by Sam Crescent
Evernight Publishing
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2013 Sam Crescent
ISBN: 978-1-77130-462-7
Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs
Editor: Karyn White
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
THE ALPHA TAKES A MATE
Disaster of the Otherworld, 1
Sam Crescent
Copyright © 2013
Chapter One
Brandon stared around his town square. All of his people were preparing for the festivities of the full moon. During the full moon his pack went out hunting and running wild in the surrounding forests, and when they came back they feasted. The humans who lived in their community prepared the meal for them. There were no lies or secrets in the small community of Grace Hill. The humans who lived with them were made aware of the creatures of the Otherworld. Several times witches, warlocks, bears, vampires and many other shifters had wandered through their town. His father before him had taken great pride in mixing with humans, and Brandon had carried on the tradition to honour his memory. Personally, he couldn’t stand the humans in his town. Sure, they were great to fuck, but they were far too fragile. He’d seen many of the men bleed from a single punch. Being strong was the skill to survival.
Taking over as the alpha meant he’d taken responsibility of the humans. Not all of them were bad. There were several humans he liked for entertainment purposes. Most of them were women, while a few men were great to have a drink with.
Inhaling the crisp morning air, Brandon moved along the town. Grace Hill was in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by miles upon miles of forests. There were several rivers and lakes, but the main community was in the only open space of the forests. His ancestors had made a deal with several warlocks and witches in order to blank the area from human knowledge. The spell created a protection spell that meant no human would ever try to tear down the neighbourhood. Most of the humans who passed through Grace Hill would either leave immediately because of the threat of danger or disappear if they caused any trouble. The few human families who stayed were petitioned in a vote by all pack members. On his last count over twenty human families lived amongst them in Grace Hill.
None of them caused any trouble, and that was the way Brandon wanted it. Letting out a sigh he watched all the tables being set. The full moon was tonight, and he felt the wolf inside him clawing to get out. Flexing his muscles he made his way toward the diner. Some of his pack loved creating new buildings, and one of those was the diner. He’d arranged for the equipment to be shipped in, so the cooks had everything to create great food. Brandon ran a tight ship, but no one complained when everyone got everything they needed: food, water, shelter, and entertainment.
If anything went wrong it fell back to him.
“What are you doing, Boss?” Drake, his beta, asked.
“I’m hungry.”
“Don’t you have a woman at the house?”
Brandon growled at him. Lori was the strongest female werewolf in residence. He’d been fucking her for several months, but the woman was demanding more. She wasn’t his destined mate. When he found the one, he’d know. There was no fighting the mating. He didn’t get the chance to choose which woman it would be. The fates decided who’d be perfect for him. Several years ago he’d gotten a tightening in his gut when he’d looked at a human woman. She’d been sixteen when she moved here. Elle Smith was her name.
“Lori not doing it for you anymore?”
Drake’s words irritated him. They were several feet from the entrance to the diner. He saw Darcy and Lewis, who were the other top members of the pack. All four of them were the strongest in the pack.
“She’s pissing me off.”
“Let me guess. She wants commitment?” Drake asked, opening the door to the diner.
“She wants to be mated. I can’t fucking mate with her. She’s got a great cunt, but other than that, I don’t fucking want her at my side.”
The scent of pancakes and bacon scented the air. Brandon walked over to where Darcy and Lewis were seated. Several other pack members were eating. He acknowledged them as he passed.
“You could do worse. Lori is the strongest bitch in the pack,” Drake said, taking a seat.
“You’ve got the bitch part right. Lori’s a nasty piece of work. If you put her in charge of the females, there’ll be trouble. She’s got no respect and no love inside her,” Darcy said, looking up from the newspaper he was reading.
Brandon lifted his hand for coffee. Immediately a human woman started serving him. Once she was gone, Brandon turned back to the other men. “I’m not mating Lori. She’s great to let off steam with, but other than that, not going to happen. I believe I’ll find my mate.”
The other three men grumbled. None of them had found their mates. A few of the lower ranking members of the pack had and were happily married. Glancing across the diner Brandon saw Matthew with his pregnant mate. Both were wolves, but neither of them was particularly violent. Brandon liked Matthew and was happy for both him and his mate. The love on the guy’s face was clear. Matthew stroked her arm with one hand while the other was wrapped around her neck. His woman was practically sitting in his lap.
He’d once asked Matthew what it was like being mated.
“It’s like having everything your heart desires. I live to see her smile, and when she smiles at me, my whole world is complete. I’ll do anything for her as long as she loves me at the end of the day.”
The guy sounded pussy-whipped, but as the years had gone on for Brandon, he wished with all of his heart he could know that same kind of peace.
Each of them had struggled to find their mate, and as the days passed it felt they were less likely to find the right woman for them.
“So, about the visit from the bears, witches, warlocks, and vampires, where are we at?” Brandon asked, changing the subject.
