Alpha Bears And Brides (Red Lodge Bears) The Complete Collection

by Vivian Wood

  Just as he started to wonder if a grown-ass Berserker male might able to faint, Aunt Lindsay caught sight of someone she wanted to say hi to. Luke floundered, heading aimlessly to the bar.

  “What’ll it be?” asked the cheerful redheaded man behind the bar.

  “Whisky. Neat. A double,” Luke said, out of habit.

  Then the glass was before him, amber liquid sloshing, the alluring scent filling his nostrils. In a sea of noise and flickering light and loud voices, whisky seemed like a measure of comfort. He drank it down in three gulps, giving a satisfied sigh as the whisky burned its way into his stomach.

  He signaled for another before turning to watch the room. He spotted Noah first, sitting at a table with a very masculine-looking young woman and two older ladies. Noah looked bored beyond words, and the girl seemed miserable, as if she might cry at any moment. The two older ladies chatted, big smiles on their faces.

  Gavin and Finn were both on the dance floor. Gavin was twirling a pretty blonde, a smile on his face as they swayed and chatted. Finn wasn’t so much leading his partner as she was him, it seemed. The fierce-looking brunette’s hands were all over him, and Finn kept looking around in desperate hope of rescue.

  Luke chuckled, leaning back and sipping his second whisky.

  “Move it,” came Wyatt’s voice.

  Luke turned to find Wyatt elbowing his way in next to Luke’s seat, a curvy raven-haired beauty in tow. The girl gave Luke an appraising once-over and smirked, her blood-red lips turning up at the corners.

  “Hey,” Luke growled at Wyatt.

  “Shit, are you drunk?” Wyatt asked. He gave Luke a pleased grin, which made Luke’s stomach fall to his feet. Wyatt’s pleasure was usually someone else’s downfall. Luke just hoped to hell it wasn’t his turn to suffer tonight.

  “Piss off,” Luke said as he waved his brother away.

  “I like this one,” the girl said with another smirk. “Let’s take him with us!”

  “He’s my brother,” Wyatt said, giving Luke a disgusted glance.

  Luke shrugged and turned away from them, just in time to see Cam right in the middle of the dance floor, getting in some distant cousin’s face.

  “You’re just pissed because you’re not gonna be Alpha. Not even like,” the cousin hiccuped, drunk. “Not even like second in line. More like hundredth in line, loser.”

  “You’re such a fucking waste of space, Emmet,” Cam hissed, pushing away the tempering hand of the girl standing next to him.

  “At least I’m not jealous of my big brudder,” Emmet taunted, switching to baby talk. “Widdle Camwon lives in Wyatt’s shadow, dunn he?”

  Cameron moved so fast it was hard to watch. His mercurial temper flared one second, and the next his fist was leaving Emmet’s face, sporting a splash of vivid red blood from Emmet’s busted nose. Cam’s other fist flashed in the next moment, and then Emmet was on the ground, shouting for help.

  Several men jumped in and dragged Cameron off, seething and baring his teeth like an animal. Every male was on alert, the fighting pheromones of a male Berserker filling the air. If one changed, there would be a chain reaction. If that happened, there would be a brawl. There were enough strange bears here that things would spiral out of hand, and people would get hurt.

  Luke heard his mother’s voice, followed by his father’s ear-piercing whistle.

  “That’s enough!” Josiah bellowed. “Go back to dancing, now. It’s over.”

  And somehow, that was enough. Everyone returned to the festivities, the band started up again, and Luke soon found himself chatting easily with a cute blonde who’d taken the seat next to him.

  Before he knew it, the blonde’s hand was running up and down the top of his thigh, her nails raking his jeans in a very promising gesture. Luke put down his fourth whisky, narrowing his gaze to try to identify the girl.

  What had her name been?

  Luke suddenly realized that he was drunk. And not a little drunk, not buzzed. He was most of the way to fall-down, words-slurred, head-over-ass drunk.

  “Bartender!” he shouted, wincing when he realized he’d yelled right in his companion’s ear.

  “Sir?” the bartender asked.

  “Water. Uh, lots of water,” Luke requested.

