Pride

BTS Fanfiction

[noonastopride]

Pride

Completed Fic

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Click here to see a list of my other works

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Bonus Chapter

Audiobook Edition

[noonastopride]

Pride ~ BTS Hybrid FanFic ~Audiobook Edition

Audiobook Edition

✎ BTS + Original Characters 

✎ Lion Hybrids meet their mates 

⚠︎︎ Angst, Smut, Fluff, Light hearted, one chapter with Domestic Violence

✎ 4hr 55min listen

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Follow the link to YT to listen to the audiobook!

https://youtu.be/3xpHHTS5QBw

[noonastopride]

Pride, Bonus Chapter

Bonus Chapter

Written by @roxyjean82​

“There you two are.” Rokki said as she entered the garden. “I’ve been looking every…what is on your face and hands?”

“Strawberries, Mommy!” Jin and Rokki’s daughter turned to face her mother and said in excitement.

“Kim Seokjin. Would you care to explain why Jeanie is covered in strawberries?” Rokki placed her hands on her hips and waited for his answer.

“Nope.” Jin stood up and smiled at his mate.

“You’ve been eating them too! Jin, Scar’s going to have your head when she finds out! You know she was planning on using those for Jeanie’s birthday cake. I’m going to be mateless! All these years and I’m going to lose you because you couldn’t stay away from the damn strawberries.”

“Calm down, Love,” Jin laughed. “It’ll be fine, there’s still plenty left,” He said picking up their daughter. “Now as for her having my head and leaving you mateless, you don’t need to worry. The only one that will be having that is you later.”

“Go get cleaned up before they get home from the restaurant.” Rokki giggled when Jin kissed her on the forehead. It’d been three years and the man could still make her blush like crazy.

“Daddy, basket.” The toddler wiggled in her dad’s arms trying to grab the basket from the small table.

“What’s in the basket?” Rokki arched one eyebrow when Jin picked it up and handed it to his daughter.

“You didn’t think we’d forget you and baby did you?” Jin smiled as he placed his free hand on Rokki’s stomach.

“You got us some?” Rokki pouted.

“Strawberries for Mommy and Brother!” Jeanie giggled.

“Thank you Sweetie.” She smiled at her daughter. “They should be here soon, so hurry.” Rokki said as she gently pushed her mate and daughter out of the garden.

“Did you have a good nap?” Rayne asked Rokki when she entered the kitchen.

“Yes I did. Thank you both for watching her.” Rokki kissed Jeanie on the top of the head before making her way over to sit next to Rayne at the table. “What did you and your Aunties do while Mommy and Daddy slept?” She asked her daughter who was sitting on the counter in front of Scar.

“We made cake.”

“Did you? What kind of cake did you make?”

“Strawberry!” The little girl raised her arms excitedly, making the women laugh. “Aunty Scar said she wasn’t mad at me and Daddy for eating the strawberries.”

“That’s right. How could I be mad at such a cute face.” Scar said, squishing Jeanie’s cheeks and making her laugh.

“What else did Aunty Scar say?” Rayne asked, handing Rokki a glass of juice.

“That she wouldn’t have Daddy’s head because it sounded like Mommy already did.” The room was mixed with the sound of laughter and Rokki choking on her drink.

“Scar!”

“What?” Scar asked between laughing fits. “You’re in a house full of hybrids Rokki. You should know better than to be that loud.”

“I might have momentarily forgotten what it was like being in a house where people could hear everything.” Rokki said, washing the juice off her hands.

“How could you forget?” Scar asked. “Jeanie is a hybrid too. Her hearing is going to get better the older she gets.”

“If we can hear you that well across the house, the poor girl is going to be traumatized.” Rayne added.

“She can’t hear us.”

“What do you mean she can’t hear you? Woman, Alice and Hoseok could hear you and they’re in Korea.” Scar laughed.

“Sound proofing.” The three women looked at the doorway to see Jin, Namjoon and Jungkook standing in.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Well as you know your Pride sister here isn’t the quietest. So while we were having the house built I made sure our room was sound proof.”

“Where the hell did you find some that worked?” Jungkook asked with wide eyes.

“Yeah, we’ve tried all different kinds and nothing works.” Namjoon said.

“You remember that special project I was working on?” The other men nodded their heads. “Lets just say if everything goes right you’ll have enough sound proofing for this whole house and the cottages.”

“Your company made sound proof that even hybrids can’t hear through?” Rayne asked in disbelief.

“I had to do something.” Jin shrugged.

“Ok, enough with this conversation.” Rokki stood up and grabbed Jeanie from the counter. “Let’s go get you cleaned up. You’re covered in cake.”

“Mommy, can we wrestle after I’m clean?”

“Wrestle?”

“Yeah like you and Daddy did while you had his head.”

“Scar!” Rokki growled while everyone else laughed.

“Nope, I’m not taking the blame for that one. That was all Rayne.” Scar said, wiping a tear from her eye.

“So, by the end of the month you say?” Rayne asked, changing the subject.

                                               The End

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 17

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 17

*11 months later*

   SPLASH

     Jungkook quickly turned from his conversation with Yoongi in the driveway to see where the water balloon that just exploded on his back came from, and was not at all surprised to see his mate’s laughing face peeking around the side of the house. He laughed and took off at a run, trying to catch her before she made her escape.

     Ever since they completed their mating, Rayne’s challenges had turned playful, and it was a regular occurrence to see Jungkook heading to their pool house with her over his shoulder, laughing hysterically.

     That day, she had her paddle board out and ready to make her escape on the shore. She was nowhere near as fast as he was, but she had a little bit of a lead on him by the time he got around the side of the house. Once he hit the back lawn, though, he exploded with a burst of speed and had his arm wrapped around her middle just before she made it to the sand.

    Rayne shrieked with laughter when he pulled her against him, and shrieked even louder when he continued to walk into the water.

“You want to go swimming?” he laughed, “You should have just said something!”

Their laughter echoed off the water as he dunked them both into the lake.

Rayne never could have guessed how happy she would be in her life with Jungkook. Never would she ever have imagined that she would resurface from being dunked in the lake by a man, only to turn and wrap herself around him for laughing kisses. But there she was.

He made her feel safe and cared for. Loved.

  Even when they had disagreements or were just in bad moods, there was always the security of belonging and knowing that, no matter what, there was never any need to be on guard or fear her partner. Jungkook used his power and strength to protect and take care of those around him. Rayne sometimes even annoyed herself with how much of a fangirl she was of her mate. 

They truly were made for each other.

   Over the last year, their Pride more than doubled in size. Not only did they all have their mates, but Taehyung and Ana welcomed their first born just 6 weeks prior. Ana jokingly complained often that Tae was trying to get her pregnant from the beginning, and he never said otherwise. It was fun having a little one around, although his daddy was a tad bit over protective, and it could be a little difficult to hold him if Tae had anything to say about it.

Ana, on the other hand, would walk into the big house and hand the infant off to the first Aunt or Uncle she saw so she could raid the refrigerator with two available hands.

    Between Ana’s pregnancy and her work, the couple had only been able to make one trip back to Korea to meet Tae’s family and pack more of his things. But, with so many of the men deciding to stay, it was a regular occurrence to have their friends and family travel over to visit.

    So far, work had only forced two of the couples to make Korea their full time residence.

   Alice threw caution to the wind and left with Hoseok just two weeks after they met. She was making huge strides in learning the language and finding her place there, but she was definitely looking forward to the visit they had planned in just a few days.

   Rokki let Seokjin go for a short business trip by himself one time. But when the need for him to travel came again, she pulled a packed suitcase and passport out of the closet and made it clear he wouldn’t be going anywhere without her. She missed him too much, and would much rather travel with him than dutifully wait at home. Though they did come back to the commune as often as possible.

  Although he enjoyed cooking at home, it didn’t take long for Agust to get restless. With some encouragement from Natalie, he and Yoongi started drawing up plans for a restaurant while they sat having a beer one afternoon. Next thing they knew, the others were involved and it was a go.

   Scarlett’s greenhouse doubled in size with that plan. She and Namjoon got to flex their green thumbs to grow most of the vegetables the restaurant would need. They say that your plants respond and flourish to happy sounds… The greenhouse saw and heard a lot of ‘happy’ sounds while the couple was in there, and everyone knew not to barge in without knocking first. Not that they were bashful. No. In fact, they were both well known for wandering around watering and replanting without a stitch of clothing on.

   Yoongi was right in the kitchen with his brother. They developed a full menu of food they missed the most from home, and added a few more things to cover all kinds of taste buds. Fae took over the paperwork, though. She ran the back of the house, keeping track of inventory and hours while putting her foot in the ass of anyone that needed it.

    Jimin took on the responsibilities of hosting and serving. Though everyone seemed to wander in and help from time to time, it was his baby. He took great pride in making it a great experience for everyone that came in the door. Angel was always there to help, too. Though Jimin made it known that he would rather she spent her time planning the wedding of their dreams.

   Taehyung was tasked with the theme and decorating. His designs were so popular that the locals were clamoring to hire him to give their spaces a fresh look, which changed his original plan of being an at-home-dad. Although he had full control of his schedule so childcare wasn’t an issue with the little Bean.

   Jungkook was able to get over his jealousy and became good friends with Bam. He even started helping out around the ranch when Bam agreed to provide the meat and eggs for the restaurant. Although, a Lion Hybrid helping care for prey animals did make for a bit of a struggle at times. Bam regularly teased Jungkook about the days it took them to find all of the chickens and cows the first time a pig bit his thigh and he responded with a growl that was loud enough to scare the entire ranch into running for cover, and the weeks after that that it took for the chickens to calm down enough to start laying eggs again.

  Rayne spent her days painting. Or helping Angel plan. Or, more recently, watching the baby. Life in the Pride somehow found a new normal that was far more than any of them could have imagined.

   With Jimin and Angel’s wedding coming in just a few days, chaos reigned. They brought in a dozen travel trailers for traveling friends and family to stay in around the compound, and worked on the finishing touches on the ceremony site on the sloping back lawn.

Scarlett and Namjoon created a living vine and flower-covered archway near the water where the couple would exchange their vows, and cream and gold colored accents were popping up all over the place.

   With so much family flying in to attend, they naturally wanted to help. Between the Korean cooks and the local extended family members, the amount of food that was being prepared was ridiculous, but those that didn’t cook much knew that the leftovers would be glorious.

Namjoon, Rayne and Taehyung were especially thrilled at the impending banquet, and shared many high fives and bottle clinks to celebrate.

   The wedding was beautiful. The couple opted not to have bridesmaids or groomsmen, but asked that everyone in the Northern Pride dress in their colors.

   Jimin stood at the front with the officiant dressed in a simple white button down shirt and linen pants, barefooted, just like the bride.

Angel’s dress was lovely. Simple and sweet. Cream colored with gold accents threaded throughout, and the flowers adorning her head were a delicate mixture of white and gold flowers, grown in the greenhouse just for her.

  Although weddings are not necessary for the hybrid community to acknowledge a mating, the emotion and meaning was clear. Jimin and Angel both had tears of joy the moment their eyes met at opposite ends of the aisle, and their self-written vows were so sincere and personal, you couldn’t help but feel like you were intruding on a deeply intimate moment. Their love for each other shone even more brightly that day, bolstered by the love of their friends, family and Pride that gathered to support them.

     Once all of their out of town visitors left a few days later, the members of the Pride laid like actual lions in the shade on the back lawn, relaxed and enjoying some rare down time with each other.

“Thank god everyone is gone.” Yoongi grumbled from where his head lay in Fae’s lap, “If we had to listen to our mother complain about wanting weddings for us, too, one more time…”

He looked at Jimin,

“This is your fault, you know. That woman is not going to stop until both of us give in.”  

Jimin and Angel chuckled at Yoongi’s distress.

Agust yawned, “It’s really easy to get out of, man. Just do what I did. I told mom that my woman has exquisite, expensive taste, and that if she wanted us to have a full wedding she’d have to pay for it.”

Natalie agreed, “it’s true. I do enjoy nice things.”

Scar looked calculating as she watched Rokki play with the baby on the blanket. She and Seokjin only arrived a few days before the wedding, and she hadn’t had a lot of time with her nephew yet.

“Rokkiiiiiiiiii,” she whined, “When are you just going to announce it already? I'm tired of waiting. We can all smell it, you know.”

Rokki side-eyed the woman, “Are you sure you're a lion? You definitely don’t have the patience of a cat. I think you’re more hyena than anything.”

Scarlett gasped dramatically and Alice’s “ooooooooh SNAP” was heard over the rest of the women’s chuckles. It was just like old times.

“Why do I have to announce anything if you can smell it, anyway.” Rokki shrugged, “You already know, why make a big deal?”

Rayne turned her head and laughed into her mate’s chest, thoroughly enjoying the verbal sparring of her Pride mates she hadn’t realized she’d missed.

Scarlett reached out and slapped at Rokki’s leg, “Quit being a bitch and just say it.”

Rokki just stuck her tongue out at her and went back to cooing at the baby.

Seokjin laughed,

“Hey guys, guess what?”

The collective played along and answered in unison, “What?”

“We are having a baby!”

They all cheered and rejoiced at the addition to their family.

And as Rayne snuggled in closer to her mate, she couldn’t help but think about where life had brought them all. If anyone would have told her any of this was coming a year ago, she would have laughed them off. This was a direction she never would have taken if her stubborn self was given the choice.

She had to be forced.

But, now that she was there. She couldn’t believe how happy and complete she felt, and the joy that radiated from her sisters and their mates.

It turns out, all she had to do to get there was to get out of her own way, and get over her own pride.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 16

~2968 Words~

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 16

   Rayne was caught off guard when Jungkook picked her up like that, and she was ready to fight when she felt his hand come down on her ass. Jerk.

She growled and wiggled, trying to get down to exact her revenge, whatever that would be. When that technique didn’t work, she took her turn slapping at his ass and trying to pinch and tickle his sides to get some sort of reaction, again to no avail.

Jungkook marched around the side of the house and straight to Rayne’s poolhouse. He slid open the door and went inside with Rayne still over his shoulder. He closed and locked the door and closed the curtain before slapping her ass again and marching over to her bed.

The moment he set her back on her feet, he pulled the t-shirt she’d put on over her bathing suit up and over her head.

“Jungkook, what the hell?!?!” she screeched as he gently pushed her back on the bed and pulled off the shorts she wore. He held the two offending pieces away from his body with his nose scrunched up in distaste as he stomped back over to the door. The sound of him unlocking the door and sliding it open only to throw her clothes outside seemed loud in the space.

   Instead of the fear she would have thought she’d feel at his actions, Rayne was amused. Jungkook was not Richard. In fact, as annoyed as he was at that moment, and all of the growling that was coming from him, there was not a hint of violence in his scent or demeanor.

   He yanked the curtains back in place after re-locking the door and turned back to the bed where his challenging Mate sat with her arms crossed over her chest.

He lowered his head and kept eye contact as he stalked toward her. He pulled his shirt over his head and threw it behind himself without a glance to where it went.

“You dared touch an unmated male. You wrapped your arms around him, and covered yourself with his scent again.”

“Jungkook, I was just thanking a friend.” He made a dramatic show of untying his swim trunks,

“This is a challenge I cannot turn a blind eye to. Our Mating is not complete. My scent is not yet on you or in you, and you dared embrace another male?”

His tongue ran along the inside of his cheek as he thought about his plan of action.

Obviously letting his woman run wild and challenge him constantly was going to have to stop if he didn’t show her the boundaries. He knew better than to try and tame her. She was wild and willful, and he liked her that way… but, the lines needed to be drawn for her to know how far she could go.

Rayne bit her lip and narrowed her eyes, trying to decide whether it was time to fully accept her Mate or see if she could push the envelope one more time.

Jungkook smirked. The look on her face plainly told him what she was thinking, and that made his decision for him. He shoved his shorts to the floor and then slowly knelt on the bed in front of her.

Rayne sat criss-cross applesauce, frozen with indecision. Her whole body wanted to throw caution to the wind and complete their mating. The fear that had her running and challenging him at every turn seemed to have shrunk enough that she didn’t react in anger, or lash out when he grabbed the sides of her tankini bottoms and pulled them off.

She gasped in a breath as she fell back onto the disarray of the unmade bedding.

Jungkook pushed her legs apart and inhaled deeply. His smile was predatory, and his growl was one of satisfaction. He looked his fill while the scent of his woman, a scent he never in his life could have imagined would mean so much to him, worked its way into his system.

His gaze slowly inched its way up her body, and by the time his eyes met hers, his smile had turned mischievous,

“Hmmm. Part of you is still hidden from me. I don’t like it.”

   He pulled the top of her suit off and tossed it over his shoulder, fully satisfied with the results. Rayne was splayed out before him, completely naked. He couldn’t decide if his mouth was watering at the idea of wrapping his lips around her hard nipples, or devouring her glistening pussy. He had to remind himself several times that this was HIS woman. This was HIS Mate. They would have plenty of time to explore each other thoroughly. There was no need to rush.

   Jungkook looked up into Rayne’s eyes, searching for any hint of discomfort or fear. Her body wanted him, but he wanted her mind just as ready.

“You good?”

Rayne was breathing hard, but her slow nod of approval was all he needed.

Jungkook grabbed the base of his cock and lined it up with her pussy. She sucked in a breath, preparing for what was to come.

But, instead of just pushing in and going for a rut that was fast and furious, he surprised her by slowly rubbing the tip up and down her wet slit.

He circled around her entrance, spreading the slick before he slid up to rub circles around her clit. He did this over and over again, until Rayne was rolling her hips, trying to get him to finally slide inside.

Jungkook chuckled, elated that his Mate was taking an active role, and not just laying on the bed letting him wonder if he should even be doing this.

“Feeling impatient?” He pressed a little harder on her clit as he circled it, “Tell me what you need, Mate.”

Rayne let out an impatient snarl and dug her nails into his knees to show her dissatisfaction.

The only reaction she got out of him was another chuckle and extra circles around her clit.    

   Finally at the end of her patience, Rayne caught Jungkook off guard and had him rolled to his back before he could react. Fully entertained with her daring, he pulled her down for some laughing kisses.

It took a couple of minutes, but Jungkook’s kisses and the happiness radiating from him had her muscles relaxing. Soon enough, she was feeling just as playful as he was. For a little bit of retribution, she settled his length in between her lower lips and began sliding up and down. Teasing him, but never actually letting him enter.

This time, he was the one snarling with impatience. His hands were holding tight to her waist, and he was trying his hardest to move his hips to “accidentally” slip inside when she slid back far enough.

Her breathy, evil laugh was what broke him. He pulled her down for a passionate kiss and rolled her onto her back. Their lips and tongues never parted when they moaned as he finally, blessedly, pushed inside of her.

He wasn’t in a hurry. His thrusts were slow and sensual, and his hip movements made his strokes hit places inside of her pussy that Rayne never realized existed. It felt like their bodies were touching from head to toe. Like every nerve ending they each had was being stroked and loved.

Rayne’s hands slowly ran through his hair, over his shoulders, down his muscular arms and back. She wanted to touch every bit of her Mate she could. Her lips molded with Jungkook’s perfectly. Just as perfectly as his cock fit inside of her. They truly were made for each other.

Jungkook was in heaven. He was just as enthralled with the feeling of his Mate’s lips on his as he was with the feeling of her wet pussy surrounding his cock. The feeling of the hot moisture that coated the head of his dick as he pushed in, and the drag of her walls around the sensitive nerves on the flared rim as he pulled back out was the most incredible thing he’d ever experienced, as was the taste and feel of her mouth on his.

His instincts wanted him to bite the back of her neck and pound her into the mattress… and he would soon enough. But for their first time together, he wanted to be slow and sweet. Show his Mate that he was controlled. That he wanted to love and cherish her, and be the Alpha she deserved.

Rayne brought her legs up to wrap around his waist, and Jungkook responded by taking her hands and placing them just above her head while threading his fingers in-between hers.

Her whine was audible. Even she wasn’t sure if it was a good whine or a bad whine. Never once had she ever given a man the position of power in bed. Never once had she been in this position. And never once had she ever thought she’d want to be.

But, there she was, submitting to her Alpha and drawing closer to orgasm with every move he made.

He made her feel special. Cared for. The higher he drove her body and emotions by slowly making love to her and holding back his baser instincts, the more she had to hold back the tears of emotional release. Her body was going to cum, he was making sure of that, but her mind was on the cusp of letting go along with it.

He’d proven himself many times over the last couple of days. It wasn’t a long period of time, but she’d pushed him far past boundaries no other alpha hybrid male could withstand, and he’d held strong.

Natalie’s words came to mind just before Rayne let go;

“He’s strong. Strong enough that he knows how to be with me without trying to control everything about me.”

It was then that she understood.

Jungkook was strong. Somehow he knew how to be her Alpha without physically needing to control every little thing about her.

Jungkook’s growls got louder, and his thrusts got harder as the tell tale tingle in the base of his spine started. He wanted to feel his Mate’s pussy squeeze him before he let go, so he put an extra roll in his hips along with stronger thrusts. His hands held hers tighter and his kisses became more insistent.

And when she finally came, the pulses of her walls around him along with her body’s spasms and uncontrollable whines that came from her throat sent him over the edge.

He couldn’t bite the back of her neck, so tore his mouth away from hers just before his teeth clamped down on the tender spot where her neck met her shoulder and snarled like a wild lion trying to protect his meal.

Something about that bite made her cum that much harder. She saw stars.

Only when it was done, when he fully filled her with his release and the spasms in her pussy stilled, did he let go of her neck.

Rayne pulled her hands free from his and wrapped her arms around him as Jungkook collapsed on top of her.

“Holy shit,” he mumbled into her hair as he worked on catching his breath.

She weakly giggled in a daze, “Holy shit, indeed. I don’t think my body will ever forget that.”

His softened member twitched inside of her. She knew he’d slip out if she uncrossed her legs, which were still around his waist, and she wasn’t ready for that. So, she stayed still, enjoying a moment of connection with her Mate. Her Alpha.

“You smell amazing with my scent in you,” he said, sounding completely self satisfied.

“Does that mean I can go ahead and hug every unmated male I come across without you going all “Alpha” on me?”

