The "Boy" Mated to Five

Chapter 8

I covered my mouth in shock.

What had I just done?

"I'm your what?" Blaze asked, confusion written across his features.

At least I knew the potion had worked well enough that he couldn’t tell.

He stepped closer and placed a gentle hand against my forehead, his touch sending sparks through my skin. "Do you need to get checked out, Eli?"

I blinked but said nothing, my heart hammering.

I needed to backtrack.

"I think I'd know if you were my mate, wouldn't I?" he joked, but there was something searching in his light blue eyes.

I laughed breathlessly, the sound hollow even to my own ears. "Yeah, yeah... I don’t know what made me say that," I said, backing away. “I’m just tired.”

He smiled slightly as he leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms. The movement made his tattoo shift beneath his shirt collar.

"Why do you think I'm your mate?" he asked, still curious about my outburst.

I wished the ground would swallow me whole.

“I'm just sleep deprived and I’m not feeling too great. I think I must have eaten something off," I rambled off the words.

How could I tell him about the way his scent called to my wolf, the way every cell in my body recognized him as mine?

He nodded then ran a hand through his hair. "“Okay,” he said, accepting the lie. “But if you ever need to talk, I’m here for you.”

The gentleness in his voice made my chest ache.

And maybe it was his comforting words or his scent wrapping around me like a warm embrace, but before I could stop myself tears burst free from my eyes.

“Eli,” he said, looking at me surprised.

But the tears wouldn’t stop coming.

I was like a dam breaking wide open…all of my anxiety, frustrations, everything poured out of me.

He pulled me into a hug and I melted instantly in his arms. My wolf settled for the first time since arriving at the academy, content in our mate's embrace. I wished I could’ve stayed there forever, feeling safe like this.

Once the tears had finally stopped, I pulled away from him, embarrassed. “I’m sorry about that,” I said, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“It’s okay, Eli,” he said softly, scanning my face, taking in the deep bags under my puffy red eyes. “You don’t need to be sorry.”

My heart clenched.

I wished I could have told him everything.

But I knew I couldn’t.

I didn’t know how he would react.

Could he keep my deception a secret?

Would he even want to…or would he just report it?

I bit my tongue.

“Yeah,” I said, then pointed at his tear-stained shirt. “I promise this won’t happen again.”

He pulled at his shirt to get a better look then chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Like I said, first nights are rough.”

I nodded and hurriedly headed back to my room, closing the door firmly behind me. I let out a deep breath as I slid to the floor.

I couldn’t believe how close I was to telling him everything.

I just hoped he believed my weak, sleep deprived excuse.

~0~

The next morning arrived too soon.

Exhaustion filled me.

Between Blaze’s scent and having to constantly stop myself from spilling my entire secret, sleep wouldn’t come.

I climbed out of bed needing to get ready for my meeting with the commander.

As I sifted through the few pieces of clothing I had available, I was glad that as a first year, just starting out, I didn’t have to worry about wearing the Military Academy’s uniform. I had long before seen Ethan in the black slacks and white button down shirt, but at the time hadn’t known that the blazer and tie he wore matched the color of the academy he was in.

Now I understood that the uniforms were all custom tailored and were reserved only for those who had successfully made it into the academy of their choosing.

Since a custom uniform meant being examined and measured and potentially giving my secret away, I was relieved that I didn’t have to worry about that for now. At least, until after the trials.

I sighed as I began binding my chest.

It was a mistake on my part that I hadn’t asked the Wolftress for a tonic to mask my breasts.

It would have made my life much easier.

I continued dressing, ignoring the way Blaze's scent clung to everything in our shared space, but failing horribly.

Once I was done, I grabbed my small bag and hurried out of our dorm before I could run into him.

~0~

Commander Dominic Greyfall's office was located in the highest tower of the academy.

As I climbed the endless stone steps, that faint scent that had clung to Ethan's uniform when he had first returned home, grew stronger with each step. It was woodsy and dark, pulsing with undertones of authority and raw power that made my wolf stir restlessly.

When I finally reached his office and stepped inside, the scent hit me with full force.

My wolf went absolutely wild.

She howled within me, clawing at my consciousness, desperate to reach him. The sound that wanted to tear from my throat was pure recognition, pure need.

I bit down hard enough on my tongue to taste blood.

Nausea swept over me in waves as the reality crashed down.

Another mate.

It wasn't possible. I had never heard of someone having multiple mates.

