Chapter 14 #2
“The standing what—” Aiden starts, only to fall silent at the sight of my pack tipping into handstands, slowly bending their bodies into clean half-circles until toes hover over heads. “Holy fuck.”
“We’ll hold this for a minute,” I say, before I glance at Aiden in my periphery. “Oh, do you need help doing our ‘yoga’?”
“No,” he scoffs, turning to his gawking warriors and hastily clapping his hands. “Let’s go, people.”
At their alpha’s prompting, they scramble to the ground and start pushing themselves up, but half collapse before they’re even vertical.
Some manage the handstand, but when they try to bend, end up with their nose in the grass and a mouthful of dirt.
Laughter spreads across the field as the Dark Woods members fall over themselves like pups in a bubble bath.
I snicker, wavering slightly and almost landing on my chin as Aiden slams down beside me for a second time—flat on his back. A strained oof slips from his lips as he curls onto his side. His crooked shades expose his eyes and the pain in them.
“There was … a gust … of wind,” Aiden wheezes.
I laugh so hard I fall right there beside him, which clearly pleases him. He grins at me like a conqueror, and I let him have it while I roll onto my knees. “Ready to accept my help yet?”
He shrugs. “Maybe.”
Snorting, I pick myself up and scan the field.
Most of my warriors are on the ground too.
Laughter is seemingly a greater enemy than gravity when this bunch is around.
It’s rare to see my pack like this, and it’s a nice surprise.
We’re not necessarily known for being friendly, but we’re not nearly as rigid as Aiden likes to make us out to be. I try to hold onto the sight.
“Okay, everyone. Let’s dial it back with something more accessible,” I call. “Cobra pose.” Aiden tries to get up and I give him a nudge to keep him down. “And if you’d be so kind, please help a Dark Woods member in need.”
“In need? We’re not in need,” he protests, leading the objections of his warriors that the rest of us ignore while I gesture for them to lie on their stomachs.
“Stop whining.” I guide him to extend his legs out so they lie flat across the grass behind him. He grumbles to himself but follows all my instructions until he’s pushed up on his palms, wrists stacked beneath elbows. “How’s that?”
“I feel like a cat. This should be called cat pose.”
“Perhaps,” I agree while I adjust him slightly. I leave him to make the rounds, walking the rows and cueing breath until almost everyone looks … passable. When I return to my mate, I have to bite back a smile at his suspiciously shaky arms.
“Are you struggling, Aiden?” I ask, stopping in front of him. “Is this also too challenging for you?”
Aiden snorts, but when his arms wobble, he immediately stiffens. “You wish,” he spits. “Toss anything at me. I’ll be good.”
Well, he can’t say that he didn’t ask for it.
“For our next pose, we’re going to move into downward-facing dog,” I announce for all to hear. “It’s a challenging one, so I’ll be demonstrating with Aiden.”
Any and all traces of humour evaporate from Aiden’s expression while hoots and hollers rise from everyone present.
His own pack is especially vocal. I discard my short-lived worries that they might take offence when they’re clearly all very happy to see their alpha in such a compromising position.
From the poorly hidden smiles of my pack, they aren’t opposed to it either.
“Come on, Aiden,” I prompt innocently. “You don’t mind demonstrating, do you?”
The look he gives me sends electric excitement slithering through my body.
From his position below me, I can see over his shades.
While his eyes aren’t glowing, they burn with his displeasure—but there’s humour there too.
Aiden might hate me for doing this, but he loves the challenge just as much, which is precisely why he straightens without a fuss.
“How do you want me?” he says, smug.
“Get down on your hands and knees.”
Eyes on mine, Aiden slowly turns, kneels, and looks over his shoulder with that sinful grin when he’s in position. “What’s next?”
“Lift your hips,” I direct, matching his grin with one of my own.
Not backing down, he looks at the warriors and shakes his head. “This is the only time you guys are getting a show like this, so enjoy.”
Aiden gradually pushes his hips up and back until they’re only a few inches from mine, and the warriors go feral. They holler at their alpha while I try my hardest to swallow the lust stirring inside of me. In this position, he looks like he’s presenting himself to me, and alphas never present.
“Is this to your standard, Jewels?” he asks through his legs. “I want to be a good model.”
“You’re doing great,” I reply, stepping around him to straighten his arms. “You just need a few tweaks.”
I stalk around him. His eyes track me, bright with humour and lust that almost rivals my own. I’m not sure who’s prey here, but I want to find out.