Jungkook responded by reattaching his lips to the bite mark he left on her neck with a snarl and sucking a large purple mark into her skin.

Rayne wiggled around as she tried to get him to stop,

“Why are you giving me a hickey?” she whined.

He pulled back and looked appraisingly at his handiwork,

“Human men won’t be able to smell my scent on you to know that you are mated. This will make an excellent visual for them to know they should stay away.”

She growled her displeasure at him, which he answered with an unrepentant bunny smile and the most innocent little laugh she’d ever heard.

Rayne laughed and her annoyance melted away,

“Don’t expect me to just let you get away with things when you act cute like that.”

Jungkook chuckled and kissed her. He suspected life with his mate was never going to be boring, and he didn’t want it any other way.

  The rest of the Pride decided to help Jungkook keep his mate contained for the rest of the day by occasionally leaving food at the door. They did the classic “drop, knock and run” move several times throughout the day.

  Ana and Angel wanted to do everything in their power to disturb and irritate Rayne as payback for her being such a pain in the ass, but their mates held them in check.

“Give Jungkook a day,” Jimin said with a chuckle, “he needs to soothe his beast a little. Get the Alpha energy out. I know if I saw you hugging a male before I had the chance to complete our mating, you wouldn’t be walking straight for a long time. Boy has something to prove right now.”

   And prove he did. By the time they emerged from the pool house the next morning, Rayne couldn't quite remember what it was like to not be impaled on Jungkook’s dick in one way or another. She was sore, covered in hickies and wanted nothing more than to sleep. Never had she cum so often. She’d had more orgasms in the last 24 hours than she’d ever had in her life.

  But, as part of his aftercare, Jungkook wanted to feed his Mate before they curled back up in bed for a while. He heard her stomach growl while he was licking her pussy, and decided it was time to venture out for a bit.. After making her cum again, of course.

  The rest of the Pride was still asleep, so they had the kitchen to themselves. Jungkook led Rayne to the living room and sat her in one of the comfortable chairs to rest while he made them food. She quietly hugged a pillow and watched while he threw together two plates full of eggs and french toast.

 Her hair was all over the place and her eyes were glazed over. In short, she looked completely fucked out. Jungkook well and truly fucked his mate into submission, and at that moment she was fine with it. She could challenge him another time. All she wanted was food and sleep. Not necessarily in that order.

  As she relaxed back in the chair and watched him cook, Rayne realized how vulnerable she was allowing herself to be with him. Never, in her life, had she ever truly felt this open with a man… and yet somehow, there she was. She wasn’t thinking about how to keep control of the situation, or marking where the exits were. She was simply enjoying being with him, and that in itself was an entirely new sensation.

  Jungkook made her feel safe. Cared for. She knew that, no matter what, he would have her back, just as the rest of the Northern Pride did. More so, even. And she knew deep down that she would have his back just the same.

  They took their food back to the pool house, and managed to eat before falling asleep. Once the food was gone and the plates were safely away from where they sat on the bed, Jungkook turned and pulled the shirt Rayne was wearing off.

“Ugh, no more, Jungkook! I’m sore,” she whined.

He chuckled quietly,

“Don’t worry, my Mate. I’m just getting us ready for bed. I want to sleep with you in my arms, and I don’t want anything in between us.”

He sounded so earnest, Rayne felt a wave of emotion she wasn’t prepared for. Her chest felt warm and her whole body felt like it was floating as she looked at her mate.

   When he stripped off his own clothes and laid on the bed, her first instinct was to climb on top. This time, though, he just pulled her down and wrapped his arms around her. He kissed the tip of her nose and let out the cutest little laugh she’d ever heard from the back of his throat. It was so annoying. She loved it.

  While Rayne was busy staring at her man wondering how he could be so sexy and yet so cute at the same time, Jungkook jerked his head to the side and looked in the direction of the sliding glass door. Before she could figure out what he was hearing, he slid her off of him and hurried over to slide open the door for the long haired black fuzzball that had been scratching to get their attention.

  Luna sauntered into the room and jumped up onto the bed. She sat and patiently waited for her new alpha to lay down and pull the blanket over himself. The cat couldn’t even wait until Rayne was in place to make her move. She climbed up, curled into a ball on Jungkook’s stomach and growled at any attempt to reposition her.

  The newly mated couple still found a way to lay skin to skin as they drifted off to sleep to the sound of Luna’s loud, happy purr.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 15

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 15

Back out in the darkness, away from the quickly dwindling group around the fire, Jungkook and Rayne stood sharing their first true moment of mutual togetherness. She didn’t feel the need to push him away, or challenge him in any way.

In fact, they looked like they were about to get in trouble for slow dancing too close at a middle school sock hop.

“I’m looking forward to when you let me sleep in your cabin,” he said with a smirk, “It’s going to be difficult to sleep in that house with three newly mated couples in the rooms around me.”

Rayne, not quite ready to give in completely, smiled at his unfortunate circumstances,

“I’d sleep down in the basement, if I were you. That couch is extremely comfortable.”

Jungkook expected her hesitance and laughed. He tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and pressed a quick kiss to the tip of her nose.

Rayne’s heart gave a little flutter. If she was a cartoon character, she’d have hearts in her eyes. The term “Twitterpated” came to mind.

She was not the praying sort, but sent up a quick one to whatever deity might be listening, “Please, let him be a good one. I don’t know if I could handle my Mate being another Dick.”

Jungkook hadn’t heard the story of Dick yet. All he really knew for sure was that his Mate was a strong willed woman that was making him prove something. He suspected she’d been hurt in the past, but as angry as that idea made him, he knew himself and he knew his heart. He knew he wanted to love and cherish her. He knew he wanted to help her heal. Be there for her. And maybe find out who hurt her so he could take care of it and know that she will never be hurt by them again.

Later that night, as Jungkook relaxed into the cushions of the couch and turned up the volume on the television to cover the sounds of the couples upstairs that were still noticeable, he thought about the feeling of Rayne’s lips on his, and the look in her eyes just after he kissed her goodnight at the door to her little cottage.

There was no anger or defiance there. The look she gave him was soft and sweet. It made him yearn for nights of being twisted in the sheets and days wrapped in each other's arms. He wanted her head resting on his chest while he sang her to sleep. He wanted his Mate. Plain and simple.

Rayne would never tell anyone, but as she lay on her bed that night she held her shirt to her nose, breathing in the remnants left of her Mate’s scent on it. It made her feel… safe. She couldn’t believe that he didn’t even try to make a move. He didn’t try to guilt her about not inviting him in.

He simply walked her to her door and gave her a sweet kiss goodnight. His full lips sipped at hers just long enough to not be considered indecent before he pulled back and slowly swiped his thumb across her bottom lip.

He smiled sweetly and said,

“Sweet dreams, my Mate,” before he turned and headed for the big house.

Rayne whispered, “Sweet dreams,” as she watched him walk away. She stood, transfixed. She couldn’t look away until he was through the kitchen and out of sight of the windows.

The moment he was out of sight, she let go of a breath she hadn’t known she was holding, and in a dramatic display she never would have thought she was capable of, Rayne collapsed against the sliding glass door behind her and giggled.

For the first time, maybe ever, Rayne was up first in the morning. She made herself a coffee and grabbed a pastry to nibble on before she took herself out to her bench swing by the lake with Luna on her heels.

The two sat and filled the air with happy purrs. Rayne, feeling calmer than she had in ages as she drank her coffee, and Luna thoroughly enjoying chin scratches in the sunshine.

“Mind if I join you?”

Rayne wasn’t terribly surprised to see Jungkook approach with his own coffee. As far as she knew, they were the only mated pair that wasn’t currently actively...Mating.

Luna perked up from her spot on Rayne’s lap when her new favorite person sat down next to them. The cat stood and stretched before moving to his lap, where she tried her best to show her love by rubbing her face all over his.

Jungkook laughed, “I was told that you don’t like anyone but your mom.” He vigorously stroked the furball’s back and whispered conspiratorially, “Seems you like your dad, too.”

Rayne huffed out a laugh and took a sip of her coffee.

Jungkook smiled the cutest bunny smile like he just got away with something. She laughed, but she didn’t deny it. He was feeling optimistic after their alone time the night before.

“Do you want to do something together today?” he asked, looking out at the lake.

Rayne raised her eyebrows, and he laughed, “I mean go out on the paddleboards or something! I went out for a little while yesterday. I’d love to go with you, though.”

She gave him an appraising look for only a moment before nodding her head,

“Sure. I need food first, though.”

Their morning together was a lot of fun. Rayne relaxed enough to be herself while she led Jungkook around the lake, pointing out her favorite landmarks and telling him stories about growing up in the area.

He was disappointed she didn’t wear the same bathing suit she wore to do yoga the day before, though. As much as it pissed him off, she looked sexy as hell in it.

It made him want to jump on his Mate and make sure she knew who her Alpha was. But, Jungkook understood that this time they were spending getting to know each other and just being in each other’s presence was equally as important as being physically intimate.

In fact, he found his senses completely wrapped up in her at all times. When she wasn’t around, it seemed his nose was always trying to find her scent, and his eyes were always on the lookout for her to appear.

“I noticed you were trying to do a headstand on your board yesterday. Have you ever been able to pull it off?” He genuinely wanted to know. But he also genuinely wanted to watch her body move.

Rayne laughed, “No. I’ve tried many times, but can’t seem to stay balanced for more than a few seconds.”

Jungkook stopped paddling and thoughtfully looked around at the calm water,

“I wonder if I can do it. Never tried a headstand on water before, but I do have decent balance…”

He slowly knelt down and copied what he saw her do the day before, using his forearms to balance and hold his weight while he slowly tried to lift his legs. Rayne stood on her board and watched with great humor, knowing exactly how it was going to end.

The wave the splash made when he inevitably lost his balance also sent her into the lake. The couple’s laughter echoed off the water as they repeatedly climbed back onto their boards, only to lose balance trying to accomplish a headstand and fall back in.

Neither one actually pulled it off for more than a couple of seconds, but as menial as it was, the experience helped them turn a corner in their budding relationship.

Rayne was suddenly comfortable in his presence. No more fear, no suspicion, no need to run and push. It seemed she was willing to let the budding relationship grow. Though she still tried to hide the massive crush she’d developed on him. She couldn’t give Jungkook all of the cards in this game they were playing.

After putting away the paddle boards, the couple walked into the big house to find Natalie and Agust elbow deep in some cooking project.

“Food porn day?” Rayne asked, fully accustomed to her pridemate’s occasional cooking splurges.

Natalie was up to her elbows in dough and fully focused on her task,

“I hope you’re hungry. I’m showing Agust how to make homemade pasta. OH!” she looked up at Rayne, “I’m running low on eggs again, so I sent Bam a message. He said he has eggs and our meat order ready. He should be stopping by with the delivery in a little bit.”

Jungkook stood close behind Rayne watching Agust and Natalie knead the dough,

“Do you need help? I’ve never made homemade pasta before, but I’d love to learn!”

   Natalie soon had both men working hard on the dough, but refused to let Rayne anywhere near their project,

“Go make us a cooking playlist. Something fun.”

Jungkook, though, was curious why she wouldn’t let Rayne help.

“Oh, honey,” Natalie said with a chuckle, “You will soon find out that your Mate is unfortunately limited in her cooking skills, and sometimes it’s just safer to keep her out of the kitchen.”

Rayne laughed from where she was creating the “Pasta cooking playlist” on the laptop in her comfy chair in the living room, “You can’t say I don’t try occasionally, though!”

The other couples filtered in and out as their hunger for food took over their hunger for each other.

Hoseok and Alice were sitting with Rayne when the doorbell rang. Rayne opened the door to find a smiling Bam holding eight egg cartons,

“You guys are definitely giving my chickens a run for their money!” he handed the eggs over to her, “Thankfully the ladies have been laying like crazy.”

Alice and Hoseok followed Bam out to his truck to help unload, and Jungkook stopped kneading to wash his hands so he could help.

Most of the work was done by the time he got out there, though, and the group was just standing by the truck talking.

Jungkook walked up and introduced himself. The scent was familiar, but he couldn’t place it until Rayne came out from storing the last box of meat in the freezer and hugged this unfamiliar male,

“Thank you so much, Bam! You are a lifesaver!”

This small act of innocent gratitude was the straw that broke the camel's back.

“Nope.”

Was all that Jungkook said before he grabbed Rayne and threw her over his shoulder. His large hand smacked her butt and made her growl as she wiggled and tried to get down.

“Is she ok?” Bam asked in concern as he watched this stranger walk away with his struggling  friend over his shoulder.

Alice and Hoseok were all smiles as they assured him that she was fine.

“Don’t worry, Bam,” Alice said, voice full of mirth, “We won’t be needing your pigs this time.” Bam laughed good naturedly,

“Well, my pigs are always available, if you ever need them again.”

Hoseok wrapped his arms around Alice after the couple waved their guest off,

“He’s a good friend.”

“That he is.”

“You are a scary group of women. You know that, right?”

“That I do.”

He cupped her cheek and looked deep into her eyes,

“You know I will never treat you in such a way that will force you to feed me to the pigs, right?”

Alice smiled and lifted herself up on her tippy toes to give him a quick kiss,

“I should hope not. That was a lot of work.”

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 14

~3377 words~

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 14

   Startled by the sound of her windows shaking and something akin to a roar, Rokki poked her head out of her closet,

“What the hell was that?”

Seokjin made the mistake of glancing out the window that had a bird’s eye view of the fenced-in garden a few minutes before, and knew exactly what was going on. He quickly grabbed his Mate’s hand and pulled her back in the closet. With a chuckle, he said,

“Don’t worry about that. It’s just Namjoon and Scarlett.”

“Oh… OH!” Rokki’s eyes got big and round when she realized what that meant.

“I guess I won’t have to sit and listen to her complain anymore. That was louder than anything I’ve ever heard from Natalie and Agust.”

She was thoughtful as she moved things around in her closet, creating little nooks for her Mate to keep his things.

“Can I help?” he asked from where he leaned against the door frame.

“Um.. I don’t know. How much stuff do you have?”

“Here? Not much. Just that suitcase.”

His response brought her up short. Here. Obviously he has more, and obviously it was at his home. His home wasn’t here. What did that mean for her? For their relationship?

“What’s on your mind? You’re thinking too hard.”

“I, um… I was just thinking about the rest of your things, and where they are now. That’s all.”

Seokjin smiled gently at her,

“We don’t have to think about that yet.”

“But we do, though. We are Mates. That means we are meant for each other. That means we are basically married and will be sharing a space and lives and having children and deciding where we live and what to do all comes with that.”

Her anxiety, and her voice, was rising as she spoke. Seokjin left his perch and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her hair and held her close.

“It’s ok, Rokki. We’ll figure it out. I realize this is going to be a change. I do have work to think about. It’s easy for me to tell you to leave everything you know to come with me, but I won’t do that.”

“That’s the thing, though,” she said into his neck, “If we are going to be mates, I do have to do that. My job is taking care of things around here. I’ve always been content with that. I have no clue what you do, but I’m sure it’s important.”

“What you do IS important, Rokki. From what I’ve seen, each of you has a job that makes this Pride run well. I’m not going to lie and say that we will never have to go to Korea, but we might be able to ease into it.”

She lifted her head and looked into his eyes,

“Are you sure?”

Seokjin smiled and tucked a loose chunk of hair behind her ear and kissed the tip of her nose,

“My family is excited to meet you, though. I made the mistake of telling my brother that Agust suspected you were my mate, so he did the only logical thing you can think of and told our mother. You can imagine her patience level when she realized she would have another daughter-in-law around.”

Rokki smiled, “I hope she likes me.”

“She’s going to adore you. She is also going to be very pushy about getting you to come to Korea.” “What would I even do in Korea?”

He chuckled, “Whatever you want to. But,” he pointed to the dresser he’d bumped into the night before, “the contents of that top drawer stay here.”

Rokki gasped and pushed him away, “You went through my drawers?”

Still laughing, Seokjin shook his head, “No, I didn’t. I bumped into it last night, and that drawer was open just a little bit. When I was trying to right everything I knocked over, I caught a glimpse of a few things, and thought I’d wait for my Mate to be here to show them to me, herself.”

Rokki’s face turned bright red, “I’m not showing you anything.”

“I would think you’d want to show me how to use these things correctly, if I’m going to be using them on you.”

She giggled through her embarrassment, “I’m not showing you anything today.” She pointed to the space she’d made in her closet, “Is that enough space for now?”

Seokjin couldn’t stop smiling as he put away his things. This was the very beginning of sharing their space, and their lives. And, she wasn’t hiding from him anymore. Everything was coming together, and if all went well, his Mate would be in his arms when he fell asleep that night, and every night after.

That evening, Rayne joyfully interrupted everyone’s love fest to gather them for dinner. She very well could have just let it go, but the women made this plan before the men arrived, so she decided to follow through.

Rokki was still dressed, so she was easy to rouse. She grabbed Seokjin and headed to the kitchen to start dinner prep while Rayne skipped off to her next victims.

Namjoon’s irritated growls at Rayne banging on the bedroom door turned out to be Scarlett’s. “Holy shit, Scar! I thought that was Namjoon! Jump off that dick and come downstairs. And quit growling at me, this dinner was your idea after all!”

The thump of footsteps coming up the stairs turned out to be Rokki, “Can’t let you have ALL the fun.”

The two stopped at Angel’s bedroom door and began a rhythmic drum beat on the door.

The couple was ready for them, though, and were fully dressed when they opened the door to see the wicked grins of Angel’s sisters.

“Awe! You’re already dressed? No fun.” Rayne said with a voice full of mirth.

Jimin laughingly answered, “We heard you ‘inviting’ the others to join you for dinner. I just got done licking my dinner plate clean, anyway, so it was good timing.”

Angel giggled and led Jimin down the stairs.

Rokki looked at Rayne, “Who next?”

She grinned, “Time to make the rounds! Ana’s the closest.”

The two ran down the stairs and out the front door, intent on causing a little bit of a ruckus around the compound.

They ran into Alice and Hoseok in the driveway,

“AWE!” Rayne whined with a laugh, “We wanted to come and personally invite you to dinner!”

“I set an alarm on my phone when we made the plans for this dinner,” Alice said with a smile,  “Didn’t want to miss it.”

Hoseok couldn’t help but laugh at Rokki and Rayne as they pranced away toward the closest cabin.

“I didn’t hear an alarm.” “That’s because there was none. I happened to catch the text that Angel sent warning us that those two were coming.”

“And to think I was annoyed that your phone interrupted us! Those two banging on the door while I was trying to bang you would be far more annoying.”

Meanwhile at Ana’s cottage, Rokki and Rayne were all giggles as they used their fists on the door to bang out another drum solo.

“Jesus!” Ana called out from inside, “What do you want?”

“We have plans for dinner tonight, remember?” Rokki yelled back.

“Yeah! Hop off that dick and come eat!” Rayne added.

The two felt like they’d gotten their point across, so they moved on to pester Natalie and Agust.

Unfortunately for the women, Natalie had the dinner in her planner, and was ready when they arrived,

“I knew you were going to be a pain in the ass, Raynie, but you, too Rokki? Ugh. What has she dragged you into!”

Rokki giggled,

“I made the decision to help all on my own, Nat. Now, come on! I’m hungry.”

The group turned to walk down the path toward the house with Rokki and Rayne in the lead.

“Who else do we need to collect for dinner?” Rayne asked as she looked around at the trees.

“Well, Seokjin said that Fae and Yoongi were down in the tv room, so they’re already at the house. I’m not sure where your mate is, though.”

Rayne’s response was a barely audible “hmm.”

“You know, Raynie, I really don’t think he’s a bad guy. Honestly, after the shit you’ve pulled the last couple of days, I’m starting to think the man has the patience of a saint.”

Rayne actually smiled at that.

“He’s a good man, Rayne.”

Agust’s voice startled Rayne, who jumped and shrieked,

“Good lord! I forgot you were back there!”

Both Rokki and Natalie found that to be extremely out of character,

“You ok, Rayne?”

“You’re not usually that jumpy.”

Rayne didn’t answer them. She just rolled her eyes and kept walking. Reality was, she was lost in thought about her Mate, and she wasn’t going to admit that out loud to any of them. In truth, how he reacted that morning had her rethinking her stance on the whole mating thing.

After dinner, the group pulled their chairs around the fire pit and relaxed after a couple of very interesting days. The chatter was friendly and happy.

Yoongi stood and kicked his brother’s foot,

“Almost forgot, I brought you a present.”

Agust perked right up, “Yeah?”

Yoongi chuckled and headed into the house, only to reappear with a black acoustic guitar.

“My guitar! I saw the case and thought you brought your own!”

Natalie wasn’t sure what to think, “Wait. You play guitar? How did I not know this?”

“I haven’t had time to play in a while,” he answered as he took the instrument from his brother, “It got to the point that I only ever played with Yoongi, so I just left it at his place.”

“Yeah, but you never told me you’re a musician!”

Agust chuckled and leaned in to kiss the scowl off his woman’s face, and then set the guitar on his knee to strum a few chords.

Once he found his flow, the men started to sing.

Rayne chose a seat across the fire from her Mate after dinner, and secretly enjoyed the ability to watch him. He was beautiful in the fire light. She tried to be inconspicuous about her staring, but he did catch her a couple of times.

When he started to sing, Rayne’s entire body reacted. Everything but Jungkook faded into the background, and when his eyes caught hers, they didn’t let go.

Rayne and her Mate eye fucked each other in the light of the flames as his voice danced over her skin.

Jungkook really had to focus on the singing so his Mate’s scent didn’t entice him into making any moves he hadn’t thought out first. Plus, he was still kind of pissed about her smelling like another man that morning.

After their little tryst in the kitchen, he decided to take that paddleboard Rayne seemed to be so fond of and took himself on a little tour of the lake. Unfortunately, the sounds of mating coming from the compound traveled, and he wasn’t able to fully get away from the fact that everyone else was consummating their relationships while he actively tried to work off his excess energy and distract himself from his frustration.

And now he was sitting across the fire from a woman that’d been actively pushing his buttons for two days and was throwing pheromones that were going to get her fucked right quick if she wasn’t careful.

The group sang a couple of songs in their native language, leaving their women in a collective state of awe.

