Sunday Ficcing: Wolf Edition
Title: Out of Control (2/5)
Genre: RPS AU
Pairing: Jensen/Jared
Warning: Sex, Violence, My take on modern werewolves.
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 35K, This part 7500
Beta: I’d like to thank enablelove as the best person in the universe. This was the story that would not be beta’d. Nobody wants to beta a story this long, that wasn’t a challenge. I pretty much just begged until she gave in and she did a great job. Little did she know that she was going to be sucked into a much bigger job.
-Also special thanks to ldyghst for the helps where needed! We have details.
Summary: Jared Padalecki and his inner circle work hard and play harder, everybody in the territory knows it. Everybody in all the neighboring territories knows it. Everybody knows that he is groomed to be head of the Pack, and he's poised to take over. Jared's father is waiting, though. Waiting to see what Jared will do about his brother, about the neighboring rowdy Pack, about a mate...
Part I
PART II
**
Jensen stood in the open air for a long time. He was trying to calm everything that had come alive inside him; everything that was dangerous for him.
He wanted to submit to Jared at, so badly. It itched under his skin, the wanting. But he couldn’t do that; he couldn’t fall apart and trust anyone else to build him up again.
Jared was good;, he had read him after a few hours. Some people had never sussed what was under Jensen’s well-constructed exterior. He had always tried to be what people had expected.
That was becoming the hard part in this situation. Everyone wanted him in Jared’s bed, but nobody was asking him what he wanted. Not just what his body craved, but what he wanted.
His father had told him, after Jensen chewed him out, that he had to make this work. The Padalecki’s were the only reason that the family had been left alone. The Ackles had grown soft in their luxury in the city while the Padalecki’s had managed to maintain everything in their suburban metropolis sprawl. To stay esteemed in the other wolves of the community’s eyes, they needed the Padalecki’s.
Jensen was to ensure that his family was still bound to the Padalecki’s. The Ackles had the money to placate the humans, but the other packs reacted to power.
Jensen was to keep the peace by any means necessary.
Jensen had planned to keep this thing just business. If he had to delve into the exchange of bodily fluids, he would, but he wasn’t going to get himself involved.
But by Jared’s dirty mouth, he was undone on that promise. Just running side-by-side, pushing, he had felt alive. There was a thrill in just the few hours that he had been with Jared that he had never felt before. He didn’t feel reckless and crazy with Jared; he felt like he could actually be everything, man and wolf.
But he wasn’t a toy. He wouldn’t be a bitch to be put outside with the trash. He’d rather be ostracized, to be packless, than to let somebody treat him like that.
And that is when he realized the advantage of what Jared wasn’t offering.
He could put mate or nothing on the table.
Jensen closed his eyes.
He thought long and hard. The body. The power. That is what called to him.
The mate thing meant that Jared would see inside Jensen. He would see the carefully controlled mess. It was the nature of mating.
He knew that it was true, the reason his father hadn’t chosen him. Because he rarely had friends. Because he always was sniffing on the outside. Because letting anyone in would mean that they could see how much he wasn’t worthy.
Jensen breathed in the cool night air and he knew. To be honest, he knew from the moment he had felt Jared Padalecki’s eyes on him.
He knew he could offer what was expected of him. Just as much as he knew it wouldn’t be taken.
He knew how to run this. He could show Jared it all, and he was pretty sure that Jared would realize that he really was damaged, and Jared would ask him to leave, not matter how much Jared wanted to fuck him.
All Jensen had to do was put on the table what Jared couldn’t possibly want, the real him for life, and in two months they could part and this would be nothing but a memory. Jensen could go back to his city, to his dark where things were glossy and the wolf would be placated.
The plan knit together neatly in his head and Jensen smiled.
He was ready, burning hot words of Jared Padalecki be damned.
**
“Princess,” a chipper voice said, plopping down on his bed. “You came back to me.”
Jensen was bone tired. He had gotten back to Jared’s compound at dawn.
The owner of the chipper voice prodded him with sharp toes of shoes.
“You’ve gotta get up. We’re working on a take over and Jared was told that you’re good at that kind of thing,” the voice said, ignoring his lack of response. “We have a meeting to start finalizing and you’re now lead.”
Jensen popped his head up. “You want me to take the lead of something I have no idea about?”
Sophia was there, dressed for business, everything in place, the exact opposite of the pack’s wildness last night. Her face showed that she did indeed expect him to go into the office and perform miracles.
“Seriously, are you insane?” Jensen said grumpily.
“You have until noon to catch up, no biggie,” Sophia said idly, holding out a cup of delicious smelling coffee. “But we have to go into the office in like fifteen minutes. “Then tonight we have a meet up with the Chambers crew, and by proxy the Baldwin Pack. They are one of our semi-sub-packs and they’re getting very cocky. We don’t like it much. So get moving, there is a day to do, hop to it.”
“When do you sleep?” Jensen grumbled, sipping his coffee.
“The rest of us had four hours, and that’s usually enough,” Sophia said with a smile, standing up and straightening her skirt. “Jared likes the best, and the five of us are the best. We’re the only ones who could keep up with him, too bad it doesn’t look like you can.”
Jensen said up, with a look he conveyed who had been keeping up, if not surpassing Jared last night.
“So why don’t I just be incompetent and then I can go home?” Jensen bit out, moving to get up, trying to pretend that his nakedness in front of her didn’t bother him.
“You can try,” Sophia said, leaving the room. “How good are you at failure?”
Jensen went to the bathroom to brush his teeth; the answer was that he was terrible at failure. He hated it. He would do anything not to fail. He clawed away at any challenge not to fail, it seemed all of Jared’s people could read him well.
“Hurry up, pookey,” Sophia said and left the bungalow.
There was a suit on the bathroom door, apparently special ordered seeing as he didn’t actually have more than one day’s change of clothes. He was sure this suit would fit like a glove and he knew from just a touch that it was of the top quality.
He quickly washed and put on deodorant. He was more than presentable in less than ten minutes and was sipping the last of his coffee by the Humvees when the rest of Jared’s crew came out of their houses.
Jared came out last, one minute before the time to leave. He was wearing a suit, looking perfect and smooth as sin. Jensen calmly sipped his coffee, not reacting to the sight. Jared’s eyes danced with approval, not at all surprised that Jensen was there.
**
Jensen hated everything about life right now. He had been put in a beautiful corner office, not that he had a chance to look out the window, and he had four hours to download a million things. This had to be a test and Padalecki was a sadistic bastard. Jensen was not going to let him win. He could do impossible.
“Ready?,” Jared asked, appearing at his door with a smirk.
Jensen happily hated him.
Jensen gathered the plan in his head and then stood up and straightened. He could smell Jared, spicy and tinged with sweat. That was something that he wasn’t used to, something raw that was new, and entirely welcome. That smell was the same thing that had him on his knees last night; it was the same thing he was damned sure that he was going to start begging for any second.
He held himself in check by a tiny sliver, because loosing control was his greatest fear. Especially right now.
“You’re an idiot,” Jensen said, following him to the elevator. “Do you always give impossible tasks to the guys you want to fuck?”
Jared shrugged. “You’re supposed to be good, so I might as well use you for something else until you put out.”
“I’m beginning to think that you want me for my mind,” Jensen told him.
“I don’t,” Jared said, leaning into Jensen’s space.
Jensen looked up at him calmly. “Too bad. You will.”
**
The ride up was longer than Jared ever remembered it being. He could smell Jensen, still smelling a little like last night, sweat and dirt under the clean clothes. It was just a whiff, but it reminded Jared that there was a lot more to Jensen.
He swallowed, his mouth watering.
The door opened and Jared just watched Jensen walk out. It was a pretty sight. He didn’t know what Jensen’s words had meant, but it sounded very intriguing. Jensen was being cocky, which in Jared’s experience just lead to some epic failures.
He was a minute into the meeting when he realized how wrong he was.
For the next two hours, Jared was in hell.
Jensen stood in front of the room, calm and in control, never breaking, and never sounding like he had only be preparing for four hours. He sounded like he had conceptualized and created this deal, instead of having been given a dead bird and told that he had to make it fly. Jensen was Dr. Frankenstein.
More than that, he was enthralling like Jared had never known.
Every eye in the room followed him. Jared knew that the humans couldn’t smell the waves of power coming off of Jensen, but Jared wanted to kill each and every one of them for getting to be in the same room as Jensen when he was being this charming and sure.
Part of Jared was surprised at the visceral reaction; he had never quite had one like this before. Jensen was covered head to toe in conservative clothing and he was droning on about corporate things and Jared couldn’t listen to him. All he could do was watch as Jensen held the people in the room in the palm of his hand. He shouldn’t be this keyed up over Jensen, not now, not like this, but for him this was a better audition for bedmate than lap dancing.
Halfway through the meeting, Jared had to look down at his ridiculous Mont Blanc pen or else he was going to throw Jensen down on this table and forgo his promise that Jensen would have to beg for his cock. He was the one that was going to do the begging.
