Aston stood planted in the entrance of the pack house, his mate still growling at the wolf alpha, who was still staring at him with deep blue eyes. The help had suddenly honed in on his mate, their eyes watching the lion, slightly glowing in retaliation to the possible threat that his mate had posed. Nicolai was an Alpha, and a lion at that, they knew that he would have a chance of being evenly matched with the alpha, a chance the help was not willing to take. The tiger knew that they would sacrifice their lives for the wolf, taking the brunt of Nicolai’s current aggression. 

He squeezed the lion’s hand once more, “Let’s take this inside, hm? The help needs to finish getting the grounds ready for everyone to arrive.”

Nicolai’s head snapped towards him before looking at his surroundings, the wolves around them watched him with cautious eyes, a yellow glow flickering behind their eyes giving him a warning. Aston had turned his hazel eyes towards Ransom, giving him a knowing look at which the wolf alpha received loud and clear, the wolf turning on his heels to walk into the massive home.

The couple followed quickly after, their gazes never leaving the broad back of the wolf before them. The entrance to the home enveloped them as they entered, their eyes becoming overwhelmed with a sea of white and shades of brown. The packhouse radiated a sense of simple elegance, the cleanliness of the home still shocking Aston. Wolves were notorious for being more on the animal side of the spectrum when it came to the way that they lived their lives, straying more towards the raw and animalistic customs. The tiger had been surprised that there were not pack members walking through the packhouse in the nude; it had startled him when he had first noticed it, knowing that it would have been an event if Nicolai were to bear witness to it.

Ransom led them deeper into the abode, Nicolai visibly becoming awe struck at the regalness of the house. He stared at the rustic elegance that was Ransom’s home, his eyes taking in every detail of the architecture that surrounded them. The earthy tones reminded the lion that the wolves were very different from the tigers, the colors giving him a homey feel as well as an intense sense of warm comfort.

Aston followed behind the two men, his eyes travelling down to the interlocked hands of him and his mate. It was simple yet the tight grasp of Nicolai’s grasp made him grin, he knew that the talk that awaited him when Ransom had taken them to where he wanted them to continue their conversation. The tiger watched as Ransom approached two large brown oak doors, their design sleek and thick, their structure giving the ambiance of high security. Any type of were-animal could decimate any door of any kind on brute strength alone, but the doors that the alpha swung open with ease would be able to hold their own against anyone. 

They entered the room with haste, Ransom spinning on his heel to come face to face with the lion that was close behind, looking down with a hard glare that made Aston feel a level of irritation that he had never felt before. Ransom was his friend, he was someone that the tiger had come to know over the last few years, yet watching the alpha look at his mate the way that the wolf did set him on edge. For the first time in six months he felt a deeper connection to Nicolai, watching the lion not back down from the glare that he was receiving, visibly triggering the wolf alpha. 

“Tell me the meaning of this union, Aston?” Ransom growled, his alpha voice slowly reverberating in the room around him.

“What do you mean by union?” Aston stated, noticing that the two alphas were a short distance from him. When had Nicolai let go of his hand?

“Is this mating real or something that you both did to strengthen your respective groups, mi gatito?” Ransom’s eyes never back down from Nicolai’s as he asked his question directed towards the tiger.

“He is my destined mate. Why would I mate with a stranger that was not my destined mate to give myself more power? Do you really think I would be the person to open my legs to any shifter that offered me power?” 

Ransom slightly winced, “I would not think of it mi gatito, so this man before me is to be your king?” 

Aston noticed that Ransom’s words held a double meaning. The wolf had hoped that he would deny Nicolai so that he could have a chance to court the tiger himself, something that he had tried ever since their first meeting all those years ago.

“Yes, he will be,” Aston answered, his voice unwavering as a look of pain flashed through Ransom’s eyes, the wolf’s eyes now glowing a bright red.

“Is that a declaration of war mi gatito?” the words coming out with a bite.

Aston stared at the wolf incredulously, “Are you serious Ransom? You act like my mating to Nicolai is just to spite YOU! You are my dear friend, why would I do anything to intentionally hurt you?”

“Does this lion not signify exactly that?” His gaze bored directly into the tiger, “How do you think this looks? Not to mention how this is going to look to Bianca.”

“Nicolai has nothing to do with my friendship to either of you, I am still your friend and your ally. My mate is something that has been added to this dynamic that we have already established, my relationship with him should be seen as a blessing of power. A fourth to our rule over this city” Aston noticed that Nicolai was now staring at him in awe, “Yet you seem to be making this whole debacle about yourself.”

All that Aston could feel was what could only be considered as rage, his body seemed to grow hot as he knew that his anger would soon consume him if he did not get it under control. He had known about Ransom’s feelings towards him, knowing that it had not been possible to ever return them, only being able to offer the wolf friendship instead. Before him stood an emotional Alpha that was lashing out towards the only two people in the vicinity, his actions screaming something that Aston had not expected; hurt. This realization did not seem to cool the rage that was building up inside of the tiger, it seemed to evolve into a raging frustration that his friend would act so childish. Looking at his mate, Aston’s feelings were silently heard by Nicolai even though they had not completed their mating bond, the lion could only offer a look of reassuring sympathy. 

Aston broke his eyesight from his mate to look at the wolf that now looked towards the floor, his eyes still glowing a deep shade of crimson underneath his devastatingly beautiful lashes. The tiger felt torn at the sight of the wolf alpha, knowing that he needed to stand his ground against the allegations that had been thrown at him in the heat of the moment, but he also felt that he needed to comfort his dear friend. The second feeling was something that he fought against as he stared at the wallowing wolf before him, watching the gears turn within the wolfs’ mind. 

“This is not a declaration of war” Aston stated, surprising himself, as well as Ransom, with his words, “This is what fate has chosen for me, whether you can accept it or not.” 

“But Aston….” Ransom growled.

“No butts, Ransom. You have to accept the future union between Nicolai and I, it is sort of non-negotiable” 

The tiger’s eyes switched to his mates’, seeing a small grin that was only meant for him, his rage seeming to dissipate at the sight of the small gesture from Nicolai. It was so lovingly simple. 

“Wait” the wolf alpha interrupted.

Aston and Nicolai with raised brows, confused about the sudden interruption from the wolf, not knowing what could have caused it. 

“Mi gatito, have you not consummated the bond with this lion?” a look of relief starting to paint itself on Ransom’s face before transforming into something devilish.  

“That is irrelevant to this discussion” Aston snapped, his eyes starting to glow at the question. 

“Oh it means everything mi gatito, you have not completed the bond with your mate, that means that you still have the option to make a better choice” the wolf alpha sneered.

An animalistic growl erupted from between Nicolai’s teeth at the sound of the words, the eyes in the room suddenly becoming drawn to him. The lion looked enraged as Aston stared in shock, knowing that the situation had escalated due to Ransom’s words. His anger had instantly been subdued due to the anger that was pulsing from his mate and his beast, the warm becoming hot with power that poured from the pores of Nicolai. Ransom’s nose visibly flared from the smell of the lion alpha’s power slowly starting to fill the office, his body turning to acknowledge the man that was closest to him, ignoring Aston completely. Aston knew that a fight between the two would be a declaration of war between the three groups, something that he knew in the back of his mind would not go over well.