“Those skills will come in handy,” Dom replied, pride in his voice as he smiled at Liam. “We’re going to need more houses,” he added with a wink and Leah flushed as Liam tugged her close and agreed.
“Bunny!” A little voice shrieked as a little boy ran straight toward us and I braced myself for impact. He didn’t disappoint as he hit with the force of a linebacker. Dylan followed, smiling adoringly at his ‘brother’ who was actually his nephew, but none of us bothered to specify. Dylan lived with Wren and my Dad, and to his mind, little Lincoln was his brother. We’d all been happily surprised when Wren announced she was pregnant two weeks after she and my Dad got married. There was no one who deserved a chance to be a mother more than she did.
A motorcycle roared down the dirt road that bisected the highway and it was no surprise when Caleb yanked his helmet off and shouted, “Let the party begin!”
He’d been restless after graduation so Dom had given his blessing for him to go out and wander, meeting new packs and forming relationships with them. Caleb had taken Trent’s suggestions for places to visit first and I knew one of them had been the pack of the only other female Alpha.
He’d come back with tales of a reverse harem setup, intriguing some of us, until Dom had adamantly refused to hear another word, declaring he would share me over his dead body. I’d laughed, completely okay with his sentiment, but I knew there were some who were a little more than curious.
I knew one of the places Caleb had gone was to visit his mother, a visit that had lightened the last of the shadows that clung to him. She planned to visit during the summer and we were all eager to meet her.
Lincoln clung to my leg as we headed toward the Pack house, waving to Dad and Wren. Mom and Hank nodded, Hank in his sheriff uniform, no doubt on duty, but still here to celebrate. Mom had decided to stay, eventually divorcing Brian, and not shocking anyone when she moved in with Hank.
Our relationship had improved but we still couldn’t get along longer than an hour at any given time. She’d become a mother to Sam though, their shared experiences bonding them, and I was glad for it. I loved them both and they’d done a tremendous amount in the last few years to help women in abusive situations to recover and start over. They’d started with the Hanley women and then expanded their reach, using some of Trent’s connections to get the word out to other Packs.
I found myself….proud of my mother and she’d surprised me by embracing the role of Gramma with gusto. Monster alternated weeks living with her and Hank, and then Dad and Wren. I think Monster still preferred Dad, but he was trying, just like me. He had less baggage where she was concerned and I was grateful for that.
“Gregory,” I cried, opening my arms to the birthday man. “You look good.”
“Thank you, Jess,” he answered, accepting my hug. “I’m glad you could come celebrate an old man’s birthday.”
“Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” I declared, my eyes sparkling, “I don’t have a gift though.”
“What more can a man ask for than to have lived as many happy and healthy years as I have?” He asked, smiling.
“You know, when you put it like that, I have no idea,” I answered. “We are blessed to have so many friends and family.”
“And to have them all gathered in one place is a gift in itself,” Gregory agreed with a nod. “A slice of birthday cake wouldn’t be turned down though.” I chuckled, following him toward a massive cake surrounded by what looked like acres of food.
“Hey,” Anna snuck up behind me and I squealed, hugging her, as I felt the slight protrusion of her stomach under her shirt.
“I’m so glad to see you,” I said, ignoring the fact that it had been less than a week. “Where’s your uglier half?”
“Right behind you,” Trent stated dryly, lifting me up in a backwards hug before setting me back down. “You always act like it’s been a year since you’ve seen each other and you live less than two miles away.”
“Happiness is seeing an old friend,” I declared loftily as Trent rolled his eyes and went to rescue Dom, taking one of the twins from him and swinging them around.
I sighed happily, wrapping my arm around Anna’s waist as we watched our families gather to sing Happy Birthday. “Did you think it would turn out this way?”
“No,” Anna said instantly. “Never did I ever think I was going to be Alpha and mated to Trent of all people.” She rested her hand on her small bump, patting it gently. “You and Dom, yeah. That was a given from day one.”
“Ha,” I scoffed. “He hated me. I remember those burning eyes.”
“Burning with desire,” Anna retorted. “We all knew he was done for the very first day. He might not have and you might not have, but the rest of us knew.”
“I didn’t know it was possible to be this happy,” I mused. “For a long time, I didn’t think we’d get our happily ever after.”
Anna made a noncommittal noise as she said, “It’s a work in progress.” We met each other’s eyes and laughed, knowing we’d do whatever it took to protect the happiness we’d found.
Trent and Dom came up, wrapping their arms around us as we joined in singing, celebrating our oldest member, as we raised a new generation.
Author’s Note
First off, thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this series. Your words of encouragement and outright demands for this series to continue inspired me to write The Challenge, and finally, The Alpha.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the conclusion of Jess and Dom’s story and for those who want to see more….I don’t have another book planned for this series. I never say never, but for now, my focus is on other projects and I hope The Alpha was a satisfactory conclusion to the series.
If you could leave a review for The Alpha, it would be greatly appreciated. Reviews are a huge boost for authors as they promote the book and allow new readers to find them.
