His Savage Devotion

Taryn I shifted restlessly in my bed. Behind my eyes there was a battleground, a chaotic scene of blood and sweat. The scent of rogues was heavy in the air. I watched the battle unfold as the rogues attacked the pack warriors. I had never seen wolves fight like this. I felt a pull in my belly, eyes scanning and searching for whatever, or whoever, was causing it. There, in the middle of the battle, I found him. A man, in his late twenties, capable and strong. His dark hair was clinging to his sweaty, bloody face, but still he was gorgeous. Clearly an Alpha, he stood a whole head taller than any of his pack. Or the rogues, for that matter. When one attacked, he made easy work of dispatching it. I looked him up and down, greedily, already feeling desire pooling between my legs. From his course, black hair to his golden eyes, all the way down to his muscled core, he was perfect. I felt the energy shift suddenly and the man looked up, searching for something. His golden eyes found my blue ones and opened wide with shock. At that moment, a rogue took advantage of his distraction and stabbed him in the side. I felt it. I felt the blade as it ripped through his flesh, leaving traces of wolfsbane wherever it touched. I screamed in agony as the man howled in pain. His eyes never left mine as he fell to the ground. I could feel the tears pouring down my face as I willed myself to wake up from the nightmare. My wolf, Stella, growled low and deep. She wanted to protect this man. But she wanted to protect me more. Stella took control of our shared consciousness and... "Taryn!" I could feel Gavin, my boyfriend, shaking me awake. I groaned and rolled over, wanting to fall back asleep. The nightmare felt so real, so terrifying, but I wanted to see the golden-eyed man again. I had never felt anything so electric in my life. "Taryyyyyn, get up. I'm hungry", Gavin whined, pulling on my arm. Suddenly, a white-hot flash of pain stabbed through my side. I gasped and sat up, unable to breath. "f**k, Gavin. That hurt" it took me a second to process that I was feeling pain in the exact spot the man had been stabbed in my dream. I rubbed my side, lost in thought. Gavin kissed my forehead gently. "Sorry, baby, I didn't mean to hurt you." I shook the thoughts out of my head and looked at my best friend. His tall, muscular frame and floppy brown hair made me melt. Gavin and I have been best friends our whole lives. His father, Dean, the Alpha of our pack, was best friends with my father, the Beta. I grasped his hand and gave him a peck on the lips. "Don't worry about it, sweets, the pain is gone now." Gavin put a hand through my hair and pulled me to him, deepening the kiss, "Are you sure you're OK? Because I wouldn't mind making it up to you if I needed to." He pulled my lower lip between his, nibbling on it gently. I moaned a little, feeling tingles go down my body. I could feel my arousal deep in my belly. Gavin sniffed the air gently, smelling my arousal, and gave me a cheeky grin. "Is that really all it takes to turn you on now? Just biting your lip a little?" he kissed his way down my neck, biting and sucking gently as he went. I climbed onto his lap, straddling him so he could more easily reach my breasts with his mouth. "I'm easy to please, baby" I breathed, tugging on his hair. A bell sounded in the distance, bringing me out of my erotic haze. "f**k" Gavin and I said simultaneously. We were going to be late for training. Gavin “Your dad is going to be so pissed” Taryn said as she scrambled off my lap. I took in her tall, curvy frame as she hurriedly pulled her pajamas off. She looked every inch a Luna with her long blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was beautiful and fair. My heart warmed as I pictured her carrying our pups and leading our pack with her tenacity and strength. “What is he going to do? Kick me out of the pack?” I joked as we rushed out of her apartment. We jogged to the gym behind the pack house. The floor was packed with people, all in the middle of a warm-up. “Taryn, Gavin. You’re late” my dad’s booming voice shook the room. “Sorry Alpha” we muttered. “6 laps around the pack house. Now.” He ordered. I cringed. Running was never my favorite thing. Taryn and I accepted our punishment and headed outside. Something was off about her. She seemed distracted, and I wondered if it had something to do with her dream earlier. She hadn't said anything, but I felt her panic and fear before she woke up. Maybe I should bring it up, I thought to myself. I wouldn't grumbled a deep voice in my head. My wolf, Arrax, spoke with authority like he knew something I didn't. Why shouldn't I bring it up? We don't keep secrets from each other, I countered. You have to trust her to tell you when she's ready. It was just a nightmare. Don't make it into anything more, boy. Arrax calling me boy always ruffled my feathers a bit. Wolves get reincarnated after their human counterparts die, so Arrax was much older than me, though he wouldn't tell me how old. Anytime I asked, he got cagey and changed the subject. I was pulled out of my thoughts as Taryn fell to the ground, yelping in pain. "Taryn!" I shouted, running to her side. She was in a fetal position on the ground clutching her side. "Gavin" she ground out through gritted teeth, "I think it's just a stitch." Even in agony she was trying to protect me. "Taryn, baby, this isn't just a stitch. Come here." I pulled her to me and mind linked for my dad. Something wasn't right, Taryn smelled like wolfsbane, but that was impossible. She had only been a few feet ahead of me. Nothing could have happened without me knowing. I cradled Taryn in my lap as she cried in pain. She was burning up with fever. My dad came sprinting towards us, concern written on his face. Taryn was like a daughter to him. "What happened?" he asked as he knelt next to us. "I have no idea, dad. She was complaining about her side hurting this morning when we woke up, and then she just collapsed halfway into our first lap." My dad crinkled his brow and leaned closer to Taryn. "Gavin she smells like..." I interrupted him "I know. But it's impossible. I've been with her all day." I stood with Taryn in my arms, cradling her like a baby bird. " I have to get her to the hospital" I turned towards the pack hospital, but my dad stopped me. " The hospital is full right now, take her to the Alpha wing, and I'll have Dr. Harwood come check her out". "Why is the pack hospital full? Did something happen?" The pack hospital was never full unless we were under attack, which we definitely weren't. We had strong allies and good ties to almost all the packs nearby. A pack a few hundred miles away was attacked by rouges last night. Their wounded were flown here because we are the closest pack. My dad mind linked me, which meant the rest of the pack had no idea that rouges were attacking packs nearby. I tried to reign in my panic as I ran Taryn to the hospital. First a rouge attack nearby, now Taryn is hurt by wolfsbane. Arrax paced and whined in my mind, this was all too much to start the day. I reopened the mind link to my dad, Dad, what pack was attacked? The Eclipse Moon Pack, Alpha Erix's pack He responded. I sighed and closed the mind link. Alpha Caz Erix was not someone we were close to. He was a fearsome warrior with a reputation for being standoffish to neighboring Alphas. This was bad news. If rogues could take down his pack then we were in big trouble. I sighed as I laid Taryn on the bed in the Alpha wing of the hospital. I stroked her forehead and kissed her cheek. She whimpered, but didn't open her eyes. "Hang in there, baby, the doctor will be here soon. You can fight this, Taryn. You have to fight this". I put my head down and begged the moon goddess to save her. "Please, Selene, help her. I need her. I can't run this pack without her."