Urban Wolf

Meeting the Enemy

Nick had no idea why his friend was sending a messenger. All he knew was Holden called late last night and left a message with his personal assistant to have the flight from Bozeman checked for a passenger, his sister Keele. Holden protected his baby sister with a fervor bordering on fanatical and would only have sent her if it were an emergency. When the elevator door opened at last, and Keele Doran stepped out to greet him, he realized two things.

First of all, whatever Holden needed from him, it was important. Holden was the oldest surviving son of the family, and through Keele the youngest, he still guarded them with the fanaticism wolves were known for. To see her standing before him brought home the realization to Nick that his friend wasn’t playing around.

The second thing he realized was how her scent wrapped around his brain and straight to his c**k. He wanted nothing more than to make love to her.

As he attempted to recover from the shock, she compounded everything by sticking out her hand for his. “Hi, I’m Keele…”

“I know who you are.” He growled, trying to hide his discomfort at being around her. Her fragrance hit his senses like a sledgehammer. Already he could feel his wolf sitting up, taking notice of the vision standing in his foyer. “What have you got for me?”

The sting of rejection flashed in her amazing jade green eyes, followed by the red glare of anger. “Well, aren’t we a fountain of welcome? You know, I didn’t have to come here. I could have defied my brother, stuck this in a post office box, and gone back to my life, which Holden so rudely interrupted.”

“Then give me what he sent with you, and hopefully I’ll have you on the return trip before sundown.” Nick spoke before he realized what he was saying. But lust suddenly grabbed his balls, and he needed to put some space between himself and the cloying scent of lilies, jasmine and sandalwood, wafting from the most beautiful female he’d ever seen. To say Keele unnerved him, would be an understatement. He felt like a clumsy pup.

Opening her backpack, Keele pulled out a large manila envelope and thrust it into his hands. She then turned on her heel and approached his brother Alex. Taking her arm, the two disappeared down the hall toward the media room without another word. Nick bit his tongue to keep from growling out loud, his fingers crushing the envelope in his hands. Seeing her with another man washed red across his vision and he felt his canines growing. What the hell...?

Shaking his head to get some clarity, Nick took the letter and stormed off. He sat down on a large oversized sofa in the penthouse’s den, his eyes still following his brother down the hall, willing Alex to recognize the danger by pulling Alpha in his own little brother's head. Alex answered him immediately and bowed to his commands, even though Nick could hear the resentment in his thoughts. He deserved an explanation, and as soon as Nick figured one out, he’d give one to him.

Holden’s seal across the fold beckoned him and he slid the opener underneath. Hands shaking, he pulled the contents out and set them on his desk. Holden Doran wasn’t a man to send a personal messenger without a serious reason, and Nick only hoped whatever his friend needed was within his power to grant.

Inside the envelope were several sheets of paper, one of which he recognized as a Council request form, along with a genealogy chart and a Lycan birth certificate. He set those aside, focusing on Holden’s precise, engineering style penmanship.

Nick,

Sorry for the surprise and formal presentation, but I felt this needed to be done with a seriousness I’ve never used between us. I received your engagement notice, and you know how that went over. Marrying Allyria Koenig isn’t the answer to your mating problem. I know I should stay out of your personal life, but I care for you too much to let this one slide by. Besides, I owe you for saving my life that night in St. Petersburg.

I visited the Lycan Archives and did some investigating. Never has there been a Regnant mated without the sign. According to the Lawes of Arcadia, a Regnant may challenge any mating if he feels that it would be in the best interest of the pack, or Lycan Society in general, to prevent said mating. The law states without a sign, there can be no children; no children, no mating.

So buddy, I’m challenging your mating to Allyria. As per the Law, I am sending my sister Keele Moira Doran as my candidate for your mate. Should the sign appear between you and Keele during the month of the Ripe Corn Moon, then you will mate her and not Allyria. If not, then return Keele to me and wait to marry when the sign appears. You know how badly you want to be a father. Don’t short yourself that.

