Greystone Alpha

by Alyssa Jacobs

  Rowan snorted and Tanner rolled his eyes. “Maybe if you’d stop picking on my Dennis, he’d stop breaking down on me.”

  “Wait, your truck is a boy? And you named him Dennis?” Rowan asked as he slammed the hood shut.

  “That a problem?”

  “No, I just… always pegged it as more of a, you know… girl. Maybe like a Bertha or something.”

  Tanner stepped back and studied the truck like it was the first time he’d ever seen it. Jason and Rowan exchanged a knowing look.

  “No, definitely a boy. Man, actually.” Tanner said after a minute, with such conviction that it sent both Rowan and Jason into laughter.

  As Tanner grabbed a few things from his truck and started “locking it up”, Jason walked with Rowan back to his car.

  Jason got in and immediately rolled the window down to get some relief from the hot air. He leaned back against the headrest and closed his eyes, letting his arm hang out the window and letting what little breeze there was blow through his fingers.

  He furrowed his brow, then turned to Rowan, who was fiddling with the radio. “You smell that?”

  Rowan smirked. “Don’t try to blame your farts on me.”

  “No, you idiot,” Jason muttered, sitting up a little straighter. “You don’t smell that?”

  Rowan shook his head as Jason reached over and cut the A/C. “Hey now, don’t touch…” Rowan started, but stopped mid-sentence, nostrils flared. They looked at each other in silent understanding—there was another shifter nearby, someone unfamiliar. Someone not in their pack.

  Jason glanced up at Tanner who was finally crawling out of his truck. Tanner met his eyes, presumably having felt the gaze from two sets of eyes in Rowan’s car, and then cocked his head in confusion.

  And then his head snapped to the forest.

  No signal was needed. Rowan and Jason jumped out of the car, yanking their tee shirts over their heads, preparing for a fight.

  Tanner held out a hand, signaling them to stop, but only Rowan obeyed. Jason moved to unbuckle his pants, because damn it if he was going to rip his favorite jeans up during a shift. Tanner hissed at him, “Stop, we’re not looking for a fight”.

  Jason growled back in annoyance but stopped. There was another wolf shifter stalking around nearby, and Tanner didn’t want a fight? In the world of shifters, violence often couldn’t be avoided. It’s the alpha’s duty to protect the pack, and whatever shifter was hanging around their territory was obviously looking for trouble. So why was Tanner hesitating?

  As if he could read Jason’s thoughts, Tanner pulled his stare from the woods to look at Jason. “I’m the alpha, so I make the decisions.” Rowan wouldn’t hear the subtext as only Jason, Tanner, and now Addie knew that Jason was supposed to be the true alpha. Maybe Jason had willingly given Tanner the title, but it didn’t mean that Jason didn’t have opinions on how situations like this should go down.

  Tanner was the opposite of Jason’s father, sometimes to a fault. Where his father would have the unfamiliar shifters hunted down and killed, no questions asked, Tanner avoided conflict like the plague and would probably rather the pack go into hiding before fighting to defend their territory. There had to be a middle ground.

  Their silent argument was cut short by rustling from the bushes. A second later, Rowan yelped, followed by his immediate shift into wolf form.

  “Damn it, Rowan, stop!” Tanner yelled as Rowan rushed toward a snarling blur of gray that had bounded from the woods. Two other, larger blurs followed. Shit, one shifter was trouble, but three shifters were a big problem. And if there were anymore hiding… well, Jason didn’t want to think about that.

  It took less than a second for Jason to enter fight mode. His wolf emerged painfully, as if knocking his human side out of the way. Jason leaped toward the pile of fur on the edge of the woods as Rowan let out another yelp and blood poured out of a bite wound on his leg.

  Enraged at the sight of his pack mate hurt, Jason locked his jaw on the back of the other shifter’s neck, yanking him off Rowan. It only took a second for Jason to realize something was different about the wolf struggling between his fangs.

