I leaned against a tree and silently fumed. It was doubtful that anyone realized I was leaning against a tree just off to the side of the training field. Will was training an older teenager on how to correct his form while going through a certain fighting move, and was he concentrating hard enough that he was unaware of my mood.

  It was to his credit that he was also mostly unaware of the blonde trying to flirt with him. He had noticed a couple of her attempts, but was completely uninterested and ignored her. It was the only mollifying thing in this situation.

  I couldn't exactly act like the jealous mate that I was, since I was unable to win a fight with anyone here. No amount of training could correct that either; as a runt, my speed, strength, and stamina would never be equal to a normal wolf. Sure, I had a few tricks up my sleeves in case I got cornered by unpleasant rogues, but those generally involved serious injuries or possibly even lethal results.

  Seriously harming a packmate out of jealousy, when my own mate was ignoring the perpetrator, was something that couldn't even be considered. I didn't really want her dead; I just wanted her to leave my mate alone. Why couldn't she go flirt with Evan? He didn't have a mate yet, and as an Enforcer, his odds of ever finding her were extremely low.

  I took a deep breath to control the jealousy and gave a barely audible low whistle of greeting to the one hiding in the tree next to me. Even in my distraction, the faint whiff of pine and alder had not gone unnoticed. Even if my nose hadn't told me of his presence, my senses had been tracking him for some time now as he circled closer and closer. I didn't remove my eyes from Will as I sensed Jisk drop out of the tree to lean against a tree trunk barely out of my reach.

  He regarded the fighters silently for a while before speaking quietly, "Do I have to give him a lecture on the exclusivity of the mate bond?"

  It didn't surprise me that he knew who my mate was. He had crossed this pack's territory dozens of times that I knew of, and I didn't go that far from the pack house. He probably knew each fighter on sight and had an idea of their skills by now.

  "Not really,” I replied, with a deep sigh. “His eyes have never wandered, and I couldn't have wished for a better mate. That blonde is getting on my nerves though. I didn't realize what an evil beast jealousy is. I have no idea how Will managed to control himself when we first met."

  He chuckled lightly, although I could sense his serious mood beneath. He knew I could sense it and didn't care in the least. There had been a few times where he had asked me to dig deep into his mind to determine exactly what his deepest feelings were on a controversial subject. I hadn't managed to dodge both Will and Ruby to get far enough out into the forest to say hello the few times I had sensed him nearby, and he was undoubtedly aware of it.

  I also knew that his appearance wasn't a light thing since anyone who looked this way would be able to see him at the moment. He preferred to remain unseen, although his irritation was coming through his surface thoughts clearly. I knew very well that he considered the mate bond a sacred thing.

  The fastest way to anger him was for someone to try and infringe on a mate bond. For someone to try and entice someone who was already mated would make him somewhat mad, something like this blonde was doing. If someone who was already mated tried flirting with anyone other than their mate, he got livid and generally tried to take a chunk out of the offender. And heaven help the person who was contemplating rejection or mentioned rejection as a possibility within his hearing.

  He crossed his arms and asked me in a loud voice, "Exactly how long is your mate going to let the blonde flirt with him before telling her off?" His eyes never left the training field.

  His voice had been deliberately loud and every head on the field whipped in the direction of the unfamiliar and irritated voice. The field fell silent.

  I shrugged and replied in a monotone voice, not quite as loud as he had been, "I’m not sure, but I am hoping she stops flirting with him soon."

  At this point, everyone was now aware that the blonde had been flirting with Will. Some had noticed it before. Will's eyes were nearly black as he noticed a trespassing rogue beside his mate. I felt Will's worried mindprobe cross the mate bond to check if I was okay. I felt his surprise that I wasn't the least bit uneasy in this stranger's presence.

  I sent amusement back at him. "Relax, it is only Jisk. At the moment, the blonde is the only person he wants to pick a bone with."

  My words helped reassure him that I was in no danger, but it did make him worry for the blonde's safety. That irritated me, and I let him sense the emotion and its cause. His chagrined wordless response acknowledged my point, but also pointed out that as an Enforcer, he would have to intervene if Jisk attacked her. I wasn't entirely certain that Will, even though he was an Enforcer, was a match for the experienced rogue, but I heavily shielded that thought, lest he catch it.

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  The blonde hesitated with the attention she was getting before squaring her shoulders and deciding to take her stand. She addressed me, "You should go run off with that rogue; he seems interested enough in you. I will look after Will; he needs a strong wolf as a mate, not a runt. Having a runt around makes our pack look weak, especially when that runt is paired up with an Enforcer."

  I growled in rage at the insult, but it was drowned out by an enraged roar from Will and a furious snarl from Jisk. Numerous other growls cut off, as most stared at the two livid males who radiated power in their furious mood. The blonde's eyes had widened in fear as she realized that all of the sounds had been directed at her.

