged Taryn's worth on whether she could shift something that has to do with her genetics. Instead of protecting her as you should have, you threw her literally to the wolves and she spent her life fighting off a.s.sholes. You were even prepared to force her into a mating, at which point I would have lost her. So, yeah, we can talk alliances, but I wouldn't bother continuing this discussion if you're hoping for my permission to use me as protection."

Lance narrowed his eyes. "I won't have your support in the event of a challenge being made against my pack by another alpha?"

"I didn't say that. But, see, Taryn's told me all about how you like to name-drop." When Lance's gaze moved to her she gave him the sweetest smile. "If there are incidences when you need to call on your alliances for back-up, well that's one thing. What I won't have is you throwing my name at people whenever you feel threatened. Understand?"

"If you're going to restrict the alliance to such a degree, I'm not sure there's any point to this conversation."

Recognising that Lance was calling his bluff, Trey smirked. "Don't play games with me, Warner. You want this alliance more than I do. If you don't like my terms, feel free to go."

"You have very few alliances. You would benefit more than from this than I would."

"I didn't say I wouldn't benefit more from this than you, I just said I didn't want it as much as you do. As my history shows, collecting alliances has never been a particular interest of mine."