Every year he invited several members of each sector surrounding his town.
“The little cottage down by the lake is being refurbished and ready for them to sleep in,” Lewis said.
Brandon listened to Lewis and then froze in his seat as the most amazing scent invaded his sense. Strawberries and vanilla was what he smelt. Freezing to the spot he felt the wolf inside him roar and charge against his hard-won control.
“Alpha, what’s going on?” Drake asked.
From the use of his official title, Brandon knew his eyes had changed colour.
She’s here. Your woman, our mate is here for you to claim.
He’d never scented anything like it. Brandon closed his eyes as a great wave of peace settled over him.
His mate had come for him at last.
****
“Shit, I’m late. I’m so sorry,” Elle said. Her alarm decided to have a dead battery, and she’d slept through until ten.
“Don’t worry about it,” Layla said. She was another human female in the small community.
Elle had moved to Grace Hill when she was sixteen. Her family hated the city life and had petitioned to be part of the Northern Forest pack. She didn’t know where these names came from, but she wasn’t about to piss off the alpha by asking.
“Daisy hasn’
t arrived yet. I’m sure she’ll be in a good mood,” Layla said, referring to their boss. Daisy was one of the oldest female werewolves in the pack. She wasn’t the strongest because of her years, but she scared the shit out of Elle.
“My dad has been driving me crazy about this visit from the other sectors,” Elle said. Her father, Raymond, was in charge of organising the visit in the next few weeks. She’d never been old enough to be part of the festivities. The alpha demanded that the humans be over twenty-one in order to participate. Her birthday was last week, and she had gone out of town to celebrate. Layla had been one of the people with her. Nothing ever happened at Grace Hill, but she never wanted to leave her home. Grace Hill had quickly become her home. The small school was amazing, and the teachers were a dream. The lack of bullying helped as well.
The only problem Elle saw was setting up a family of her own. None of the males available attracted her. Most of them were grumpy because they didn’t hold any special powers. She’d gone on a date with Gary Newman when she was twenty, and the entire night he’d complained about being normal. Elle listened to him the whole night telling her how inadequate she was because she didn’t have any great paranormal qualities. The date ended with her calling him a prick, and she’d punched him in the face.
“He’s riding you about it?” Layla asked, flipping pancakes on the grill.
“He’s not riding me about it. Dad won’t shut up about Brandon. Also, the feast tonight is a big deal. He doesn’t want me ruining the night by dumping a pot of stew in his lap or something.”
Elle tied her hair up then bumped Layla out of the way. “Thank you so much for doing this. I really appreciate it.”
“No problems.”
She watched as Layla looked through the door. Layla was in love with Lewis, one of the men closest to the alpha.
“Why don’t you go out there and say hello?” Elle asked.
“Have you seen the way they treat human women?” Layla closed the door. “He wouldn’t give me the time of day, and I’m not looking to be another notch on his bed post, if you know what I mean.”
Elle understood. Over the years she’d watched several of the human women giving themselves freely to the pack. There was no respect, and most of the men blanked them the next time they saw them. She never wanted to be laughed at or mocked because of her feelings. Being a twenty-one year old virgin didn’t bother her. She’d rather be a virgin than give it to a guy she didn’t trust. From what she knew, Layla was also a virgin.
“We better get this breakfast out to them,” Layla said, going toward the shelf. Elle watched her grab syrup and chocolate sauce from the top shelf. She didn’t know why the pack liked sweet stuff so much, but they catered to the sweeter tooth in the diner.
Elle placed the final pancake on the plate and was about to pick up the tray holding four plates when the door crashed open.
Lewis, one of Brandon’s top wolves, came crashing through the door.
“Are you the only two here?” he asked.
Layla dropped the syrup. The glass jar smashed sending syrup all over the floor. Elle ran to her side.
“What are you doing in here?” Elle asked, getting nervous in his presence.
“Answer my questions, human. Are you the only two people in here?”
Elle looked at Layla, who shrugged her shoulders.
“Yes, we’re the only two in here.” He charged in their direction and grabbed both of their arms.
“Follow me,” he said. The order seemed ridiculous as he dragged them both into the main area of the diner. Several of their customers watched as they were pulled to where Brandon sat. Elle cringed as his black eyes gazed at her and then at Layla.
“They were the only two in the kitchen, Alpha,” Lewis said.
“Bring one of them to me,” Brandon said.
Elle cringed and was forced to follow as Lewis thrust Layla’s wrist against Brandon’s face. She watched as the alpha inhaled Layla’s scent.
“It’s not her.”
Layla was pushed aside. Elle let go of the breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding. Her wrist was thrust under Brandon’s nose. She hadn’t seen him since she’d moved to Grace Hill. He’d glared at her, and she’d vowed to stay out of his way. Her vow was stupid considering the small town, but she’d succeeded in steering clear of him until now.
