by Ivy Sinclair
Becoming the Alpha (Greyelf Grizzlies #2)
By Ivy Sinclair
Copyright 2015 Smith Sinclair Books
ebook Edition
Cover Design by Charity Hendry
ebook Edition, License Notes
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CHAPTER ONE
Lukas’s hand gripped mine as he turned to lead me across the lodge’s parking lot. I felt like a jangled ball of nerves and emotions threatened to overwhelm me at any moment. I kept playing back Lukas’s words over and over again in my head.
“Today is the day that I am claiming what is mine. And that means everything.”
There was a possessive note in his voice that took my breath away. Was it possible that there was something more to what Lukas wanted from me? I barely knew who he was anymore. The boy that I had known years ago had grown into a virile and complicated man; not that I expected anything different. I had changed in the last ten years too. And yet I had chained myself to Lukas’s wagon and gave in the first moment he said he needed me. That was infuriating, unsettling, and slightly exciting all at the same time.
Lukas was the first boy who ever set my soul on fire, and truth be told, that fire had never stopped burning for him. When he took my virginity ten years ago, it was as if he sealed my heart from ever accepting another into it. I had tried. My college years were littered with feeble attempts to banish Lukas Kasper from my heart. It hadn’t worked then, and now that he had arrived back in my life, it definitely wasn’t working now.
All of these thoughts collided in my mind. I couldn’t just tell him how I felt. It seemed stupid and sudden, which of course it was. I had to take a step back and breathe. I needed space to think about what this all meant, but we didn’t have time for that. Lukas was about to enter a bear match, whatever the hell that was, and he needed me at his side.
Lukas stopped at the edge of the parking lot and frowned as he looked at the path in front of us leading into the woods. Then he looked down at my feet. I spent over an hour trying to decide what to wear when Lukas originally summoned me to White Oaks with his cryptic text message this morning. A meeting with the clan council was supposed to be the original intent of the visit, but I had no idea what was appropriate to wear for that. I finally settled on a pale blue sundress and white sandals thinking the outfit was fairly innocuous. The dress’s matching lightweight sweater was draped over my arm.
“I didn’t know we were going hiking,” I said, reading his mind. “You gotta help a girl out if you knew that there was going to be a nature hike on the agenda.”
“It’s not far,” Lukas said. “You never wore dresses in high school, and this is the second time I’ve seen you in a dress in the week since I’ve been back.”
I wasn’t sure if I should be offended or not by the comment. “I did wear dresses back then,” I said. “You just never noticed.”
Lukas shook his head as his eyes traveled down my body. I felt warmth creep across my skin following the path of his gaze. “Nope. I am pretty sure I wouldn’t have ever let you out of the house. The guys in school would have been all over you.”
I crossed my arms and glared at him. “You wouldn’t have had a say in the matter. Or have you forgotten that you were neither my brother nor my boyfriend back then? And whatever it is we’re doing now is strictly business.” I couldn’t let him see how he affected me. Getting angry at him was easier.
Lukas’s face darkened. I felt his hand squeeze mine. “I have a lot to make up for when it comes to you, Maren. I only wish I had done it sooner.”
Why was he doing this to me? I needed to keep my wits about me, but there was a part of me that desperately wanted him to pick me up and find a quiet place among the trees to ravage me. I took a deep breath. “I didn’t think we had time for a walk down memory lane.”
“We don’t,” he said. “The arena isn’t far. You think you can make it in those things?” He pointed at my shoes. “Or else, I can carry you.”
The idea of being pressed up against Lukas’s bare chest was a little bit too much to handle at the moment. I untangled my hand from his and began to march down the path. “Let’s get this over with,” I said over my shoulder to him.
A few long strides brought him to my side. “It would be a good idea for you to put that sweater on. Until I have a chance to talk to the council, we can’t let anyone see my mark.”
“Fine,” I said. I didn’t stop moving even as I pulled on the sweater. I buttoned the top button so that the lapels wouldn’t fall open to expose the mark. Lukas biting me had been wholly unexpected, but I wasn’t going to admit that I had been more than a little turned on by it.
“That’s it? Fine? You aren’t planning on asking me any more questions?”
“I feel like I’m on information overload at the moment,” I said. I concentrated on not tripping over the many exposed tree roots that seemed to spring up everywhere on the path. Now I understood why Lukas had been concerned about my footwear. Natural booby-traps seemed to be hidden under the shallow cover of fallen leaves.
“I should probably tell you a few things before we get there though.”
“Keep quiet. Follow your lead. Do everything you tell me to do. I already got all of that,” I said. I winced at the snark in my voice. Lukas seemed to bring it out in me. I felt his hand graze my arm and gently tug on it. I finally stopped with a long sigh. “What?”
Lukas moved closer to me. I was acutely aware of his half-nakedness. I had forgotten that his feet were bare in addition to being shirtless. He was so close that I had to crane my neck to look up at him. His fingertips skimmed my cheek. For the first time since arriving back in Greyelf, I thought that he looked uncertain.
