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Overview
Caught between duty and sweet temptation, what's a wolf to do?
Gunnar has a job to do. He was brought into the pack to be mated to Alfred and that's what he's going to do. Beta's have always been charged with taking control of the trouble makers in their packs, and Gunnar is going to do his duty by his new pack if it kills him.
Just because his eyes constantly stray towards another wolf, that's no reason to alter his plans. His alphas might believe in love matches, but Gunnar believes in duty - no matter how sweet the temptation to let his thoughts wander to a very different wolf might be.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780857154897 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Totally Entwined Group |
| Publication date: | 03/07/2011 |
| Series: | Pack Discipline , #3 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 97 |
| File size: | 257 KB |
| Age Range: | 18 Years |
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Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Gunnar registered the sound of running water just a moment too late. Steam swirled around the hot, humid little space as he pushed open the door and walked into the bathroom he was temporarily sharing with several other members of the pack. He was just about to take a pace back, close the door behind him and wait for the other wolf to finish his shower when he realised who was standing under the spray.
There was no step back. Gunnar froze as he ran his gaze over the slim frame that had been drawing his attention ever since he joined the pack.
Talbot blinked rapidly, no doubt in an effort to clear the water from his big, blue eyes. Bubbles from the soap he'd been lathering himself with continued to conceal parts of his torso for a few seconds, but they quickly slipped away under the force of the water. The omega was left entirely exposed to Gunnar's inspection.
Damn, but he was stunning. And, somehow, while he stood in the shower, he looked far more naked than he ever had at those times when he'd just switched back into his human form and hadn't had time to get dressed. He seemed far more naked than the beta was himself.
Gunnar looked down for a moment, eager to see if the little wolf had been doing more than washing under the hot spray.
No, Talbot wasn't even hard. Gunnar tried not to wish he'd taken an even longer route on his run and arrived just a few minutes later, when perhaps the omega would have been in the middle of something more interesting.
Dragging his gaze back up Talbot's body, Gunnar met the smaller wolf's eyes. Talbot immediately dropped his attention to the shower room floor, quick to show all due respect for their respective ranks within the pack.
That was exactly what he should do. It was precisely what Gunnar should want him to do. Still, he couldn't help but think that a few moments in which he could admire the younger man's eyes wouldn't have been such a terrible thing.
Shaking his head and forcing himself to snap back into the real world, where there were far more important things for a beta to think about than pretty blue eyes, Gunnar reached for the door handle. He stopped with his fingers wrapped tightly around it as the omega stepped towards him.
"You can ..." Talbot waved a hand towards the shower. "I'll wait until after you've finished."
Gunnar remained motionless for several long seconds as the steam rushed past him out of the room. He should leave. It was far too tempting for him to linger in the naked omega's presence. Gunnar knew that. Yet, somehow, he still found himself stepping into the bathroom and closing the door behind him, sealing them in the small space with the heat and vapour from the shower completely surrounding them.
Talbot swallowed rapidly as Gunnar silently stalked towards him. It was hard to believe that he wasn't already regretting inviting his pack mate to take his place. As Gunnar moved past Talbot and stepped under the shower, the little wolf retreated several paces, putting himself well out of range of the cascading water.
Folding his arms across his chest, the omega seemed to do his best to blend into the stark white tiles that covered every wall of the wet room. As if there was any chance they could share any space without Gunnar being acutely aware of exactly where the smaller wolf was!
Gunnar tilted his head back and let the water run through his hair. After all the rain that had fallen over the last few days, his run had left him streaked with dirt. The water turned muddy as it ran down his body and swirled around his feet. The warmth of the hot spray quickly sank into muscles that ached after so much exertion out in the cold, and sent a shiver of pleasure running down his spine.
As he reached for the shampoo, Gunnar glanced towards Talbot. He was just in time to see a far less enjoyable shudder run through the smaller man's body. Gunnar's eyes narrowed.
"Talbot."
Maybe it was the displeasure in his tone, or maybe it was just his voice in general, but the omega damn near jumped out of his skin at the sound of his own name.
Gunnar bit back a curse. Anyone would think he'd threatened to hang, draw and quarter the guy on a regular basis — that he hadn't actually gone out of his way to be kind to the omega ever since he joined the pack.
Nervous blue eyes blinked up at him from beneath a damp, blond fringe, but the little omega didn't say a word.
"Come here," Gunnar ordered.
Talbot slowly did as he was told, closing the gap between them with all the enthusiasm of a man who really did think he was heading for a noose.
Finally he stopped in front of Gunnar, just out of range of the spray.
"There was something you wanted?" Talbot asked, as the silence finally seemed to become too much for him to bear.
You!
Gunnar managed to bite the word back, but having to keep the truth inside his head did little for his temper. A growl emerged in its place.
He wanted Talbot. He wanted him facing the wall, with his hands braced on the pure white tiles, his legs spread and his back arched as he eagerly offered his arse to his more dominant mate.
Gunnar's hand tightened into a fist at his side. Well, he wasn't going to bloody well get what he wanted, so there was no point daydreaming about it.
