by Reina Torres
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Epilogue
Book 2 - Too Much To Bear
The Tiger’s Innocent Bride
Sylvan City Alphas - Book 1
Reina Torres
Copyright © 2017 by Reina Torres
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.
Contents
Story Summary
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Reina Torres
Also by Reina Torres
Story Summary
When he saw his mate for the first time, her life was in danger. Keeping his Tiger a secret was no longer an option.
Every day was a struggle for Tiger Shifter, Devlin Kerr. Booted from one Police Department due to his ‘questionable attitude,’ he’d landed in Sylvan City determined to give the career another go. What was an Alpha to do?
Three weeks of even more bull and inside politics was already souring him on law enforcement all together when his Captain suckers him into working extra security at a society event.
A society event that ends in gunfire and blood.
And smack dab in the middle of the crosshairs? His mate.
Secrets be damned, Devlin did what it took to save her and suddenly danger is coming at them from everywhere.
Death, he could handle. Mayhem? Sure, just another walk in the park.
People going after his mate? That wasn’t going to fly. He was going to do whatever it took to keep her safe from danger…
…but who was going to keep Paige Lundin safe from him? Less than a day after they’d met, she was The Tiger’s Innocent Bride.
Chapter One
Three weeks into his rookie year at the Sylvan City Police Department, Officer Devlin Kerr looked up when the stack of folders hit his desk and came to a stop just shy of his elbow. “What’s this?”
“Looks like you won the jackpot, Kerr. The Commissioner wants you to go through these old cold cases and see what you can come up with.”
“Cold cases, huh?” he threw back the cover on the first file and gave it a quick look. “Why does anyone want to follow up on this one?”
Detective Carter gave him a shrug. “Don’t look at me, I didn’t pick the cases, it came down the pipe from the Commissioner. Just do yourself a favor and don’t make any mistakes.”
Devlin managed to keep his growl where it belonged, inside. He may be considered a rookie in Sylvan City, but he’d had five very long years in the Chicago Police Department.
“I don’t make mistakes, Carter.”
The older man gave him a pointed look. “Detective Carter.” Stepping away from the desk, the plain clothes detective gave him a single fingered salute and walked away.
Leaning back in his chair, Devlin lifted the file and began to read it again from the top.
“Missing Yorkipoo on 14th Street and Kepler.”
Riveting.
Why couldn’t it be a cold case like the killing of the Mayor’s late wife?
It was the whole reason why the man had run for Mayor. They searched for days in a citywide manhunt. No one likes the way that kind of a crime looks to the more affluent members of society. Still, from what he understood there were no leads. The car had been recovered and by some accident of records or administration, the vehicle had left impound and been crushed before it could be fully processed. He’d seen the news, even from his hometown at the time of the crime.
Strangely enough, there had been relatively little written or posted about the mayor’s daughter who had also been present at the time of the crime. She was a part of the mayor’s campaign within Sylvan City, but outside of it, there was little in the way of images that leaked out.
Devlin shrugged. He could understand the idea. A child should be protected, especially a child who had seen her mother gunned down. He’d want her protected too. Maybe she was just a little girl. Sure, that would make it all make sense. Still, the case had intrigued him and it was part of the reason… okay, it the entire reason he’d jumped at the transfer to Sylvan City when his old boss had gotten tired of him solving crimes and not giving the credit to him.
The phone on his desk rang and he picked it up, turning away from the file folder. “Officer Kerr.”
“Kerr, this is Captain Mayfield. I need you in my office.”
“I’ll be right there, Sir.” Pushing back his chair he stood up and dropped the file in his top drawer.
Moments later he was walking into the Captain’s office, waved on by the secretary outside. “Captain, I’m Officer Kerr, you called?”
The older man gestured to the chair on the other side of the desk. “Go ahead and have a seat.”
“Is something wrong, sir?” Transferring to Sylvan City had been his idea so he wasn’t going to make a mess of things, not this early. “If there is, I’d rather we just get to the point of the discussion.”
The Captain sighed. “Yeah, I seem to recall something in your file about your ‘straight-forward manner.’”
“You mean my tendency to speak my mind? Captain, I like being a policeman. I like law enforcement. I just don’t like to deal with what I consider political bullshit. So, if this conversation is anything more than just-”
“I may regret this, Kerr, but I have an afterhours duty assignment, and I need more men to fill in the ranks. You’re new in town and this doesn’t require anything more than showing up and keeping the peace at a fancy cocktail gathering. Can I count on you to do that,” raising a questioning brow at the officer, “or are you going to be the one causing problems?”
“You give me a job, sir, and I’ll do it.”
