Rise of the Dark Alpha

(Added after publication so you aren't charged for the words) 10 DAYS LEFT! Zev's Werewolf competition closes on 5 January. I know it's an expensive time, but ALL comments, votes, Golden Tickets, gifts, chapters/privilege through 5 January help! And I am planning a mass release for January to say THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

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~ SASHA ~

Sasha wasn't sure how long they lay there, but she could tell Zev wasn't sleeping any more than she was. As the warm flickering light from the fire became a deep orange glow, and it was quiet enough to hear the wind whistling in the trees on the mountain, Sasha just lay there, staring at the cave ceiling, feeling warm and safe in Zev's arm, despite the circumstances.

When he sighed some time later and shifted, she waited until he'd settled, then asked, "If we aren't sleeping, you might as well me about this mating ritual. It sounds weird and wonderful, just like the Chimera," she said dryly.

Zev huffed, then winced, grabbing at his ribs. She'd forgotten he was injured.

With a murmured comfort, she leaned up and over him, taking her weight on the other arm, braced on the furs on his other side, and kissed his ribs.

Zev whined in his throat and pulled her hair back to watch her face. "You have no idea what you do to me, Sash," he rasped. "Putting your mouth on me… it just…"

She didn't raise her head, but looked at him from the corner of her eye as she opened her mouth over the spot on his ribs and softly, softly laved it with her tongue.

"Dear Lord in heaven," Zev groaned. "You need to stop that, right now." But he didn't wrestle her away.

Sasha, making a mental note about how to get Zev's engine running if she ever needed to, kissed his ribs again, then rolled back to lay in the crook of his arm.

"Distract me from that mental image please," Zev growled. "You flirt."

Sasha smirked and traced the lines on his chest with a fingertip, careful to avoid the other side where his ribs were tender.

"The ritual?" she said. "How does it work?"

Zev sighed and raked a hand through his hair, his large bicep curling in front of her face so her mouth went dry. "Well, it's a feast, and a gathering," he said, then cleared his throat, adjusting himself sheepishly. "We have to arrive separately. I'll be presented by a male, and you'll be presented by a female. And the tradition is that once we're united, neither of us can leave the other—if we do, it's an open door for others to try to entice us. So once you have my hand, don't let go. I don't want to have to kill Lhars after all. The connection—keeping it close—is supposed to be a symbol of our devotion to each other and our unwillingness to hide. Anything. Staying under each other's eyes for the duration is supposed to signify that we'll never hide anything from each other, or lie."

"That sounds… really special."

Zev nodded. "So, at first when we're presented to each other, I have to make a speech that is my declaration of our intention to become a breeding pair. I have to tell them all why I deserve you, and why I believe you chose me, and then I have to… to offer the males a chance to tempt you away before we hold to each other.

"They'll all display for you while we stand there. They'll tell you my weaknesses and my flaws, and try to say that their strengths are better. And if you choose one of them over me, you walk away, to them."

Sasha snorted. "Like, a naked male tells me you snore and he doesn't, than flaps his peen at me, or something, so I'm just going to leave you?" she giggled.

But Zev didn't find it funny. "No, Sash. These are males that know me well. They'll… they'll tell you the worst of me. And they'll offer proof of how much better they are than me."

"No one's better than you, Zev," she said softly. "Not for me."

With a groan, he rolled to face her and kissed her, slow and lingering. When they parted, both breathing faster, he swallowed and continued.

"If you don't accept one of their offers, I'll come for you. I'll fight to get to you—they'll fight me, one at a time—it's really just symbolic, nothing more than bruises. But once I reach you and we take hold of each other, we can't let go for the rest."

"The rest of what?"

"We give vows, then we dance, then we share a meal with them all, and then we leave to take our solitude." He smiled at that. "That's when things get good."

Sasha couldn't help smiling back. "What vows do you use? Like the human ones?"

"Sort of," he said. "The vows we choose are a little different, depending what commitment we're making to each other."

Sasha frowned. "There's different commitments?"

"Yes. We can either declare ourselves steadfast pair, or an ardent pair," he said. Sasha noticed he was looking down now, not holding her eyes. "I think… I think this part must come from our human roots. Because the truth is, all Chimera are faithful. No one chooses to mate with another once they've taken their mate. But the vows… the vows make emotional commitments."

"Like what?"

Zev swallowed. "So… a steadfast pair makes the commitment that even in anger, they won't turn away from each other. They'll always give their hearts as well as their bodies, while they live. And an ardent pair promises… promises…"

"What?"

His eyes came up to meet hers, then. "An ardent pair promises to seek each other even in the next life," he said, hushed. "Whatever that might be."

Sasha smiled. "That's beautiful!"

"The idea is beautiful," Zev said cautiously. "But we don't know what we'll meet in the next life, Sash. What if… what if one mate goes to heaven and one to hell—what happens then? What if… what if one doesn't have a soul and the other does. Does that mean that the one with the soul has to spend eternity seeking, with no chance to ever find love? I mean, it's a beautiful idea, but risky, if you ask me."

Sasha sighed. He really had thought about this, she realized. And in the context of her—it had to be. What other reason would he have to worry about one of them having a soul and the other not? If he really believed he was broken that way, he had to believe all the Chimera were. So mating another Chimera wouldn't be a problem, right?

"I told you, Zev, I know you have a soul. I know it to my bones. So… please… be my—what did you call it? Ardent pair?"

Zev blinked. "You can't just say that," he said.. And he sounded angry.