Natalie, still half annoyed that her Mate never told her of his musical talents, couldn’t take her eyes off of him. Just when she thought he couldn’t possibly get sexier…

She didn’t give Agust a chance to continue once that song ended. Natalie stood and took the guitar out of his hands, handing it off to Yoongi before tugging her Mate out of his chair and pulling him into the house, to the great amusement of the entire group.

The songs continued without them, and after a while, Rayne decided she needed a break.

With one last look at her Mate, she stood and headed into the house. She pushed open the door to the small laundry room / bathroom and jumped back with a surprised squeal.

Natalie was crouched down in front of Agust, and from the look on his face, she was sucking him off with more vigor than he’d ever experienced. In fact, they were so wrapped up in what they were doing that they hadn’t even heard Rayne’s exclamation of surprise.

She ran back outside, giggling like a schoolgirl that just saw something she shouldn’t have, only to run headlong into Jungkook.

His arm immediately wrapped around her waist and he pulled her around the side of the house, away from the crowd and the lights. His eyes shone in the moonlight and she felt his heart beating strong and steady as he held her tightly against his hard body.

Rayne didn’t fight him. She didn’t resist. Her hands wrapped around his biceps as they stood quietly staring at each other. Words weren’t needed. It seemed that they’d come to some sort of understanding as they stood in the dark.

Their breathing calmed and synced. Their skin tingled where it made contact. They both felt like they were the only people in the world at that moment.

Rayne startled when she felt something brush against her leg. Luna, not one to be left out, was showing her joy and contentment at her people getting along.

Jungkook chuckled and purred loudly back at the fuzzy little beast.

When he turned his attention back to Rayne, he cupped her cheek and said in a low tone, “Are you done running yet? Or do you have more challenges up your sleeves for me?”

She smirked, “Maybe. Maybe not. Only time will tell.”

He smiled and shook his head with an amused, “Women,” just before he kissed her.

He didn’t have to force it. He didn’t have to spring it on her. Rayne was receptive and an active participant.

They stood in the moonlight, kissing and nibbling on each other's lips. Neither was in a hurry. They just enjoyed each other in a way they hadn’t yet.

Somehow, Jungkook was able to harness his instinctual need to mate. He knew she wasn’t ready, and he didn’t want to push his luck. Just standing in the moonlight with his woman in his arms and the taste of her lips on his was more than enough to calm the beast for the time being.

The music died down after a couple more songs and the group dissolved into conversation.

The women were considering hunting down Rayne and enacting some payback by interrupting whatever she may be doing with her Mate, but the men were more inclined to take some pity on Jungkook. He’d been through a lot over the last couple of days.

“I think we need to distract these ladies before they get any ideas in their heads,” Seokjin said as he studied Rokki and rubbed his forefinger across his chin thoughtfully.

Wanting to help out Jungkook was only part of his reasoning. His patience was waning, and he wanted to have his Mate in his arms.

He stood and held his hand out to Rokki, who looked at his hand apprehensively for just a moment before slowly reaching for it.

Seokjin smiled and gently pulled her up to stand. Her shy smile told him that she knew exactly what he was thinking.

“Goodnight everyone!” He said jovially as he led his Mate toward the back door.

The group was all smiles as they waved the couple goodnight.

Seokjin led Rokki through the house and up the stairs, eventually pulling her into the bedroom they now shared.

He gently closed the door and then turned back to her. Rokki. His Mate.

Seokjin cupped her cheek and stared into her eyes,

“Tell me if I move too fast for you, ok?”

She nodded, the moonlight streaming in from the open windows illuminating her soft features in the otherwise dark room.

“I’d all but given up on finding my Mate,” he said barely above a whisper, his lips a mere breath away from hers, “I figured I wasn’t one of the lucky ones. And now that I’ve found you, I can’t believe my fortune. You are more than I’ve ever dreamed. I don’t know what I ever did to deserve you, but I am beyond thankful. I will make sure you know that every single day of our lives.”

His kiss was sweet and gentle. He sipped at Rokki’s lips, slowly seducing her. The last thing he wanted to do was to scare her off. They’d only met in person the day before, and from her initial reaction, he might push her too hard too fast.

Rokki had different ideas, though. This beautiful male was hers. She’d been intimidated at first, but now that she’d had a small taste of him, she wanted more. She wanted the entire Seokjin experience.

She let him lead for a little bit, but soon lost patience. When her tongue darted out and took a swipe at his bottom lip, Seokjin froze.

When Rokki chuckled at his reaction and bit his lower lip, he narrowed his eyes.

When she smiled and then bit his jaw, he let go of the reins and let his instincts guide him.

He picked her up and threw her on the bed. Rokki was not idle. As Seokjin tried to tear her clothes from her frame, she was doing the same to him. Shirts, pants, underwear all flew with no thought as to where they’d land until the couple was completely naked, fighting for supremacy. Just when Seokjin would have her pinned underneath him, Rokki would search out a weak spot and he’d find himself on his back with his woman trying to lead.

This foreplay was fun, and the laughs didn’t stop until Rokki was on her back with the flared head of his cock pushing inside of her. The breath whooshed out of her chest, and the laughter was replaced by a high pitched whine, conceding control to her alpha.

Seokjin growled when he bottomed out. Nothing had ever felt this good in his life. Nothing.

He pressed his forehead to hers, and her fingers knotted in the hair on the back of his head as he started to move. Their eyes never wavered, staying locked onto each other as they each claimed their Mate.

This first time was raw and quick. The emotions were high and the need was off the charts. Seokjin’s lips pulled back, showing his teeth, and his growling became constant as he tried to stave off the inevitable.

Rokki knew what he needed, and moved her head, stretching to expose the spot he wanted where her neck and shoulder met. In a swift move, Seokjin bit down on that spot and snarled as his hips sped up their punishing rhythm. Rokki’s whole body seemed to spasm, and her own growls joined his as her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she came.

The pulsing grab of her pussy around his dick was too much for Seokjin to handle, and he met his high with his arms tightly holding Rokki to him, his stuttering breaths blowing into her hair.

“Fffff-ucking hell,” was all he could get out as his entire weight relaxed on top of her.

Rokki chuckled at him, and tried to get him to roll off of her. Seokjin just groaned into the pillow. It wasn’t until she found the ticklish spot on his side down near his hip that he moved.

Rolling onto his back, he made sure to grab his Mate and take her with him.

Rokki made herself comfortable half laying on top of him, enjoying the skin contact and after sex glow.

They lay in silence for a few minutes, cooling off and resting, before Rokki picked her head up off of Seokjin’s chest and said,

“Wanna go again?”

His smile was bright in the moonlight, and his answer was a whole-hearted, “Absolutely!”

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 13

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 13

   After the dust settled from the breakfast drama, Namjoon asked Scarlett to show him around. It wasn’t necessarily to see everything, so much as it was spending time in broad daylight with his Mate. Still fighting, and losing, the battle to get to know his woman better before completing the mating, he was hoping to spend a few hours with her before finally giving in.

    He threaded his fingers with hers, and marveled at how much smaller her hands were than his. She was so delicate compared to him. Where he was big and hard, she was small and soft. Namjoon intended to spend the rest of his life worshiping every inch of her.

    Scarlett’s smile took his breath away when she said,

“I want to show you my pride and joy! I’m in charge of growing our food, and my garden is beautiful.”

She led him to the fenced-in area the women emerged from the day before. His time with her was so all-consuming that the idea that they’d only actually met less than 24 hours before seemed absurd.

She led him through the gate with the “Scar’s Garden” sign above it into a gardening paradise. Raised beds lined the area, with a long table along the fence on one side that held an organized line of baskets, gardening implements and a wound up shrinkable hose. The paths between the raised beds were lined with soft bark, and the blanket Natalie sat on the day before still lay spread out near the gate. The whole area felt very zen.

“I spend a lot of time out here,” she said, “It relaxes me. I’m always so proud when we harvest  food I’ve grown.” Namjoon was impressed. He had a few small plants in his apartment, and had always dreamed of being able to have a garden like this.

“We have plans in place to build a large greenhouse right over there,” she pointed past the back of the fenced-in area, “I can’t wait!”

“This entire set up is so impressive,” Namjoon said, “You’ve done a beautiful job out here.”

Scarlett basked in his compliments. She took him to each raised bed and pulled a little of this and a little of that for them to snack on as they went.

He shared her passion for growing things, and had visions of spending days getting his hands dirty with her by his side.

The thought of where they would go from there brought him up short. Would he leave everything he knew behind to start fresh with his Mate? Would she be happy leaving everything behind to join his Pride and live in Korea? He supposed they didn’t have to think about it just yet, but it was definitely a conversation that needed to happen.

Scarlett bent over to see if Rayne and Alice might have left some strawberries for the rest of them and chuckled when she saw the enormous dent they made,

“We all love strawberries, but I found it’s so much better for my garden if I send Alice and Rayne over here when they are “helping” me. It keeps the damage down on the rest of the plants and keeps them entertained while they eat them all.”

Namjoon huffed out a laugh, “I don’t let anyone touch my plants. Even watering them correctly seems to be too difficult.”

His thoughts turned to her Pride mates, “What’s Rayne’s story? She seems to be putting a lot of energy into trying to piss off Jungkook.”

Scarlett’s expression turned sad, “Raynie has been through a lot. She’s pushing him to make sure he won’t hurt her.”

Namjoon didn’t fully understand what she was talking about, “He’s her Mate. Doesn’t she understand what that means? They are meant to be together. Made for each other.”

She nodded, “She knows…”

   Scarlett told Namjoon the whole story, about Rayne and Richard. About what he did to her, and what they, in turn, did to him.

Namjoon wasn’t surprised. Even in the day he’d been around this group of women, he saw how fiercely protective they were of one another.

“That explains a lot.” He pulled his mate into his arms, the urge to hold her close was too strong to ignore, “I’m sorry you all had to go through that.”

Scarlett smiled, “Word to the wise, though, if you ever hear Rokki humming that tune, I’d suggest you only eat take out for a while.”

Scarlett snuggled into Namjoon’s chest, her ear at the perfect height to lay over his heart. His warmth and the steady thump of his pulse soothed her in a way nothing ever had.

With his arms around her and his cheek resting on top of her head, she felt safe and complete.

Namjoon kissed her head and said, “Let’s go lay on that blanket and enjoy some sunshine.”

Scarlett could think of nothing more in the entire world that she would rather do than snuggle up with her Mate. She barely waited long enough for him to lay back before snuggling into his side with her nose pressed against the side of his neck.

The two laid in the sunshine and watched the puffs of cloud change shape as they sped by.

Namjoon felt content laying with his Mate pressed to his side, soaking up the sunshine. He felt her slight rumble of a purr where their bodies touched and smiled. He couldn’t have imagined a more perfect moment in his life.

When he kissed the top of her head again, she tilted her face up to look at him. In that moment Namjoon knew that there was nothing more perfect in that world than his Mate and the life they would build together.

His dimples were on full display just before he kissed her, truly kissed her, for the first time.

He was taken off guard by her reaction. Scarlett pushed herself on top of him, taking care to straddle the perfect spot on his pelvis without breaking the kiss.

She’d waited for what felt like forever to have her Mate, and wanted to experience everything that came with it.

Namjoon chuckled when her hands slid up under his t-shirt. Entertained with her alpha, take-charge energy, he was content to let her play for a little bit.

She broke the kiss long enough to pull off his shirt. So engrossed in wanting to feel her Mate, Scarlett didn’t even take the time to look at the gift she unwrapped, she just whipped off her own shirt and dove back in for more kisses.

He growled when she pinched his nipples while rocking back and forth on his erection. His large hands untangled from where they’d landed in her hair and skimmed down her naked back until he could grab the globes of her ass. Namjoon held on tight and tried to control the movement of her hips. Scarlett’s reaction was to nip his chin and growl her displeasure before she moved her lips to his neck.

She scented him. Licking and nipping up and down the tendon on the left side of his neck before moving to the opposite side to do the same.

Namjoon’s patience was legendary among his Pride. Everyone knew he was level headed, and could even show the elders in their community how to check their email without coming close to raising his voice. But the moment Scarlett’s teeth bit down and latched onto the point where his neck and shoulder met, his patience dissolved.

His snarl echoed back at them just before he flipped her over, landing heavily with his hips between her legs.

Scarlett let out a huff of air as his weight landed on her, but smiled as she took in his muscular chest, knowing she was going to get her way.

Namjoon narrowed his eyes and snarled again. He sat back on his knees and pulled her shorts and panties off in one strong tug. He was going to claim his woman, and he was going to do it right fucking then.

He didn’t look down when her legs fell open, knowing he would want to stop and play instead of following his instincts.

Scarlett licked her lips and tasted the salt of her Mate’s sweat that clung there. She was impatient for more.

When she reached her small hand up to caress his muscular chest, he grabbed it.

He smirked as he used his one free hand to pull his shorts down just far enough to allow his cock to bounce free of its confines.

Scarlett whimpered when she saw the monster flop free. He was huge! She knew she could take it, and nothing could stop her from trying. When he didn’t immediately move, she reached up with her free hand and grabbed it, stroking the stalk. The skin was soft, and hot to the touch.

Namjoon's eyes narrowed and he leaned forward, gently grabbing her other hand and raising them both above her head, holding them firmly to the blanket with one of his own.

His nose touched hers for just a moment… long enough to make sure her eyes stayed on his. The side of his lip rose and he snarled as he rubbed his cock through the wetness between her pussy lips. It was hot and wet, and now… it was all his.

The look of shock and excitement on her face as the head pushed inside of her would forever live in his memory.

Scarlett sucked in a breath and whimpered a sound of submission she’d never made before. She still had enough of her wits about her to be surprised, but the embarrassment didn’t have a chance to last long. The feeling of Namjoon pushing the rest of his generous length into her provided enough distraction that she forgot her own name.

She struggled to pull her hands free, the urge to scratch and bite taking over. Namjoon’s cocky smile made her growl her irritation. He tightened his hand around hers to ensure she didn’t accidentally get free and slowly pulled out until the very tip of him remained.

Scarlett was panting,

“Please. Please. Please, I need it, please.”

The head of Namjoon’s soaked dick slowly moved in and out as she begged for more.

He was holding his body up on one forearm, the other arm stretched up to hold her hands in place.

Scarlett whimpered again and turned her head, unable to keep eye contact while he made her beg and make those sounds of submission. Scarlett was not a submissive woman. She wanted to bite and scratch, mark him as her own. Instead he was owning her in a way no one had ever done.

She saw his biceps and acted without thought… Scarlett opened her mouth and bit him.

In his surprise, and pain, Namjoon thrust his hips hard, forcing himself to bottom out inside of her.

Scarlett let go with a "Oh fuck, YES! JESUS, YES!"

Namjoon slammed back in a couple of times for good measure, and then abruptly pulled out. Before she could say anything, he had her on her hands and knees and was fucking her with bruising strength.

He tangled one hand in her hair and pulled her head up, he wanted her cries to be heard. It was a symphony of sound that filled the garden. His growls, and her mewls of submission along with the wet slaps of his hips against her ass echoed back at him, making him thrust harder.

Scarlett felt like Namjoon was fucking through her entire body and had ended up in her throat.

“NAMJOON! FUCK, FUCK YES, FUCK!” was a mantra she repeated until she could no longer form actual words. The harder he fucked her, the harder he hit those spots deep inside, the harder his balls slapped her clit on every impact, the further away all conscious thought went.

He sped up. His hand pulled her hair a little harder, and his hand landed with a heavy slap on her ass and his head tilted back… and Namjoon came with a roar that shook the windows in the big house.

Somewhere between all of that, Scarlett’s body shook and spasmed. Inarticulate words, whimpers and growls were all she knew as he filled her.

Namjoon slowly came back to himself, his heart was racing and he was breathing like he’d just run a marathon. He unraveled his hand from his Mate’s hair, and unconsciously rubbed the hand mark he’d left on her ass.

She fell to the side the moment he pulled out, and he worried he may have been too rough and gone too hard on her. She was so much smaller than he was.

He laid down next to her and wiped the hair away from her sweaty face,

“Are you ok? Was I too rough?”

She grumbled something he couldn’t quite hear.

“What? I’m sorry, love… I can’t hear you. Are you ok?”

Scarlett rolled to her back, naked and glistening in the now afternoon sunlight,

“That was fucking awesome!”

Namjoon chuckled his relief and pulled her close. She nuzzled into his chest and giggled,

“Can we do that again?”

“Absolutely.”

“Soon? Like, now?”

He laughed, “Give me a minute to recover, woman.”

Scarlett was in no mood to wait. She’d just had the best sex of her life with her Mate. She finally got to make those noises she’d heard coming from Natalie for months now, and she was not going to let go of any opportunities to do it again.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 12

~2804 words~

Trigger Warning - Domestic Violence, Blood, Murder

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 12

6 years ago:

The Pride had recently been taken over by a new alpha from out of state. Not too surprising, as the old alpha was just that… old. The disappointing part was that the old alpha barely put up a fight.

The Pride was like a small town. Everyone knew everyone, and everyone was in everyone’s business.

One particular group of females had become quite close, and learned to lean on each other in times of need. Being alpha females that were stronger than the males in that Pride made life a little more difficult for them.

The males found them to be challenging and difficult on their egos, and responded with bullying and anger, which brought the women closer as time went on.

When an alpha called Richard took control, he immediately took stock of the females available to him in his new Pride.

Rayne’s power caught his eye.

He relentlessly pursued her, knowing having her in his pocket would boost his power and station in the Pride. No one would challenge him.

In her youth and naivety, Rayne accepted Richard’s advances. Being taught to respect the hierarchy to keep peace in The Pride since she was young, it was what was expected of her.

Richard became increasingly jealous and controlling as time went on.

3 months into the relationship, they met for dinner after work. Rayne came straight from meeting with a client. The man commissioned a portrait of his beloved dog. He was overwhelmingly happy at the job she had done, and had given her a hug, as well as a huge tip, for her efforts. She’d been running late for dinner, so she just went straight to Richard’s house, instead of getting cleaned up first.

Rayne walked into the house, excited to tell Richard about her day, and how happy her client was with the portrait.

Richard glared at her attire. Paint covered overalls, hair in a messy bun, no make up. Not what he wanted to see at the end of the day. Richard preferred his women to be done up and waiting with dinner on the table. He’d been working on Rayne to quit this little hobby of hers so she could focus on him and his needs as alpha of this Pride, and he was getting frustrated with her resistance to do as he asked.

“Sorry I’m late! I’m starving. I have to tell you about my day!” she rattled as she took off her shoes.

Rayne was all smiles when she walked up to Richard to kiss him hello.

He grabbed her by the upper arms and took a deep breath.

She frowned in confusion and pain at his bruising grip,

“Richard? What’s the matter?”

His angry snarl echoed around the room just before he picked her up and threw her against the wall. Her head left a dent in the drywall and her shoulder dislocated before she slid to the floor.

“Why do you smell like another man, pet?” he growled as he crouched down in front of her.

He grabbed her bun and wrenched her head back to face him,

“You fight me when I want to scent you, but you show up here with another man all over you?”

“No one scented me, Richard,” she panted in pain, “My client..”

He pulled her head to the floor and pressed his hand to her throat as he screamed

“I don’t want to hear your lies!” into her face.

Rayne grabbed his arm with her hands, digging her nails into his flesh to try to get him to let go.

Her face was red from lack of oxygen when he spit on her and let go. Richard stood and paced to the other side of the room while Rayne rolled to her good side and coughed. Panic was setting in. She needed to get out of there.  

A couple of hours later:

Rokki and Fae were involved in a head-to-head battle to the death. That night, they went with a classic Mortal Kombat game to play. Alice was waiting in the wings to take on the victor, and Scarlett sat in her favorite cozy chair, reading a book.

Alice was completely invested in the game, and jumped when her phone rang.

She answered on speaker,

“Raynie?”

“Alice! Please! Please come get me! Richard.. Please! I need help!”

The women jumped to attention. The panic and fear in Rayne’s voice had them on instant alert.

“Where are you? What’s going on?”

They found Rayne huddled behind a tree, covered in bruises, scratched and bloody, holding her left arm to her body. Richard had spent the better part of two hours venting his frustrations and anger while using her as a punching bag.

He thought she’d passed out, so he stopped to use the bathroom and freshen up before beginning again.

The moment he was out of sight, though, Rayne pulled herself together and made a run for it. She left her shoes and purse, and just ran. She made it a couple of blocks before remembering her phone that was still, blessedly in her pocket, calling the first name that came up on the list.

Terrified that the smell of blood would make it easy for Richard to find her, she hid as best she could until her girls could find her.

Waiting for them was the longest 10 minutes of her life. Every sound, no matter how slight, had her ready to fight.

The girls took Rayne home, and tended to her wounds as best they could. Fae was even able to pop her shoulder back into place, more concerned with the lack of yelling and swearing from Rayne than the state of her body.

After they had her stable and sleeping, Fae, Rokki, Alice and Scarlett met back in the living room of the small house they shared, shaken and traumatized by what they’d witnessed,

knowing that no help would come from the Pride authorities.

“We can’t let him get away with this,” Alice said with conviction.

A chorus of “agreed” came from the others.

“But what can we do? He’s Alpha,” Scarlett sighed.

The group of women were frustrated, and felt like they couldn’t help.

Over the next few days, many possible solutions were thrown around, but nothing concrete until Rokki went to pick up Rayne’s purse and car.

Richard, or “Dick” as they were now calling him, opened the door and smiled as if nothing happened.

“Rokki! Welcome. Won’t you come in?”

“No, thank you. I’m here to get Rayne’s purse and car.”

“Oh, yes! She left in such a hurry, she must’ve forgotten it.” He turned to pick up the purse that was still on the floor, next to her shoes, “You’ll want these, too, I’m sure. It is too bad that it isn’t going to work out with her.”

He held out Rayne’s shoes and cocked his head to the side and gave Rokki an appraising look, “I have an event this friday evening that Rayne is apparently not able to make, are you free? I’d love to have you on my arm for this dinner, and you’d be able to brag that you belong to the Alpha.”

Rokki literally bit her tongue to keep herself from saying too much. This man was disgusting.

“No, I’m sorry. I’m unavailable.”

