Fated To The Beta

"I am guessing by your aura you're pretty damn angry," I snort, folding my arms across my chest and looking out the window.

Kora paces angrily in my head, her anger just as piping hot as his. She feels betrayed that Ezra would prevent her from shifting. “He can kiss my furry white ass. He isn't the only one that is angry,” Kora growls.

Ezra's grip is so tight on the steering wheel that his knuckles turn white as he weaves in and out of the traffic like a lunatic before turning off on the back road leading to the packhouse.

"I didn't think she would be a problem. I also didn't notice she was one of your teachers, Kat," he breathes out, his grip loosens slightly, yet, his knuckles are still pressed tightly under his skin, and his teeth are still clenched. I don’t know if his anger is paired with Maddox’s, but he has been quite temperamental for the past week.

“Bipolar much? The man has got problems, a few screws loose in that pretty little head of his,” Kora says, swishing her tail angrily. A raspy growl fills my head like a broken lawnmower, I can keep it from slipping out of my lips, but it doesn't prevent her from giving me a fricking headache from the constant strangled noise.

"I get it, you're pissed, I am too, but can you stop that? I need to be able to hear myself think, Kora." She huffs at me in response and, if anything, picks the growling up another level. She deliberately knocks her tail in the small space, so a constant thumping joins her broken-ass growl—damn wolf.

"I will make sure she leaves you alone, or I can fire her if you want?" Ezra offers, finally sitting back in his seat in a more relaxed manner.

Too late now, there will be no point changing my teachers this far into the year, and firing her isn’t the issue. It is how she spoke to me, and he stopped me from calling her out on it. "No, I just don't want her near you. She was almost sitting in your lap."

"I have no interest in her. You are my mate: you and you only, Kat. I don't want anyone else. And I told her to leave."

"You should have commanded her to," I correct him.

"I was diffusing the situation. I don't like commanding people against their will." Ezra keeps his eyes on the road and avoids my gaze, which makes me scoff.

"Yeah, but you have no problem commanding me, right? Should I start calling you Alpha again?" I snap.

"No, we are equals, I have told you that. You don't get to call me that, and what did you expect? You were walking away from me!"

"Equals, yep, it felt really equal when you commanded me like fucking dog," I snarl. He growls, but I am far past putting up with his or Maddox’s shit. "Shut it, Maddox. I am not in the mood to deal with your temperamental ass today," I scold him.

"Kat!" Ezra growls in warning, and fur sprouts up his arms.

He suddenly jerks the car off the road and cuts the engine abruptly, his skin rippling as Maddox tries to force his way through.

“Maddox, stop it,” Ezra grits out, tossing his door open when Maddox forces the shift before he can even properly get out of the car. His clothes shred to pieces, his door still wide open as a feral growl rips out of him.

I quickly move, leaning over to close his door, and Maddox growls louder. My hand freezes on the handle before I sit back in my chair, letting his wolf have his temper tantrum.

Maddox’s teeth bared, he flexes his claws on the ground. He is pissed off and clearly doesn’t like being told to shut up. I unclip my seat belt, readying myself to jump out of the car if needed when he turns toward it.

“Kat?” Kora worries in my head.

I glance at Maddox as he stalks toward the car before charging at it.

“Oh shit!” Kora shrieks, trying to force me to shift. I shove her back. I am over his wolf trying to intimidate us all the damn time. Or maybe I am just so angry that it made me suddenly not care for his rage and turned me suicidal.

I point my finger at him. "No! I will get out. You will ruin his car!" I snap at him. He growls, his claws sinking into the leather seats before he backs up, and I glare at him before twisting in my seat.

I throw my door open while muttering to myself, only for him to stalk me around the side of the car.

Maddox snarls, snapping his teeth and pacing back and forth. His fur is all raised, and he keeps chuffing and snarling at me like some deranged bull.

My shoes crunch on the ground as I reach his side of the car when he charges at me. “Kat!” Kora shrieks.

My heart skips a beat when I suddenly remember what Ezra said, “Never run from him when Maddox has control,” so I do probably the most stupid thing I have ever done as he charges at me. I suck in a deep breath, praying my stupidity doesn’t get me killed, and I drop onto my ass, sitting on the dirt ground.

Maddox whimpers when I sit down. He sinks his claws into the dirt, and I can tell he is expecting me to run. He skids across the ground straight toward me, smashing into me. His huge body crushes me for a second as he tries to pull up before he jumps off me. I pull some of his fur from my mouth, his torso having smacked into my face briefly.

He turns, growling at me, his teeth mere centimeters from me as he snaps his teeth next to my face, his hot breath breezes across my skin before he sniffs my neck. "Are you done?" I ask dryly.

He nips my mark, which is usually a sign of dominance growing up in a wolf pack. I smack his nose when he breaks my skin. And he growls, nipping it again only harder, wanting me to bare my neck in submission.

"Kitty!" I hear him growl menacingly through the link.

"Don't bite me, have some manners," I tell him when he shoves me with his giant paw on my chest, pushing me against the car and growling at me. He tries to nip me again, but I drop my head, refusing to let him get near my neck.

Blood trickles down and into my cleavage. He nips my shoulder next, breaking the skin and making me hiss at the sting.

“Maddox!” I snap at him, and he growls beside my ear, trying to get to my neck.

“Do what he wants,” Kora worries in my head. “Or let me shift, he will hurt your useless skin suit,” she says, pressing beneath my skin.

I shove her back, earning a growl from her, but Maddox has to learn just because he is bigger doesn’t mean I will put up with him being an asshole.

