Alaskan Tigers Box Set 1

by Marissa Dobson

  “Keep your leg up on the pillows, I’ll work around it. I won’t have you doing more damage to it.” He slid between her legs, angling himself so the tip of his shaft played lightly along her folds.

  He slipped his finger between them, lightly teasing her clit until he drew moans from deep with her. She dug her fingernails into his back as she arched herself toward him. “Please, Raja. I need you.”

  Without further delay he moved his hand away. He adjusted his angle again until he could slide into her tight channel, forcing her to cry out with pleasure. His thrust was gentle at first, working his way into her core, allowing her body to adjust around him.

  She relaxed, giving him the room he needed. His thrusts came deeper and faster. Her desire bloomed within her, as she met his thrusts with her body. They rode back and forth until they exploded together in unison.

  Breathless, they laid there, not wanting to move, legs still entwined.

  “I love you, Bethany,” Raja whispered, burying his face in her hair.

  She curled into his arms feeling safer than she had in days, her head resting against his chest. “I don’t know how this happened but I’ve fallen in love with you.”

  Dad, I hope you’d approve of him. Oh how I miss you, Mom, and Jamie. I wish you were here to see your baby girl in love.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  After hours of making love, Raja and Bethany lay tangled in each other’s arms, blanketed by exhaustion as night became day. His mating couldn’t have come at a worse moment. Tiger shifters were living in a dangerous time, but there was no way he could deny himself the pleasures of Bethany.

  “You’re thinking too hard.” She nuzzled against him.

  “Hum?”

  “When you’re thinking hard, you have a deep line that forms on your forehead. Penny for your thoughts?”

  “It’s nothing,” he whispered and kissed the top of her head.

  “If we’re mates, we should be straightforward with each other. A relationship that isn’t built on honesty and trust isn’t one I want to be in.”

  “I was thinking what bad timing this mating is. Pierce will keep going until he gets what he wants—or we stop him.”

  “Do you have control over mating?”

  “No. Not really. We can hold it off for a short time, but it infuriates the tiger within. We become on edge, and if it takes too long, our animal will take control of the mating. When that happens, it’s perilous…we can be uncontrollable with the need for our mate’s touch.”

  “Then why worry about the bad timing? If there was nothing you could do, isn’t it better to accept the situation?” She ran her hand lazily over his chest, caressing his abs.

  “Just because you make a good point doesn’t mean the worry vanishes. I’m not worried for myself, it is you I’m concerned for.” He stared at the ceiling, wishing they weren’t having this conversation.

  “Me?”

  “Yes. There are transitions that will be taking place soon, and it could…well, to be honest, dangerous situations will arise from it.”

  “I can take care of myself. What transitions?” She propped herself up on her elbow and gazed down at him.

  “Bethany, you’re an amazing woman with many talents—”

  “But?”

  His lips curved down until he was frowning at her. “But you don’t stand a chance against shifters. We’re stronger, faster, and deadlier than a raving human on drugs.” He rubbed his thumb over the dimple in her chin. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  “I’ll be fine.” Lowering her head, she pressed a light kiss on his lips.

  “To see to that, I’m assigning guards to you. It’s normal procedure with the Alpha and the Lieutenant’s mates. I should have done it when you first arrived, but I was more concerned about your knee and how you would react to the news of shifters—and coming to terms with being my mate.”

  “I think I’ve done very well. Now what transitions?”

  “My persistent mate…” But before he could tell her, his cell phone vibrated on the nightstand.

  Grabbing it, he read a text message from Ty: He’s ten minutes out. Felix and Marcus are bringing Tabitha there. Meet me at heliport, five minutes.

  “He?” she asked, looking at the phone screen.

  “Tabitha will explain the transitions when she gets here. I’ll be back shortly.” He slipped out of bed and strolled naked toward the closet.

  “Who is he?” She pushed.

