Alpha Contender Boxed Set: BWWM Paranormal shifter romance BBW

by Terry Bolryder

  “My parent’s money?” I say.

  “Yeah, something like that,” he says. “Anyway, I know who they are, and they’ll stop at nothing until you’re out of the way. But if we were mated…”

  I frown and look over at him, trying to hide the horror breaking over me. Let him think I trust what he’s saying. Let him think I’m going along with whatever it is.

  “I was waiting to see if Lindon would do it, and then I could talk to him afterward, but that’s looking unlikely. Asshole can’t pull his head out of his butt long enough to see that the best thing that could happen to him is standing right in front of him.”

  “And you?” I ask quietly. “Would it be the best thing for you?”

  He rubs the back of his head nervously. “I don’t know. I’m in trouble, Misty. I got in with some bad people. I’m not going to do what they want me to do, but I also can’t just send you back to Lindon, knowing he’s not going to do what’s needed to protect you.”

  “Hm…” I say, pretending to consider it. “So, you’d just be doing it for me?”

  He nods. “Yeah. Well, it’d help me, too. Once we were mated, I’d have the money to pay off the people hunting me.”

  “Oh.” I guess some of the anger shows in my face because he puts up both hands and quickly starts explaining.

  “You have to understand, they’re threatening Thor. I’d do anything for him. Anything. I told you that. I’m his big brother, I’d do anything to protect him.”

  “He’s an adult now,” I point out, buying time to think.

  “He’ll always be my little brother,” Lock says, voice increasingly strained. “Besides, Misty, this will be good for you too. I’m a player, I can’t promise to always be faithful. But I’ll look the other way if you want to swing too.”

  Disgust roils through me but I nod and hide it, listening to whatever he wants to say.

  “I’d be a good provider, well, protector. And we’d have fun. We get along great.” He flashes his canines in a wide grin. “The sex would be great.”

  That’s the only thing he’s said so far that I trust. My heart is struggling with all of this news. My brain is trying to stay calm so it can figure a way out of this. I’m not one of those heroines who just waits to be saved.

  “It would,” I say. “But what if I’m not ready to be claimed? What if I don’t want to be claimed by you?”

  His eyes darken and his mouth tightens. “Then you’d leave me no choice.”

  I put up my hands. “Fine, fine. Let’s get this over with. You say I’ll be out of danger when we’re done, and you’ll be out of danger too? And Thor?”

  He nods. “I should be.”

  “Okay, then,” I say, lying back on the blanket and waiting, mind ticking like a well-oiled machine. “I guess if I have no choice.”

  “I’d like it to be your choice, Misty,” Lock says, unbuttoning his shirt and undoing his belt. “After all, this will be good for you, too. It’ll keep you safe from the people trying to hurt you and it’ll also give you someone to love so you don’t have to humiliate yourself chasing after Lindon anymore.”

  I blink back tears at that thought. I guess I did want to be over Lindon, but if I don’t get myself out of this situation, I really will be free of him forever.

  “So you won’t be faithful?” I ask.

  He looks over my body. “Do you want me to be?”

  I snort. “Of course.” I motion to his bare chest. “How could I not?”

  His eyes flash with pride. “I could do my best. I do care about you, Misty. More than I thought I could. I don’t want anything to happen to you. At the same time, I’m in a bind.”

  I take a deep breath. “I understand.”

  He runs his hands over my shoulders and I suppress a shiver. “I’m glad Lindon was too stupid to know a good thing when he saw it. I would have had to go crawling to him for money, and that would have sucked. Not to mention, you really are a prize, Misty.”

  “Thanks,” I say flatly.

  His eyes flash to mine, and I swallow, wondering if he suspects at all what’s going on in my mind.

  “Well, be easy with me,” I say. “It’s my first time.”

  “Even in the human world?” he asks, looking astonished.

  “Even then,” I say. “This may be hard to believe, but I’m just not as desirable there.”

  “Or maybe you didn’t put yourself out there enough.”

  I shrug. “Does it matter? I’m getting what I want now, I guess.”