If you keep reading, I’ve included a bonus scene from Dom’s perspective when he met Jess for the first time. I’ve always felt that was an unexplored area and enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoy reading it.
After that, I’ve included an excerpt from my next book, Jailbait, the first in my Southern Rebels MC series, a planned four book series following a set of brothers in a motorcycle club. It releases in January 2019.
Again, thank you to my readers, and to my mother who is always the first to read what I write. Y’all have given me the chance to pursue a dream and I can’t thank you enough.
Meeting Jess
Dom
I cursed under my breath, tired of dealing with the idiot principal and his red tape. I crossed the open field, wondering what the hell this meeting was going to be about….no doubt the principal wanted to offer suggestions for our defense or he’d have some new form we needed the players to sign holding us harmless if they got a bruise on school property.
I pushed the double door open to the 400 hall since it was the shortest path to the office. The florescent light above flickered annoyingly before finally going out. I heaved a sigh, reminding myself to stop by maintenance on my way back.
The soft squeak of a sneaker on the linoleum floor brought my head up and I watched as a girl checked a piece of paper in her hand before squinting at the doors. Woman, I corrected myself as I noted her subtle curves. I scrubbed my hand over my face, feeling dirty, even though I knew I probably wasn’t even six years older. It was a fine line working at the school and keeping an eye on Caleb and so far I hadn’t found myself attracted to a student.
Until today, I admitted to myself, my gaze skimming over her again as she wandered closer, still unaware of my presence. I knew I should announce myself because I wasn’t someone most people wanted to bump into in a dark hallway, especially if they happened to be a woman.
I inhaled, preparing to speak, when what she was hit me, my body tightening uncomfortably as it recognized her before my brain could and I growled, “What are you doing here?”
It came out as an accu
sation and she made a high pitched noise, a cross between a shriek and a scream, which hurt my ears. I crossed my arms, knowing I looked intimidating and not caring as my mind scrambled trying to figure out how she’d gotten here. I didn’t recognize her and I thought I’d known all the Hanleys.
“You scared the shit out of me,” she snapped, fear upping her heart rate as I breathed shallowly through my mouth, trying to minimize the scent of what she was. It didn’t help, as I swore I could taste her on my tongue instead and I widened my legs, trying to get comfortable.
Her eyes swept over me, coming to a stop when she met my eyes and I could see when the primitive part of her recognized I was dangerous. Her breath came quicker as her pupils dilated, and her heart rate doubled. My wolf mistook her fear as arousal and it took all of my control not to lunge for her.
“Class,” she stammered. “I’m trying to find my class.” She waved the paper in her hand as some sort of evidence, but I didn’t take my gaze off her, knowing I appeared grim and off-putting, but it was for her own safety. “412 is my homeroom.”
“You don’t go to this school,” I stated, absolutely certain of this fact and she shook her head as if agreeing with my statement.
“I do,” she disagreed in the next second, adding, “Go to this school.” I gave her a doubtful stare, wondering what kind of trick this was or what I’d done to deserve this – my own personal version of hell in the form of a beautiful teenager. She looked flustered and then mad, stating, “I’m a new student. Hence the looking for my classroom.” Again, she held up a piece of paper and this time I recognized the school secretary’s messy scrawl. “Jess Carter.”
I relaxed slightly when she said her name, glad it wasn’t Hanley, but still perplexed by her presence. Breeding females were rare and to have one show up without a Pack or a shifter to protect her was unheard of. She definitely didn’t recognize me, I noted when I stepped forward and she took an automatic step back.
My size was naturally intimidating and I hadn’t made the best first impression, I admitted to myself as I flicked my wrist to the door on my left.
“412,” I muttered, turning and going back down the hall. My meeting with the principal could wait. I needed to clear my head of her scent before I did something truly unforgiveable, like claim her.
Jailbait
An excerpt from Jailbait, releasing January 2019.
Chapter One
Creed
I swerved my bike as a car passed too close on my left, my usual instinct to curse the driver dying as I saw the face of a terrified girl through the window.
“You alright?” Hank yelled, holding his bike steady as I corrected.
“Yeah,” I shouted over the wind, my gaze still on the old car that had almost sideswiped me. They were going too fast and I was afraid someone was going to get hurt. If they already hadn’t been, I thought grimly. It had only been a quick glimpse but I thought I’d seen the shadow of a bruise on the girl’s face when our eyes had locked for the briefest second.
“Crazy ass drivers. I’m ready to be home,” Hank commented and I nodded, knowing he couldn’t see me but it wouldn’t really matter. We’d been riding together since I was big enough to sit a bike. Words were rarely necessary when we made a run for the club.
The loud roar of an oncoming car had me glancing over my shoulder and this time I did curse as I brought my bike as close to the shoulder as I could without going off the road. The sedan barely missed us as it sped toward the older model car that had almost hit me moments earlier.
“What the hell?”
We watched in shock as the black sedan intentionally rammed the other car, sending it spinning off the road, and it only came to a stop when it hit a tree.
“Jesus Christ,” Hank whispered right before we gunned our engines and raced to the scene of the accident. The black sedan had stopped when the car spun out of control, but at the sight of our oncoming bikes, it peeled away, tires smoking.
