Page 86 of Alpha Claimed

"Hell no," said Ares. "There is no way-"

"Look," said Cherry. "I attended to our Luna when she went into heat once. Our Alpha was gone on pack business when it happened. I thought she'd die from the way her temperature rose. She clawed at her skin until she drew blood because the pain was so bad, and trust me, we bought her every toy we could find. Nothing worked. Nothing but sex with her mate. And even then, that took a couple days to pass with him servicing her. And she was mated already. I have no idea what will happen to River because she isn't mated yet. All I know is that the two of you are going to have to suck it up and take care of her until this passes."

"No," said Ares. "No way am I going to let him touch her, let alone get in bed with my mate."

"You think I want your manicured nails and two-thousand-dollar suited ass anywhere nearmymate?" Apollo retorted. "I'd rather die fighting you for her than know you'd touched one silken strand of her hair."

Ares took a step toward Apollo and growled. Apollo rose to the challenge, and his eyes went black.

"Stop it," Cherry yelled. "Believe me when I say I know how it feels to share the one you love with someone else. It's hard. Harder than anything else you will ever do in your life. But if you care for her, if you love her, you will put that aside and do this. For her. It's the only way."

Cherry looked between the brothers and, for a moment, was afraid she would have to physically stop them from killing one another. Tension crackled in the air, and no one moved. Finally, Ares spoke.

"There is no way in hell I'm getting into bed with him."

Cherry fought back an audible sigh. "Don't be stupid. River would never want that. You'll have to take turns."

"And how do we decide who goes first?" Apollo's eyes turned back to their natural color.

Cherry looked at him. "You'll go first."

"I found her first. She chose me first," said Ares.

"Unclench for a minute and let me finish," Cherry shot back. "Apollo will need to be with her first because he is the oldest and first in line for the throne. It only makes sense."

Ares went to protest, but she held up her hand to stop him.

"Do you ever shut that giant trap of yours?" She continued. "Second, because Apollo will be gentler with her. She's gonna need that in the beginning. But after the first twenty-four hours, she won't want gentle anymore. She's going to… want more. Need more. And I get the feeling you will be the one to help with that, Ares."

Again, silence stretched out for a long, tense minute as her words sunk in.

"Is there anything else we should know?" Ares tore his gaze from Apollo to look at her.

"I'm pretty sure both of you know how this works. I don't have to draw diagrams or anything, do I?"

"No," they both said.

"So are you suggesting that I just sit in my room, smelling River and hearing her have sex with Apollo for twenty-four hours?" Ares asked.

Cherry shrugged. "If you're into that kind of thing, go for it. Personally, I would get a hotel and wait until we call you."

Ares shook his head. "I don't like it. What if it goes wrong?"

"What, you think I don't know how to make love to River?" Apollo snorted. "You may think me an idiot, but I promise you I will give River everything she needs."

"If you could do that, she wouldn't need me to come in and finish her off, would she?"

Apollo growled.

"Knock it off," Cherry yelled. "You two either want to help her, or you don't. This macho I-hate-my-brother bullshit needs to stop. If it doesn't and you two can't figure this out, River will pay. So are you two gonna Lycan up and do what you are meant to do, or are you going to pussy out and make her suffer?"

The two brothers stared at each other without speaking for several seconds.

"Just because you get to have her first doesn't mean she's yours," said Ares. "The only reason I'm even considering this is because it's what she needs."

"And the only reason I'm even considering letting you lay a finger on her is because I love her more than I hate you," Apollo responded.

"Good," said Cherry. "Then it's settled. Now, you two get the other males out of here and close all the doors and windows. We need to contain her scent as much as possible. You never know who could smell it and come knocking, and we don't need rogues rushing this estate with your guards gone. And get some rest. You're both gonna need it." Cherry turned to leave but stopped. "Lastly, don't even think about going in her room because I'll be back in ten minutes with a blanket and pillow camped out on the other side of that bedroom door. And I will not hesitate to stab anyone who tries to come in uninvited. She needs to sleep, too. Got it?"