  The girl kept touching him, and he didn’t push her away, but he knew he couldn’t make a sound decision right now. If he took her to bed he might embarrass himself. Or worse, he might misunderstand or hurt her or something. It seemed liked his first night of drinking in over a decade was not turning out too well.

  He heard a very distinctive sound, a feminine huff of anger that he couldn’t place. Turning, he came face to face with a buxom beauty. Long dark red curls tumbled down to her hips, short bangs fringed her forehead, big green eyes gave him an accusing glare… and those lips, those soft pink lips that he could never, ever forget.

  “Aubrey!” he said, gaping at her.

  “Luke,” she said coolly, her eyes going to his blonde companion.

  “Uh… this isn’t what it looks like. I’m drunk,” he tried to explain.

  Aubrey’s perfect dark eyebrows shot straight up in a moment of surprise before her expression turned mocking.

  “I see,” she said. “Of course.”

  She turned to leave, but Luke lurched forward and grabbed her wrist. He noticed that she had several new tattoos on each arm, all colorful works of art, tastefully chosen. Classic Aubrey.

  “Aubrey, wait!” he insisted.

  “I think not,” she snapped, trying to pull from his grasp.

  “I didn’t know you’d be here!” he said. The excuse sounded hollow, even to his own drunk ears.

  “Yeah, me either. Now let me go,” she hissed.

  Luke released her, feeling his chest constrict as she stalked away from him, heading for the house. He pushed up out of his chair, wobbling on his feet.

  “Whoa there, chief.” Finn had appeared at Luke’s side, reaching out to steady him. “Let’s get you to your room, buddy.”

  “Aubrey’s here,” Luke moaned.

  “I don’t know who that is, but you’re not in any shape to chase anyone around.”

  “It’s important…” Luke trailed off, losing his train of thought.

  “Yeah. Come on, Luke,” Finn said, putting his arm around Luke and steering him toward the house.

  Luke squinted, trying to remember why he wanted to go to the house.

  “Is there pizza in the house?” Luke wondered aloud.

  Finn chuckled and kept moving.

  “Sure thing, buddy. We’re going to find some pizza in your room, I’m sure of it.”

  “Awesome!” Luke cheered, letting his brother lead the way.

  9

  Luke’s Decision

  Luke woke with the deepest kind of pain lodged in his skull. In his whole body, in fact. He smelled stale booze on himself, tasted the sour sweetness in his mouth, strong enough to make him gag.

  “What in the fuck?” he cried, cracking open his eyes against the bright morning sunlight that suddenly spilled across his face.

  “Time to get up,” his mother said, standing over his bed. In a moment he was a kid again, trying to tell her he was too sick to go to school, knowing she wasn’t going to tolerate his crap.

  “Ma…” Luke whined.

  “Breakfast is in ten minutes, and you’re not sitting at my table like this,” she said, waving a hand to indicate his general state of being. “Get up this instant.”

  She left his room, muttering something about having worthless drunken louts for sons. Luke used every bit of his steel willpower and years of military training to get himself up and into the shower. He was mostly glad he hadn’t vomited on himself in his sleep, or worse. He’d seen men on his teams do horrible things while drunk, the most disgusting of it while they slept off their stupor.

  As Luke dragged on a shirt and pants, he tried to remember the night before. He recounted the events in his head, getting all the way up to Cam�
��s one-two fistfight, before he stilled.

  Aubrey…

  Had he really seen Aubrey last night?

  In a flash he was stuffing his feet into his shoes, grabbing his bag, and racing full-tilt toward the front door.

  “Wait!” his mother called, but he didn’t listen. He was opening his car door before Gavin caught up with him, looking every bit as wretched and hungover as Luke felt.

  “Ma says to come back to the house,” Gavin said, catching Luke’s arm.

  Luke snarled, shaking him off.

  “I have to go!” he insisted.

  “She says Aubrey’s already gone. Who the hell is Aubrey?” Gavin said, stifling a yawn.

  “What?” Luke turned to look at the house, confused. His mother stood on the porch barefoot, hands on her hips, looking downright pissed. Not exactly what he wanted to go back to, but Ma seemed to be the only one in the know.

