BOX SET: Shifter 4-Pack Vol 2 (Wolf Shifter, Dragon Shifter, Mafia, Billionaire, BBW, Alpha) (Werewolf Weredragon Paranormal Fantasy Romance Collection)

by Candace Ayers

  Both Bernhard and Valentina stared at Sasha in disbelief. There were groans and clucking noises behind me, but I was sure I heard Preacher let out a quick snort of laughter.

  “You want to repeat that, son?” said Bernhard ominously. He wasn’t expecting an answer.

  “I have just cause,” declared Sasha. “I love only one woman.” I couldn’t contain my smile as he pointed at me, “I’ve loved her for centuries. You knew that, father, and you attempted to have her killed.”

  “You didn’t exactly leave me a choice,” Bernhard yelled back, his voice booming, “I couldn’t risk this peace treaty falling through just because your mortal lover appeared out of history. How long do you think you’ve got to spend with her anyway? Fifty years? You’re a dumbass…”:

  “It’s still fifty years more than you’ll have,” said Sasha softly. His arm darted like lightening, reaching behind his back and under his vest. His movements were too fast for me to follow, but I realized that he’d drawn a pistol and fired. Bernhard moved too, diving out of the way in a blur. But, Sasha had counted on that. He’d fired ahead of Bernhard and the bullet caught him in the face, and he quickly fired twice more into Bernhard’s chest.

  Still turned away, he didn’t see Valentina drop into a fighting stance. I knew she was going to attack Sasha from behind and only had a heartbeat to react, but I was ready, palming the small knife Sasha had slipped into my jacket pocket when he’d kissed me. Channeling as much fury, strength, and hate as I could muster, and by this point I had bucket loads, I stabbed Valentina in the back, easily penetrating her flimsy tank-top, and plunging the blade into her heart. Withdrawing it, I stabbed her again, and I kept stabbing. I couldn’t afford for her to turn around, so I stabbed her as she froze in shock, stabbed her as she fell, and stabbed her as she lay on the ground until my hand was slick with blood and I couldn’t hold the knife anymore.

  I saw Sasha kick over the nearest torch setting Bernhard’s body on fire, then turn to me. His eyes widened as two huge hands came around my chest pulling me off of Valentina’s lifeless form.

  “That’s enough, little human,” came Preacher’s slow, deep voice as he lifted me clean off the ground. “And stop waving that pea-shooter at me, if you want your mortal to live, boy.”

  To my surprise, Preacher sat me gently back down and let me go. I ran to Sasha and threw my arms around him. It took me a second, but I realized there were a lot of angry noises coming from the crowd, yet no one was rushing us. I also knew that I had just killed the only remaining gang leader’s daughter and I had no idea what the punishment for that might be.

  “So,” I managed breathlessly, “Now what?”

  “Way I see it,” Preacher seemed to be thinking out loud, “This here makes you head of San Antonio, boy. I believe you just staged a coup. And, I’m guessing that if I were to end you now, there’d be no choice but to go to war. Believe it or not, I don’t want that.”

  “What about her?” asked Sasha, waving his gun at Valentina’s limp body.

  Preachers massive bulk edged closer. “I reckon you might have done me a good turn there,” he said in lowered tones. “Hundred and fifty years and she ain’t never grown up. Was always just a bit too much for me to handle.” I stifled a laugh and Preacher shot me a disapproving look. “My gift to you two, disappear. I hear of either of you even setting a foot in Texas, it’ll be your last.” He made a gesture and someone tossed a set of van keys to Sasha.

  “Go,” Preacher grumbled, “‘fore I forget what a big softy I can be.”

  Sasha swung me up into his arms, ran us to the van I was brought in, and helped me inside. We were both grinning ear to ear.

  “Are you really totally naked under that jacket?” he asked with a smile once we were belted in.

  “Seriously?” I scolded him. “Is now really the time?”

  “Okay,” he teased, “I’ll give it a few minutes.”

  An hour later, I felt as though we’d put in enough distance that I could breathe again. We were headed east towards Huston and then on to Louisiana. I sat curled up on the seat with my legs under me and snuggled against Sasha’s side. He had his arm around me as we drove and I’d opened my jacket so he could softly stroke my breast.