Brandon inhaled her wrist. In the next moment, he pushed Lewis away, grabbed her wrist and bit down into her flesh. His canines were sharp as they sank into the flesh of her wrist. She screamed as the pain pulled at her. She’d never felt anything so agonizing in all of her life.
She fought to get him to let go.
Layla tried to get to her. Lewis stopped her friend with an arm around her waist.
“Mine,” Brandon said with a growl to his voice.
Everything went black.
Chapter Two
Brandon caught her in his arms. Her blood coated his tongue. The taste of her was amazing. He’d never had anything so good in his mouth. The need to claim her rose within him, as tasting her blood was not enough.
“What have you done?” Layla asked, screaming at him. Lewis held her back.
I’ve found her. I’ve found our mate.
His wolf purred in agreement. From a young age, Brandon had always talked to his wolf and felt a connection with that side of him.
“She’s human, Brandon,” Darcy said.
Staring down into Elle Smith’s face, Brandon understood the feelings he’d had when he first met her at sixteen. His wolf had waited until she was of the right age before claiming. Their laws were sacred, and no one claimed a mate younger than twenty-one. Brandon did a quick calculation and knew she’d turned twenty-one this year. He frowned. Most of the pack celebrated everyone’s birthday, but he couldn’t recall Elle’s birthday coming up.
“No one breathes a word of this,” he said to the room. Everyone in the diner was a member of the pack. They all nodded in agreement.
“Tonight’s the full moon, Alpha. You’re not going to keep her safe like this,” Drake said.
Brandon glared at his beta. He didn’t need to hear any of the problems that having his mate come to him on the night of the full moon meant.
“I’m taking her to my home. Is there a back entrance I can take her?” Brandon asked. He lived at the far end of the town, which lay next to the forest.
“You can’t take her,” Layla said.
Lewis muttered in her ear. The other woman sobbed. “Go through the kitchen,” she said.
“You stay and talk with Daisy, Lewis. None of this leaves the diner, understood?”
Once everyone agreed, Brandon carried her out toward the kitchen. Darcy and Drake flanked him as he made his way up to his home. She felt amazing in his arms. The blood from her wrist dripped onto the floor as they went.
“You’re going to have to bandage that up,” Drake said.
Apart from those words, nothing else was said.
Brandon kept staring down at the woman destined to be his. Her short brown hair was caught up in a ponytail. Some hairs had escaped framing her face. He’d seen beautiful hazel eyes as she stared at him in shock and then in horror. Brandon wanted to see those eyes staring at him with lust and pleasure.
Her heart-shaped mouth called to be kissed. His lips tingled with the need to see how her lips would feel against his own. He pushed the craving aside. Drake opened the door and Brandon went straight upstairs, placing her on his large bed.
Lori wasn’t around, which he was thankful for. Now that his mate had entered his life there would be no other woman for him.
Placing her on the bed, Brandon stared down at her. His gaze moved down her body taking in every swell and curve. The uniform she wore did little to hide her large tits and narrower waist. He loved a woman with real curves, and Elle had real curves. Her hips were large, and he could see himself holding onto their width while he fucked her. Her legs were thick. To a lot of men she’d be considered fat, but
to him, Elle was perfect. Being a strong man and a wolf, he liked his sex rough. Elle would be able to take him and his passions. He felt relieved at knowing this.
Drake and Darcy stood by the door waiting for him.
“She’s human, Brandon,” Darcy said.
“I know.” Brandon stroked her hair, needing to touch her in some way.
“I can’t believe we were only talking about mates a few minutes before you sensed yours,” Drake said.
“I need to talk with Raymond, her father,” Brandon said, forcing himself to look away from her.
“I think you need to talk with your mate first,” Darcy said. “Human mates are not always the easiest, Alpha. Listen to reason.”
Brandon growled in response. Gazing down at his human mate, Brandon saw the value in his friend’s words.
He couldn’t believe he’d mated with a human. Staring down at her pretty face the full force of what just happened hit him in the stomach.
Elle Smith was human. She was fragile, and he was a mate who was supposed to supply an heir to take over his pack. Stepping away from her, Brandon felt defeated. She was … breakable.
How could he have mated to a woman who could be taken away from him so easily?
“I need to go for a run,” Brandon said. He pushed past his men and charged downstairs heading toward the door.
“What do you want us to do when she wakes up?” Drake asked.
He stopped as he opened the door. Staring up the stairs, he saw the concern on both of their faces.
“Tell her she can’t leave by order of the alpha.” He didn’t turn back. Brandon headed toward the trees. He needed to run in order to clear his mind. Without removing his clothes, he turned into his wolf and headed toward the trees. He didn’t need the full moon to turn. None of his pack needed the full moon to become wolves, but they celebrated their traditions at the full moon.