Prince of Wolves (The Grey Wolves #1)(27)

Fane and Sorin made their way back to the living room and saw that all four ladies were seated on the couch together. Fane wanted to have Jacquelyn sit by him but relinquished the idea, knowing she needed to be close to the people she trusted most.
“I trust you, Fane.” Fane heard Jacquelyn’s thought in his mind. She stood up and came to him. He took her hand and led her to the loveseat where they sat down together. That small act made Fane’s heart swell with love for his mate. 
Lilly looked a little sad when she saw her daughter sitting next to Fane, but she quickly shook it off. “Fane, tell us please,” was all Lilly said.
“There is a pack of Greys here in Coldspring and the Alpha, Lucas Steele, has contacted me. He is claiming Jacquelyn as his mate.” Fane couldn’t help the growl that came out as he said this last part.
“The hell I am!” Jacquelyn yelled, abruptly standing. “I don’t even know this crack pot…” She looked at her mom. “Do I?” she asked, sounding less confident.
“No, Jacque,” Lilly answered. “I don’t know him either. Fane, have you seen him?”
“No, I have not met him in person.” Fane turned to Jacquelyn. “You will know him soon enough, meu inimă. He is planning on coming here tomorrow to tell you himself.”
“Just who the hell does this guy think he is? He can’t just march his furry butt up to Jacque's house and if he thinks he can, he has obviously underestimated my ability to go all kung fu on his hide,” Jen ranted.
Fane smiled at her, appreciating her loyalty to his mate.
“Will you be with me?” Jacquelyn asked him, sounding like she already knew the answer.
“No, love, I will not be able to. Lucas has challenged me for bonding ceremony, so I cannot be with you until after the fight. He is allowed to see you one time to let you know of his intentions, and then he is not allowed to see you either,” Fane explained to his mate.
“What do you mean he challenged you for bonding ceremony? What fight?” Jacquelyn asked incredulously.
Fane took her hand and pulled her down next to him. “Because we are not bonded, any male has the right to challenge me to be your mate, even if he is not your true mate. I have no choice but to accept the challenge. What that means, Jacquelyn, is that Lucas and I will fight in our wolf forms. The one left standing will be your mate.”
“When you say, ‘the one left standing,’ you’re saying the one left alive, aren’t you?” she asked him.
“Yes, love. The fight is to the death,” he answered.
Jacquelyn sat quietly for a few moments. Her head was down so he couldn't see her eyes.
“Are you alright?” Fane asked as he placed a hand under her chin and pulled her face up to look at him.
“No, Fane. I am most definitely not alright. I’m freaking out at the moment, if you must know. The idea of bonding or whatever with you was crazy. The idea of bonding with a total stranger, a stranger that happens to be a werewolf, mind you, is beyond my ability to be reasonable about,” Jacquelyn told him.
“I second that motion,” Sally said.
“I third it,” Jen put in.
“You can’t third something you dork, you just say 'aye' to show you are in agreement,” Sally informed her.
Jen just stuck her tongue out at Sally and ignored her comment.
“You aren’t going to be bonding with anyone but me!” he growled.
“Yeah, yeah, beat your chest if you need to while you’re at it, Tarzan,” Jacquelyn said sarcastically.
“I’ve requested my Alpha be present at the fight. It will take two days for him to arrive. I was going to try and have Sorin smuggle you and your mom out of the country, but Lucas suspected as much and is putting your house under watch by his wolves. However, he is not aware that Sorin is staying here, so that is to our benefit. Should I lose…”
“You will NOT lose!” Jacquelyn said firmly.
Fane continued as if she had not spoken. “Sorin will get you and your mom to safety. You must promise me, Luna, that you will go with him and let my Pack keep you safe.”“I will make no such promise because nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, is going to happen to you. If you get as much as a scratch on your handsome face I’m going to kick your werewolf a-” before Jacquelyn could finish Fane had his mouth on hers, kissing her firmly.
“Finally, I get some action!” Jen exclaimed.
When Fane finally pulled back from Jacquelyn, she looked a little dazed. She quickly recovered, however. “You just kissed me,” she said, her words full of confusion.
“I did, love,” Fane responded with a sly grin.
“In front of my mom!” Jacquelyn said, clearly embarrassed.
“And Sorin and your friends as well,” Fane pointed out, sounding smug.
