The Bighorn Pack

*Authors note: Thanks for taking the time to read this! Any comments are appreciated and please take the time to vote! Any useful criticism is always welcome, along with any insight. Be warned that this is story based, not sex based, so be prepared if you are looking for a 'quickie'.*

.........

"Why can't the pack come to the 21st century? Why do we still have these archaic rules? So, you are just going to pimp me out to another pack? Really?" Kaylee fumed as she listened to her alpha. It was so unfair. Why did she have to be shipped out to another pack?

"Kaylee," her alpha said, exasperated. "We've been over this countless times! You know how this works; you know what happened when Hunter came here this last winter. You know what protocol states. He's the alpha of his pack, so you must go to him."

"What if I don't want to be mated to him? You can't just make me..."

"Kaylee! Enough! You get no choice in who your mate is, you are lucky to actually find your mate. There are several pack members who have yet to come across their mate."

"But Hunter is like 70 years older than me! Are you trying to pimp me out to some old guy? Who do I look like to you, Anna Nicole Smith?"

Her alpha covered his face with his hands. He looked like he was counting again. He must be hitting a thousand by now. Kaylee knew what would happen if she ever found her mate. One or the other would have to leave their pack to join the other. But she had the misfortune to have a mate who is an alpha of his own pack. Which meant relocating from Oregon to Montana. She had never been outside of Oregon before.

"Werewolves don't age, Kaylee. Why are you being so difficult?"

"Because I don't want to leave the only home I've ever known!" Kaylee yelled at him. A tear slipped down her face and she turned her back to him and stared out his office window. She heard her alpha sigh behind her and then felt his hands on her shoulders.

"I know you don't want to leave. And I know that going somewhere where you know no one is scary. But Kaylee, Hunter is a good man. He'll take care of you." He turned her around and pulled her into his arms. "It will be alright. You'll soon come to love him and look back at this day and laugh at yourself."

"Not bloody likely," Kaylee murmured into his chest.

"Come; let's run with the pack one last time before we leave."

Kaylee relented, for now, and followed her alpha outside where several of the pack was already changed. Kaylee closed her eyes and tried to do the same to her heart. She stripped out of her clothing and got to all fours and began to change. She would enjoy this last run with her pack, since she was sure she would hate her new one in Montana.

...........

"Gordon!" Kaylee turned her head in the direction of the voice. She had just gotten out of the car when someone approached. She had hoped to put off seeing Hunter a while longer. Like, maybe a few months, or even a year. But she had been packed up and in the car the day after her last run. Her alpha, or rather former alpha, Gordon, had driven straight through to rural Montana. She had lived closed to Portland, where there were plenty of things to do. She had never been this far away from civilization before. The only thing she was excited about was having more room to run. It was hard to do where she had grown up.

Hunter approached them as Gordon walked around the car to join Kaylee. He had her bags in hand already and sat them down beside her feet. Great, so he was in a hurry to get rid of her.

"Hunter," Gordon greeted the man. "How've you been?"

"Good, good. Won't you two come inside? You must be hungry."

Hunter stepped closer to Kaylee, hand extended for a shake. Before she reached out, she caught his scent. He smelled delicious. Damn it! Kaylee's hands flew to her face, trying to cut off the scent. Just because she was mated to him, doesn't mean she had to like it.

Hunter gave her a funny look before changing course and picking up her bags and leading them inside the house.

"Could you be any ruder?" Gordon hissed in her ear.

"Could you?" Kaylee spat back, which earned her an odd look from Hunter. Apparently Gordon hadn't told him the whole story yet. At least this should be a great way to amuse her.

"What's that supposed to mean," Gordon spat back.

"Just can't wait to be rid of me, can you? If you had it your way, you would have just pushed me out of the car while it was moving as you drove by!"

Gordon clenched his teeth, but didn't respond. Such a shame. Kaylee was spoiling for another fight. Gordon left her and walked inside the house after Hunter. He didn't even look back to see if she had followed him. That's what he gets for being used to all his pack obeying him automatically. Kaylee turned to stare at the car. The car, with the keys still in the ignition. Could she? Could she just take off? She wasn't like the rest of the wolves, she didn't need a pack. Right?