  I could feel Will's surprise at Jisk's reaction, partially snapping him out of his rage. I winced as dozens of people mirrored similar powerful emotions of outrage, anger, and disbelief at the woman’s callous words. I shielded my senses somewhat from the stomach-churning emotions.

  Jisk slowly stalked forward in a slight smooth crouch that showed him for the deadly predator that he was. Growls still shook the air around him as his eyes were locked onto the blonde. Jisk glared at her, and his voice shook with cold fury.

  "How dare you infringe on a mate bond? What of your own mate? He is out there somewhere waiting for you; unaware that you are trying to shatter his heart."

  The blonde was shaken by his approach, but her packmates were outraged by her comments and gave her no support. Such behavior was not tolerated, and I had a feeling the others hadn’t been aware of her opinion previously.

  "She is a runt. She makes our pack look weak. Besides, an Enforcer needs a strong mate, not a weakling like her." Despite her strong words, she was slowly backing up while in a slight defensive crouch.

  Will's loud snarl and shaking hands told me of his opinion. Will's crumbling self-control was stopped by his surprise when Jisk gave an even louder snarl and lunged in a lightning swift move. Jisk didn't touch her, but snarled in her face; his furious black eyes causing her to scramble backwards in panic with him matching her step for step.

  His snarling words were clear for anyone watching. "You disgust me. Trying to claim one already mated in front of his own mate? I’m glad that you are not my mate. You probably won't even remain faithful to him once you find him."

  That was a massive insult in the wolf world. An unfaithful mate was generally scorned and ridiculed. With such an audience, the insult by a rogue and story of her actions would spread fast. She would probably move to another distant pack within the week. Jisk paused in his pursuit, and she scrambled backward before shifting and bolting off into the undergrowth.

  He turned his smoldering eyes to Will who shifted his stance as Jisk’s challenging stare fell on him. Jisk advanced on Will slowly, and Will eased into a defensive stance, ready for an attack.

  Jisk snorted at his actions. "As if I would hurt an old friend by attacking her mate."

  Jisk paused in his advance as he studied Will. I could feel Will's conflicted emotions and confusion through the mate bond. He was equally confused by my lack of concern. I dropped my shields so that he could see that I knew Jisk would not seriously injure him. Jisk knew the blonde was mostly to blame. Mostly.

  Jisk spoke in a cold tone to Will, "In the future, I highly advise you growl at anyone attempting to flirt with you. Your silence was encouraging that lowlife and was definitely ticking off your mate. Your jealous mate may not be able to fight off an interloper, but she could probably make you regret the mistake of letting someone encroach on the mate bond."

  Will's eyes narrowed at his tone, but I could feel his shame as he realized how Jisk saw the situation. Will's mind touched mine, and without my shields, he examined my emotions. I felt his guilt as he noticed the jealousy and faint traces of hurt from his actions. Will looked away from Jisk, wordlessly admitting that Jisk had won that battle of words.

  Jisk turned to go, but paused and looked over his shoulder at Will. His voice was softer, and quiet enough that only Will and I could hear him, "Never take your mate for granted. An understanding mate is worth more than gold. Runts are even more valuable since they put their trust and faith in their mates, when they have no real defenses if one decided to abuse such trust. They completely depend on their mate to defend the mate bond, and if an Enforcer can't defend a mate bond, then we might as well just hand this world over to the ferals and be done with it."

  Will was startled by his words, but didn’t speak. Jisk continued walking towards the forest edge where I was still leaning against the tree. I turned my head to examine him as he walked by.

  "I’ll see you later," I murmured.

  He gave a barely audible whistle of agreement before disappearing into the shrubs. I sensed him climb a tree and pick up speed as he worked to make his passage untraceable.

  Will reached me and pulled me into a hug while dropping his face to my neck, breathing my scent as he relaxed. "I am sorry,” he apologized. “It never occurred to me how my actions would have affected you. She was relatively new to the pack, and I wasn’t aware that she thought so lowly of runts. Can you forgive me?"

  The emotions of others on the field varied from curiosity to suspicion as they watched the trees where Jisk had disappeared. The presence of the unknown and unpredictable rogue had them off-balance. I sensed a few ease into the trees as they tried to track and intercept the potential threat. I knew they didn’t stand a chance of catching him.

  I leaned my head against Will’s chest. “You're forgiven. Please don't let others flirt with you though." My voice turned more teasing. "I might have to do something rash, like find a bear and mindlink you a picture of it looking at me. I bet that would give me your undivided attention."

  He took a deep breath and shuddered lightly at my idea. "How about we don't do that? You can just mindlink me and tell me to snap out of it."

  "Or,” I murmured in a contemplative tone, “I could mindlink you an image of my reflection in the mirror while wearing that set of silver lingerie I bought."

  I felt his surprise and lust rise like a tidal wave. "You own lingerie?"

  I chuckled in response. "It was your sister who took me shopping. There was no avoiding it."

  Will's emotions were in a whirlwind. Training had dropped to the very bottom of his To Do list.