“Fucking bastard,” I growled, yanking my helmet off as I stopped my bike as close as I could to the accident. “Hank,” I shouted, pointing to the body lying on the ground a hundred yards from the car. We’d seen the body fly out as the car lost control and I couldn’t help but hope it wasn’t the terrified face in the window. He nodded and scrambled over to her, or who I assumed was a female based on the hair.
I edged around the car, praying the girl had been wearing a seatbelt, unlike her companion. The sight of a head full of tangled dirty blonde hair propped against the window sent a spurt of relief though me. I tapped on the glass and when she didn’t respond, I tried the door. It opened easily enough and she slumped forward, the seatbelt going taut against her weight.
I reached for her, brushing the hair from her face as her eyes blinked open. Pure fear radiated from the lightest green eyes I’d ever seen and she instinctively knocked my hand away from her.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. I just want to help,” I crooned, using the same tone I did with the dogs I helped rehabilitate. “I saw the accident and stopped to see if you needed help.” She nodded, her huge eyes taking in my appearance and I realized the leather club jacket I wore probably wasn’t helping my case. “I’m not going to hurt you, okay?” I tried to make myself as nonthreatening as I could but as she turned her head, I couldn’t help but growl. She jerked back toward me, tensing, and I raised my hands.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized quickly, seeing the frantic thrumming of her heartbeat through the translucent skin at her neck. She was pale, her skin so clear I swore I could see the blood pumping though her veins. “You have a,” I made a motion around my eye, indicating the bruising I’d just seen and she nodded mutely. “I don’t like that someone did that to you,” I explained and she nodded again. Her gaze shifted to the left, letting her guard down enough to check for the person who’d been driving.
“Mom?” She whispered, her hand reaching out to the empty space of the driver’s seat. “Mom?” She said a little louder, frantically trying to undo the seatbelt that had saved her life. “MOM.”
“Hey, hey, its okay. My friend is checking on her,” I soothed, already suspecting her mom was dead, but unable to say anything as I took in her frightened expression. “Can you get out?” I asked instead and she nodded, trying to step out of the car, but the seatbelt caught her once again. “Here, let me get it, okay?” I kept my movements slow, reaching around her, my thumb brushing the delicate bone of her hip as I released the seatbelt. She practically fell out and only my arm kept her from hitting the ground. I lifted her gently on her feet, her weight nothing, her body feeling like skin and bones instead of woman.
When I went to release her, she clutched my arm, her eyes desperate as she looked at the road. “The car…” she stuttered, pointing to the road where it had ran them off.
“Gone,” I dismissed, my mouth drawn tight at the memory of the cowards who’d driven off after causing the accident. “They drove off when they saw us stopping.” She collapsed against me, shaking, as I said they’d driven off. “What’s wrong?”
“He’ll come back,” she whispered, her voice so low I had to lean down to catch the words. “He’ll come back for me.” Her hand went to her bruised cheek involuntarily and I felt my gut clench.
“The person who ran you off the road did this?” I muttered, barely keeping the anger out of my voice as she leaned against me. She nodded and I saw her wince as she tried to straighten. “What’s wrong?” She shook her head, but her hand went tellingly to her ribs. I reached for the edge of her shirt, yanking it up as she cried out and found more bruises spanning her ribcage. “Son of a bitch,” I ground out, tugging her shirt back down gently. She stared at me with petrified eyes and I sighed, realizing I’d probably just scared the shit out of her even more. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to know what he’d done so when I kill him, I can justify it.”
“Creed,” Hank called and I glanced over the top of the car as he stood up from a crouch by the girl’s mom. He shook his hea
d, his hand making the sign of the cross automatically, and I locked my jaw. Those wide green eyes stared at me unblinking and I knew when she realized. Pain pooled in her eyes as she crumpled against me, the only solid thing in a world that had just flipped upside down.
“It’ll be okay, little one,” I attempted to reassure her, hating myself for the lie because we both knew her world was never going to be okay again.
“What you want to do?” Hank called, his steady gaze telling me he’d go along with whatever I decided.
Normally, I’d call the local cops and make sure she was taken care of, but this wasn’t our town and we had no standing agreements with the local law enforcement here. The bruises on her coupled with the fact someone had run them off the road left me reluctant to leave her there.
“Shit,” I muttered, knowing the decision I was about to make was going to get me in hot water with the club. “You have anything in the car?” I asked, and when she didn’t respond, I gave her a little shake. “Hey, I need you to listen to me right now. I know you’re upset but those guys are going to come back and we don’t need to be here when they do.”
Tears streaked down her cheeks, the green standing out against her red-rimmed eyes. “Don’t let them hurt me,” she begged and my decision to take her with us solidified. If there was one thing I couldn’t tolerate it was some asshole abusing a woman or a child, and the girl in my arms fit both categories.
“I won’t, but we need to move. Is there anything in the car you want to take?” I asked patiently and she nodded.
“My backpack,” she whispered, the only volume she seemed to have. I scanned the backseat and saw a black backpack.
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