The Pack Rules Boxed Set: The Complete Series of Wolf, Bear, and Dragon Shifter Romances

by Michele Bardsley

  And here, mateys, ends the tale a werewolf pirate and his true love who found the most important treasure of all: each other.

  The End

  Her Alpha Mate

  Fire Pack

  THREE DAYS, FOURTEEN hours. Twenty-nine minutes.

  He hadn’t come for her yet. Or maybe he was giving her time. Space. He’d always been good at predicting her needs, her moods.

  He shouldn’t have loved her.

  He shouldn’t have mated with her.

  Alice Mason looked out the picture window at the swirling snow. The dim yellow of the porch light barely penetrated the darkness. Yet she knew that hip-deep snow covered the entire area all the way to the tree line.

  The cabin was isolated, one of several rentals near the lake. She couldn’t remember the name of the water. Earlier in the day, she’d been white-knuckle driving in the blizzard, but still managed to see the sign for the cabin rentals. The woman manning the single desk in the tiny office was chatty, friendly. She said only one other cabin had been reserved. She happily relayed that Alice’s closest neighbors were Hubert and Sarah Gilmore, who were celebrating their fiftieth anniversary by staying in the same cabin where they’d honeymooned.

  Fifty years. What she wouldn’t give to have five whole decades with her soulmate. Her gaze drifted through the tall pines. She knew with certainty that Jonas would come for her.

  But so would the Kunda. The spirit protector of the Fire Pack. The one who would make her pay penance for her body’s betrayal. She would die. Die gladly, so her mate and her pack would survive.

  The Kunda would devour her.

  Jonas could choose a new mate.

  The pack would thrive.

  Alice couldn’t help but think about her life. She had been the fifth pup. The only girl. The weakest one born to her family. Some werewolves left weak pups in the woods -- either to die or to prove they had the strength to survive. But even though she was a mewling, tiny thing, her family chose to keep her. She was nurtured by them. Loved, but not coddled. They expected her to pull her weight. To do as well as her bigger and stronger brothers. To take care of herself.

  They also prepared Alice to take her expected place in the Fire Pack. Her father was among the wolves that patrolled the borders of their territory. He was an enforcer, and due to the pack hierarchy, he was not a wolf with opportunities for advancement. Yet, her father seemed satisfied with his life. Whether or not that acceptance had been easy—well, she didn’t know. So, as the youngest child of wolves with lesser rank, she was expected to follow in their footsteps. Either she followed her mother into administrative work or she joined her father as an enforcer.

  The wolves in the Fire Pack populated the little Californian town of Fuego. All of them were taught to fight at a young age. Alice learned to defend herself, but she wasn’t one to seek violence when cleverness and intelligence could more easily win the day. Her curiosity made her unafraid to ask questions. To dream bigger. To want more.

  Is that what Jonas had seen in her the day of the choosing?

  When he assumed leadership as the new alpha, custom dictated every single female of age present herself to him. As long as anyone could remember, the alpha choose several bride prospects who would then engage in a series of challenges. The winner became his bride.

  It was a stupid tradition.

  She’d had no intention of participating. Not that it had mattered. No alpha in his right mind would pick her. She was too small, looked too delicate, and her family was too low in rank. So, she was never a serious contender.

  Not being considered competition had its advantages. She wasn’t picked on by the other women. Of course, that may have been because she had four protective older brothers who were handsome and more than willing to satisfy the bedroom urges of willing females. And they did not take kindly to slurs against their little sister. The long-held rule of “I can pick on my sibling, but you can’t,” was very much gospel in their family. Alice had gotten used to being ignored, even looked at with pity. She didn’t care about the opinions of others, anyway. She didn’t need approval.

  She had attended the choosing ceremony to please her parents. They knew how she felt about the pack’s archaic traditions and expectations. But still… she hadn’t wanted to disappoint them. They’d always loved and cared for her, even when traditions dictated otherwise, and she figured it would cost her nothing to honor this one small aspect of pack life.

  No. She had not been a serious contender.

  Is that why she’d answered him so boldly? Looked him steady in the eye? And then dared to question his intelligence when he’d pulled her from the line of women and, to the shock of the pack, proclaimed, “I have chosen.”

