Rose
Chapter 7: Dominant males

The house was silent, except the occasional sniffle or sob. I was wiped out; I passed on coffee and drinks downstairs and just took a shower and got into comfortable clothes. I went down to say goodnight to Charlotte, only to replace her already asleep. The kids had pulled mattresses out and covered the floor in the recreation room with them, and were piled together for comfort. Her blonde hair was splayed over Josh’s neck as he slept in wolf form. Only a few were still in human form.

“It’s all right, it helps them to deal with the sorrow,” a voice said behind me. I turned around, a little startled that Ella had so easily snuck up on me. “Sorry to scare you, but I’m a panther, it’s kind of my nature to surprise.”

“Do they always do this after a funeral?”

“No… normally we have a Pack run, to celebrate the person’s life and to be together. We couldn’t do that, not with an unknown threat out there. In fact, we aren’t allowing anyone outside in their animal form during the day, and only adults at night. It sucks, but we have to protect them first. How are you handling this?”

“I’m all right, Alpha, this isn’t my first time being around death. If I focus on my job, I do fine, but then in the times in between I think about them playing in the pool, of him being just sixteen, and it hits me that things will never be the same. I’m just… overwhelmed by it all. Ten days ago seems like a different life right now.”

I let her pull me out of the room and to a smaller room, with a bar at the side and soft music playing. Craig and the elders were all sitting nursing their drinks. Ella went to the bar, putting ice in two tumblers and filling each with some Bailey’s Irish Cream. She brought them to the couch and sat next to Craig, waiting for me to sit between her and Al on the big sectional. I sat down and took the glass, taking a gulp of the creamy liquid and feeling the burn of the whiskey in my throat. “What a day,” I said. “Where is Gunny?”

Ella put her hand on my knee and squeezed it. “He’s doing a patrol; we have some wolves checking our land, but he’s ranging a little farther out. He wants to check other areas that would make good sniper positions and verify no one has been there.” I nodded, it made sense. No one would know better where to go than Gunny. “We wanted to talk to you, though.”

“What about?”

“Well, Gunny has asked us for permission to change you once you are ready. We wanted to talk to you about what would happen if you decide to accept the change,” she said.

“But in full disclosure,” Al said, “We also need to tell you what happens if you don’t want it.” I felt my heart sink a little at the thought of not being with him. “In the old days, it was rare for humans to know of us because our secrets were so closely guarded. Now, things are different. We live around and among humans, no one will look at you as being less of a person if you stay human. You are Gunny’s mate, that won’t change and we won’t interfere with your relationship.”

“Staying human means you have a choice, you can join the Pack or not,” Craig said. “If you want to remain apart, to not subject yourself to the rule of the Alphas, you can. You would have no voice in Pack matters, no share of Pack profits, no Pack position or responsibilities unless we agreed to. We would not interfere with your employment or your free time, we would just ask that you respect the Pack and its decisions and live in harmony with us.”

“That seems reasonable,” I said. “I don’t think Gunny would like it. He’s pushing hard for me to take the change.”

Ella laughed. “He’s a male, a dominant one, and his cat fears you might be taken from him. As a panther or a wolf, you would have more strength, better senses, you would be able to defend yourself and the Pack better. You would also be healthier, you could withstand more physical damage and would heal much faster if injured. All these things come into play, his cat recognizes that you are more vulnerable this way.” She snickered a little. “Plus there’s the whole sex and babies thing.”

“Huh?”

“He did mention that sex is better as a mate, right? Not only are you in better shape with more strength and stamina, but the mate bond… let’s just say it’s amazing. I’ve had sex with Craig as a human, great sex,” she wiggled away from his wandering fingers, “but it was nothing compared to what we had after I got my cat.”

I just rolled my eyes. “My God, I can barely survive nights with Gunny NOW and you’re saying it gets better? I don’t know if my heart can take it.”

“There’s a reason the walls are soundproof and the beds are on heavy duty platforms,” Al said as looked at his Marge coming through the door. “Our cats, they mate for days, not minutes.”

“Gunny mentioned that,” I said, eager to move on to another topic. “So if I change, how does that work with the Pack?”

