Claiming His Need by Ellis Leigh

affection after such a lewd act. I still didn’t know what had come over me. Whether it was seeing him naked…so very naked…or being alone with him in that tiny, private space, or if it was another effect of my heat cycle, something had made me want to throw him on the floor and have my wicked way with him. For hours. Or days. So long as we were naked together, the duration wouldn’t matter. I craved his touch and his attention, and he seemed to reciprocate my desires.  
    He stepped in front of me at the door, opening it with a wide swing of his arm. I walked onto the porch with a smile. Gates smiled back at me, all blue eyes and full lips. I wanted those lips on mine. Wanted to feel the way they moved over my flesh. His cloak billowed around him as the breeze picked up. A pack cloak with our insignia on the sleeve, the dark maroon color to denote him as a mated wolf of the Wariksen clan. My mother glanced at the two of us, and a smirk spread across her face. She knew I’d chosen his cloak color intentionally. I may not have been able to have my Rites of Klunzad yet, but I was certainly going to let everyone know the man was mine. Unavailable. Taken.
    Claimed.
    “Kaija, can you please let Collette know we will need the far west cabins opened for our new guests? These gentlemen will be tracking the nomads and would prefer to stay out of the main camp.”
    “Of course, Mother.” I glanced at Gates, but he wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were focused over my head at the group on the grass out front. And he was glaring.  
    “I would prefer if she didn’t go alone.” Gates’ voice rumbled from his chest, deeper and darker than normal.
    “Collette and Dante live just beyond the tree line.” My father pointed to where the peak of the cabin my brother and his family shared was visible through the pines. “We’ll be able to see her the entire way. And our guards are stationed around the property. No one will get close to her, young Gates.”
    My father’s voice held an edge of Alpha, making his request feel more like a command. Gates stared at him for a moment before dropping his gaze to meet mine.
    “Be quick.”  
    I shivered under my cloak at the steel in his voice. That was not the look of a happy man. I had no idea, though, what had happened to make him so angry since we’d walked outside.  
    With a nod and one final squeeze to his hand, I left Gates on the porch and descended into the crowd. One by one, the men stepped out of my way, though slowly and with more effort on my part than normal. I heard Gates’ growl as I pushed through the crowd but didn’t look back. Something in the air was making me anxious, and I wanted to get away as quickly as I could.
    It took nearly thirty minutes for me to walk to Dante’s cabin and deliver the message. It wouldn’t have taken so long but I couldn’t tell Luka no when he asked me to color a picture with him. And while thirty minutes wasn’t nearly enough time with my nephew, it was a long time to be separated from my new mate. At least, it seemed that way. I needed my mate, practically itched for his touch as I hurried down the path leading to the lawn of the Alpha house.  
    I crested the hill onto Alpha property, my eyes immediately scanning the yard for Gates. He sat with his friend, Sandman, and a large group of Breed and pack men. I grinned as the sunlight shone on his inky hair, bringing out blue highlights I hadn’t noticed before. So handsome. His eyes met mine as I walked across the grassy field. A wide smile bloomed across his face when he saw me heading his way. It was such an automatic response, such a natural reaction to seeing me that I nearly lost my breath. My eyes locked on his, both of us grinning like fools. A love story told in a single look.
    I passed one of the guards on my way to reconnect with my mate, not realizing it was Chinoo until he spoke.
    “You’re making a fool of yourself.”
    I noticed Gates’ frown as I turned and glared