He had to get the want under control.
Finally, everyone left. Jared didn’t stand up, but he did at last look up from his pen.
Jensen was staring at him, waiting.
“I’m pretty sure if you fake beg, that will be more than enough,” Jared said huskily.
Jensen walked over to where Jared was sitting and leaned over the table, body suspended on the tips of his fingers.
“Two months,” Jensen said, still calm, cool, and collected. “In two months one of two things will happen.”
His voice was smooth as butter, wrapping around Jared and massaging every nerve ending. He was still in business mode and Jared’s mouth went dry.
“One, I will go home untouched,” Jensen told him. “We’ll part and the bond between packs will be stronger than ever after this exchange program.”
“Boring,” Jared said, happy to find he could sound like he was in control.
“Okay,” Jensen said, with a superior grin and Jared knew that this option wasn’t going to include begging. “Then the other way this goes is you get me on my knees.”
“I like this plan,” Jared said, his eyes narrowing. “What am I not going to like?”
Jensen looked at him calmly. “Me.”
Jared swallowed. “That doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Mated,” Jensen added with a knowing smirk.
Jared recoiled a bit.
Jensen leaned in, letting go of the businessman, his voice rough. “Do you really want to see what happens when I let loose? I’m not talking about just a wild thing in your bed, but that will happen too, but do you really want to see when I unleash everything? Do you think that you have a chance in hell of controlling me? Do you think you have a chance in hell of installing me into your perfect little leadership circle? Is the wanting to fuck me, have me beg, and whine under you enough of a draw for the wild card that is me?”
Jared couldn’t even remember how to breathe in that moment at those words pouring out of Jensen’s mouth. He didn’t know what he truly wanted yet, but everything in that offer was something he wanted to try and he was willing to burn down the world to get it.
He just didn’t know if he was willing to be mated, to anyone. There just was too much at stake.
Jensen raised an eyebrow and cocked his head.
Then, with obviousness, he looked down at Jared’s crotch.
“Looks like you need a minute,” Jensen said, his own pheromones flying, voice dripping with sex.
With that, he walked away and left Jared staring after the man that just turned his world upside down.
Jared sat there, hands balled up underneath the table, pressed tightly to his thighs to regain some semblance of control. He was thrumming with want; he could feel the wolf right under his skin. He hadn’t been this keyed up since he went through puberty and was just learning to control it all.
He waited until he could stand up without embarrassing himself.
“Well fuck,” he told the empty room.
Jensen had just upped the ante, and Jared was big enough to admit that Jensen had just kicked his ass at his own game. Jared didn’t know if he was angry as hell or hella impressed.
Jared stood there blinking.
"So boss," Misha said, coming into the boardroom. "You just put the buyout in the hands of a total stranger. We all know this deal is a lost cause; group consensus is that we are wondering why you woke us up at two in the morning to tell us that Jensen was taking over something that absolutely was dead. You know we do require a coupe of hours of sleep, right?"
Jared tried to find his composure. "I just wanted to throw him off his game a little."
"Did it work?" Misha asked curiously.
Jared looked down at his pen once again. "Well, no. The plan really backfired in a way that isn’t going to go over well. Find Hartley, I think that the buyout might happen now. Dad is going to be thrilled."
"Hartley and Katie might kill you," Misha said blankly. "They were ready to put that one to bed and move on. They had just finally gotten to the point were they accepted their failure. Actually, they might kill Jensen for doing what they couldn’t."
Jared swallowed. "They'll live."
Misha just looked at him. "So he really is that good."
"He's better," Jared admitted.
"Aww, he got you all hot and bothered?" Misha asked with a teasing lilt.
Jared growled and Misha put up his hands in submission, but his eyes were dancing.
Jared seethed, but Misha just snickered before ascending into full blown laughter.
Misha snickered and then started laughing. "That is so great, I can't wait until I tell the gang."
Jared groaned and put his head in his hands.
"I want to kill all of you," Jared muttered. “I’m going to take you into the ring of fire and I’m going to murder someone. Please tell me everything is arranged for tonight. I need to hit somebody so bad.”
“It’s done boss,” Misha said, his face back to calm cool and collected.
**
The rest of the day, Jensen was edgy. He had pushed himself and he had pushed Jared to the brink. He had offered things he wasn’t quite prepared to give, and he had watched as Jared seriously seemed to consider his offer. This wasn’t a good sign for his independence and getting away from this town.
This had gone too far and it had only been one day.
He could do the part in the boardroom. He was good at getting people to turn to putty in his hands. He thought he could keep himself in check, except for in less than twenty-four hours, he was careening more than he thought possible. For the remainder of the day, he snapped at all the strangers around him, people who were just trying to help him in this new world.
Finally he couldn’t take it anymore and stood up, storming into Jared’s office.
“You want to see it?” Jensen asked. “You want to see what happens when I let go? You want to take us to the Chambers tonight. From what the girls said, you’re going to take satisfaction for their incursion, you want to see what happens? Let me do it and you can see everything that you don’t want.”
Jared stood up on the opposite side of the desk. “Don’t talk to me like a child. You are in the same boat. Do you even have any idea what you are asking? You throw down mate on the table like it is something not to be considered, like it isn’t for life.”
Jensen leaned in closer. “You don’t know the fuck you are asking for. You want to watch me lose control because you think it would be fun, but imagine that with nothing holding me back. I know it sounds conceited, but I know exactly what I am.”
“I fucking doubt that you are that self aware,” Jared shot back. “I think you are probably lots of things that you don’t know about. You are putting things on the table that you’d never even think of actually doing.”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of, Padalecki. You’ve known me a fucking day and even you with your gift or reading people you don’t know me,” Jensen spat out.
“So you’re miraculous and a crazy fuck,” Jared growled. “What the hell is wrong with you? You think you have a dark side that you can hide that well?”
“Then tonight, let me loose control and I’ll show you. Let me off leash and I’ll show you how silly your ideas are,” Jensen said, speaking mostly out of hot head.
“You really think you’re that much?” Jared demanded angrily.
“I’m a fucking hurricane!” Jensen was almost yelling by this point. “And even I can’t stop myself when I let go. Tonight is the high moon, and tonight you’re taking us out. I’ll show you exactly what happens.”
Jared leaned in. “Bring it on, there is nothing you have that I can’t handle.”
Jensen let out a sardonic laugh. “You’re an idiot.”
“And you are a cocky, stuck up, self centered asshole who overestimates himself. I just hope that you get your pretty little face bashed in tonight,” Jared said, his own face red.
“We’ll see,” Jensen bit out and stormed out of the room.
Jared had never been more turned on in his life.
**
"You do know you're really good at a lot of things," Katie said, dryly.
"Ten points for an accurate backhanded comment," Chad muttered. “Did you notice her implication that while there are many things that you are good at, this might not be one of them?”
Jared just looked at his crew, all of them dressed in black, waiting in front of the Humvee.
"What they're not saying is that waking us up with something that you concocted at three in the morning after an adrenaline rush may not be the best idea," Misha pointed out.
“Chambers is coming too close,” Jared said sullenly, as if that was the question that they were asking.
Jensen came strolling out and all of their eyes went to him. He was wearing faded jeans and a v-neck that seemed to move to reveal hipbone and collarbone every time he took a step. Around his neck was a black chord connected to a silver disk with his family motto on it.
Five sets of eyes went from Jensen to look back at Jared, while Jared’s eyes remained on Jensen. Jensen didn’t break the gaze as he stepped forward.
Nobody said anything, eyes still fixed on Jared.
Jared looked hungry, starving in fact.
Hartley dragged his gaze to Jensen. “This is a pretty raw thing that you are getting into tonight. This doesn’t have rules. This is fists until something breaks.”
Jensen didn’t look away from Jared. “Okay.”
“This means that if you are going to come, you are one of us. You aren’t going to act like a yipping dog biting at our ankles, but you are going to be with us.”
Jared and Jensen stood looking at each other, and the words that Hartley said disappeared into the whirring vibrating air between them. Jensen just looked at Jared like he was waiting for something.
“Are you with me?” Jared asked, his voice pitched low.
Jensen tilted his head, just slightly to the right.
“I’m with you,” he finally said.
Jared turned and walked to the car. Hartley grabbed Jensen.
“Look, son,” he growled, as Jared got in the car. “I know that you know protocol, and that you’re well versed in the slick rich fantasy ways, but this isn’t that. We keep the law with our fist. He is the heir apparent, and he is taking a huge risk by taking you with us.”
Jensen finally looked away from where Jared had been standing.
The moon was high in the sky and Jensen’s eyes were blown out in the pale light. There was gold glinting there, proof the wolf inside of him was close, and his hair was slightly out of place, he was going out slightly unkempt, there was something slightly wild about him, which was even more alarming than if he had been growling and snarling.
He looked at Hartley straight in the eyes. “If you touch me again, I’ll most likely bite off your pretty face.”
Jensen got into the car, leaving the five of them standing there staring after him.