“As a mate, you are automatically part of the Pack,” Craig said. “You would be Beta rank here, not just because Gunny is, but because as his mate you must have the ability to be one. Nothing we have seen from you today shows us any less. We want you to join us, you and your daughter. We want you in our family.”

I turned into Ella’s open arms and hugged her tightly, feeling Craig’s arms come around both of us as I cried. “I’m sorry,” I said after a minute. “It’s been so long since I had a family, I’d forgotten how good it felt just to be around them.” Marge handed me a tissue. “When I was barely sixteen, I got drunk at a party and let a guy take my virginity. When I turned up pregnant, my parents were mortified. My Mom slapped me, my Dad demanded I go with him down to the clinic and get an abortion. They were pillars of the community, I was their perfect little girl and I was screwing everything up.” I blew my nose and continued. “I refused to get rid of my baby, she was innocent. For my refusal, they disowned me. The entire family abandoned me, all except my Grandmother who took me in. She helped me finish school, go to college. She was the only family I had left, and she died right after I finished law school.”

“I’m sorry, Rose. Family shouldn’t abandon you,” Ella said as she pulled me into her arms again.

“I worked my ass off to prove them wrong,” I said. “I made something of myself, became an FBI agent, rose though the ranks while raising my daughter. I thought maybe if I was good enough, my parents would accept me again, that they would say they were sorry and they loved me. I never found out, though. They were killed by a drunk driver five years ago.” I cried into her shoulder even harder. “They never even met their granddaughter. My Charlotte, she grew up with just me, day care and sitters and now she’s here and she’s got… she’s…I can’t take her away from him. He looks at her like Gunny looks at me. She’s already turning to him for comfort instead of me, dammit.”

Ella patted my back. “She’s family too, Rose. Josh would die before he let her be hurt again, and every person in this house would too. She’s already found her way into our hearts, just like you have.” I felt safe with her, like I used to feel with my mother when I was young. I didn’t care that I was much older than her, there was that something about her that made being held by her seem so right. I fell asleep in her arms.

I woke up when I heard the door opening, it took a moment to figure out I was tucked into our bed and Gunny was back. He was naked, and the moonlight through the window teased at his glorious body. I watched him move to the bathroom door, turning on the light so his figure was backlit. “I know you’re awake, Rose,” he said. “I can hear your heartbeat race.”

“I’m tired, Gunny. Good patrol?”

“Yes. I didn’t replace anything, though. I’m going to take a shower and join you, I’m tired.” He closed the door and I heard the shower start as I stared at the closed door. I tried to go back to sleep, but a certain part of my mind was occupied by visions of his body, his hard body on top of mine, his huge…

I finally gave in to the building lust in my head and whipped the covers back. I took off my jammies and underwear, then piled the pillows at the top of the bed so I could lean back. I licked my fingers, then brought them to my nipples and rolled them between my thumbs and forefinger. I pinched them a little, causing them to firm up. Bolts of pleasure rushed from my nipples to my core as my body started to prepare itself. I cupped them, feeling their weight, taking some satisfaction that they weren’t sagging too much yet. I moved my hands over my stomach, feeling the hard muscles underneath. I had to work out a lot to maintain my body in the shape it needed to be, and all those crunches and sit-ups had paid off. I let my right hand drift down farther, past the close-trimmed triangle of hair to my labia. My fingers lightly worked their way down, picking up the lubrication as my lips started to swell. I closed my eyes, imagining it was Gunny between my legs, that his tongue was wiggling its way up and down my needy slit.

I started to moan softly as I worked one finger in, then two. My brain was on autopilot, it was like I wasn’t even thinking about what to do, I just imagined him there and my fingers made it happen. Faster and faster I went, the liquid sounds coming closer together as I built towards a peak. I worked all my fingers in, frigging myself furiously until I exploded in pleasure. I could hear a scream, but it took a moment to figure out it was me.

I heard the bedroom door slam open and Gunny was there in his nightmare-inducing glory. It was only the second time I had seen his hybrid form; his dark fur had grown in, his hands had lengthened and were tipped with sharp claws. His body got even bigger, his head was near the ceiling and he had to duck down and turn sideways as he moved through the door. His eyes were glowing like the cat he was, taking in my naked body and desperate need. His eyes were clouded with lust, he licked his face which was more panther like than human now. With one leap, he was across the room and on our bed.

