It wasn't. The brown wolf jumped up at Matt. Matt caught him midair and bit into the wolf’s stomach, jerking his head. Taking a long roping piece of intestine with him, he eviscerated the other wolf. After the brown wolf fell, Matt went in for another strike. The dying wolf had enough blood pumping through him to change forms. When they finally stopped shifting, I was glad three of them remained in fur form. The one Lucian had taken out reverted to human—the arrogant blond man who had brought them here.
A wave of protectiveness and love swept through our now-open bond. His attention only on me, Matt left the bodies where they'd fallen. The other guys stayed by the SUV, keeping watch over the remains until something could be done. I kissed the top of Noah's head and whispered softly, "We're safe now. Matt and the guys took care of everything." I gently guided him to Saul and struggled to my feet. The delta protecting me barely had time to get out of the way before Matt was at my side, helping me the rest of the way up and pulling me into his arms. So relieved everything was okay now, I burst into tears.
When I was able to speak, I thumped a fist against his shoulder. "Either quit blocking me or teach me to do it. I have to remember to make you tell me your trick."
His strong hand gripped my chin and tilted my face back so he could smother my mouth with hungry, possessive kisses. I didn't care about standing in the middle of the pack potluck with my naked, filth-covered alpha kissing the heck out of me right in front of my brothers. Matt and everyone else I loved was safe. Once again, my alpha had saved us all.
Matt broke the kiss almost reluctantly, barely pulling away enough to rub his nose against mine as he pressed our foreheads together. When he spoke, processing what he was saying took several seconds. "Reach for our bond like the living thing it is. Make a picture in your mind to represent it. I use a ribbon of water for mine. Then imagine a brick wall stopping its flow."
I immediately tried it, and it worked. Matt barely had time to react before I imagined the brick wall blowing to smithereens. He leaned his head back with a questioning look. "You had it. I see your point now because I didn't like it, but why did you drop the wall so fast?"
"Because I was lonely on the other side. I don't like not being able to sense you, even if the block is under my own control." Looking like he wanted to melt, he jerked me into another deep kiss. He finally let me go so he could make sure the boys were okay.
Matt held a hand out to give Noah a high-five. "Thanks for keeping an eye on your brothers while I took out the trash. I knew I could count on you, little man. How about I save our hugs for later after I’m showered and dressed?" When Noah giggled, Matt smiled and turned his concerned gaze to Saul. "What about you, big man? Everything okay, or do you want to hug it out?"
Matt’s little bit of levity was all Saul needed. His tight expression of fear and worry relaxed into an eye roll and a smirk. "No thanks. I'll pass on hugging the dirty naked dude. Talk to me after you've showered. Hopefully with bleach. You should probably use a whole tube of toothpaste while you're at it. I hate to break it to you, but you got some stanky breath going on. Eli must really love you if he kissed your mouth right now."
I closed my eyes and looked up at the sky, letting the sunlight wash over me and fill me with peace. When Jared spoke, I opened them again.
"Good job out there, Alpha. I took the liberty of contacting the territory chief. As it happens, he was having lunch with the Riverside Alpha. He's on his way now. He promised it wouldn't be long."
While I sat back down and pulled up a chair to rest my feet on, Matt released the deltas and took a few minutes to reassure the pack. Brenda made my day, setting a glass of lemonade and a big fudge brownie in front of me. I looked her in the eye and spoke straight from the heart. "I hate to break it to you, but I think I'm in love with you now. If I wasn't already mated, I would do something awkward like hug you."
She laughed and gave me a quick squeeze. "Hugs are never awkward, Eli. I figured you could use some sugar before the adrenaline crash, which I'm sure isn't far behind. Listen, I know it's supposed to be my day off, but you need me more than I need a break. I doubt I'll be able to pull you away from the Alpha's side anytime soon. But how about I take these two home? The party's breaking up anyway, and I think we can agree Noah could use a bath."
Noah. Bath. Right, he was covered in chocolate. Groaning, I glanced down at my shirt and saw a big chocolate smear where I'd held his sticky little face against me. I allowed myself an eight-second pity party before shaking it off. Messy kids were a fact of life. I looked at his dirty face and wrinkled my nose. "Brenda's on the money, short stuff. You need a bath. What do you think, would you like to go home with Brenda? Matt and I have some boring stuff to handle, and we’re going to be here talking to adults for a while."
While Noah pursed his lips and looked longingly at my brownie, Saul was already on his feet, obviously done with today. Leaning over Noah, he gave me a quick hug before skirting around to join Brenda. "I'm gonna go with, in case Brenda needs a hand." A flash of his future adult self appeared as he looked at Noah with a stern expression. "Leave Eli's brownie alone. He's eating for two, and our nephew needs the chocolate more than you do. Come on. It's rude to keep Brenda waiting."
Managing to keep a straight face, I thanked Brenda for her help. Thankfully, I enjoyed my treat and downed the liquid refreshment before Ash pulled up beside the now-abandoned Escalade. This time, I walked hand in hand with Matt as he went to deal with our new guest. At least this one was invited. Efficient as ever, Jared found a pair of jogging pants for Matt and three more for the other guys, so at least he wasn't naked as he greeted Ash.
Ash took one look at the dead wolves and the SUV before shaking his head in disgust. As he came forward to shake our hands, he blew out a breath and shoved his sunglasses to the top of his head. "Good afternoon, gentlemen. I swear, Matt. You must have a target on your back or something. I haven't seen this much activity around here in years." He motioned toward the dead wolves. "I'm sorry as hell, Matt. You were well within your rights to defend yourself, so there won't be any official investigation necessary. Especially with an outright act of war, considering Alpha Macklebee is officially registered as an ally to your pack."
"Yeah, I figured as much. Thank you for confirming it, though. Do you know who these other households were?" While Matt spoke, the other guys shifted back and slipped into the pants Jared offered them before walking over to join the conversation.
Nodding, Ash pointed at Bart. "Let's go one at a time. First, did you personally deliver the killing bite to each of these men? I only ask because I need to know who is taking over their packs."
At the horrified look on Lucian's face, I would’ve laughed. The unclaimed alpha who thought nobody wanted him was getting a pack of his own. And a rich one, from what I'd heard. Smiling sympathetically, Matt motioned to Lucian. "Ash, I'd like to introduce you to Lucian Smith. I think we both know I couldn't have taken out four alphas on my own, no matter what the legends swirling around the territory have to say about me. You have Lucian to thank for relieving the world of Bart Macklebee the Third."