Bad Boy Alphas

by Alexis Davie

He smiled then, and Ruby was sure she had never seen a more disturbing sight in her life: a mishmash of crooked, yellow teeth on a fetid mouth.

  He lowered his head so they met eye to eye. “You better pray that he does pay, darling,” he said quietly. “Or I’ll put a bullet between those beautiful dark eyes of yours right now.”

  Ruby tried to maintain his stare, but she faltered, terror seizing her heart.

  Shawn hadn’t frightened her, maybe because she knew him and didn’t truly believe he could hurt her. This man, though… he was another story.

  “I don’t hear you praying, sweetheart,” he taunted, stroking her face with a nicotine-stained finger. Ruby shuddered, and he laughed almost maniacally at her response. “Don’t worry, darling. I’m gonna take good care of you before your time with us is up.”

  He licked his lips.

  “Get away from her,” Shawn snapped from the doorway. “You don’t touch a hair on her head until we get paid.”

  The creep scowled. “Who’s gonna know?” he sulked, but he rose to his feet, lumbering back toward the sofa where he had been sitting for hours.

  “I’ll know,” Shawn growled, slamming the door.

  For an instant, Ruby stared at him, a glimmer of hope flashing through her. I knew it! He’s not going to hurt me. He’s going to protect me and send me home after Daddy pays.

  “She doesn’t shut up,” the man grumbled.

  Shawn sighed, stalking toward her. “Ruby, what have I told you about running your mouth?” he demanded.

  Ruby offered him a timid smile. “I was just trying to be friendly,” she protested coyly.

  To her shock, his hand flew up, smacking her across the cheek. Tasting blood, she stared up at him, her vision slightly blurred by the blow.

  “We don’t want to be your friends,” Shawn said conversationally. “Gag her, Herman. And if she gives you any more trouble when I’m away, knock her out with heroin. But keep your pants on until the money is in hand. After that, I don’t care what you do with her.”

  * * *

  Will glanced at the SWAT team, each man waiting for his signal.

  He held up his fingers to count, and when his hand signaled three, the battering ram crashed down the door of the apartment.

  Two men looked up in shocked surprise as the law enforcement officers flew into the apartment, screaming orders for them to lay down on the ground.

  Will bypassed the kidnappers, racing toward the back room, kicking open another door.

  Ruby Vladimir lay on a mattress on the floor, her eyes half closed, her dark red hair disheveled. Will immediately rushed to her.

  “Ruby, I’m Sergeant William Sears,” he told her sinking to his knees at her side. “I’ve been looking for you for days.”

  She nodded slowly, seemingly incoherent, but her dark eyes widened slightly as she understood his words. Will helped her into a sitting position, pushing the tangles of her hair away from her face.

  “Are you hurt?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “No,” she murmured. “I’m okay now.”

  “Good,” he sighed, pressing her close to his chest to comfort her. The gesture was inappropriate, but he needed to feel her against him. Tentatively, her arms encircled him, as if longing for a touch that was not cruel, and he squeezed her tightly, feeling the beat of her heart increase against his chest.

  She tipped her head back, looking at him plaintively, and he stared back into her eyes, the urge to kiss her overwhelming.

  Stop! Will screamed at himself. What are you doing?

  But it was as if he was no longer in control of his own movements, and his lips met hers with a fervent passion. Immediately, Ruby responded, crawling onto her knees to meet him at face level, her hands eagerly stripping off his clothes as she moved.

  The voice in Will’s head grew quieter as the blood in his loins increased. His hand reached for her hair, dropping her head back as his lips crushed against the coolness of her throat.

  As Ruby struggled to unbutton his shirt over his wide chest and formed biceps, she pushed him down onto the mattress, and he knew he needed to take her before the others found them in the back room.

  Will could hear them calling out to one another only a few feet away, and it heightened his sense of urgency and arousal. His hands made their way up Ruby’s pencil skirt, freeing her long, lithe legs to spread for him as his mouth continued moving across her belly and then down into her core.

