Maara

Author's note: Thanks so much to everyone who has taken the time to read this story. A special thanks if you also took a moment to vote.

Please make sure to read Makara Ch. 01 and Makara Ch. 02!

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Part 3

~Makara

I stood silently as Silas eyed me, not sure exactly what to expect. If he was true to his word he would back off.

"Very well," he said, his tone deceptively casual. He raised his hands, freeing me from their grasp. "May I ask then, that you provide a distraction to my current... situation. As you can see there are certain parts of my anatomy that were somewhat invested in a different response."

I didn't have to look to know what appendage he was referring to. I had felt its hard length pressed against me.

"What kind of distraction?" I asked cautiously, knowing better than to agree to something without all the information.

"You can relax," he began, noticing my hesitation. "I simply mean a conversation."

"Okay. What do you want to talk about?"

"Perhaps we could go elsewhere for this discussion? My experiences have given me certain expectations of women in my bedroom and where their clothes should be. Imagining yours in a pile on the floor is not exactly conducive to our goal."

His eyesight moved down my body and I knew he was picturing me naked.

"A tour then?" I questioned, seizing an opportunity to look behind those beautiful double doors.

"A tour? Didn't Cade already give you one?"

"He didn't show me anything in the suite." I left out that he hadn't really shown me anything at all.

"Usually, the fun part of a tour is ending up in the bedroom."

"But that's hardly conducive to our goal." I threw back at him.

He chuckled.

"Right." He motioned to a door in the far corner of the room. "Through there is my bathroom, inside there's another door that leads to my closet." He developed a sultry tone. "Want to see?"

"Got any juicy secrets in there?" I questioned, mostly joking.

"I've been around a while, I assure you I have better hiding places for my secrets than my closet."

"Then no." I was nosey, but I had no interest in seeing rows of clothes and drawers filled with nothing but socks and underwear.

"Are you sure? It's quite cozy in there."

I ignored him, moving backwards out of the room, hoping he would follow me. He took a step forward. I excitedly ran down the hall to the beautiful wooden doors I so badly wanted to open.

His laughter reverberated off the walls.

"I see you had a specific intention in mind when you suggested the tour."

He appeared from around the corner and I smiled at him innocently, stepping aside to allow him access to the doors.

He wasted no time in opening them, with a quick click of the latch he pulled the heavy doors towards him and swung them aside.

I looked at him questioningly, waiting for permission.

"Well, go on then."

I bounded inside the room.

The first thing I noticed was the walls, lined floor to ceiling with row after row of books. Throughout the middle of the room stood shelves, hand carved with abstract details. I ran my hand over the swirling decoration, and noticed that each row was identified by a letter engraved on a golden placard.

"It's beautiful." I mumbled half to myself.

"This is just my private collection. It's nothing compared to the main library downstairs."

"The main library?"

"On the first floor. Did Cade not show you?"

"Uh, no. He must have missed that." I rolled my eyes. Stupid Cade and his stupid excuse for a tour.

"I'm sure he'll be happy to show you after your training tomorrow."

"What?" I turned to face him. He had settled into a large armchair, a small table to his left supported a lamp for reading, and a large table in front of him supported his feet. "I'm training tomorrow?"

"Of course. Are you surprised?"

"Well, yeah. I understand that you would want to get an idea of my skill level, but I didn't think you would want me to train right away. At least not until you've decided I'm trustworthy."

"I've already decided you're trustworthy."

"Really? I've only been here a day. Just this morning you said Cade had to test if I was trustworthy since I'm technically a stranger."

"I changed my mind. Call it intuition. Your father and brother didn't do you any favors by neglecting your training, I plan to rectify that. Cade will train you, starting tomorrow morning."

"Cade will? Like him personally?"

"Is there a problem with that?"

"I just didn't think he seemed very interested in training me."

"Well, I see big things for you in this pack and I want you trained by the best."

My curiosity flared. I desperately wanted to know what he had planned for me, but he didn't slow down for me to be able to ask him.

"Cade is the best, and not just because he's my son, therefore, he will train you. His opinion on the topic, whatever that may be, matters very little to me."

It was a little strange that Silas wouldn't care about Cade's thoughts, but I knew that sometimes Alphas had to make unpopular decisions.