  “We’re not really leaving San Antonio permanently, are we? I have a life there, a job,” I complained.

  “Your job got pretty trashed this afternoon, I’m sorry to have to tell you,” he said. He turned and looked at me. “Anyway, being a mom is going to be a full-time job.”

  “What do you mean, vampires and humans can’t have children, can they?”

  “We had five in the eighteenth century. But they’re always born mortal.”

  “And who says,” I sat up to look at him now, “I’m ever going to have kids?”

  “You do,” he gently placed his hand on my stomach. My heart skipped a beat.

  “How do you know?” I croaked.

  “Magic.”

  We drove on in silence for a few more miles, neither of us able to keep the smiles from our faces.

  “What about your painting?” I remembered suddenly, not wanting to leave it behind.

  “We don’t need it right now,” he smiled, “and don’t worry, when the time comes, it’ll find us both again.

  THE END

  ALPHA BEAR OF MONTANA RIDGE

  STORY DESCRIPTION

  Curvy Amber Flynn has been lost for years.

  Ever since the tragedy, Amber has been wandering the country from place to place with no home and no future crashing with any friend or relative who will shelter her until her welcome is worn out and it’s time to move on.

  Now, with nowhere else to go, it’s time for Amber to return home to face her past – a past that includes the love she left behind, Ryder Barrett.

  There always has been and always will be only one woman for bear shifter Ryder Barrett, and that woman is Amber Flynn.

  Amber left him and the town years ago after suffering a terrible tragedy. But, Amber’s come home, and this time Ryder is not going to let her go.

  CHAPTER 1

  “Look, Amber, I’m sorry it has to be this way,” Laura fretted, “But you haven’t had a job in weeks, and Tori and me…we need a roommate who can help with the bills.”

  Amber ran her tongue over her teeth and took a deep breath. She stuffed her last t-shirt into her carry-all and took a look around the place she’d called home for the last six months.

  Strangely enough, she sure had a very few number of items to pack up for someone who had lived here for that long.

  “Laura, it’s okay. Jobs and me? We haven’t been working out so well lately. I get it.” Amber said. She quickly glanced around the room to make sure none of her personal items were left behind. Nope. She was an independent woman. She pawed through her sacks and bags stacked on top of the bed. “Here. I have some money.” From a pocket deep within the lining of a knapsack, Amber pulled out some bills and shoved them towards Laura.

  Laura reached out and took the money. She stood stock-still for just a moment and blinked at her hands. “Four hundred dollars? You had four hundred dollars? You’re giving me four hundred dollars now?” Her voice rose in volume and pitch with each question. “When Tori and I were scraping pennies together to try to make the rent payment last week, you had four hundred dollars in a pocket? When I had to call and beg my mom, my mom for God’s sake, to buy us groceries until our next payday, you had four hundred dollars? When…” she stuttered to a stop.

  It was Amber’s turn to just stand and blink. “It’s my emergency fund. In-the-hospital-or-stranded-on-the-side-of-the-road money. I try never to touch it at all.” Amber cleared her throat uncomfortably. “Well, I better go.” She slung each of her many bags over her shoulders or draped them on an arm until she resembled something akin to a bunch of grapes. She waddled her way past Laura, who was still staring incredulously at the bills in her hands, and down the hallway to the apartment door. For a little while she’d been happy he
re.

  “Laura? Thank you! And tell Tori thank you, as well. I appreciate you taking me in when you did. I’ll see you around.” She called back over her shoulder as she struggled to reach for the doorknob.

  “Wait… Just, wait.” Laura’s protest drifted down the hall to Amber. Just as she got her fingers closed about the knob and was able to give it a firm twist, she felt Laura sidle up alongside her. Amber looked up quizzically. “You were a great roommate. Always kept your stuff tidy and even cleaned up after us. Ran our errands if we didn’t have time to do something, and ran interference if we didn’t have the guts to do something. I’m glad you were here. Where will you go? Where should I forward your mail?”

  “Oh, mail…Um.” Amber closed her brown eyes briefly and when she opened them again, they were firm and decided. “Send my mail to Jade Flynn, 874 Huckleberry St, Prospector’s Ridge, Montana. My sister can hold on to it for me until I get my footing again.”

