River scoffed at the girl in disbelief. He wasn’t going to fight her, it was against his morals to fight a woman unless he was paired with one during training.
Much less was he going to fight his mate as a way of taking her pack. Ryker was right, it didn’t have to be like this. Granted, he didn’t plan to accept her as his mate either but he certainly wasn’t going to get what he wanted this way. “You can’t be serious.” River laughed at the petite woman. She was barely tall enough to reach his shoulder, let alone take both him and his brothers on. Although, he didn’t disagree with Reid either. He was certain he would have plenty of fun throwing her around the bedroom. “Scared?” Brielle taunted, as she confidently placed her hands on her exposed waist. She was dying for the opportunity to show this idiot how capable she truly was. River chuckled again as he rolled his eyes. His deep, baritone laugh set Brielle’s nerves alight. There was something about the sound that she found melodic, heartwarming even, as butterflies surfaced in her stomach. “I’m not fighting a woman, let alone our mate.” He shrugged, as the use of the term mate struck a cord on his heart. “You know as well as we do, the pack needs a man to lead them. Warriors won’t respect you enough or take you seriously as Alpha, they’ll only ever see you as a Luna with added responsibilities.” River concluded as he stepped closer to the brunette. Kane was basking in the girl’s scent as the proximity between River and Brielle was second to none. River was doing everything he could to fight the urges his wolf was begging him to indulge in, but the longer this fiery woman stood only centimetres away the harder it was becoming to deny. “Thanks for the concern, but my pack members respect me plenty. And I’m not your mate.” Brielle snapped, as she glared at River. “At least I won’t be after I reject you, what are your names?” “Bri, please don’t.” Ocean begged. “I’m sorry, O. We don’t want these idiots as our mates, trust me on this.” Brielle reasoned with her counterpart. It wasn’t exactly like it was easy for her either, she had never wanted a mate but seeing them standing before her was more difficult than she had imagined. The bond had been stronger than she believed it could have been. She’d spend every passing moment desperately fighting for control over the bond, resisting the overwhelming need to throw herself into the arms of each of them. “Riv, please.” Ryker pleaded with his older brother. He couldn’t allow his mate to reject him, he just needed a little bit of time to convince her they were worth it. Everything he wanted was standing in front of him, he’d do anything to keep it. River thought for a moment, wondering what to do. As much as his heart called out to the petite brunette, he had sworn many years ago that he’d never accept his mate. But it had become increasingly obvious she wouldn’t be willing to give up her role as Alpha, at least not easily. If she rejected them, he may lose the opportunity to persuade her. Any feelings she held for him and his brothers due to the bond would be severed and River had a strong gut feeling she would go to great lengths to fight the merge. Aside from that, as much as he hated to admit it, being around her made him feel things he had never felt. The curious side of him enjoyed that, although it was a risky game and he knew it, because his intentions had remained the same. “Don’t worry, Ry. She’s not rejecting us.” River flashed Brielle a smug smile, enjoying watching the shade of her cheeks turn bright with fury. “Absolutely not. I have plans for us, princess.” Reid shot Brielle a seductive wink, causing the butterflies in her stomach to resurface. Refusing to get stuck in another lustful trance, Brielle turned to face her Beta and Gamma, who had both apparently lost their ability to speak throughout this whole interaction. However, the grin on each of their faces told Brielle they were enjoying watching her battle with the triplets. They were using her frustration as their own personal amusement, something which they would both pay the price for later, Brielle swore to herself. Harlie held up her hands in surrender as Brielle shot her a warning glare. “Don’t look at me, this is all you sis.” She teased, knowing her sister would be losing her mind right about now. Plus, it wasn’t exactly like the three musketeers would ever get their hands on the pack, so she wasn’t worried. Brielle groaned at the lack of assistance from her sister before storming to her office door and swinging it wide open. “The only plans I have for us is you three leaving my office. Rejection or not, I’ll die before I hand over my pack to you.” She spat. “Listen, sparky.” River challenged. “It’s time to get on board. One way