Not to mention, I could barely handle one mate.

Now I had two?

My hands trembled as I recalled what Ethan had said before.

Commander Greyfall wasn't just any Alpha.

He was one of the most powerful in the kingdom and the right hand of the Lycan King himself. A king who wouldn't hesitate to execute me if he knew I had disguised myself to infiltrate his prized academy.

The Moon Goddess clearly had a twisted sense of humor.

The mate bond hummed between us, even though he showed no sign of recognition.

The potion really worked well.

He sat behind a massive oak desk, reviewing documents with focused intensity.

When he looked up, his dark gray eyes seemed to see straight through to my soul. The intensity of his gaze reminded me uncomfortably of the Wolftress's piercing stare.

I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry.

Everything about him radiated controlled power. This was a man who commanded armies, who made decisions that affected thousands of lives.

And he was my mate.

“Elliott Greenwood,” he said.

“Commander Greyfall,” I responded, trying my best to keep my voice steady. “Thank you for meeting with me.”

"I was surprised when my Beta contacted me," he said, his voice carrying absolute authority. "Ethan Greene requesting you join my pack and asking for you to enroll in the academy."

My wolf preened at the sound of his voice, deep and rumbling like thunder. I fought to keep my expression neutral while she practically purred with satisfaction.

"Ethan is one of my best students," he continued, studying me with those piercing dark eyes. "I expect him not to waste my time."

His gaze was so intense I wondered if he could somehow sense what I was despite the potion's effects.

"He mentioned you lost your mother and that you had some troubles with your pack, the Grimsbane Pack," he said.

"Yes, sir," I managed, clutching the straps of my bag tightly to keep my hands steady.

”With your pack’s remote location, we rarely cross paths, but still, I haven’t heard of any issues there,” he said, scanning me once more.”But as you have been vouched for, I will allow you to stay.”

Before I could sag with relief, his expression hardened. “But if you want to be worthy of being in my pack, I expect you to be the top ranked first year in everything. Anything else is failure.”

“Understood, Commander Greyfall,” I said. Becoming the top ranked student would be tough, but thankfully the goal was just to get into the academy and I had done that.

“However,” he said, his voice dropping dangerously, “if I discover any deception, the consequences will be brutal."

I nodded, my heart pounding as I bit the inside of my cheek to keep my expression neutral.

Then my mate leaned back in his chair, and I got a clear view of those broad shoulders and the way his tailored shirt did absolutely nothing to hide the muscle underneath.The dark, woodsy scent of his overwhelming me even more.

My wolf was practically pulsating with the need to go to him, to touch him, howling so loudly within me I could barely hear anything else.

I tried to push her away, to quiet her.

She didn’t like that.

My wolf surged toward her mate with such violent force that I unexpectedly pitched forward and ended up slamming into his desk. Items clattered across its surface, the noise impossibly loud in the quiet office.

Heat flooded my cheeks and my mind reeled from the impact of it all.

My wolf had just overpowered me…. something which had never happened before.

If the desk hadn’t been there, I would have thrown myself right into his arms.

I swallowed as I kept my head down and began quickly reaching for the things on his desk that had shifted out of place.

“Leave it,” he ordered brusquely.

My head flung up at his tone and my eyes locked with his. I felt a knot form in the pit of my stomach. His expression had transformed completely, replaced by something cold and disapproving that made my blood freeze.

I quickly stepped back from his desk. "I'm sorry," I murmured, my gaze dropping to the stone floor as shame burned through me.The silence stretched for several heartbeats before he spoke.

"I'm making a rare exception by allowing you here,” he said, frost coating every word.

I forced myself to meet his gaze again, though everything in me wanted to shrink away from the judgment I saw there.

His dark eyes bored into mine. "I have no tolerance for weakness." His voice remained level, but something dangerous flickered in his expression. “And I will not hesitate to remove you and send you back to your pack…Is that clear?"

The weight of his words pressed down on me. “Yes sir,” I managed to say, trying to not let my voice shake as my chest tightened and I fought back the sting of tears.

"Dismissed," he said with finality, his attention already returning to the documents on his desk as if I'd ceased to exist.

.

As I stumbled down the stone steps, my wolf howled her protest at leaving our mate behind. The bond stretched between us like a taut string, and I had to grip the stone banister to keep from turning around.

I gritted my teeth as I reigned her in.

It was one thing to prove myself…but how could I prove myself when my wolf could make me lose control at any moment?

.