“Don’t be a smart ass,” Jacquelyn told him.
Fane stood up and, looking at his watch, realized he only had ten minutes left with his mate. It infuriated him that he had to obey the rules of the challenge, but if he didn't he could wind up having to forfeit and lose her. The thought made his heart hurt. He pulled her up off the loveseat to him, and again not caring of their audience, kissed her like it might be their last. He held her face tenderly in his hands and tried to memorize her features, how soft her skin was. He pulled back abruptly and turned away, overwhelmed with such strong emotions he didn’t know what to do. He wanted to crush something; he wanted blood, the blood of the one who dared to take his mate. He was breathing hard and his eyes were glowing when Jacquelyn spoke.
“You kissed me again!” she said, stomping her foot like a child. “Is PDA a big thing with your pack, ‘cause that could be a problem,” she continued, but stopped as soon as Fane turned to face her.
Chapter 21
Jacque’s breath caught when Fane turned towards her and she saw his eyes glowing, like when you see an animal at night and light hits their eyes. They looked just like that. Freaky, she thought.
Jacque realized, once she got over the shock of his eyes, that Fane was on the verge of losing control. She wasn't sure what might happen if he didn’t regain control, and she could tell he was fighting for it as hard as he could. She didn’t know what to do or how could she help him.
Jacque was too busy staring at Fane to realize that Jen had walked beside her. “He needs you to tame the beast that is roaring inside him. Go to him,” Jen whispered and pushed Jacque towards Fane.
Jacque looked at Jen and then at Sally. She couldn’t believe something so profound had come out of Jen’s mouth.
Sally shrugged. “Who knew?” she said, answering Jacque’s unspoken question.
Jacque turned her attention back to Fane as she walked to him. She was close enough that she could feel his breath on her face. She reached up and laid her hand on his cheek. His eyes closed and he leaned into her hand like a dog begging to be petted. Jacque found herself smiling, but then felt his anger, fear, and jealousy flow through her. Fane’s eyes snapped open and he stared unblinkingly into her eyes. 
“I have not meant to scare you. I would say that my wolf is the one out of control, but that would be a lie. The man is just as out of control as the wolf right now and that makes me very dangerous,” Fane shared his thoughts with her.
“You would never hurt me,” Jacque told him in complete confidence.
“No, it is impossible for a Grey to harm his mate. Others, however, innocent or not, cannot have that promise. I have to go, Jacquelyn. Lucas’ wolves will be here any minute, and in the state I am in I cannot guarantee I will be civilized with them,” Fane told her.
Jacque was shaking her head before he even finished speaking. “I don’t want you to go,” she whispered.
Fane pulled her to the side and turned so that his back was facing the others and she was shielded from their sight. He moved her hair away from her neck and kissed her in the same spot he had before, the spot where he would leave his mark. It better be his mark, Jacque thought.
“I love you, Luna.”
“What does Luna mean?” she asked him.
“I will tell you soon, but now is not the time. I must go before the other wolves get here.” He held her a moment more, then stepped away.
Jacque snatched his hand before he could get much further and pulled him to her. She looked him in the eyes, still seeing the wolf glowing there.
“I love you, but if you let this Alpha take me as his mate, I will die just so I can come kick your royal Romanian butt. Got it?”
“Say it again,” Fane told her.
“Say that I'll kick your royal Romanian butt?” Jacque started.
“No, love. Say the first part,” Fane said adoringly.
It dawned on Jacque what he was talking about and it made her smile. She leaned in close to him and whispered, “I love you.”
“Thank you,” Fane said so softly she almost missed it. He kissed her on the forehead and turned back to the others. He looked at Sorin, who stepped forward and bared his neck again.
“You will protect her with your life or you will forfeit it,” Fane told him in a voice Jacque had never heard him use.
Sorin sank down to his knees. It didn’t look like he had meant to, it was like someone forced him there. She heard a whine come from Sorin and then Fane walked to him and laid his hand on his head. He said something in Romanian and walked to the front door.
Jacque rushed to follow him as he opened it and walked out. Just as she stepped out, a car stopped in front of her house and two men got out. Jacque grabbed Fane’s arm, not in fear for herself but fear for him. Fane instinctively took her hand without thinking about the fact that Lucas had said he didn’t want his wolves to see Fane touching her.