or another this alliance is happening and we will take over the leadership of this pack.” “Brother!” Ryker scolded, furious by River’s attitude and threats toward their mate. He couldn’t understand why River didn’t realise accepting the Alpha as their mate would ultimately lead to the merge anyway. But River wasn’t prepared to share the leadership, his tunnel vision only saw himself and his brothers combining and running the two packs as one. Brielle scoffed at the man before shaking her head. “There’s only two ways you can take this pack from me. The first being to kill me, which your wolf’s will never allow you to do if you don’t let me reject you.” She shrugged casually. “Or you challenge me to the battle of the Alpha’s, which you’d never do because your ego won’t allow you the risk of losing to a woman.” Ryker groaned as his mate threw a blow to his older brother’s ego. River was the most stubborn man Ryker or Reid had ever known and when his ego was called into question, he had the inability to back down, regardless of how reckless his choices could be. River smirked at Brielle, strangely enjoying the lack of faith she held in him. “You’re right, our wolf’s would never allow us to harm you. But I personally have no issue with challenging you to the Alpha title fair and square. If you can’t see what would be in your pack’s best interest, then I’ll just have to show it to you.” Brielle watched as the annoyingly handsome man creeped toward her, struggling to keep Ocean’s inner howls at bay. With each step he took, excitement of being closer to him built within her. “I challenge you, Sparky, to the Battle of the Alpha’s. Winner takes all.”“What the hell is the Battle of the Alpha’s?” Scarlett blurted out, as she finally found her voice in the overcrowded room. Harlie frowned as she stepped forward, narrowing her eyes at the smug challenger. “You can’t be serious.” She questioned. “That hasn’t been done in over a century, you really think King Nathanial will waste his time over you spoilt men spitting your dummy out because my sister won’t just hand over her pack?” She glared at the triplet in disbelief. River shrugged, before turning his back to his mate’s sister. He lifted his brow as his eyes locked with Brielle’s. “I guess we’ll find out, if your sister accepts the challenge.” Brielle thought for a moment as she glared back at Alpha. She was never one to back down from a challenge but where the price of her pack was concerned, she couldn’t afford to make the wrong decision. However, just like River, Brielle was too strong willed for her own good. Brielle knew if she didn’t accept the challenge, it wouldn’t
“Have you lost your fucking mind?” Ryker yelled out to River. His eyes blazed with fury as he ground his jaw, he was livid. He couldn’t wrap his head around River’s stupidity, all he could think about was how selfish his brother had been. River rolled his eyes as he let out an exasperated sigh. “Liven up, Ry. What’s the worst that could happen?” River wasn’t shocked by Ryker’s outburst, quite frankly he had been anticipating it. However, he had presumed his brother would have waited until they were off the Shadow Pack land before kicking up at fuss. “She is our mate, Riv! How can you be so god damn narrow minded!” Ryker spat, as he took threatening steps toward the eldest. “All you think about is yourself, who cares what Reid and I want, right?” Sick of Ryker being in his face, River forcefully shoved his brother away from him. “Are you kidding me, Ry?” He exclaimed as his face hardened. “This is what you and Reid wanted, remember? Until thirty minutes ago, you were sat in my
The last few days had been intense for Brielle, she had been none stop. Her days had mainly consisted of carrying out her Alpha duties to ensure smooth and sufficient running of the pack and practicing various challenges Harlie had discovered during her time researching the Battle of the Alpha’s. To say she was exhausted, well that would be an understatement. At quarter to twelve at night, Brielle finally collapsed on her bed. Her eyes landed on the ceiling as she let out a heavy sigh. She had barely had time to think recently, but now the opportunity arose, she wasn’t sure she wanted too. Her mind wandered to what was to come, would the triplets really stick to their word and follow through? But it had been several days and she’s received no word, so she couldn’t help but consider if they’d had second thoughts. She hoped they had because this would mean she could put the whole thing behind her and forget they ever existed, despite Ocean’s consistent pleas to see them. Bri
