Chapter 7
Panic surged through Luna and she struggled with all her might. Pain flared between her legs and she cried out sharply. “Release the knot,” she pleaded. “Please, let me go.”
“It’s not up to me,” Alex told her, his expressive eyes still filled with hostility. “I don’t control the knot, my wolf does. And he doesn’t seem willing to let you go.”
Despite Alex’s claim, the pressure inside her gradually decreased and Luna scrambled backward, separating their bodies. She ignored the warm rush of liquid seeping out of her abused pussy. She scooted across the bed and pressed her back against the headboard, then drew her legs up to her chest.
Alex let her go, but remained beside the bed, his eyes intent on her face.
Nate positioned himself on the other side of the bed.
This was not the time or place for her revelation, yet she seemed to have no choice.
Lying now would likely result in some sort of mind probe, and she didn’t want to be subjected to that.
Besides, this wasn’t a secret she could keep indefinitely. She’d just hoped for more time.
“I made changes to Babcock’s formula,” she admitted, forcing herself to meet Alex’s gaze.
“Why and to what end?” His deep tone sounded unusually growly, and alpha energy still shimmered in his eyes.
“We agreed that the transformation would only be attempted with volunteers, so I tried to make the project more appealing to females.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” Alex snapped. “Just explain what you did.”
“Nate volunteered for the original program because he expected to gain paranormal abilities.” The comparison came to her while she worked in the lab.
The parallel was striking, and Alex was familiar with the details so she hoped it would help him understand her motivation.
“Babcock’s formula would have triggered an excruciating transformation, but all the females would have gained was the ability to produce hybrid babies. ”
“That’s not true,” Alex argued. “They will gain devoted mates who will protect and provide for them.”
“Does your formula create female shapeshifters?” Nate wanted to know.
Nate’s eyes narrowed as he asked the question, but Luna could no longer sense his emotions.
In fact, she couldn’t sense either one of them now.
It was frustrating that at the first hint of conflict they’d immediately shut her out.
“I’m exploring the possibility, but the injection I gave Shannon didn’t go that far.
It will just allow her to trigger bonding fever with the male or males she chooses. ”
“Is that all?” Alex released a humorless laugh and crossed his arms over his chest. “You gave control of the bonding process to the females?”
Luna lifted her chin. She would not apologize for this. The males on Rydaria had treated the females terribly. This was one tiny step toward resolving the power imbalance. “We are at the mercy of every male who desires us. This will allow us to—”
Alex grabbed her ankle and dragged her across the bed.
“No transformation is going to change that simple fact.” Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Alex dragged Luna across his lap.
She struggled in vain every step of the way, but he soon had her face down over his legs.
“You are safe because we protect you.” He smacked her upturned ass.
“You have food and shelter because we provide for you.” He spanked her even harder.
“We are bigger and stronger than you.” He paused for several hard spanks before adding, “We can force our will on you at any time, but we choose not to.”
More hard slaps followed and Luna let out an exasperated cry. “You’re forcing your will on me right now!” She twisted around and glared at him, infuriated by his intransigence. Life should be filled with compromise, but Rydarian males were unwilling to bend. “I did nothing wrong!”
“Like hell you didn’t.” He resumed the hard swats, moving from side to side until her entire bottom throbbed with burning pain.
“Instincts in the male help him identify his mate, but the female must accept him.” His hand fell fast and hard, adding to the impact of his words.
“A mating bond can’t be forced.” He paused for another flurry of punishing slaps.
“The process is balanced, or it was until you fucked with it.”
Emotion burned in Luna’s throat and her eyes filled with tears. She stubbornly blinked them back, refusing to admit defeat. She’d never thought about this from the hybrids’ perspective. She just wanted females to regain control over their bodies.
Alex pushed her backward until she knelt beside him. With his fingers tangled in the back of her hair, he tilted her head back. “They tried this at Nuevo, and it resulted in horrible side effects. You need to go back to the original formula.”
“Yeah, right.” She rolled her eyes. “You expect me to believe that? If you want babies bad enough, you’ll give up a little power. It’s a fair exchange.”