"Don't even think about it, Kaylee," Gordon yelled out to her. Kaylee huffed before turning back to the house and climbing the steps. She stared at the door but couldn't make herself go inside it. Not yet, anyway. She sat on the top step and decided to feel sorry for herself instead. She could hear them inside talking, probably about her. She wasn't ready for this. She wasn't sure she'd ever be ready for this.

Kaylee had always imagined when she mated it would be a gradual process. She knew it didn't work that way, but she had always hoped. Some boy from her pack, someone she'd known all her life who wouldn't take her away from her home. Who wouldn't make her move across several states.

Deep down, she knew the real problem was she knew nothing about Hunter. She'd met him once months ago when his pack visited. Packs generally don't come together like that, but there had been a civil war of sorts long before she was born. There were wolves who wanted to stay hidden from the public eye, who wanted a quiet life. There were wolves who wanted to go public about who they were. Mostly, they thought humans should fear them and that they shouldn't have to hide. Those who wanted to stay hidden and not start a war with the humans won out. Well, in the states anyway. Kaylee wasn't sure if packs everywhere else went through the same thing. Now the packs gather whenever they can to meet and discuss anything of importance and keep in contact. Probably through email, since Kaylee had never heard Gordon on the phone talking meetings or whatnot before.

"Kaylee, aren't you going to come inside?" Gordon sounded like he was losing patience. But then again, his patience had run out a long time ago, ever since Kaylee had discovered her mate. He was tired, she was sure, of fighting her tooth and nail on the subject. Kaylee had been so sure that he would relent and say she didn't have to leave, but she was wrong.

"No," Kaylee relied without turning around. Kaylee brought her knees up and hugged them to her chest. She was trying to close off her feelings. The last thing she wanted to do was breakdown in tears right now. She'd do that later, probably in the shower. She hated the abandonment she was feeling. She wasn't sure she was justified in it. Just because her parents abandoned her on Gordon's step and disappeared without a trace 26 years ago doesn't mean anyone else had abandoned her before. Until now. Stupid Gordon.

The screen door squeaked and it opened and banged shut. Kaylee tensed as footsteps approached her. She felt someone sit next to her and from the scent, it wasn't Gordon. Hunter settled in next to her, touching her from shoulders to thighs. He sat with her, patiently, until she was squirming from the silence.

"I just want to go home," Kaylee whispered.

"I know," Hunter said. No judgment, no anger nor any yelling, which was a point for him, if Kaylee cared to acknowledge that. "I know you don't want to leave your pack and coming to live here with a virtual stranger isn't easy. There are no other rules here. I can wait until you're ready, until you get to know me."

His voice was gentle and kind. He reached down for her hand and pulled her to her feet and she let him. He stood before her and she finally allowed her to get a good look at him. Okay, so he didn't look like someone's grandpa. He looked like he was in his 30s maybe and he had short dark hair and a strong muscular jaw. He was taller than she was. She was 5'5 and by the way he towered over her he was probably well over 6' tall. His eyes were a brilliant green, which were staring right back at hers with sympathy. Great. The bastard was feeling sorry for her.

"Why don't you come in and eat. You must be hungry since Gordon didn't stop for anything but gas to get here," Hunter said. He swept her blonde hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear before Kaylee moved out of his reach and hugged herself. He gave her a kind smile before holding the door open for her.

Okay, so the inside was much better than the outside. Well, the outside wasn't that bad. The house looked like those little log cabin things she had as a kid and made stuff out of with a deck that looked like it wrapped all the way around the house. The inside was very nice. It was warm and inviting. Somehow, she hadn't expected that. She had imagined it would be a lot like the boys houses back home, with socks and underwear all over the place along with several empty pizza boxes and questionable moldy items that could no longer be identified. The front door led into a very cozy living room, there was a big fire place set in brick in the living room with a huge TV set up on the mantle. There was a Native American looking rug under the coffee table, but somehow it fit the place without being cheesy or over the top.

Hunter nudged her to keep going. She tore her eyes away from the living room and walked into the dining room that turned the corner to the kitchen. A very nice kitchen. Kaylee hoped Hunter didn't want her to be a housewife sort of person. She had never actually cooked anything besides frozen pizza and fish sticks. She settled herself at the bar towards the sliding glass door. Like Gordon's house, the backyard was private. Hunter's yard ended at the woods. Very convenient.