  Just as Tanner was about to shift, the third shifter, the one not yet engaged in the fight, hunched over with a pained bark. “Wait!” she shouted, now in human form. “He’s just a pup, he didn’t know!” She raised her arms out toward Jason, desperately begging for him to put the wolf in his mouth down.

  Jason paused, confused at the situation unfolding in front of him. Rowan was still going head to head with the second shifter. A very naked and very worried woman was gesturing wildly at the wolf in Jason’s mouth. Tanner was off to the side, shouting something unintelligible.

  The wolf underneath Jason was still struggling but had stopped fighting. He whimpered, trying to move over to the woman. This was a pup? A pup had tried to attack Jason and his pack mates?

  It was a very large pup, then. Probably a pre-teen in his human form. If the woman hadn’t stopped him, he would have guessed it was a smaller female wolf shifter, not a child.

  The pup was in the wrong, but Jason couldn’t kill a child. With a warning growl, Jason loosened his jaw from the pup’s scruff. The pup immediately scurried over to the woman with his tail tucked under his legs. She must be his mother.

  Behind him, Tanner pulled Rowan off the other shifter who had also shifted back when Jason let the pup go.

  “What’s going on here? What are you doing here?” Tanner angrily shouted at the shifter that had been locked in combat with Rowan. He was an older, gray haired man—probably in his early fifties—and he stood there, somehow looking both wide-eyed and tired at the same time.

  Jason was the last to shift back to human form. “Jesus Christ”, he said, putting his hand over his eyes to avert his gaze. He hadn’t ever been shy around nudity, but maybe he was only used to his own pack, because being around a bunch of sweaty, bloody naked strangers was making him uncomfortable.

  He walked over to Rowan, who was lying spread eagle in the grass and bleeding badly from his left leg. Jason reached out a hand and helped Rowan to his feet with a grunt. Rowan winced as he put weight on his wounded leg.

  “Why did you attack us?” Jason gritted out at the older man as he watched Rowan limp off toward his car, probably for the first aid kit he kept in the glove compartment.

  “I’m sorry, we didn’t mean to…”

  “Didn’t mean to? Seriously?” Jason interrupted.

  “My son, he’s struggling to control his animal,” the man said with a weary glance over at the pup. “It was a mistake. He got away from us. I promise it won’t happen again, from one alpha to another.”

  That stopped Jason in his tracks. “Hey, I’m not the alpha here. He is.” He said, raising his hands and nodding his head over at Tanner.

  The man gave Jason a strange look, but quickly shook his head. “My apologies, I shouldn’t have assumed.”

  Tanner walked over with his hand extended for a handshake. “I’m Tanner, alpha of the Greystone Pack. This is Jason, my second, and the wolf over there is Rowan, my forth. We live just over those mountains, but our territory stretches out all around River’s Bend.”

  The man nodded, understanding the subtle threat beneath Tanner’s polite words.

  “I’m Gregory, and this is my wife Maggie and our son Henry. I’m truly sorry. We’re all a little… stressed out about some recent events, and my son is taking it hard.”

  “Well maybe you should take your son back to your pack and territory and keep him there until he learns how to control himself!” Rowan spit out angrily around a roll of medical tape from the passenger side of the car. The woman, Clara, who was petting and comforting the shaky pup, paused to glare over at Rowan. “We would if we had a pack or a territory!” She said through gritted teeth. Gregory closed his eyes and sighed, and Jason could see the muscles of his jaw clench.

  So they’d somehow stumbled into a familial argument? Well, this was awkward. Jason sh
ifted uncomfortably.

  “I’ve heard rumors. Are you three the last of the pack that the Madfangs absorbed?” Tanner asked.

  Gregory hesitantly nodded but didn’t add anything else. He was quiet for an alpha, and Jason wondered if that was his personality or if it was a consequence of whatever hell he’d been through recently.

  “Well if you’re looking for new territory, we aren’t going to give any up. We’re six strong. That’s double your numbers.” Jason nodded in agreement, surprised and a little impressed that Tanner hadn’t tip-toed around the issue.

