Matthias’s heart was a drum in his chest. Raine stood at the opposite side of the room, eyes wide and chest heaving as she stared up at Ronan. He could still see the flush in her cheeks from their almost kiss, and the want that slammed through him was strong enough to rock him off his feet. He stayed put through sheer force of will, and turned to his son with a sneer.

“What are you doing here?” He growled, stalking closer.

Ronan’s brow furrowed, “What am I doing here? I live here! What is she doing here?! She was banished.” He snarled back.

“On whose authority?!” Matthias’s voice boomed, “Yours? Because last I checked, I’m the only one whose authority matters in this pack. You went behind my back and banished a pack member without consulting me first. You should be punished, Ronan, for undermining my authority.”

“Punished?!” Ronan spluttered, his anger simmering in the space between them as his eyes turned golden. “She was my mate. I rejected her! She has no place in this pack anymore!”

“Last I checked, that is my decision to make, not yours.”

Matthias watched Ronan grit his teeth as his anger washed over him, his wolf practically snarling to crawl out from beneath his skin. The only reason he wasn’t acting now was because Matthias was alpha, and father. Matthias took a step forward, looming over his son and letting his wolf’s aura peek through. As expected, Ronan faltered slightly as his wolf fought against the need to submit, Raine made a small noise of distress from behind them.

“Are you actually defending here?” Ronan hissed, “Twenty two years, you’ve barely paid her any attention, and now you both are having personal meetings in the pack house, and you’re defending her.”

Matthias reared back slightly, the intonations in Ronan’s words hit far too close to the truth. He chanced a glance at Raine and found that she was staring down at her feet, her cheeks red. Matthias cleared his throat.

“Raine Whitmore is a member of my pack. As an alpha, it is my sworn duty to protect and serve.” He spoke each word through gritted teeth, even as his gut twisted with unease. He knew he wasn’t doing this for entirely selfless reasons, seeing her alone and hurting was a big motivator, but deep down he knew reinstating Raine back in the pack would absolve some of his guilt over sleeping with her.

Ronan scoffed, “Oh is that so? How many other pack members have you personally been handling their issues. Last I checked, Silas is the only one who does that.”

“Are you accusing me of neglecting my pack?”

“Bugger off, old man. I’m accusing you of butting your nose into my personal matters. Raine was my mate. I rejected her, and she cast out. The matter has been settled, hasn’t it?” He turned to Raine with a sneer, his fingers flexing at his side as his claws threatened to appear.

Raine flinched, her scent spiking with fear as her gaze darted between both men. The sour note sent Matthias wolf into a frenzy, howling with the need to protect, rid the younger woman of whatever was threatening her. The alpha bit down the urge, refusing to give anymore thought to what his wolf wanted.

Ronan was still speaking, spewing venom with each word.

“You stupid whore.” He spat at her, “I caught you creeping around this house last time, didn’t I? Stinking of sex and shame. And what did I tell you then?”

Raine shut her eyes tight. “Ronan please.”

“Ronan…” Matthias growled low in warning, but his son was not listening.

“I told you,” Ronan growled, each step bringing him closer to Raine. “That if I saw you in this house again, I would kill you.” His hands flexed by his side, and Matthias saw his claws sharpen. In the blink of an eye, he was across the room and standing between both of them, his lips pulled back in a sneer as his wolf finally rose up to the surface, the presence of his alpha stifling in the room.

Ronan growled, eyes flashing golden, but even he was powerless in the face of his father’s wolf. His clawed hands flexed by his side, and his chest heaved with the force of his anger.

“Step aside, father.” He snarled, “She deserves to be punished.”

Raine’s breath was coming hard and fast from behind him, Matthias’s heart twisted. “If you lay a hand on her, I will have you disowned, and stripped of your title. I will banish you from the pack. I will name you a traitor and enemy to my territory.” Matthias’s eyes flashed the deep red of the pack alpha as he infused authority into his voice. “Raine stays here, in the pack where she belongs. And you will take her back as your mate.”

Ronan froze, and for a moment, his eyes went wide with shock, but then he laughed. A sharp, humorless laugh. “The hell I will.”

Matthias stayed unmoving. He simply watched his son, studying him like a wolf would study a prey. Then, in the same voice, he repeated, “You will take her back.”

Ronan’s sneer faltered for just a moment before he snarled, “I rejected her. She means nothing to me. You can dress it up however you want, but I’m not taking back a discarded—”

Matthias moved so fast that Ronan barely had time to react. In an instant, he had his son by the collar, slamming him hard against the opposite wall. A chip of the paint fell off, as the structure shuddered. Ronan choked, hands gripping at Matthias’s wrist, but Matthias didn’t let go. He leaned in, close enough that his son could feel the weight of his wolf, demanding submission.

“You’ve made many mistakes, boy.” Matthias murmured, “This is the only chance I’m giving you to fix one of them.”

Ronan bared his throat. “And if I don’t?”

Matthias’s expression remained dark and resolute. “Like I said, if you refuse me this, I will strip you of your title, and you will be exiled from this pack.