Keele doesn’t know why she is in Atlanta, and I prefer you tell her what I’ve done. Yes, I am a giant douchebag and coward. I know my little sister too well. She isn’t going to be happy, so I’ll take the blame from a distance. I’m sure I’ll hear her scream anyway. Just a word of caution, Keele is special. She has anxiety issues that bring panic attacks, and it scares her. She’s been running from the future for so long, she’s forgotten to live for now. Maybe you can show her how. But remember, she’s my baby sister Nick, ao don’t break her heart. I’d hate to have blood between us.

Come hunting this fall! I miss you, man.

Holden, chief of the Deoradhán

Shit.

How could his best friend set him up like this? He pushed the intercom button on the table next to the sofa. “Dad? Could you meet me in the den please?”

How dare another Regnant tell him who to mate? He certainly didn’t interfere when Holden wed Sheryl or Chloe or whatever the hell her name was, even though Nick considered her the second-best candidate for the job. What law was he referring to? With a snarl, he raced around his desk toward the Book of Lawes he kept in a private study. Doing so he passed close to where a moment before she stood tapping her foot in impatience at her task.

The lingering waft of her fragrance hit with the power of a speeding bullet train. Lily, jasmine, sandalwood, with a hint of musk that was hers alone. Suddenly, a vision of Keele and himself wrapped around each other floated past his eyes, replacing the anger with lust and need. Nick shook his head. What the hell?

His beast sat up and grinned, interested in a female’s scent for the first time since he began dating Allyria. Every nerve in his body tingled with the magic of their kind, a basic response to the combination of their royal bloodlines and the singularity of their beasts. A true mate. Nick groaned to himself. He couldn’t afford true love right now. He couldn’t just walk away from his promise to Allyria.

Could he?

His thoughts were interrupted as Dmitri Petroza entered the den from the kitchen where he was helping Nick’s mother prepare dinner. Tall, almost seven feet, with piercing blue eyes and snow-white, almost silver hair, since his retirement Dmitri preferred spending time with his family doing nothing. Stepping aside for Nick wasn’t for weakness or illness, but for business. As the figurehead for the international real estate conglomerate, Nick brought youth and model good looks to the table. Dmitri’s strength was subtler, the ability to read people. His piercing turquoise blue eyes often seemed to rake a man’s soul yet seemed to be veiled as he brought a glass of vodka for his first born.

“What’s up Nicky?”

Nick handed him the letter and waited for his father’s response. It didn’t take long.

“Well,” Dmitri chuckled. “He certainly called your hand, didn’t he? It’s amazing he would remember such an arcane reference, considering his study time at the Council was more than two hundred years ago. He must really not like Allyria.”

Nick held his head in his hands. “He hates her with the fire of a thousand suns. He called me one night after we got engaged and cussed me out in Gaelic and Russian for even considering taking her for a mate. So is this a true thing then? He can challenge my mating?”

Dmitri nodded. “Oh yeah, if it’s in the best interest of the pack as a community. Have you said anything to the girl yet?”

Nick shook his head. “She’s with Alexi. I’m afraid I wasn’t very pleasant to her.”

“You left her with your brother? You must not have felt anything for her then.”

“Actually Dad, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, letting her walk away with him. I almost throttled my own brother.”

“Well then, you must see if the marking appears. Even Allyria cannot challenge that. Now, knowing your brother’s hormones, let’s go rescue her.”

Nick followed his father down the hall with his emotions racing a thousand miles an hour. How could he have been so callous to her? His mother would swat him when she found that out. She taught all three sons respect for women of both species. Now he’d insulted an ambassador from another pack. That would teach him to speak before his brain had time to engage. He ended up in trouble every time that happened. He could barely remember what she looked like.