“This is dangerous territory we’re treading in, Maren. It wasn’t an easy decision for me to mix you up in any of it. It would kill me if anything happened to you.”
I felt myself softening under the intensity of his gaze. “Lukas, don’t you think that you might be overreacting? I know this is serious stuff, and I’m not dumb. You don’t have to explain to me why I need to listen to you. Nothing is going to happen to me.”
The pad of his thumb gently grazed my lower lip. “You are going to see something that your kind was never meant to see. I wouldn’t blame you if after this you never wanted anything to do with me or any member of the clan ever again.”
I took his hand in mine. I needed to do something to stop the firestorm of confusing emotions I felt inside of me before they took hold and caused me to do something stupid. Like kiss him. Or rip off my dress and ask him to make love to me again. Lukas thought that I was there for the story of the century, but he was engaged in a full court press it seemed to get me to confess that there might be another reason. I wasn’t giving it to him though.
“That’s the whole reason I’m here, remember? To see things that my kind was never allowed to see?”
It was as if my words doused the moment in a bucket of ice water. Lukas pulled his hand away, and his eyes darkened. “Right. The story. You’re right. We’re going to be late. Let’s go.” He moved away from me then, and I had no choice but to follow.
I didn’t understand why he seemed so intent on swirling up emotions that I had tried so hard to bury. If he had felt anything for me back then, he had ten years to tell me. He told me that his older brother Markus had or
dered him to leave town. Markus paid for Lukas’s schooling as long as he stayed away from Greyelf and apparently from me. Markus didn’t want Lukas to ruin my reputation. It seemed everyone knew that Lukas was a player. Of course, I had known, and I’d still offered up my virginity willingly. I thought it was the ultimate sign to show him how I felt about him. I thought naively that it would be the lynchpin to get him to finally confess that he had feelings for me.
Instead, he had disappeared from my life without a trace until a week ago. Just like that, I was angry all over again. As my gaze shifted to Lukas’s well-toned backside, instead of admiring it, I found that I wanted to give him a giant kick in it. We continued on in silence. When I started to hear the sound of voices in the distance, reality began to set in.
White Oaks was normally home to around two hundred bear shifter residents who were full-time residents of Greyelf. With the shifter Summit that only occurred once every five years set to begin in less than twenty-four hours, I knew their ranks had swelled to perhaps double that amount. That didn’t even include the other shifter clans in the area. Greyelf was buzzing from the spate of tourist business. And here I was, human, journalist, and complete outsider about to enter a world where I didn’t belong and wasn’t welcome.
Lukas slowed and turned his head. “Are you ready for this?”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” I heard several loud roars then, and I knew that the color drained from my face. We were on our way to a bear match. So, of course, there would be bears there. I was smack dab in the middle of a bear shifter community, after all.
“I can hear your heart racing from here,” Lukas said. “It’ll be okay. I promise. Just do everything I say, right?”
I nodded again. “Right.” When Lukas took my hand again, this time I didn’t pull away. I needed the reassurance because the sounds of the crowd grew louder with each footstep. The path crested a small hill, and then my mouth fell open as I took in the view in front of me.
Lukas had called it an arena, and it seemed like an apt description. The path led down through a small crevice in the natural landscape. The rocky walls sloped down toward the dirt floor of a natural ravine, and I understood now why I had been able to hear the crowd so well. Their voices echoed off the rock walls. The path took a sharp turn, and then the decline grew significantly steeper as it wound down to the ground in the center. A multitude of spectators lined the walls standing and sitting all along the naturally formed rock bleachers. It was as if the place had been made for just such an event.
“Take a breath, Maren,” Lukas said. He bent closer to my ear. “Play along, and don’t cower. Not even for a moment. You are here because I want you here. You belong here with me. Don’t forget it.”
My back stiffened, which was no doubt the reaction he was hoping for. He began to lead me down the path. The crowd hushed as they caught their first looks at us. Then the low hum of whispers began. I felt the intensity of the crowd’s gaze, but I didn’t melt beneath it. Lukas needed to present a show of strength, and I was his army of one. I wouldn’t let him down. What was about to happen was too important to him for that.
I sensed that Lukas took his time making his way down the path, and I was grateful. I felt my sandals begin to slip more than once during our descent, but each time I was able to correct my balance before I stumbled. We arrived on the arena’s floor several moments later, and I saw that three men stood there waiting for us.
I had known that there was a governing body that acted as counselors and advisors for the alpha, but the clan had always been secretive about who the actual members of the council were. Because I had lived in Greyelf since I was ten, I knew their faces on sight. Doc Walden had been my family’s physician since moving to Greyelf because my dad had wanted to show how progressive we were in our attitudes toward shifters. Larry Bennett was one of the city’s councilmen, so I wasn’t surprised to see him there. I was surprised though to see Billy Miller. My mouth fell open, and I saw him grimace. I made a mental note to give him a piece of my mind later. I thought that I knew every shifter in Greyelf, but apparently there were more who hadn’t openly come out after all.