  “We aren’t looking to take any of your territory. Just looking for a safe place to raise our son. We’re renting a small place on the outskirts of town.” He paused, like he was searching for words.

  Jason cocked an eyebrow. These wolf shifters, one a former alpha, were just going to try to ignore their shifter instincts and live without territory? Without a real pack? How long could that last? Jason couldn’t fathom it. Life without his pack would be lonely and dangerous. And now that he had Addie to think about? Suddenly he felt sympathy for the man standing in front of him. Trying to protect his mate and pup without the strength and numbers of a pack sounded exhausting.

  “We can’t offer you protection, if that’s what you’re looking for.”

  Gregory shook his head. “Not looking for protection. Just a quiet life out in the country where we can finally live in peace.” There was a hint of desperation in his eyes, like he wasn’t only making a statement, but asking for permission.

  Jason and Tanner exchanged a look, then turned toward Rowan, leaving Jason there alone with the other shifters.

  Gregory turned to Jason. “I meant to introduce myself sooner, so you’d know we weren’t a threat or looking for trouble, but there never seemed to be a good time. I hope today didn't kill any hope of good will between us.”

  Jason shrugged. “Greystones aren’t like Madfangs. We aren’t going out of our way, looking for a fight. We don’t want anybody hurt if we can avoid it.” He looked over at the pup, Henry, who still hadn’t shifted back to his human form. Jason remembered what it was like growing up before he really learned how to control his inner animal. Even now as an adult there were moments he struggled to stay in control. If this kid really had lost his pack, his territory, everything he’d ever known and was now on the run… well, of course he’d have trouble controlling himself.

  “Just keep the pup out of trouble and don’t get too close to our territory. The men in us understand, but our animals might not be so forgiving next time.”

  Gregory nodded once, then turned back to his wife and son, ushering them back into the forest.

  Jason watched as they departed, then turned toward Rowan’s car to find Tanner and Rowan watching him intently.

  “Fuckin’ weirdos.” Rowan said, a sentiment Tanner agreed to with a nod.

  Chapter 10

  Addie sat at the writing desk in the loft of Jason’s cabin, finishing up her first freelance gig. In the days after officially breaking up with Todd, Addie had started thinking about what would need to happen if she wanted to stay in River’s Bend permanently. The primary concern was finding work to support herself. Luckily, Rowan knew the editor of The Bender, the funny little tabloid magazine she’d read at the grocery store her first night in town. They were looking for someone to do editing work, and Addie had been more than qualified.

  Addie smiled, remembering how proud Jason was when she told him she had gotten a job. He hadn’t outright asked her to stay in River’s Bend yet, but she expected the topic to come up soon.

  It seemed like everything started falling into place once they got together.

  She looked down at her phone, suppressing a squeal when she saw Jason had texted her.

  What are your plans for the night?

  Addie grinned and straightened up in her chair. Maybe he was going to ask her on a date. They had barely gotten to spend any time together in the last week because of his busy work schedule. She was having major Jason withdrawals.

  Oh, she understood that he couldn’t help it — if anything, she found his work ethic sexy. The whole pack had been working from sunrise to sundown to finish up all their work before the end of the summer when logging season would slow down. Jason always texted her on his breaks, and they saw each other for a few minutes every night in the little time between Jason getting home and collapsing in bed.

  She was just a little disappointed that they couldn’t spend more time together before she went back to the city at the end of the summer. After all, they couldn’t have a conversation about her staying if they barely saw each other.

  No big plans. I'll probably sit around in my pajamas and watch Netflix.

  Addie waited, hoping for a text from him asking her to make more solid plans. A few minutes passed, and he didn’t respond.

  We can do whatever you want ;-)

  She frowned at her use of the wink-y emoji. She’d never been a natural at flirting, especially through text. Was that too forward? Would he think it’s silly?

  She pressed send before she could overthink it. She really wanted to see him. Have a real conversation with him. Feel his touch. But she would be okay even if all they did was snuggle in front of the TV.