  When Luke and Gavin hit the porch, she just tsked at both of them and pointed to the dining room table, where everyone else was slumped in their seats. Waiting for them, it seemed.

  Luke slid into his seat just as Wyatt gave an exaggerated sigh of misery, which seemed to be the final straw.

  “We’ve been having family breakfast in this house for almost thirty six years!” she declared. “I’ll be damned if I stop just because you all can’t hold your liquor. Grown men, my ass!”

  Every single one of them gawped at Ma, even Pa. She never, ever cursed and forbade them from it in her house.

  “After they way you all represented this family last night, every single one of you can just hush. Eat your breakfast, or I promise that I will find a way to make you feel a whole lot worse than you already do.”

  After the longest, quietest family breakfast of Luke’s whole life, Ma gave her lips a dainty pat with her napkin.

  “All right, now. Luke, Aubrey went home to Arizona. She left this morning, you just missed her.”

  Luke opened his mouth to protest, to ask why Ma didn’t let him go catch his woman, but Ma just shook her head.

  “It’s not the right time. Wyatt, you’d better get that girl out of your room. And I mean right this second.”

  Wyatt turned beet red and rose from the table, heading to the back of the house.

  “Cameron, you’re giving Emmet a ride to the airport so you can apologize to him. And you will apologize, or else. Noah and Finn, you both made a sorry show of choosing your companions last night. I expect better from the two of you, and I don’t want to see either of those girls again.”

  She paused for a moment before continuing.

  “And Gavin. I liked that girl you danced with. Her father asked me for your information, so I think you’ll be hearing from them soon.”

  Gavin looked surprised, but he merely nodded.

  “All done?” Pa asked, reaching out to pat Ma’s hand.

  “Dismissed,” she sighed.

  Everyone rose and brought their plates to the kitchen, following a ritual as old as Luke could remember. When the dishwasher was loaded and the skillet seasoned and the dining room floor swept, they all headed their separate ways.

  Luke found Ma once more, ready to say goodbye. She was sitting in the sun room, working furiously at a needlepoint.

  “I suppose you’re going to leave now, despite my advice,” she said.

  “I am,” Luke said.

  “Aubrey Rose Umbridge is a sensitive soul, just like her mother was. You’d better tread lightly with her, Luke,” Ma admonished.

  “You know her family?” Luke asked, taken aback.

  “I know a lot of things,” Ma said. Luke recognized her mood, and knew he wasn’t getting any useful information from her just now.

  “Alright, Ma,” Luke said, leaning in and kissing her cheek. She accepted it in silence, her expression pensive.

  “You know,” she said at last. “It would be easier for you if you waited a while, until she’s not angry anymore. She’s just like her mother, I bet.”

  Luke tried to find the words to explain.

  “I’ve waited a long time, Ma. I can’t wait for anything else, not anymore.”

  Ma looked up at him, sympathy flashing in her blue-green eyes.

  “Alright then, you go on ahead. I hope it works out for you, darlin’,” she said.

  “Thanks Ma. I’ll call you,” Luke promised.

  “Yeah, yeah,” she said, shooing him away with one hand.

  Luke turned and headed out to his car, wondering what the next step might be. He didn’t know where, when, or how he would track her down, but he knew he would. He had to.

  “Aubrey Rose Umbridge, here I come,” he uttered. With that, Luke just climbed in his car and headed South.

  Luke’s Obsession Cover

  10

  One

  You Are Cordially Invited…

  The Beran Family is proud to be hosting a social mixer at 5 p.m. on June 4th, 2014 in Red Lodge, Montana. The event will feature live music and food, complete with instruction on how to two-step! All eligible Berserkers from Alpha-blooded families in any clan are encouraged to attend. Bring your cowboy boots and come dance the night away!

  Aubrey Umbridge stared down at the pristine piece of white card stock held loosely in her fingers, confused.

  “An invitation…” she said, her brow furrowing as she looked up at her parents. The living room of her family home seemed smaller somehow, as if the chair she occupied was several feet closer to the couch where her parents sat than it had been a few minutes before. The idea of a social mixer with other mateable Berserkers made her mouth go dry, her pulse speed up… and not in a good way.

