his challenger to submit. On forcing his dominance.
Something deep and feminine inside her mewed to be taken, to be claimed as only an alpha could claim his female.
But the primal part of her insisted he prove his worth. That he earn his mantle as her protector here, for all to see.
She opened up and let magic gush out of her, confident her new countrymen and women could handle it. Part of her wondering why they weren’t already up and by her side, sensing the call of battle on the air. Her magic filled her to bursting, and still she let it come, blasting out of her and covering the field in the feeling of budding flowers, growing plants, horses stomping on bloodied mud, and the agonized cries of a foe. She blended it in a heady mix, the beautiful and the ugly, the peace and the violence, and released it as a shock wave.
We are warriors. Come fight by my side.
Steve halted his advance, nearly to the gathering crowd of onlookers, and the humor dripped off his face. His eyes turned hungry.
The lion emerged.
His roar made half of those seated jump to their feet. The rest cowered from the might of his shifter form, not living up to the stories she’d heard of the warrior fae. Wondering if hiding away here in the Flush had dulled their abilities.
Steve, on the other hand, stared at Charity. Ready for a command. Ready to battle.
Devon saw it, and his eyes blazed. Charity was, in effect, pulling rank, and the alpha in him wasn’t having it. This wasn’t just about dominance and submission anymore—it was about the right to lead his pack.
She’d raised the stakes.
Game on.
Magic swirled around him. A green mist enveloped him, and then his wolf form emerged. He lifted his head and howled, long and beautiful, the wolf song.
Your alpha calls. Join me.
She felt the power of it well up from her toes. Felt the need to fall in beside him. Saw the previously cowering fae straighten up, then stand, like awakening from a dream.
Felt the smile spreading across her face.
“Now. This is a battle.” She ran at him, stupid fake sword at the ready. Almost there, she shoved out her hand.
A spark flared right in front of him. He opened his mouth for some reason, and then he was flying, tumbling through the air.
She was on him in a flash, slashing down with the sword, aiming for his neck. “Honor system,” she grunted out, trying to get in a slash that would have decapitated him.
He dodged away at the last moment, so much lither and more graceful in his wolf form. So much faster.
He snapped at her ankle, making her dance away, before surging up and slamming into her body. How a man could weigh more in another form than his human form, she didn’t know, but the force of the tackle shoved her back.
She cut her sword through the air while she fell, not wanting to waste an opportunity. Her back hit the ground as her sword banged into his front leg. That strike would’ve lopped off his limb.
He rolled off her, and when he stood, he kept that leg held tightly to his body, honoring the strike. She shot him with another blast of magic, the spark alighting on his right side. Before it concussed the air, though, he spun and bit. The magic…unraveled, somehow. It died.
“What the…” She tried again, sending a spark toward his other side.
He turned and bit, chomping on the electrical ball of light. It zinged through his teeth before unraveling out around his body.
He’d figured out how to circumvent her magic. Was that a bonus of their connection?
Magic now boiled and built, bleeding acid into her body and leaking from her in waves. Bright white light buzzed through the sky, covering the whole field. Lightning rained down, narrowly missing a thick gray wolf—Rod—as he loped toward them through the grasses.
“Need a little help here,” she yelled to the onlookers, all in rapt attention. None of them had stepped forward to help her, or offered to guide her in the use of her magic. They were transfixed on the fight.
Devon surged toward her.
Not stopping, she slashed at him, forcing him to change his attack path. A bolt of lightning zipped down next to him, singing his ear. He dodged in the other direction, his keen eyes tracking her as only a predator could.
Rod ran to join the fight, but Steve pushed forward, blocking the