Lycan's Mate (His Claim) Chapter 78

Blake's POV

"She's your mate?"

I noticed the man to his left tense as well, but I ignored it completely as I continued to stare at him.

"Yes, and future Luna of the Black Forest Pack. So I would be extremely cautious when making your way towards her," I warned, easily calming down my wolf as he paced back and forth inside of me

A small laugh escaped his lips as the two men on either side of him took a step back. Anthonio and Marcus remained in their place, completely alert of the Alpha's movements as he took a step towards me. I instinctively tightened my grip around her waist and I could feel her fidgeting against me, probably wanting to break away from my tight grasp. But there was no way in hell I was going to let her go with this guy around

He continued to advance, but I remained my calm posture as he stopped mere inches away from me. I could sense Anthonio and Marcus's apprehension, but I immediately sent them a message assuring them that I had things under control. But there was in fact one person I did not want here at the moment

Shifting my gaze toward Marcus, who was still staring intently at the larger man who I assumed was Ben's Beta, I immediately caught his attention as I spoke to him through the mind link

'Take Fiona and make sure she's a safe distance away from this jerk. I have a bad feeling about him.

I noticed him shake his head even though he never once looked at me.

'I can't take her anywhere. There's wolves all around here waiting for something to happen'

'Just take her behind the couch and make sure nothing happens to her if a fight occurs. I'm trusting you to keep my mate safe from here on out'

At that moment, his eyes shifted towards me with a surprised expression on his face. Even Anthonio turned his head in my direction, probably listening in on our conversation.

'You want me to be her guardian?' He asked slowly, surprise leaking into his tone.

'Yes, I trust you. Just keep Fiona safe.

With a final nod and a quick glance at the man in front of him, he made his way behind me and easily slipped his arm around Fiona's which earned him a growl from my wolf. I noticed him flinch and I knew he had heard it through the mind link, but he otherwise continued. After I knew that he had a good hold of her, I slowly released my grip, my wolf whining as the distance between us increased. I could practically see her giving Marcus a weird look but she didn't retort on the matter. Instead, she followed him towards the back of the couch where he stood protectively in front of her. I heard someone let out a puff of air and I instantly knew it was from her. She definitely did not like to be protected this way, but if she only knew how valuable she was to me and the rest of the pack. If anything happened to her, it would literally be the death of me.

The small exchange happened in only a matter of seconds and I noticed Ben looking over at Fiona who was probably standing behind Marcus with an irritated expression on her angelic face. I let out a small growl, immediately capturing his attention once again before a sly smile spread across his lips

"If she's your mate, then why was she here and not with your pack? Did she reject you, pup?

"I didn't reject him," Fiona interjected, receiving all eyes to be set solely on her. I noticed her flinch under our gazes, but she remained composed. That's my girl. "I simply left"

"And why did you leave?" Ben questioned, his eyes curious as they traced the length of her body

I immediately stepped in front of him, obscuring his view from my mate as I took a step forward.

"For personal reasons that is none of your business"

"Oh, but it is my business. You deliberately enter my territory without permission and immediately assume that you could take someone who is on my land without my consent!"

I noticed his eyes turn a shade darker, but his words only received a smirk from me.

"Well, we wouldn't have trespassed if your pack members would've been doing their job correctly. We've been here for almost an hour and now is when they caught our scent. A bit unprofessional, don't you think?" I asked casually

He let out a loud growl that thundered across the small room, but I didn't react to it which seemed to anger him even more than he already was.

"How dare you speak to me that way? You have no right!"

"I have every right to speak to you in whichever manner I choose. It is not my fault that your men failed to do their patrolling job correctly. But I don't blame them exactly," I said while crossing my arms over my chest.

"Maybe their Alpha doesn't have the potential to train them properly"

I saw it coming before anyone could predict his next actions. Before I knew it, I was dodging his right fist with ease, stepping to the side until I was completely behind him. He turned his head until his now dark eyes landed on me, but I simply gave him an ominous smile before grabbing a hold of his arm and pinning it against his back. I felt him struggle under my tight grip, but for some reason he was no match for my own strength. Without hesitation, I pushed him against the wall closest to the bedroom where he immediately stopped fighting. I instantly heard his pack members outside rushing to his aid as well as his Beta who was growling in my direction, but Anthonio was standing directly beside me, blocking the Beta's path completely. He crouched down in a protective stance, low growls escaping his throat as he took a step forward, forcing the man to take a hesitant step back.

