Ultimate Alpha Boxed Set: A BBW and Wolf Shifter collection

by Bolryder, Terry

  “Are you okay?” I ask, stepping toward him.

  He hisses and looks at me with pure hatred in his face. He points a finger my direction. “I hate you, do you hear me? Stay the fuck out of my way.” His voice is high pitched. “Argh. I’m so done with this. I’m going back to the house. All of you leave me alone.”

  My heart clenches as he tries to limp off and stumbles. I rush forward to help but a tall back blocks my way. Fifi turns and puts a hand on my shoulder.

  “I got this,” he says, giving me a smile. His pretty features glow. Damn, Fifi can be really…manly sometimes. I watch in awe as he leans down and scoops the small Matt up into his arms, hissing and spitting, and begins carrying him princess style to the house.

  “Well,” Tom says, scratching his head and standing next to Tom, who is folding his arms. “That’s something you don’t see anyway.”

  I swallow. Fifi said he wasn’t here for me, but I’m starting to think he’s an option after all. That leaves Matt as the only one who isn’t one. And he hates me. Although, if he was the killer, he could have let me drown. The whole thing makes no sense. I haven’t done anything to him.

  “We’re down a player,” Asher says. “Want to play, Misty?” He sweeps black hair out of his face and gives me a winning smile. He looks hot, flushed from exertion. In the sun, his dark eyes are more espresso than black, but the long lashes and his sumptuous lips are still striking.

  “No,” Lindon says, stepping in front of us and stopping my thoughts. His huge chest blocks my view of the others.

  Asher pushes him aside, despite being a couple inches shorter. “It’s not your choice, old man,” he says, despite being only a couple years younger than Lindon in all actuality.

  “I’m in charge here,” Lindon says.

  “Not of Misty,” Hawes interjects gently. “Misty, do you want to play? We’ll be careful.”

  “Yeah, careful. That’s what has characterized this entire game,” Lindon mutters. “Not.”

  I roll my eyes at his sarcasm but can’t help but be a little touched by his protectiveness. Even if it’s not warranted.

  I’m not the most athletic around but I have good reflexes and I can run easily. I can also dodge well.

  Then again, maybe that’s just compared to other humans. Maybe compared to other shifters I won’t stand a chance. But I won’t know if I don’t try. And playing football as the only girl on a field filled with boys? That seems like something I shouldn’t pass up.

  “Don’t be overprotective, Lindon,” I say flippantly, high-fiving Asher as I join the shirts team.

  Tim and Tom give me high fives and only check out the cleavage in my tank top for a few seconds before moving away into position.

  Asher tells me he’s going to do a hand-off after faking throwing it to Tom, and will let me run it in. I grin at him, sounds fun. Plus, he says no one will probably have the guts to tackle me.

  I look up over the huddle and see Thor pouting. I wouldn’t put any bets on him. He’s competitive as hell, and he’s already irritated that someone has downed him.

  I don’t think most of us are keeping score any more, but I know he is. Still, there’s something endearing about the tall, super manly man he insists on playing.

  I’m curious if he really does have the soft side Lock sometimes talks about. Lock catches my eyes and smiles, as usual, amber brown eyes twinkling in the sun. I smile back and get ready with my team.

  They call it, and I get next to Asher. He fakes the throw, sending the guys in that direction. Obviously they aren’t expecting Asher to just give it to me. But I run behind him and he does, and I run forward as fast as I can, up the side of the field away from the others.

  Shock registers on their faces as they see me running with the ball, and I whip my head backward slightly to see Hawes, Lock, Lindon, and Thor all in pursuit.

  Lock’s eyes are intent, and I can tell from his and Thor’s eyes, there’s more to this than the game. I’ve inadvertently set off the thrill of the hunt, and as I run down the field as quickly as I can, I can feel a little thrill or chill at the thought of one of them catching me. Will it hurt? I can hear their breath, either Thor or Lock, about to take me down.

  It’s exciting and scary at the same time, and I know I’m not going to be able to get to the end zone for my first touch down.