"You would train your rival's daughter? I guess the fact that our packs are basically at war matters very little to you as well?"

"We have had peace for many years."

"Yeah, on paper, with the treaty. But violence has always been just a sliver away. I mean, just a few hours ago you tried to kill me."

"It was definitely more than a few hours ago. I'd say at least twelve, although it's not like I've kept a timer. Besides, I didn't attempt anything, merely threatened."

I glared at him, silently asking what the difference was, but he ignored me.

"And with Rune dead, it's not like he presents a challenge to me, so I hardly think he deserves to be called my rival, not anymore."

"And Rodan?" I asked before I could stop myself. Images from my dream flashed in my mind and I instinctively squeezed my legs together.

"Rodan?" He chuckled from deep in his chest. I looked to find his nostrils flared in recognition and his lips spread wide in a smile. "Is he what all the questions are about? You'd rather be there, with him? You'd rather have him rub his cock all over you? Picture it sliding inside you? Imagine his hands all over your body and get yourself off to the thought? Maybe if you go back he'll let you sit on his-"

"No." I interrupted, annoyed at how his words had increased my heart rate and sped my breathing. "I don't want that, I-"

"But you do want him, don't you? Not here," he continued, pointing to his head. "But everywhere else."

I swallowed. I wanted to deny it.

"Come on, Makara, we have a deal. No lies."

"Why is it so important for you to hear me say it?"

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about. I've merely asked you a question and expect an honest answer, per our arrangement." He smiled, betraying his words that he wasn't getting any enjoyment out of my discomfort.

"Yes." I finally managed.

He screwed up his face in confusion.

"Hmm, I'm sorry, we've talked about a number of things today, what is it, exactly, you're saying yes to?"

I glared at him, resolving to find some way to get him back for putting me through this.

"Yes, the thought of..." I paused, gritting my teeth, unable to make myself say the words.

"Fucking your brother?" Silas offered with a smile.

I gave him a subtle nod, annoyed at his contribution, but grateful that I didn't have to say it myself.

"...Arouses me." I finished, opting not to start the sentence over. "But only physically, and I have no control over what my body reacts to."

A satisfied growl rolled through him.

"Yes, I thought as much. And while I have to say that the fact is certainly...interesting," he shifted in his seat, making his erection even more obvious as it strained against the fabric of his pants. "I would be jealous if I didn't think you felt the same way about me."

"I thought the whole point of this conversation was to distract you from things that excite you after you failed to seduce me. How exactly are we achieving that?" I attempted to change the conversation. I hadn't wanted to admit my sexual feelings toward Rodan to myself, much less to Silas. In an attempt to wound his pride, I brought up the fact that he hadn't been able to get me into bed, hoping that would soften him, both figuratively and literally.

Unexpectedly, he laughed. I had hoped to throw him off balance but he was simply amused.

"Very well, you have a point. What would you prefer to discuss?" He asked, his laughter dying in his throat.

"Literally anything else."

"Alright. Shall we discuss the Moon goddess legend?"

"What about it?"

"What is your opinion of it?"

"My opinion?" I looked at him quizzically. "I love it. It reminds me of my childhood, before I knew or cared about what little control I had. Other than that, it's just a legend."

"Just a legend? You don't believe it's true?"

"I don't know. I guess it could be. It happened seventeen hundred years ago, so nobody really knows for sure." I leaned back in my chair, feeling more at ease with the current topic.

"They say all legends have a foundation of truth."

"But everything gets distorted over time."

"If it's false, why would someone go through the trouble of creating it?"

"We all want to know where we come from and it's a neat and clean way to explain why we can't shift." I paused as a yawn overtook me. "More likely that we just evolved past the need for our wolf forms."

"And if it's true? Do you think the curse is justified?"

"Yes, I think it's justified. If the legend is true, then we're not cursed, we're being punished. To receive a penalty so severe, as a species we must have done something to deserve it and we're at the mercy of the Moon goddess to decide if we've paid our dues." I let my head fall against the soft back of the chair, suddenly finding it difficult to hold its weight.

"You wouldn't consider it a curse?"