“I need a drink,” Chad mumbled.
“I need an orgy,” Sophia sighed. “What the fuck was that? Who the fuck was that? I am so turned on right now. Seriously, who is that guy?”
“That was the one last night,” Misha said calmly. “That was the one who made Jared run faster and immediately got between Jared and intruders.”
“My entire body is humming,” Sophia said. “Like I want to fuck and kill. I want to change right the fuck now and I’m having trouble controlling it.”
They all swallowed.
“I am so putting more money on sooner rather than later,” Katie said waving her hand around. “You know, with the whole fucking thing.”
Misha cocked his head. “I think that this is about a hell of a lot more than fucking now.”
**
Only once did a conversation start on the ride over.
"They'll pick Dane or Vin," Chad spoke up, trying to break the tension.
"Dane is pretty," Katie added. "He likes to put on a show, but if you hit his face a couple of times, he'll surrender."
"They'll pick Vin," Misha said. "Chambers will take one look at Jensen's face and put that gorilla on him. Vin hits like a Mac truck, but he can't move. If you can keep yourself limber, you can take him down."
"He's fine," Jared said, and everybody knew that this conversation, any conversation really, was over.
The car was full of electricity; it crackled and raised the hairs on everybody's arms.
They arrived at the Chamber's gathering point just outside of the Padalecki territory.
The ‘Boneyard’ was as it always was. It was hot rods and crotch rockets, all suped up to the max; all of it on show. There were torches lighting the area, and a few kegs for those without Jack Daniels in their hands.
There were already people yelling, dancing to music coming out of car stereos, fucking in less than dark corners.
At the middle was a circle that nobody went in; they didn’t go in because if anyone went in, they were going to have to start throwing punches and those punches wouldn’t stop until someone was almost dead. On the far side was a fucked up dais of car parts. Chambers sat with his crew, the girls surrounding him wearing only tiny shiny pieces of fabric.
Chambers took one look at the arrival of the car and stood up, weight going to his good leg.
Jensen had to smile a little at that.
They got out of the car and everybody looked fearless, like they belonged there. Like they were going to raise a special kind of hell. Without speaking, Jensen was on Jared's left side, Hartley on the right, and everyone fell into step as they walked into the Chamber's sanctum.
"Well, well, well," Chambers said, coming out in a wife beater and camo pants. "Looks like you're a big ole hypocrite. Shouldn't you be sticking to your own area?"
"It is all my territory. You are subletting from someone who is subletting from me," Jared said evenly. "You crossed a line. I want satisfaction and assurance that you'll never do it again. You need to be reminded that you are on this shit piece of dust because I allow it."
Chambers smirked. "You’re an arrogant fuck, but I'm still not hitting the Padalecki scion."
Jared showed his white teeth in a smirking snarl.
"He's not the one you have to worry about," Jensen said, voice smooth as honey and as dangerous as a poisonous snake.
Chambers looked at him witheringly. "You're going to send the Ackles pup? We don't need any spreadsheets."
He smirked at Jensen as all of Chamber’s people cackled.
Jensen looked up at Chambers and smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. They remained cold and hard. He didn't say anything, but just cocked his head as if he was waiting for something. Finally, he turned his head to look over at Jared through hooded eyes.
Jared grinned with a secret smile, there seemed to be a secret nobody knew between the two of them, and most likely never would. And this secret was probably something completely degrading about Chamber’s mother.
There was a slight rustle and both their heads went to the newcomers. It was a thickly muscled man, a big scruffy pretty boy, and a skinny redhead with dangerous curves.
"Oh, the golden children are here," the girl said, looking at Jensen. "And they brought something new and pretty to play with."
She stepped forward, eyes still locked on Jensen, ignoring the scalding glare that Jared sent her way.
"He's going to fight Vin," Chambers said, bored. "You know, to make sure we know our place."
"You sure ain't going to be pretty at the end of the night," the woman said as she stepped forward, impressively ignoring the black hole anger radiating off of Jared. "Wanna come and have a hot and sweaty before your match, ‘cause it will probably be the last time you're going to be anything more than a hole."
Jensen leaned in, and took a deep breath, before leaning back. "You wanna be bred, little girl? You want a real Alpha between your legs?"
Jared growled low in his throat while her eyes glazed over a little.
“Lindsay,” Chambers said in warning.
Jensen leaned in really close to speak in her ear and looked at Jared behind her, their eyes locked. Jensen began speaking in that voice of his, rough and soothing, the one that made you want to get on your knees and give him anything that he wanted.
"I don't fuck whores," he said straight to Jared. "When I fuck, I’m not some notch on the bedpost, some warm body, some thing to get through the night. I’m something you remember.”
He pulled back and looked at Lindsay who was the only one who didn't realize his words weren't for her.
"You reek of them," Jensen said disdainfully. "I wouldn't touch your skanky ass with a fifty foot pole."
It was the girls and Chad who cracked up behind them. Lindsay looked up at him, her eyes gone ice cold.
"You should have taken me up on it," she said, voice soft but angry. "You're never going to get another offer. Vin is going to crush your balls, you’ll never be a real man again."
Jared looked over at Jensen, and all they did was share that grin again.
She looked over at Jared, too. "He hasn’t touched you yet. You must be defective, because he’s definitely the definition of a whore. Not the best, but definitely a decent fuck. Maybe if you beg hard enough, he’ll throw you his bone."
Jensen leaned down to look in her eyes and spoke with cruel laughter in his voice. "Go away little girl, the adults need to play. I'm sure there are plenty of guys that you can open your legs for."
She opened her mouth, but Chambers spoke first. “Lindsay, they’re here to fight, and unless you want to step into the ring with him, stop whoring yourself out. This is going to be solved with fists, not with what you are offering.”
She bristled, but when the leader issued an order, then you had to follow it no matter what.
Chambers looked back at Jared. “So your bitch against my bruiser. I’d be more than happy to take him on, but - “
Chambers lifted his pant leg, showing an angry bite that had only partially healed.
“- I wouldn’t want him to take another cheap shot.”
“Whatever,” Jared said shrugging, starting to move. This seemed old hand, as if they had many confrontations here. Jared seemed to know exactly where he was going.
“My boy is going to kick your overgrown mutt’s ass,” Jared said as if it wasn’t much concern.
Jensen watched him go, knowing that their indifference and lack of fear would do nothing but infuriate the other group. Jensen was pretty impressed how Jared seemed to be able to walk into hostile territory as if he owned it, looking like he wasn’t even trying.
Vin was the one who stepped forward, cold and cocky.
Jared sat on the chair on the far side, his crew around him. Hartley left the nucleus to come and stand by Jensen. Jensen had the feeling that it wasn’t for solidarity.
“We’re with right you now,” Hartley said. “Each of us has your back. Vin is a dick. He hits like you are falling into a brick wall. I’ve gone a few rounds with him when he was a kid and he had fewer muscles then. He has brute force, but he doesn’t move all that quickly.”
“I believe you,” Jensen said, taping his hands. He finished and looked over at Jared. Their eyes met and Jensen’s hands went to the hem of his shirt, slowly peeling it off his chest, as if for show. When the shirt was completely off, Jared’s eyes were still on Jensen.
Hartley leaned towards Jensen’s ear. “I’d beat you if we all weren’t all supposed to be supporting you right now. So you’re going to keep looking at him and you’re going to listen to me and pretend like I’m telling you about Vin. Do you understand?”
Jensen didn’t give an inch, but he nodded.
“This is the first time I’ve ever had to do this, so if I do it wrong I’m sorry, but I’m going to give you a speech that means ‘if you fuck with him I will happily kill you’ and if you think anything less than you are greatly mistaken,” Hartley said evenly. “See, that guy that you are staring holes at, well, he’s family. He’s my brother, my leader, and I cannot even begin to tell you how absolutely loyal I am to him. If you are even remotely fucking with him, then we will drag you into the desert and you won’t be coming back.”
Jensen didn’t look away from Jared, but he barely nodded in understanding.
“See, the thing I know is that you were offered up as a sacrificial lamb,” Hartley continued. “But nobody asked you to broker a multimillion dollar deal, to turn the tide and get that on track, and nobody asked you to be the one to face off against Vin. Yeah, Jared was fucking with you, but you’re fucking with our lives today and if you’re just fucking with him, then that isn’t good. His brother has his eyes on the prize and if Jared shows a little weakness over something like a an unrequited fling with an ungrateful bitch, then it means his life and I like him alive.”
Jensen tore his eyes from Jared and looked at Hartley.
“It’s been thirty hours, and I’m flattered that you think that I have a master plan to bring down the family through what I’m sure has been masterful seduction techniques on my part, but I assure you I have absolutely no idea what is going on,” Jensen said flatly.
Hartley searched his face and then his features relaxed. Hartley looked over at where Vin was posturing for the local girls.
“He has a bad back,” Hartley said conversationally, as if he weren’t just threatening Jensen. “Make him overreach for you, twist, and then take a couple of kidney shots.”