“Pity. Give Rayne my love, won’t you.”

When Rokki slammed into the house like a bull in a china shop 15 minutes later, she had a plan,

“Call everyone. We need a meeting.”

Rayne was laying on the couch with her head in Scarlett’s lap watching a movie while Fae and Alice worked on some cute crafty project.

They all looked up at the fierce look on Rokki’s face, and knew that, whatever it was, she meant business.

Scarlett called Natalie, Alice called Ana and Fae called Angel. They placed the phones on speaker and set them on the coffee table.

Natalie, Ana and Angel were all away at school, and felt helpless with the current situation.

All business, Natalie said, “What’s the plan, Rok.”

Rokki sat in the overstuffed cozy chair and leaned forward on her arms,

“We invite Dick for dinner.”

Alice scrunched up her nose and asked, “Why would we invite that asshole for dinner?”

Rokki smiled and pulled out her phone. She cued up the song she’d been jamming to as she drove Rayne’s car home, and played it for the group.

Still confused, Alice asked, “What does this Earl have to do with anything?”

“Ladies,” Rokki said with a smile, “We are cookin’ up some black eyed peas.”

They waited until the bruising on Rayne’s face faded enough to cover with makeup, and had her invite Dick over for dinner, under the guise of wanting to talk it out.

Angel took a long weekend to come home from culinary school to cook this fancy dinner. With Rokki’s help, they had a lovely candle lit table setting and home cooked meal ready when he arrived at 6pm, sharp.

Rokki pulled Rayne aside before he got there, and gave her a stern warning,

“Do not, under any circumstances, blame yourself, you understand me?”

Rayne, well aware of the plan, nodded her head. She was more than nervous to see Dick again. In fact, she was down right scared, and that pissed her off.

No woman should have to experience what she’d gone through. What he’d put her through.

She felt good knowing that, after tonight, he wouldn’t be hurting anyone else.

One thing she’d learned about the alpha over the last couple of months was that he was deathly allergic to shellfish.

And one of Angel’s specialties was the ability to hide things, so you had no idea what you were actually eating. It was a skill that had come in handy many times with the pickier eaters in the group. Everyone’s vegetable intake had gone up a lot since she started taking an interest in cooking.

But, today her job was even more important. She wasn’t there to take care of Rayne when this asshole attacked her, but she was here to take care of her now. The eight of them grew up together, and Rayne had always been one of the “mothers” of the group. She was fiercely protective of all of them, and always in their corner. This was Angel’s chance to help and have her back, and she wasn’t going to miss it.

Richard felt very self satisfied when he arrived. Rayne looked beautiful with her hair and makeup done just how he liked, paired with the little black dress and heels, she would be the perfect partner to have on his arm. Just like any woman, she just needed some direction.

He was glad to see she learned her lesson.

“Can I take your jacket?” Rayne asked him in her sweetest voice.

He smiled and handed his suit jacket over, patting her on the bottom when she turned to hang it in the hall closet.

She closed her eyes and reminded herself to remain relaxed.

When she turned back, she had a smile on her face, “Would you like to sit? Angel insisted on cooking us a gourmet meal. Something she learned recently at school.”

Richard nodded when he saw the table setting, “This is what I like to see. You’ll be able to do this every day once you close your studio.”

Rayne clenched her jaw, barely able to keep her mouth shut as she took her seat.

Angel came out with a large bowl of delicious smelling soup and set it on the table between the couple with a smile, “I love this recipe! I think it’s going to be special to me. I hope you enjoy!”

Richard looked at Angel appraisingly. Interest flashing in his eyes. He liked that Rayne had attractive friends he could choose from when it was time to pick a mistress.

“What type of soup is this?” He asked as he stared at her tits, “Did Rayne mention I can’t eat shellfish?”

Angel suppressed a shudder, and decided to play along. She lowered her shoulders and pushed her chest out, “She did! Don’t worry, Richard. I made this especially for you.”

He smirked and watched Angel’s ass as she went back to the kitchen.

Rayne filled his bowl with the Greek style soup and served him as he preferred before sitting down to eat, herself.

Richard’s ego was soothed and happy. He ate half of the bowl’s contents before he realized his tongue was feeling scratchy. He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his dress shirt and started to sweat. He cleared his throat a couple of times and asked,

“What’s in this?”

Rayne took a spoonful of soup and shrugged her shoulders, “I’m not sure. She said it’s Greek. It’s pretty delicious.” She was well aware of the panic on his face, but continued to look relaxed and serene as she ate.

“I need.. epi pen! Rayne! I need... hospital!”

Rayne leapt to her feet, looking for all intents and purposes like she was going to help.

But, when she got to his side, Richard struck out… backhanding her across the face.

Rokki had been with the others, watching from the kitchen, waiting for the next part of the plan. When Dick hit Rayne, she moved without thought, charging into the dining room and throwing the man to the floor. Richard looked up at her in surprise as she knelt both knees onto his chest,

“I think it’s time for you to sleep, Dick.”

Richard was convulsing and gasping for air. Rokki pressed her weight into his chest a little harder as his lips started to take on a blue tint. “Can’t… breath…”

“I know.” Was her only response.

Angel had, indeed, made that soup with Richard in mind. She’d pureed a couple pieces of shrimp, and covered it with all of the spices in the soup. It did turn out delicious. In fact, to celebrate, she made the soup every year to mark the anniversary.

While Angel, Scarlett, Alice and Fae scurried around, preparing to dispose of the evidence, Rokki and Rayne watched Richard gasp for his last breath and the light leave his eyes.

Angel and Alice emptied his pockets, and took his suit coat, making sure they had his phone, keys and every piece of identification he had on him before heading out to dispose of his car.

Rokki, Scarlett and Fae rolled up Richard’s body in some old tarp they found and put him in the back of Scarlett’s SUV that was parked out back.

“You really don’t need to go with us, Raynie. You’ve been through enough.”

Fae had been trying to talk her out of going with them to dispose of the body since the plan was formed.

Rayne smiled sadly, “I need to see it through. With my own eyes.”

“Ok then. Bam’s waiting.”

The women had been friends with Bam since they were kids. They met in school, and remained friends through the years. Fae even dated him for a while in high school. That didn’t work out, plus the old alpha had made a decree that Hybrids had to procreate and marry with their own kind, which put an end to their romance.

Although they weren’t dating anymore, they remained good friends. Good enough that, when Fae asked if she could feed the body of a woman beating asshole to his pigs, his only request was to not poison the victim, since that could affect the pigs health. Other than that, he was glad to feed them the protein.

In truth, he was happy to help any way he could.

There was never any proof found of what exactly happened to Richard, though there was plenty of speculation. A council was formed to deal with finding a new alpha, and there was no push back when the women announced their intention of forming their own Pride. Quite the opposite. The council decided that the women were wild cards, and that it was in the best interest of the Pride to get them away from their own members and let them be.

And now, six years later, Rayne’s heart felt heavy as she thought about that incident and everything that led up to it. She knew why she was pushing her Mate. She was also aware that he was not Dick. Hell, Dick would have had no mercy if she showed up smelling like Bam. And yet Jungkook held back. He was angry, but he didn’t hurt her. All he’d done in retaliation was scent her.

Maybe he would be able to handle her, and maybe he actually was a good alpha. Maybe she didn’t have to push so hard to make him prove himself.

Maybe.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 11

~3203 Words~

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males. The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 11

   Fae and Yoongi took their time waking up to face the world. They were warm and happy wrapped in each other’s arms. Eventually though, hunger made the decision for them to finally get up and head to the main house.

“I don’t want to get up,” Fae complained, “but I only have snack food stashed in here for when I’m gaming and want to munch on something.”

Yoongi’s deep chuckle spread warmth throughout her body. Even though they hadn’t officially “completed” their mating, Fae felt connected and secure with him, which was an entirely new feeling. She’d only ever felt that way with the girls in her Pride.

The couple walked hand in hand along the dirt road that led to the other cottages on the property, just taking their time and enjoying the moment. Somehow everything seemed to hold more beauty than usual as they strolled along the lane. Fae had lived there for just over 5 years, and loved everything about the little compound they’d built. She loved that they had the big house so they could have a common space to congregate, yet had the ability to be off on their own when they felt like it.

The sounds of vigorous mating that could be heard as they passed Alice’s cottage had them giggling conspiratorially.

“I’m glad your cottage is so far out of the way,” Yoongi said with a chuckle, “Hopefully we won’t have passers by to enjoy the notes I hope to make you hit.”

Fae laughed, “I hope you are planning on keeping the notes deep. My voice doesn’t go very high.”

“As deep as I can go,” he growled and pulled her body against his. He let go of her hand so he could wrap his arm around her shoulders, “In fact, by the time I’m done we might have you shattering glass with the notes you hit.”

“I’m gonna hit you if you don’t stop.”

The couple were all smiles when they opened the front door to the big house, stopping to giggle again when they heard the faint noises of another couple consummating their mating.

The smell of food led them into the empty kitchen,

“Where is everyone? It’s not normal to find food unguarded like this,” Fae grabbed a couple of plates and set them on the kitchen island.

Yoongi looked out the window and frowned,

“There’s a group out back. They’re watching the people down at the water pretty intently. I wonder what’s going on.”

Though, instead of being out in the thick of it, Yoongi and Fae decided to sit at the small kitchen table, just the two of them, for their first breakfast together. That’s not to say they weren’t trying to hear everything happening outside through the open windows. They were just doing it from the comfort of their own space.

They got the rundown when Seokjin came in to make a breakfast burrito for Jungkook.

Yoongi shook his head and frowned at Rayne’s antics. Fae chuckled, expecting nothing less.

“He’s going to have to work to win her over. She’s had some really bad experiences with hybrid men, and he’s going to have to prove himself to her. Believe it or not, this is a huge improvement from yesterday. He’s doing well.”

The men were completely confused by that. Neither of them understood why one would put that much energy into being such a pain in the ass.

“It’s not that she’s being a pain in the ass just to cause problems, though,” Fae explained, “She’s pushing him to see how he will react. So far, Agust is the first alpha we’ve known that is confident enough with his power and station to allow his mate to be independent without trying to hold her down and control every little thing about her. Even the most powerful alpha we have in this area pales in comparison to each one of you. He tried to claim Rayne for his own a few years ago. In fact, that interaction is what led us to create this compound and our own little Pride.”

“What are you saying, Fae?” Yoongi and Seokjin both wore looks of worried disapproval. They knew the damage a weaker hybrid male trying to prove himself could do.

Fae looked out the window, not really seeing anything in front of her as she remembered the aftermath. The physical bruises on Rayne’s body faded, but the emotional damage never had.

“I’m saying that she hasn’t been the same since.”

As Fae watched Jungkook shred the clothes Rayne had been wearing, she knew she wasn’t the only member of the Northern Pride that was impressed with how he was handling the stubborn woman’s antics. All of the women were happy with their mates, but felt just as protective of Rayne as she was of them. She may be the strongest alpha they had, but in many ways she was also the most vulnerable of them, and needed the most care… Whether she admitted it or not.

   Once Fae and Yoongi were finished and had their dishes in the dishwasher, she led him down the stairs to the cozy living room with the giant U shaped couch and huge big screen television. Yoongi was impressed by the space.

“With that ottoman, this couch is bigger than a queen size bed,” he said, in awe.

“We needed something big enough for all of us to fit on when we want to pile up to watch movies,” she said as she found the remote control.

   Yoongi climbed on all fours and grabbed a couple of pillows so he and Fae could lay comfortably together while they watched anime and spent time together.

Fae took the hint and joined him, snuggling her back to his front, fully enjoying being the little spoon.

The couple decided to start their marathon with some classics they had both seen, making it easier to talk without missing anything important.

Yoongi’s nose was full of his Mate’s scent, and it was everything he’d ever thought it could be. He nuzzled his nose into the hair just behind her ear, and felt her purr of contentment vibrate across his lips.

He kissed the skin just below her hairline and tightened his hold around her middle. His instincts chose to take this moment when his guard was down to assert their control. The alpha in the back of his mind was prowling and pacing, ready to pounce the moment the opening came.

Fae turned her head to look at her Mate, and her body followed suit the moment Yoongi’s lips touched hers. She rolled onto her back and reached her hand up to caress his face as the make out session got a little more serious.

With his mind concentrating on his lips, Yoongi’s hands moved without actual thought, sliding down from where he cusped Fae’s cheek to her breast. His thumb circled around and over the hard nub of her nipple, sending sparks through her body. Her quiet, breathy moan was all it took to send him over the edge.

Without thought of where they were or who might catch them, Yoongi’s hand slid down even more. His initial intention was to caress the skin underneath her shirt, but that changed when his fingertips accidentally breached the waistband of her yoga pants. Fae’s hips rose in anticipation, and he felt the warm, smooth skin of her lower abdomen as his fingers were drawn steadily lower.

As Yoongi’s middle finger gently traced the seam of Fae’s pussy, she gasped into his mouth. With each pass, his finger applied a little more pressure, slowly moving deeper into the wetness. By the time his fingertip reached her clit, Fae felt like she was physically aching to be taken. Yoongi traced slow circles around the nub, never actually touching it directly, until her hips started to follow his lead and her breathy gasps were nearly constant.

He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth and slid two fingers inside of her. Her inner walls squeezed around his digits, hungry for more.

He growled and his fingers moved faster as the kisses got more intense. Fae was nipping and sucking and licking and biting, wanting everything Yoongi had to give.

Seokjin was at a loss at what to do with himself once the dust cleared from the morning’s drama. He left Jungkook sitting at the kitchen table, glaring out the window at his mate’s cottage. Lord, that woman was a handful. Part of him felt bad for the boy and what his woman was putting him through. A majority of him, though, thought it was hilarious and was thrilled that it wasn’t happening to him.

There hadn’t been time for an official tour of the house before everyone paired off and went their own ways, so he wandered around the first floor trying to familiarize himself with the layout.

There was a large tiled area just inside the front door. To the left was a window looking out over the driveway and a closet along the wall. An office was set up in the room just beyond that.

On the right of the door were the stairs leading up to the second floor. Just past the stairs was a formal living room filled with overstuffed chairs and couches, as well as a stone fireplace and a couple of book shelves along the far wall.

A quick left turn took you into the large kitchen area. Just past the back door was a bathroom and laundry area with the stairs that took you to the finished basement next to that.

Seokjin took the stairs and was impressed with what he saw. The television was huge, and the walls around it were stacked with movies and games.

On his way to see what titles the girls had, he saw movement in the corner of his eye, and froze as he passed the couch. Yoongi had his hand down his mate’s pants, and was obviously very busy with his vigorous… activity.

Seokjin thanked the universe that he remained unnoticed so he could back away and get up the stairs. He shook his head. His mate had him in such a state that he missed the warnings that he shouldn’t go down there. If he was listening, or even paying attention to the scents, he would have known.

Seokjin finally let out the giggle he was suppressing when he reached the kitchen. This mating instinct really is an insistent thing. The Yoongi he knew would NEVER even think about doing such a thing outside of a locked, private area.

“What’s that all about?” Jimin asked as he glanced up from scraping the last of the ingredients left into the two breakfast burritos he was putting together at the kitchen island.

Jungkook glanced away from where he was sulkily glaring to see what Jimin was talking about.

Seokjin wiped the tears away and told them what he saw. The three men shared knowing looks and chuckled at the turn their lives had taken over the last 24 hours.

Rokki chose that moment to walk through the kitchen with a full laundry basket. She looked at the chuckling men and frowned,

“What are you guys laughing about?”

Jimin immediately looked down at his plate, and Jungkook turned back to glaring at Rayne’s cottage, leaving Seokjin to answer his mate’s question.

He smirked and tried to change the subject, “What are you doing? Do you need help with that?”

Rokki blushed and quietly answered, “Just doing laundry,” as she nodded her head toward the little bathroom / laundry room that was just past the back door.

Seokjin watched his mate enter the small room and then turned to make eye contact with Jimin. The two had a silent conversation before the elder rounded the island to follow her.

Jimin watched as his Pride mate made it fully into the room behind Rokki. He tapped Jungkook on the shoulder and silently summoned the man to follow as he snuck over to close the door to the laundry room. He carefully latched the door and leaned his weight into it, as a makeshift lock. Jungkook caught on and quickly took his position as a door weight with a giant smile on his face.

Inside the laundry room, Rokki was lost in her head, remembering how her room now smelled like him. Apparently her Mate decided to sleep in her bed last night. She smiled. He smelled divine. She’d started the washing machine before she realized that the scent she was smiling about was standing right behind her.

She jumped with a squeak. Unable to move very far in the small room, Rokki found herself quickly lifted and set on the washing machine. She glanced quickly to the doorway for help, and was surprised to find it closed.

“W-what are you doing?” She asked Seokjin as he moved in between her thighs.

“Spending some quality time with my Mate,” he said as he placed his palms down on each side of her hips, his nose was only inches from hers as he all but demanded eye contact.

Her eyes were wide with equal parts fear and excitement as his face got closer.

And when their lips touched for the very first time, the butterflies in her stomach flew away, and she was left with a hummingbird where her heart was supposed to be.

The kiss was soft and gentle. Although Seokjin wanted nothing more than to devour this woman, he was afraid to scare her.

Angel got tired of waiting for Jimin to come back with their breakfast, so she did what she was told not to do, and got out of bed. She put on some clothes and went downstairs to see what was keeping her Mate.

As she rounded the corner into the kitchen, she saw Jimin and Jungkook leaning against a door with mischievous grins on their faces.

“What are you two doing?”

The men looked as though they’d been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

“Angel!” Jimin whispered, eyes wide, “What are you doing dressed? I told you to stay in bed. Now I'm going to have to take all of that off of you again.”

Angel waved him off and hurried over to the door,

“Who’s in there? Did you finally lock Rayne up?” she whispered before pressing her ear to the door to see if she could hear anything.

Jimin tried to keep his laughter silent as he pressed a finger to her lips to remind her to be quiet.

Hunger was what drove Rayne out of her cottage to face the wrath of her mate. She opened the back door of the big house and was faced with Jungkook, Jimin and..

“Angel?”

The woman in question jumped and screamed,

“Jesus CHRIST, Rayne! Don’t do that!”

“What are you doing?” Rayne was extremely suspicious. All three of them had their ears pressed to the laundry room door, and had conspiratorial looks on their faces.

Angel pressed her lips together in an effort to hide her smile before grabbing Jimin’s hand and pulling him out of the line of fire. The two grabbed their plates of food and quickly retreated back to their bedroom.

Rayne crossed her arms and glared at her mate.

“Who are you locking in the laundry room? Rokki had better not be in there.”

The male smiled slyly at his woman and turned so his back was still pushing against the wood  door. He crossed his ankles and his arms, feeling powerful and cocky as he presented his own challenge to his challenging woman.

“I swear to god, Jungkook, if you have locked Rokki in that room to be somehow abused by Seokjin…”

A loud moan stopped her in her tracks.

Jungkook’s smile somehow got even bigger,

“Define ‘abused’.  Because, it sounds to me like she’s doing just fine.”

Feeling like his services were no longer needed as a door weight, he moved toward his mate. She was standing still, debating what she should do. Before Jungkook got to her, she loudly said,

“Rokki? Do you need help? Are you ok?”

She heard a surprised squeak and a male chuckle before the male voice answered,

“No. We’re good. Thanks for asking, though.”

“I wasn’t asking you, asshole.”

“She’s not very nice, Rokki. You should talk to her about that,” Seokjin’s laughing voice answered.

“I’ll take care of that, Hyung,” Jungkook yelled without taking his eyes off of his mate. His voice came down several octaves when he got close enough to lean toward Rayne’s ear, “I’ll wear that energy right out of her.”

Rayne inhaled deeply, fighting for control of her temper and her libido as he backed her against the kitchen island.

“Since you purposefully ruined my hard work earlier with the scent of some strange male,” Jungkook rumbled, “I guess I have to re-do the job, and properly cover you with your Alpha’s scent until we are able to make sure you smell like me inside and out.”

Rayne gasped as his tongue slowly licked up the tendon on the side of her neck.

“And to make sure my Mate knows her place as my Queen…” he almost whispered, just before he attached his mouth to the base of her neck. His teeth held her in place while he sucked a large, plainly visible purple mark into the skin.

Rayne snarled in displeasure and dug her nails into his biceps. Once Jungkook finally let go, she glared at him before pushing him to the side and marching over to retrieve the first togo box she found in the refrigerator. She didn’t care what was in it, she was hungry and wanted to escape as quickly as possible.

In the laundry room, Rokki had her forehead pressed to Seokjin’s clavicle as she tried to suppress her fit of laughter. They’d been caught making out in the laundry room!

Seokjin was still chuckling when he cupped her chin and tipped her head up to face him. He had so much he wanted to say to this woman. He’d been planning an entire speech since he was 13 years old.

But now that he was faced with his fate, all he could think to do was kiss her.

When her palms rested on his chest, he purred. He wanted her to feel the rumble and know the satisfaction he got from her slightest touch.

When those hands slid around his sides and pressed into his back, his entire body moved forward, trying to press their bodies together as close as they could be fully clothed.

But when the spin cycle started, and the wash machine started to shake, Rokki jumped with a screech and hit her knuckles on the wall hard enough to leave a bruise… effectively breaking the spell of the moment.

Seokjin was satisfied, though. She wasn’t running from him anymore. In fact, she allowed him to kiss her bruised knuckles, and didn’t balk when he said,

“How about we go upstairs and talk about where my clothes are going to go in our closet?”

before taking her by the hand and leading her upstairs.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 10

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males. The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea. ~3500 words~

*Mature Content*

Chapter 10

   Rayne was only gone for 20 minutes, and was in a much brighter mood when she returned from Bam’s ranch with five dozen eggs. In fact, she was whistling merrily when she came into the kitchen with her load.

“Oh, thank goodness you’re back already! I’m starving!” Scarlett grabbed three of the cartons and stopped to eye her sister suspiciously. She took a deep breath and her eyes narrowed before she quietly said,

“Taking this thing a little too far, aren’t you?”

Rayne smiled with mock innocence, “I have no idea what you mean, dear sister.”

