Free The Club by Yvette Hines

everything and everyone around her. She wondered if it would always be like that.
    It will ease up after the third marking and not be so all-consuming. But it will never go away.
    That’s good to know.
    “Diego, it’s good to see you again.” A little embarrassed, she smiled at him, feeling the heat in her cheeks.
    “A grand pleasure, Olivia.” He glanced over at Trae with a sly smile. “I’d hug you, but I think even that would be too much for the Alpha dog to handle.”
    Trae growled.
    She gave Diego a conspiratorial wink.
    Trae growled again, louder this time.
    Olivia laughed. Don’t worry, it will get better after the third marking, she joked, mentally giving him his own words back.
    “If you give me your car keys, Olivia, I’ll get it to the house and meet you guys at the ceremony grounds,” Diego said.
    “Are these the suitcases you’re taking with you?” Trae pointed to the luggage in the hallway.
    Crossing to her purse on the coffee table, she pulled out her car keys. “That’s it. There are a few more things that I need to move to the house, but they can wait until next week when I come out to meet the charity truck for the furniture and dishes.” Anything that wasn’t a personal item to her, like her clothes, her old college memorabilia or anything work-related, she was donating to a shelter for battered women in town.
    “Perfect.” Diego took the keys from her, then went and picked up her suitcases and headed towards the door. “I’ll see you two in an hour or so.”
    “Thanks, Diego.” Trae patted the man on the shoulder as he passed.
    “No problem.” Diego left the apartment.
    Staring at her from across the room, Trae appeared to be warring with himself about what to do. When his hazel eyes trailed along her body, she knew what was on his mind. The same thing that was on hers. Sex. But they had to go—she didn’t want to show up late on the first night she would meet his parents and his pack.
    “I don’t want to go, but we have to.”
    “I know.” She agreed, taking in deep breaths to keep her pulse down.
    “Are you ready, Olivia?”
    Biting the side of her lip, she tried to keep her anxiety from showing, to put on a brave face.
    “You’ll be fine. They will all love you as much as I do.”
    Her breath was trapped in her lungs and her voice was stuck in her throat. “You love me?” she croaked.
    Giving her a devastating smile that was both lopsided and as sexy as hell, Trae confirmed, “Of course I love you, Olivia.”
    “Because I’m your mate?” She took a hesitant step towards him.
    He crossed the room, but left a small gap between them. “No. Because the moment you walked into The Club you captivated me. No matter what had happened that night, it would have been hard for me not to want you in my life.”
    Her throat felt tight and her eyes were burning. She wanted so badly for him to hold her.
    “You know I’d take you in my arms if I could, but my urge for you is too strong and this night too important for both of us.”
    “I understand.” She gave him a watery smile.
    “Then let’s get out of here.”
    Nodding, Olivia walked past him and out of her apartment. Her heart felt full. Tonight was going to be the start of her living and not just going through the motions.
     
    * * * *
     
    “You are a beautiful woman, Olivia,” Ziona Wulfene greeted her as she got out of the car. It was dark outside, and if it hadn’t been for the lanterns hung through the trees, Olivia wouldn’t have been able to see her hand before her face.
    Olivia stared at the woman, the highest ranked female of the pack at the moment, Trae’s mother. She was graceful and sophisticated in her charming black-and-white print dress with a red belt. Her feet were bare, but Olivia was sure the woman had a pair of fantastic red heels to match. She couldn’t help but wonder if she would ever carry herself with such elegance and class as Ziona.
    Having removed her own shoes in the car, as Trae