River threw his suitcase in the back of his boot, before slamming down the door. He’d spent the last few days receiving the silent treatment from Ryker, which had inevitably led to him being in a funky mood himself. He wasn’t used to his brothers and him not being on speaking terms, they usually did everything together. Before this, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone longer than merely a few hours without speaking to one of them. River accepted he had acted hastily when challenging their mate to the Battle of the Alpha’s, but she struck against his pride and backing down just wasn’t in his nature. Besides, he knew this was the only way to merge the two packs without blood being shed. He wasn’t completely naive, however. He knew there was a very slim possibility he would have convinced the girl to give them Shadow, but his backup plan hadn’t factored in that the girl could be his mate. Initially, he had no issue with formulating a forceful takeover, but now Kane refus
Brielle paced along the wooden flooring, muttering the odd swear word here and there as she rushed back and forth past her Beta and Gamma. The corner of Scarlett’s lips turned upright as she watched her best friend work herself into a frenzy of frustration. As insufferable as Scarlett found the triplets to be, she did enjoy the amusing affect they appeared to have on her Alpha. Brielle was never known to lose her cool, but these idiots seemed to really get under her skin. Harlie sighed as she plopped herself down on the edge of Brielle’s bed, before resting back on her elbows and twisting her lips. “Can you stop? You’re giving me whiplash with all this back and forth.” She groaned as her eyes glanced over the ceiling. Brielle came to a halt and faced her sister. “We weren’t supposed to see them outside of the challenges! The mate bond will be a distraction enough with the limited interaction, let alone if we’re getting freaking cozy over a dinner table! Ocean is stirring li
Brielle allowed a smug grin to grow on the edge of her lips as she sashayed her hips across the room, feeling confident she had managed to throw a curveball the triplets way. She looked hot and she knew it. Ocean whined within her as the leggy blonde still clung to one of the triplets like a koala bear, desperately trying to regain his attention, but Brielle knew better than to give them the satisfaction of knowing it had effected her. She had her game face on. “Wait until I get my paws on that bitch.” Ocean growled as she paced back and forth. Brielle chuckled at her wolf’s jealous threats as she took a champagne flute off a passing by waiters tray. She brought the glass to her lips, carefully taking a steady sip, before turning her attention to Harlie and Scarlett. Harlie crinkled her nose as amusement flickered in her blue orbs. “Worked like a charm.” She sighed contently. Scarlett burst into a fit of giggles as she shook her head in dismay. “Thing one l
Brielle swiftly spun to face the direction of the commotion, only to see one of the triplets storm raiding towards her. With his eyebrows furrowed and his jaw sharper than a knife, it was obvious he was furious. Gasps echoed throughout the room as each conversation came to a halt, choosing to focus their attention on them instead. As the triplet tried to take another step closer, his two brothers abruptly grabbed either shoulder to hold him back. The look of concern was evident on their faces, but Brielle noticed a hint of irritation too. Were they mad at their brother or her? “I told you not to dance with him.” Ocean muttered in infuriation, but Brielle brushed her off. In her wolfs eyes, it appeared to be one rule for her and another for them. Brielle’s eyebrows quirked as she wore an unimpressed expression, whilst she calmly watched the scene unfold. The triplet’s chest aggressively puffed in and out as he listened to the whispers from his brothers. The corners of Arlen
The night continued to be fairly drama free, once the reality of who Brielle’s new friend was dawned on the triplets. They proceeded to be on their best behaviour whilst they were graced with the presence of royalty, however that hadn’t stopped both Reid and Ryker subtly sulking in the corner as they watched their mate and the prince chat the night away. Once the official news of the Battle of the Alpha’s had been announced and the triplets made their rounds of introductions, they jumped at the opportunity to call it a night. Cassie had attached herself to River’s hip for the majority of the night, much to his irritation. Sure, he thought she was hot at first but he soon came to find her whining incredibly annoying. However, the more he watched the mate he supposedly didn’t give a damn about flaunt around with Arlen, the more he welcomed the distraction. So, much to Kane’s disapproval, when his brother’s returned to their suite, he agreed to accompany her to her r