Her heart stopped as soon as Matthias made his declaration. It was one thing for the alpha to threaten his son for attempting to hurt her. But forcing him to take her back. Raine didn’t know how she was supposed to feel about that.

Oh but she missed Ronan so much.

If this was the only way they could be together, then that was what she’d take. Ronan had been in love with her once, with time, maybe he could learn to love her again. She bit her lip, hope unfurling in her chest as she shoved away from where she’d cowed by the wall, and approached both men gingerly.

“I will take everything from you,” Matthias said, leaning closer until he was almost nose to nose with his son. “Your inheritance. Your claim to leadership, your place in this pack. You will leave here with nothing.”

Ronan’s nostrils flared. “You can’t be serious.”

Matthias pulled back just enough to meet his son’s gaze. “Try me.”

Ronan’s eyes bulged as he realized his father was actually being serious. He began to struggle as Matthias’s grip got tighter. Raine surged forward, scared for her mate. She reached out and caught Matthias’s arm. The flesh beneath her hand was hard and firm, a bolt of lust went straight through her, but she shoved it down.

“Alpha, please stop.” She pleaded, her voice soft and frantic, “You’re hurting him.”

The older alpha stepped back, letting go of his son. He didn’t look at Raine, so she had no idea what was going on in his head. Ronan sputtered, struggling to catch his breath. He glanced up at his father, and for the first time since he walked in on them, there was fear in his eyes, and hot, molten hate.

“Listen to me, Ronan.” Matthias spoke, “You will take Raine Whitmore back as your mate, and you will join with her under the Waning Crescent moon, under the blessings of the pack elders, and the goddess. I don’t want to hear anything else about it, or I will take everything you hold dear. I will throw you out of this pack, and strip you of my name.”

“Why are you making me do this?” Ronan rasped, his voice hoarse with anger, and almost whiny. “Why do I have to take her back as my mate?”

“Because she is your responsibility.” Matthias hissed, even as his gaze darted to her briefly. “You cannot give her years of promises and sweet nothings, only to leave her rejected and homeless on the night of your joining. That’s irresponsible and callous.”

“So you’re forcing her on me as punishment?!”

“No. I’m returning her to you because you’re her fated, and you need to learn responsibility.”

“Fuck this!” Ronan spat. He turned to look at Raine, his eyes flashing yellow with anger. “This is what you want, isn’t it? It’s why you came back, so you can cry all over Daddy’s shoulders and force him to give you what you want?”

“No, Ronan.” She shook her head, stepping forward in an attempt to hold him. “You have to know, deep down. You have to know that I love you, your wolf and mine, they’ve been promised to each other. Long before any of us were born. We’re fated, can’t you see?

Ronan scoffed, “You’re so delusional, it’s honestly saddening.”

Raine gaped at him, unsure what she was supposed to say to that. Matthias spoke up before she could. “We’ll announce your reengagement and Raine’s return to the pack first thing tomorrow morning.”

Ronan stared hard at his father, his body simmering with anger, and then without another word, he turned and stormed out of the house, slamming the door shut behind him, leaving Raine and Matthias alone in the resulting silence. All at once, Raine found herself immediately aware of the other man’s presence, like her wolf was physically straining to be close to him, aching to close the space between them and finish what they’d started before Ronan interrupted.

It didn’t make sense. Raine loved Ronan. She did. There wasn’t even a shadow of doubt about it. Ronan was her mate. Her heart had never known any other man, and she wasn’t sure it ever would. But this thing with Matthias was magnetic. Like a force she couldn’t stop even as her heart told her it was a bad idea.

He met her gaze from across the room, and the heat in those steely grey orbs shot straight through her body, pooling low in her belly until her legs shook with the force of her lust. She was still wearing his shirt. Had Ronan noticed.

Did he care?

Matthias seemed like he cared. With the way his gaze was running over her, alight with an hunger that made her wet for him. His scent was thick in the room, Raine felt heady with the rush of it, and had to bite her lips to stifle a whimper.

Her breath came fast. She looked at Matthias, he didn’t seem like he was bothered much. Raine was acting the thirstiest of slags. Moaning after another man’s cock after just one taste, despite being promised to another. And not just any other man, he was her soon to be father in law. A man old enough to be her father. Raine was ashamed of herself, but it did nothing to kill her arousal.

Matthias’s nostril flared, it was like he could smell the musk of her arousal. Her face flamed with embarrassment, and she bowed her head, trying to hide her shame from him.

“Thank you, alpha.” She rushed out breathlessly. “Ronan would have never agreed to take me back if you hadn’t intervened. I’m so grateful.”

“Raine,” he said on a sigh, closing the space between them to tip her head up and cup the side of her face. “Is this truly what you want?

She stared up at him with parted lips, and blinked. “Yes, alpha. Ronan is the only one I want. I’ll have him however he will take me.” She blushed, and lowered her eyes. “Perhaps now we can forget about that night and put it behind us, a mistake.”

A muscle in his jaw jumped, and something in his eyes flashed, but he stepped back, and Raine suddenly felt cold. “Of course,” he said. “Nothing but a mistake. In that case, I wish both you and Ronan, the best of married life. I hope you both find happiness with each other.”