Jensen looked at him warily.
Hartley shrugged. “As an ally that Jared let under his roof, you have my loyalty and protection absolutely right up to the point where Jared is affected.”
Jensen’s brow wrinkled. He had no idea what to do with that. This was the kind of loyalty outside of family he had heard about but never experienced; never really trusted.
Hartley turned to leave, then he turned back. “Oh yeah. I came over here to tell you that Jared says to kick his ass.”
**
Jared didn’t flinch as Jensen took his third punch from Vin’s impressively meaty fists.
“Well, Ackles knows how to take a punch,” Katie commented as Jensen stood tall and seemed to study Vin’s moves, like he wasn’t even in the ring getting his face punched in. Her voice was a dry understatement. Jensen was getting his ass beaten.
“Wait for it,” Misha said, seeing something none of them did, as always.
“Wait for what?” Sophia quipped. “Him to turn into a beaten mass?”
Jensen ducked the next punch and landed an undercut to Vin’s kidneys.
“Good boy,” Hartley whispered.
Jared’s crew stood still as statues as Jensen began to fight back, moving deftly around the massive opponent.
“Is he taunting him?” Chad asked tilting his head and watching as Jensen ducked another punch before getting a series of jabs in.
“He’s not doing much,” Katie said, waiting on joining the Jensen Ackles appreciation club.
“Holy shit,” Chad said, eyes wide, watching as Jensen came alive and began delivering a real performance. They all felt the elastic snap as Jensen began to unleash holy hell on Vin.
Jared’s eyes scrutinized Jensen, but his expression remained the same - calm, cool, indifferent.
The match lasted twenty more minutes, but from that moment on, it was downhill for Vin. The cheering in the crowd got louder and nastier, but Jared’s crew just sat there observing as Jensen began to take down Vin. He wasn’t so calm and cool anymore.
“God, he’s a feral junkyard dog,” Chad remarked. “I think he’s actually snarling.”
Katie’s eyes went wide as she watched Jensen throw everything at Vin, landing it perfectly and unrelentingly.
“Okay,” she said, almost breathlessly. “He’s good. Really good.”
Jared just watched as Jensen let go, only one thing on his mind and that was knocking the shit out of Vin.
Vin was beaten, bloody, and mostly on the ground when Jensen went in for the kill.
Vin was done by this point and Jensen was going to snap his neck.
That’s when Jared stood up.
“No,” he said and it rang through the crowd. Suddenly, the manic crowd went silent at his voice. Everyone, except for Jensen.
Jensen just stood there over Vin, ignoring Jared, preparing his strength to rip off Vin’s meaty head.
In a blink of an eye Jared tore his shirt off and shifted, his large wolf form jumping down on the mat and growling at Jensen.
Jensen had Vin pinned on the ground, arm around his neck, hands on his head.
Jared-wolf stood there growling, hair bristling, teeth showing. Everyone in the crowd backed down, but Jensen leaned in to the hazel-yellow eyes glowing in the firelight. Nobody wanted to face up to an angry pack leader in wolf form. It was a death wish.
Nobody, except for Jensen.
Jensen looked over at him, eyes glinting with more gold than green now. He didn’t let go of Vin as he he gave Jared-wolf a wild smile. The wolf growled at him, lunging and nipping, fangs finally biting into Jensen’s arm, drawing blood and a little bit of sense back into Jensen’s eyes.
But not complete sanity. The calm man from the boardroom was gone and in his stead was a wild-eyed crazy man, ready to destroy.
Jensen licked his lips and gave Jared a different sort of smile.
In a flash, he was changing into wolf form, running into the moonlit darkness, kill forgotten for a much better game.
Jared-wolf didn’t hesitate, following Jensen into the night.
Hartley looked over at Chambers, then at the riotous crowd, before finally looking toward Vin on the ground.
“Well, this looks like we should be going,” Chad commented.
“Yeah, the boss is gone so let’s hurry,” Sophia agreed.
“But not too much,” Hartley muttered. “We just won. It’s time to talk a little shit.”
They all glared at him because they knew that he would be the one talking shit and they would be the ones taking the punches while Hartley just smirked.
“Okay, meandering exit it is,” he said with a sigh.
**
Jensen slowly came back to himself.
He remembered running. He had no clue as to the terrain, but he ran, heedless of direction. He remembered feeling the presence behind him. He wouldn’t get lost, because all he had to do was run, and Jared would be there.
He could be whatever he wanted, if he was going to back to the Compound then Jared was going to be the one to ensure that.
Jensen had been full of adrenaline.
Jared-wolf had come and tackled him. They had fought for hours, the other wolf herding him, either snarling or occasionally with claws.
Jensen moved, eyes still closed, and he knew his body wore the proof of the night before on top of his marks of the fight.
Jared had bit him and snapped at him. Jensen remembered feeling so willful, like he wanted to run forever with Jared at his heels. It as Jared-wolf who had pushed him in the direction of home. Part of him sang with the wanting, the desire to be controlled. He didn’t have to do anything and everything would still be okay.
Jensen opened his eyes. He was naked, slightly bloody, and dirty on white sheets. He was in a room with wide windows, shades drawn. The walls and the bed were pristine white with the floor and furniture a dark brown. The room was clean, except for his dirty bruised body soiling the eight hundred count white Egyptian cotton sheets. It was almost surreal to be in this room.
Jensen felt Jared’s presence, so he took a moment to steady himself. He didn’t look up, just tried to find some sort of dignity. It didn’t want to be found.
Jared was tying his tie when Jensen’s eyes found him.
“You can’t go into the office today,” Jared said, calm and commanding. “We have a rule about bites and bruises in visible places. You don’t go in when you look like you got hit by a bus.”
Jensen looked down at his body. It was a neo-modernist mess of color and scrapes, he was sure that his face was in disarray as Vin did like nothing else in the world mattered. The wound that hurt the worst was the slash on his shoulder. The mark on his shoulder was bandaged.
Jensen closed his eyes. He definitely remembered that one.
Jared-wolf had been on top of him, claws buried in his shoulder as Jensen-wolf tried to buck and bite back. It was savage; there was nothing sexy last night. It was about establishing ground rules. The bite on his shoulder hadn’t been mating; it was proof of who was in charge, who his Alpha was.
The idea that Jensen had been put in his place both annoyed him and turned him on beyond belief. Nobody had ever tried to before.
Jared wolf had clawed and manhandled and Jensen, for his entire prowess earlier, had found himself in Jared’s bed and at his mercy at the end of the night.
Jared had carried him to the bed and thrown him down on top of it. Jensen had no strength, his body beaten beyond moving, muscles aching, shoulder throbbing. Jared had growled at him not to move, and Jensen was okay with that because he couldn’t move if he tried. He had been fighting something, and he had nothing left, including the reason why he was fighting.
Jared had returned with pills and a first aid kit. Jared had held out the pills and Jensen had meekly taken them with the last ounce of strength that he had.
Jared had sat down angrily. He had poured alcohol over Jensen’s shoulder. Jensen had hissed, but stayed still while Jared had cleaned up the wounds.
Jensen was hazy on the whole night, but he was even hazier on what happened next.
He remembered laying back. The bed was so soft. A finger brushed his hair away from his forehead and then moved to cup his face.
The way that the voice had sounded, it was so soft, so desperate, so needy.
And it was Jared.
“What the fuck are you doing to me?” it had said. “You didn’t listen and I left my fucking place for you. This isn’t how it is supposed to go. I have the whole fucking world on my shoulders and I will leave it behind to follow you. What the fuck are you doing to me?”
Jensen heard that pleading voice over and over again in his mind.
It gave him goosebumps. He was so close to submitting to Jared, just giving everything of himself up, that he had to bite his tongue to hold it back.
Instead, he tried to be pithy.
“Not how I thought I would end up in your bed,” Jensen said flippantly. He tried to say it flippantly that is. He wanted it to make light of everything, but the words came out snarling. He still couldn’t admit to what he wanted. He had shown Jared everything he was and the decision was no longer in his hands. He was in a place to be judged and as much as he knew this was what he wanted, so Jared would pull away, he didn’t want to be judged. Not by Jared.
He didn’t know if he was more scared that Jared would take him up on the offer or exile him.
Jared stopped and looked out the window. “Well, it looks as if nobody gets what they want.”
Jensen looked down, ashamed. He knew what happened when he got like that. He looked at his nails like he would see the blood that should be there. Blood of those he had killed.
“Vin?” Jensen said softly, not really wanting to know.
“Alive,” Jared said, going back to getting ready.
He bustled around and Jensen wondered if he really needed to be in the room anymore. He kind of wished that the earth would swallow him up.
“You saw it,” Jensen finally said, really not liking being ignored. “Do you want me to leave now?”
Jared put on his coat. “Stay here. Work on the deal you started yesterday. We’ll check in by phone and e-mail. Somebody will stay here with you.”
Jared walked out and Jensen just sat there in the sheets, dirty with his own filth.