Hunter had already been cooking before retrieving her. He pulled steaks out of the oven and they looked and smelled wonderful. Kaylee always laughed at the idea that wolves in books and movies at their meat raw when in human form. While being a werewolf would keep them from getting sick from uncooked meat, it was more appetizing to have it cooked. Of course, no werewolf liked their meat well done.

Kaylee almost drooled when Hunter set a plate down in front of her. She had inhaled the whole thing almost as soon as the plate hit the counter in front of her. When Kaylee looked up, Hunter was staring at her.

"Sorry," Kaylee said, looking away as she felt herself blush.

"It's okay. It must have been a long drive. Are you still hungry?" Kaylee thought about it for a moment but then shook her head. She wasn't stuffed but she no longer felt hunger gnawing at her guts.

"Good, you got her to come inside." Kaylee turned to see Gordon standing behind her. He approached her and pulled her into a hug.

"Please don't leave me here," Kaylee whispered in a last ditch effort. Gordon pulled back and smiled sadly down at her.

"Be good," was his only reply. He kissed both her cheeks and turned and walked away from her.

Kaylee stared after her alpha, hoping she'd wake up from this bad dream. But the longer she stood there, the more she thought that she really wasn't going to get to go home. She couldn't even make her feet move to chase after him, to try to climb in the car so he'd have to take her with him. She felt defeated and she didn't like it.

"Why don't I show you to our room?" Hunter said finally. Kaylee whirled around to gape at him.

"Our room? You can't be serious! I'm not sharing a room with you!" Hunter's eyes widened just a fraction.

"Yes, our room. I know you don't want to be mated, but we are. I can give you time and I can take things slow, but you will share my room!" Kaylee heard the command in his voice, but luckily for her, she didn't' have to obey. That was a perk to her being different.

"No, I want my own room. In fact, I want my own room in my own house or apartment." Kaylee crossed her arms and stared at Hunter, waiting.

"Great. I'm going to choke Gordon the next time I see him for not telling me you are an omega," Hunter sighed.

"Wait? How did you know what I was?" Kaylee dropped her arms to her side, shocked.

"Omega's are rare and most of the new wolves wouldn't have an idea what they are, but you're not the first I've met. But just because you are omega doesn't make you above the alpha. You are still required to obey me."

"That's exactly what it means! I don't have to do what you say!"

"Do you even know what your role is in a pack?" Hunter said, ignoring her last comment. Kaylee's mouth opened before slamming shut. Huh, she hadn't really thought about it. Gordon never told her and every time she went against something he commanded, he just rolled his eyes and left her alone. She didn't feel the need to lower her eyes when she looked at her alpha, or to cower at a more dominate wolf. In fact, she had never been in a fight to establish a pecking order.

Hunter grabbed her by her arm and led her into the living room. He sat down and pulled her down next to him. He stared at her, his eyes searching hers, probably to see if she was lying or not. But werewolves were good at figuring out what was a lie.

"Kaylee, you are different from the other wolves. We all have instincts that drive us. To fight, to challenge a weaker wolf if they are positioned higher than us in a pack, to defend the submissive or wolves who aren't dominate enough. You aren't made that way. When I look at you and you stare back at me, I don't feel the need to punish you for disrespect. Your eyes, manners and instincts aren't about dominance and challenges. They are about keeping the peace."

The words seemed to fly over her head. She knew most of that, but how was she a peace maker? How was she supposed to operate in a pack? Would that come in to play as the alpha's mate?

"Is my being an omega stopping me from mating you?" Wait, that doesn't make sense, Kaylee tried to explain it better before Hunter gave her a small smile.

"I bet it's a bit of both. When wolves normally find their mate, they are instantly attracted. It's kind of like real wolves being in heat, where both are controlled by their hormones and not by anything else. For you, you don't feel the need to submit to me because I'm more dominate. So you don't feel the need to just roll over and show me your belly. And I think you are preventing yourself from wanting to mate. You've been thrust into a whole new place, new rules, new life and I imagine you are struggling with it."