  I hear a grunt and a thud and the footsteps behind me stop and someone rolls over the grass. I don’t stop, just keep running for the end zone, where I slam the ball down and then fall to my knees, laughing in relief.

  I’m not sure how I made it, but Tim and Tom stop next to me, hands on knees, laughing and giving me high fives. I stand and turn back toward the field, and the smile goes off my face.

  Thor is grabbing Lindon by the collar, lifting him off a motionless Lock, who is lying face down. There’s yelling, and Hawes tries to get between Lindon and Thor.

  And then Lock pushes himself up to a sitting position. I walk forward so I can hear what they’re saying.

  “He was going to full on tackle her,” Lindon yells, trying to get free of Hawes to reach Thor, who’s being held by Bradley.

  “It’s football, that’s the whole point.”

  “You can’t full on tackle a female!”

  “You pompous—” Thor starts, but stops when Lock waves a hand and stands slowly. He shakes his head.

  “No big deal, I was carried away.” He ruffles his hair and gives us all an apologetic grin. “I don’t know what came over me.”

  Lindon rips out of Hawes’ grip and gets in Lock’s face. “I’m watching you. Fucking watching you now.”

  Lock raises an eyebrow. “Ah, so the face behind the pretty rich kid comes out to play?”

  Lindon snarls and Hawes grabs him again. “Whoa, boy. Calm down. Misty’s fine.”

  “He was going to smash into her.”

  “I like to think I wouldn’t have hurt her, but yeah, I was running too fast,” Lock says.

  I sigh and rub my forehead as I approach. What am I going to do with all of these silly men? I lock eyes with Lindon, who flushes slightly but raises his chin stubbornly, like he knows he’s right and no one will ever convince him otherwise. The silliest of all of them. And the one I’m most fond of.

  “I’m fine. In fact, I’m going to go in and get a drink to celebrate my touchdown, who wants to come?”

  The men seem more interested in arguing, and as they gather together, I decide I’m not going to stay here and watch the testosterone fly. If they want to fight, I can’t stop them. Hawes gives me a nod, as if to say he’ll take care of things, and I know he’s probably strong enough to, if he can hold Lindon back.

  I jog toward the house.

  It’s only now sinking in that Lindon tackled his own teammate out of need to protect me. It makes my heart double thump in my chest and I reach up to rub it as I run, baffled by the sudden ache there.

  No one has ever cared for me like that. And it may be because he’s assigned, but it also seems too instinctive for that.

  I don’t know when I’m going to understand Lindon. I just know that each interaction with him makes me more determined to try. It doesn’t hurt that a lot of those reactions result in kisses. Since I really could have been hurt today, I should probably thank him later for going turncoat on his team to protect me.

  I grin, thinking about how that conversation will go, and pull open the back door to the house. It was already half open, and I hear voices as I step inside. Coming from upstairs.

  I swear I don’t mean to eavesdrop, but my hearing is just so good. Either that or these men have no volume control.

  “It’s too dangerous,” a low voice says. Is that Fifi? “You have to tell her.”

  “No, never!” The high pitched response is definitely Matt. So they’re in here together? What don’t they want to tell me? I walk slowly up the stairs, letting the voices get louder.

  “If you don’t, I will.”

  “No, if I tell, then everythin
g is ruined, and there’s been no point to all of this. You weren’t supposed to know, but now that you do, you have to help me.”

  No, is Matt the murderer? My eyes widen, and I freeze on the stairs. I don’t want to move and have something creak and have them know I heard them. I’m sure if they thought I did, they’d try and kill me now.

  It breaks my heart a little that Fifi would be in on it, but he never did clarify his intentions for coming here.

  “I’m in it with you. Obviously I’m not going to leave you alone.”

  “Thank you.”

  “But this is bad. You shouldn’t be here.”

  Now I’m really confused. What on earth are they talking about? I’m tempted to bolt up the stairs, rip open the door and ask them myself, but I try to resist being so impulsive. I’m nothing if not patient. When I want to be. I creep further up the stairs, a little reassured that they aren’t necessarily murderers.

