“Well, son,” Drey said cheerfully, “then I think it’s time someone taught that good ol’ boy what it means to take a real Alpha to the dance.”
“That’s an option?” I asked in surprise.
“Absolutely,” Drey confirmed. “Not to bore you with details, but there is a very old law of conduct that Alpha’s were expected to adhere to long before the Council of Packs decreed there be laws and so on.” He paused and I heard him swallow. “It was known as The Alpha’s Code of Conduct.” He laughed. “Not very original, but it allows for an Alpha in defense of his honor, his family, his pack, or any weaker person in danger to resort to resolution on the battlefield.”
My lips curved into a feral smile. “I choose that one.”
Drey laughed. “I thought you might. It will happen much faster. We have to file a special dispensation response. The court will usually rule on that the same day it’s filed. Then we send a certified invitation. The victim – err, other participant – has twenty-four hours to accept. If he accepts, the challenge takes place the next day.”
Drey paused again, this time I could hear someone murmuring in the background. “I should warn you, though, that, since the dispute in question is a physical claim, he does have the right to refuse the challenge and simply sign away any potential rights.”
“So, he can chickenshit out of the fight, but I still get Jeremy and Bella?”
“Correct. He will be required to sign away any rights to the contested pack members immediately.”
“Then let’s get this ball rolling, lawyer man.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jeremy
I’d chewed off three nails and was starting on the fourth when I heard a familiar thunk on the table, the sound of Kade’s cell phone being tossed down. I was struggling with what to say to him when his large, muscular body filled the doorway between the kitchen and living room.
“Our beauty went down okay?” Kade asked, his voice deep and growly.
I wasn’t sure what had gotten into Kade. When he’d left the room, My Alpha had been his usual stalwart self, calm and confident. When he rejoined me in the living room, his cock was clearly erect, jutting against the front of his pants and I could smell the arousal rolling off him in waves. My eyes widened. “Yes, Sir.”
“Mmm,” Kade grunted, stalking toward me. “I do like it when you call me that.” He stopped in front of me, staring down with hunger in those deep amber eyes. “C’mere, boy.”
I scrambled to my feet, my heart stuttering as he towered over me, not just invading my personal space, but stealing the very breath from my lungs each time I exhaled. My blood began to rush as my libido raced to catch up with his.
“Good boy,” he rumbled, bending down to release the words against my ear. “You’re gonna be such a good boy for me, aren’t you?”
I tried to answer so fast that I choked on my words, but the frantic nodding of my head seemed to get my point across.
“I want you on your hands and knees on the bed,” he ordered, scraping his fangs across the tender skin of my neck. “Face down, ass up, cheeks spread.”
“Yes, Sir,” I agreed over my shoulder, already scurrying for the bedroom.
I left my clothes in a heap on the floor and crawled onto the bed, dragging a pillow down to cushion my face as I held the position Kade had demanded, my hands holding my ass open, baring my most private space to the cool air.
In the silence of the room, the only sound was my own panting breaths. No matter how hard I tried to control it, my body refused to acquiesce, my mounting excitement driving my lungs to suck in deep, gulping breaths as I waited for my husband to appear.
A brief whisper in the back of my mind reminded me that the doctor hadn’t cleared me for this, hadn’t said I was healed enough. I shoved that thought back down, desperate to please my Alpha. Needing him to take what was his.
Positioned there in the cool, silent room, waiting for my master, my mind raced. I was so caught in my head that I missed the moment that Kade entered the room. I was completely unprepared when his hot, wet tongue swiped over my hole, jolting my attention back to the present.
Kade laughed at my gasp. “There you are,” he said, a teasing note in his gravelly voice. “Did I keep you waiting too long, baby?”
I shook my head, shivering when a fingertip drew down my back, tracing the bumps of my spine.
“Words, Jem,” Kade murmured. “I want to hear your voice.”
“No, Sir,” I managed to force out as his tongue traced over my hole, flicking lightly over my pucker. I could feel the telltale tingle of my ring starting to loosen, the almost indescribable tickle of the slick building inside me as my body prepared to welcome my Alpha’s cock. “I’ll wait as long as pleases you.”
“Mm, good answer, Jem,” Kade’s voice dripped over me like honey, warming every nook and cranny of my body that was beyond physical touch. “You turn me on so much,” he murmured, tracing my hole with his tongue, digging the tip in ever so slightly. “You taste so good.”
I whimpered and tried to push back, to draw him in deeper, but Kade held me in place, his hands coming to rest on my hips.
