The group was now hovering on the back porch. Noah stood frozen at the door, staring at Barba. The alpha was on the phone with multiple papers in front of him. As much as he knew Barba and loved him, Noah held a certain fear. Which was natural when said person had the ability to shift into a predator.
Tony glanced over Noah's shoulders. "Just tell him what we practice." Seeing the future alpha frozen on the spot, he rolled his eyes. "The man is practically your father. What are you so afraid of?"
"I'm not afraid of anything." With that sudden surge of confidence, he stepped into the house. But the moment Barba's eyes landed on him he froze once more.
Barba frowned at the pale look on Noah. "Ah, he-hey let me call you back." Hanging up the phone, he raised a brow. "Noah? You okay?"
"Uh-yeah." Clapping his hands together, he took a few awkward steps toward the couch. "I-uh-I wanted to ask you something."
"Sure. Take a seat." He placed the phone on the table. Closing the files. "What is it?"
Noah glanced at the group loitering on the porch. Each one gave him a thumbs up and smiled. "Can you turn me?"
"Excuse me?" Barba was sure he heard him right, but a part of him was hoping he didn't.
"Ca-can you turn me?" That confidence was starting to drain from his body. "You know...into...like you."
"I was born like this." Barba knew he didn't mean it like that, but he was still trying to process it. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled slowly. "If you and your mother keep dropping these surprises on me, I'll never have a peaceful moment."
"Mom asked you-"
"No." He leaned forward, wincing at the pain shooting up his side. "Noah, do you know what you are asking me?" He was getting severe deja-vu.
"Somewhat." He shrugged.
"Somewhat?" He huffed out a chuckle. "Was Olivia aware you were going to ask me this?" Seeing the shake of his head, he groaned inwardly. "I can not do what you ask of me-"
"Why no-"
"Let me finish." He spoke with a bit of a growl. "I can not turn you without your mother's consent. And even if she had given it, I still wouldn't."
"Why?"
"Because you have no knowledge of what taking the bite entitles." Barba replied. "What being turned does to one. Especially someone with no ties to the blood."
Noah dropped his gaze to the floor. "Would you be able to teach me?"
"I can." Standing up with a stiff groan, Barba walked over to his bookshelf. Scanning the books, he pulled three out. Taking a seat beside Noah, he placed the books on the table. "This book will give you the history of our kind." He gestured to oldest looking book. "The other two are written by a turned and a born wolf."
"That's it? Just read them?" Noah picked one up, opened it, and scanned through the pages.
"For now." Barba nodded. "But I need you to speak with your mother first. I will not do anything behind her back."
"Understood." Gathering the books he stood up to leave. "If I have any-"
"Come see me." He offered the boy a reassuring smile. "Or call me."
"Thank you, Rafa." Running out of the house, he was surrounded by the other pups. Questions flew from everyone's mouths before he shut them up and led them away from the house.
Barba leaned back against the couch. Between Olivia and Noah, he wasn't sure how much more he could take. They both had a skill in making his blood pressure rise. He couldn't say he was surprised by Noah's request. The boy was only 12. He just found out about werewolves and has become friends with them. Hearing the others speak about it must seem like the coolest thing ever. But he was still too young. Noah was still unaware of the dangers that came with it. Not just from humans, but from their kind as well. He would give it a year. Show him the good and bad sides of his world. If by then Noah still wanted to be turned, he'd do it.
"Carmen where the hell are tho-"
'On your desk underneath the Lakeworth's file!'
Looking around he grumbled in annoyance at not seeing the dreaded file. "I can't fi-got it!" He walked around his desk to the table in his office, dropping said file with the rest he had scattered. "Carmen, can you get ahold of Captain Benson? Let her know I have something."
"On it."
Taking a deep breath he picked up on a familiar smell. It smelled of the perfume you'd put on artificial flowers. Keeping his back turned to the female that had just stepped into his office, Barba refrained from growling.
"Hello, Rafael." Her voice dripped with venom.