"Blake! What are you doing? Let him go!" I heard Fiona scream, but I easily ignored her as I leaned towards Ben who was staring at me with hatred clearly seen in his eyes

"Now, every Alpha knows better than to attack an unprepared opponent unless they are a threat to their pack. But my Beta, third in command and I are simply visiting. So I would think twice about attacking if I were you"

With that, I released him from my hold and returned back to my original spot, Anthonio doing the same as soon as he noticed the Beta back down. I heard footsteps immediately rush to my left side before a small hand grab a hold of my arm. I looked down at my mate who was staring up at me with accusing eyes. Wait, why is she looking at me that way

"What?" I asked nonchalantly, looking up at Marcus who was standing securely by her side

"Why did you have to do that? You could've hurt him," she whispered up at me, even though it was a useless attempt seeing as we were all werewolves and could easily hear her

I arched my eyebrow down at her. Was she serious?

"Are you kidding me? He was the one to attack first, not me. And why are you taking his side?" I asked angrily, feeling my wolf growl lowly in the back at my mind at the way my mate was accusing us

"There's no need to fight," she said softly, dropping her gaze as she said those words

"Tell that to him," I said as I looked over at Ben who was sending daggers in my direction while gripping the arm I had pinned down against his back

"You must leave. Now," Ben growled as he made his way back in between the two men

I shifted my body and focused my eyes solely on him.

"Not until I leave with my mate"

He chuckled slightly before looking down at her.

"It seems to me that she would rather stay than leave with you"

"She belongs in my pack. She's our next and rightful Luna, and I am not leaving without her"

He shrugged his shoulders, his original shade of gray returning to his eyes.

"I think we should let her decide whether she wants to stay or not." I turned back to my mate who was still looking down at the floor with troublesome eyes.

"Well, Fiona? What is your decision?

A moment of silence fell upon us before she looked up at him.

"I....I'm not sure."

My eyes widened in surprise at her response. I could instantly feel my wolf fall back down with soft whimpers as an aching feeling began to envelop my chest. It felt like it was happening all over again

"Well then, if you cannot make your decision now, we will not force you to make a decision at this very moment," he said, his hard eyes on me but I quickly ignored them as I stared down at my mate who was avoiding my gaze at all costs.

"Until she makes a decision, you and your pack members need to leave our territory immediately. My men will lead you out-"

"I'm not leaving," I said with a voice of finality as I looked up at him once more.

"I command you to leave," he said with a low growl

I simply let out a breath of laughter. Was this guy serious?

"You should know better than to try to command an Alpha wolf. That is simply a waste of breath." He growled once more, but I easily ignored it.

"But I am not leaving without my mate," I repeated.

"He doesn't have to leave," she said quietly, earning a confounded expression from Ben. Her eyes suddenly landed on me and my wolf immediately whimpered the second he noticed a few set of un-shed tears filling her eyes.

"I don't want him to leave"

Looking over at Ben, I noticed a hidden emotion swirling about in the depths of his eyes, but I didn't question it. He continued to stare at her for a few seconds before his eyes landed on me. Without a second thought, he composed his expression and straightened his posture

"Very well. He, as well as your," he paused as he looked over at Anthonio and Alex with an indifferent expression on his face before continuing,

"pups, can stay. But on one condition.

The four of us looked up at him with arched eyebrows as we anticipated his next words. My wolf began to slowly pace back and forth inside of me, growling every so often as his speed quickened. I was not liking this one bit

"What's the condition?" Anthonio questioned, taking a step towards my right to get a better look at Bret who was still facing me

With his eyes trained on me, he responded.

"Fiona has a month to decide whether or not she would like to stay here in my pack or return back to yours. If she decides to leave, I will openly allow you all to do so without any interruptions.

"And if she chooses to stay?" Marcus asked carefully, taking a step forward and to the left to conceal Fiona behind his tall form

Ben focused his eyes on him before a low chuckle escaped his lips.

"If she chooses to stay, you are all to leave willingly and never return to my pack. Because if you do, I will not hesitate to attack."

He turned his head to his left where the other men began to leave the room without a single protest on their part. They quietly left and I could easily hear them descend down the steps before joining the rest of the pack members that were patiently waiting for their Alpha to command them his next orders

As soon as the two men were safely down the steps, Ben turned back to Fiona where he allowed a gentle smile to appear on his features.

"Goodnight, Fiona. I'll be seeing you Tuesday morning." Without uttering another word, he turned around and began to head out the door. Before completely stepping out of the small apartment, he turned his head where his gaze fell upon me. A small, yet sinister, smile spread across his lips, his eyes turning a shade darker as he spoke. "Gentlemen"

Reaching out his hand, he grabbed a hold of the opened door and slammed it harshly against the frame. The walls groaned in protest at the motion, but the room remained silent as the sound of cracking bones and tearing flesh reached our ears. I was glad Rocky wasn't able to hear the sound. I knew from experience that she wasn't fond of it whenever I used to shift in front of her. But for us werewolves, it was hard to ignore.