by Desiree Holt
“You will hear it because I am the Alpha to the pack you’ve returned to.” Even though I didn’t want to, his power over me as a pack member, even on my probation, shuddered my veins and made me still in reverence. “I never told them to follow you or make you fearful. And I certainly never asked them to go to Elijah’s school. In fact, I remember saying that I didn’t want you anywhere near him. I just wanted to know that you were okay.”
None of it sat well with me. “So why didn’t you just call or come see me. Casten knew where I was. All it would’ve taken was five minutes on the internet to find me, Davis. Why the secrecy?”
I realized then that I’d uncovered my brother’s greatest fault in front of everyone.
“I couldn’t ask pack members. When we are shunned there is to be no communication. If an Alpha doesn’t follow his own rules, then he is rendered useless.”
Casten looked at Davis and then bowed, a sign of submission to our Alpha. “Davis. She is your sister. No one would’ve faulted you for trying to get her back or simply find out if she was okay. You are Alpha but you are also just like the rest of us.”
Davis looked at me and again commanded my attention. “I’m sorry, Lil. I’m so sorry. I never thought it would go so far. I swear it.”
Angus turned in my direction. “I knew, Lilith. I won’t even deny it. But I would never want to scare my—our son. I only asked for a picture of him—to know he was okay.”
I took in the impossible atmosphere of the room and gathered my thoughts. The issue with all of this was that it wasn’t centered where it should’ve been and this is why I was the mother. It was my job to make it known.
“All of this can be hashed out another time. Right now I have questions and the answers may have some doing in calming my mind about the events of the last couple of months. But right now is about Elijah and his future. Eli, do you want to talk to your father?”
Angus bent down and exhaled. I remembered the first time the nurse handed me Eli. It was the first time I realized that love could be instantaneous.
“Hello, Elijah. I’m Angus, your father.”
Eli regarded him with standoffishness. “You’re my born daddy.”
Angus looked to me for translation. “You are the man who helped create him. His born daddy.”
“Yes. That’s me.”
“And Casten’s gonna be my second daddy.”
The room gasped and Casten looked like he would keel over at any second but managed to choke out, “He is?”
Eli turned to Casten and rolled his eyes. “Duh. Mama said so.”
Again, we were off topic.
“Eli maybe it would be okay for you to go play outside with your Dad. Would that be okay? I’m sure he has some questions for you and you can ask him anything he wants. Davis, can you…I just need you there with him for right now, Angus. You have to understand.”
Angus turned to the man who he called Damion and from the conversation, I gathered that Damion would soon find out how it felt to be banished from a pack.
“I understand, Lilith. It was nice to see you again. Come on, Eli. I saw there are some swings outside.” He let Eli leave, followed by Davis and turned to me. “I’m sorry Lilith, for everything. I’m not going to try to take him from you, but I would like to be in his life—even a little. I hope you will consider it.”
And when he walked out of my house, a thousand pounds of tension, guilt, and remorse were lifted from my chest.
“That went better than I thought. For a second, I considered just ripping his head off and being done with it.”
“I don’t even know what just happened. All I know is that Eli might have a chance to have a relationship with his father and even though my first instinct was to raise hell about it, it might be good for him.”
“And what about this second daddy business. Were you thinking about telling me or was Eli blurting it out just all part of your plan?”
Sighing, I thumped my forehead against his chest.
“It wasn’t part of the plan, but we decided we want you, for my mate and for Eli’s second daddy. Will you have us?”
Casten laughed, low and slow and took me into the arms that I knew would always be my loving protection. “Always, Lil. Always.”
About the Author
Lila Felix is full of antics and stories. She refused to go to Kindergarten after the teacher made her take a nap on the first day of school. She staged her first protest in middle school. She almost flunked out of her first semester at Pepperdine University because she was enthralled with their library and frequently was locked in. Now her husband and three children have to put up with her rebel nature in Louisiana where her days are filled with cypress trees, crawfish, and of course her books and writing. She writes about the ordinary people who fall extraordinarily in wild, true love.
AuthorLilaFelix
www.lilafelix.com
Bearing the Hunger
Shifters of Yellowstone Book 2
Dominique Eastwick
If Grant had his way, humans and their stupidity would be banned from Yellowstone, leaving the shifters who knew the land to live and take care of it. Until he meets human geologist Morgan Jenkins, who is only working in Yellowstone until winter comes. Suddenly, the one shifter in the park who most wanted all humans gone finds he wants one human to stay forever.
Special thanks to Nickie Graham who helped me with some names, Merryn Dexter for being so very supportive, and as always Nadine for kicking me in the ass.
Dedicated to the men and women who work tirelessly to keep the national parks open and safe for all to experience.
Chapter 1
Grant stomped into the cavernous greeting room of the grizzly honeycomb-like den. He roared before he shifted to human form and started cursing the air blue. The receptionist, Hoss, a guardian on light duty since a tree landed on him in the last big storm, simply raised an eyebrow before going back to reading the paperback mystery in his hand.