  “You’re going back to The Ridge? I thought you said you’d never…”

  “Well, the saying ‘Never say never’ seems to always bite me on the ass. I wish it worked on ‘I’ll never win the lottery’ or ‘I’ll never lose 20 pounds’ the way it seems to work with ‘I’ll never go back there’ and ‘I’ll never do that again.’” Amber laughed a bit bitterly. “It’s all good. Part of me is actually looking forward to going back. I’ve been having these dreams lately…” Her voice trailed off.

  “Dreams? You don’t believe in dreams. No dreams, crystals, meditation, incense. I think even aromatherapy is too New Wave for you.” With the assurance of her share of next month’s rent in her pocket, Laura could afford to be generous with her time and attention, for a few more minutes.

  “No… I leave that to Jade, her stock and trade, quite literally. Maybe I’ve caught some kind of bug. When I get to The Ridge, no doubt she’ll fill the air with smoke and my belly with herbs. I’ll get well out of self-defense.” Amber pulled the door wide and turned sideways so her person with its layers of bags could fit through the doorway easily. “I’ll see you, Laura. Thanks again. And when you and Eli decide to tie the knot, send me an invitation, okay?”

  Laura nodded agreement and stood in the door a moment watching Amber shuffle and totter down the hall to the staircase. Maybe she should help? No, Amber was a grown woman who could take care of herself. She’d be just fine. Laura closed the door firmly, turned to the kitchen alcove where her laptop was set up, and began formulating the want ad for a third roommate.

  ***

  I need a keeper, Amber thought viciously to herself. I can’t even take care of myself for a single day! How did I ever think I would be fine on this road trip back to The Ridge? She leaned her forehead onto the steering wheel of her ten-year-old Mazda and stared morosely at the instruments on the dashboard. No matter how much wish-power she directed into it, one of those gauges stubbornly refused to move.

  “Damn Montana freeways. Damn automobiles and combustible engines. Damn empty bank accounts. Damn Prospector’s Ridge for being twenty-five miles on the other side of nowhere. And damn me for thinking I could make it and didn’t need to use that gas station fifteen miles back. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.” With each damn, Amber softly beat her head on the steering wheel as if to knock some sense into it. Her brown hair, meanwhile, had come loose of its tie and was falling about her face, secluding her from the world for just a moment. That’s fine, just fine. I’ll hide here and no one will see me or notice me, and that’ll solve all sorts of problems. I can die here and the bears can eat my body, plenty of sustenance to take back to the cubs. Tears welled up and began to trickle down Amber’s cheeks. She placed both hands over her mouth and began to sob.

  A knock on her car window completely unnerved her. She screamed and flinched away from the window, expecting the glass to break and a hand to come through at any second. When that didn’t happen, she decided to bite the bullet and look out the window.

  Casting a long shadow over the hood of her car stood a police officer in full uniform! A savior! Amber pressed the down window button, but nothing happened. Belatedly, she realized she had turned off her car to preserve the battery. She twisted the key in the ignition to get power and tried again. With a soft hum, the window slid down its tracks.

  “Ma’am? Are you all right?” Crisp, no-nonsense words were music to her ears. Amber was sure she looked a fright. She began to smooth back her hair from her face, and use the back of one hand to wipe the tears from her cheeks.

  “Yes. No. I mean…” Amber stuttered to a stop.

  “Ma’am?”

  Amber took a deep, calming breath. “Physically, I am fine. I ran out of gas before I could make it to The Ridge. My calculations were off.”

  “Have you called for a tow? For a friend to come bring you some gas or a ride?” he inquired patiently.

  “Erm. No, sir.” Amber replied, “I don’t have a cell phone. Well, I have a cell phone, but I don’t have cell service right now. I mean, not because of where we are but because of who I am. Not that I am anyone special. Because I’m not.” Babbling, Amber chastised herself, and you probably smeared your makeup everywhere. Bet you look like Halloween is early this year.

  “I’m quite sure you’re special in your own way, ma’am. May I see your license and registration, please?”