"Mm-mm, Punishment." I mumbled my disagreement as my eyes fluttered shut. My breathing slowed as I became less aware of my surroundings. I barely heard Silas as he spoke.

"One day when you meet your wolf and she's cooped up in your head, unable to run free as a wolf should," his voice echoed in my ears, a hazy, dreamy cloud settling over his words as I fell asleep. "You ask her if SHE thinks it's a curse."

Darkness surrounded me. Colorful clouds drifted in the distance, dancing and mingling, creating new colors. I watched, entranced by the movement.

The edges of the clouds became sharper, cleaner and more solid. I could easily see where one ended and another began, even as it was impossible to decipher what color or shape I was looking at.

I felt something at my feet and I looked down to find I was standing on grass, a cool breeze I hadn't noticed earlier gently pulling at my hair. Raising my head, I no longer saw the crushing confinement of the dark, but the vast openness of the sky, a shade of blue that I had never seen before.

Movement caught my eye and I turned. A wolf walked forward proudly, her fur matted with blood. Instinctively, I knew it was hers, but could see no wound. Stepping towards her, my head exploded in blinding pain. I blinked against the sudden agony, the edges of my vision going dark.

Almost as quickly at it appeared, the pain receded, and my vision cleared. The wolf stood, staring back at me, her pristine white fur showing no signs of the gore I had witnessed a moment ago.

I held her gaze for what felt like an eternity, staying decidedly still for fear of reigniting the fire in my head. Her eyeline shifted as she looked passed me, her head moving slightly with the action.

Without thinking, I turned to see what she was looking at. I gasped as the tall shelves of Silas' library towered over me, twice the height that they should have been and oddly cartoonish. Looking back to the wolf, I was faced only with the other, proportionately accurate, side of the library. I looked around at the rows of books, trying to puzzle out where the wolf had gone, or if she had even been there at all.

Strong hands on my hips and a hard body pressed against my back pulled me from my ponderment. He encouraged me to turn in his embrace, tucking his face into my neck as I did. My eyes fell closed as he nipped at my sensitive skin, a warmth spreading over me as his hands wandered over my naked back.

Noticing I was nude, I briefly wondered where my clothes were, the cool air now extremely obvious on my heated flesh.

He trailed kisses down my jawline, not bothering to pause before claiming my lips with his. I immediately opened my mouth to allow him access, enjoying the taste of him as I fingered lines of defined muscles on his chest.

I groaned in protest as he broke the kiss and pulled away. He smiled and I was surprised to see Cade looking back at me. I blinked. No, it was Silas standing there.

My eyes flickered around the room, waiting for my surroundings to change again, but nothing happened. My gaze settled back on the man before me.

He raised his hands, caressing the skin at my collar bone. He traced a path over my breast, stopping to tease and pinch at my nipple. Slowly, he stepped around me, pivoting so he was always facing me. I dropped my hands to my sides, unsure of what else to do with them and too distracted to find an alternative.

He stood to my right, his hands never leaving my body as he eyed me hungrily, enjoying my naked form from a new angle. He pressed himself against me and I was suddenly more disappointed than I cared to admit that his cock was hidden behind a pair of boxer shorts, as my hand brushed against the thin fabric.

His fingers teased the skin of my stomach as his hand dropped lower, leaving goosebumps in its wake. My hips rocked forward of their own volition, desperately seeking contact. A low, satisfied growl rumbled through his chest as he snaked his hand between my legs.

I gasped as he provided the friction I was looking for. He wrapped his other arm around my back to support my weight as my knees weakened, his ministrations having an immediate effect.

He expertly worked circles around my clit, seemingly aware of exactly where I needed to be touched. A moan escaped my throat, despite my attempts to strangle it.

As though I were a toy being posed, he turned me to the left, keeping his hand in place and thrusting his hips into my ass as he tucked me against him.

My head grew clouded as I got closer to my orgasm, my body incapable, or unwilling to concentrate on anything other than my impending release.

A now constant stream of whimpers and moans filled the air and he redoubled his efforts, increasing his speed and pressure.

My muscles tensed for one gloriously torturous moment. One moment where I was guaranteed to cum, but had not yet acheived it.