But the man intended to be hers, who was sitting at the table by the window, was seething. His Mate just walked into this house with another man’s scent all over her. His nostrils flared and his eyes narrowed on his challenging woman. His angry snarl was loud enough to echo around the room, and brought everyone, but Rayne, to a halt.

Every other man and woman froze and watched the angry male hesitantly, while Rayne started whistling merrily again as she put away the remaining eggs.

She was well aware of Jungkook’s anger, and she thought it was kind of funny. She was only gone for 20 minutes. What in the world could he have thought happened? In truth, the opportunity came when Bam asked her to hold his jacket while he chased down a wayward chicken. She discreetly rubbed said jacket into her torso, knowing that his scent would piss off her Mate.

Now she had an enraged, hormonal, instinct driven lion hybrid prowling around the kitchen, snarling like she was trying to take a fresh kill away from him.

Rayne closed the refrigerator and turned to the snarling male, she batted her eyes and gave him the most syrupy sweet voice she could,

“Awe. What’s the matter, Mate?” The last word was said with emphasized sarcasm, “Something bothering you?”

Jungkook was unable to put into words the rage he was feeling at that moment. While everyone else shrank away from him as he slowly prowled around the kitchen island, His Mate stood tall and proud with a look of knowing on her face.

“You know, that jog this morning doesn’t seem to have been enough for you to work off your aggression. You should probably take your big, bad Alpha self on another run. I hear it helps.”

She kept direct eye contact as she reached and took an apple off of the island, then turned her back to him and sauntered out the back door. It was a lovely morning, and a bit of yoga on her paddleboard sounded like just the thing she needed.

It was times like this that she was thankful that she always wore a bathing suit underneath her clothes in the summertime. You never knew when you would need to jump in the water, or paddle away from your angry mate before he could get his hands on you. She chuckled at that thought as she tossed her keys and phone in her cottage on the way by. Of course, now she was curious just how far she’d be able to push him before he snapped.

After seeing Jungkook flaunting his far too sexy body that morning, she decided her yoga would be done best in her smallest bikini… just to piss him off.

Rayne stripped off her shorts and t-shirt and left them on the shore before she took her apple and paddled out far enough for the water to be deep enough for when she inevitably fell in, placed her paddle across the front of her board, sat and ate her apple. Despite the upheaval of emotions that came with meeting her Mate, she felt serene as she basked in the morning sun.

Back in the house, though, Seokjin and Namjoon struggled to calm the younger man, although they agreed that his woman was in need of a good spanking.

“Come on, I’ll go running with you.” Seokjin patted Jungkook on the back, hoping to calm him down a bit.

Unfortunately, it didn’t help the seething man,

“I don’t want to run. I want to throw that obstinate woman over my shoulder and show her who owns that ass.”

“What obstinate woman? What did we miss?” Taehyung asked as he and Ana came around the corner into the kitchen.

“Raynie is pushing her Mate’s buttons,” Scarlett answered nonchalantly as she stirred the scrambled eggs.

“Rayne being a pain in the ass? She would never!” Natalie said sarcastically as she and Agust entered the kitchen on the heels of the first couple and made a beeline to the coffee machine.

While the rest continued their discussion on how to handle a difficult female, Ana kissed Tae and left to find her own bathing suit that she kept in Rayne’s bathroom.

Rayne was just finishing her apple when she heard the scrape of another board being dragged across the sand. She turned to see Ana paddling out to join her.

“Aren’t you supposed to be impaled on a dick right now?” she said with a smile when the other woman stopped close enough to talk.

“I was. We got hungry though,” Ana’s smile turned very ‘cheshire cat’, “I hear you’re being a huge pain in the ass, though.”

Rayne chuckled, “On that note, paddle around to the other side of me. I want my Mate to have a clear view of my ass while I do my morning yoga.”

Ana laughed out loud and did as she was asked.

“Are you trying to see how far you can push before he forcibly throws you down and mates you? There are easier ways, you know.”

Rayne smiled mischievously at Ana. Always the voice of reason.

“Actually, Jungkook was jogging and stretching shirtless this morning, and made sure to flaunt his body for me. I’m just returning the favor.”

Taehyung sipped his juice and watched his Mate attempt to do yoga on a paddleboard with her sister. He giggled when she lost balance and fell in. He needed to recreate some of this in their cabin later.

Tae’s giggles caught Jungkook’s attention. He glanced out the window and froze.

His Mate was damn near naked, bending over for the entire world to see in the middle of a lake. He stood so fast his chair fell over on the tile floor, and stalked outside to deal with his woman.

Seokjin looked outside to see what made his Pridemate react in such a way. He smirked and looked over at his own Mate,

“Rokki?”

She looked up from where she was making her burrito at the kitchen island and looked at him with curiosity.

“I’d like to formally thank you for not being quite as… difficult.... As some other women can be. I just want you to know that I like you just the way you are.”

Rokki gave Seokjin a shy, sweet smile and went back to filling her tortilla.

Jungkook stalked down to the water's edge, all puffed up and angry, muttering to himself for the entire length of the lawn.

Rayne saw him coming, but continued to try for a downward facing dog position while chatting easily with Ana.

“I’m thinking about trying to do a headstand today.”

“I’d love to watch you fail.”

“But what if it actually worked today?”

Jungkook’s booming voice interrupted the women’s conversation,

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

Rayne carefully knelt down and wiggled her fingers at him in an obnoxious wave,

“Doing yoga with my sister. You should try it. It helps relax and center a person. Brings down the ol’ blood pressure. You seem like you need something like that. You’re so tense.”

Ana coughed to cover her laughter, “He’s going to get ahold of you sometime soon, Raynie. You won’t be able to avoid his wrath forever.”

“Get your ass up here and put some clothes on!”

“I have clothes on, Jungkook. It’s called a bathing suit. See? All of my important bits are covered.”

Jungkook scowled as she shimmied at him, and pulled off his shirt. Rayne giggled when he kicked off his slides and stomped toward the water. She sat quickly and carefully, grabbed her paddle and paddled out further in the lake to make sure she was out of reach. Ana even moved her paddle board out of the path of the angry alpha.

He was ankle deep when he issued his warning,

“This is the last time I’m saying it, Rayne. Get back here and put some clothes on! I will not have you out here showing everyone what’s mine!”

Rayne cackled loudly as she paddled away, thoroughly enjoying this game of cat and mouse.

The curious group at the house couldn’t hear well from inside, so they decided they needed to eat their breakfasts at the patio table.

“Why is Ana paddling out, too?” Tae wondered out loud, “Do you think she’s afraid of Jungkook? I’ll kick his ass if he’s scaring my Mate.”

The women around the table laughed conspiratorially.

“Ana’s not coming back to shore because she doesn’t want to give him her paddle board,” Natalie provided from her perch on Agust’s lap, “She’s giving Rayne a chance to get away without giving Jungkook a weapon of his own in this battle of wills.”

“He doesn’t actually think he can swim out and catch her, does he?” Rokki asked. She had her head cocked to the side, completely baffled by the man’s behavior.

“He’s an Alpha fighting for his Mate. There’s nothing he won’t do,” Seokjin said quietly. Rokki looked across the table and made real eye contact with him for the first time. She understood that he was talking more to her than about the spectacle in the water. His gaze was soft and his smile was sweet. A soft blush crossed her cheeks and she smiled shyly at her Mate before using her burrito as an excuse to look down and break the eye contact.

Back out on the water, Rayne laughed as she provoked her Mate into swimming out toward her, stopping to growl and complain at her every so often. When she thought he made it far enough out, she used all of her strength to paddle quickly back to shore and, before he had a chance to make it back, she ran laughing and screaming to her cottage, where she locked herself in and closed the curtains. She had enough snacks stashed around her place that she could hide out for a bit and give Jungkook a chance to calm down a bit before she played with him again.

Jungkook stomped back up to the patio with his shirt and her discarded clothes in hand and plopped down in a chair with the rest of the group, grumbling and growling the entire time.

Seokjin took pity on the cub, and brought him a burrito,

“Here. You need to load up for the next round.”

Jungkook glared at him and proceeded to rip the offending clothes that smelled like another man into shreds and disposed of them in the garbage before taking him up on his breakfast offer.

Rayne sneakily watched her Mate shred her clothes from a crack in the curtains and chuckled. She wasn’t too angry, he could buy her more clothes to make up for it. In reality, she probably would have thrown them away herself. She really wasn’t a fan of the smell, and it would take a few washes to get Bam’s scent completely off of them.

Her attitude had changed significantly since the day before. She was no longer feeling hostile, per say. It was more of a mischievous giddy feeling. Rayne really wanted to know how far she could push this man before he broke.

She had to give him credit, so far his patience was a lot better than any other male she’d encountered. Just the fact that he didn’t break the glass door to get at her gave Rayne a feeling of respect she hadn’t had the day before. Maybe he would be able to handle being her Mate. Only time would tell.

   Upstairs, Jimin was able to keep his word to be a gentleman when he and Angel went to bed the night before. He tried to keep his mind busy with other things, and admonished himself if any untoward thoughts came up.

But, when he woke to soft warmth pushed up against him, his body took over before his brain could catch up.

His hand tightened on Angel’s hip when she pushed her lush backside against his erection, and he growled low in his chest as he pressed his nose to the back of her head.

Angel’s gasp had Jimin’s mouth attaching to the side of her neck.

The way she moaned and tilted her head to give him better access made the Alpha in his head roar.

The couple moved in tandem. Jimin pulled his body back to give her room, and Angel rolled onto her back with her arms stretched to reach for her Mate.

Their lips met before Jimin had a chance to settle his body against hers. Her whine of submission at the first taste was like a stroke down his cock. Every single thing about his woman made him want to roar in possession. She was HIS, and he wanted everyone to know it.

As much as he wanted to pound into her and mark her as his alone, Jimin wanted Angel to know how cherished she was. He wanted to make her body, mind and soul sing. He wanted to give her the greatest experience he could.

So, he pulled back the intensity. Instead of smashing their lips together, he used his to sip at hers like a delicious treat he wanted to savor.

Instead of ripping their clothes off and diving in dick first, Jimin used the cloth to help tease and heighten her experience.

When he drew his tongue around her nipple, he made sure to use the fabric of her shirt to give extra stimulus to the little nub. When he sucked at it, he used the wet fabric to add to the sensation. When he pressed his clothed hips to hers, Angel nipped at his chin and trailed her hand from his cheek down his chest,

“I need to feel you, Jimin. Just you and me. Nothing in between.”

He growled and pushed his groin against her harder as her fingertips touched the skin underneath the waistband of his pajama pants.

“Please, Jimin,” her voice was breathy as her fingers reached the tip of his cock. His inhale was harsh as he fought to keep it slow. He wanted to have his first time with his Mate to be slow and sweet.

Jimin sat back on his knees and tapped Angel’s hip so he could pull her shorts off. When the material was off and her legs fell back to his sides, he nearly choked.

Angel bit her lip and shyly pulled the material of her shirt down to cover her freshly waxed mound. Even though she wanted him more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life, that hungry look on his face while he stared at her was the most intense thing she’d ever experienced.

“No, baby. No hiding from me, ever.”

He gently pulled her hands away from the hem of her shirt and kissed her fingers before setting them at her sides.

Jimin’s wicked fingers slid slowly from her hands to her hips. Angel jumped when he hit a ticklish spot, and he chuckled,

“I’ll need to remember that for later. For now, though,” he scooted back from her and slid his body down so he could be face first in his new favorite spot,

“I think I need to worship my woman a little bit. I need you to know that I cherish every,” he gave the outer lips of her pussy a kitten lick, “single,” another kitten lick, “inch of you.”

The tip of his tongue breached her slit and slid slowly up to circle her clit.

All of the air left Angel’s lungs. She wanted more, but she never wanted this feeling to end.

Jimin chuckled as she struggled to watch his ministrations. He raised his head and smiled wickedly,

“You like watching me lick this pussy, don’t you?”

She blushed and covered her face with her hands as she giggled.

Jimin lept into action,

“Can’t have my woman missing out on something she wants, can we?”

He was gentle as he pulled her hands away from her face and got her into a seated position. “What are you doing?” Angel was outright laughing as Jimin hurried to pile pillows behind her.

“One more thing,” he said as he crawled back between her legs, “This needs to go.” He pulled the shirt off and blindly tossed it over his shoulder.

Again, Angel felt exposed and shy as he looked her over. His expression was hungry, and he couldn’t stop the growl that reverberated through the room. That growl made goosebumps rise all across her skin. With that one sound, her nipples were harder than she’d ever remembered, and she felt arousal actually drip from her pussy.

Jimin leaned in and kissed his Mate. She tasted herself on his lips as he slowly pushed her back onto the pillows. She was seated in such a way that she would be able to see every single thing he decided to do to her. He kissed and licked all down her body, stopping to pay respect with his teeth, tongue and lips to those hard nipples that looked like they were begging for his attention.

Her quiet moans spurred him on. He needed to know what she sounded like when she came. He needed to hear it. Taste it. Feel it.

Jimin wiggled back down into position with her thighs over his shoulders and attacked. He sucked and lightly bit at her little pearl as his fingers dug into her hips and her fingers locked into his hair.  

He’d originally planned to keep eye contact as he drove her toward orgasm, but lost himself in the experience of being with his Mate. And when her body shuddered, her fingers pulled his hair and she threw her head back with a sound he wanted to bring out of her again as soon as possible, Jimin sprang into action.

He quickly shed his pajama pants and jumped up onto his knees. He quickly pulled the pillows out from behind her and slid one hand around the back Angel’s neck before he said,

“Look at me, Angel. I need to see you.”

She opened her eyes as her body continued to shudder and looked at him as he notched the head of his cock into her opening.

Angel looked down, wanting to watch as he spread her open.

“Kinky girl,” he growled.

Watching his cock slowly push in a little further each time, and pull back out glistening with her wetness was the single most erotic experience Angel had ever had. She finally looked back into his eyes when this pelvis met hers and he stilled,

“Keep your eyes on mine,” he growled, “I want you to see who is claiming you. I want you to know, without a doubt, who you belong to.”

She whimpered, and he nearly lost his tightly held control. Jimin was determined to take it slow. He pulled out half way and swiveled his hips as he pushed back in. His pubic bone rubbed on her clit with every thrust in, and his cock touched places even her toys had never found.

Again, her body started to shudder and her breathy moans were edging toward that pitch he wanted to hear every day for the rest of his life.

He pushed his cock in as deep as he could go and rocked side to side for a moment while he watched his Mate get lost in her own sensations, savoring the experience.

He sat back up on his knees, gripped her hips and lifted the bottom half of her body off the bed. Jimin’s thrusts got harder and deeper as he neared his own high. His growls were loud enough to shake the pictures on the walls, and when Angel’s inner walls squeezed and her moans hit that pitch he was looking for, Jimin came.

His moan as he filled her pussy was almost a whine. It was a sound that was pretty enough to make the aftershocks of orgasm shudder through Angel.

She slid her hand up his muscular arm and cupped his beautiful face. Her thumb ran over his lower lip just one time before he sucked it into his mouth.

He never had a chance to pull out before he got hard again. Now that Jimin and Angel had claimed each other, neither one of them had any urges to be anywhere else.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 9

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 9

  The next morning Seokjin, Namjoon and Jungkook met in the kitchen to start their day. Between the three of them they figured out how to use the fancy coffee maker. They deemed it a pain in the ass, but decided it was worth the work once they got a taste.

“I suppose it’s just a matter of getting used to something new,” Namjoon said in his wise-old-man voice,

“I’m going to head out to the swing by the lake. It looks like a peaceful place to enjoy my coffee and book before everyone else is awake.”

“I think I’ll go have a little run. Check out the area a little and get my blood pumping,” Seokjin said as he stretched his arms over his head.

Jungkook chuckled and said,

“I would give you shit and say that it’s the only thing you’re going to be pumping in the near future, but that would backfire on me.” He stood and finished his drink and put the cup in the sink, “Let me grab my shoes and I’ll go with you.”

  Over in Rayne’s little cottage, she, Rokki and Scarlett were just starting to wake up after a long night of listening to Scarlett complain about her mate not immediately making her scream in ecstasy. But, she took comfort in the fact that he was sleeping in her room. He didn’t want to kick her out of her own bed, but she insisted,

“If we aren’t going to be together for this first night, the least I can do is make sure you are surrounded by comfort. I know your scent comforts me. It’s the least I can do.”

The three women were well accustomed to sharing a bed, and fell asleep watching movies with each other and the others a few times a week, so it wasn’t like they were being put out. In fact, it was comforting for them to be with members of their Pride, and after a day like that, they needed the familiarity of each other. Well. Rayne and Rokki needed it. Scarlett just dealt with it.

“Ugh. I need coffee,” Scarlett said as she stretched from her spot in between the two taller women. Of course, she made sure to stretch in every way possible that would wake up her sisters. Rayne grumbled back at her as she was pushed further into the wall by the woman’s behind, and Rokki threatened violence if Scar actually succeeded in shoving her off of the side of the bed.

“Have I mentioned lately how disgusting it is that you are so chipper in the morning?” Rayne grouched as she rolled onto her back and rubbed her hands over her face.

“Come on, bitches!” Scarlett said with a giggle as she scooted off the bottom of the bed, “The sun is shining and our Mates are waiting!”

Rayne growled in displeasure and rolled back over. Her attempts to pull the covers back over her head were thwarted when Scarlett pulled the blankets off the bed completely.

Rokki sat up and stared at the wall, not at all ready to face the day. She zoned out and was wondering if Rayne might have some juice in her mini fridge when Scarlett let out a startled gasp as she looked out the sliding glass door,

“Um,” she giggled in a very schoolgirl manner, “You two need to see this.”

Rokki sighed and had to fight the urge to stomp her feet as she went to see what could have Scar reacting like that. What she saw when she got there had her choking on her own spit. That was enough to garner Rayne’s attention, so she rolled off the bed and joined the other two at the door.

What she saw had her frozen to the spot.

Seokjin and Jungkook were standing in the grass, sweaty and shirtless. They were both breathing heavily and stretching their legs, having apparently gone for a run that morning.

Scarlett continued giggling while watching her sisters' reactions to their Mates looking so delicious.

Rokki’s eyes got wide and she watched the man that was destined to be hers stretch his muscles. She drank in every dip and bulge, and fantasized about being able to run her tongue along every bit of the exposed skin she saw. She whined, and sent Scarlett into a fit of laughter.

Scar looked at Rayne, positive she’d roll her eyes and laugh along with her at their shy sister’s reaction…

But what she found was Rayne scowling at her Mate. Jungkook was stretching his hamstrings, looking golden and sexy for all to see. How dare he look so damn good? Every cut, every line, every curve of him seemed to be pure muscle, and in the morning light he looked like a God. Even his hair looked magnificent.

Rayne was caught between several emotions. On top of the list was lust and wanting. That was HER man. Then there was irritation, need, possessiveness and anger. In that order.

“I can feel my Mate,” said Seokjin as he pulled his arm across his body to stretch his shoulder, “She’s watching me. I like it.” He wanted to acknowledge her, but thought she might run again so he chose to bask in her gaze, instead. He even turned to make sure to give a good shot of his backside when he bent to touch his toes.

“I can feel Rayne watching me, too,” Jungkook chuckled knowingly. He worked hard on his body, and it pleased him that his Mate was enjoying it, too.

He, though, didn’t wait. Jungkook turned his head and made eye contact with Rayne. They stared at each other without blinking. She was well aware that he was throwing her challenge back at her, and her independent side decided it would be best to push back.

She was actually relieved when Seokjin finally turned and winked at Rokki, because being caught ogling her Mate like that made the woman jump back and trip over her own feet, which forced Rayne to break the eye challenge -slash- eye fuck she had going with her own Mate to make sure her sister was ok.

Well. She and Scarlett made sure Rokki was fine once they were done laughing, anyway.

“I hate you two.”

“Come on, Rokki! Even you have to admit that was funny! All he did was wink, for heaven's sake!”

“I still hate you two.”

“Rayne! Stop laughing and help me out, here!”

Scarlett tried hard to keep a straight face as she attempted to placate Rokki, but Rayne had no such luck.

She wiped away the tears and crouched down to pat the embarrassed woman on the shoulder,

“It’s ok, Rok. I’ve heard you only jump a little at first.”

Rokki shoved Rayne over, and that sent the woman into a fit of even harder laughter.

Seokjin and Jungkook had gone inside to get cleaned up by the time Scarlett finally got herself together enough to wrangle the other two up and head to the big house for breakfast.

“Come on you two. I want breakfast burritos.”

  Once they were in the big house, though, Scarlett opened the fridge and realized they didn’t have enough eggs to make breakfast for so many people,

“All of that planning and grocery shopping and we forget the eggs,” she sighed in exasperation.

Rayne was fighting a losing battle to ignore her Mate’s scent. It was all she could smell. It felt like it covered her like a cozy blanket she wanted to snuggle into, so when the opportunity to get away for a moment came, she jumped on it,

“I’ll give Bam a call,” she said as she stood, “He always has a ton of eggs on hand.”

Scarlett and Rokki started on the bacon and the rest of the ingredients, and Rayne got to get a breath of fresh air.

Namjoon heard the girls and met Rayne on his way back to the house,

“Good morning, Rayne,” he said with a bright smile, “How are you this morning?”

Although she was hesitant about having all of these males on their property, Rayne was all smiles and happy to be seeing someone other than her Mate at that moment,

“Morning, Namjoon. I’m good. Scarlett and Rokki are getting breakfast started. I just have to run to our neighbor’s to get more eggs. I’ll be back in a bit.”

Namjoon chuckled and looked at her attire,

“Are you friendly enough with this neighbor to be going in your pajamas?”

Rayne laughed, “I’d completely forgotten about that, actually. Honestly, Bam probably wouldn’t even care, but I guess I should throw on something more appropriate.”

Inside the kitchen, Seokjin and Jungkook had reappeared and sat at the little kitchen table with their coffee. Rokki opened the windows before they came downstairs to get some fresh air, and dilute her Mate’s scent, before they started cooking.

“Who’s Bam?” he asked no one in particular as he watched his Mate go into her cottage.

“Bam? He lives down the road. He owns a ranch, and we buy all of our meat and eggs from him. Rayne is going to go get some more eggs for our breakfast.”