“That isn’t an answer,” he whispered to the empty doorframe.
Part III
Genre: RPS AU
Pairing: Jensen/Jared
Warning: Sex, Violence, My take on modern werewolves.
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 35K, This part 7500
Beta: I’d like to thank enablelove as the best person in the universe. This was the story that would not be beta’d. Nobody wants to beta a story this long, that wasn’t a challenge. I pretty much just begged until she gave in and she did a great job. Little did she know that she was going to be sucked into a much bigger job.
-Also special thanks to ldyghst for the helps where needed! We have details.
Summary: Jared Padalecki and his inner circle work hard and play harder, everybody in the territory knows it. Everybody in all the neighboring territories knows it. Everybody knows that he is groomed to be head of the Pack, and he's poised to take over. Jared's father is waiting, though. Waiting to see what Jared will do about his brother, about the neighboring rowdy Pack, about a mate...
Part I
PART II
**
Jensen stood in the open air for a long time. He was trying to calm everything that had come alive inside him; everything that was dangerous for him.
He wanted to submit to Jared at, so badly. It itched under his skin, the wanting. But he couldn’t do that; he couldn’t fall apart and trust anyone else to build him up again.
Jared was good;, he had read him after a few hours. Some people had never sussed what was under Jensen’s well-constructed exterior. He had always tried to be what people had expected.
That was becoming the hard part in this situation. Everyone wanted him in Jared’s bed, but nobody was asking him what he wanted. Not just what his body craved, but what he wanted.
His father had told him, after Jensen chewed him out, that he had to make this work. The Padalecki’s were the only reason that the family had been left alone. The Ackles had grown soft in their luxury in the city while the Padalecki’s had managed to maintain everything in their suburban metropolis sprawl. To stay esteemed in the other wolves of the community’s eyes, they needed the Padalecki’s.
Jensen was to ensure that his family was still bound to the Padalecki’s. The Ackles had the money to placate the humans, but the other packs reacted to power.
Jensen was to keep the peace by any means necessary.
Jensen had planned to keep this thing just business. If he had to delve into the exchange of bodily fluids, he would, but he wasn’t going to get himself involved.
But by Jared’s dirty mouth, he was undone on that promise. Just running side-by-side, pushing, he had felt alive. There was a thrill in just the few hours that he had been with Jared that he had never felt before. He didn’t feel reckless and crazy with Jared; he felt like he could actually be everything, man and wolf.
But he wasn’t a toy. He wouldn’t be a bitch to be put outside with the trash. He’d rather be ostracized, to be packless, than to let somebody treat him like that.
And that is when he realized the advantage of what Jared wasn’t offering.
He could put mate or nothing on the table.
Jensen closed his eyes.
He thought long and hard. The body. The power. That is what called to him.
The mate thing meant that Jared would see inside Jensen. He would see the carefully controlled mess. It was the nature of mating.
He knew that it was true, the reason his father hadn’t chosen him. Because he rarely had friends. Because he always was sniffing on the outside. Because letting anyone in would mean that they could see how much he wasn’t worthy.
Jensen breathed in the cool night air and he knew. To be honest, he knew from the moment he had felt Jared Padalecki’s eyes on him.
He knew he could offer what was expected of him. Just as much as he knew it wouldn’t be taken.
He knew how to run this. He could show Jared it all, and he was pretty sure that Jared would realize that he really was damaged, and Jared would ask him to leave, not matter how much Jared wanted to fuck him.
All Jensen had to do was put on the table what Jared couldn’t possibly want, the real him for life, and in two months they could part and this would be nothing but a memory. Jensen could go back to his city, to his dark where things were glossy and the wolf would be placated.
The plan knit together neatly in his head and Jensen smiled.
He was ready, burning hot words of Jared Padalecki be damned.
**
“Princess,” a chipper voice said, plopping down on his bed. “You came back to me.”
Jensen was bone tired. He had gotten back to Jared’s compound at dawn.
The owner of the chipper voice prodded him with sharp toes of shoes.
“You’ve gotta get up. We’re working on a take over and Jared was told that you’re good at that kind of thing,” the voice said, ignoring his lack of response. “We have a meeting to start finalizing and you’re now lead.”
Jensen popped his head up. “You want me to take the lead of something I have no idea about?”
Sophia was there, dressed for business, everything in place, the exact opposite of the pack’s wildness last night. Her face showed that she did indeed expect him to go into the office and perform miracles.
“Seriously, are you insane?” Jensen said grumpily.
“You have until noon to catch up, no biggie,” Sophia said idly, holding out a cup of delicious smelling coffee. “But we have to go into the office in like fifteen minutes. “Then tonight we have a meet up with the Chambers crew, and by proxy the Baldwin Pack. They are one of our semi-sub-packs and they’re getting very cocky. We don’t like it much. So get moving, there is a day to do, hop to it.”
“When do you sleep?” Jensen grumbled, sipping his coffee.
“The rest of us had four hours, and that’s usually enough,” Sophia said with a smile, standing up and straightening her skirt. “Jared likes the best, and the five of us are the best. We’re the only ones who could keep up with him, too bad it doesn’t look like you can.”
Jensen said up, with a look he conveyed who had been keeping up, if not surpassing Jared last night.
“So why don’t I just be incompetent and then I can go home?” Jensen bit out, moving to get up, trying to pretend that his nakedness in front of her didn’t bother him.
“You can try,” Sophia said, leaving the room. “How good are you at failure?”
Jensen went to the bathroom to brush his teeth; the answer was that he was terrible at failure. He hated it. He would do anything not to fail. He clawed away at any challenge not to fail, it seemed all of Jared’s people could read him well.
“Hurry up, pookey,” Sophia said and left the bungalow.
There was a suit on the bathroom door, apparently special ordered seeing as he didn’t actually have more than one day’s change of clothes. He was sure this suit would fit like a glove and he knew from just a touch that it was of the top quality.
He quickly washed and put on deodorant. He was more than presentable in less than ten minutes and was sipping the last of his coffee by the Humvees when the rest of Jared’s crew came out of their houses.
Jared came out last, one minute before the time to leave. He was wearing a suit, looking perfect and smooth as sin. Jensen calmly sipped his coffee, not reacting to the sight. Jared’s eyes danced with approval, not at all surprised that Jensen was there.
**
Jensen hated everything about life right now. He had been put in a beautiful corner office, not that he had a chance to look out the window, and he had four hours to download a million things. This had to be a test and Padalecki was a sadistic bastard. Jensen was not going to let him win. He could do impossible.
“Ready?,” Jared asked, appearing at his door with a smirk.
Jensen happily hated him.
Jensen gathered the plan in his head and then stood up and straightened. He could smell Jared, spicy and tinged with sweat. That was something that he wasn’t used to, something raw that was new, and entirely welcome. That smell was the same thing that had him on his knees last night; it was the same thing he was damned sure that he was going to start begging for any second.
He held himself in check by a tiny sliver, because loosing control was his greatest fear. Especially right now.
“You’re an idiot,” Jensen said, following him to the elevator. “Do you always give impossible tasks to the guys you want to fuck?”
Jared shrugged. “You’re supposed to be good, so I might as well use you for something else until you put out.”
“I’m beginning to think that you want me for my mind,” Jensen told him.
“I don’t,” Jared said, leaning into Jensen’s space.
Jensen looked up at him calmly. “Too bad. You will.”
**
The ride up was longer than Jared ever remembered it being. He could smell Jensen, still smelling a little like last night, sweat and dirt under the clean clothes. It was just a whiff, but it reminded Jared that there was a lot more to Jensen.
He swallowed, his mouth watering.
The door opened and Jared just watched Jensen walk out. It was a pretty sight. He didn’t know what Jensen’s words had meant, but it sounded very intriguing. Jensen was being cocky, which in Jared’s experience just lead to some epic failures.
He was a minute into the meeting when he realized how wrong he was.
For the next two hours, Jared was in hell.
Jensen stood in front of the room, calm and in control, never breaking, and never sounding like he had only be preparing for four hours. He sounded like he had conceptualized and created this deal, instead of having been given a dead bird and told that he had to make it fly. Jensen was Dr. Frankenstein.
More than that, he was enthralling like Jared had never known.
Every eye in the room followed him. Jared knew that the humans couldn’t smell the waves of power coming off of Jensen, but Jared wanted to kill each and every one of them for getting to be in the same room as Jensen when he was being this charming and sure.
Part of Jared was surprised at the visceral reaction; he had never quite had one like this before. Jensen was covered head to toe in conservative clothing and he was droning on about corporate things and Jared couldn’t listen to him. All he could do was watch as Jensen held the people in the room in the palm of his hand. He shouldn’t be this keyed up over Jensen, not now, not like this, but for him this was a better audition for bedmate than lap dancing.
Halfway through the meeting, Jared had to look down at his ridiculous Mont Blanc pen or else he was going to throw Jensen down on this table and forgo his promise that Jensen would have to beg for his cock. He was the one that was going to do the begging.
He had to get the want under control.