As they approached the media room, he heard the two of them laughing like best friends. A knife drove itself into his guts as his wolf leapt up in rage at the sound. Great, his brother was a better host than he’d been. And he was supposed to mate with this girl? Every smart thought in his head disappeared when they entered the room and Nick got his first real look at the Irish princess, Keele Doran.

He felt he’d been punched in the gut. Keele was an Irish goddess, as if ancient Boudicca were reborn. Tall, curvaceous yet willowy, with fiery auburn hair and entrancing green eyes. Her breasts were perfect, small yet sexy as hell. Her waist was small and her hips were an invitation for Nick to grab on and sink himself inside. Her scent wrapped around the cortex of his brain, wrote itself on his nervous system. For the first time in his very long life, Nick knew true desire, not lust or restless craving.

Realizing his father was staring at him, Nick cleared his throat. “Hmm, excuse me Miss Doran? Please pardon my earlier rudeness. A personal letter arriving by messenger usually means bad news and I was anxious to know what Holden needed. Allow me to introduce my father, Dmitri Petroza and I’m Nick.”

Keele held out her hand, and Nick took it within his own. Suddenly, a pain seared across Keele and Nick, bringing both to their knees. It was as though someone were carving on his skin, the pain bordering on unending pleasure. Holding his chest, Nick stared at first Keele then Dmitri. The look on his father’s face was smug. He saw Keele grab her chest as well. Only then did he realize what was happening. The simple touch of their hands together had started the mating sign. Silently he cursed Holden. Now he was committed to honoring his friend’s challenge.

***

Keele stared as the two men conferred in the back of the room. A strange buzzing in her ears kept her from hearing their heated conversation. Everything seemed to be happening at a distance, and she couldn’t cross the divide to tell them she wasn’t all right. Her chest felt as if carved like a Halloween pumpkin. What the hell did they do to her? Much as she tried to ignore the pain, it soon overwhelmed her defenses and she sank to the ground in a graceful puddle. Nick caught her just before her head hit the ground.

“Hang on Keele,” he urged. “We’ve got some salve that will take the sting out.”

“Sting? I’d hate to see what you call blinding pain.” She groused back at Nick, keeping her eyes closed against the agony. “What the hell is going on here? I want to speak with my brother.”

Nick looked at Alex, who’d backed away into the corner and kept his mouth shut, even though she could see in his eyes how much the younger Lycan wanted to console her. His interest distracted from her own pain as she smiled at Alex to mollify his obvious and extended unhappiness. He was a sweet guy and definitely good looking, for a shifter. Maybe she would have time for a quick dinner with him before flying back to Seattle.

“Keele,” Nick’s voice brought her back to reality. “There’s been a development here that concerns you, and I think we need to sit down and talk. Then, if you want to call Holden, we’ll do it together.”

“What’s wrong? What did Holden’s letter say?”

Nick held out the letter, discomfort showing in every line of his body. She took it and read through it once. Then she read the damn thing a second time, just to make sure she understood what the hell her brother, no her Alpha, had done.

“I’ve been given to you like an object, property even? To play a game? What the hell? I want to see this damn book myself.” Her ire was plain to everyone and it made Nick visibly cringe. He wasn’t to blame, the tradition of giving daughters away seemed almost archaic in the 21st century, but what else could he do? Holden had the law on his side. As Regnant for all Russian Lycans, he could not go against the challenge of another Regnant. Her brother had, in a word, screwed them both over.

“Keele, I swear I didn’t know anything about this Law. This is no game, I assure you. But then Holden was always better at this subject than I was. Since we obviously have to comply with the injunction, you will stay here for the month until the next full moon. I promise you no one will bother you and when the thirty days are up you will be free to leave and return to your own life, if that is what you wish.”

She frowned, “But aren’t you supposed to comply also?”

“What do you mean?”