“Good enough.” The Captain gave him a long look and smiled. “You got a suit?”
Paige Lundin was one more banal greeting away from claiming a headache and disappearing into the ladies’ room for the rest of the night. Then again, that wouldn’t work either. Knowing her father, he’d send one of his staffers in to check on her.
She loved him, endlessly. He was a good father and he’d tried so hard to be there for her after her mother was killed. On top of it all, he was trying to be a really good Mayor, but she knew that so many of the smiles and compliments that people kept giving him couldn’t possibly be real.
There were just too many fake people surrounding her father. Surrounding both of them, but her concern was for him. He was the one in danger of someone stabbing him in the back. His policies were good, really good, but they were also going to be effective… if people let them be effective… and that’s what she was almost afraid of, her father being effective.
He already had a target on his back and that’s why they had so much extra security in the room. Even dur
ing the campaign, they’d had security, but that was to be expected, Jameson had explained all that.
Even now, as she looked across the reception area at her father, she saw Jameson standing at his right making sure all of the introductions went seamlessly.
A waiter passed by and offered her a selection of canapes and a cocktail napkin. Her stomach grumbled, reminding her that she hadn’t been eating much leading up to the reception. Jameson and his assistant Kelly were always griping about her weight, sending her to one nutrition counselor after another, only to have them tell her father’s overzealous staff that she was perfectly healthy, just curvy.
But, “Curvy doesn’t look healthy, Miss Lundin. Curvy looks lazy and entitled.” Yeah, right.
So, they did their best to keep her hungry.
Another waiter walked up to her and she flagged him down, setting a napkin on top of her first and adding a few of the canapes on top of the new napkin. He smiled at her, and explained the canapes that she’d selected were Mushroom Duxelle Crostini and Salmon Mousse on Cucumber. “You flag me down if you want more, okay?”
She gave him a grateful smile.
“Thanks, I’m good for now, but if you see anything with cheese…”
“I’ll come find you.” He gave her a wink and moved off, leaving her to lift one of the salmon canapes up to her lips.
It was divine.
“Oh, yummm.”
She heard a warm chuckle of laughter and felt her cheeks heat with a blush.
“At least you’re enjoying yourself, Paigey. That’s good to see.”
With a sigh, Paige chewed as quickly as she could to finish her bite and swallow.
“No rush, sweetheart. Take your time so you don’t choke. That wouldn’t look good in the news.”
Paige almost laughed and choked at the same time. Swallowing the rest of the bite she looked up to see Officer Charlie Butler, one of her mother’s old friends. “Hey Uncle Charlie!” Juggling her canapes, she leaned against his side to give him a kiss on his cheek. “I didn’t know you were working the event tonight.”
He gave her a kiss right back. “I thought you’d like seeing a friendly face or two.”
“You’re right about that,” she sighed, “I’ve been trying to hide from Kelly during the few moments she’s not running interference for Jameson.”
“Those two make me dizzy,” Charlie laughed.
“You’d think they were running some kind of undercover operation the way they ran around and handled everything like it was the end of the world.”
“To the suit and that Kelly-woman, your daddy getting a cold is the end of the world.”
“How well you know them,” she chuckled and nibbled at the canape. She was hungry, and Uncle Charlie didn’t care if she talked with her mouth full. “So, are you having any fun?”
“Fun? At one of these shindigs? Not likely.” He sighed and changed the subject with a turn of his head. “I think I should probably point someone out to you.”
That got her attention. “Who’s that?”
Leaning closer, he gave her a sidelong glance and pointed across the room. “See the stiff holding up the wall over there?”
Paige looked through the milling crowd and after a few ponderous moments she almost gave up, until a knot of women in spangle-covered dresses moved out of the room heading for the bathrooms.
There was no polite way to say it, she was about to catch some flies in her mouth, because all she could do was stare.
Beside her, Uncle Charlie chuckled and bumped her arm with his elbow. “I guess you saw him.”
“Who is that?” She knew she should look at him when she spoke to her uncle but there was no way she was going to turn away from the view she was enjoying.
“That is Officer Devlin Kerr. Recent transfer from Chicago. Apparently, he’s pissed off someone in the command. Not only did they stick him with this duty tonight then they told him to wear a suit.”
Paige let out a low whistle. “And he wears it well.”
“Careful, sweetie.” Her uncle leaned closer, bumping her shoulder, “if your father hears you talking about him like that, he’s likely to get reassigned to the officer in charge of the supply closet.”
That got her to turn away from the view. “My dad wouldn’t do that, he’s all about straight-shooting with city employees.”
Charlie nodded, over and over like a bobble-head doll. “Yeah, I know, but he’s your dad. And you’re his little girl. You show an interest in a man who looks like that? He’s liable to start worrying.”