  “Nothing to worry about. I’ll be back soon.” He slipped his legs into a clean pair of black jeans then grabbed one of the long-sleeved T-shirts he favored.

  “Answer me.” She threw a pillow at him, hitting him in the back.

  “James.”

  “Uncle James is here already? Let me get dressed.” She threw off the covers.

  “I meant to tell you last night, but we got sidetracked. Ty and I have decided to meet with him first. I’ll bring him to see you after we have spoken with him.” After slipping the shirt over his head, he strapped his knife to his thigh and grabbed the gun holster.

  “Why can’t I be there?” The first hints of anger entered her tone.

  “Your uncle knows something. We don’t know if he’s working with Pierce or not. I want you here with Tabitha and her guards until we get a read on him. If he’s clean, I’ll bring him to you.”

  “How would you know he’s clean?” She grabbed a pair of lounge pants from the end of the bed.

  “I’m taking Shadow with me. She has the ability to see into someone’s psyche, to tell if they’re lying. If there is anything evil about James, she’ll notice it. If he wishes to harm you or anyone here, she’ll see it. I’ll apologize now…if he means any of us harm, he’ll be escorted out of the compound immediately.”

  “Raja, we’re here,” Tabitha called, coming into his quarters.

  “Make yourself at home. We’ll be out in a moment.” He went to Bethany, kneeling in front of her. “Don’t fight me on this. I’m protecting you.”

  She hooked her bra, but she still needed a shirt. Her nightshirt wouldn’t do to meet her uncle after all these years. “I want to see him one way or another.”

  “I can’t promise you that. I won’t put you in danger, no matter how angry you’ll be at me. I can tell you I’ll do my best to make you happy.” He stood, grabbing one of the sweaters from her suitcase. “Here.”

  Raja stood at the helipad, feeling guilty. It’ll break her heart if her uncle is involved in any of this.

  “Worried James has something to do with this?” Ty asked, leaning against the railing surrounding the heliport.

  “We don’t know he doesn’t.”

  “No, but Adam is quickly becoming an outstanding guard, or I wouldn’t have added him to Tabitha’s guards. He has good judgment. If he found James suspicious, he wouldn’t be bringing him here. Plus, neither of us thought he was part of it. You’re only doubting your judgment because of how this’ll affect your mate,” he added when Raja looked guilty. “Don’t worry, I do it as well when it comes to Tabby. It’s only natural to want to protect your mate from harm and heartbreak. Still we have to trust in our instincts. It’s what keeps us and our mates alive.”

  “You’re right.” Raja ran his hand down the leg of his jeans as the first sounds of the helicopter came from the distance. “After all this, I need to explain to Bethany the dangers that might be in store for shifters and their mates. Not just Pierce but also with the joining of the clans.”

  Ty nodded. “Make sure she doesn’t tell James.”

  “I swear if he has anything to do with the attack on Bethany, I’ll kill him myself,” he growled as the helicopter came into view. Adam was at the helm, steering it toward them.

  “If that’s the case, he’ll be yours once we get all the information out of him.” Ty stepped forward, standing straight and tall as the helicopter landed. “How long do you think we have before Felix is begging for a break from our mates? He can’t be havi
ng an easy time.”

  “They were both shooting looks that could kill when I left them. I expect we only have a short time before they drive the guards to a breaking point. Maybe we’ll go back and find them bound and gagged.” They laughed as the men stepped out of the helicopter. The last man to exit had to be Bethany’s uncle. He was an older man who looked to be in his mid to late fifties.

  He has her green eyes.

  “Ty, Raja, this is James Thompson,” Adam said, coming to stand in front of him. “James, this is the Alpha of the Alaskan Tigers, Ty, and his Lieutenant, Raja.”

  “James, if you could follow us to the conference room.” Ty’s gaze focused on the other man.

  “Where’s my niece? I demand to see Bethany.”

  “You’ll see her once we’ve had our discussion. She’s safe, that’s all that you need to concern yourself with,” Raja said, irritation lacing his words.

