Robbing the Alpha

Ch. 6: One Innocent Kiss

BROOKE

Night after night, I returned to the garden. Night after night, I grew more attached. He was a valley wolf. A thief. But the more time I spent with him, the more he impressed me. There were no friends in society. There were those I respected, and those I didn't. Those I needed to be wary of, and those who posed no real threat at all. He had a wit that could charm even the staunchest among us. An intelligence that could win any debate. I found myself daydreaming often, replaying our conversations, and reluctant to put an end to them.

I stopped asking him to leave.

He kept asking for a kiss.

It was getting harder to refuse him.

I chewed my lip, as I eagerly raced through the moonlight. But when I reached our spot in the garden, he wasn't there. I stopped and scanned the shadows. Had he been caught? Was he gone? Had he decided enough was enough?

"Your Grace," he murmured into my ear from behind, scaring me half to death.

I squeaked, then turned my head to scowl at him.

His smile could brighten a black hole. "For a moment there, you looked disappointed. One might think you actually enjoy spending time with me."

"As you said before, I am an impressive liar."

His eyes danced, and he strode away, giving me his back as he began to undress. I did the same, less reluctantly than the first time. For as shameless as he could be, he never peeked. It was getting easier to shift too. The pain had become a fleeting thing—a big pinch that only lasted a second. I was blending with the beast inside me; that was the only way to describe it. She was more controllable in wolf form, and more present while human. My senses remained sharpened throughout the day. So much so, I could hear a whisper from across a room.

We shifted, and Huck led me through the forest. A buffet of smells filled the journey: animals, flora, the stream, him. His was my favorite. I kept pace, breathing him in as if saving some for later. If only I could.

When we reached the clearing, he didn't run like he usually did. He sat down, looked at me, and that silent language echoed between us.

Sit with me.

I took the spot beside him, mimicking his posture, then followed his gaze upward. The hunter's moon hung high in a sea of stars, red as the blood of our ancestors. Something ancient whispered in my soul, speaking in a language I knew but couldn't remember.

Then Huck's howl poured from his lungs, charging my cells, reminding me. This was what connected us. Not just the bond, but as a species. For so long, we'd been divided, separated by status, name, and a willingness to play the game. But it hadn't always been that way. His tone deepened, echoing my thoughts, mourning the loss of a generation. At that moment, I forgot he was a valley wolf. There was something too powerful to ever be less. Something significant. He was significant.

He stopped and looked over at me, dipping his head slightly.

Your turn.

I swallowed. I'd never howled like that before. I wasn't even sure I could. No way would mine sound like his, and the last thing I wanted to do was embarrass myself by screeching into the night like a dying bird. But his gaze grew more intent with each passing second. Another howl left his lungs, lower this time, and having it directed at me felt like a caress. My lids slid closed, and a shiver rushed through me.

When I opened my eyes again, he dipped his head.

Howl.

With a sigh, I looked back at the moon, and as if she'd been waiting to do so, my wolf took the reins. A sound too perfect to be real echoed all around me. The moon brightened, urging me on, swallowing me in its gravity until it felt like I could fly. I grew louder, howled longer, lost myself in a place beyond space and time.