  As she snapped her laptop closed, she heard a roar from the woods behind Jason’s cabin. Confused, she walked over to the big bay window and peaked out from behind the yellow checkered curtains she’d hung up to decorate her work space. She listened as the roaring got louder, and then she saw movement through the trees. It was Jason peeling out of the woods on a four-wheeler.

  He stopped a few feet away from the back porch, pulled his phone out of his back pocket and grinned when he saw her text. He typed something, and then her own phone vibrated in her hand.

  I actually had something else in mind.

  She looked up again and caught him watching her through the window, a wide grin on his face. He nodded his head in a gesture for her to come out. She squealed and made her way downstairs.

  She practically jumped off the back porch and into his arms, confident that her man would catch her. He kissed her hard as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

  “Baby, you’re a sight for sore eyes.” He mumbled as he nuzzled into her neck. His stubble tickled her, and she giggled as she climbed down. He grabbed her butt hard and rough, and she giggled some more. Geez, she was smitten with Jason like a little school girl. All she did was giggle in his presence. She would have been embarrassed had he not acted like a little school boy around her too.

  Addie looked down at her outfit as she straightened her top. She was wearing an old black tank top and holey gray sweatpants. If she had known he was coming home so soon, she would have put on something sexier.

  She twirled and landed with a pose like she’d seen models do. “You like?”

  He grinned. “God, no, I love.” And she believed him — he was looking down at her with a look of complete adoration. She looked up at him and paused, speechless.

  This was the first time she’d gotten to spend time with him in days, and she was suddenly hyper-aware of how attractive he was. Clear, bright green eyes, big smile, straight nose and teeth, boyishly messy brown hair. The sun was shining behind him, creating a halo around his face. Here this man thought he was a monster when he looked like an angel. She stared at him, slack-jawed.

  “What is it?” he said, head tilted to the side.

  Addie blushed, embarrassed by her own thoughts. “I was just thinking about how you call yourself a monster. But you’re one of the best men I’ve ever met. You’re not a monster.”

  She timidly touched his cheek. He closed his eyes and melted into her palm. She loved that he responded to her touch so much. Sexy man. Her man.

  “So what are the plans tonight, sexy monster man?” she asked with a grin. He opened his eyes and stood taller, then cleared his throat. “Um, I actually wanted to talk to you about that.”

  He turned to the storage
compartment of his ATV and pulled out a helmet. “I wanted to show you something tonight. Something you asked to see the night we got together.” He handed her the helmet, then stood there looking nervous, wringing his hands and timidly kicking at the dirt beneath his work boot.

  She stood there confused for a moment, but then realization washed over her. “Your wolf?”

  He nodded shyly. “It’s a big part of me, and I don’t want to hide it. And I don’t want you thinking I’m not committed. Because I am. You have me for life, or as long as you want me.”

  Addie smiled and shoved the helmet over her head. She’d never been on a four-wheeler before, but she wasn’t scared. Not with Jason driving.

  “Swear you won’t run?” he asked.

  She gave him a wink as she buckled the chin strap. “I swear I’m not going to run. I promise, you don’t have to keep asking. I’m not going anywhere.”

  “You say that now. But you haven’t seen the wolf yet.”

  He climbed onto the four-wheeler. Addie climbed up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He cranked the four-wheeler back up and Addie yelped in surprise.

  “Ready?” he called over his shoulder, laughing as Addie gripped onto him for dear life. Okay, maybe she was a little nervous.

  “I guess so…” she replied, unable to hide her nervousness.

  He patted her on the arm before giving it some gas. Addie yelped as they lurched forward, and then they were off, speeding up the mountain through the forest.

  “And why do I have to wear a helmet when you don’t?” she yelled over the roar of the engine.

  “Because you’re precious cargo!” He called back over his shoulder. She smiled into his back and squeezed him tighter.

  The trees blurred by as they sped through the woods. Addie realized Jason had never told her where they were going, but he knew these mountains like the back of his hand.

  Maybe she didn’t know where they were going, but she didn’t really care. If she was with Jason, they could be visiting a giant flaming mud pit and she’d still be excited.