White Lightning

Chapter 80: Splash

Author's Note: The bad news is that this is a fairly short chapter. The 'good' news is that there is no birth, no sex, just some flirting and summer fun. :)

This summer's barbeque was in full-swing and the celebration was building like wildfire: it was normally a rowdy party, one in which the pack let loose, but tonight felt destined to break some records. The Alpha watched as TJ splashed around in the large pool with his whore, Crimson. He still felt a seething resentment for what she had done to his mate just months earlier, but Ophelia had seemed to forgive and forget very quickly. In fact she treated that redheaded slut far better than she treated her own son, and for that the Alpha was also frustrated. But that was not something to be dealt with today.

Seated beside him, his beautiful little Luna had been very quiet. Which was really no surprise: she'd been practically mute in his presence for the past two months, ever since she had birthed their pup Oliver. Truth be told, he hated that name, and Ollie was somehow worse, but Ophelia had been very adamant that this was their pup's name and that fact was not up for discussion; he came out of her body, so she was free to name him whatever the fuck she wanted. 

Whatever the case, he wrapped a long arm around her shoulders and tried to enjoy her proximity. Their pup was being watched by one of the elder pack members, and for once, they had a night off to relax and try to be young again. Together. He snuck a peek down at her full breasts, held snug inside her bikini top. She had been splashing around the pool earlier with Crimson and TJ, enjoying herself and laughing — not talking much, no, but she had looked happy. Now she was seated silently and sullenly beside him, feet dangling down into the cold water as she sipped from a glass of frozen lemonade.

He glanced out across the pool at some of the most spirited members of his pack and grinned. Rain and Ryan were wrapped up in one another's arms, floating around on a ginormous, inflatable donut. He knew that Christopher and Annabelle were also being watched so that the couple could relax and partake of the festivities today. Initially, Rain hadn't wanted to attend, had called it a drunken orgy, but Ryan had been able to convince her that, as the pack's Beta, it was important for him to show his face. And by the looks of the smile pressed to her lips, she had softened up and was enjoying herself quite a bit.

He watched as his brother pressed a kiss between Rain's breasts, and before he could process his thoughts Ophelia nudged him in his ribs. "I'm going to go take a nap," she offered in a voice entirely devoid of affect.

Shocked, his eyes widened as he met his little mate's brown eyes. "Phee, baby, come on. You're supposed to be enjoying yourself right now, letting loose and relishing the sunshine on your skin."

She glanced back out at the crystalline water and sighed, bored. "I'm tired."

Desperate to keep her at his side, to rekindle their relationship, he tried to convince her not to leave. "What if we went for a run?" He cocked an eyebrow at her suggestively. "I know how you've been aching to sprint through the woods naked. Remember how you begged me to chase you? You said the idea of being hunted was a turn-on."

She rolled her eyes slowly up his body, then met his brown gaze and made a noise of disgust. "I'm not really, uh, in the mood. I just want to take a nap, Alpha."

"Come on, Phee," he resorted to pleading. He tugged her into the side of his much larger body, gaining skin on skin contact, and he pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "The doctor said that you're okay to have sex again, and we know that Sophia and Ollie are safe and being taken great care of. Won't you please spend some time with me like we used to? Remember how we used to play in the pool?"

"I'm just not in the mood." She lowered her gaze away from him but allowed him to continue to hold her. "Can I go nap now?"

He tossed his arms up into the air above his head, admitting defeat. "I guess, fine. Do whatever. I'm going to go for a swim then."

Ignoring his attempted guilt trip, to which she was likely oblivious, Ophelia jogged away from the pool area and pranced through the grass toward their private deck. Within minutes she had disappeared into their bedroom and shut the large French doors behind her. When she had been inside for only a matter of minutes, he watched Crimson follow the exact same path and also disappear through the doors to his bedroom. He hated that the two she-wolves had grown close, hated the potential bad influence of the whore on his docile little Luna, but he knew that he could not dictate to whom Ophelia was allowed to give her friendship. In the past, he might have tried, but he wanted to believe that he was a better wolf now.

Trying to ignore his frustrated thoughts, he allowed his body to slowly sink into the frigid water, feeling his senses come fully alive as he sank lower and lower and eventually hit bottom. Immediately, he lunged back up and when he surfaced, he was met with a face full of foul-smelling plastic. He scrunched his nose and shoved back from the inflatable creation, sending the massive float towards the other side of the pool.

Rain's face appeared over its side, and she smirked. "What are you doing there, Mr. Alpha?"

Chris spluttered water as he laughed. "Your donut was in my face!"

"I like when her donut is in my face," Ryan catcalled over his mate. "It's a very lovely and moist donut, thank you very much."

"Please forgive him," Rain snorted. "He's drinking and he's horny."

Chris snorted at this, then ran a hand up into his soaking wet locks, pushing them away from his face. He treaded water for a moment, then swam over and perched himself on the edge of the float. "Now I think you actually have me wanting a donut," he confessed with a sheepish smile.

His brother shrugged and held up his beer. "Only got beer, yo."

"He doesn't drink, yo," Rain quipped back, slapping his bare chest playfully.

The Alpha laughed at the couple. "But he would love some carbohydrates, yo."

Rain nudged his shoulder with her foot. "So, hey, to be more serious, where's Ophelia? Why did she leave? I thought you had someone watching Ollie so that she could relax and maybe get back to being more herself?"

He tickled the bottom of her foot and she shrieked. "She wanted to take a nap. She's not acting herself at all, but what am I supposed to do? You can't force someone to have fun."

Rain nodded and raised her large sunglasses up to the top of her head. "No, you can't force her. However, a loving mate would wait until tomorrow and then sit her down for a talk. She's been off since Oliver's birth and you've been avoiding saying anything to her. You can't avoid this forever, Chris."

"You're right," the Alpha winced.

His Beta made a noise and then his body squeaked across the float as he shifted positions. "Me thinks this is far too serious a conversation for today. Me thinks that you two need to shut the fuck up and have some fun. It won't kill you, I promise!"

His mate rolled her eyes and sighed. "How many beers have you had, lover boy? Because you do remember that we are supposed to pick our two-month-old daughter up at seven in the morning tomorrow, right? And you still owe me that thing you promised me."

With a stupid grin spread across his bearded face, Ryan patted his mate's head. "Yes, boss woman. I remember that I have a daughter — who is the most beautiful little she-wolf ever to be born, by the way — and that I promised to fuck you like a rabid dog all night long."

Chris exploded into hysterical laughter at this, and Rain blushed profusely. Yanking the cold glass bottle from her mate's hands, she dumped the liquid into the pool with a groan. "No more, Ry. You're cut off!"

"But mom!" he whined, wiggling his eyebrows with a devious smirk.