King of Beasts

Chapter 10

Safe.  She was safe.  Only some minor cuts and bruises and she smelled like stale sweat and the forest and that rogue, but she was safe.

It was overpowering, almost all consuming, the urge to bite her and mark her as his own.  No damn rogue would dare come to her, their queen, again.  She’d be his, all his, safe, protected.  But damn Charlotte for turning the king of beasts more human.  He couldn’t bite her, not until she asked him too.

He’d make damn sure she asked him to.

They sat across from each other now, the small wooden table in his kitchen serving as their only barrier.  He’d insisted they go to the healer, that even though he could smell no damage she may be hurt.  Who knew what the hell that rogue had done to her?  He should have killed the maniac who dared touch what was his. 

He should have killed the damn rogue.

But Charlotte wanted to talk.  Insisted.  Demanded.  She didn’t want to go to the healer so the old woman could give her a nice salve and some medicine that would make her sleep.  She wanted to talk to Gabe, have a good, un-beastly conversation.

Her hands rested atop the table, folded together, as she assessed him.  Gabe was a man who never lacked confidence.  It was not in his genes to do so, yet when Charlotte looked at him like that he felt like everything about him was wrong, that he should be better, leaner, stronger, faster for her.

He reached forward, trying to inconspicuous but needing to touch her again.  The urges were getting more profound, more dominant.  Maybe he thought she wouldn’t notice him brush a finger over her knuckles but she was pulling back before his hand had reached halfway across the table.

“Okay, that.” She said, the first words they’d spoken since she’d cleaned up and limped back to his kitchen table.  She had yet to comment about the fact that she was in Gabe’s house, on uncharted territory.  “That’s what I want to talk about.  You always touching me.  It’s—creepy.”

Although he knew she was lying, could taste it in the air.  She wanted to touch him as badly as Gabe needed to touch her.  It was the only way to appease his beast.  “I want to touch you.” He shrugged a massive shoulder.  “It’s quite simple.”

Charlotte pursed her lips.  “That—that beast, in the woods, he said something about an alpha.” Gabe stiffened.  He hadn’t been expecting a conversation like this so soon.  He hadn’t even thought about it, thought about his ranking, of being king of the beasts and what that would mean for Charlotte.  He just wanted her to not hate him so bad.  “What’s an alpha?”

He squared his shoulders and ran through the explanations in his head.  “It’s a leader.” He said, settling lamely.

“He said you were a strong alpha.  Alpha of alphas.”

God, his little red headed beauty missed nothing, did she?  “You hear what they call you.” Gabe grunted.  “The pack members.”

“Pack members?  You mean townspeople?  Yea, they call me queen.  I don’t- I mean I just don’t get it.  It’s an odd title.”

“I’m the alpha of alphas.” Gabe said.  His beast howled in agreement, threatened to break free and show his little spitfire just how much of an alpha he was.  “I’m the king of beasts.”

“And I’m . . .?”

Gabe lifted a perfect eyebrow, a look that had Charlotte squirming in her seat for some reason.  Gabe had that uncanny ability to make her feel so . . . much.  “And you’re my queen.”

He watched her carefully, the way the blood drained from her face and her mouth went slack.  He worried briefly if she’d pass out before the color returned and Charlotte was on her feet, that annoyingly persistent fire burning within her. 

“Like hell I am!” she cried, waving her casted arm.  “I’m not a beast.  I break.  I die.  I don’t go around steeling kids from other towns and then pronouncing them as my queen or king or whatever the hell you want to call it!”

Gabe calmed his inner most beast from clawing to the surface although just barely.  He never had to calm himself.  If he was angry, it was with reason.  If his beast wanted to show dominance, it was deserved.  He ever needed a lesson in self control, not until Charlotte walked into his life and pressed all of his buttons.

He rose slowly to his full height, beautiful eyes piercing Charlotte.  She cowered back from him and the human within him hated that.  Charlotte should never have to fear him, even when his beast was howling with the submission.

“You know your runes.” Gabe explained carefully.  He didn’t miss how her eyes were trained anywhere but on him and his bare chest.  He’d grabbed shorts off of his living room couch before joining Charlotte in the kitchen.  He enjoyed how he affected her.  “You know why I was able to break the one you had on your hand that night.”

Charlotte winced and took a step back, further into the kitchen so she hit the island and jumped.  “That—you—well yea.  I mean, yea I know what you did.” She huffed, face flushing.  “It was a claiming rune.”

He waited for her to connect the dots.  If there was one thing Gabe was absolutely certain about his Charlotte, it was that she was far smarter than he could ever be.  When she didn’t seem to understand, Gabe sighed.  She obviously didn’t want to know.

“It worked because I’ve already claimed you.  The day I was born you were claimed to be mine.”

He watched the feminist inside her claw its way to the surface and waited patiently for the outburst, finding he thoroughly enjoyed his arguments with the little spitfire.  She stirred something in his chest, emotions he hadn’t felt in so long.

“You have no claim on me!” she exclaimed, moving around the island now so that it separated her and Gabe.  “I’m my own person, damn it.”

She was breathing heavily, eyes darting everywhere like she was looking for an escape.  “You are mine.” He stated evenly, bristling at the way she ran from him like he was going to hurt her.  “You’re town was cursed long ago.  A member of your town belongs to each member of my pack.  It was destined a long time ago.”

She shook her head, staring at Gabe like he was a bomb.  “No.” she said defiantly.  Gabe felt a twinge of annoyance, of anger.  She was his, damn it.  “I’m going home.  I will go home, and you’re going to let me.”

“I can’t do that.” Gabe admitted, shaking his head.  “I can’t let you go.”

So she ran.  Again.  Even though he’d just saved her an hour ago from her previous escape attempt, she ran.  Limping with the brace on her ankle she scrambled down the front hall to the door.

Something in Gabe seemed to snap.  He swore he could hear the break in his ears.  He was more beast than man, after all, and Charlotte was running again.  When would she learn?  When would she realize that her place was by Gabe and damn it, he wasn’t going to hurt her!

“Charlotte stop!” he roared, his voice pitched into his Alpha command.  It startled him, the level of authority and anger in his voice, made the house shake in its frame.  He heard her stumble to a halt in the hallway and when he moved so he could see her, her shoulders were hunched up, body tense.  “Come back here.”

She turned as though fighting a current.  The look on her face was filled with so much rage and fear it seemed to punch Gabe in the stomach.  Like she was walking through tar, Charlotte came back.  He felt his control over her snap when she was feet away and she let out a shuddering breath.

“Never do that to me again.” She threatened in  low voice, hands shaking at her side as her pride shattered within her.

“Stop running from me, then.” Gabe countered.

“I won’t stop running!” Charlotte shouted, face turning as red as her hair.  “Don’t you get that?  You kidnapped me, I’m always going to—“

Gabe lost control again.  He just needed her to stop saying that she was going to run.  He just wanted her to stay with him, so stop acting as though Gabe was going to hurt her, to look at him with anything other than hate.

He wasn’t sure why, or how, but Charlotte was suddenly pressed into the wall, un-casted hand clutched to his chest, with his lips molded perfectly against hers.  For the first time, Charlotte didn’t fight him.