  “I want to see her now,” James complained as he followed them to the conference room, Adam and Leo taking up the rear.

  “As I said, you can see her once this is complete and not until then. If that doesn’t suit you, you’re more than welcome to get your ass back on the helicopter and they’ll return you to where they found you. But you’re on our turf now, and you’ll do things our way.” Raja growled at him.

  James was a weak shifter. Raja could feel it in the air around him. Yet he had the courage of a fighter. If he had anything to do with the attack on Bethany, he would be hard to break. His commitment and honor would be strong.

  “If anything has happened to my niece…”

  Raja’s lips curled into a snarl. Not even five minutes on the ground and he was already losing patience with James.

  Ty interrupted and focused his considerable attention on Bethany’s uncle. “No harm has come to her since she’s arrived here. She’s with my mate, and they’re safe. If we can get this out of the way quickly, you may see her.” The Alpha opened the door to the conference area. They’d decided to use one of the smaller ones on the far side of the compound, farthest away from their mates.

  Shadow and Thomas sat at the table waiting for them. Ty took the chair at the end, leaving the one to his right for Raja, before gesturing toward the other chairs. “Please have a seat and we can get started.”

  James stalked to a chair, seething. Raja watched him out of the corner of his eye, but his attention focused on Shadow. He watched her, waiting for some sign of her impression of James. Was he a threat to Bethany? To the clan?

  “What do you need from me?” James sat across from Shadow at the middle of the table.

  “Do you know a man named Pierce?” Ty dug through the folder lying on the table and came out with a picture of Pierce.

  He slid it across the table to James, who leaned back as the picture came into view. The tension in the room thickened. James remained still with everyone watching him closely.

  “Nothing, I know nothing,” James said, his eye twitching slightly.

  “If you’re not up front with us, you won’t be able to see Bethany. We won’t risk her life.” Raja fought the need to stand, to pace the room.

  “She’s my family, you can’t keep me from her.”

  “Want to bet?” He snarled.

  “Whatever you know about Pierce might help us find him,” Shadow interrupted. “I’m sure you want to see justice for what happened to your brother and his family. Justice for Bethany.” She leaned forward in her chair, her voice low and sweet; one would’ve never guessed she was one of the fiercest guards in the clan.

  “I do, but that’s a family matter.”

  “It’s bigger than a family matter.” Ty laced his fingers together and laid them on the table. “He he’s gone after my mate. He has a bounty on Bethany’s head. This is bigger than you.”

  “I don’t want Bethany injured or killed.” He looked down at the picture again.

  “Then help us.”

  “It began many years ago.” James deflated. “I married my high school sweetheart. She had problems, split personalities mostly. I loved her and thought I could fix her. It started out fine. We had a small home near the plant I worked at. I wanted to go to college, but there wasn’t enough money. My baby brother had the brains. I got a job and helped my parents, put away what I could for his college and did my best for my wife. She got pregnant within the first year of our marriage, but the pregnancy was hard on her. It brought out more personalities, meaner ones. You never knew where you stood with her, and our marriage started to suffer.”

  “I don’t understand what this has to do with Pierce.” Raja shot a questioning look at James.

  “You have to understand how it started. It started with me and my wife, but it ends with Pierce.” James played with his short goatee as he spoke. “Six months into the pregnancy she had a breakdown one day when I was working a double. I got the call from her sister. She was admitted to the hospital after trying to drown herself. She survived, but she was never the same. Giving birth to our son only made things worse. She wanted nothing to do with him. They wouldn’t discharge her from the hospital, and eventually we transferred her to a long-term facility to receive the treatment she needed. Her younger sister moved in and helped with James Junior—J.J.—while I worked. He was seven when she married and moved away, and he was already showing signs of his instability.” He paused, looking down at his hands. “When J.J. shifted, things became worse. Six months after his first shift, he attacked Pierce.”