This displeased him greatly. Who was this male? Was he unattached? Were he and Rayne more than just business acquaintances? Jungkook’s jealousy led the charge as he got up and went out to wait for his Mate to reappear.

Namjoon smirked as he passed his friend. He could smell the jealousy coming off of him, and could only guess why. But he had his own mate on his mind. As he walked into the kitchen, all he saw was his Mate. His Scarlett. She was bustling around the kitchen in her pajamas, prepping the ingredients they’d need for breakfast with her hair in a messy bun on the top of her head. It was the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen.

Scarlett stopped dead when his scent reached her. It wasn’t embarrassment that turned her cheeks a pretty pink color. It was feminine knowing. Her body’s way of acknowledging her Alpha.

Namjoon inhaled deeply, taking his Mate’s scent. He was fighting a losing battle with himself to refrain from completing their union until a time he felt was more appropriate, but the longer he was in her presence, the closer that time came.

Rokki was quite proud of herself as she turned the bacon. She hadn’t burned herself or broken anything since her Mate came into the room. He sat at the little table by the windows, sipping his coffee and watching her work. She still felt nervous, but the weight his gaze held was more familiar than it was the day before. She even chanced a peek his way a couple of times.

To his credit, Seokjin had kept his winking and flirting to a minimum since he and Jungkook sat with them. Even if he found Rokki’s reactions to be adorable, he decided it was safer for everyone around if he didn’t antagonize her while she had sharp things within reach. But, he was on the lookout for any opportunity to flirt with his Mate.

In fact, Seokjin was determined to not spend another night without his woman in his arms.

Jungkook was patiently sitting at the patio table when Rayne came out of her cottage with her phone at her ear,

“Thanks, Bam. I’ll be right over,” she laughed, obviously comfortable with the man she was talking with, “Yes, right now. I’m leaving right now. I swear I’m walking to the car with keys in hand as we speak. Ok. Bye.”

She made eye contact with her Mate as she pressed the end button. Rayne only paused for a moment, but it was long enough for Jungkook to make his move. With a deep, displeased snarl, he jumped up and pulled his Mate into his arms. She barely had enough time to gasp before his mouth was on her neck, spreading his scent and making sure any unmated male would know that she was HIS.

Rayne’s eyes rolled back and she dug her nails into his upper arms. The little touch of pain and the quiet moan she didn’t even know she made spurred Jungkook on. His original plan was only to scent her, but that was quickly morphed into biting and sucking on her skin. And when he moved to kiss her lips, there was no hesitation… she kissed him back.

Rayne’s senses were filled with her Mate. Touch. Smell. Sound. It was natural to add taste to the list, and as their tongues caressed, the carnal urge to scent her Mate moved her without thought.

Jungkook’s hand held the back of her head as she ran her tongue up and down the tendon below his ear. His low, sensual growl vibrated through her body and touched her in places she thought had dried up and blown away a long time ago.

She was lost to instinct.

The hand that Jungkook didn’t have tangled in her hair slid down to her backside where he filled his palm with her ass and pulled her body tight against his own.

Rayne’s body shuddered when he growled again. She pulled her head back and looked her Mate in the eyes.

Jungkook leaned in and rubbed his nose gently on hers before kissing her again, afraid she would regain her clarity and leave if he gave her too much time to think.

It was Luna that inadvertently came to the rescue, though. Excited to see her mom and her new Alpha, the long haired black cat enthusiastically rubbed her body across their legs, only to do the “flop and roll” when they pulled their lips apart to look down at her.

It was that moment of fresh air that brought Rayne back to herself. She pulled away from Jungkook and cleared her throat,

“I have to go get eggs.”

It was the perfect excuse to get away. She was almost to the door of the big house when his curiosity got the better of him,

“Who’s Bam?”

Rayne stopped in her tracks. The pieces suddenly came together, and she knew why he had jumped on her like that. She turned and glared at her Mate,

“All of that was because I’m meeting with a man you don’t know?” she huffed out an unamused laugh, “And here I thought you wanted me. I’ll know better next time.”

She pulled open the door and stomped through the house before he could respond.

Jungkook ran a frustrated hand through his hair as he heard a vehicle speed away. He’d messed that up royally. He didn’t feel too terrible about it though. She still carried his scent, and that satisfied his inner Alpha. Even better than that, he realized as he inhaled, she’d scented him, as well.

He smiled and picked up Luna to give the cat some love, despite her interrupting a stellar make out session with his Mate. Rayne may have stomped away, but Jungkook knew he finally had her emotions in play, and that was a huge step toward claiming his woman.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 8

2764 words

~mature content warning~

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 8

   Angel led Jimin into the house to get his luggage, and then up the stairs to her bedroom. Angel, Scarlett and Rokki were the only ones in the Pride that officially lived in the big house once they moved Natalie and Agust to one of the cottages. She liked how they had it set up. No one was far away, but they weren’t right on top of each other, either. As a Pride, they were inevitably in each other's space and business most of the time, but they had enough space to be able to have their privacy when they needed it.  

   Angel’s bedroom was right at the top of the stairs. She opened the door and turned on the light, thankful that she took a few minutes to straighten up a little bit that morning.

“This is it,” she said as she showed Jimin around the room, “The ensuite bathroom and closet are through that door,” she pointed to a door on the right, “It’s not much, but I like it.”

Jimin took a deep breath, loving how concentrated his Mate’s scent was in this room. He put his suitcase down just inside the door and pulled her to him. He buried his face into her hair and let a small rumble of a growl loose to show his pleasure.

“I love it.” He pulled back so he could look into her eyes, “Do you mind if I take a quick shower? I don’t want to hold you while I feel like I’m covered in travel grime.”

“Oh!” she exclaimed, berating herself for not offering him the shower right away, “Of course! Here, let me show you…” Angel started to pull away from Jimin’s hold so she could be a good host and show him where everything was.

Jimin was having none of it, though. He strengthened his hold and chuckled at her reaction,

“I’ve got it, love,” He reached a hand up and caressed her cheek, “I won’t take long.”

He wanted to kiss the tip of her nose. He wanted to kiss her lips. Instead, he took a deep breath and stepped back,

“Do you mind if I put my suitcase in the closet?”

Angel bit her lip and smiled, “Of course you can. I should probably make room in there for your things.”

Jimin’s smile almost took her to her knees. He looked so happy at that moment.

“We can work on that tomorrow.”

   Angel showed him the bathroom and closet space, and grabbed the shorts and t-shirt she normally wore to bed so she could change while he was bathing. She had a moment when she wondered if maybe she should just wait for him naked, but he did say he wanted to hold her and be a gentleman, so she went ahead and changed and sat on her bed to wait.

That whole day had been incredible. She had a Mate. And he was more than she could have ever imagined. He was kind, and funny. He was beautiful and attentive.

   She could almost hear Rayne’s voice telling her that time would tell if any of that was real or just an act. That actually made her smile. Everything she’d learned about Jimin so far felt real. Angel fell back and giggled at the ceiling. She was getting married!

   It hadn’t felt like that long when Jimin came out of the bathroom. Angel looked over and nearly choked. He was wearing pajama pants, and nothing else. His bare chest glistened with the steam from the bathroom in the low light of the bedside lamp, and his black hair was wet and brushed back from his face. It took every single thing inside of her to keep her eyes above the waistline. He was breathtaking.

   Jimin took a deep breath and smiled at his Mate. Knowing that she was attracted to him made him preen a little bit. And the amount of feminine wanting that he could smell at that moment made him stand a little straighter and puff out his chest a little bit extra. His Mate wanted him, and it smelled like she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

   He reminded himself that he promised to be a gentleman and had to make a conscious effort not to stalk her as he walked to where she was sitting on the bed they would share. He wanted to do what his instincts demanded. He wanted to crawl over her and lay claim to what was his.

   Instead, Jimin asked which side of the bed she preferred and crawled in where he could pull his Mate to lay her head on his chest and kiss the top of her head. Angel reached over to turn off the light and snuggled tight into his side like she had always been there. They fit together like two puzzle pieces that finally found their missing link.

   Down in the backyard, Seokjin finished his beer and stood to stretch before deciding on his plan. He talked Jungkook into coming inside to get some sleep,

“She’s not going to come out here to invite you in, bro. Get some good sleep. You always plot better when you’re well rested.”

Jungkook sighed and got up to follow Seokjin inside to find a place to sleep. They got their luggage and went upstairs. Their sense of smell made finding their rooms easy. Jimin was in the first room, and Namjoon was in the second, so Jungkook took the third. Seokjin bid him a good night and moved down the hall to the last room, where his Mate’s scent was the strongest.

   He opened the door and took a deep breath. This was her space. He smiled and set his luggage down so he could explore a little. He found the closet was in the bathroom, so he brought his bags in there to keep things tidy. His Mate’s scent had him humming happily as he set his shampoo and conditioner in the shower. She may not be there with him that night, but she would be soon enough.

    He went back into the closet to get his pajamas out of his luggage, and bumped into a dresser, knocking over various bottles and trinkets on top.

“Ooop! Shit!”

Seokjin quickly turned to fix his mistake, taking care to make sure each piece was not broken as he did so. As he cleaned up his mess, he noticed that the top drawer had popped open. Not much. Just enough to pique his curiosity. What he saw through the crack was not clothing, and it made him backpedal quickly. If he saw what he thought he saw in that drawer, he wanted his Mate to be there to show them to him… and maybe to use them on....

   After taking his time in the shower, smelling all of the soaps and hair products his woman used and relieving a personal ache that developed from finding his Mate, Seokjin settled himself under the blankets on Rokki’s bed and hugged the pillow that smelled the strongest of her to his chest. He buried his nose in it and took a deep breath, memorizing the little details in her scent that he could pick out. Seokjin hummed contentedly as he relaxed for the night and worked on his plan to win his Mate over. His smile was the last part of him to relax as he fell asleep.

   Yoongi tried to be as gentlemanly as possible when he entered Fae’s living space. She had a little cottage nestled between trees near the property line, and she loved it. As much as Fae adored her family, she also adored having somewhere to go and decompress by herself sometimes. It was peaceful, and just what she needed.

“You are pretty far from the main house,” Yoongi said, a little concerned for his Mate’s safety, “Are you sure it’s safe out here?”

Fae chuckled, partly at his assumption that she couldn’t protect herself, partly out of flattery that he wanted to protect her.

“I’m a country girl, Yoongi. I also have a lovely collection of firearms.”

“Oh,” he sounded surprised at her declaration, “Well then, It’s a good thing I don’t expect you to hide behind me if there’s danger.”

The couple stared at each other, smiling and unsure of exactly what to do next.

“Um, I guess I should give you a tour.” Fae looked around her small cottage and realized for the first time ever that there wasn’t much to show.

“Bathroom is through that door,” she pointed to the back left corner of the open space, “The kitchen is right there,” she pointed to the back left of the room where the refrigerator, small counter space and sink were, “And the rest is my bedroom / living space.”

There was a comfortable looking bed in the front corner with a TV gaming station set up on a stand at the bottom of it, as well as a desk with a computer on the right side of it.

Yoongi chuckled at the sight, “I can see we are going to have some serious battles in our future.”

“You game?” Fae giggled, “I guess it would make sense. We are supposed to be made for each other, aren’t we?”

Yoongi moved in front of her and used his fingers to gently move the strands of hair in her face behind her ear and said,

“We are.”

before he leaned down and kissed her. Really kissed her. Yoongi was trying his hardest to hold back from stripping her naked and taking what his instincts told him was his. He growled as he moved her back toward the bed that stood tantalizingly close by. The words “Slow down.” were running on a loop in his head. He wanted to savor the moment. Savor her.

Their lips only parted for a moment when they fell onto the bed, but even the giggles couldn’t keep their lips apart for long.

Fae’s fingers tangled in his hair, and just that tiny pinch of pain drove Yoongi crazy. He held on to his sanity by a thread as his tongue traced along her teeth. The rasp of her tongue on his made goosebumps erupt across his skin. He shivered and pulled back so he could look at her. Just look.

Just take in the beauty of his Mate. Yoongi was 28 years old and had long ago decided that he didn’t have a Mate. Not everyone does. Just the fact that she existed was a miracle to him, and he intended to cherish her with everything he had.

Fae smiled. She didn’t remember ever being so happy and content as she was right then. Everything felt right. Complete. She would have gladly completed their mating right then, and even moved her body in a way that Yoongi would know his advances would be welcome, but he backed off. She understood why as she looked into his eyes and saw the softness in his gaze. He slid off of her and pulled her to the center of the bed so he could snuggle up behind her and wrap her in his arms. He made an excellent big spoon, and it wasn’t long before the two of them fell asleep, fully clothed.

They both slept like they’d never slept before. The level of comfort was one neither of them had ever experienced, and the next morning both Yoongi and Fae made quiet promises to spend every night together for the rest of their lives.

Hoseok wasted no time when he got Alice through the door of her little cabin. He dropped his bags and gently took her face in his hands and said,

“Aishhh. How did I get so lucky?” Before he laid his lips on hers.

The kiss started slow and sweet, but didn’t stay that way for long.

Alice had only taken a couple of breaths before he turned and pressed her back against the door. He growled as his tongue licked the seam of her lips, demanding her submission. She whined as a wave of molten lava and the need to submit rolled over her whole body.

The instinct to claim and be claimed took over for both of them. Their thoughts came as nothing more than mere sensations. Taste. Smell. Touch. All of it compounded to make the need on both sides even more intense.

The little pinch of pain from Alice’s fingers tightening in his hair is what broke Hoseok’s reserve. He pulled his lips away from hers and disentangled her fingers from his hair to pull her t-shirt over her head, not expecting the instant reaction from his Mate. She responded in kind, ripping at his clothing with no thought of anything other than feeling his skin against hers.

It was less than a minute later when Hoseok slid his hands under her ass and picked Alice up. Her legs wrapped around his waist as he pushed her against the door and slid his hard cock inside of her for the first time. He used his hips to hold her against the door and closed his eyes as gravity helped her take him to the hilt.

She gasped and whined at the feeling of being so full and connected with her Mate for the first time, and unconsciously stretched her head to the side to expose her neck to her Alpha.

Hoseok opened his eyes. His growl echoed through the space at the sight. His Mate was submitting to him in every sense of the word. His teeth bit into the soft flesh where her neck met her shoulder and secured his hands under her ass so he could pull back and pound into his Mate the way he wanted to. Needed to.

Hoseok needed to fill his mate, in every sense of the word. He needed to be deep inside of her. He needed to see his seed dripping down her leg. He needed to know that his scent was in every single cell in her body to ward away any other males that might think to take away what was his.

The moans and gasps coming out of Alice as he took her against the door were everything he’d never known he needed. He needed to make her make those sounds as much as he needed to breathe.

His teeth tightened on her skin, coming dangerously close to drawing blood as he took her. The only thing that kept him sane enough not to was the pinch of pain from her nails on his scalp and upper back. With nothing but Hoseok to hold on to, Alice was grasping onto the only thing she could… Him.

She couldn’t think past the feeling of her Mate. She felt the rough door against her back. She felt his hands gripping her ass. She felt his teeth biting into her skin, marking her as his. She felt the flared head of his cock dragging in and out of her wet, swollen center. All of it came together to trigger the electric beginnings of her orgasm low in her stomach.

When her pussy started the rhythmic squeezing and her moans turned to a keening wale, Hoseok brought her down hard, forcing his cock as deep as he could go, and held still to let her body coax the cum from his body.

The growling snarl that vibrated out from his chest had another,  smaller orgasm rocking through Alice. Her body understood what had just happened. Her body knew she’d been claimed.  

Hoseok felt his release leaking back down his cock and felt nothing but pride, and the need to do it again. He pulled his teeth away from her skin, and felt no remorse for the marks he’d left. She was his, and if his scent on her and in her didn’t ward off any competition, the marks on her neck will.

Without pulling out, he carefully carried her to the bed on the other side of the small room. It was only a few steps away, but the movement was enough to make him hard again.

He laid her down and his lips came down on hers, not giving Alice a chance to catch her breath before he started moving again. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Alice understood why Natalie and Agust disappeared like they did all the time. If this was what being with your Mate was like, there really was no denying yourself the full body experience that being with them was.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 7

2879 wc

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 7

  Lawn Jenga gave the group a chance to mingle outside of the new pairings. As interested as each individual was about their own Mate, they were also eager to get to know the others as well. It was clear that, on both sides, the groups were tight knit. And that meant that every single new mate was also gaining an entire family unit.

  Rayne took her opportunity to sneak away when her Mate was busy helping set up the game. Well. She thought she was being sneaky, but Jungkook watched her walk down to hide on the far side of the shed by the water. Although he wanted to follow her, and maybe try to coax a kiss from her, he decided she needed some time to herself to breathe. They had time to work on things.

   It had gotten dark enough that the strings of white bulb deck lights had come on, giving the area a beautiful glow. The group moved the table and chairs back to make room for the game on the level concrete of the patio, and then spread out to watch and visit.

    Jungkook and Seokjin were first to challenge each other. Namjoon laughed and explained why it was not surprising in any way, as those two were constantly trying to best one another.

“It’s a bit of an Alpha curse. And those two are always vying to see who’s on top,” he explained to the group of women.

Rokki sat in the grass next to Angel and Jimin to watch. She wasn’t feeling too shy about watching her Mate, in fact she was quietly rooting for him while talking with the new couple.

“Rokki? Can I ask you a question?” Jimin asked.  His head was cocked to the side just enough for Angel to inwardly sigh about how adorable he was.

“Shoot,” Rokki felt comfortable around Jimin. She had no hesitance in answering him.

“Why are you avoiding Seokjin?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rokki was trying hard to cover her shyness, “I just sat next to him throughout that whole dinner.”

“True, true. But you never looked directly at him, or held any kind of conversation with him. Do you not find him attractive?”

Rokki looked around to make sure no one was listening, especially her mate who was, at that moment, circling the Jenga tower looking for his next move,

“No,” she said in just above a whisper, “he’s so hot it’s insane.”

Jimin laughed. He found her shyness to be cute,

“Why are you whispering?” he asked between chuckles.

Rokki knew her face was red, but that was nothing compared to the color that rose to her cheeks when her Mate spoke,

“Because she didn’t want me to hear her.” Seokjin slapped a jenga piece hard enough that it flew to the side without disturbing the tower before he smiled at her and winked.

Rokki’s whole body jumped when the piece of wood flew, and she muttered “Fuck me!” under her breath. That man was far sexier than any man she had ever seen before.

   Jimin couldn’t help himself. He laughed so hard at the startled look on Rokki’s face that he fell over in the grass. Once he composed himself he pulled Angel down to lay with him. She snuggled against his side and laid her head on his shoulder, content and comfortable in a way she had never been before. They didn’t need to talk. They just existed, together in their little bubble.

   The Jenga tower ended up being knocked over by both men. They lost balance while pushing and wrestling with each other, and leaned a little too hard in that direction. Of course they each blamed the other for the destruction of the tower, and ended up calling a tie since neither would take a loss.

    Down by the water, Rayne had done more than just hide. She made a habit of wearing a bathing suit under her clothes during the warmer months so she could go jump in the water whenever she felt like it, so she was well prepared to shed her shorts and shirt and pull one of the paddle boards out into the water. She made sure not to go out too far, it was dark and she didn’t want to worry anyone.

   The water always brought Rayne solace. Whenever she was troubled she could be found near the shoreline. That evening she sat on her board with her knees pulled up to her chest and looked out over the water, listened to the small waves tickle the shore, felt the rock of the board and made an effort to get past the scent of her mate to smell the fresh air. Grounding herself and her emotions.

   She heard the ruckus by the house. There was a lot of laughter, and for that she was glad. Her sisters deserved the world, and she hoped these Alphas would treat them as such. If they were anything like Agust they would. He looked at Natalie like she hung the moon and stars, and she was equally as in love with him. It looked idyllic, and every now and again Rayne would catch herself fantasizing about having something like that with her own Mate.

   But that was a dangerous path to go down. She believed in love once. She was almost desperate to have that kind of companionship, but none of the males she dated fit. And those that did make it past the first date were never worth the energy she put into them. In fact, now that she thought about it, every time she had sex, she was in position of power. She was on top controlling the encounter. She had never trusted them enough to give them that.

  The last male of her species she “dabbled with'' got more than aggressive with her, and the memory of the bruises from that beating is what had her pushing her Mate away. Was it fair to him? No. Should she just have taken care of the situation and fed that bastard to Bam’s pigs? Yes. Did the girls talk her out of that action because the male was the main Pride’s Alpha? Yes.

    The main Pride was much bigger than their modest eight members, and they wouldn’t be able to adequately take care of themselves if there was an attack. As it was, the main Pride left them alone, peacefully. In fact, Ana worked with the hybrid doctors office in town as their Radiologist, and had no problems with the higher ups.

   Rayne sat on her board and watched the sky quietly for quite some time. Was she avoiding her Mate? Absolutely. But it also filled her heart to have her moment of peace while listening to her family laugh and be so joyful.

    She knew her Mate was watching her again. She felt it. But at that moment, it didn’t feel quite as odd. Maybe it was because she was out far enough that he would have to swim to get to her. Or, maybe it was just that the feeling of his eyes on her was beginning to feel familiar. She didn't know, but at that moment, it didn’t grate on her quite as bad.

   Jungkook wandered down to the waters edge when his mate didn’t come back, and took a seat on the log swing that was near the dock. He didn’t spare his attention on the beauty he was sure surrounded them. His sole focus was the beauty that was sitting on her paddle board a little ways out in the water. She had her knees pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. Her head was tilted up just enough that he assumed she was looking at the stars.

    Although he wasn’t expecting a challenge like this to come from his Mate when he arrived, he wasn’t disappointed. Far from it, actually. He smiled at that. He’d always imagined his Mate would be sweet and obedient, blindly following whatever he decided with no questions asked.

In reality, she was strong and could handle herself, and wouldn’t hide behind his rank like some would.

   He watched as Rayne readjusted her position and reached forward for the paddle that was resting across the board in front of her, thankful for the moonlight that lit the scene in such an ethereal way. She took her time as she paddled back to the shoreline in front of the little boat shed, and only got her feet wet when she stepped off.

