Nikolai’s Wolf: Chapter Three

She sat back on her haunches and rested. She studied them as they trod into the clearing. Rory was the massive red wolf with a large barrel chest. In wolf form, he was the size of a small pony. As a man, he was short, standing only five-nine, but stocky, thick with muscle.

Michael was equally large. His fur was a dull grayish black that reminded her of mud. She’d seen him fight before and knew he used sheer brute strength in combat. Caleb was the smaller of the two suitors. His coat was the gray of a timber wolf, complete with all the traditional markings. Of the three, he was the only one who could pass as a regular wolf. He was also the most vicious. He never quit, and he didn’t give an inch. A fight between Michael and Caleb should be interesting. Maybe they’d kill each other and save her the trouble. On second thought, that’s probably why Rory was here—to ensure no one died.

Instead of confronting each other as she expected, her brother and Caleb sat down on their haunches on the side of the clearing, out of the way. Michael approached with his head and tail high, his steps oozing confidence. The fool actually thought she’d submit. She crouched in challenge, ears straight, and growled. Something was wrong. This wasn’t the way things were done. Even her wolf knew and was angry.

Her brother’s words about acting like a bitch came back to mind. It was suddenly obvious. He had handpicked one of these men to be her mate. These were the two he had thrown at her most often. Tonight, he was hoping one of them would leave the clearing victorious.

She looked at Rory and snarled again, low in her throat, expressing her displeasure. Michael growled in return. She knew her refusal to simply drop and present herself for mounting would infuriate him. He would see it as a challenge to his manhood. They circled each other warily, watching to see what the other would do. She waited, knowing Michael would use his size to try to overpower her.

Suddenly, he sprang. Agile on her feet, she rolled out of the way. In the process, she caught him with a quick nip to his sensitive underbelly, drawing first blood. Spinning around, she crouched, already waiting when he landed and turned.

She’d surprised him. No one, with the exception of Rory, knew how well she could fight. MacDougal thought she’d be an easy victory. Now he was pissed. Although with his ego, he more than likely thought she got in a lucky blow.

He came at her again, using the same attack, confirming her low opinion of his cognitive ability. Wanting this over, she pulled every dirty trick her brother had ever taught her and defeated him quickly with only a few scratches to show for it.

Michael would have continued to fight, no doubt unable to believe a woman had defeated him, but her brother called him off. It was either stop as commanded or face the McFelan.

As MacDougal skulked away, Caleb entered the clearing. She felt like a wrestler being tag-teamed by her opponents.

Caleb was closer to her size. He was also fast and could think on his feet, which was why he was Rory’s second. She watched Caleb closely, knowing he’d had time to sit and study her fighting techniques. She wouldn’t catch him off guard like she had Michael.

He stalked slowly into the clearing, giving her time to submit. When she didn’t turn and present herself, he growled, low and vicious. She’d hoped when he realized she wasn’t interested Caleb would let it go. But for some unknown reason, he seemed to want her just as badly as MacDougal did.

She was tired, and Caleb was fresh. She couldn’t let him draw this thing out or her weariness would work against her. She took the initiative and charged. The only thing she had working for her right now was that he wasn’t trying to kill her. She wasn’t in a fight for her life, just her virtue. Of course, being mated to a man she didn’t want could be deemed as fighting for her life.

Caleb was ready for her and only sheer determination got her away from him without being pinned when his jaw locked around her throat. He was patient, toying with her, waiting her out, knowing time was on his side. He harassed her just enough to keep her on the move and from catching her breath. Sheer desperation gave her the strength she needed to defeat him, that and timely interference from her brother. Rory must have realized how determined she was not to submit, and called Caleb off.

As she stood there with her tongue hanging out and her sides heaving, Rory approached her. By this time she was ready to drop from pain and exhaustion as the adrenaline began to wear off. There were deep gouges in several places where she hadn’t moved quickly enough. Had Caleb actually been trying to kill her, no doubt she’d be dead. She wanted to shift back and heal herself, but she refused to be naked in front of these two, especially after tonight.

Shannon needed to close her eyes and rest, but that would have to wait until this entire fiasco was over. She couldn’t afford to show any weakness, not now. The rules, as she knew them, had seemingly been thrown out the proverbial window so she waited uncertainly to see what would happen next. It felt like she played a game where she was the only player who didn’t have a copy of the rule book. She’d always hated being left in the dark.