Alphy's Challenge (21 page)

Gale lifted her
head and shouted, and Alphy felt her body stiffen. Rubbing her butt cheeks,
Alphy gave her a minute to adjust. When her muscles gentled, Alphy began to
plow heavily into her. He pulled her by the hips, keeping her arms and body
taut has he thumped his hips against roughly against her over and over again.
Sweat beaded his body from the exertion and from holding in his orgasm. The
sound of their bodies slapping together added to the moans and cries of
pleasure they were both making.

Alphy could feel
his sweat pouring down his face, and he could see
a sheen
of sweat shine over the smooth back of his mate. Alphy felt the tingles in his
spine indicating not only his release, but the magnitude of it. Adjusting his
angle, Alphy, now hunched over his mate, continued to piston in and out. Gale
screamed out her release as her muscles clamped around his cock. Her spasms
were what sent him over the edge, and Alphy cried out his release. As his balls
pulled tight against his body and his cock pulsed inside her, he wrapped his
mouth over her neck and sank in his descended canines.

Gale stiffened,
the muscles of her cavern rolling over another orgasm. Gale’s blood flooded his
mouth. Alphy licked her mating bite closed and buried his face in her neck.
Ever since he found out about the attack, his bear had wanted to reaffirm their
claim on their mate. With his mate limp beneath him, her steady breathing
indicating she was unconscious, he smiled against her damp skin, success. After
untying her wrists and throwing the scraps away, Alphy pulled the blanket over
them and wrapped his sleeping mate in his arms, then followed her lead.

Epilogue

Gale sat on the cold hard metal bench that
was placed in the “challenge arena”, the clearing they had set up for the alpha
challenge. This was why they were here today, the much anticipated enforcer
challenge.

Gale could still see the darkened dirt where
the dead alpha’s blood had been spilt. She thought it would
creep
her out or something, as the scene she witnessed at the house yesterday had,
but it actually settled something inside of her. She had been extremely relieved
when she saw Alphy return home safe, yesterday, from the alpha challenge. She’d
tackled him when he had gotten home and refused to let him go the rest of the
day, which he didn’t seem to mind. Maybe he felt the same way about her. He
was, at this very moment, sitting next to her holding her hand. They were
waiting for everyone to arrive and settle before the challenge started.

Gale looked over to her right. The councilman
had yet to leave. It had been quite the shock when he entered the house after
the challenge, and immediately started to swallow Aunty Betty whole,
practically. Tyler was planning on taking Betty for a “honeymoon” after Alphy
and Gale’s return from their trip to her old hometown.

The thought of going back gave her mixed
emotions. She wanted to be able to help her parents pack up the rest of the
house and move it here, but it was also a place of great angst and sorrow. Yes,
it was where she had grown up, but her father had died there. She didn’t really
have many friends, as high school had sucked, and the herd had tried to have her
family killed. Albeit she never really knew any of the herd, she was human, so she
and her brother hadn’t been very welcome at their events, so the family hadn’t usually
attended them. It turned out to be a good thing that they had kept their
distance. It seemed, to no one’s surprise, that the former alpha had been pretty
abusive and negligent to his herd members. Alphy was also bringing Ryker, because
of his tech skills to do background checks on everyone and filing what was
needed, and
Kace
was going to join them along with
the lead enforcer, whoever that may be. That was why they were here today, to
see who would win the lead enforcer slot.

Gale was brought back to the present when
Alphy stood. She looked around and saw everyone was there, and the two
enforcers were standing in the middle of the “challenge arena” clothed in
athletic shorts and nothing else.

“The battle is to the first submission only.
The winner of this challenge will be lead enforcer. You both have chosen to
battle in human form. Good luck to both of you.”

Gale was glad they were fighting in human
form. It would have made her too sick to watch a thirty plus foot anaconda
fighting a five hundred and fifty pound lion. She just didn’t see that fight
ending without bloodshed. She sat forward on her seat as she watched the men
turn to each other, give a slight bow,
then
go into a
defensive stance.