He started to say something then shook his head. “Have it your way, but you can’t say I didn’t warn you.” He dragged her back across his lap. “Let’s focus on your attitude instead. Did you know this would piss me off?” Alex’s harsh tone demanded an answer.
When she gritted her teeth and said nothing, he smacked her upper thighs. Luna gasped but continued her silent rebellion.
He shoved her legs apart and swatted her pussy twice. “Answer me!”
“I didn’t care if you were angry,” she yelled. “No one gives a shit if we’re angry. We’re just punished until we obey!”
Alex stood suddenly, taking her with him. He turned and placed her over the bed. Her legs dangled over the side, toes lightly resting on the floor. “You knew there would be consequences and you chose to do this anyway. Are you going to deny that?”
“No,” she gritted out.
“Your motivation was more or less pure, so I’ll offer you a choice. Punishment or submission.”
Confused by the offer, she twisted her neck and looked at him. “What do I have to submit to?”
“Nate is about to fuck your ass, but you get to decide how he does it.” Authority and anger snapped through every syllable.
He would not soften his position. She had earned this consequence and this was the only compromise he would offer.
“If you want to struggle and scream, choose punishment. His cock is still going up your ass, but it will satisfy your pride to make him work for it. Submission is harder, at least for you. You must admit that you manipulated me and willingly submit to my beta in the most humiliating way possible. I’d do it myself, but I’m too angry.
And whether you believe it or not, I will never take you in anger. ”
“Punishment brings only pain,” Nate warned. “If you choose submission, I will give you pleasure, eventually.”
Luna clenched her fists and stared straight ahead. This was so unfair. This whole fucking planet was unfair! “I was trying to make things better for the females on this planet. Is that so wrong?”
“You undermined the power structure of this village,” Alex pointed out. “You will soon be mate to the village alpha and yet your actions are blatantly insubordinate.”
She gritted her teeth and sneered, “I’m sorry.”
“Sure you are,” Alex responded sarcastically. “Punishment or submission. Choose now.”
If Alex was going to fuck her, Luna would have chosen punishment. But she wasn’t as angry at Nate. “Submission. I willingly offer my bottom to your beta and only your beta. You can go to hell.”
Alex kicked her legs apart and spanked her pussy much harder than before. She cried out and struggled, but he easily held her down. “Defiance is pulsing off you in waves.”
“This is why I want my friends to choose their mates,” Luna yelled angrily.
“If they choose, maybe Rydarian males will stop acting like insecure Neanderthals!” She braced for more stinging slaps, but the next smack never fell.
Instead, she heard a strange, choked sound and looked back at her tormenter.
The bastard was laughing at her. “I’m glad you find this amusing. ”
“Insecure Neanderthals?” Alex echoed. “I’ll own the Neanderthal part, but when have I ever seemed insecure?”
“Leave me alone,” she grumped and turned her head back around. She might not be able to escape this, but she’d be damned if she’d let them humiliate her.
Alex stroked her bottom, reigniting the heat. “We’re both anxious to feel your tight little ass wrapped around our cocks. You’ve earned a little discomfort, so we might as well combine your punishment with something we want badly.”
She whipped her head around again. “Are you going to—”
“Absolutely, but not tonight. If you’re a good girl for Nate, I’ll forgive you for screwing with the formula. But we need to have an in-depth conversation about the changes. I have some serious concerns.”
“Understood.” She exhaled and moved her head to a more comfortable angle.
Anal sex was unavoidable when dealing with more than one male.
She’d learned that from the mated females, so she wasn’t upset about what Nate was about to do.
In fact, she’d expected Alex to take her there long before now.
Anal sex was also a fast and easy way to establish dominance, and males didn’t come any more dominant than Alex.
Nate moved behind her and cupped her reddened cheeks, giving them a firm squeeze. “You look so pretty like this.” He ran a finger down the crease in between her abused cheeks as he said, “You’ll look even better with my cock buried deep inside your ass.”
“Yes, beta,” she whispered, but she was still annoyed with both of them.
“Have you ever taken a cock anally?”
She shook her head. She’d experimented with toys, but none of her lovers were adventurous.
He teased her pucker, his finger feeling suspiciously slick. “Have you ever wanted to be fucked like this?” He pushed the finger inside her as he asked the question.