  “Yeah,” grunted her father, never much of a talker. He was six foot six of pure, burly Alpha bear, all capped with a head bright silver hair and a perpetual scowl.

  “This is what you summoned me out of the city for? I told you guys that I have a really busy week working at the shelter,” Aubrey said, cocking her head.

  Aubrey’s mother leaned forward, and for a moment Aubrey was reminded where she’d got her own looks. Aubrey’s mother was five foot five, built with nothing but curves. Her round, sweet face and sparkling green eyes were a perfect mirror of Aubrey’s own; only her mother’s age and short, light brown hair differentiated them. Aubrey’s own hair was waist-length and dyed a deep cherry red, framing her plus-sized body to perfection and making her dark clothes and pale skin stand out.

  “Aubrey,” her mother said. “We… it’s important that you attend.”

  Aubrey glanced at the invitation again, perplexed.

  “It’s this weekend! I can’t go to this, I have a movie date with Valerie and Samantha,” Aubrey protested.

  “Well, dear—” her mother began.

  “It’s mandatory,” her father cut in.

  Aubrey’s jaw dropped.

  “Excuse me?” she managed after a moment.

  “Required. Not optional,” her father said.

  “I— I know what the word mandatory means, Dad!” Aubrey cried. “I’m more concerned about why you think you can force me to attend some… some shitty Berserker social function. Why in the world would you want me to do that, and why would I ever agree?”

  “To find a mate,” her father said, leaning back against the couch and crossing his arms. “And you need to watch that language in this house.”

  Aubrey found herself speechless for the second time in as many minutes.

  “To find a mate?? You have got to be kidding me! What makes you think you can just demand that of me?”

  “Now Aubrey, dear,” her mother said, trying to mediate. “It’s not just you. It’s all the children of Alpha families.”

  “Dad’s not Alpha anymore,” Aubrey pointed out. “He retired two years ago. I don’t even qualify for this… this invitation.”

  “I was part of the Alpha committee that decided on this. The discussion started years ago,” her father said.

  Aubrey looked at him for a long moment, trying to understand w
hat was going on.

  “The Alphas’ council has nothing better to do than arrange speed dating events for their kids? I have trouble believing that.”

  “Well, you’d better suspend that disbelief, Aubrey. The council isn’t going to sit around and watch our kind die out just because your generation doesn’t want to settle down. This event is not a choice. Finding a mate in the next year is mandatory for all single Berserkers from twenty one to forty five. No exceptions,” her dad said.

  “Are you listening to yourself? This sounds an awful lot like the talk you gave me before you pushed me on Lawrence.”

  Aubrey didn’t miss the way her father flinched at the man’s name.

  “This isn’t the same,” he defended.

  “Aubrey,” her mother interceded. “This isn’t something new. Berserkers have always done this in times of hardship. It’s how your father and I met, if you’ll remember.”

  “You made me a promise! Or have you forgotten?” Aubrey challenged them.

  Her father rose to his feet, his face growing red with fury.

  “It’s been two years, Aubrey! I would have given you anything back then, anything to make you feel safe again. But I never thought you’d be alone for almost a decade. You haven’t had a single serious boyfriend since then, and that’s just not going to fly anymore.”

  “I’ve had boyfriends,” Aubrey said, stung.

  “Bears?” her father asked, raising a brow as he moved toward her, growing aggressive. His bear was close to the surface, rising as surely as his temper. Aubrey’s bear was right behind his, pushing at her in a bid to be free. The bear protected Aubrey savagely at every turn, and wasn’t about to let a little thing like a towering Alpha male get in the way of that duty.

  As she tried to keep her bear at bay, a sneaky thought popped into her head. Normally Aubrey would do anything to avoid seeing her father slip into a rage, but at this moment it would provide her a little leeway. If he shifted and started destroying furniture, her mother would shift in order to quell him. Aubrey would be forgotten in the melee, and she’d be on her way back to San Francisco before they even realized she was gone. She just needed to push him a little further, and her father would snap.