Catching hold of the smaller man's shoulder, he dragged him under the shower. The little wolf gasped. He stumbled. Reaching out, he instinctively sought to brace himself against the tiles as he struggled to keep his footing. His hands skidded against the slippery surface.
Gunnar lurched forward. His arms quickly slid around the smaller man's body, holding him upright, instinctively seeking to keep him safe.
Talbot looked up over his shoulder and at him in confusion.
Be careful what you wish for, some sarcastic little part of Gunnar's brain piped up. You just might get it!
He had the omega against the tiles, exactly where he'd said he wanted him. But he couldn't do a single bloody thing with him now that he had him there.
"I wanted you to get back under the water before you froze to death," Gunnar snapped, as he snatched his hands away from the other man's skin and took half a step back. "What did you think I wanted?"
Talbot swallowed again, his Adam's apple bobbing rapidly with his obvious nerves. "I thought, maybe ..."
He took his hands away from the wall. Either obedience or an instinct to prevent hypothermia made him move to stand properly under the hot water.
"You thought?" Gunnar prompted as he glared down at the omega.
A blush rose to Talbot's cheeks as the hot water slicked the pale blond strands of hair back from his face.
"Answer the question," Gunnar ordered.
"I thought perhaps there was something you wanted me to ..." Talbot whispered. "I know in some packs ..." He wrapped his arms around his body again, and there was no way in hell it could have been because he was still cold.
Gunnar's eyes narrowed once more. "What do you think happens in 'some packs'?"
Talbot shrugged.
Gunnar folded his arms across his chest. It couldn't have been a more different gesture from the way Talbot habitually hugged himself. Planting his feet firmly on the floor and stationing himself blatantly between the lower ranking wolf and the door, Gunnar didn't have to say a word to make it completely clear that they would stay exactly where they were until he got his answer.
"I ..." Talbot cleared his throat and tried again. "I know that an unmated omega is sometimes considered to be ... useful to the other unmated wolves in the pack," he stuttered.
Gunnar opened his mouth. He closed his mouth. No words emerged. If Talbot hadn't kept his gaze so firmly on the floor, he'd have seen his beta do a bloody good impersonation of a goldfish.
As he fought for the right words, Gunnar strove to push down his anger at the accusation. Talbot really thought he would ... it would be little better than ...
Gunnar lowered his gaze slightly as he ground his teeth together and struggled to keep his temper in check. The thoughts racing around his head suddenly froze solid.
The other wolf hadn't been hard when Gunnar first walked into the room. He had no doubt about that. The omega had been entirely soft while he stood shivering on the other side of the room, too. But now, Talbot wasn't getting scared by the idea of the big nasty beta pouncing on him and forcing him to submit to whatever he wanted to do with a man too small and too weak to fight back. He was getting turned on.
Gunnar's frown deepened as he looked back up to the omega's face and met his eyes. Talbot tried to look respectfully away, but, before Gunnar could even think about what he was doing, he had a tight hold of the younger man's chin. "Look at me!"
Confusion flashed across the omega's face as he looked everywhere but at Gunnar. "I don't understand, I —"
"Do as you're told," Gunnar bit out. "I won't take it as a challenge."
Talbot slowly obeyed the command. Scared blue eyes met Gunnar's. For the first time, Talbot held his gaze as several silent seconds passed. His jaw moved under Gunnar's touch as he swallowed rapidly, as if his nerves were close to getting the better of him.
Still not at all inclined to relent, Gunnar kept him there, making him keep his eyes up, until he was sure he had the best possible read on what the other wolf was thinking.
There was fear in him, but it didn't seem to be anything more dramatic than the base level mild panic that the other wolf seemed to spend his whole life paddling about in.
"You told me once before that omegas like to be useful."
Talbot nodded.
Suddenly, Gunnar couldn't help but wonder if the omega had been talking about the duties each member of the pack was assigned after all.
Reaching for the shelf, set in easy reach of the shower, Gunnar picked up a bottle of shower gel and pushed it into the smaller man's hands. "Make yourself useful."
Talbot looked from him, to the bottle, and back again, as if he really couldn't work out what the hell was going on or what he should do next.
His attention went to the bottle once more. Apparently working as much from muscle memory as anything else, he flicked open the lid and poured a small amount of the gel onto his palm. His hands were shaking. As Talbot reached out and put his fingers on Gunnar's shoulder, the beta could feel the younger wolf's touch trembling against his skin.
He made no mention of that fact as Talbot careful caressed his way down the outside of his arm, slowly working the shower gel into his skin.
It had been a long run, and he hadn't bothered to stick to the cleaner paths. There was still plenty of mud clinging to him, even after he'd been under the spray off and on for several minutes. Talbot frowned slightly as he rubbed at Gunnar's skin a little harder.
His tongue flicked out against his bottom lip as he seemed to focus in on the task he'd been assigned and forget everything else, even his own anxieties.