  “My…? Of course.” Amber scrabbled through her purse to pull out the items, wondering why the officer needed them. Could a person get a ticket for running out of gas on the side of the highway? Surely it wasn’t a law in Montana now that everyone had to have a working cell phone… Wouldn’t she have heard that by now? She handed them over to the officer and searched for his nametag. F. Fisher. “Officer Fisher? Could you call for a tow or for gas? Or even call my sister for me? She’ll be closing up the shop now and could come help me.”

  Officer Fisher leaned over to hand her back her documents, “Be happy to, ma’am. Amber Flynn? Jade’s sister?”

  Amber’s eyes widened in surprise.

  “Well, yes, how did you know?”

  “I was a grade ahead of your sister all throughout school. Had the biggest crush on her when I was in tenth grade. Too bad…” A smile broke out on his face, and to Amber’s surprise, two deep boyish dimples appeared in his cheeks. “C’mon. Hop out. I’ll take you to your sister’s and make sure she’s there and can help you get back here to get your car.” With a flourish of his arm, he lifted the door handle and swung open her car door.

  Amber knew she must look terrible. She rolled up the window, removed the key from the ignition, and climbed out of the car. She brushed at the t-shirt she’d worn for the last two days, surreptitiously checking for stains or crumbs. Her jeans sagged from being worn too many times between washings, and, of course, her hair had come loose of its tie. She’d wished she’d not even bothered with make-up that morning, since she knew it had streaked down her face, but such was not her luck.

  “I’m sorry. I look a fright.” She reached back into her car for the bag containing her wallet and ID.

  “No worries. I have sisters myself.” Officer Fisher smiled and unleashed the dimples again.

  The ten-minute trip to town passed in a blur for Amber. She had no idea what they had talked about or if they had talked at all. She had only been thinking that here it was, the moment of truth. She would be back in The Ridge after being gone for almost ten years.

  Something the officer said pulled her back to the present.

  “I’m sorry. What?”

  “Once you’re settled, would you like to meet for a beer? I could catch you up on everything important that’s happened here in The Ridge since you left, if you like?” he offered.

  “Oh. Uh.” Amber stuttered, “I hadn’t thought about getting caught up. I was just thinking of getting here. Officer.”

  “Call me Tim, please. Just think about it. I’m pretty easy to find. Here you are! Huckleberry Street’s very own Scentsibilities.”

  Going back to The Ridge. Amber F
lynn never thought that would happen. When she left, man, she was going to go far and stay far away. Now, she was back. Like a puppy with its tail tucked between its legs. How would she be able to face everyone? With no more choices, she squared her shoulders, pulled her chin up high, and got out of the car.

  “Thanks for the ride, Offi…Tim. I can see Jade inside the store. I really appreciate all your help.” She turned, glanced up and down the sidewalk, and hurried to the store entrance.

  Tim Fisher admired the rounded curves walking away from him. He vaguely remembered this one from years before. Kind of a wallflower compared to her vivid and outgoing sister, but she would probably be worth a tumble or two. He’d see. Whistling a confident tune, he drove back to his patrol.

  ***

  Ryder Barrett closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. An oddly familiar perfume had just teased his senses, and he wanted more. His gold-flecked eyes snapped open and scanned the street. There! It was her! She was back! He felt the familiar deep ache her leaving had caused him; hurt flared quickly to anger. The happy jingle of Scentsibilities’s shop bells floated to his ears, and he quickly made up his mind. If he caught her off guard now, maybe he could keep her that way.

  His long legs ate up the distance in no time as he strode towards Jade’s store. He jerked open the shop door, and stepped inside to the peal of the bells. His eyes quickly adapted to the dimmer light, and he scanned the large main room.

  Jade and Iris stocked their store with crystals, wind chimes, and all sorts of scents: essential oils, incense, lotions, and candles- many of which Jade blended in her back room laboratory. They also had a massage therapy room where Iris worked her magic.

  Ryder ignored the stands and presentations and moved towards the large table that served Jade as a sales counter. Two women stood beside the table, both in tears, hand-in-hand. Their brown hair was almost the exact same shade, but there the similarities ended. Jade’s long hair was in dreadlocks with beads scattered throughout. Her Bohemian dress covered her long slender frame, and she had piercings in ears, nose, and eyebrows. The woman he was interested in was perfect, and finally back in front of him.