  “Where is J.J. now?” Shadow asked softly.

  “You know our law…” The grief weighed heavy on James. It was clear as his shoulders sank and his bright eyes seemed to dim.

  “He’s dead?”

  “Yes. He was my son. I took care of it. I should have acted sooner, but I never thought…I guess that’s it. I never thought.”

  “That explains the statement in the video.” Raja pushed back his chair. He couldn’t sit there any longer.

  “Statement? Video?”

  “Pierce has taken to sending us videos of his actions. We received one when Bethany was kidnapped, and he sent us a video of the murders.”

  “Kidnapped? You said she was safe!” James hollered, slamming his hands on the table.

  “She’s safe now, because Raja went after her,” Ty said. “The kidnapper is dead. Unfortunately, Raja wasn’t able to get to her before they hurt her. Her captor took a steel pipe to her knee to ensure she wouldn’t escape. When Raja brought her here, Doc performed surgery to save her knee. She’s recovering and doing very well.” Ty slid another photo across the table. “This is the man who kidnapped Bethany. Do you know him?”

  James shook his head. “No. What’s this about a statement from the video?”

  “In the video Pierce said ‘tonight the family will have to face the beast their uncle created.’ Has Pierce made any contact with you?”

  “No. I haven’t heard from him. After I became aware of what J.J. did, I dealt with the issue. I went to Pierce all those years ago and tried to teach him the ways of our kind. I wanted to help him adjust. He was angry and didn’t want anything to do with me. I didn’t create him.”

  “Regrettably, I believe he places the blame on you, which is why he targeted your family.” Raja leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets.

  “He’ll come after Bethany again,” James said.

  Raja nodded. “I won’t let harm come to Bethany. That’s why we insisted on the meeting before reuniting you with her.”

  “You thought…I had something to do with all this? With Pierce?”

  “It was a possibility we couldn’t rule out.”

  “And now?” James asked, fiddling with the picture on the table.

  “Shadow?”

  “His wants match ours. He wants Bethany safe and Pierce taken care of.” Shadow took one last look at James and turned around to face Raja. “His words are true. I can feel his agony for the loss of his family and his concern for Bethany.”

  “What’
s the meaning of all this?”

  “Shadow here is very valuable. We’re lucky to have her as a part of our clan. She can get into your psyche, she knows what a person truly wants. I asked her to attend this meeting to give us a read on you. I wouldn’t risk the clan or reunite Bethany with someone who would only bring her heartbreak and pain in the end.” Raja pushed off the wall. “Shadow, give me ten minutes and then escort James to my quarters. We’ll be waiting.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “James cleared the security meeting.” Raja sat on the sofa next to his lounging mate, her hand in his. “Shadow will bring him along in a moment, but I wanted to debrief you on the meeting first.”

  “Uncle James is cleared? You don’t suspect he had anything to do with what’s happened?”

  “If I doubted him for a second, he wouldn’t be on his way to our quarters. He’d be out on his ass instead. Family or not.”

  Over the next few minutes he went over everything that happened in the meeting, bringing her up to speed on things. He explained what happened with J.J. and how it led to Pierce coming after her and her family. When he was finished she just stared at him. “Love, are you okay?”

  “I guess.” She leaned back against the sofa. “It’s crazy how things work out. My family died because of Pierce’s hatred and my cousin’s insanity. Doesn’t seem right, and maybe I’m in too much of a shock to really absorb it. I just can’t feel anything right now.”

  “I know.” He rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. “Everything is happening at once. It will sink in eventually and when it does you’ll feel the loss of your family again. Right now, there’s a man that really wants to see you. Are you up for it?”

  She nodded, because even with this new information, she couldn’t turn him away. “He’s all I have left.”

  “You’re wrong there, love.” He lifted her hand to his lips, and brushed a soft kiss against her knuckles. “You have me and the clan, not to mention my big-mouth sister.”

  “I like Tora.” She squeezed his hand.