Matteo’s darkly tanned skin moved over his
muscles as he flexed them into different stances. She’d learned he used to be
in the CIA and had met Alphy on a mutual mission. He was Brazilian and had no
family or relations. He shifted once into his anaconda for Reese. He was one
huge big-ass monster-sized snake. Gale had been very freaked out about it at
first, but felt bad for him at the same time. How much does it really hurt him
when people see him in his shifted form? Sometimes there was a fine line
between fear and freaking disgust. She figured that was why he was usually closed
off and emotionless. Those were usually signs of people who felt hurt the most.
She had made sure to overcome her emotions and pet his snake. Gale had wanted
him to know he was accepted and cared for.

Slate was an intriguing man also. He wasn’t
as quiet or emotionless as Matteo, but he was still one of the quieter ones in
the bunch. He would always give Gale the sense that he was a serious brooder or
something, but then join in on a joke or ribbing like
Kace
.
He was always surprising her. Alphy had told her Slate had served in the
military once. That was how they met, and that Slate had saved his life. He did
have parents and two sisters but had a sticky situation with his father right
now. She wasn’t told what, but Gale felt bias. She would take Slate’s side
without question. She had learned enough to feel that way about him.

The two struck out at each other and grappled.
Both had training, and Gale couldn’t possibly root for one over the other, so
she sat there, on the edge of her seat, with her heart thumping hard in her
chest, as she watched them wrestle, dodge, swing, and even drop kick. Sweat
started to shine on their skin, and it soon became mud when they had fallen to
the ground and rolled a bit.

Around the “challenge arena” she could see
and hear others shouting and yelling encouragement or their gasps of shock for
a particular move. The two stirred up the dust, and soon the small clearing was
slightly hazy with the amount they had disturbed.

Gale heard skin slapping against solid bodies
and grunts that would be thumped out of each of them. She cringed and jerked
with each hit they each took from the other. Several times, one or the other
would be caught in a hold, where she would have thought the challenge was over,
but then be shocked and amazed with how they maneuvered their way free.

The challenge felt like it dragged on for a
long time. The tension was building, and the volume of shouting rose around
her. She found herself rooting for both of them. Each time one would get hit,
or downed in some way, she would shout an encouragement to them.

Gale was on her feet now. She hopped up and
down and shouted, what seemed like incoherently. Slate flipped Matteo onto his
stomach and followed him down. He had his arms in a painful hold that made Gale
grimace,
sure the position would break his arms.
Matteo’s face was filled with pain, and he howled. He looked like he tried to
move but only howled again, and then he yelled his submission. Gale stood there
shocked for a brief second as everyone around her went a bit crazy laughing,
and hugging each other and the winner, or slapping him on the back. Seamus and
Slate helped Matteo up off the ground. The challenge was over, and the battle
had been dramatic and brutal.

Alphy held up his hands out toward the crowd
and lightly patted the air. Everyone slowly started to calm. The two combatants
came forward and stood in front of Alphy.

“That was a battle to remember. Congratulations
to both of you for such an impressive display of skill. Both of you are my
enforcers, but only one will be lead enforcer. Congratulations, Slate, for
winning the challenge and the rank and title of lead enforcer.” Alphy placed
one hand on his shoulder and the other he used to shake Slate’s hand. Then he
turned to Matteo. “That was a great fight, Matteo. I am proud of you; you
should be proud of yourself as well.” Matteo nodded his gratitude to his alpha.

Everyone started making their way back to the
house. Alphy kept an arm around her, holding her close on the walk. “So what
did you think of the fight?”

“I think,”
she
said,
“that we have a pretty special pack. It all started with a pretty special
alpha. I’m so very proud of you, and I love you so very much.”

He leaned down and sealed their lips with a
heated kiss. Their heat built, and suddenly Gale felt her world tilt. She let
out a squeak as Alphy swung her up into his powerful arms. He pulled back,
breaking the kiss. “I love you, too, my honey-bear, with everything in me.”

The End

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