  “Did you hear that?” Matt’s voice asks, rising in nervousness.

  Silence. Then Fifi. “Someone’s here. I can smell it.”

  I freeze, damning myself for my smell. Damn.

  “Take care of them,” Matt says coldly. An upstairs door opens and I find myself eye to eye with Fifi. Tall, cold, imperious. He folds his arms and looks almost regretful that I’m the one there.

  “Misty. Did you hear us?”

  I shake my head. Then nod. “No, well, yes, but…please.”

  He reaches down and grabs me by the arm and hauls me to my feet and then up the rest of the stairs. He’s so strong, and he’s not hurting me, but I have no way to get away as he drags me toward the room. And I didn’t put on my bracelet today, because I didn’t plan on being alone with anyone.

  He opens the door and tosses me inside gently but firmly. I land on my butt and push up on my hands to confront my captors.

  Then I see Matt, over by the mirror in the bathroom. My eyes widen as I take in his appearance, and I crawl back in shock. That’s not possible.

  “Matt? You’re…”

  Matt sighs and turns toward me. Damn it. I guess it’s all over now. Fifi, you want to do it, or should I?”

  My eyes widen as I look from Matt to Fifi, and Fifi lets out a long sigh. Betrayal and confusion flood through me, and I reach instinctively for my wrist, wishing the bracelet were there. Wishing I had any way to call someone to help me as Fifi reaches down and tilts my chin up to meet his eyes.

  “Well, Muppet. I guess it’s time we talked.”

  * * *

  * * *

  To be continued in Alpha Contender 4. Turn the page for the last volume!

  Alpha Contender 4

  Copyright © 2015 by Terry Bolryder

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover Design by Melody Simmons of eBookindiecovers

  Chapter 1

  I look up into Fifi’s intense, dark blue eyes, and then flick my gaze to Matt, walking toward me from the bathroom. Never in a million years did I see this coming. I don’t know how carefully guarded this secret is, but I know it must be intense. I remember what Matt said.

  “Take care of them.”

  Them meaning me, the person who was listening from outside.

  I swallow and Fifi guides me to my feet, keeping that one, long finger under my chin. He releases me when I’m standing, facing Matt.

  “I’m not going to tell anyone,” I say. “Why would I?” My eyes wander back to Matt, looking him over with astonishment.

  Looking her over with astonishment.

  “Matt, you’re a…a…”

  “A girl, just say it,” Matt snaps, in a voice that I now realize is quite low for a woman but quite high for a man’s. “I’m a female. My father leads the tribunal, and when he was unsuccessful in siring any males, it was decided from birth that my gender would be kept a secret and I would be raised male.”

  “But, but—”

  “Please stop stuttering. It’s not becoming,” Matt mutters.

  I snap my mouth shut and Fifi sits on the wide king bed in the room and pats the space next to him for me to sit down. I do, still in complete shock, body sagging from the anticipation of being dragged in here, worried I’d be confronted with a murderer.

  Not a woman.

  “But…” My mind works overtime trying to figure it out, as Matt unwinds the rest of the binding on her chest, revealing small but perfect breasts. She’s not modest at all, strutting to her closet and stretching with a loud sigh.

  “Ah, that feels so much better.”

  I look at Fifi, wondering how he plays a part in all of this.

  “Fifi’s my cousin,” Matt says. “Only my family knows.”

  I lean back on my hands on my bed, letting my heartbeat calm slowly as it sinks in that they aren’t going to kill me. “But, wouldn’t someone have leaked it?” I ask.

  Matt glances at me with sharply narrowed eyes. That cold beauty makes much more sense now. Matt’s family is probably a lot of pure wolf and that means the only humans who bred in were physically stunning. “No one has a death wish, that’s why no one has leaked it. A lot of work went into hiding my secret. Upsetting the tribunal in such a fundamental way would be akin to asking for execution.”