  She gasped with delight as his tongue delved into her center, her hands squeezing into his dark mane of hair. Faster he stroked her with his mouth, encouraging her to climax, but she gripped his head, pulling him upward.

  “There’s no time,” Ruby whispered. “You need to take me now.”

  Before the last word was out of her lips, Will was deep inside her, Ruby’s hands gripping his rear as he thrust deep and hard into her.

  Instantly, she erupted upon him, crying out silently as her teeth went through her lower lip. The sight of blood drove him into a frenzy, pounding faster, watching her beautiful face freeze in the shock and ecstasy of his engorged member.

  Will exploded in great spurts, memorizing the expression of desire on her face as someone began whispering in his ear.

  Whirling his head, he turned and stared at Detective Monroe.

  “Are you all right?” Monroe asked, his face registering worry. “You look funny, like you’re in pain.”

  Suddenly, Ruby was gone, the apartment non-existent, and Will understood where he was: in the barracks inside the police station, lying on a cot.

  Humiliated, he sat up and looked at his subordinate.

  “Any word?” he asked. It was the first sleep he had gotten in over forty-eight hours.

  The kidnappers had arranged for the ransom drop for the following day at Marketplace Corners, across from the Junction.

  But there were so many things bothering Will about the entire kidnapping scenario—things such as the boyfriend letting Ruby wander away without another thought after a fight. He claimed he didn’t even watch her walk down the street. He gave a very loose description of what she had been wearing, and Will could not get over his intense dislike for Robert Askin.

  There were other issues, too. The kidnappers seemed to be in no rush for their money, as if this whole thing were a game. Or, as if they had no intentions of giving her back anyway, and were having their fun with her. The thought filled Will with dread.

  It must be why I had that dream, he thought. I want to protect her, but I don’t know how.

  Their calls had been untraceable, and the voice distorted when the second call came through. Will could tell that they were dealing with professionals, and yet, they had not seemed concerned in the least about whether or not Merrik Vladimir contacted the police.

  What kind of men are we up against? Will wondered, eyeing Monroe as he waited for an answer to his initial question.

  “Nothing has changed. Davidson is still with the Vladimirs, but Merrik is not doing well.”

  “Then what the hell are you doing in here, Monroe? Go make yourself useful!”

  Will lay back down, staring at the bunk above him, wondering what else he could be doing, where else he should be looking.

  I feel like the answer is right under my nose and yet…

  He sat up suddenly. Maybe the answer was literally under his nose. The hairs on his arms began to prickle.

  * * *

  Ruby bolted up, her eyes wide with a silent scream.

  It was the same nightmare she’d had the night before: a heroic rescue, a dark-haired muscular man making love to her in a back room as Shawn and Herman were captured by a dozen SWAT team members.

  But just as she climaxed, a beast burst into the room and swiped at her savior with a deadly paw, sending them both flying into a wall.

  “What’s the matter, princess?” Herman called tauntingly as he took in her horrified expression. “Bad dream?”

  Ruby shifted her eyes away from him, lookin
g down at her bonds again, her mind racing. How could she free herself? Did anyone live below the unit where they were keeping her? Would they hear her if she made enough noise? She didn’t dare do anything, not when she was certain that any minuscule move might cost her life.

  Today is the day Daddy is supposed to make the ransom drop. Today will be the day I discover my fate one way or another. Her mind fluttered back to her dream and she exhaled slowly, shaking her head.

  If you are real, Sergeant Will Sears, please be careful, but come and find me.

  * * *

  Will poured over the notes, his eyes burning.

  If his hunch was correct, something had to connect a suspect to Ruby Vladimir.

  He felt as if he had read the files a thousand times, but it didn’t seem to help. Nothing was standing out to him—no surveillance, no witnesses.

  There is only one way that this kidnapping makes sense to be done with such ease.

  “Sarge, do you need anything?” Monroe asked from the doorway, and Will shook his head quickly. “I’m heading out. I’ve been here all night.”