   Jungkook blatantly admired the graceful movement of her body as she pulled the paddleboard up to the shed and then put her shorts and shirt back on. The scent of her pheromones told him that she knew he was watching and, whether she liked it or not, her body was happy to have him there.

    His smile was wide and mischievous when she turned his way to walk back up toward the house,

“Where are we sleeping tonight, Mate?”

Rayne paused mid-step and had to school her features so her face would remain blank. instead of the “WTF” look she wanted to give him, she was able to keep it down to a blank face and raised eyebrow when she said,

“You have a bed waiting for you upstairs in the big house.”

His eyes seemed to sparkle in the moonlight and that annoyingly adorable grin got wider, “Is that where you’re sleeping?”

Rayne’s nostrils flared for a moment before she answered,

“Nope.”

And she walked away.

Back on the patio, things were winding down. The long day of travel and heightened emotions was starting to wear on everyone. As Rayne approached, she noticed that Fae and Yoongi had moved their chairs away from the group and were deep in quiet conversation.

Alice and Hoseok were at the table laughing and talking animatedly, while Scarlett and Namjoon sat across from them flirting with each other in an innocent way that Rayne never would have thought of from her Pride mate.

Angel and Jimin were also sitting at the table, facing each other with their heads propped up on their hands. They were staring into each other's eyes and playing with the linked fingers on their other hands while they talked quietly.

 Rokki was able to fit a chair in between Alice on one side and Angel on the other, leaving Seokjin to sit on the opposite side of the table, which wasn’t a hardship. He could watch her perfectly from there.

“Nat and Agust already go to their cabin?” Rayne asked no one in particular as she walked up behind Rokki and leaned on the back of her chair.

Rokki nodded, but the rest of the women looked around as if they hadn’t realized someone was missing. Which was odd to Rayne. One of their favorite things to do was give Natalie shit for not being able to be without dick for more than a few hours anymore.

“Angel?” Jimin’s soft voice brought his Mate’s attention right back to him, “I know we only just met, and I don’t want to sound too forward, but I’d like to sleep where you are sleeping tonight. I will be a perfect gentleman, I promise! But I really want to hold you while we sleep tonight,” he leaned in a little closer and lowered his voice before he continued with “and every night for the rest of our lives.”

Rayne had to resist the urge to roll her eyes, but Angel nearly melted into her chair at his sweet words,

“I’d love that.”

The couple stood and walked hand in hand into the house to collect Jimin’s things and head up to Angel’s room.

Yoongi didn’t say anything. He just held his hand out to Fae, who seemed to understand his intention. She took his hand and, in tandem, they stood to follow the same way the last couple went.

Alice was a little sad at the sudden turn of events. She turned to Hoseok and gave him a pout,

“Is it time for bed already? I’ve been having so much fun, though!”

Hoseok laughed and pushed his chair back from the table,

“We have our whole lives, Alice! But, it has been a long day. Would you do me the honor of showing me where I’m sleeping tonight?”

Namjoon cleared his throat. He was a little uncomfortable, but knew he that he had to say it, “Scarlett?”

“Hmmm?”

“I know it may sound a little old fashioned, but if I sleep anywhere near you tonight, I won’t be able to help myself. I think it would be best if I stayed in my own bed. Just for tonight. I want to honor you, and I would like more time.”

“OH! Um.” Scarlett was a little flustered and tripped over her words, “I mean, I don’t mind if you want to sleep in the same bed as me…”

She’d been looking forward to a ravishing like Natalie got on a daily basis, and didn’t know how to say it without sounding desperate.

Namjoon, though, stuck to his guns. He pulled Scarlett’s hand up to his mouth and laid a gentle kiss on her knuckles,

“Thank you for understanding, love. Can you show me where I’m staying for tonight?”

He put emphasis on “for tonight”, which gave Scarlett a little hope that she wouldn’t be without her Mate for too long.

They stood and went into the house to collect Namjoon’s things and show him to his room, leaving Rayne and Rokki with their Mates.

Rayne saw Seokjin open his mouth and beat him to the punch,

“Wanna stay with me tonight, Rokki?” she asked, a little louder than necessary. She had a feeling that this male would have no second thoughts about sneaking into Rokki’s room later, and wanted to give her the space she needed.

The man frowned at her, and decided to push back a bit,

“Aren’t you staying with Jungkook? You know… Your MATE.” his annoyance with her shone brightly as he enunciated the last word.

Rayne smiled brightly at Seokjin’s annoyance,

“Your Mate is fun to irritate, Rokki! Come on. Let’s go get whatever you need for the night.”

She stood back so Rokki could scoot back her chair, and looked cheerfully back at the two men,

“Scarlett is showing Namjoon where the beds are. You should probably go find out where yours are. C’mon Rokki.”

Seokjin and Jungkook watched the two women go into the house. Jungkook was thoroughly entertained. Seokjin was thoroughly annoyed,

“Your Mate suits you,” he said to the younger man, “She’s just as irritating as you are.”

Jungkook chuckled and relaxed back into his chair,

“Yeah. I like her.”

“Should we go find our beds?”

“Nah. Let's wait until they come back out. I want to confirm my suspicion of where my Mate sleeps.”

“Where do you think she sleeps?”

“That pool house right there.” Jungkook pointed to a small, white building with a pergola over a sliding glass door that had curtains hanging in it not far from where they sat,

“It smells like her.”

The two men sat outside enjoying the quiet for a few minutes before the door to the big house opened, and three women came out. The smallest of the three, Scarlett, led the way. She  stopped when she saw them still at the table, causing Rokki and Rayne to bump into her.

“Oh! What are you guys still doing out here?” Although she momentarily was taken off guard by the men, Scarlett was able to pull it together enough to be courteous, “Did you need help finding your beds? They’re just upstairs. There’s a couple of open rooms available. Not hard to find.”

“Thank you, Scarlett,” Seokjin said with a sweet smile, never taking his eyes off of his Mate, “We’re just enjoying the quiet beauty of where you live for a little bit before we turn in for the night. Don’t worry about us. We’ll find our way.”

A thought occurred to him just then, though. If Rokki was planning on staying with Rayne tonight, her bed would be unoccupied, and he would be able to sleep surrounded by her scent without upsetting her more. He winked at Rokki as Rayne pulled her by the table toward the small building Jungkook pointed out earlier, but this time he saw her smile the tiniest bit before he heard a quiet giggle.

That giggle changed everything. Seokjin relaxed and knew he was on the right track. He took a sip of his beer and watched his Mate disappear with the other two, and felt lighter than he had in a long time.

Jungkook and Rayne held eye contact as she pulled her friend toward her little cottage, and the challenge she was issuing very nearly had him on his feet, ready to claim what was his.

He took a deep breath to calm the instinct and saw her smirk at him just before she disappeared through the doorway.

“Minx.” he said under his breath. He needed to get a good night's sleep to prepare himself for the battle he was sure to come the next day.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 6

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 6

    The sounds of laughter and the smell of taco meat made its way around the house and pulled Rayne out of the daze Jungkook’s stare had her in. She took a deep breath, tried to ignore his delicious scent, and made a huge effort to make it look like she wasn’t running away when she turned her back on him and continued her trek back to the group.

   Of course Jungkook wasn’t far behind. He quite enjoyed watching his Mate’s backside while she walked, and he felt a lot more relaxed now that he had his scent on her. He let his mind wander to his need to cover himself in her scent and taste. How it would feel to bite down on that sensitive spot where her neck meets her shoulder while pounding into her…

   Jungkook growled low in his chest and turned to get himself another beer from the outdoor refrigerator that was near the back door. He needed to get it together. It wouldn’t do to jump on her and force anything she may not be ready for.

   It didn’t take long for dinner to be served with all of the helpful hands that could actually cook helping out. Rokki, Seokjin, Angel and Jimin took charge and kicked everyone else out of the kitchen. It didn’t take long for Rokki to be sent out by Angel after dropping the knife she was trying to cut lettuce with three times due to her nerves.

“Rokki, go sit outside! I swear, you are going to chop off a finger if you keep this up.”

When Rokki tried to argue, Seokjin placed his hand on the small of her back with the intent to gently lead her to the door. He was wholly unprepared for her to jump and send the knife she was holding into the air, where it lodged its tip into the ceiling.

“That’s it. Out!” Angel was not nearly as gentle as Seokjin when she grabbed Rokki’s arm and escorted her out the back door, “You all better make sure she does not come back in here until we are done cooking,” she commanded the group still sitting at the table.

Scarlett took some pity on her, though. She well understood how jumpy Rokki could be when the woman was nervous,

“Come sit by me, Rokki,” she said, motioning to the empty chair on her right, “Come meet my Mate.”

With as much as she wanted to drag her Mate off to explore their new found connection, Scarlett had become fairly timid. Well. Timid for her, anyway.

“Namjoon, this is my sister Rokki. Rokki, this tall drink of manhood is MY Mate, Namjoon.”

Namjoon’s dimples deepened as he reached across Scarlett to shake Rokki’s hand. The motion brought his face close enough to kiss, and it took everything in her not to nibble his jaw and lick his throat.

   Namjoon noticed his Mate’s harsh inhale and turned, his face was only inches from hers and his eyes were on fire as he took in her scent. It was passion and spice. Long nights tangled together, and lazy mornings wrapped up in each other's arms. Arguments and make ups. The only thing that would make it better, in his opinion, is his scent mixed in. Which will happen sooner than he had planned if she kept looking at him like she wanted to eat him alive.

   Scarlet had just decided to climb into that man's lap and ride him like she was trying to break him when Jimin opened the back door to the house and announced dinner was served. Angel led the two men to the table with the taco ingredients that hadn’t already been brought out by the others.

   Namjoon chuckled and sat back in his seat, unsure whether he was thankful for the interruption or not. The logical voice in his head reminded him that he should get to know this woman before letting it go too far. His Alpha instinct however, wanted him to claim her immediately, before anyone else had the chance. Logically, he knew she was his Mate and that there was no threat. But instincts were not always logical.

“Where’s Rayne?” Rokki asked as she looked around the back yard to distract from the man sitting next to her.

“Jungkookie, too. Where’d he go? I know he’s hungry. He always is,” Seokjin threw in. He was trying to talk more than he normally did to give his Mate a chance to get used to his voice and presence.

“Wait a minute,” his eyes lit up and a laugh formed at his lips, “You don’t think that they are together, do you?”

   The men all chuckled. Since they were all fighting their natural mating instincts, the idea that Jungkook would find a quiet corner to claim his Mate like Taehyung did seem like a given.

   The women chuckled for an entirely different reason. They knew Rayne’s hesitance, and knew that she was going to make that man prove his worth before submitting in any way.

“Speak of the devil,” Alice murmured as Rayne and Jungkook rounded the side of the house and walked toward the group, “We were just wondering where you two were! Dinner’s served.”

   Rayne glanced back and found Jungkook’s eyes firmly fixed to her backside. She made a show of rolling her eyes, but secretly enjoyed the attention. Seating around the table was full, so she reached over and around everyone to make her plate of tacos and grabbed a drink from the outside refrigerator before finding a spot in the grass to sit and relax.

   Jungkook ignored Rayne’s growl of displeasure and sat next to her in the shade. He looked at her and smiled before taking a giant bite of his taco, completely unfazed. The twinkle in his eyes as he chewed irritated her to no end, and she spent the better part of his first taco glaring at him.

“You should eat,” he said with a smile once he swallowed the last bite of his first taco. “It’s good.”

  Rayne’s nostrils flared in annoyance. She didn’t want to do anything this man said. But, she was hungry, and she knew herself better than to allow a case of the ‘hangry’s’ to happen, especially with all of these new men in her space. So, begrudgingly, she ate.

  Luna sauntered her way over and rubbed her body along Rayne’s side before moving to rub her face on Jungkook’s foot. He reached out and gave her head some scratches and laughed at her enthusiastic response. It seemed Luna had decided Jungkook was her Alpha now, and made a show of flopping down in front of him and rolling over to get belly rubs. Luna hated everyone but Rayne, and usually bit the shit out of anyone that dared try such a thing... and yet there she was. Purring and mewling, rolling about with her eyes fixed on him.

Rayne shook her head at the cat’s antics.

“You look like you're in heat, Luna.” she scolded.

Jungkook chuckled as he straightened up and looked at her,

“I am anxious to see if you roll around like that when you go into heat.”  

Rayne choked on the beer she’d been drinking and from the burning sensation, she was pretty sure some of it came out of her nose.

After that, she rushed to finish her tacos, intent on hiding in her studio for the evening.

   At the table, the couples were enjoying their first meal together, chatting about this and that.

Seokjin was trying hard to get his Mate to relax around him, and pulled out his best dad jokes to see if he could make her smile. Rokki still wouldn’t look directly at him, but did giggle a little bit. He took that as a win and was happy he was making some progress with her.

   Jimin and Angel were in their own little world as they ate. Even while he was helping her prep the food, he stayed close and only took his eyes off of her when he was using a knife. Sitting next to her at the table was not different.

“This lawn would make a beautiful space for our wedding,” Jimin said between bites, watching her reaction closely.

Angel blushed and giggled quietly. Once she collected herself a little, she looked shyly over at him and said, “I agree. It’s a beautiful setting.”

Feeling emboldened, he continued “What do you think our colors should be?”

   While they discussed the Cream and Gold color theme and cake choices, Jungkook smiled at Rayne and piggy backed on Jimin by saying “This really is a nice spot for a wedding,” to his Mate. The only response he got from her was a quick, annoyed, side eye, which was exactly what he expected. Her resistance was providing him a lot of entertainment. He truly enjoyed the chase.

   Fae and Yoongi got lost in discussing their favorite anime choices, and the collection of whiskey from around the world she had been building. They made plans to binge watch some of their favorites together during the stormy weather that was forecasted within the next few days.

   Hoseok finally allowed Alice to sit in her own chair, but only to eat. He was so happy, he felt as if he might burst! He’d been dreaming about finding his Mate most of his life, and now that he was with her, he felt a sense of peace and tranquility he never knew he was missing. And the joy! The joy felt like it was bleeding out of every pore on his body! He couldn’t stop smiling as he watched his Mate eat her dinner.

   Alice felt happy and complete. It had become apparent a long time ago that she didn’t have a mate in her pride-of-origin, and had kind of given up on the idea. In fact, she had actually started to assume she’d just have to settle for one of the local males. Maybe even a full human. Bam had some cute friends she thought she could get along with…

   Now that she was actually looking into the eyes of her Mate, though, all of those thoughts and feelings melted away, and all she could see was a future with this man.

“Do you want to go for a walk after dinner?” Hoseok asked her, “I’d love to see the area more, and spend time with you.”

Alice actually blushed a delicate shade of pink at the thought of being alone with him like that, even if it was just a walk around the property.

“I want to play lawn jenga!” Natalie exclaimed, drawing eyes from all around the table.

“No you don’t,” Rayne answered dryly from where she sat trying to inconspicuously lean away from her Mate on the ground, “You want to watch Agust play lawn Jenga while you drink and look at his butt.”

Natalie giggled and tipped her bottle with a “Cheers!” toward her friend.

Agust leaned in and whispered “If you need more of my ass, we can skip the games and go straight to our cabin.”

“No!” Rokki shocked everyone with the outburst. She blushed and looked around at everyone but the man next to her before she said with a little less panic in her voice, “No. Jenga would be fun, right?” She made quick eye contact with each woman around the table, and was able to successfully get her point across.

Rokki was scared that if everyone went their separate ways she would be left alone with Seokjin. She knew he was her Mate, and that it would happen eventually. Hell, she knew they were going to be forever, and part of her was excited for it. But she needed a moment to breathe and take it all in. Process her new reality.

Also the idea of watching his ass as they played Jenga wasn’t a bad one.

   Hoseok and Alice did end up taking a little walk around the property while the others got the game ready. He had no hesitation taking her hand for their first stroll around the compound they had built over the last few years. Alice pointed out all of the little cabins that were set around and who lives where. And they both had a good giggle when they passed Ana’s cabin.

   The sun was getting low in the sky by that time, and Hoseok was in awe watching deer come out of the wooded areas and wander into the fields that encased their large property.

“We try to buy surrounding properties if they come up for sale. It gives us more space to work with, and keeps others further away,” Alice explained.

“So, if you and I decide not to go back to Korea and one of the neighbors decide to sell, you and I could buy our own place away from everyone?” he asked.

   Alice was caught off guard. She hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. She hadn’t even considered the possibility of leaving the women she thought of as sisters, and wasn’t sure how to feel about it.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 5

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

Chapter 5

  Back in the big house, Rayne situated Rokki at the sink and was moving around the kitchen to get what the woman needed so she wouldn’t have to turn around and see the man stalking her. Although, from the stiff look of her shoulders, Rayne would say that she knew he was there anyway.

She’d gone back over to the sink to help move some of the washed veggies out of the way, and didn’t pay attention to the back door opening, since couples had been filtering through to “take the luggage to their rooms.”

“Is that what the kids are calling it these days?” Rayne asked Rokki, trying to get her to smile and relax a little.

Rokki’s giggle was strained, but she did appreciate Rayne’s attempt. She turned to set the basket she just emptied on the island behind her and jumped at the sight of the man standing on the other side of it.

Her screech of “Son of a pickle!” was followed by the crashing sounds of the glasses that had been set on the island being sent flying by the basket she threw in surprise. Seokjin raised an eyebrow at her outburst, but his voice was full of amusement when he said,

“Let me help. Where do you keep the broom?”

   Rokki stammered, mortified at having broken several glasses. She was painfully aware she was being skittish, and it was embarrassing. Rayne got the broom and dustpan out of the broom closet and handed it to him, although she kept trying to get Rokki to turn around and work on washing veggies so she didn’t have to look at the man until she was ready.

   Unfortunately that plan hit a snag…. All of the vegetables were clean. Rayne watched Seokjin watch Rokki’s every move while he cleaned the broken glass off of the floor and tried to come up with another plan to save her sister from her Mate.

“Rayne, it’s ok. He’s not going to hurt me.”

Her head jerked to the side to see a very red faced Rokki.

“You look like you’re about to stab him,” Rokki chuckled at her, “Smell him. I can’t seem to smell anything else.”

Rayne inhaled deeply, actually paying attention to the minute details of Seokjin’s scent. He didn’t affect her like he did Rokki, but all she could smell was curiosity, possession, and a hint of passion. She frowned. She still didn’t like it.

“I’m not going to hurt her,” Seokjin said as he emptied the dustpan into the garbage that was under the sink next to where she was standing. “She’s my Mate. I want to protect her, not hurt her.”

Rayne’s nostrils flared.

The tables turned as Rokki watched Rayne’s reaction. Instead of Rayne protecting Rokki from the undying embarrassment and shyness she felt around this statuesque god she got to call her Mate, Rokki had to step in to try to protect her Mate from Rayne, who was desperately trying to focus on anything but her own problems.

“Rayne,” Rokki’s voice was sharp enough to get Rayne’s full attention, “I’m fine. Let’s start dinner, ok? Go get Angel so we can feed these guys. I’m sure they are starving after that long flight.”

Rayne’s “Ok” sounded very guarded, and she made sure to give Seokjin a stern glare before she went out the back door.

She took two steps onto the patio and very clearly heard Ana screams of pleasure coming from a distance.

“Jesus FUCK, Ana.” she growled in annoyance “Already?”

Rayne decided she could really use a drink.

“Angel,” she called over to the group that had taken their seats around the long table as she opened the outdoor refrigerator to get herself a bottle of beer,

“Rokki thinks we should start dinner. She seems to think these men are starving or something.”

Rayne could feel that man’s eyes on her as she took a large gulp of the cold liquid. It took everything in her not to submit to the command she felt in his gaze. If she was honest with herself, she wanted to submit to Jungkook. She wanted a strong Mate. But he needed to prove himself before she would go to him willingly.

    Angel didn’t want to make dinner. She didn’t want to do anything other than what she was doing… looking into the eyes of her Mate.

   When Agust invited everyone to sit down and relax a little, Jimin turned their chairs to face each other and made sure to scoot in close enough so that one of his legs fit in between hers and that he could link his fingers with hers. He wanted to be as close as he possibly could with their clothes on. They hadn’t said more than a few sentences to each other yet, but neither of them could seem to look away. It didn’t matter that they were surrounded by all of these people. All that mattered was that they were finally together, the rest would work itself out in time.

Jimin’s fingers tightened around hers when Rayne said she needed to go help with dinner, and it made her heart flutter.

“Angel?” Rayne called again.

“Um, I planned a special dinner for you.” Angel said quietly to Jimin. Yes, the dinner was for everyone, but he was the only one she was worried about impressing. Her cheeks turned pink, and he thought it was the most endearing thing he’d ever seen.

He smiled and Angel melted. Again. He was the most beautiful man she had ever seen, and he was hers.

“You did?” he asked in his soft, musical voice, “I can’t wait.”

He leaned toward her and lowered his voice so that it was a purr just for her,

“Can I help? I like helping in the kitchen.”

   He loved how Angel’s cheeks turned even more rosy and the little giggle that bubbled up from her throat at his attention. He wanted to lavish her with affection, and couldn’t wait until they could be alone.

   Rayne was trying her hardest to cover her amusement at Angel and her Mate. She was normally pretty brazen, and was usually the first to crack a dirty joke. In fact, Angel had made their friend Bam blush almost every time he came to deliver their meat order.

It was kind of adorable to see her be so shy.

   Goosebumps broke out on Rayne’s arms, and her eyes instinctively flicked over to the cause…. Jungkook, her Mate. He was sitting at the table with his ankle resting on the opposite knee. One hand was stroking the cat contentedly purring in his lap, and the other was propped by his face with his thumb on his cheek and index finger laying over his lips. His tongue ran along the inside of his cheek and his eyes felt like lasers as they traveled the length of her body.

  How in the world could she feel his gaze like that? It was exciting and annoying in the same breath. Their eyes met, and she had to force herself to breathe. This Alpha was intense. But she had to stand her ground, her pride wouldn’t have it any other way. So she held his eye contact while she tipped up the bottle and finished her beer, continuing the challenge she issued not even an hour before.

   As she purposely turned her back to him again, this time to throw the empty bottle away, she smiled. She knew the message she was sending and could smell his pheromones getting stronger with each challenge. As annoyed as she was about these men showing up and changing everything they were used to, Rayne could see the fun that she could have with it, too.