“Worrying?” She laughed right back. “You mean more than he already does?”
Charlie dropped an arm over her shoulders and then picked up one of the crostinis from her napkin. “Yeah, well, he loves you, Paigey. We all miss your mom somethin’ fierce and he’s just trying to give you enough love for both of them.”
Sighing, she laid her head on his shoulder. “Yeah, I know. I love him right back and then some, but as much as I’d love to fantasize about a guy like Officer Kerr, we both know he’s probably got a whole slew of women pining away for him in Chicago and starting to collect a ton of numbers here as well.”
Across the room, Officer Kerr took a step away from the wall and watched a woman as she passed within feet of him as he came into the room. “Looks like he just found someone that tickles his fancy.”
Uncle Charlie shook his head and gave her shoulder a little squeeze. “You’re beautiful, Paige. We all know it.”
She lifted the rest of the cucumber canape to her mouth and caught sight of Kelly staring at her with wide-anxious eyes. Just to make a point, Paige put it all in her mouth and started to chew.
“I may be a wallflower, but I’m not blind. I can see perfectly well when I look in the mirror.”
“Hey now-”
She put her hand on his arm to stop him from arguing. “I’m not saying I don’t like the way I look. I love my curves, Uncle Charlie, but not everyone does. I get that. I’m a realist.”
“As long as you’re not going to let Jameson pick at you too much, I better get back to work and walk through the room.”
He brushed a kiss on her temple and moved off, leaving her to surreptitiously stare at the hot cop across the room.
Devlin stepped away from the wall to speak to Officer Butler as he cut through the crowd with a grin. “Everything okay?”
Charlie bobbed his head and gestured at him. “You?”
Gesturing to his suit he grimaced. “I feel like an ass in this.”
“Well,” Charlie gave him a good once over, “I think you’d look like an ass in anything, so who cares?”
Devlin felt anger rush through his veins, but he tamped it down, telling his tiger to relax. From the moment he’d walked through the door he’d been on edge, both of them had.
His tiger was driving him to distraction, pacing back and forth inside of him, nose scenting the air, claws digging into his gut.
“So, how long can I expect to be on the receiving end of stuff like this?” he gestured to his suit.
Charlie sucked in a breath through his clenched teeth. “Either someone new comes into the station, or you do one hell of a job and shut them up. I think you’ve got the stones to-”
Devlin’s tiger leapt up inside of him, pushing up under his ribs, robbing him of his breath. “What the hell-”
“Sir, you need to calm down!”
Charlie and Devlin turned at the same time, already moving toward the front of the room.
“Sir? Sir?”
“That’s Patrick.”
Patrick Lundin. Devlin spared the other officer a look. Apparently, Charlie was on a first name basis with the Mayor.
A chorus of shouts and excited words had them at a run, moving through a crowd that had gone from a stagnant bunch of grazing animals to a near stampede of movement in no specific direction.
Charlie had his service revolver drawn, cradled in one hand, the front of the barrel leveled at the man st
anding at the front of the dais.
“Sir, Sylvan City Police, put your hands up!”
“Leave me alone! He’s going to get what he deserves.” The man pulled back the hammer of his handgun and the room seemed to go silent, letting the metallic click echo in the room.
Devlin looked down and saw that he held his gun as well. Mirroring Charlie’s stance, but from a different vantage point, he covered the scene just as Mayor Lundin entered the fray.
“Sir, put the gun down and we’ll talk.”
The man shook his head, waving his free hand as if shooing flies. “No more talking,” he shook the gun at the Mayor, “you’ve done plenty of talking, Mayor.” The man made the title sound like a curse. “It’s about time someone took action.”
As Devlin watched, the older man took a step forward, earning him a number of shouts and warnings from his staffers. He could also see a couple of uniformed officers hanging back. The lack of responsibility angered Devlin, made his vision swim with rage for a moment. “Assholes.”
“Sir,” the Mayor continued to talk, and Charlie tried to but in.
“Patrick, this isn’t the time to try to save him, he’s got a gun pointed at you!”
The Mayor side stepped, holding up a hand in the direction of the gunman and one in Charlie’s direction. “I’m sure we can get you to put down the gun, talk to me. Whatever it is that happened to you, sir, I’m sure we can figure out how to fix it.”
“Fix it?” The man surged forward a few steps until he had the muzzle of the gun pressed up against the Mayor’s chest. “Like they’re going to fix you when I put a hole through your heart?”
“Sir!”
Devlin could feel Charlie’s agitation like a touch on his shoulder, shaky and trembling. “Charlie, I can take him.”