Finally, everyone left. Jared didn’t stand up, but he did at last look up from his pen.
Jensen was staring at him, waiting.
“I’m pretty sure if you fake beg, that will be more than enough,” Jared said huskily.
Jensen walked over to where Jared was sitting and leaned over the table, body suspended on the tips of his fingers.
“Two months,” Jensen said, still calm, cool, and collected. “In two months one of two things will happen.”
His voice was smooth as butter, wrapping around Jared and massaging every nerve ending. He was still in business mode and Jared’s mouth went dry.
“One, I will go home untouched,” Jensen told him. “We’ll part and the bond between packs will be stronger than ever after this exchange program.”
“Boring,” Jared said, happy to find he could sound like he was in control.
“Okay,” Jensen said, with a superior grin and Jared knew that this option wasn’t going to include begging. “Then the other way this goes is you get me on my knees.”
“I like this plan,” Jared said, his eyes narrowing. “What am I not going to like?”
Jensen looked at him calmly. “Me.”
Jared swallowed. “That doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Mated,” Jensen added with a knowing smirk.
Jared recoiled a bit.
Jensen leaned in, letting go of the businessman, his voice rough. “Do you really want to see what happens when I let loose? I’m not talking about just a wild thing in your bed, but that will happen too, but do you really want to see when I unleash everything? Do you think that you have a chance in hell of controlling me? Do you think you have a chance in hell of installing me into your perfect little leadership circle? Is the wanting to fuck me, have me beg, and whine under you enough of a draw for the wild card that is me?”
Jared couldn’t even remember how to breathe in that moment at those words pouring out of Jensen’s mouth. He didn’t know what he truly wanted yet, but everything in that offer was something he wanted to try and he was willing to burn down the world to get it.
He just didn’t know if he was willing to be mated, to anyone. There just was too much at stake.
Jensen raised an eyebrow and cocked his head.
Then, with obviousness, he looked down at Jared’s crotch.
“Looks like you need a minute,” Jensen said, his own pheromones flying, voice dripping with sex.
With that, he walked away and left Jared staring after the man that just turned his world upside down.
Jared sat there, hands balled up underneath the table, pressed tightly to his thighs to regain some semblance of control. He was thrumming with want; he could feel the wolf right under his skin. He hadn’t been this keyed up since he went through puberty and was just learning to control it all.
He waited until he could stand up without embarrassing himself.
“Well fuck,” he told the empty room.
Jensen had just upped the ante, and Jared was big enough to admit that Jensen had just kicked his ass at his own game. Jared didn’t know if he was angry as hell or hella impressed.
Jared stood there blinking.
"So boss," Misha said, coming into the boardroom. "You just put the buyout in the hands of a total stranger. We all know this deal is a lost cause; group consensus is that we are wondering why you woke us up at two in the morning to tell us that Jensen was taking over something that absolutely was dead. You know we do require a coupe of hours of sleep, right?"
Jared tried to find his composure. "I just wanted to throw him off his game a little."
"Did it work?" Misha asked curiously.
Jared looked down at his pen once again. "Well, no. The plan really backfired in a way that isn’t going to go over well. Find Hartley, I think that the buyout might happen now. Dad is going to be thrilled."
"Hartley and Katie might kill you," Misha said blankly. "They were ready to put that one to bed and move on. They had just finally gotten to the point were they accepted their failure. Actually, they might kill Jensen for doing what they couldn’t."
Jared swallowed. "They'll live."
Misha just looked at him. "So he really is that good."
"He's better," Jared admitted.
"Aww, he got you all hot and bothered?" Misha asked with a teasing lilt.
Jared growled and Misha put up his hands in submission, but his eyes were dancing.
Jared seethed, but Misha just snickered before ascending into full blown laughter.
Misha snickered and then started laughing. "That is so great, I can't wait until I tell the gang."
Jared groaned and put his head in his hands.
"I want to kill all of you," Jared muttered. “I’m going to take you into the ring of fire and I’m going to murder someone. Please tell me everything is arranged for tonight. I need to hit somebody so bad.”
“It’s done boss,” Misha said, his face back to calm cool and collected.
**
The rest of the day, Jensen was edgy. He had pushed himself and he had pushed Jared to the brink. He had offered things he wasn’t quite prepared to give, and he had watched as Jared seriously seemed to consider his offer. This wasn’t a good sign for his independence and getting away from this town.
This had gone too far and it had only been one day.
He could do the part in the boardroom. He was good at getting people to turn to putty in his hands. He thought he could keep himself in check, except for in less than twenty-four hours, he was careening more than he thought possible. For the remainder of the day, he snapped at all the strangers around him, people who were just trying to help him in this new world.
Finally he couldn’t take it anymore and stood up, storming into Jared’s office.
“You want to see it?” Jensen asked. “You want to see what happens when I let go? You want to take us to the Chambers tonight. From what the girls said, you’re going to take satisfaction for their incursion, you want to see what happens? Let me do it and you can see everything that you don’t want.”
Jared stood up on the opposite side of the desk. “Don’t talk to me like a child. You are in the same boat. Do you even have any idea what you are asking? You throw down mate on the table like it is something not to be considered, like it isn’t for life.”
Jensen leaned in closer. “You don’t know the fuck you are asking for. You want to watch me lose control because you think it would be fun, but imagine that with nothing holding me back. I know it sounds conceited, but I know exactly what I am.”
“I fucking doubt that you are that self aware,” Jared shot back. “I think you are probably lots of things that you don’t know about. You are putting things on the table that you’d never even think of actually doing.”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of, Padalecki. You’ve known me a fucking day and even you with your gift or reading people you don’t know me,” Jensen spat out.
“So you’re miraculous and a crazy fuck,” Jared growled. “What the hell is wrong with you? You think you have a dark side that you can hide that well?”
“Then tonight, let me loose control and I’ll show you. Let me off leash and I’ll show you how silly your ideas are,” Jensen said, speaking mostly out of hot head.
“You really think you’re that much?” Jared demanded angrily.
“I’m a fucking hurricane!” Jensen was almost yelling by this point. “And even I can’t stop myself when I let go. Tonight is the high moon, and tonight you’re taking us out. I’ll show you exactly what happens.”
Jared leaned in. “Bring it on, there is nothing you have that I can’t handle.”
Jensen let out a sardonic laugh. “You’re an idiot.”
“And you are a cocky, stuck up, self centered asshole who overestimates himself. I just hope that you get your pretty little face bashed in tonight,” Jared said, his own face red.
“We’ll see,” Jensen bit out and stormed out of the room.
Jared had never been more turned on in his life.
**
"You do know you're really good at a lot of things," Katie said, dryly.
"Ten points for an accurate backhanded comment," Chad muttered. “Did you notice her implication that while there are many things that you are good at, this might not be one of them?”
Jared just looked at his crew, all of them dressed in black, waiting in front of the Humvee.
"What they're not saying is that waking us up with something that you concocted at three in the morning after an adrenaline rush may not be the best idea," Misha pointed out.
“Chambers is coming too close,” Jared said sullenly, as if that was the question that they were asking.
Jensen came strolling out and all of their eyes went to him. He was wearing faded jeans and a v-neck that seemed to move to reveal hipbone and collarbone every time he took a step. Around his neck was a black chord connected to a silver disk with his family motto on it.
Five sets of eyes went from Jensen to look back at Jared, while Jared’s eyes remained on Jensen. Jensen didn’t break the gaze as he stepped forward.
Nobody said anything, eyes still fixed on Jared.
Jared looked hungry, starving in fact.
Hartley dragged his gaze to Jensen. “This is a pretty raw thing that you are getting into tonight. This doesn’t have rules. This is fists until something breaks.”
Jensen didn’t look away from Jared. “Okay.”
“This means that if you are going to come, you are one of us. You aren’t going to act like a yipping dog biting at our ankles, but you are going to be with us.”
Jared and Jensen stood looking at each other, and the words that Hartley said disappeared into the whirring vibrating air between them. Jensen just looked at Jared like he was waiting for something.
“Are you with me?” Jared asked, his voice pitched low.
Jensen tilted his head, just slightly to the right.
“I’m with you,” he finally said.
Jared turned and walked to the car. Hartley grabbed Jensen.
“Look, son,” he growled, as Jared got in the car. “I know that you know protocol, and that you’re well versed in the slick rich fantasy ways, but this isn’t that. We keep the law with our fist. He is the heir apparent, and he is taking a huge risk by taking you with us.”
Jensen finally looked away from where Jared had been standing.
The moon was high in the sky and Jensen’s eyes were blown out in the pale light. There was gold glinting there, proof the wolf inside of him was close, and his hair was slightly out of place, he was going out slightly unkempt, there was something slightly wild about him, which was even more alarming than if he had been growling and snarling.
He looked at Hartley straight in the eyes. “If you touch me again, I’ll most likely bite off your pretty face.”
Jensen got into the car, leaving the five of them standing there staring after him.
“I need a drink,” Chad mumbled.
