The Alpha Trio’s Human Mate

Chapter Five

"All of you--in my office, now." Commander Jacobs turned, and led us through the building, away from the atrium and the Solstice ball. I kept my eyes on the floor, avoiding the three gazes that were trained on me intently. Sira had reached her aunt, babbled some nonsense I couldn't really understand, and by the time the three of them caught up with us, she seemed furious. The one thing I had caught--Kai was Commander Jacobs' son. Sira's cousin. Which made things endlessly more complicated.

Up three flights of stairs, and over a catwalk, we finally reached Commander Jacobs' office, which was all glass, and overlooked the Solstice celebrations below in the atrium. She shut the door behind us, and gestured for everyone to sit. It was far too quiet in the office for a moment.

"Which one of you cadets would like to tell me what's going on here?" The Commander's voice had a sharp edge to it.

"Mother, I--" Kai started, but his mother held up a hand to cut him off.

"Kai, I am not your mother right now, and you know it. I am your Commander." Something flexed in his jaw.

"Okay, Commander. That's my mate," he pointed, turning those navy blue eyes on me.

"That's our mate, Commander. All of us." Zeph added, and I fought the urge to squirm under three heated gazes. Commander Jacobs pressed her lips together, and blinked slowly, before staring at all of them with a ferocity that terrified me.

"Why do you think this?" She asked, voice low and cautious. "One at a time."

"I want her. Her scent is driving me crazy," Kai shifted in his chair, trying to avoid reaching down and adjusting himself in his pants in front of his mother, but I could see that he needed to. He leaned forward instead. Sira made a gagging motion next to me, and a small smile tugged at my lips. "If this isn't how it feels to find your mate, I can't imagine how it would feel. She's mine. I'm sure of it." He glanced my way again, and a corner of his mouth curved up. He looked me up and down, running a tongue over his teeth, lifting an eyebrow. I returned his look with one of disgust.

"Quit f*****g her with your eyes, Kai," Sira hissed at her cousin, and her aunt, standing over her shoulder, clapped a hand over Sira's mouth to silence her.

"It's the same for me," Lynx growled. "I would literally die for her right now. I've never felt anything like it," he shook his head, amber eyes looking me over in disbelief. Zeph echoed the sentiment. I wasn't turned on by what was happening, per se...but I pressed my thighs together where I sat. My stomach fluttered, and I breathed deep against the reaction my body was having. Three hot men were looking at me like I was dinner. It was only natural to feel something.

"Let me be clear, cadets. Emmarie, if you'd like to even know her name," Commander Jacobs gestured to me, and I flushed, "is an incredible asset to me. I have never heard of a wolf finding their fated mate in a human, let alone three of you doing so with the same human. Emmarie just passed her intiate exams, and I need her focused. This is not happening right now. I'm not allowing it."

"Can I reject them?" I squeaked, looking up at the Commander.

"You can try," she smirked down at me. The three men protested, but I tuned them out.

"How do I...I don't know how, exactly. Being a human and all."

"Full names. Say I, Emmarie Mellora, reject you, their full name, as my fated mate." Sira looked smug next to me, obviously a fan of tormenting her cousin. "Kai Jacobs, Zeph Blackwood, Lynx Argent," Sira pointed to each of them, giving me their full names. Despite their protests, I said the phrase to each of them...but they looked unfazed.

"Did it work?" I looked at the three of them apologetically.

"It did not, darling. I'd still like to tear that dress off you," Lynx's eyes smoldered at me, and I muttered a string of curses under my breath at the mental picture of the three of them, strippping me bare...

"Ahem," the Commander cleared her throat, and not a single one of them had an ounce of shame on their faces. "What I said stands. Emmarie," she said, turning to me. "Do you want this in any way? Do you desire a relationship with any of these cadets?" She looked bored.

"Actually, I just got out of a relationship. I was really looking forward to working on myself for a while," I admitted.

"I can't do it, Commander. I'm a squad leader, and we're all set to take the Officer exams this year, but I can't. I can't focus on anything if I can't be near her, ensure her safety." Zeph's deep voice crawled over my skin, and it almost sounded intriguing. To have protectors. "It's not fair," Kai said. "Everyone else gets the opportunity to move in with their mate when they find them. She clearly can't reject us, for whatever reason, and you can't expect any of us to be focused on our responsibilities if we can't even be near her."

Admittedly, I didn't know much about wolves and their mating practices other than the fact that it was a strong bond. Usually female wolves would return the all-consuming passion, but I wasn't a wolf. I was a human, being looked at by three predators like I was their next meal.

"Would being near her be enough? She's expressed that she doesn't desire a relationship. I've expressed that I need her to be focused, and stay away from distractions. Do you think that proximity to her would be enough to satisfy you?" Commander Jacobs raised an eyebrow, and I wondered where she was going with this.

"It would be better than keeping her from us," Lynx growled, looking at me possessively.

"Emmarie," Commander Jacobs said. "Do you think you could tolerate their presence? If I say, moved all of your rooms closer together, and one of them could walk you to classes, the dining hall, and such? I don't know what to do about this situation yet, admittedly. I'll have to look into why this could even be happening. But you wouldn't have to let them touch you, or do anything you don't want to do. Could you allow them to be near you? To take the edge off?" Sira protested her aunt's proposition, and I had just begun to think it over when Kai interrupted.

"We're going to touch her, mother. You can't promise we won't," his blue eyes turned to me, and he bit his lip. f**k. My n*****s tightened, and my face flushed. Sira grabbed a pen off of her aunt's desk, and launched it at Kai like a dagger. He caught it without even looking, stopping it inches from his face. Lethal.

"Kai," his mother sighed, shaking her head in disgust. "You can't claim her. First of all, because she is a human. There's a power imbalance, and she can't claim you back. That's not fair to her. Second, she needs to have the opportunity to earn her wolf, just like any other human at the Academy. All three of you are of Alpha blood. If you mark her, if you bite a human and turn her without authorization, the penalties are severe. Especially you, Kai. I cannot give you special treatment, and will likely have to punish you more harshly because you are my son."

"I, um," I spoke up, and had to clear my throat before trying again. Everyone turned to me. "It doesn't seem like there's a clear answer here. I don't really want to be in the middle of this, but I understand the situation. I'm okay with moving closer to you, and allowing you to spend some time with me, but I need boundaries. I need alone time, and time with my friend," I gestured to Sira, and she stuck her tongue out at Kai. "I need time to work on my skills. I barely passed the initiate exam, and I'm not going to pass the next round of exams if I don't put in the work. And then I won't earn the opportunity to be turned, and I'll be letting the Commander down. You can't just mess up my life because you feel something I don't. If you can respect my boundaries, then we can give it a try." I smiled, not thrilled, but at least I had made some rules and taken control of the situation.

...

Sira and I danced the rest of the night away under three pairs of watchful eyes. After a bit more spiced wine, I even let the Alphas take turns dancing with me, careful not to grind on them or tempt them in any way. Another upperclassmen danced with Sira, and by the end of the night, I could tell she was going back to either his room or hers. I almost wished I could do the same with one of the Alphas, but it wouldn't be a hookup. It would mean something to them, and there were consequences. I ignored another pair of eyes from across the atrium, that watched with something resembling envy. Jackson had said he hoped I would find happiness like he did, but the way he watched me dancing, happy, and desired by three Alpha men said something different.