“Is there an issue, Grant?” His alpha’s deep voice rumbled through the entry hall. Grant turned to see the almost seven-foot-tall man leaning against the wall.
“Stupid humans.”
“I would like to remind you, our beta is human.” Though his voice didn’t change, Brutus’s words held bite.
He eyed the closed door of the beta’s room. “She doesn’t count.”
Now Brutus did step forward. “I would argue she counts very much.”
He was making a mess of this and was likely to invoke the alpha’s anger. “Never mind. Forget I said anything. I’ll just head out again and do another round.”
“What worries you matters, and I’m unlikely to forget my top scout is so angry he was ready to tear the walls down.” He stepped back and indicated the open door. “Come inside.”
There was no way out of it. His alpha had spoken. He moved into the room and sat in the chair farthest from the double door connecting the alpha’s room, currently used as an office, and the beta’s room, which housed the couple. A few short months ago, this room, though acting as his office, also housed a bed instead of the large desk now in the corner. The room next door had lain empty and in wait for too many years. Everything changed when Ranger Quinn Tatum came into the park.
Brutus took his usual seat, the one closest to his beta’s room. “Now, tell me what bothers you. But do try and keep it down. Quinn is resting.”
“Resting?” Concern filled him. Though human, their beta had proven up to the task and then some. She continued to work as a ranger while taking on her responsibilities as the alpha’s softer side. She eased the squabbles. Helped the omegas when they felt they weren’t being heard. Hell, she even got Hoss to sit down and rest, a monumental feat for anyone, let alone a five-foot-eight human. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong.” Brutus eased back in his chair. “I promise she isn’t ill.”
“She hasn’t slept in since your first branding. And she argues with everyone about keeping her job. So
it would take a serious illness to lay her low.”
“I repeat, she isn’t sick. She is simply tired.”
“Well, then, with all due respect, I think you might want to give her some room at night. I appreciate that you have finally found your mate, but your hand is a viable option, sometimes.”
Brutus leaned forward and motioned for his scout to do the same. “I’ll keep that in mind when she awakens me at 2:00 a.m. with needs only I can satisfy. I promise you it is not I keeping us up at night. Shauna confirmed this morning my wife is about to become a mother.”
“Already?”
“You doubt my ability?”
Crap on a cracker, he’d stepped in it again. “No, but there are plenty of couples together for decades who still haven’t produced a single cub.”
Brutus waved toward the closed door. “She is human. They ovulate far more frequently than our shifting sisters. Perhaps that is why the fates sent her. She isn’t ready to tell anyone yet, so keep the news to yourself.”
“Of course.”
“Now, tell me what had you spitting angry.”
He had quite forgotten why he had been called into the office. “Stupid Yellowstone tourists.”
“I heard a man fell into the geyser.” Concern etched the other man’s face.
“It’s as if they are getting stupider. Selfies with bison and bears. Another attack today with another bison. Lars says he is taking his gang into the hills for fear his calves will get hurt. Now that is a shifter species with no trouble whatsoever breeding.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “I’m so tired of trying to protect the dumb.”
“What is the other option?”
“Let nature take its course.”
“I think that is what our people used to do. But do remember we were hunted to near extinction…”
“Exactly, so why should we care about the humans who care nothing for this planet, or for the rules of coexistence?”
“Because most of them come here to learn.” The soft voice of the beta filled the room. “They come to Yellowstone for the beauty, bring their children with them, and a great majority leave determined to protect it.”
“Sorry we woke you.” Brutus pulled her into his lap and nuzzled her neck. “Did you eat the crackers Shauna left on the end table?”
A slight green tinted her cheeks, but she nodded.
“You couldn’t keep them down?”
She shook her head.
“Oh, my poor love. What can we get you?”
“Ginger ale?”
“I think we can accommodate that simple request.” He rubbed her arms up and down.
“I’ll run out and get it for you,” Grant volunteered, gaining his feet.
“Wait first.” She reached for him as he passed. “The humans, I understand them. They aren’t bad, and I don’t think their behavior is any worse than it’s ever been. I get you don’t believe me, and granted the selfie thing is new, but people have always been victims of accidents, and I would bet there were a great many we never heard about.”
Brutus picked up where Quinn, who laid her head on her mate’s shoulder, out of steam, left off. “In the age of cell phones, everyone videos everything. News travels where it didn’t before.”
“And maybe Grant is right and there is something in the water. People act more disrespectful than before,” she murmured thoughtfully. “Entitled.”
Quinn made Grant feel as if his worries had merit. She didn’t brush him aside. Not to say Brutus did, but he had to play the company line—the only way to protect Yellowstone was for as many people as possible to see its beauty. “I think it’s more of a lack of understanding of the dangers.”
He caught Brutus’s nod of approval before Quinn, greener around the edges, jumped to her feet and ran for the other suite and her mate followed. “Ginger ale would be wonderful. Perhaps a case,” Brutus said, standing in the doorway between the two rooms.
Curious as to why he didn’t rush the rest of the way to her side but unwilling to say so, Grant looked between his alpha and the sounds of retching.