Gunnar glared down at him, more than a little bit enchanted by the simple submission in the smaller wolf's every movement. He had an easy, natural way about him, now that he seemed to be doing something other than panicking.
When Talbot's hand suddenly left Gunnar's body without his permission, the beta's first instinct was to catch hold of Talbot's wrist and pull him back where he belonged. He only just managed to keep that desire in check. His restraint was quickly rewarded when Talbot failed to retreat any further than the shelf where he'd left the shower gel. Pouring some more onto his hand, he worked it into a lather between his palms.
Talbot glanced back up at Gunnar, as if asking for permission to resume his task.
The beta nodded.
Reaching up, the smaller wolf set both his hands on Gunnar's shoulders and slowly massaged the lather down his chest. His movements seemed to grow more confident simply because no criticism was offered. Within minutes, he appeared to be enjoying himself a great deal.
Talbot never once looked up, but right then Gunnar wasn't sure if that was because he was submissive as hell or if the omega was just appreciating the view just as much as Gunnar was enjoying studying the other wolf's naked body in return.
He really was gorgeous. As Talbot's hands wandered over him, Gunnar had no way of hiding how his body responded to the other man's touch. His shaft was soon just as hard as the omega's cock, and curving back towards his stomach just as enthusiastically.
Talbot blinked rapidly as he seemed to notice that for the first time. His tongue flicked out to lick his lips.
Alfred.
Some annoying little part of Gunnar's brain repeated the name over and over inside his head, screaming that he should be looking at Alfred that way, that he should be sharing the shower with Alfred and he should be wondering what Alfred would do if he stepped forward, pinned him to the tiles and claimed him with a kiss.
Gunnar took a deep breath. He tilted his head back, letting the hot spray run over his face in the vain hope it might wash through his mind, too, and somehow clear the persistent fantasies of the omega out of his head.
The hot water failed to cool his lust in the least.
As Gunnar looked back at the omega, he found Talbot staring up at him with something dangerously close to hero worship in his eyes and what couldn't be anything but desire in his scent. Even the torrent pouring down over them couldn't disguise a wolf's scent that much.
Helpless to resist him a moment longer, Gunnar took half a step forward. He only just had time to catch a brief glimpse of the surprise that flashed across the omega's face before be brought their lips together.
Hot and strong and perfect — and so much better than anything Talbot had been able to imagine when he lay alone in his bed and tried to guess what it might be like to feel the beta's mouth against his.
As Gunnar's tongue swept past Talbot's lips and demanded entry to his mouth, the omega's hands grappled at the other wolf's shoulders. Gunnar was so much taller than him, he'd had to dip his head into what had to be a very uncomfortable angle to kiss him. Talbot quickly stretched up onto his toes in order to make their mouths meet more easily.
Suddenly the larger man stepped forwards and Talbot found his back pressed against the cold, wet tiles. It wasn't just their mouths that touched then. Gunnar's body pressed against him everywhere.
Talbot's cock rubbed against the other wolf's bare skin again and again as the beta pinned him against the wall with his whole body. A whimper echoed around the bathroom, a soft, pleasure filled, needy little sound that could never have come from Gunnar.
Another whimper escaped from the back of Talbot's throat. He'd never even realised he could sound like that before , but now that the ability had been unearthed, it was impossible for him to keep the little whimpers and moans back from the wider world.
The beta's tongue danced against his, seeming to purposely coax more and more desperate sounds out of him with each second that passed. The beta even encouraged Talbot to kiss him back, but he never went so far as to give up the lead to him.
Talbot had no doubt that Gunnar had scooped up every ounce of control that existed and claimed possession of each and every bit of it for himself the moment their lips met, and he couldn't have been happier about that.
Talbot's hands fumbled against the other man's shoulders, clumsily trying to pull him closer, to get more of anything and everything the other wolf was willing to offer him before the beta had a chance to change his mind.
Suddenly Gunnar growled against his lips. The next second, strong hands were wrapped around Talbot's wrists. His fingers were jerked away from the beta's skin so quickly shock ricocheted through Talbot's body. He gasped as Gunnar pressed his wrists against the tiles on either side of his head.
The beta's growl turned to a pleased, triumphant little noise as Talbot instinctively tried to move his arms, failed, and quickly fell still. A shot of pure bliss raced through Talbot's veins as he realised that he'd somehow stumbled onto an action Gunnar approved of.
The larger man took another half a pace forward, but Talbot's back was already to the wall. There was no way he could retreat. All he could do was spread his legs slightly and make room for the other man's feet between his.
The new arrangement once more brought his cock into intimate contact with the beta's thigh. Talbot moaned his pleasure as the water- slicked skin teased the tip of his erection.
"Please," he whispered, as Gunnar briefly broke the kiss.
The request was greeted by a new growl, but Talbot couldn't look down and display his submission the way he usually would. He couldn't have turned his lips away from the possibility of another kiss if his life had depended on it.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "The Duty of a Beta"
by .
Copyright © 2011 Kim Dare.
Excerpted by permission of Totally Entwined Group Limited.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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