  Monroe nodded.

  “Monroe, shut the door on your way out.” Will slumped back against his chair, begging his mind to understand what he was missing, but he just couldn’t see it.

  And the ransom drop is in two hours, he reminded himself. If we don’t find out where she is before that, she’s as good as dead.

  The idea made him queasy. He needed air.

  Fighting his way through the small stationhouse, he clawed his way to the back exit, gulping in the morning like he was suffocating.

  Suddenly, he had the insurmountable urge to smoke. It was a filthy, disgusting habit he had forsaken a decade earlier, but the desire was overwhelming. The need to feel a cigarette to his lips was so unbearable, he began to walk through the staff parking lot, seeking out packages of smokes on their dashboards.

  He paused at the end of the parking area, peering into the window of a truck.

  What the hell are you doing? Will asked himself. You’re acting like a lunatic. But as he turned away in embarrassment, something under the seat caught his eye.

  Slowly, Will walked back up to the window and stared into the passenger side, his heart pounding. A piece of beige fabric poked out from under the grey seat, and Will instantly recognized it.

  I knew it, he thought, bile rising in his throat. I wish I didn’t, but I knew it all along. Goddamn him.

  * * *

  “Mm, you smell amazing,” Herman whispered, inhaling her hair.

  A small cry erupted from Ruby’s mouth, but it was stifled by the duct tape plastered to her mouth.

  “Right now, Shawn is collecting the money from your daddy,” he purred. “And you’re going to be at my disposal. I bet you’re just as excited as I am.”

  Despite her resolve to remain calm, Ruby began to struggle against her bonds, panic seizing her like a vice.

  “Shh,” Herman breathed, his wretched mouth against her face. “No use in fighting, darling. You knew this day was coming.”

  The front door opened, and Shawn walked in, a smile lighting up his face as he unmounted the army duffle bag from his back. “Christ almighty, this weighs more than the princess,” he chortled. “I am glad I kept up with my gym membership.”

  Herman straightened out and stared at Shawn, his mouth agape. “You got it?” he asked in disbelief. “That’s all of it?”

  Shawn nodded, grinning crazily as he unzipped the bag. “Look,” he said. “Six million dollars. Over a hundred pounds of money, my friend.”

  “Let me see,” Herman gasped, rushing toward it like a child in a candy store.

  He had barely taken two steps when a terrifying sound filled the apartment.

  Ruby looked up, disoriented from the lack of food and water for the past couple of days.

  I’m hallucinating, she decided as the bear from her dream flew into the tiny space, a furious mass of dark red hair.

  “What the—” Herman did not have time to finish his thought, the beast falling onto all fours as it ran toward him.

  Ruby watched in aghast awe as the bear easily tore the limbs from Herman, a low, guttural sound emanating through the space.

  In the haziness of her mind, another bear appeared, slightly smaller and brown, leaping onto the red animal’s back. The two fell into a mound until Ruby could no longer identify which was which. Viscous red liquid flew around the room, and she could hear the whimpers and cries as teeth sank and claws slashed.

  I am dreaming, she told herself. This is my nightmare. Yet as she continued to stare at the bloody scene, she knew it wasn’t a dream.

  Abruptly, the red bear rose onto its hind legs, swiping out one final time to gouge into the eyes of the other beast. An ominous silence ensued as the brown animal lay dying, but as Ruby looked on, she was suddenly staring at two men.

  The brown bear had morphed back into Shawn, but the larger animal, the majestic red beast, was the one she had seen in her dreams.

  “Monroe, you stupid fool,” Sergeant Will Sears murmured. “Why would you do this?”

  Detective Shawn Monroe stared up at him with pleading eyes. “How… did… you… know?” he gasped, his voice choked and garbled. “I… planned… so… well.”

  But Sergeant Sears wouldn’t get any answers from him, as Shawn’s eyes closed, taking one final breath. He was as still as his accomplice, who lay in pieces only feet away from Ruby’s bound form.