  “They can do that?” I ask, as Matt shrugs into a sports bra, a tee shirt and a pair of shorts and walks over to the bed. I’m lucky no one knows he’s a she, because I’d be too intimidated to be able to compete with her. Long, gorgeous legs, tight waist, and high perfect breasts. Gorgeous face accented by her pixie cut.

  Damn, how did I miss it? How did she fool all of us?

  Matt goes to a bag and rummages in it before pulling out a vial and tossing it to me in one smooth motion. I catch it clumsily and look at the label.

  “Smell it,” Matt says.

  I do, and my eyes water at the honeysuckle smell, plus something chemical.

  “Artificial male pheromones. Werewolves listen to their nose more than their eyes. That’s how I get away with it, if you were wondering.”

  “I was wondering.”

  “I know, I could tell by your stupid face,” she retorts.

  I laugh nervously. I guess it makes sense why Matt is so jerky now. Having to live as a male…

  “Don’t pity me,” Matt says, slumping into an office chair by the desk and swinging her legs over the arm. “I hate that.”

  “And you hate me,” I say, kind of wanting to ask if she’s the murderer while I’m at it.

  “Yeah, I kind of do,” she says.

  “Why?” I ask, putting my hands up. “We could be friends.”

  Fifi laughs out loud at that, clapping his hands and then falling on his back on the bed.

  “Pray tell, what’s so funny, Felix?” Matt snaps.

  “Ooh, full name,” Fifi scoffs, pushing to a sitting position. “Better straighten up.”

  “Still it’s nice to have another girl in the house,” I say, reaching a hand of peace out toward her. She eyes it suspiciously and then sits back in her chair.

  “I don’t need your friendship, commoner. Though I do envy you. What was my father thinking? Sending me here to watch another female with her choice of mates, knowing fully I’d never have the same.”

  “Do you want to mate?” I ask.

  She scowls at me like I’m stupid. “Of course I want to mate. Do you want to breathe?”

  “You should tell your dad you don’t want to be male,” I say.

  “Ha!” Matt says.

  I turn to Fifi for an explanation. He shakes his head and rests a hand on my shoulder.

  “What?” I ask.

  “That’d be akin to asking the president of a nation to allow his son to get a sex change.”

  “But it’s how she was born!” I say, irritated by the whole thin
g and feeling sorry for Matt. “But you don’t have to worry about me.” I put my hands up in a placating gesture. “I won’t tell anyone.”

  Matt’s eyes flash and narrow slightly. She eyes me again, like she can’t decide what to make of me. Then one corner of her mouth twitches with mirth. She stifles it quickly. “Good. As much as I don’t like you, I don’t want to see you killed by tribunal lackeys.”

  I jump off the bed and grab her chair by the arms and pull it toward us. She gasps in offense and drags her feet but I pull her all the same to be next to me and Fifi.

  “You know what this means, right?” I ask them with a sly grin.

  “What?” Matt asks sharply.

  I give her chair a little turn in response and she glares again. “We can talk boys!”

  Fifi groans and Matt clicks her tongue. “This is just as inane as I thought it would be,” she says, moving to stand. “Anyway, both of you can leave my room. I need to get ready again.” She pulls a fresh pair of bandages from the closet and eyes them reluctantly.

  “Do you need any help?” I ask.

  “No,” she snaps.

  Fifi sighs and rests his chin on his hand, but doesn’t move to leave. Instead, when I stand to go, he tugs on my hand to pull me back onto the bed with him. “I was trying to convince Matt to tell some of the others, trust them to stay silent. If she gets hurt here when someone gets rough, there’ll be hell to pay.”

  Matt shrugs. “I’m not competing, so I’ll just not participate.”

  “Someone could still figure it out. There are some strong noses around here,” Fifi argues.

  “My father sent me to do this. He wouldn’t have if he didn’t trust me to carry it off.”

  “Your father is an ass,” Fifi says, giving a little snort. “I wouldn’t trust him farther than I could throw him.”

  “Which could be pretty far, considering how strong you are and how light he is,” Matt says, flashing a rare smile our way. The effect is instant and amazing, transforming her from a girly boy to a full-on beautiful woman.