And then with one final nod, Matthias turned and left. Raine’s wolf howled, a long and mournful note as he disappeared out of sight.

When night came, Raine was escorted to Ronan’s rooms, and told she was to sleep there on the alpha’s orders. It was unusual, because even before Ronan rejected her, Raine slept in her own home down in the pack, and was rarely ever in the packhouse, much less in Ronan’s room. Still, her heart thumped excitedly as she stepped into the empty room, and was immediately covered in the scent of her mate.

She expected her wolf to preen, and luxuriate with pleasure, being surrounded by the scent of their mate. But her wolf remained resolutely quiet, having been down since Matthias walked away from her in the living room.

It didn’t matter though, Raine was sure her wolf would perk up once Ronan was back, and it realized he was their true mate, and Matthias had just been a really great fuck.

An hour later, she was stepping out of the bathroom after a soak in the tub, and was slipping into the night slip that had been laid out for her, when the room door opened and Ronan slammed his way in.

Raine jumped at the sharp sound, and Ronan froze. He stared at her like she’d suddenly grown two heads and multiple limbs. Both of them stood in tense silence for a long while. Ronan looked down at her with so much venom, that she wrapped her arms around herself to shield her body from him, especially since the navy-blue slip was practically transparent.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” He snarled, his wolf rising to the surface with each step he took closer.

Raine tipped her chin up, refusing to be cowed. “I was brought here, and told to sleep here.”

“On whose orders?!” He barked.

“Your father’s.”

Ronan paused, head cocked as this information sunk in. The corner of his lips peeled back in a sneer, and Raine felt a shiver run through her. “This was your idea too, wasn’t it? You went to my father and had him do this too?”

“Ronan, no.” Raine shook her head, coming closer. “Of course not. I don’t know what happened to us, but I think we can still make this work. You and me, we’re meant to me.” She took one of his hand in hers and brought it to her lips, kissing it softly. Ronan stiffened, and when she glanced up she found him staring down at her with an unreadable look.

His eyes were grey like his father’s, and the way he was looking at her, it reminded her so much of the older man. Her heart rate sped up, and her breathing went shallow. Ronan’s nostrils flared, and his brows shot up as he caught scent of her arousal.

He threw his head back and laughed, a sharp, mocking sound that made her flinch. “You just spread for any alpha now, don’t you?” He dragged his hand out of her grip and reached for her chin, his fingers digging into her soft flesh. “You came running out of this same house days ago, reeking of some other alpha. And now you grow wet in the presence of a man who despises you.”

“Ronan—” she groaned with a wince, “You’re my mate. It’s only natural.”

He stared at her down with barely contained disgust, and then without another word, he flung her away and stormed off. Raine stood still, breath coming fast as the bathroom door slammed shut with a thud hard enough to rattle the windows. A moment later, she heard the rush of water.

Raine crawled into the bed, taking the side facing the wall, and dragged the blanket up to her chin. There was some movement out in the halls, and her wolf whined, straining with the need to be next to Matthias. It was getting frustrating. Ronan was her mate. It didn’t matter how he felt about her now, if she tried hard enough, he could love her again. Maybe then, her wolf would snap out of this lust filled obsession it had with her mate’s father.

With this resolution in mind, Raine waited until Ronan finished up in the bathroom. He climbed into bed beside her without much reluctance, and that relieved her more than anything. Heaving out a shaky breath, Raine turned around to face her mate. Ronan was seated against the headboard, frowning down at his phone. Once he saw she had turned, he scowled, opening his mouth to say something scathing.

Raine wasn’t going to let him finish. She raised herself up on her elbows, and fumbled underneath the covers for the waistband of his boxers. Whatever he was about to say, cut off in a sharp gasp as her hand wrapped around the hot length of his cock.

“What are you doing?” He hissed.

Raine pulled his boxers down, her hand pumping up and down on his length, breathing fast as his cock hardened. “It’s okay, I want to do this.” She glanced up at him, “Just sit back and enjoy it, okay.”

Ronan’s jaw hardened, but he leaned back against the headboard and let her stroke him. Taking that as assent, Raine shifted closer and wrapped her lips around the crown of his cock, she moaned around him as she brought one of her hands down to fondle herself, pretending it was Matthias’ big hands in her as she sucked on Ronan’s cock.

Her mate made grunts of pleasure above her as his balls drew up with his orgasm, and her fingers picked up speed as she fucked herself faster, the sounds wet and obscene in the quiet room. Ronan’s hand fisted in her hair, pulling tight as his orgasm crested and he came in long thick spurts down her throat.

She whimpered as he pulled her off his softening cock. He said nothing to her as he climbed off the bed and disappeared into the bathroom once again, leaving her throbbing and aching and wet, staring at the place he vacated. Her pussy throbbed again, and Raine groaned. She buried her face in the sheets, and spread her legs slightly, closing her eyes as she sunk her fingers back into her cunt. She fucked herself, hard and fast, moaning into the comforter, her toes curling with pleasure. And as she did, she pretended she was back in Matthias’s room, hanging on his huge knot and being fucked within an inch of her life. She came hard, muffling her screams against the pillows.