She stood and crossed the room to Nick. Rather than waste time unbuttoning his business shirt, she ripped through the material, buttons popping in all directions. She then ran two sharp nails down the front of his white t-shirt, ripping it like tissue paper. Underneath was the cause of both their pain. The large, newly crafted mating circle glowed red on the chiseled skin over Nick’s heart. The intricate tapestry was a combination of their lineage; the Russian eagle and the Irish unicorn. Without taking her own clothes off, Keele knew the matching symbol was currently searing her own skin like a blowtorch. Not to mention, the nearness of him brought her inner beast closer to the surface than she liked.

“We’re wearing mate markings. I don’t know how you Russians do things, but Irish wolves usually mate with the person wearing their matching sign.” Her arms were on her hips and when she turned to stomp away, Nick grabbed her arm, pulling her tight into his embrace. Heat and electricity shot from her head to her toes, then seemed to center between her legs. She wiggled unsuccessfully in his arms. She felt like a live high voltage line, and the buzz only served to drive both crazy.

“Normally, I would wed the person with my sign, but I’m already engaged. I can’t just throw that promise away. It would be a bad business move. I need the land her family controls. That only comes with our marriage.”

Keele stopped thinking the moment Nick pulled her into his embrace. Ignoring Dmitri and Alex, she threw her arms around Nick’s head and pulled his lips toward hers. When their mouths touched, sparks flew around the room and Keele felt herself melting into a total stranger. Her original thought was to banish this craving for him so she could leave, but, soon discovered she had little desire to leave his arms.

His lips were soft as velvet, his mouth warming and sweet. Their tongues danced with each other until she didn’t know how she kept from bursting into open flame. She pulled him closer, moaning to herself as he fisted one hand through her thick mane, the other wrapped firmly around her waist. When at last they broke apart, Keele felt a part of her heart leave with his lips. Her legs felt rubbery and her arousal was strong enough to scent a mile away.

Nick’s eyes appeared to have lost focus as he regarded her with a blank, unbending stare. “Keele,” he began. But Dmitri silenced his son before he could make another sound.

“Son, I think this is one for the record books. I’ve never seen a mating sign appear without an actual s****l encounter. I’m thinking Holden might have your number on this, Nick.”

Nick turned on Dmitri. “That cannot be possible. I’ve made a decision. The engagement’s been announced, and Allyria is in full wedding mode, trying to be ready by the Strawberry Moon. What the hell do I do?”

“For starters,” Keele broke in, “you can include me in these discussions. I’m not a baby, I’m the Irish princess, and I want to know what all this means.” Her green eyes flashed, like jade lightning striking in the darkness. A fight sounded really good right now, and whoever this Allyria was, it sounded like she needed an ass-kicking.

Dmitri stepped up and took Keele’s arm. “Simply put my dear girl, your brother challenged Nick’s relationship with Allyria as potentially dangerous to the Lycan world. Despite a lengthy relationship, a mating sign never appeared between them. While my son is a modern Lycan, he is still Regnant of our people. No matter how much he wants the Koenig lands, without an heir, he cannot marry her. The law is clear.

“Your brother was quite the student of Lawes when he studied with the Council. Remembering this ancient requirement, he filed a formal protest and then, my dear, he offered you as a substitute mate, and the Fates apparently agreed. I’m not going to ask to verify it, but I’d bet your sign looks just like Nick’s. Which means he should break his engagement with Allyria and take you as his mate. But you can always say no.”

“What would happen if I did?”

Dmitri smiled, sadly. “Then neither of you would ever find true love. Life would be a series of meaningless one-night stands, a lack of emotional or s****l attachments, and neither of you would have any children. Fate can be a fickle b***h if you decide to ignore her, especially for shifters. Doubly so for royalty.”

Keele crossed the room to the wall of windows, staring out toward the west and home as she tried to put this into perspective. Nick, sensing her unease, turned to his brother and father.

“Guys, could you give Keele and I some time alone, please?”

As the two men left, she saw the anger in the youngest brother’s eyes, but it was gone before she could study Alex for more information. That left Nick and Keele alone for the first time.

It was all she could do to not cry.