“One last thing,” I say, blood surging in my veins as I return to my original position behind him, straddling his legs to reach him. “You need to straighten here.”
I press my hips up against Aiden as I stretch over him, one hand gripping his hip to pull them towards me, the other flattening on his back, pressing to straighten it and deepening his stretch.
That’s officially my mate’s limit. He collapses, taking us both down to the ground with a thud that’s drowned out by the resounding laughter that fills the open field.
“Best demonstration ever,” someone shouts, which gets an impressive chorus of agreement.
“Yeah, I bet,” Aiden groans, waving them off. “We’re officially done with ‘muscular conditioning.’ Everyone get ready for sparring.”
While the others start spreading out and pairing up by Beckett and Emitt’s instruction, Aiden and I separate from the tangle of limbs we’ve become.
“I think you enjoyed that a little too much at the end, Jewels,” he chides as he combs his hair back.
“You’re the one who told me to have fun.”
“And did you?” he asks, with sudden hopefulness.
“I did,” I say, and our bond warms. “Thank you, Aiden.”
He beams, radiant, and Goddess have mercy, I’ll never get tired of seeing that.
“Anytime,” he replies, before he stands and offers me a hand. “Now, let’s get to sparring.”
“Arms up!” Aidan barks, and a Black Moon wolf obeys just in time to block the incoming blow aimed for his temple. “Good,” he commends, before we carry on, walking between the matched pairs. Leaning close, he whispers, “Your wolves’ defence is shit.”
“We’re fast,” I counter, watching a young girl from my pack make a fool out of one of Aiden’s bulkier warriors. “Agile. Thoughtful.”
“Cocky, too,” he mutters. “Don’t drop your guard!” he shouts for her, and my warrior scoffs, ignoring him completely. It’s to her own detriment because the next time she uses one of her kick combos, the bulky man grabs her leg mid-air and uses it to slam her on the ground.
“Next time, listen,” I tell her, helping her up.
“Good job, Tryn,” Aiden commends the man, and my brows twitch.
He’s not the first one he’s called by name.
In fact, there hasn’t been a wolf from his pack that he hasn’t, while I can barely name ten of my own.
Shame pricks, but it sparks a clear purpose—to learn as many of my wolves’ names as I can.
“Okay,” I admit as we carry on, winding through the many fighting pairs, “we’re a bit proud, but we can work on that.”
“And I think we can learn how to be a bit faster on our feet,” he replies with a nod. I return the gesture, my heart swelling in my chest.
That’s another thing, Aiden is so focused out here. It’s not like I haven’t seen this side of him since the coronation, but it’s never been like this—unwavering and undeniably devout to the task at hand. He likes being out here with his wolves, likes helping them even more.
It makes working with him easy and enjoyable, and for all my earlier reluctance, I almost don’t want the session to end. But all too soon, our allotted time runs out.
“Ready to wind things down?” Aiden asks at my side.
“Yeah,” I say, scanning the heaving mass of wolves, their musk bittering the open air. “We’ve done a lot, and they’re exhausted.”
“I’m sorry, what was that?” Aiden cups the back of his ear, blinking owlishly. “Did you just agree with me without insulting me?”
“Please die,” I mumble.
“Ah, there he is,” he says, making me smile before I shout for everyone’s attention.
Those fighting stop their skirmishes with noticeable relief, while others crash to catch their breaths and steal a sip of water.
“You all did extremely well today, especially since this is the first time you’ve trained with another pack,” I state with honest pride. I mean to end there, but decide to try something a bit more Aiden’s style. “I’d like to think we also had a good time?”
“Downward dog!” someone shouts, spurring whistles towards Aiden, who flips them all off.
“I’ll happily take that as a yes,” I chuckle, and my mate flips me off too. I shake my head, before wrapping it up. “Head home and get some rest. Again, good job, everyone.”
As some collapse to the ground and others break off into conversations with newly made friends, Aiden tugs at my arm, practically dragging me away from the field.
“Hey!” I protest, pulling him back. “We have to make sure everything is alright before we go.”
“Emitt and Beckett will handle that, won’t you guys?” The pair throw us thumbs up, and Aiden tugs me after him. “We’re going to go to your new place and relax. We’re done for the day.”
“But—”
“But nothing, Jewels,” he says with a shove that forces me a few steps in front of him. I stumble before righting myself on the path that leads into one of the pack’s larger lanes. “You’ve done enough today, and for the last few days, so I’m kidnapping you until further notice.”
“But what about—”
“Oh Goddess, is that a tiger?!”