"Yolanda." Closing the files on the table he kept his back to her. Not only was it to show he did not consider her as a threat, but also as a sign that she was no longer worth his time. "What are you doing here?"
She rolled her eyes, taking a seat on one of the chairs. "Am I not allowed to come visit a friend?"
"Only one problem..." He turned to face her. "We at not friends."
"I had believed we once were."
"A long time ago perhaps." Leaning against the table, he gripped the edges. Better that than her neck. "I'll ask one more time, what are you doing here?"
She finally dropped the fake smile, pinning him with a glare. "I hear you have found a mate." Not getting a response, she rolled her eyes. "It wasn't a question Rafa, it-"
"Don't call me that." He growled.
Yolanda clicked her tongue. "Alpha Barba then."
"Is that why you came all this way?" Barba asked. "To talk about my personal life?"
"To some extent." She said. "Primarily about her...nature."
"Enough with the code talk. You came here to speak of my mate being human. More specifically about the fact that I will not be turning her." Pushing himself off the table, he walked to his desk and took a seat. "If that is the case you can leave. Now."
Landing her hand a little too hard on the desk, she growled. "You are putting everyone at risk. And I don't mean just your pack, but Alejandro's and Elliot's."
"Elliot?" Barba chuckled. "That mutt works fast."
"He's a good man." She was quick to defend him.
"I'm sure he is. But back to what isn't any of your business, Olivia will not be turned. Your pack will not be affected by my choices." Barba assured her. "Do not go making trouble where there isn't any."
"Elliot was right." Yolanda leaned back with a scoff. "That human has you wrapped around her finger. She says bark and you ask how loud. Is she that good at sucking your di-" She was never able to finish that sentence.
Barba had jumped over the desk shifting just before he pushed her and the chair to the floor. His large paw pushed her down. His claws were centimeters from her neck. 'You forget your place.' Yolanda was not an alpha by birth, but a delta. It was because of her mate that she rose in the ranks. Still, in the eyes of other alpha Yolanda was no more than a delta. 'Speak Ill of my mate again and Alejandro will be in the market for a new one.'
"Look at you, Rafael. Threatening your kind for a human!" A whimper passed her lips at feeling his claw dig into her skin. "Rafa."
'You do not get to call me that.' He leaned in closer, baring his teeth at her. 'I am only going to warn you and Alejandro once. Stay clear of Olivia. Try anything against her or her loved ones and I will take great pleasure in ending every one of you.'
"She is only a human."
'She is my mate!'
"Rafa?!"
Looking up he winced at seeing Olivia at his door. Glancing down at Yolanda in a warning look, he pushed off her. Yolanda was smart enough to not move. Walking around his desk he quickly shifted. Thankfully his desk was tall enough to hide his lower half. Not that there was anything she hadn't seen. Grabbing the change of clothes from underneath his desk, he addressed Yolanda. "Leave."
Getting up she bent down to grab her purse. "Alejandro will hear about this Barba."
"I would be surprised if he didn't." Slipping his pants on, he grabbed the belt. "But do not forget to tell him, you walked into my territory. Threaten and disrespect my mate." Buckling his belt and picking up his shirt he stopped, raising his brow at her. "Got more to say?"
"When this backfires on you, I'll be the first to say I told you so."
Olivia jumped to the side avoiding the angry woman from crashing into her. Looking back at Barba, she waited for an explanation. Instead, he busied himself on getting redressed. Stepping in front of him, Olivia moved his hands and took over buttoning his shirt up. "Who was that?"
Barba was aware he must tell her, but he decided to keep a few things out. "That was Yolanda Muñoz. Wife to senator Alejandro Muñoz."
"Wait, are they..." Seeing the short nod, she gave a quiet 'whew'. "And what was that I just walked into?"
He jerked at hearing his belt buckle being undone. Looking down at her hands undoing his pants and zipper, he huffed when she began to tuck his shirt in. "A little warning next time."
