Briar and Luke were in the hallway, exchanging glances. They led Jason out, and Caine followed, moving into the larger space of the kitchen. Min waited there, with a look of her own that sent Lycan pressing into Seath’s side.
Seath scented Lycan, his wolf would not be happy until the man smelled like him. He nuzzled Lycan’s neck and tried to keep his body under control. He never had this problem before with anyone, and he had at one time or another probably scented the entire pack, but being that close, his skin to Lycan’s, was heaven and his body reacted. He moved to Lycan’s wrist, safer, but still a place his scent would linger.
“I didn’t mean to . . .” Lycan said, but he shifted uncomfortably, already feeling the tell-tale signs of a heat flare starting. “I need to go,” he whispered, giving a desperate look to Luke. He wished he weren’t so broken. Maybe Jason was right. He couldn’t even get through a fight without a heat flaring in response. Fat tears threatened to release.
Not only that, but Seath was holding him, pressing skin to skin, right there, all scent and muscles and intensity. His body flared hot. He had to leave before he did something awful that would get him sent from the Pack, or worse, let Seath know how affected he was by the Legate.
Carefully, he detangled himself from Seath, who watched with a frown. It hurt, almost physically, to leave the exact place he wanted to be, but this flare was raging. Slick would flow next, and he needed to be out of the kitchens before that happened.
“This was not your doing,” Caine said. “I’ll walk you to your rooms, if you wish.”
Once they were gone, Seath turned on Briar. “I need you to take care of Jason. I don’t trust myself with this one.” He breathed through his mouth, willing the threshold that had been so helpful in alerting him to the predicament in the pantry to be kind enough to waft out the scent of Lycan’s heat. He locked down his own corresponding reaction as tightly as he could.
Briar nodded, shuffling Jason off to let the pack law enforcement take care of formal punishment for attacking a pack guest. Seath couldn’t get out of the kitchens fast enough.
Luke and Caine knew where to find Seath once Lycan was put back in his rooms. The constant heat flares were wearing on Lycan, and rest was the only solution. He would be groggy for a few days as the heat burned through him. It had been an ongoing problem since his very first heat. Seath was in a corresponding state, removing himself back to his study.
Seath was pacing in front of his windows, looking over at the beach and the adjoining playground where pack children could be seen playing.
“Lycan is fine. This is a flare and will burn out quickly.” Luke assured him and Seath nodded.
“You have to admit it’s a problem for him,” Seath said.
“Of course it’s a problem, Alpha.” Luke shook his head. “He’s found his fated mate. His body knows this and responds — a natural response I might add. But, the rest of him doesn’t know. Not yet.”
“I’m hurting him.”
“For the love of the goddess, Seath.” Caine lightly pushed Seath so instead of pacing, he sat down. Undoubtedly one of the only people who could get away with that move. “Is no one going to talk about how Little Wolf defended himself adequately?”
“Krav Maga?”Seath blinked at Caine.
“The fighting technique? Is that what that was? Like he does in the gym?” Luke asked, taking a seat.
They had all arrived in the kitchen with enough time to see Lycan pin Jason. The threshold alert having told them of trouble.
“That is what that was. And I don’t mean the stuff they teach down at the yoga studio. Krav Maga is an old technique, developed for hand-to-hand combat, especially to mitigate a size difference or if one party has a weapon and the other does not.” Caine tapped his fingers to his knee. “There are only so many places that would teach that and teach it so well. You mentioned he sparred with Briar, but I didn’t realize he did it so well.”
“A clue for your little investigation?” Seath was eager to know more about his mate.
“A clue,” Caine agreed. “And an opportunity. Perhaps we can also arrange his duties to teach some of the younger kids. It’s a worthy skill and he knew what he was about beyond what it would take to spar with Briar. A good place for him to grow stronger and be useful. He enjoys the gym.”
Seath’s chest puffed up. That was his mate. His mate put a bigger Alpha on the ground. Lycan was slight, but as his body healed, he had added muscle that was lean and strong.
Lycan hadn’t shifted after the coven, but Seath saw him rub his chest a few times, as if he had felt his wolf. His wolf senses were also restoring. A little bit every day they built back. Not full strength, but better.
The only issue was the heat flares and the resulting exhaustion as the constant heats wore on Lycan’s body. Maybe more work in the gym would be good for him.
Seath tried to calm his thoughts about Lycan, but it was difficult. Everything inside screamed at him tofix it.
“We do need to talk about the heats, though.” Luke winced at circling the conversation back. Luke put up a hand in the universal gesture for “I come in peace.” “Hear me out, okay? You are due for a quarter-day trip, are you not, Seath?”
It was Seath’s turn to wince. Quarter-day was an antiquated term from when the Pack Alpha would ride the circuit of his or her lands once a quarter for collecting taxes and dispensing justice. Things didn’t work quite that way anymore. Pack tithes were more automated, and voluntary, and there was a more modern judicial system, but the title remained, even if the frequency did not. Quarter Day now occurred twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall.
Their pack had grown in size and in land, too. There was a calendar so that in five years the Alpha would visit each town and village, no matter how small or inconsequential. Seath was about a month late, going in Greene’s stead this year.
“You want me to leave him?” Seath asked.
“His body needs to reset. It’s . . .conflicted. So many heats, even small flares, over such a short time. It’s past time for his next regular heat. I could give him suppressors.”