“I need an orgy,” Sophia sighed. “What the fuck was that? Who the fuck was that? I am so turned on right now. Seriously, who is that guy?”
“That was the one last night,” Misha said calmly. “That was the one who made Jared run faster and immediately got between Jared and intruders.”
“My entire body is humming,” Sophia said. “Like I want to fuck and kill. I want to change right the fuck now and I’m having trouble controlling it.”
They all swallowed.
“I am so putting more money on sooner rather than later,” Katie said waving her hand around. “You know, with the whole fucking thing.”
Misha cocked his head. “I think that this is about a hell of a lot more than fucking now.”
**
Only once did a conversation start on the ride over.
"They'll pick Dane or Vin," Chad spoke up, trying to break the tension.
"Dane is pretty," Katie added. "He likes to put on a show, but if you hit his face a couple of times, he'll surrender."
"They'll pick Vin," Misha said. "Chambers will take one look at Jensen's face and put that gorilla on him. Vin hits like a Mac truck, but he can't move. If you can keep yourself limber, you can take him down."
"He's fine," Jared said, and everybody knew that this conversation, any conversation really, was over.
The car was full of electricity; it crackled and raised the hairs on everybody's arms.
They arrived at the Chamber's gathering point just outside of the Padalecki territory.
The ‘Boneyard’ was as it always was. It was hot rods and crotch rockets, all suped up to the max; all of it on show. There were torches lighting the area, and a few kegs for those without Jack Daniels in their hands.
There were already people yelling, dancing to music coming out of car stereos, fucking in less than dark corners.
At the middle was a circle that nobody went in; they didn’t go in because if anyone went in, they were going to have to start throwing punches and those punches wouldn’t stop until someone was almost dead. On the far side was a fucked up dais of car parts. Chambers sat with his crew, the girls surrounding him wearing only tiny shiny pieces of fabric.
Chambers took one look at the arrival of the car and stood up, weight going to his good leg.
Jensen had to smile a little at that.
They got out of the car and everybody looked fearless, like they belonged there. Like they were going to raise a special kind of hell. Without speaking, Jensen was on Jared's left side, Hartley on the right, and everyone fell into step as they walked into the Chamber's sanctum.
"Well, well, well," Chambers said, coming out in a wife beater and camo pants. "Looks like you're a big ole hypocrite. Shouldn't you be sticking to your own area?"
"It is all my territory. You are subletting from someone who is subletting from me," Jared said evenly. "You crossed a line. I want satisfaction and assurance that you'll never do it again. You need to be reminded that you are on this shit piece of dust because I allow it."
Chambers smirked. "You’re an arrogant fuck, but I'm still not hitting the Padalecki scion."
Jared showed his white teeth in a smirking snarl.
"He's not the one you have to worry about," Jensen said, voice smooth as honey and as dangerous as a poisonous snake.
Chambers looked at him witheringly. "You're going to send the Ackles pup? We don't need any spreadsheets."
He smirked at Jensen as all of Chamber’s people cackled.
Jensen looked up at Chambers and smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. They remained cold and hard. He didn't say anything, but just cocked his head as if he was waiting for something. Finally, he turned his head to look over at Jared through hooded eyes.
Jared grinned with a secret smile, there seemed to be a secret nobody knew between the two of them, and most likely never would. And this secret was probably something completely degrading about Chamber’s mother.
There was a slight rustle and both their heads went to the newcomers. It was a thickly muscled man, a big scruffy pretty boy, and a skinny redhead with dangerous curves.
"Oh, the golden children are here," the girl said, looking at Jensen. "And they brought something new and pretty to play with."
She stepped forward, eyes still locked on Jensen, ignoring the scalding glare that Jared sent her way.
"He's going to fight Vin," Chambers said, bored. "You know, to make sure we know our place."
"You sure ain't going to be pretty at the end of the night," the woman said as she stepped forward, impressively ignoring the black hole anger radiating off of Jared. "Wanna come and have a hot and sweaty before your match, ‘cause it will probably be the last time you're going to be anything more than a hole."
Jensen leaned in, and took a deep breath, before leaning back. "You wanna be bred, little girl? You want a real Alpha between your legs?"
Jared growled low in his throat while her eyes glazed over a little.
“Lindsay,” Chambers said in warning.
Jensen leaned in really close to speak in her ear and looked at Jared behind her, their eyes locked. Jensen began speaking in that voice of his, rough and soothing, the one that made you want to get on your knees and give him anything that he wanted.
"I don't fuck whores," he said straight to Jared. "When I fuck, I’m not some notch on the bedpost, some warm body, some thing to get through the night. I’m something you remember.”
He pulled back and looked at Lindsay who was the only one who didn't realize his words weren't for her.
"You reek of them," Jensen said disdainfully. "I wouldn't touch your skanky ass with a fifty foot pole."
It was the girls and Chad who cracked up behind them. Lindsay looked up at him, her eyes gone ice cold.
"You should have taken me up on it," she said, voice soft but angry. "You're never going to get another offer. Vin is going to crush your balls, you’ll never be a real man again."
Jared looked over at Jensen, and all they did was share that grin again.
She looked over at Jared, too. "He hasn’t touched you yet. You must be defective, because he’s definitely the definition of a whore. Not the best, but definitely a decent fuck. Maybe if you beg hard enough, he’ll throw you his bone."
Jensen leaned down to look in her eyes and spoke with cruel laughter in his voice. "Go away little girl, the adults need to play. I'm sure there are plenty of guys that you can open your legs for."
She opened her mouth, but Chambers spoke first. “Lindsay, they’re here to fight, and unless you want to step into the ring with him, stop whoring yourself out. This is going to be solved with fists, not with what you are offering.”
She bristled, but when the leader issued an order, then you had to follow it no matter what.
Chambers looked back at Jared. “So your bitch against my bruiser. I’d be more than happy to take him on, but - “
Chambers lifted his pant leg, showing an angry bite that had only partially healed.
“- I wouldn’t want him to take another cheap shot.”
“Whatever,” Jared said shrugging, starting to move. This seemed old hand, as if they had many confrontations here. Jared seemed to know exactly where he was going.
“My boy is going to kick your overgrown mutt’s ass,” Jared said as if it wasn’t much concern.
Jensen watched him go, knowing that their indifference and lack of fear would do nothing but infuriate the other group. Jensen was pretty impressed how Jared seemed to be able to walk into hostile territory as if he owned it, looking like he wasn’t even trying.
Vin was the one who stepped forward, cold and cocky.
Jared sat on the chair on the far side, his crew around him. Hartley left the nucleus to come and stand by Jensen. Jensen had the feeling that it wasn’t for solidarity.
“We’re with right you now,” Hartley said. “Each of us has your back. Vin is a dick. He hits like you are falling into a brick wall. I’ve gone a few rounds with him when he was a kid and he had fewer muscles then. He has brute force, but he doesn’t move all that quickly.”
“I believe you,” Jensen said, taping his hands. He finished and looked over at Jared. Their eyes met and Jensen’s hands went to the hem of his shirt, slowly peeling it off his chest, as if for show. When the shirt was completely off, Jared’s eyes were still on Jensen.
Hartley leaned towards Jensen’s ear. “I’d beat you if we all weren’t all supposed to be supporting you right now. So you’re going to keep looking at him and you’re going to listen to me and pretend like I’m telling you about Vin. Do you understand?”
Jensen didn’t give an inch, but he nodded.
“This is the first time I’ve ever had to do this, so if I do it wrong I’m sorry, but I’m going to give you a speech that means ‘if you fuck with him I will happily kill you’ and if you think anything less than you are greatly mistaken,” Hartley said evenly. “See, that guy that you are staring holes at, well, he’s family. He’s my brother, my leader, and I cannot even begin to tell you how absolutely loyal I am to him. If you are even remotely fucking with him, then we will drag you into the desert and you won’t be coming back.”
Jensen didn’t look away from Jared, but he barely nodded in understanding.
“See, the thing I know is that you were offered up as a sacrificial lamb,” Hartley continued. “But nobody asked you to broker a multimillion dollar deal, to turn the tide and get that on track, and nobody asked you to be the one to face off against Vin. Yeah, Jared was fucking with you, but you’re fucking with our lives today and if you’re just fucking with him, then that isn’t good. His brother has his eyes on the prize and if Jared shows a little weakness over something like a an unrequited fling with an ungrateful bitch, then it means his life and I like him alive.”
Jensen tore his eyes from Jared and looked at Hartley.
“It’s been thirty hours, and I’m flattered that you think that I have a master plan to bring down the family through what I’m sure has been masterful seduction techniques on my part, but I assure you I have absolutely no idea what is going on,” Jensen said flatly.
Hartley searched his face and then his features relaxed. Hartley looked over at where Vin was posturing for the local girls.
“He has a bad back,” Hartley said conversationally, as if he weren’t just threatening Jensen. “Make him overreach for you, twist, and then take a couple of kidney shots.”
Jensen looked at him warily.