Olivia frowned, realizing what he meant a few seconds later. "Your office is nothing but glass windows and door. This would be the last place I'd do anything." Doing his clothes back up, she leaned over to grab his tie. "You didn't answer my question."
Raising his collar he dipped his head down, letting her place the tie around him. "Alejandro and Yolanda are old tradition wolves. She doesn't like who I picked as my partner."
"Who the hell is she to question it?" Doing his tie-up, she folded his collar and stepped back to admire the man. "Black truly is your color."
Grabbing her by the waist, he pulled her flush against his chest. Without a moment to waste, he had her in a deep kiss. "Yolanda and I have a bit of a history." Seeing the weary look appear in her eyes, he quickly shook his head. "No, I never slept with her. I never kissed her either."
"Then what sort of history?" She moved away from him, taking a seat in his chair.
Barba leaned against his desk, taking her hand in his. "Yolanda was the daughter of Marcus, delta to a pack we were having issues with. My parents came to the agreement that I was to be married with her. Unite the two packs into one."
"I am going to assume things didn't go accordingly." She looked at their united hands. His much larger than hers. It reminded her of the strength those hands held. The power they held over her.
"She was in love with Alejandro and the night before our wedding, she ran off with him." He shrugged. "I had no feelings for her, so I wasn't heartbroken about it. But that caused a much more tense relationship with her pack."
Pulling his hand toward her, she ran her finger over the veins on the back of his hand. "Why did it bother them so much? She married an alpha either way."
Watching her finger trace his veins, he was unable to stop the shudder. "Bloodlines." Kneeling on one knee in front of her, he placed his hands on the armrests of the chair. "Back then mating into our family meant higher ranking than the rest of the packs. Muñoz's pack was no more than 6 wolves at the time." Moving his free hand from the armrest, he placed it on her thigh.
Olivia watched his thumb caress over her leg. "And it didn't bother you?"'
"No." Sliding it up towards her hip, he slipped it under her shirt, stopping just below her breast. Looking up at her he smirked seeing her eyes fill with lust. Moving his hand towards her back, Barba unhooked her bra in one go. "I never held any romantic feelings towards Yolanda."
Removing his hand, he focused his hearing on anyone coming their way. Looking towards Carmen's desk he found it empty and her lingering scent told him she wasn't in the building. Unbuttoning her shirt, Barba groaned at having a full frontal view of her. "She was right about something." Barba pressed light kisses over her stomach and up toward her chest. While he lavished her breast with his mouth, his hand worked its way down to the button of her jeans.
"Wh-what?" Her hands held onto his arms in a death grip.
Undoing said button, he slid the zipper down and shoved his hand into her pants. "You have me wrapped around your will."
A surprised gasp escaped her at feeling his fingers brush her. "Rafa, not here." Feeling him push past her undergarment and his finger run just on the outer layer, had her squirming in the seat. "Rafa." Her hands clutched the armrests the moment he slid a finger inside her. Olivia bit down on her bottom lip, forcing herself to not make a sound. "Rafa, please."
Pulling away from her breast he glared up at her. "What?"
"Not here." She whispered.
Sliding in two more fingers, he smirked at the silent moan. "If we get up from here, I am going to have to remove myself. Is that what you want?" Sliding them in and out a few times, he felt her walls clench around him. "I'm sure that's not what you want."
"You're an asshole." She gritted through her teeth, a moan sipping.
"Is that a, yes?" He leaned down biting over her collarbone. "Or a, no?" Not getting a response he began to pull his hand away.
"Don't you dare." She gripped his wrist. "You started this. Finish it."
With a wild smirk, he picked up the pace, driving his fingers in and out with no pause. The moment he felt her wall tighten around him, he leaned up and kissed her. Swallowing her low moan. Pulling away he rested his forehead against hers. "It's getting difficult to stop myself." Turning his head to the left he looked down at his mark. Running a finger over it, he nearly groaned at the moan she gave. "Pretty soon, you're going to be completely mine."
