"We are about to have the best time of our lives." One said, his eyes lingering on the short shots the boy was wearing.
'He's seventeen years by estimation,'' Joss thought. His shirt looked like it had been torn by one of the men staring at him like a thanksgiving turkey.
"Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Joss asked, his hands shoved in his pockets.
"This is none of your business, act like a DelLuca, go to the human world and stay there." One said.
He sounded irritated, not happy that his fun was disrupted.
"I'll rather stay here and bother you." Joss said, smiling faintly.
"Here is a better option, why don't you sit and watch us have some fun with this puta" the other suggested.
The pleading look on the boy's face tore something in Joss, there's something about him that makes his beast purr. His smell, his face, his everything made Joss crazy.
Before he knew it, he had closed the distance between him and them, he held them by their necks and pushed them away from the boy.
"Why don't you join your brothers and sisters and fight out there?" Joss asked the rogues.
Furious, one came to attack him, Joss caught him by the neck and squeezed so hard, he crushed his windpipe.
Still holding the squirming man in his hand, the other ran to defend his brother, Joss caught him before he could do any harm to him.
He held them both and lifted them off the ground, bones shattering. He threw one against a cart and drove his hand into the other's chest killing him at the spot.
Joss was fighting without his mind, the kill was too fast he didn't give himself time to enjoy it.
"How dare you touch him!" He roared at the one who was still alive.
He didn't know the reason for his anger but he was angry. In less than a second the other guy dropped dead.
When he turned to the boy he seemed to have passed out. Joss carried him and walked back to where Alpha Chloe was, the rogues were all dead.
"Mac?" Alpha Chloe muttered.
"That's his name? Mac?" The name rolled out of Joss's mouth, soft and smooth like butter.
Where did you find him?" Alpha Chloe inquired.
"He was stuck between two rogues who wanted to violate him." Joss responded.
"Do you want me to take him? It might take a while for him to come around." Alpha Chloe was ready to take him but Joss stepped back.
For some reason he didn't want to give him up, he didn't understand what he was feeling, the emotions were foreign to him.
"Mac is a misunderstood soul and he has gone through a lot as it is, I don't want him to go through more." Chloe eyed Joss strangely but not in a disrespectful way.
"I'll make sure he doesn't go through anything ever again." He couldn't stop the words that left his mouth, it wasn't intentional but somehow he meant it.
"If you say so Joss..... By the way, thank you for coming to my aid, my pack would have been gone if not for you." Chloe bowed lightly.
"Nonsense, you looked like you were handling it just fine." Joss meant what he said, he wasn't saying it to butter the woman up.
"But still.... I shouldn't keep you here, plus he needs a proper bed." Chloe motioned to the unconscious wolf in Joss's arms.
Joss nodded and left with his men who survived the little war. Throughout the walk back to the silver lake pack, Joss couldn't take his eyes off the beautiful boy.
Even when he went home, Joss sat in the room staring at Mac, he couldn't leave the room because whenever he tried, his wolf would gnaw at him to go back. He didn't need any soothsayer to tell him what this meant, Mac is his mate.
He has never tried to look for his mate because to him love was a weakness, but now sitting in this room staring at the fragile boy, he knew that he'll do whatever it takes to protect him because he belongs to him now and he isn't going to let him go.
Mac stirred groaning a little, his eyes opened, panic taking over. He struggled to breath, almost passing out again but Joss was there to make him relax.
He held Mac close to his chest whispering sweet nothings into the boy's ears.
Mac, after finally getting a hold of himself realized that he was in the arms of a stranger, a stranger who makes his heart miss a beat and his beast hum.
This stranger is his mate. He pulled away to get a clear look of his face. He couldn't believe his eyes when he finally saw who was holding him so tight.
Mac pushed Joss so hard he himself almost stumbled out of the bed.
Joss was taken by surprise, he didn't understand why his mate would push him like he was some stranger.
"What are you doing?" He asked when he saw Mac trying to run, he was quick to catch him and pin him back on the bed, his weight pressing him down.
"Leave me the fuck alone!" Mac yelled, finally talking.
"You don't seem to be in shock so why are you acting like I'm so stranger trying to kidnap you?" Joss asked, slightly irritated.
"Because you are a bloody DelLuca, I want nothing to do with a DelLuca even if he is my mate." Mac sounded and looked determined to get away from Mac, although his deviance didn't match the fear in his heart.
"If you think I'm going to let you run away from me then you must be mistaken, you are going to be spending the rest of your life with me. You are a minor and my mate so you are clearly my responsibility now." Joss was losing his mind.
Mac laughed, "For your information I'm 19, I can handle myself, I've been doing so all my life."
Joss was taken by surprise, Mac looked younger than his age, he might be confused for a minor.
"Can you please get off me?" Mac asked, he felt suffocated.
Joss sat up releasing the boy, Mac seized the opportunity to jump out of the bed.
"Thank you very much for saving my life and looking after me, I really appreciate that but I can't accept you as my mate, I can't be in your life and you can't be in mine."
Joss wanted to say something but his phone rang, it was his brother Luca, he was conflicted whether to pick the call or ignore it. He later chose the former.
"What?" He asked with no emotions.
"I hear the war was victorious, when are you coming back?" Luca asked from the other end of the phone.
"This evening."
By the time he was done with the call and went back to his bedroom, Mac was gone. It made Joss smile, he loves a good chase.
"I'll make sure you become mine, Mac....."