I clung to his arm as the pleasure washed over me like a wave, grateful that I could maintain my grasp on something as my body spasmed out of my control. If anything other than his fingers between my legs existed at that moment, I was not aware of it.

He worked me for another few seconds, making sure I got everything I needed.

As my orgasm started to fade, so did Silas. He pressed a gentle kiss to the back of my neck as his hands and hard muscles slowly disappeared, leaving me alone in darkness.

Sighing, I kicked off the blanket, seeking the cool air

as the remnants of pleasure ran through me. I sat up, breathing hard in frustrated satisfaction.

Six nights, I had been here. And five of them were plagued with dreams much the same as this one. My only truly empty sleep was my first full night, the postium having succeeded in giving me a restful slumber. I had fallen asleep in the chair in the library and Silas had carried me to bed. Or so he told me.

Every other night had been filled with torturous pleasures. Tonight was Cade's first appearance, and I had never seen the wolf before either. It was usually Silas or Rodan, sometimes both, with their hands all over me. I was always naked, but I could never remember how I got that way. And I was always powerless to stop them, not that I ever wanted to in the middle of the dream. It were as though the only thing that existed was the pleasure, and it didn't matter where that came from.

This led to frustrated mornings. I had mostly been able to ignore my desires during the day, not allowing my impulses to control where my thoughts wandered, only to have my subconscious mind betray me while I slept. The worst part was that I enjoyed every second of it.

Forcing myself out of bed, and without letting myself take another moment to think about my dream, I grabbed a change of clothes and a towel, aiming for a shower as I left my room.

Silas' bare shoulders over the back of the couch had become a regular sight, almost expected every morning.

"Morning, Makara," Silas' unusually strained voice greeted me.

"Morning," I mumbled quietly as I quickly walked past the couch. I knew he was looking at me, but I kept my back to him as I moved towards the bathroom.

"It's okay, keep going, you're doing great."

Confused by his nearly whispered words, I turned to face him.

Instantly, my eyes were drawn down. His pants, pulled down to just below his hips, compelling me to stare as a head bobbed in his lap. Every retreat of her mouth revealed his long shaft that I had often felt pressed against me, but had never seen, only to disappear again as she plunged forward, her swinging hair hiding her face.

I knew he had brought someone home with him last night. The thought didn't particularly bother me, but I hadn't expected a front row seat to their escapades. Swallowing, I pulled the slack from my jaw, hoping only a few seconds had passed instead of the eternity it felt like.

"Really, Silas? You have to do that here?" I asked him, finding him smiling back at me.

There was a slight slurping noise and a disappointed grunt as the women pulled herself off of Silas, wiping away a string of spittle.

"He is the Alpha. He can do whatever he wants, wherever he wants." I was surprised to see Emery as she ran her hand through her hair, revealing her face. But, Cade's words came back to me and I realized it made perfect sense. Cade was not interested in her quest for power so she went right to the source.

I rolled my eyes at her defiant tone. She spoke as though she were somehow superior to me as she sat, perched on her knees at Silas' feet. I stifled a chuckle at the contrast.

"Thank you, Emery," Silas began. "But, I will take it from here. Afterall, I believe you were quite busy." He gave a gentle thrust of his hips, an encouragement to continue her previous attention.

She shot me a smug smile, seemingly believing that she had won some sort of contest. She turned, happily indulging his request.

"She's right, though. This is my home, I can do this, or more, wherever I'd like."

"Of course," I searched the room for something to fix my eyes on, not liking the options in front of me. "I'm just curious what's so wrong with your bedroom that you would choose to do that here."

"Nothing. I was just having my morning coffee and...something...came over me." I looked to him as he lingered on the word, bestowing it with a deeper meaning. His gaze travelled down my body and he unashamedly licked his lips. My face flushed as I knew he must have heard, or smelled my climax. "Will you judge me for seeking release when you have obviously already done so?"

"No," I replied meekly, hoping he wouldn't ask for more details.

"Good. Men have needs. And since you steadfastly refuse to see to them..." he motioned to Emery instead of finishing his sentence. "I am, however, still willing to assist you, if you'd like."

I clenched my legs together, remembering how it would feel to have him help from my dream. I shook my head, turning towards the bathroom, hoping to escape the situation.