I froze, knowing instinctively not to move. His whiskers tickled my neck as he moved down to smell me, his tongue flicking out to the hollow of my collarbone. He sniffed my face, then moved down and licked my right nipple. The sensation was incredible, his tongue was rougher and much longer in this form.

When he reached my core, I nearly bounced off the ceiling.

His claws retracted but his front paws pushed me back down. He had hooked my legs, and crossed them behind his back as he buried his cold nose and his soft fur in my flesh. His tongue was lapping up my fluids like cream, long licks that sent pulses of pleasure through me. When the outside was clean, he pushed his tongue deep inside me and curled it up. It only took a few flicks over my G-spot and I was coming again.

I moved my hands down, holding his head to me as I rode out the orgasm he had just given me. I was breathing hard, and when he lifted his head I could swear his panther was grinning. His eyes raked my body, and I knew what he wanted. “Fuck me, baby. I want you to come deep inside me,” I moaned.

He got up on his knees, and I could see it wasn’t just his chest that was bigger in this form. His proud maleness was jutting out in front of him, and my hands moved to touch him. My mind was wondering how this was going to ever fit as my body was begging for it. I grabbed him gently to stroke him, needing both hands to get around him. His cock was different in this form; the tip was more of a cone, and there were barbs on the outside of his shaft that caught my fingers as I tried to move my hand forward.

I didn’t worry about the pain, I knew Gunny would never hurt me. “Slowly,” I begged as he moved his tip to my opening.

I screamed as he pushed the head in. I thought I was used to his size, this felt like I was giving birth again. I put my hands on his hips, holding him for a moment while I adjusted. He didn’t press forward yet, he just leaned down and started to suck and lick my nipples. When the pain lessened, I nodded and he pushed a few more inches in. I came again, my abused channel clenching around the fist-sized rod that was demanding entrance. When I relaxed, he would push more in, and after a minute or two I had the whole length inside me.

I felt like I was giving birth, I was so full. Then he started to pull out, and I screamed again. The barbs on the outside of his cock were grabbing the ridges of my insides, pulling them before letting go. I’d had sex with ribbed condoms, I’d tried dildos with bumps and ridges, but nothing was even close to the sensation he gave me in this form. I started to get used to it as his strokes became faster and longer. My body was humming in pleasure, it felt like I was a guitar string being tightened further and further. He pushed himself back in until he was fully seated, and this time when he pulled out he went back all the way, and my body exploded in pleasure and pain.

I couldn’t even make a sound, and then black spots covered my vision and my head fell back.

I woke up, he was on his back in human form and I was laying on him. I could feel his hard length pressing against my right thigh. “What…”

“You passed out from the pleasure, love. I literally fucked you into oblivion,” he said.

“Oh God… how long was I out?”

“Just a couple minutes.” I moaned as he started to move inside me, by body responding again. “Didn’t you get enough?”

“I can never get enough of you,” he said in my ear.

“Yeah, well, I feel like you’ve ripped my poor pussy into little strips. I think it’s closed for business.”

“Hmmm… maybe the back is open?” He looked at me hopefully, but there was no way I was putting that in there without a lot of preparation.

“Bring it up here,” I said. He rolled me over, then got up on his knees and scooted forward. I pushed my boobs together, trapping his length between them as my tongue and mouth went to his head. “Think this can work for you?”

“Oh hell yes,” he said as he looked down at his length sliding between them. As he pushed forward, I could get the crown into my mouth where I sucked and licked it until he pulled it back. We did this for a while, until he started to swell in my mouth and I knew what was coming next. I used my hands to jack him off as my mouth took him as deep as I could handle. “I’m cominggggggg…”

I backed off, keeping my lips over his tip as shot after shot of his baby batter filled my mouth. I swallowed as fast as I could, but I could feel some leaking out onto my face and chest. When he was done, I gave him one last lick then he collapsed onto the bed next to me. I gave him a lustful look as my finger scooped up some escaped fluid, my tongue going out to lick it. “By Luna, you’re amazing,” he said.

“I’m tired.” I rolled onto his chest and let him pull me close, and I was asleep in moments.