“She doesn’t like me to see her like this. As if I’m not the cause of her state at the moment or anything could dim her in my heart.”
“Humans need longer to feel comfortable, I guess.” His alpha had found his mate in early spring. Though he had watched her from afar, they had been together only days when they completed their mating bond. Normal for bears, not so for humans. Quinn still had so much to adjust to. Hadn’t he been privy to their private conversation about her fears of the upcoming months? Fears brought on by the first areas of the parks closing for the season. Her mate would have to hibernate leaving her without him for weeks in the middle of the winter when the snow would be at its deepest. She wasn’t supposed to still be in the park come November, so explaining her presence to other rangers would be troublesome, leaving her a lone human in a shifter world. The only Internet and line to the outside remained at the inn, and that building would be closed tight in a few weeks.
The sound of wood cracking brought his attention to the left hand of his alpha. On the outside, he remained so very calm, but he gripped the doorframe with such force, it foretold his need to be with his mate and the fight to acquiesce to her wishes. But, at the creak of the bathroom door opening, his alpha darted off, leaving Grant to stare at the splintered wood. Perhaps fetching ginger ale should move to the top of his to-do list.
Walking out into the communal hall, he turned to Hoss, still sitting reading his mystery book. “Might want to send one of the carpenters in to fix the doorframe.”
Hoss nodded but didn’t respond. The bear, who wasn’t talkative on the best of days, walked to the hall closet and pulled out some trim and a tool belt then headed into the alpha’s office. Guessing this wasn’t the first time nor the last, and the bears in charge of maintenance were well on it, Grant took a set of keys from a hook and headed out to the general stores to locate some ginger ale. He would ask a human while he was out what else they recommended for morning sickness. Dressed in his park attire, he could tell them it was for a guest he was helping out. That should raise no eyebrows. Though, to be smart, he should head to the bison’s area because they didn’t gossip. The same couldn’t be said for the bears or the wolves. And although the elk, with their prolific reproduction, would likely be the most knowledgeable of the shifters when it came to morning sickness, it would be a four-hour round trip, and he had no reason to be up Mammoth way. So, Old Faithful it was, with the hordes of tourists, but, for his queen, he would endure them.
Geologist Morgan Jenkins lowered the thermometer into the thermal pool, careful to stay a safe distance away. She preferred to partner when doing risky work. This wasn’t a usual assignment for her, and she never worked Yellowstone. But when your mentor and friend called begging you to complete his data to avoid a year’s research going down the drain, you packed a bag and made the trip. With the exception of being out here on her own, the last three weeks had been a geologist’s dream come true. The park had everything any scientist could want, in her opinion.
Including a good heap of danger.
The ground might appear solid, but, in fact, she stood on a thin crust. One wrong step and she could easily find herself boiled alive. Park rangers knew where she was, and, if she didn’t check in, they would come searching. That offered little in the way of relief or reassurance as there would likely be no rescue, only a recovery mission.
Even the animals skirted the area today. Meaning a number of things. This late in the season, the bears would be searching for food, but this area offered little for them. The bison sometimes came this way and lay near the steam ports, but, today, they were somewhere else. How could their absence be such a relief and concern at the same time? Animals sensed things well before humans did. Perhaps they knew something she didn’t. She would finish this one reading and head back. The rest could wait a day or two, at least until the feeling of dread passed.
Maybe dread was too
strong a word—apprehension might be better. She had experienced that since arriving at the park weeks ago. The closer she got to Yellowstone Lake, the more intense the butterflies in her stomach fluttered, almost as if her destiny lay in that area. She had three more days, tops, in this area before she could move up to Mammoth and, barring an early snowfall, she could get some readings in a few more isolated areas.
A shadow the size of a grizzly fell over her. She was about to reach for her bear spray when a deep voice galvanized her. “What the hell are you doing in an area clearly labeled no trespassing? Does no one have any sense?”
“I…” She turned to give the man a piece of her mind. Tell him she had every right, in fact permission to be out this way, and his sneaking up on her was more likely to cause her injury than her work. But when she turned to see the large burly man, her mouth went dry and she couldn’t quite remember what she’d meant to say.
“Save it. I have heard all the excuses before. Just because that pool appears safe, trust me, it isn’t. On your feet, lady. Grab your bags, and I’ll escort you out of the park.” His large hand wrapped around her biceps, half lifting, half pulling her up.
Only when he reached for her bag did she regain the power of speech. “Wait.”
“What?” He growled. She could have sworn the man actually growled.
“I have to get my readings before I go.” She reached into her blouse, pulling out the lanyard holding the badge stating who, and, more importantly, what she was. “I am a geologist taking readings in the area. I have every right to be here. More right, I dare say, than you do.”
He huffed out his sizable chest. Reaching out to grab the lanyard, he touched the bare skin at her neckline, sending a jolt through her. She wondered if he felt it, too, as he dropped the plastic ID and backed away, rubbing at the scruff on his chin. “So it would appear. If it’s all the same to you, I would like to stay out here until you’re done.”