  “Right,” he says.

  I lift my arms toward him. “Come here. Hold me first.”

  He does, leaning over me with his belt undone and the top button of his jeans open. I hold him around the neck like I did with Lindon.

  Then I close my eyes, focus, breathe out, and bring my knee up between his legs as fast as I can in a hard, snapping motion.

  He lets out an unearthly howl and rolls off of me, holding himself, and I grab the lantern and run. I push through trees and hear him swear. I drop the lantern over the edge of the ledge and run through the dark. I try to turn into my wolf, but I’m too tired.

  I stop at the edge of the ledge and look down. It’s steep but I think I could run down it in wolf form. I focus, trying to block out the sounds of Lock trying to regain his footing, trying to stay calm. I think of feeding Lindon strawberries, and can feel my body changing.

  I grab my clothes in my teeth in case I need them, and head down the ledge. My paws slip in the loose, damp soil, and I run to keep from tripping and rolling. I hit a loose rock and lose my footing and roll a couple of times anyway, and only stop when I hit up against a large rock.

  I moan a little and can feel my body weakening. Can feel the change happening. When I’m back in my trembling human form, I pull on the pants and shirt I brought with me and stuff my bras halfway in my pocket. No time to strap them on now.

  Wishing I had a way to hide my scent, I hide behind the boulder and try to listen. I don’t hear Lock, but that doesn’t mean he’s not just good at being quiet. I just need to get to Lindon and tell him what Lock told me, tell him what almost happened.

  Even if he’s cold, even if he really doesn’t care at all, just based on his promise with his dad he’ll have to help me.

  I see figures outside the mansion, people out looking. Lights far below. I just need to run out there. But there are multiple levels and roads between me and them. I step out from behind the boulder and run across the road in front of me and slide on my butt down another ledge. The rocks and sticks scrape me as I go, but I’m exhilarated by the fact that I’m making it.

  I’m escaping.

  As I come out of the trees to cross the road to the third ledge, I hear the roar of a car. A sports car pulls up and a tall figure jumps out. I freeze, watching him come closer.

  I’m trying to think of what to say when I hear a gun slowly cock. “No quick moves, Misty,” Jack says in a low voice. “Don’t make me hurt you.”

  My heart falls again. “Damnit, how many people out to get me are there?”

  A rustling sound comes from the brush behind me and Lock stumbles out, looking dazed and in pain. He winces when he sees Jack. He curses and looks like he wishes he could crawl back into the bushes.

  “Ah, Lock. What the hell were you doing? You were supposed to bring her straight to me.”

  Man, my taste in men is terrible.

  Chapter 5

  “Jack?” I ask, confusion roiling through me. “Why?”

  He shrugs and keeps the gun trained on me. “I’m not going to be one of those villains that monologues.”

  “So, if you want to kill me, why don’t you just do it now?” I stand boldly, head trying rapidly to figure out another plan to escape.

  “No,” he says. “I was, but after realizing just how powerful your scent is, I think we should wait and do some research on the applications for it. We’ll just pretend we killed you, so lover boy doesn’t come after you.”

  �
��Lover boy?” I ask.

  He rolls his eyes. “Don’t treat me like I’m stupid. Unlike some of the other men, I know you had your heart set on him. Kind of awful of you, wasn’t it? It just made me feel less guilty about deceiving you.”

  “I wasn’t trying to deceive anyone,” I mutter.

  “I believe you,” Lock says, raising a hand.

  I shoot him a glare. “Shut up, you. You’re already in trouble.”

  He just gives me that easy shrug and abashed grin, and I wonder if there’s anything in the world that can truly get under this guy’s skin. Other than threatening his brother, of course.

  “What do you think is going to happen to Thor if you go through with this?” I ask. “Rowan’s family will go after you mercilessly, and anyone involved. What do you think will happen to him then?”

  His face tightens guiltily, so I press on.

  “And weren’t you the one putting him in danger in the first place by getting yourself in debt?”

  “Shut up,” Lock says darkly. “You don’t know anything about me. So just shut up.”