Hartley shrugged. “As an ally that Jared let under his roof, you have my loyalty and protection absolutely right up to the point where Jared is affected.”
Jensen’s brow wrinkled. He had no idea what to do with that. This was the kind of loyalty outside of family he had heard about but never experienced; never really trusted.
Hartley turned to leave, then he turned back. “Oh yeah. I came over here to tell you that Jared says to kick his ass.”
**
Jared didn’t flinch as Jensen took his third punch from Vin’s impressively meaty fists.
“Well, Ackles knows how to take a punch,” Katie commented as Jensen stood tall and seemed to study Vin’s moves, like he wasn’t even in the ring getting his face punched in. Her voice was a dry understatement. Jensen was getting his ass beaten.
“Wait for it,” Misha said, seeing something none of them did, as always.
“Wait for what?” Sophia quipped. “Him to turn into a beaten mass?”
Jensen ducked the next punch and landed an undercut to Vin’s kidneys.
“Good boy,” Hartley whispered.
Jared’s crew stood still as statues as Jensen began to fight back, moving deftly around the massive opponent.
“Is he taunting him?” Chad asked tilting his head and watching as Jensen ducked another punch before getting a series of jabs in.
“He’s not doing much,” Katie said, waiting on joining the Jensen Ackles appreciation club.
“Holy shit,” Chad said, eyes wide, watching as Jensen came alive and began delivering a real performance. They all felt the elastic snap as Jensen began to unleash holy hell on Vin.
Jared’s eyes scrutinized Jensen, but his expression remained the same - calm, cool, indifferent.
The match lasted twenty more minutes, but from that moment on, it was downhill for Vin. The cheering in the crowd got louder and nastier, but Jared’s crew just sat there observing as Jensen began to take down Vin. He wasn’t so calm and cool anymore.
“God, he’s a feral junkyard dog,” Chad remarked. “I think he’s actually snarling.”
Katie’s eyes went wide as she watched Jensen throw everything at Vin, landing it perfectly and unrelentingly.
“Okay,” she said, almost breathlessly. “He’s good. Really good.”
Jared just watched as Jensen let go, only one thing on his mind and that was knocking the shit out of Vin.
Vin was beaten, bloody, and mostly on the ground when Jensen went in for the kill.
Vin was done by this point and Jensen was going to snap his neck.
That’s when Jared stood up.
“No,” he said and it rang through the crowd. Suddenly, the manic crowd went silent at his voice. Everyone, except for Jensen.
Jensen just stood there over Vin, ignoring Jared, preparing his strength to rip off Vin’s meaty head.
In a blink of an eye Jared tore his shirt off and shifted, his large wolf form jumping down on the mat and growling at Jensen.
Jensen had Vin pinned on the ground, arm around his neck, hands on his head.
Jared-wolf stood there growling, hair bristling, teeth showing. Everyone in the crowd backed down, but Jensen leaned in to the hazel-yellow eyes glowing in the firelight. Nobody wanted to face up to an angry pack leader in wolf form. It was a death wish.
Nobody, except for Jensen.
Jensen looked over at him, eyes glinting with more gold than green now. He didn’t let go of Vin as he he gave Jared-wolf a wild smile. The wolf growled at him, lunging and nipping, fangs finally biting into Jensen’s arm, drawing blood and a little bit of sense back into Jensen’s eyes.
But not complete sanity. The calm man from the boardroom was gone and in his stead was a wild-eyed crazy man, ready to destroy.
Jensen licked his lips and gave Jared a different sort of smile.
In a flash, he was changing into wolf form, running into the moonlit darkness, kill forgotten for a much better game.
Jared-wolf didn’t hesitate, following Jensen into the night.
Hartley looked over at Chambers, then at the riotous crowd, before finally looking toward Vin on the ground.
“Well, this looks like we should be going,” Chad commented.
“Yeah, the boss is gone so let’s hurry,” Sophia agreed.
“But not too much,” Hartley muttered. “We just won. It’s time to talk a little shit.”
They all glared at him because they knew that he would be the one talking shit and they would be the ones taking the punches while Hartley just smirked.
“Okay, meandering exit it is,” he said with a sigh.
**
Jensen slowly came back to himself.
He remembered running. He had no clue as to the terrain, but he ran, heedless of direction. He remembered feeling the presence behind him. He wouldn’t get lost, because all he had to do was run, and Jared would be there.
He could be whatever he wanted, if he was going to back to the Compound then Jared was going to be the one to ensure that.
Jensen had been full of adrenaline.
Jared-wolf had come and tackled him. They had fought for hours, the other wolf herding him, either snarling or occasionally with claws.
Jensen moved, eyes still closed, and he knew his body wore the proof of the night before on top of his marks of the fight.
Jared had bit him and snapped at him. Jensen remembered feeling so willful, like he wanted to run forever with Jared at his heels. It as Jared-wolf who had pushed him in the direction of home. Part of him sang with the wanting, the desire to be controlled. He didn’t have to do anything and everything would still be okay.
Jensen opened his eyes. He was naked, slightly bloody, and dirty on white sheets. He was in a room with wide windows, shades drawn. The walls and the bed were pristine white with the floor and furniture a dark brown. The room was clean, except for his dirty bruised body soiling the eight hundred count white Egyptian cotton sheets. It was almost surreal to be in this room.
Jensen felt Jared’s presence, so he took a moment to steady himself. He didn’t look up, just tried to find some sort of dignity. It didn’t want to be found.
Jared was tying his tie when Jensen’s eyes found him.
“You can’t go into the office today,” Jared said, calm and commanding. “We have a rule about bites and bruises in visible places. You don’t go in when you look like you got hit by a bus.”
Jensen looked down at his body. It was a neo-modernist mess of color and scrapes, he was sure that his face was in disarray as Vin did like nothing else in the world mattered. The wound that hurt the worst was the slash on his shoulder. The mark on his shoulder was bandaged.
Jensen closed his eyes. He definitely remembered that one.
Jared-wolf had been on top of him, claws buried in his shoulder as Jensen-wolf tried to buck and bite back. It was savage; there was nothing sexy last night. It was about establishing ground rules. The bite on his shoulder hadn’t been mating; it was proof of who was in charge, who his Alpha was.
The idea that Jensen had been put in his place both annoyed him and turned him on beyond belief. Nobody had ever tried to before.
Jared wolf had clawed and manhandled and Jensen, for his entire prowess earlier, had found himself in Jared’s bed and at his mercy at the end of the night.
Jared had carried him to the bed and thrown him down on top of it. Jensen had no strength, his body beaten beyond moving, muscles aching, shoulder throbbing. Jared had growled at him not to move, and Jensen was okay with that because he couldn’t move if he tried. He had been fighting something, and he had nothing left, including the reason why he was fighting.
Jared had returned with pills and a first aid kit. Jared had held out the pills and Jensen had meekly taken them with the last ounce of strength that he had.
Jared had sat down angrily. He had poured alcohol over Jensen’s shoulder. Jensen had hissed, but stayed still while Jared had cleaned up the wounds.
Jensen was hazy on the whole night, but he was even hazier on what happened next.
He remembered laying back. The bed was so soft. A finger brushed his hair away from his forehead and then moved to cup his face.
The way that the voice had sounded, it was so soft, so desperate, so needy.
And it was Jared.
“What the fuck are you doing to me?” it had said. “You didn’t listen and I left my fucking place for you. This isn’t how it is supposed to go. I have the whole fucking world on my shoulders and I will leave it behind to follow you. What the fuck are you doing to me?”
Jensen heard that pleading voice over and over again in his mind.
It gave him goosebumps. He was so close to submitting to Jared, just giving everything of himself up, that he had to bite his tongue to hold it back.
Instead, he tried to be pithy.
“Not how I thought I would end up in your bed,” Jensen said flippantly. He tried to say it flippantly that is. He wanted it to make light of everything, but the words came out snarling. He still couldn’t admit to what he wanted. He had shown Jared everything he was and the decision was no longer in his hands. He was in a place to be judged and as much as he knew this was what he wanted, so Jared would pull away, he didn’t want to be judged. Not by Jared.
He didn’t know if he was more scared that Jared would take him up on the offer or exile him.
Jared stopped and looked out the window. “Well, it looks as if nobody gets what they want.”
Jensen looked down, ashamed. He knew what happened when he got like that. He looked at his nails like he would see the blood that should be there. Blood of those he had killed.
“Vin?” Jensen said softly, not really wanting to know.
“Alive,” Jared said, going back to getting ready.
He bustled around and Jensen wondered if he really needed to be in the room anymore. He kind of wished that the earth would swallow him up.
“You saw it,” Jensen finally said, really not liking being ignored. “Do you want me to leave now?”
Jared put on his coat. “Stay here. Work on the deal you started yesterday. We’ll check in by phone and e-mail. Somebody will stay here with you.”
Jared walked out and Jensen just sat there in the sheets, dirty with his own filth.
“That isn’t an answer,” he whispered to the empty doorframe.
Part III