Page 25 of Dark Auctioned Mate

But she was here now, and she was not retreating.

“There they are,” Sara pointed towards the other side of the clearing.

Alanis followed her gaze, and she almost choked on her spit. Rael was in one of his sparring rings with his brothers. All three were shirtless. Their skin was glistening with sweat, and their muscles flexed as they moved. Rael was leaner than Silas, yet bulkier than Javi.

She watched him swing with a succession of blows, his body writhing and moving so lightly. No movements or energy were wasted. Each blow was accurate, calculated, and crushing.

“Stop staring, stop staring,” she scolded herself inwardly. “Concentrate on the training and not how handsome he is without a shirt on.”

But her body had other ideas. A twinge of heat low in her belly was a reminder that the orgasm Rael gave her was a brief respite. The pain was growing once more, aggravated by the fact that she saw his naked body and remembered what those hands had done to her.

She rubbed her thighs together slightly, attempting to relieve the increasing pain. It was going to be a long afternoon.

“Alanis!”

She turned and saw Rael running towards her. He had pulled on a shirt, which was even more distracting than being naked because it clung to his sweaty skin.

“Hey,” he sounded a bit out of breath. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to watch the training.” Alanis tried to keep her voice neutral. If that’s okay?”

His eyes roamed over her face. “Are you certain you are up to this? I think you should rest because—”

“I’m fine,” she said sharply, then lowered her voice. “I can bear an hour or two of watching people spar, Rael.”

He looked like he wanted to argue, but Silas called his name across the clearing.

“I must go,” he said reluctantly. “But if you need me…”

“I know where to find you.” She smiled in a way that she hoped was reassuring. “Go. I’ll be fine.”

He nodded and ran back to his brothers.

“He is concerned about you,” Elle said from behind.

“I know.” Alanis watched Rael return to the training circle. “But I have to show that I am not weak, or a delicate object that has to be under constant observation.”

“No one thinks that you are weak,” Elle said in a low voice. “There is no harm in looking after yourself when you have to.”

Alanis gave her a tight smile as the training session commenced. Silas raised his voice and reminded everyone to pay attention.

The first half hour went by, and Alanis was impressed. The training was hard, concentrated, and was evidently aimed at achieving combat effectiveness. She was familiar with some of these methods because of her own instruction with the Lumen, yet here there were differences—modifications to shifter strength and speed that rendered the maneuvers smoother and deadlier.

She was mentally putting them in her head and thinking about how she could use them. Even without the ability to shift, she could use some of these principles to her advantage.

Then she saw a woman. She was tall, fit, with dark hair, drawn up in a high ponytail. Alanis had noticed her around the pack grounds before, but had not given much thought to her. At this moment, as she proceeded around the training circle toward Rael, Alanis was listening very attentively.

She laughed at something that Rael said, brushing her hand on his arm, and her body was tilted towards his in a way that was flirtatious. Alanis could feel something ugly and hot coil up in her chest.

She was just being friendly, Alanis thought to herself, and Rael wasn’t giving her an opening. He had moved away, leaving space between them.

But this woman bridged the gap once more. She touched his shoulder, her fingers lingering. When Rael stepped behind her to adjust her posture, she leaned way too far back.

“You’re jealous.” Sara giggled from her side.

“I-I am not!” She spluttered. But Sara was right. She was jealous. Furiously, irrationally jealous. The fierceness in her chest was no longer arousal—it was now possessiveness, savage and wild.

Something within her snarled, mine. He belongs to me. Get off of him.