Seeing his paw on my chest, I grab it and bite it as hard as I can with my blunt teeth. He whimpers, ripping his paw away and licking it. He turns his deadly glare on me. I sputter, gagging and pulling more fur from my mouth, and he growls again, making me glare at him.

"You don't like being bitten, so don't bite me. It hurts, doesn't it?" I scold him before retching, his fur is sticking to the roof of my mouth, and I try to spit it out, gagging on some. I check my shoulder, touching it. The trickling blood is ruining my tank top. “See? You hurt me, Maddox,” I tell him, holding my fingers out to him, he sniffs my fingers while Kora shakes in my head.

“Don’t give him your hand. He will bite it off. Stupid humans always offering fingers and limbs to deadly creatures, and they wonder why they lose them,” she huffs when Maddox's tongue flicks out, licking my fingertips.

Maddox drops his head and whines, then he lays on his tummy, his paws out front as he shuffles a little, trying to sneak closer. His demeanor changes to almost playful.

“Thank the goddess. Glad he has calmed down. If it were me, my fur wouldn't be so white, that's for sure,” Kora mutters.

“You had no problem taking him on for Mateo.” I point out to her.

“Mateo was in danger and is our friend and was willing to die for us,” Kora says, though her logic makes no sense to me.

Maddox whimpers, making me focus back on him. We are on the side of the road heading toward the packhouse. Luckily, no cars head out this far. Seeing a girl sitting with a huge black wolf towering over her would be a strange sight to see. He edges closer, sniffing the air, trying to get closer to my face. I grab his head, pulling him closer, and he licks my shoulder and neck frantically, cleaning and healing his bite marks.

"Let Ezra back in, Maddox. You don't shut him out.” He huffs, ignoring me, and continues licking me. “If you don't want him to do the same to you. It has to go both ways if you expect him to let you out," I lecture. He growls before rolling on his back between my legs.

"Are you sure you're not a pet, a lap wolf?" I tell him as he rubs his back on my legs, trying to get in my lap. He purrs, and Kora, the hussy, purrs back at him, which only spurs him on more.

“Kora, I am trying not to die! I need him to give Ezra control back. You purring like a bitch in heat is not helping,” I tell her.

“But he looks so cute when he is playful like a puppy,” she coos.

“He is huge. What puppy is his size with sharp teeth as long as my hand?” I tell her, shaking my head while scratching his huge chest.

“Fine, I will go, party pooper,” she grumbles, wandering off.

"Bring her back, Kitty. I want to play with Kora too," Maddox growls, nipping my hand.

Play? He wanted to rip us apart a few seconds ago! "No! Now bring Ezra back, please, Maddox. It's getting cold out here." The sun becomes blocked by the trees surrounding us. He growls, but sits up. He shakes out his fur before I hear bones dislocating and snapping. I let out a breath when Ezra returned in a crouched position, breathing heavily like he had been fighting for control the entire time.

"Thank God," he sighs, clutching my face in his hands, his hands trembling as he pulls me closer.

"He isn't as scary as you think," I protest, and he exhales. I can feel his fear smash me via the bond, and I grab his shaking hands. "I'm fine, I am right here. I am not going anywhere," I tell him. He lets out a breath, kisses my head, and starts checking me.

"Did he hurt you?" He asks, lifting my arms.

"He nipped me a few times until I bit him. I'm fine, Ezra." Ezra pulls back, looking at me as if I lost my damn mind.

"You bit him? With your teeth?" He asks, a little shocked.

"Yes, he was being a jerk. He kept nipping my mark, so I bit his paw. We need to get you a brush. Your fur is stuck in my mouth," I complain.

"You bit him, and he didn't attack you?"

"No, he was fine after. He rolled around on my lap." I shrug.

He cups my face, brushing his thumb over my cheek, before kissing me and nearly knocking me backward on the dirt.

"We need to get home," I squeal around his lips, mauling me. He laughs as I try to push his face away, his stubble tickling my neck. I wrap my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck.

“Stop! You're naked, and it's cold, I want to go home.”

“I love you,” he says, peppering my lips with soft, quick kisses. I let him go, and he pushes off his hands, offering me one. I take it and let him pull me to my feet.

“Let's go then, I am itchy and need a shower,” he says, wiping off some of the dirt sticking to his skin. He walks over to the driver's side door and groans when he sees his seat. Maddox's claws had ripped into the seat when he forced the shift, but thankfully that was the only damage.

“Maddox tried to get in the car,” I tell him, and he nods, climbing in and starting the car. I put my seatbelt on and shut my door before hearing my mother force the mindlink, yet she didn’t say anything, but I could hear her crying.

"Mom?" Still, she doesn’t say anything while she tries to get control of herself.

"Kat, is your dad with you?" She asks with a sob.

"No, I haven't seen him or heard from him. What's wrong?"

"I told him, and he left. He wouldn’t even look at me, he just tossed the table across the room and left. He hasn't come back."

"Mom, he probably needs to calm down."

"You don't understand the way he looked at me…. Kat, he hates me. I hate me, I have ruined everything," she cries through the link, my heart twisting painfully in my chest at her words. "I want to see you. Can I come see you?"

"I'm with Ezra. Just let me think for a second," I tell her and focus back on Ezra, he is staring out the window while driving and hasn’t appeared to notice me mind-linking.

"I will meet you tonight at the river, ok. At midnight," I tell her.

"Ok, baby. See you then, I am going to try to find your father," she says before closing the link.