   Such as annoying her Pride Mates.

“Angel? Come on. Fae? We need you, too. There’s a lot of prep to do.”

Fae scowled, “There’s not that much. I don’t think you’ll need me. Besides, I’ll probably cut myself or something.”

    She didn't want to leave her Mates’ side. The moment she saw Yoongi on the video call, she had been more than a little intrigued. The man had plagued her dreams ever since. Plagued may seem a bit harsh, but the dreams were intense and left her feeling more than a little needy. Plus, she had to fight how odd it was to have sex dreams about a man that was damn near identical to her sister’s Mate.

   Yoongi hadn’t spoken much when he approached her, but the look in his eyes when he reached for Fae’s hand said more than enough. And when he pulled that hand up to kiss the inside of her wrist, she had to fight the urge to swoon. She did not swoon, damnit. She was not the “swooning” type of girl!

   She did gasp, though. It was quiet, but it was enough to draw Yoongi’s gaze down to her lips. They both stilled. Fae was trying not to panic, wondering what was going to happen next, and Yoongi was waging an inner battle on when it would be appropriate to not only kiss her, but officially make her his.

    Agust actually laughed as he watched his brother meet his Mate for the first time. With a chuckle he said “You are a better man than I, Yoongi. I had my tongue in Natalie’s mouth and almost had her bent over the table in the restaurant by now.”

   Natalie laughed at the memory, and Fae blushed at the idea. It wasn’t that she wouldn’t like it. No, the blush came from excitement at the idea.

   Yoongi inhaled deeply and growled deep in his chest. The scent of his Mate’s excitement was nearly his undoing. In the end, it was his brother that helped break the spell when he suggested everyone have a seat so they could all get to know each other better. Yoongi kept his Mate’s hand securely intertwined with his own as he led her to a set of empty chairs that were close enough together that he didn’t have to let go when they sat down.

   He wanted to know everything about his Mate and wanted her full attention. Yoongi was considering asking her to go for a walk or find a more private place to talk when Rayne called for her to help in the kitchen. His hand reflexively tightened around Fae’s and the thumb that had been gently rubbing across the skin of hers stilled.

   Rayne felt Yoongi’s annoyance and grinned. Irritating these couples was entirely too much fun! She didn’t feel the need to protect any of these women, they all accepted their Mates with no hesitance. Which means she was free and clear to be as annoying as she wanted to be.

    Alice sat on her Mate’s lap and watched Rayne play. There were extra chairs set up by the house, but Hoseok didn’t think twice about pulling her to him.

“We don’t need another chair! You can sit with me,” he said with a smile and a laugh.

The two of them had been chatting easily, getting to know each other and keeping an eye on how it was going with everyone else.

“That one is pretty hostile,” Hoseok said quietly, nodding his head toward Rayne, “I like it. Jungkook needs a little push back. He’s one of the strongest Alpha’s in our pack. Well, old pack, I guess we should call it now. Anyway, the women tend to fawn over him because of it. The fact that he’s adorable doesn’t help.”

“Fuck off, Hobi,” Jungkook said lightly before taking a swig of his beer. He was sitting next to them, so he obviously heard every word, but his eyes weren’t going to leave his Mate.

Hoseok chuckled and turned his head closer to Alice, “It’s true though. Boy needs a challenge. It’s going to be fun to watch.”

The group at large was making a huge effort to ignore Ana’s continued orgasmic sounds as they sat outside.

“Do you think I should go tell her the window is open?” Scarlett asked the group, more out of trying to distract herself than actual care that they could all hear Ana and Tae consummating their mating.

Scarlett’s Mate was everything she had ever dreamed he could have been. However, despite her brave words, she was feeling slightly intimidated. She could already see that he was extremely intelligent and thought about everything he said before he said it. He was tall and muscular, and so handsome it almost hurt. If she put her mind to it, Scarlett was positive she really could climb Namjoon like a tree. And ride him like a….

“Are any of you going to come help make dinner?”

The ladies all perked up at Rokki’s request. Rayne rolled her eyes at their instant reaction. She’d asked them a few times and they all ignored her. Rokki popped her head out the screen door and asked one time and they all responded.

“How are you doing with all this?” she asked Rokki quietly.

“I’m ok. He’s intimidating and sexy as fuck, but I’m trying.”

   A low growl from the kitchen made Rokki’s face turn red. The man in question heard his Mate say he was sexy, and he liked it.

She rubbed a hand over her face and said “Jesus” under her breath before herding the women into the kitchen.

   Rayne, on the other hand, took it upon herself to take care of the window issue. She didn’t want to listen to those two for the rest of the night, especially when she was actively avoiding the physical temptation of her own Mate.

   She walked around the side of the house and felt the tension fade as she walked toward Ana’s cottage. It felt good to be moving and doing something with the nervous energy that had been building.

   The cottage was quiet when Rayne got to it, and she didn’t know whether to be thrilled or disappointed. She kind of wanted to mess with Ana a little, and interrupting yet another round of sex would be a fun way to do it. Instead, Rayne wandered around the perimeter until she found the open window and yelled,

“HEY ANA! YOUR WINDOW IS OPEN! AND, HIGH FIVE TO YOUR MATE FOR MAKING YOU SCREAM LOUD ENOUGH THAT WE’VE BEEN ABLE TO COUNT YOUR ORGASMS FOR YOU!”

It was difficult to keep a straight face when she heard Ana screech and scramble to get off of the bed to close the window.

“Raynie! Oh my god!”

Rayne lost her battle to keep a straight face and started cackling. It wasn’t just a laugh anymore. Even though she knew very well that she was being a bit of a bitch, she was highly entertained.

In a flurry of movement, the window slammed shut and Rayne turned to head back to the big house, chuckling the entire way.

   The walk back was a lot slower. Her Mate had moved. She couldn’t see him, but she could feel him watching her again.

   As she moved to go around the side of the house, he silently appeared from his hiding place behind a tree and grabbed her. He wasn’t rough at all. In fact, he was gentle as he steered her body and turned her so her back was against the outer wall of the dark grey home. He pressed his body against hers until he had secured both of her hands above her head in one of his, obviously expecting a fight.

   Rayne didn’t give one. She knew he was physically stronger than she was and remained docile, and annoyingly turned on, as he backed up and looked into her eyes. He slid his free hand down her arm and cupped her cheek,

“Hello, Mate.”

He leaned in and ran his nose up the side of her neck to inhale the scent of heaven he had been longing for.

“God Damn you smell incredible.”

Rayne hadn’t moved. She stood still and waited to see what this man would do. Would he try to physically force her into the mating? Would he use his words to berate her for challenging him? Why was she enjoying this so much?

A growl rumbled from his chest as he continued to run his nose along the column of her neck and inhale her scent. He took a deep breath and backed his head up so he could make eye contact with her,

“I got your challenge, Mate, and I will let you have your fun, for a while, at least.”

Again, Jungkook leaned down to her neck. But this time he ran his lips and tongue up to the base of her ear and back down to her collar bone.

He scented her.

Part of her wanted to punch him. Part of her wanted to throw him down and fuck him through the next layer of the earth.

No man had ever scented her. Even when they were trying to enforce their will on her, she’d never allowed it to happen. She had never wanted a man’s scent on her before.

Jungkook slowly let go of her wrists, but his other hand remained cupped on her cheek and his eyes stayed glued to hers. He wanted to show that she had free reign within her boundaries. She could rebel, and she could fight him, but in the end they were in this together. Mates.

   His movements were slow and controlled when he leaned in and gently kissed her bottom lip. He wanted nothing more than to take her and make her his against the side of that house, right out in the open in front of God and everyone. But he understood her need to run and lead him on a chase. She wasn’t going to roll over and show her belly easily. He had to prove himself and wear down the walls she’d built up.

   The fact that she didn’t move away or try to avoid that small kiss told him that he had a chance. More than that, with all of the arrogance and pride of a strong Alpha Lion, he knew he would win her. He just had to be patient and let her run and have a bit of fun. There was no need to force her will. Jungkook released her lip and backed up just enough to allow her to move, if she so chose.

  Rayne didn’t close her eyes when Jungkook kissed her. In fact, she barely breathed. The kiss was sweet and soft, just a touch of his lips to hers. A message. The entire encounter had her head spinning, and she was unsure of where to go from there. He was giving her space and letting her decide. No male had ever done such a thing with her. She was strong and stubborn, and the males she had known all thought they had to physically force her to obey.

   This male was confident and strong and, like Agust did with Natalie, he was allowing her freedom to make her own choices. But he also scented her, which meant he claimed her. Jungkook wanted her to know that he accepted her as his Mate, sassy obstinance and all.  And Rayne had no idea what to do with that information. She was ready for a fight, not this.

Next

Chapter List

[noonastopride]

Pride, Chapter 4

The Northern Pride formed to give some of the female Alpha Hybrids a safe place where they could live, and thrive, away from the aggressive advances of weaker males.

The idea of Mates was like a fairy tale to them, until one of their own finds hers on a business trip.

Agust was happy working as a chef in his mother's restaurant in South Korea, but dropped everything to be with his Mate. After a tense introduction to her Pride, he makes himself at home and finds he fits in with the women his Mate considers her sisters.  

Now that he’s met them, he suspects the females of the Northern Pride might actually have Mates; his brother and friends from his Pride back in Korea.

                                           *Mature Content*

Chapter 4

  The way the women all clumped together as they came out of the garden was not planned. As each one made their exit, their nerves seemed to kick in. Instinct told them to stick together for the battle ahead. At least, that was how Rayne was thinking of it. Although all of them were strong in their own rights, the women seemed to naturally crowd behind Rayne, trusting that she could handle leading them into what lay ahead.

  The scents in the air were intoxicating, and each woman had goose bumps of anticipation as they started toward the house.

   The group of men had had an eagle eye on the garden, and each one tensed as the gate opened. All seven growled low in their chests, their instincts telling them to move, and to claim what was theirs, as the women appeared.

    Agust and Natalie had gone quiet, watching this first meeting with bated breath. The couple was excited for these special people in their lives to meet, and have the kind of love they’d found. And part of Natalie was especially giddy to see how Rayne’s Mate would prove that he was strong enough to be her’s. That he could take care of her. She knew Rayne wasn’t going to make it easy on him, but Agust had assured her that this man was more than up for the job. He also thought the idea of Jungkook having to work for it was entertaining. He was the youngest of the group, and tended to get away with everything.

   As the huddled women took a collective breath, they began their ascent up the lawn toward the group seated around the table on the patio. Rayne took the lead, schooling her features as she approached her Mate for the first time.

   It wasn’t hard to pick out which one he was. Looking beyond the tingling that ran up her spine when she looked into his eyes, the fuzzy black cat purring contentedly in his lap told her everything she needed to know. That he was her Mate, and Luna was a traitor. Someone was not going to get her daily catnip treats for that kind of behavior.

  Her eyes met the man head on, knowing full well what kind of challenge it represented. Her features never changed. Her breathing remained calm. She wanted this man to know that he posed no threat to her.

   The handsome stranger’s lips pulled into a smirk as he took in her demeanor. Agust had warned him that she would not be falling at his feet in adoration like the females he was used to dealing with. Most of them caught a whiff of his Alpha and begged to please him. Not this one. This one radiated her own powerful Alpha energy and was going to make him work for it. He tilted his head down and kept his eyes on hers, accepting the challenge she set, and letting her know that he was ready for it.

  Rayne’s nostrils flared as she took in a deep breath. Their eyes never broke contact as they had this silent war of the wills.

   Two things happened simultaneously that had her breaking eye contact. First, Scarlett’s basket of greens from the garden hit her in the stomach as the woman thrust it into Rayne’s arms, muttering “I’m going to climb that man like a tree.”

Rayne took the basket, replying “Since when do you climb trees?”

Scarlett tore her eyes from her Mate’s for a split second to give Rayne an incredulous look before she firmly stated “Today.” And moved toward a tall man with dimples that had unfolded himself from the chair to meet with her. She was tiny in comparison, and Rayne thought that she could, indeed, see Scarlett climbing a man that large.

   A little whimper of “ohmygod” from behind her took Rayne’s attention off of the couple in front of her. Her eyes landed on her Mate’s again for a moment before she deliberately turned her back to him, effectively telling him that she didn’t think that he wasn’t a threat to her.

  What she didn’t see, though, was that Jungkook, her Mate, was smiling, amused by her antics, and taking the opportunity to have a nice look at her backside.  

  Rayne turned to find Rokki doing her best to hide behind the crowd of women. Her panicked eyes met her friend’s, and then flicked back up to the man sitting at the table. The man that was looking at her like he was going to have her for lunch. The man that was so beautiful it hurt to look at him. The man that was her Mate.

“Jesus, his stare is intense.” She whispered to no one in particular as she lowered her face to look at the ground. Rokki was not a weak Alpha in any way. She had plenty of power in her to get things done. But, Rokki was very shy in certain situations, and beautiful men were her weakest point.

Although this power dynamic game she was playing with her Mate was entertaining her, Rayne knew that Rokki needed her. She moved to the other woman and wrapped a protective arm around her, saying

“Come on. Let’s take our baskets to the kitchen and wash these things up for dinner.”

Before leading the woman away from the group.

“Our Mates just walked away from us,” Jin casually said to Jungkook before taking another sip of his beer.

“That they did,” The man answered with humor. Although his woman was proving to be difficult, he couldn’t help the wide grin on his face.

Rayne led Rokki into the kitchen of the large house and the women focused on the task of cleaning the vegetables. Well. Focus as much as they could while knowing that the men they were fated to be with were just outside the door.

   Natalie wasn’t surprised when Rayne led Rokki into the house, and thought she should help the others along a little bit,

“I know you’ve all spoken on video chat before. Do we need to do some introductions?” she said in the business tone the women knew well.

She spoke as she stood and moved to the group of women, “Rayne and Rokki just took the veggies in to get ready for dinner,”

Seokjin and Jungkook perked up at their Mates' names. Jungkook knew her name from that very first time Agust introduced her a few months ago, but she’d never joined in on the other video conversations they’d had. He and his brothers had had chances to talk to the rest of the girls many times, but this was their first actual in-person meeting, and the knowledge that they really were Mates was hanging thick in the air, as was an added pressure and intimidation that hadn’t been there when the groups were on video chat.

Seokjin and Rokki had spoken a few times, but always with the group around. It warmed his heart when he got her to laugh at one of his many jokes, and now he knew why. She was his. HIS. And he was hers.

   While Jungkook was amused and even content to allow his Mate to run a little before he reined her in (he did love a chase,) Seokjin did not have that kind of patience. While his Mate may have thought she got away from him, he was not that far behind. In fact, he had never lost sight of her when she went inside, he just got up from the table and moved along the bank of windows that lined the back of the house. He knew her friend was aware of him watching, she’d turned his way a couple of times. It seemed like she was tracking his movements, and trying to keep his Mate unaware of his stalking.

That just wasn’t going to do.

“We know who they are, Natalie,” Scarlett said with a little uncharacteristic nervous waver in her voice. She may sound nervous, but her head was held high, and her eyes were firmly set on her Mate. His dimpled smile was gentle, but when he stood to properly greet his future he looked anything but. Namjoon was tall, and his muscular frame had his Mate weak in the knees.

“Jesus christ, you’re huge,” Scarlett said under her breath, drawing strained laughter from the other women around her. They too, were focused on their Mates, but the little bit of humor helped them relax and break the ice.

    The men stood and went to their Mates, no longer content with waiting for them to make the first move.

Natalie watched them pair off and was surprised at how reserved they all were,

“You would have had me laid over the table by now,” she said quietly to Agust.

He chuckled and slid the hand that had been sitting on her thigh up to her ass, “That’s because we were caught off guard. They knew they were possibly meeting their Mates, so they were ready for it. I can still lay you over that table though.” he growled and moved as though he was going to ravish her in front of everyone. She shrieked and laughed as she held on for dear life when he stood, bringing the attention of everyone around.

“Um,” Angel cleared her throat as the laughter died down, “We have a big dinner planned for you.” She couldn’t look away from the man in front of her. Her Mate. She had their entire wedding planned within five minutes of making eye contact. A lot of hybrids don’t opt to have formal weddings, and Angel had never wanted one, but the moment her eyes met Jimin’s, her world view changed.

   She could see how the entire backyard would be decorated, her dress, and the suit he would wear.

   And, unbeknownst to her, Jimin was doing the same thing. He could see himself standing at the end of the aisle as she walked to him, and his heart constricted. It was everything he never knew he wanted or needed.

“I mean,” Angel continued, “I… we… should get it started before you get too hungry.” Angel usually took care of a majority of the cooking in the Pride, but since his arrival, Agust had been picking up the slack. The two of them made some delicious food together when they got started.

“I could eat.” a baritone voice rumbled from behind them. Kim Taehyung had his Mate’s hand held to his lips, and her body pressed against his. It was very obvious that food was not what he was hungry for.

   Ana was lost in his eyes, and if she was being honest, she felt the same. Her whole body was in tune with his and ready to take him on. The two of them had suspected their connection and had privately started video chatting away from the group after their initial meeting. Now that they knew for certain that they were Mates, keeping their hands to themselves was proving to be difficult.

“Should’ve come with me yesterday and cleaned that dinner plate, Ana.” Angel chuckled.

Jimin looked confused, “Did she not help with dishes after you cooked?”

Angel turned bright red and giggled like she’d been caught doing something naughty.

Although he was entertained watching the new couples come together, Agust had his wits about him enough to say,

“Maybe we should figure out the sleeping arrangements before we start cooking, Angel.”

   Ana smiled shyly at Taehyung and said, “Let’s get your luggage. I’ll show you where we are sleeping.”

    Tae’s smile took on a naughty air and he said, just loud enough for Ana to hear, “We aren’t going to be doing much sleeping. Not for a while anyway.”

   She giggled and took his hand so she could lead him into the house to get his luggage. Ana’s cabin was not too far away. It wasn’t very big, basically a studio with just enough room for her bed, a small kitchenette and a full bathroom. She spent most of her time in the big house with the others, although it had been nice to have this space to go to when Natalie and Agust got too noisy.

   She pointed out little details of their property as she and Taehyung walked across the lawn. The others didn’t know, but she and Tae had kept contact since being introduced all those months ago, and both of them had suspected that they were Mates from the beginning. They had only talked a handful of times before Tae had brought it up,

“Ana? I don’t want to scare you off, but I do think that you are my Mate. Please don’t freak out!”

Ana smiled and responded in kind, “I think so, too, Tae. You just feel like…” she paused trying to find the right word. In the end, they both spoke in unison when she found the courage to say “Home” out loud.

   Ever since that night, it seemed like they were in constant contact. Texting, calling and video chatting as often as they could, given their time zone differences. Plans had already been made for the entire group of men to come visit, and Tae hadn’t been able to find a valid excuse to travel before everyone else. He didn’t tell his friends his suspicions, though. He and Ana wanted to keep their connection to themselves until they could meet in person and truly know if it was real and they truly were Mates.

   And there they were, walking hand in hand toward her cabin, rolling his luggage behind them with the knowledge that they were about to consummate their mating hanging in the air like a thick fog.

   Ana had the feeling that she should feel a little shy, or even hesitant, about being so intimate with a man she only just met in person, but it felt as natural as breathing when they dropped his luggage just inside the doorway of the cabin and lunged for each other. It was like they’d been kissing each other their whole lives. Their lips molded and worked together exactly like they were made for each other.

   Taehyung’s hands landed on her ass for only a moment before he slid them down to pick her up to make it easier to get to the bed that was against the opposite wall. He’d fantasized about this moment. They both had. Tae and Ana had thought that their first time making love would be sweet and seductive. That they would have the chance to worship each other and take it slow.

   They were very wrong.

   The primal instinct to connect and Mate had been building for months, and with that build up it was now too strong for both of them. They hadn’t even gotten all of their clothes off when Taehyung pushed himself balls deep, bottoming out inside of her a lot easier than she would have ever imagined, given his size. But her pussy had been preparing for this moment ever since she caught a whiff of his scent in the air. It was like a faucet had been turned on, and if she wasn’t currently screaming in orgasm at the mercy of his punishing thrusts she might have worried about it.

   The feeling of making love with your Mate was incredible! It was like their bodies were made especially for each other. Ana was able to take his entire, generous, length and felt like she was floating on some heavenly plain. Her body was singing from head to toe when Taehyung started to growl from deep in his chest. Ana’s entire body spasmed and shook at the sound, and while her orgasm nearly had her blacking out, the rhythmic squeezing on Tae’s cock was far too much for him to handle.

  They’d never spoken of starting a family, and he would rather wait to even think about it,

but that didn’t stop him from holding her tighter and growling out the words “Take it, Mate. Take it all.” as he came inside of her. He may have also babbled a little bit about breeding her, but once he’d calmed and had his mind back, he wasn’t going to admit to it.

   Taehyung rolled to the side and collapsed to the bed when Ana had finally stopped shaking, and pulled her to lay across his chest. She nuzzled into the crook between his neck and shoulder, and was terribly irritated by the material of the shirt that never made it off of his body. In fact, her shirt and bra were only pushed up above her breasts and she still had one leg in her pants. She lifted her head and laughed when she saw that Tae had only pushed his pants down to his thighs.

“So much for a slow and sweet first time.” Ana said with a chuckle.

“I had planned on worshiping you, love. But, damn that urge to mate is strong! I’ve never felt that before.” Tae blew out a breath and ran his free hand through his hair before he kissed the side of Ana’s head, “Are you ok? I was pretty rough.”

   Ana hummed into his neck and slid her body over the top of his. She finally got her shirt and bra off when she sat up, and kicked her leg out of her pants before she settled on his midsection. Taehyung followed suit, with his shirt anyway. The pants were a little more difficult with his Mate straddling him like that. In fact, watching her wiggle and jiggle like she did while trying to undress the rest of the way had his body reacting a lot sooner than he thought it would.

   Ana felt him get hard again and bit her lower lip before she reached down and lifted his cock up so she could slide down on it. All thoughts of anything and anyone that weren’t in the cottage were forgotten as the couple lost themselves in each other.

Next

Chapter List