Red River (Pack 2)

Like many things Jobe said, the words weren’t immediately clear, but all the time he had been spending with Jobe allowed Wesley to understand him. The brightness wasn’t a reference to the sun; it was a description of the sharpness of each sense. Everything was heightened. In his wolf form, Wesley couldn’t miss it, and he suspected he would have noticed it in his human form too, but for the fact that he had been keeping his animal half at bay for so long.

“Are you ready to explore?”

Wesley yipped and hopped from foot to foot. The instinct to run through his new pack lands and learn them was overwhelming and the only thing stopping him from taking off was the even stronger drive to stay with Jobe.

“Okay, mate.” Jobe’s eyes shone in the moonlight. “Let’s run.”

The word still hung in the air when Jobe’s human body transformed into that of a huge white wolf. Wesley had never seen anyone shift as quickly. But that wasn’t the only surprise.

As a man, Jobe was an inch shorter than Wesley and just shy of a dozen pounds lighter. But as a wolf, he was taller, wider, and thicker. Seeing Jobe in his animal form made Wesley realize he may have been too hasty in disbelieving Jobe’s earlier assertion. Alphas, like mates, were most easily identified by smell, and Jobe had no scent, but Alphas also had a powerful core that radiated to the pack, they had strength beyond other shifters, and their wolf halves were generally larger in stature. Wesley hadn’t had cause to witness Jobe’s physical strength, but his spirit certainly made itself known. Looking at his wolf left no question about his size being in line with other Alphas, and when Wesley thought about it, he recognized that power did roll off Jobe. It was just quieter than in other Alphas, not weaker, but gentler and calmer.

All the signs fit together pointing to only one conclusion: Jobe was an Alpha wolf.

After working and waiting for an opportunity to lead a pack all his life, Wesley would have expected to feel resentment at having to share the role now that he finally had it. But as Jobe rubbed his chin and neck over the top of Wesley’s head and circled him, brushing their torsos together, Wesley felt peaceful and content. Jobe wasn’t his competition and he wouldn’t overshadow Wesley or obstruct him. They had different personalities, but with those differences came different strengths. The pack would benefit from having them both at the helm. Besides, Jobe was his friend, the only real friend he had ever had, and Wesley found that he not only could accept sharing the Alpha role with him, but that, with Jobe, he wanted to share it.

When Jobe finished the full rotation around Wesley’s body, they dashed off toward the forest in unison. The night air was cool but their coats and exertion kept them warm as they made their way to the river that flowed through the pack lands, behind the houses where their people slept, around the schools and businesses that supported their pack, and as the first signs of sunlight glowed orange on the horizon, back home, their home.

Wesley didn’t know when he had come to view the large but cozy cabin as his home, but as he stepped onto the wood porch and inhaled the now familiar scents of the herbs Jobe had lining the property, he knew he was where he was supposed to be. But more than that, he knew who he was supposed to be. He was Red River’s Alpha and he was Jobe’s mate. How he got there suddenly seemed irrelevant.

“Wes.” Jobe’s human voice was sandpaper rough, but despite having stayed awake all night running, it clearly wasn’t from exhaustion. “I need you.” He opened the door with a shaky hand and stepped aside, leaving room for Wesley to go inside first.

Still in his wolf form, Wesley walked close enough to brush his soft fur against the hot, hard cock crawling up Jobe’s stomach.

Jobe gasped and whimpered, the sound full of need. “Wes,” he choked out.

It seemed that running made his mate horny. He’d have to remember that. He shifted into his human form, intending to tease Jobe a little, but as soon as he made the change, he was smacked with a wave of lust so strong, he almost fell to his knees.

“She’s ready.” Jobe clutched Wesley’s hip with one hand and his shoulder with another; he brought his trembling body close enough that his cock grazed Wesley’s. “But we don’t have to. Not yet. She can wait a little longer.”

The “she” Jobe referenced had to be Mother Nature or fate; he used the words interchangeably and often. The rest of the sentence wasn’t as transparent but that didn’t matter because the basic point came through loud and clear: Jobe wanted him as much as he wanted Jobe. No, “want” wasn’t a strong enough description. He craved this man.