Sheriff Monroe stood off to the side. He had a thoughtful look on his face as he watched our approach. Like Lukas, he was bare-chested and wore only a pair of track pants. I couldn’t help but notice the white lines of old scars crossing his chest and running up one arm. I realized that this likely wasn’t the sheriff’s first time at this kind of rodeo, and that made me all the more concerned for Lukas’s well-being.
Doc Walden’s eyes swept past Lukas and landed squarely on me. “Non-clan members are not welcome at these proceedings. Full-blood humans are forbidden, and you know that, Lukas.”
I had never heard Doc Walden speak with such disdain in his voice before, and it took me aback. My feet stilled, but Lukas pulled me forward without hesitation.
“It was my brother’s wish to have a documented history of the clan for future generations. I know he spoke about this with the council on many occasions.”
“Your brother is dead,” Mr. Bennett said flatly. “And even if we did agree with that recommendation, we’d chose someone from the clan to take on the task. We wouldn’t bring in an outsider.”
“We need an impartial but friendly voice, and Ms. Lene signed a non-disclosure agreement with Markus before his passing. We all know there is still a great deal of fear and bias in the world against our kind, and it is time that we started spinning the story to suit our purposes.”
I blinked at Lukas’s lie and forced myself not to shift under the weight of the men’s combined gaze. I had no idea what he was talking about, but it sounded like it made perfect sense as he said it out loud.
“Markus should have approved such a matter with the council,” Doc Walden said.
“Last time I checked, the alpha was still the alpha and had final say in such matters anyway,” Lukas said. A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. When I heard the rough snort at my elbow, I turned my head and saw that a pair of black bears had joined the outer ring at the edge of the arena’s floor. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I fought the desire to run. I hope to hell that Lukas knew what he was doing.
“When I’m alpha, I will fulfill my brother’s wishes on this matter. She stays,” Lukas said firmly. He turned his glare to the sheriff. “Let’s get on with it.”
The three council members turned to each other and formed a tight circle. I saw Billy glance out of the corner of his eye at me several times. I hoped that he was speaking on my behalf, but I couldn’t count on it. Yesterday, we had been dating. Today, I was spoken for by someone else, and he didn’t know it yet. I felt kind of bad about that.
Doc Walden turned to the sheriff. “What do you have to say about this?”
The sheriff crossed his arms with a sneer. “When I’m alpha, I’ll decide. For now, I’m just eager to get on with it. Let’s quit pussyfooting around. It’s time to lay this claim business to rest once and for all.”
I could tell that wasn’t the answer the council wanted, but now they had to go along with it. Lukas looked into the crowd as if searching for someone. Then he pointed off to our left. “There. Go sit with Marilee,” he said. “I’ll be done in a jiffy.”
I didn’t want to be under any further scrutiny, but I was reluctant to leave Lukas’s side. I looked up at him. “Are you sure you know what you are doing?” I whispered. I didn’t think the words were loud enough for him to hear, but then I saw the quick smile flit across his face.
He leaned down next to my ear. “Awww. I almost would think you are worried about me. Don’t be. For the first time in my life, I know exactly what I’m doing.” Then he made his way to the council members, and they began to converse in low tones.
I tore my eyes away and made my way toward Marilee as directed, all the while trying to ignore the flip-flopping of my stomach.
CHAPTER TWO
Lukas and I went t
o school with Marilee Wilson. Although I hadn’t spoken to her in years, I was now speaking with her for the second time in the span of less than twelve hours. It was as if my past was intent on slowly overwhelming my present. The effect was more than unsettling.
“You are causing quite the ruckus,” she murmured to me after I made my way to her side. “I hope you and Lukas know what you are doing.” That seemed to be the sentiment of the day.
I could tell that everyone around us was trying to eavesdrop. “Where’s Cody?” I avoided her comment and looked around for her teenage son.
“He’s too cool to hang out with his mom,” she said with an eye roll. “I planned to ground him for the rest of eternity for the little stunt he pulled last night, but it’s important for him to be part of what’s happening today. It’s not every day the clan names a new alpha.”
“Isn’t this all a bit…violent?” I tried to keep my voice low so that it fell under the roar of the assembled crowd. I couldn’t help but think everything so far had a barbaric feel to it. It was clear that a bear match involved a physical contest pitting the two opponents against each other.
Marilee gave me a long sidelong glance before responding. “We don’t do things here the way you full-blooded humans do things. I’d be careful about using that judgmental tone when you’re here in White Oaks.”
“I wasn’t being judgmental,” I said defensively. It was better for me to follow the line of Lukas’s ruse for now. He had given me the perfect excuse for my usual line of incessant questions. “I’m just here to observe the match and write it down.” At least that was the truth. I just wasn’t documenting the outcome for the annals of the clan’s history. “I will need to do some interviews too. That includes understanding what it’s like to be part of the clan in an integrated society.” Lukas’s lie was making me bold.
“If you think we’re anywhere close to being integrated with the humans, you are delusional,” Marilee said with a snort.