  “Don’t I?” I ask. “You act like you’re so altruistic. Yeah, you have to rape me for my own good.”

  “It wouldn’t have been rape,” he grumbles.

  “Well, your reasons for having sex weren’t good enough for me, in case your groin doesn’t remember.”

  He glares at me and subtly moves closer to Jack. I’ve got to work fast.

  “What do you think Thor would think?” I continue. “He likes me, has genuinely tried to win me.”

  “Poor, stupid Thor,” Jack says, grinning. Lock takes another minute step toward him.

  “Don’t talk about my brother that way, asshole,” Lock says.

  “I’ll talk about him however I want. You almost let the chick get away, and then who would have forgiven your debt?”

  “I was right behind her. I would have caught her. No problem.”

  “Except there is kind of a problem. According to her, you were just now trying to claim her. Trying to get the money on your own without handing over the prize?” Jack asks. His sparkling, sharp green eyes are cruel as they eye Lock. His smile is more of a sneer. I don’t know how I ever thought him handsome.

  I lock eyes with Lock, trying to communicate silently that he shouldn’t do this. That if he just gets me out of it, I can help him with his problem. I don’t dare say it out loud. If he’s going to help me, I need Jack not to know about it. Hopefully I’ve tweaked his guilt meter at least a little by now.

  Lock takes another step closer. Whether it’s to gang up with Jack against me or to get ready to start a counter attack, I’m not sure. I stay light on my feet, leaning slightly forward onto my toes so I can run at any moment. It’s full dark now, and I can hear shouts from the valley below, and a wolf howling in the distance.

  “We don’t have much time,” Lock says. “You better take her now.”

  “Right,” Jack says. “You coming with?”

  “No,” Lock replies. “I’ll stay back to try and delay them so you can get away. Rowan’s boys have some damn fast cars.”

  “That they do,” Jack says, putting a hand out for me. “But so do I.” He jerks his head toward the waiting sports car. “The mob pays just as well as being born a rich snot, I’m sure.”

  Lock scoffs at that, but I notice him looking down at the gun in Jack’s hand with a disguised, casual interest. Jack takes a few steps forward when I don’t come toward him.

  “Don’t make me shoot you, Misty,” he says. “If I hit you in a vital area with this, it will kill you, shifter or not.”

  “Shifters don’t die by guns,” I say. “Lindon told me that much at least.”

  “Did he now? Did he also tell you there are people doing studies on new poisons that prevent or slow shifter healing so that guns can kill them? Humans even can kill them.” He looks at the gun with some self satisfaction. “Not bad. So don’t make me shoot you. I assure you it would feel like agony, even if I hit you somewhere non-vital so you survived it.”

  Lock’s eyes meet mine. We’ve always been able to sort of communicate with a look, and even though he’s betrayed me and I don’t approve of him, I hope I’m getting what he’s saying right at this moment.

  He looks from me to the gun, and I nod.

  “I’ll come with you,” I say. “Put the gun away.”

  Jack laughs and looks from me to Lock. “As if. You come and you won’t get shot with it, take it or leave it.”

  I sigh and walk forward, and he grabs me roughly with one arm and holds the gun on me with the other. I look at Lock briefly, wondering what can be done now. Jack pulls me past him, toward the car, while Lock stays motionless. From the sounds in the distance, the men are still far from catching us. I don’t hear the roar of any sports cars.

  Lindon, are you coming?

  I’m not sure how much more I can hold on. I don’t want to leave him, not now.

  I clutch Jack’s arm and purposely freeze, pretending to be shaking in fear.

  He jerks me to go and I don’t make it easy. “Come on, bitch.”

  “I c-c-can’t,” I stutter, trying to act frozen. “Not with that gun to my head.”

  He sighs, probably feeling more confident now that we are close to the car and he has a good chance of getting away. He lowers the gun just slightly, and I walk a little forward. We’re three feet from the car, and he lowers it all the way.

  I glance at it and then kick out with my leg, knocking it out of his grasp.

