Rite of Submission - Rite 1

70: Born for This - End

                In the week leading up to our formal introduction of me as an Alpha to the rest of the world, Nathan had doubled down on my training sessions. We had our one on one sessions in the morning, group sessions before lunch, and sparing matches in the evening before dinner. The sparring matches had become something I looked forward too, even though most of the 2 hour span turned out to be a second one on one with Nathan. To keep any potential sparring partners from holding back, we'd added a unique incentive. If they could pin me, and get me to tap out, they were given a day off of all their regular duties. If I got them to tap out in less than 5 minutes, they spent the next day doing all the worst duties.

The first day had brought a lot of eager challengers. Unfortunately, I'd learned to be near impossible to catch. Nathan was rarely able to catch me anymore. The sparring sessions were meant to teach me how to go on the offensive, without losing my ability to dodge their attacks. So far, no one had pinned me, and I'd only been able to pin someone after the 5 minute time limit.

"You're not planning to use these new skills in our bedroom are you?" Dmitri tease, wrapping his arm around my waist as we ended another sparring session.

"Are you worried that you won't be able to catch me, or that you'll have to start being on the bottom?" I teased, loud enough to be heard by anyone within earshot.

"Princess, I am happy to let you ride me anytime you'd like," he grabbed my hips and lifted me against him to prove his point, and I obligingly wrapped my legs around his waist. "I have something to show you," he whispered against my neck as he grazed his teeth over the silver crescent scar there.

"Really," I groaned in his ear, "children pass through here you evil man!"

Laughing he set me back down on the ground and curled an arm around my waist. He walked with me back to the main house, guiding me up the stairs to his suite. Instead, he pulled me past the black double doors, further down the hallway to the new, intricately carved holly wood and ebony doors with opal inlays. "They finished?"

He pushed the doors open and swept me off my feet to carry me inside. This was our suite. Everything was better than I had imagined it. He carried me through each room, never pausing long enough for me to take in everything there was to see, straight through to our new bedroom. I could tell this was the first time he'd seen it all put together too. I'd tried to create a proper balance of black and white through the whole suite, mixing the essence of his midnight black and my platinum white wolves.

"Have they moved everything from your old suite?" I asked as his gaze shifted around the room.

"I believe so," he nodded.

"Good," I hopped out of his arms, "I'd like to go take a shower." I made my way to the bathroom.

"That's as good a place to start as any," he followed after me, pulling his shirt off over his head.

Sophie was supposed to be helping me decide which of the four outfits I'd had made to wear. Not point out all the reasons why each was the perfect choice. It was traditional for Alphas to wear all black, and for their mates to wear all white. I was technically an Alpha's mate, but I was also an Alpha myself. I couldn't decide between black and white; or pants suit and evening gown. "Maybe if you show me the jewelry you planned to wear?" she frowned indecisively.

I pulled the necklace she'd given me, the cuff Dmitri had given me and a pair of chandelier earrings made of black and fire opals, off the vanity. "Cuff means no sleeves so that means the suites are out." She held up the earrings to the dresses. "The black one," she sounded as uncertain as I did about which color was appropriate for tonight.