Obsession (The Mate Games 1)

“Your turn, man.”

I jutted my chin in acknowledgment before sprinting off into the grove. I could feel the magic take hold as soon as I crossed the threshold. It ran down my back like a cool trickle of water, agitating my wolf with the foreign sensation, but not enough to send me into high alert. Just enough that my senses sharpened.

Just because I couldn’t shift didn’t mean I couldn’t draw on my wolf. That was the whole point of exercises such as this. Hone the strengths of your species, no matter your form. The vamps would definitely be using their super speed and strength. I’d be damned if I wasn’t going to make use of my superior tracking abilities. There was no way my partner would get the jump on me.

With that thought in mind, I worked my way through the magic-made forest, climbing over fallen logs and heading deeper into the dense vegetation. Maybe ten minutes after I entered, there was a low bugle, and then a tendril of warmth tickled my chest where the pendant rested. The last of the students were inside.

The hunt was on.

I let my wolf take over, directing my steps and leading us around and through, always working our way closer to my prey. The pendant was buzzing with warmth now, not enough to burn, but definitely letting me know I had to be getting close.

The snap of a branch to my left drew my attention. Someone else was closing in, but when I turned in their direction, my pendant went cold.

Not mine.

When I turned back the way I’d been heading, my pendant flared to life again. I lifted my nose to the air, inhaling deeply.

If they were nearby, I should be able to smell them. And if I could catch their scent, I should also be able to sort out what species they were, which would help me sneak up on them. A witch, for example, would require no subtlety. Out of all of us, they were the weakest without their gifts. A vampire or shifter, however, would require me to stay upwind so they couldn’t catch my scent.

I knew it was her the moment the breeze carried soft notes of lilac and honey to me. Picking up my pace, I zeroed in on the trail, focused on my target. My wolf howled as her scent exploded in my nose.

The need to possess my mate ran through me, hot and fierce.

I started running then. Silently moving through the woods like the creature whose nature I shared.

I found her not a minute later, peering around a tree into the empty clearing. She was right in front of me, and I was downwind enough the pretty little shifter didn’t have a clue. The pendant flared white-hot and then faded out. The warning that our target had been located.

Sunday tensed, but I was on her before she could move.

Pouncing from behind her, I sent both of us flying out into the small clearing. I tackled her, knocking us to the moss and leaf-strewn ground, protecting her even as I pinned her. She squirmed in my arms, inadvertently grinding that perfect ass of hers right into my crotch.

She gasped, and the slight hitch in her breath told me she knew exactly what that did to me.

“Let me go,” she growled.

I gave just enough space for her to roll over onto her back before I caught her wrists in my hands and flattened my body over hers. “Submit,” I snarled, my voice more wolf than man.

She swallowed. “To you? Never.”

As an Alpha, the act of defiance should have pissed me off. But coming from her, all it did was turn me on. My dick was already thick and heavy between us. I couldn’t get much harder if I tried.

My beast’s instincts took hold, overriding my own as my wolf gave in to the need to get closer to his mate. I nuzzled into her neck, drawing her addictive scent deep into my lungs until I thought I may never get rid of it.

Fuck, she felt good splayed out beneath me like this. All those soft curves cradling my hardness. My hips rocked into hers without my conscious thought, and I let out a hiss. It was good. So fucking good. And nowhere near enough.

“Wh-what are you doing?”

“Taking what’s mine,” I growled, scraping my jaw along her neck, marking that soft skin with my scruff.

She whimpered, and the sound burrowed deep into me, setting my blood on fire. I wanted more.

I lowered my mouth, my lips hovering just over the place where her mate mark should be. My teeth ached with the need to claim her. As my lips grazed her skin, I growled, my intention clear. If given half the chance, I’d have her right here and now. I didn’t give a fuck who saw us. In fact, Iwantedthem to see the proof of my claim on her.

Instead of fighting me, Sunday arched her body into mine, her chin shifting ever so slightly to the side. As if she wanted the same thing I did. As if she craved it.

And then her breath hitched, and she stuttered, “N-Noah?”

“It seems you’ve found something that belongs to me, dog.” Noah’s voice was calm and unaffected, but I sensed the rage boiling under the surface of the leech’s skin.