  I send a quick glance at Lock as he jumps forward, lunging onto Jack in his wolf form as Jack swears and quickly transforms. I want to go for the gun, but the two wolves are wrestling on top of it. Time to run for help. I vault over the side of the sports car and slide over the back of it, hoping I’m leaving a scratch or something behind. Then I run down the gravel toward the main road, hoping that if I go down the side of it, I have at least a chance of catching some attention.

  What am I thinking? Wolves have amazing hearing. I let out an ear-piercing scream, hoping Lock is still keeping Jack busy so he can’t follow me.

  I hear an answering howl and I know deep in my gut who that is.

  Lindon, he’s out, and he’s looking for me.

  But in his wolf form, whereas Lock and I drove for miles on his bike. And here in the dark, when I’ve just freshly showered, will he even be able to scent me? I just have to trust that he’s a powerful alpha with extra strong senses. I’m too afraid to hope that I mean something more to him that would increase my scent as well.

  I can still hear growls and grunts and scuffling as the two wolves fight behind me, but I can’t stop to figure out who wins. After all, either way it might not be good for me. Lock seemed to be helping me get away, but what if it was only so he could get back to me and mate me for himself so he could take my money?

  Even if I was to run into one of the other wolves here in the dark, would I trust them? Would I be able to? My heart races because I don’t know.

  I know it’s not fair, because I trust Lindon even though he has hurt me and lied to me. But at the same time, everyone in your life is going to lie to you. You just have to decide which kind of lies you can stand. And everyone in your life is going to screw up on you. You just have to decide who you are willing to let do it. Life is all about taking pain, and all we get to choose is who deals it.

  I choose Lindon.

  I’m going to keep my head calm so I can keep trying to get myself out of the situation alive and not get kidnapped. So I can get back to Lindon and fight and argue with him some more. And kiss him. And thank him for coming to the realization that he’s just hiding from love, not banned from it.

  I’m starting to limp, even though it’s the last thing I want, and the mansion stills feels so far away in the distance. My body is wearing down, the adrenaline that has fueled me so far is now causing my muscles to twitch and shake in exhaustion. But I press on, limping and running alternatively down the road,
praying for a car to come my way.

  Up in the hills above me a gunshot rings out, echoing against the mountain. I freeze, every nerve in my body alight with anticipation, and I hear a low growl and a whimper and then footsteps. Even though I’ve run, whoever just won can come after me now.

  I hope it’s Lock. Even if he may have it in for me, at least he probably wouldn’t use a gun.

  I want to scream again, but just in case they can’t scent me, I don’t want to alert them to my location.

  I look around me and see a large rock to the side of the road, so I cut through the thick grass to sit behind it. I can’t run anymore and at least I’m out of the way of the streetlights. There are trees around me and I move to one of them when I’m sure no one is watching. And then to another, further back. It should be difficult to see me now.

  I watch the road, heart pounding like it’s going to beat out of my chest. A dark figure appears, running with a slight limp, way off in the distance, at the juncture where the side road we were on meets the main road.

  My heart pounds. He’s coming, but I can’t run anymore. I’ve outsmarted attackers twice, in my opinion proving to Lindon that females aren’t as fragile as he thinks.

  Maybe that illness back then just had something to do with only a few of them who happened to females. But I feel bad that he made a generality out of it and let himself stay away from happiness for so long.

  Then again, I’m not sad because that’s what left him available to meet me. And if I get to see him again, I’m going to let him get through that. I’m going to be patient.

  But the figure is running down the road, and getting closer every minute. I can now make out that it’s Jack. Shit.

  My eyes pierce the darkness below, looking for anyone who is getting closer. I swear I hallucinate a tiny glimpse of silvery gold in the distance, but I’m sure it’s just my imagination, the same way a thirsty man in the desert might imagine some water just a few feet away.

  My heart sinks as I feel eyes on me. I don’t know how, but Jack has seen me. I can feel it as he jogs down the hill, even as he doesn’t veer off in my direction yet. He probably wants me to think he hasn’t seen me, right up until he gets close.