Okay, that made sense. She'd seen other wolves in her pack find their mates. They never seemed to resist the idea. Instead, they seemed more than willing to do whatever it took to be with their mate. She knew she found her mate, all the signs were there. She felt a pull towards him, like she already knew him. His scent was delicious and there were times when she felt her body respond to his. It was her mind that was holding her back.

"Do I really have to room with you?" Kaylee whispered. Hunter brought a hand up to her chin and forced her eyes back to his.

"Yes. I'm going to be patient with you, but my wolf won't allow you to be anywhere else but with me. If he had his way, you would be naked and in my bed now." Kaylee's eyes widened as Hunter continued. "But I don't let the wolf control all aspects of my life. You aren't ready just yet. I don' t think you'll hold out for long because I know what it's like to fight my wolf, but I also know you feel everything I feel."

Okay. That was sexy. Damn it! She can't be thinking that way. He's not sexy. Him waiting for her to be ready was how it was supposed to work. Just him being a gentleman. It's not sexy. It's not. Damn it, it really was sexy. Maybe it was just because she was emotional right now. It wasn't as if it was any other day, she had been dropped off far from home with a virtual stranger. Meeting him once or twice last winter didn't count. Not to her.

"Okay, show me our room." Kaylee groaned. Hunter pulled her up and took her hand. He led her up the stairs. There were three bedrooms upstairs and the one at the end of the hallway was theirs. He let her go in first. It was pretty big. Maybe three times the size of hers back home. In the center lay a huge king size bed. The bed was made. She didn't think he was the kind of man to clean up after himself. But then again, all she really had known about boys were from her pack. They were all slobs. His room was done in earth tones and was neat and clean.

Her bags lay beside the bed, unopened. She ignored them and looked inside the closet and then made her way to the master bath. A moan escaped her mouth. It was every girls dream bathroom. It was massive. Jet tub, a shower with two shower heads that was big enough to hold an orgy and his and her sinks.

"Be careful, if you keep moaning like that, I won't be able to control myself," Hunter whispered into her ear. Kaylee's face turned red but she stopped moaning.

"Go ahead, if you want a bath. This is your home now." Kaylee was having a hard time thinking about a bath. She could smell his arousal. It went straight to her head and then immediately to her pussy. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. But her body was slowly building up a heat she couldn't cool down. She was sure she felt feverish.

She felt a flutter of a kiss on her neck followed by Hunter's warm breath. Her body was ready to give in, but her mind was still holding on. Kaylee jumped out of arms reach and gestured for Hunter to go. The look he gave her made her know that he was going because he allowed it, not because he was threatened by her. Damn man. Kaylee slammed the door shut then leaned against it to try to clear her mind.

"Stupid werewolf hormones," Kaylee grumbled. Kaylee got the water going in the tub and watched as it took what seemed like an hour to fill. The tub was huge, and she was actually excited to have a tub she fit in. She wasn't all that tall; 5'5" seemed like nothing until you tried to submerge yourself in bathwater in a regular bathtub. Deciding to snoop around, she peeked into all the drawers and cabinets while she waited. In the cabinet between the two sinks, it was full of stuff. Stuff for her. Shampoo, soap, bath salts, hair ties, bobby pins, even make up. Kaylee took a hair tie and pulled her hair up and then stripped.

Another moan left her lips as she sank into the hot water. Almost immediately, her stress levels dropped to a more manageable level and she felt content. For the moment, at least. The only problem was that she could still smell Hunter. Her body had yet to calm down from her earlier response to him. Deciding that she didn't need a man to take care of her, she'd take care of herself.

Kaylee contemplated her choices and after a few moments she decided she needed her release. Her hands caressed her breasts, massaging and pulling at her nipples. Her nipples pebbled right away and she felt herself grow more aroused. She just hoped it was masked in the water. She couldn't help the moans and groans that came from her mouth as she played with her breasts.

Her right hand left her breasts and slowly made its way to her thighs. She teased herself, stroking herself on the inside of her thighs before spreading her legs wide and slipping a finger inside herself. She gasped as she slipped another finger inside of herself. It had been a while. Too long without sex. If she had sex sooner, she might have not responded to Hunter. Okay, she admitted that was a lie. She knew she would still respond to him. Her thumb circled her clit as she worked her fingers in and out of her pussy.