  As if Shawn’s death had broken the spell that had overcome him, Sergeant Sears whipped his head toward Ruby.

  “Ruby,” he breathed as he ripped the tape from her mouth. “I’m—”

  “I know who you are,” she gasped, her throat parched. “I’ve seen you in my dreams.”

  He seemed startled by her words, and he stared at her. “In your dreams?” he echoed, but as he said it, she realized that he had dreamt of her, too.

  The pulse between them was undeniable, and their eyes locked in a deep, understanding trance. Ruby could not begin to reconcile what she had seen occur with reality, but she knew it had happened.

  Somehow the man who had saved her was some kind of shifter. My soulmate is a bear, she thought, her mind overwhelmed with elation and confusion.

  “How did you know?” she asked as Will began to untie her. “How did you know where to find me?”

  “I knew it was someone in the department,” he sighed, shaking his head. “It had to be.”

  She didn’t ask how he was so sure. “But how did you know it was Shawn?”

  Will loosened the last of Ruby’s binds and brushed a knotted piece of hair away from her cheek.

  “Your scarf was in the car,” he answered. “The one you wore the night you were taken. I smelled your scent on it, and I knew where to find you.”

  Ruby grasped his hand, holding it to her face, pressing her mouth to his palm. “Kiss me like you did in my dream,” she whispered.

  Will cupped her cheek lovingly. “There’s plenty of time for that,” he said. “Right now, we need to get you to a hospital.”

  Reluctantly, she agreed, knowing he was right.

  * * *

  Will stayed by her side the entire week she recovered from dehydration and minor bruising in the hospital.

  It had been three months since Ruby had been rescued from Monroe’s clutches. They had spent every night together since the ordeal, knowing instinctively that they were meant to be by each other’s side.

  “Do you have to go to work?” Ruby pouted as she tightened her hand around his. She couldn’t resist how sexy he looked only wrapped in a towel, knowing that his hard, naked body was only covered by a mere piece of fabric.

  Will bit his lower lip, obviously finding it difficult to resist her touch. “Well, maybe I could be a few minutes late.”

  Soon, they lay naked and entangled in each other’s arms, and Ruby felt the hardness of her lover inside her as she had longed for seemingly her whole life. He brought her to her cl
imax over and over, her cries growing louder until she lost her ability to scream, feeling him fill her fully.

  When they had finally finished, they lay spent. Each day, she half expected for someone to interrupt their newfound happiness, but no one ever did.

  “I have something for you,” Will said as he leaned over and grabbed a small envelope from the drawer of his nightstand.

  “A present?” Ruby asked, clapping her hands together in anticipation.

  Will smirked. “Open it,” he said as he handed her the envelope.

  Ruby felt cold, hard metal brush her finger as she reached inside the manila envelope. “A key?” she asked as she looked closely at the item. “For what?”

  “For you,” he said matter-of-factly. “I think you should move in. I know it’s only been a few months, but I have never been more sure of anything in my entire life.”

  “Neither have I,” said Ruby, planting a long, hard kiss on her boyfriend’s eagerly awaiting lips.

  Will stood up, lifting Ruby into the air and twirling her around.

  “That’s a yes?” he asked.

  “That’s a resounding yes!” Ruby answered, feeling safe and secure in Will’s loving arms.

  * * *

  THE END

  7

  Unsuspecting Love

  Ben ducked as the dart flew past his head, narrowly missing his cheek.

  “Geez, Eva!” he cried, spinning to look at his friend. “Are you trying to kill me?”

  Eva seemed lost in thought until he called out to her. She turned to him and offered him a smile of contrition. She shrugged sheepishly, rising to retrieve the darts from the target.

  “Sorry about that,” she said lightly. “I was aiming for the board.”

  “I guess my face looks like a dartboard, then?” Ben teased, flopping onto a stool at her side and reaching for his beer so that he could take a long sip out of it. He stared at Eva as she whipped another dark at the target… and missed again.