  Not: I have chosen her. And her. And her. And her, too.

  Not: I have chosen. Ha, ha! Just kidding!

  He’d said, with complete confidence, “I have chosen.”

  No contest. No other choices. No challenges to be met.

  Just… I have chosen.

  “Are you stupid?” she’d asked.

  He’d merely looked down at her and smiled.

  That was the moment I fell in love with you, he later told her. My heart was yours.

  And she believed him. Because after that look, that smile -- her heart was his, too.

  Regret clawed at Alice. She stifled a sob and swept her gaze over the cabin. The place was basically one large room. The front door opened into the living area, which consisted of an overstuffed brown couch and one end table. A single brass lamp with its tan shade looked ready for a garage sale. The couch faced a large, stone fireplace. A cheery fire burned inside the hearth. She didn’t want the fire’s cheer or its warmth, but survival instincts could be strong—even for a woman who had every intention of offering herself as a sacrifice.

  Alice walked into the kitchenette with its small stove, narrow refrigerator, and tiny metal sink. There was a little table and two chairs parked to the right.

  There was nothing in the fridge, but the rental fees had included stocked dry goods as well as dishes, glasses, silverware, and cookware. The king-sized bed was covered by a thick patchwork quilt. The four blue-checkered pillows were propped against the headboard. It looked welcoming, but she didn’t want the bed’s comfort. The door to the left of the bed led to the bathroom. Like everything else in the cabin, it was small. Almost too small for the sink, toilet, and shower crammed into the space.

  Her gaze lingered on the bed. Alice couldn’t curl up in that cozy space… not without thinking about the last time she’d seen Jonas.

  Jonas. Now that she’d had time to process what had happened, what she’d done in reaction to her infertility, she was scared. Not that she thought she’d made the wrong choice—she’d done the only thing she could do. Her sacrifice to the Kunda would not only free Jonas, but also grant favors to the pack. The fire spirit didn’t take without giving.

  Jonas was too intuitive for a male, especially for an alpha male. In the old days, his choice to think rather than to act would’ve made him appear weak. But anyone who knew him, knew Jonas Mason was every ounce an alpha. He’d proven himself time and time again in physical and mental agility. He broke long-held records for both physical acumen and strategy. His father had been alpha, and Jonas had been the firstborn. Even so, no one could say he hadn’t earned his place.

  Alice rubbed her arms, chilled despite the heat emanating from the crackling fire. The waiting was killing her. She’d invoked the spirit of the Kunda after an argument with Jonas, and then left Fuego quickly, because she hadn’t wanted her death to be in pack territory. At least that’s what she told herself. Some small, cowardly part wanted Jonas to find her. To save her.

  Which was pointless.

  “No, Alice. I will not divorce you. Nor will I take a second wife.”

  “You’re stubborn!” she cried.

  He stood in the kitchen, calmly preparing tea, ignoring her vibrating anger. The way he moved, graceful and deliberate, s
imply ratcheted up the anguish clawing her throat.

  “Every alpha for the last five generations has been born from your family. Your bloodline… it’s sacred. Important.”

  “It’s not more important than you.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  He stopped pouring the water and turned toward her. In that moment, she’d seen the truth flash in his eyes. His own heartbreak. The knowledge that the wife he loved could not bear him the pups he needed.

  Her grief washed over her again. She had failed him. Her body had failed him. She couldn’t have his children. He had chosen the wrong female, because the stupid fool listened to his heart.

  He strode forward and gathered her into his arms. He held her tightly until she relented and accepted his comfort. She wrapped her arms around his waist and wept. His grasp tightened, and his chest heaved as he leaned down to press his face against her hair. Together, they grieved for the family they would never have.

  The water splashed Alice’s hand, and she looked down. When had she started to fill the teakettle? She shut off the water then put the kettle onto the burner and turned it on. Next, she opened the cabinet looking for a snack she didn’t really want. But such mundane tasks couldn’t take her mind off Jonas.

  The night of the argument, in their bedroom, the ghosts of their grief hadn’t tempered their lovemaking. Certainly they’d both been haunted by all the visits to various doctors, obstetricians, and fertility specialists, but it hadn’t stopped Jonas from taking control.

  She closed her eyes and remembered their last time together. The last time she lay with him in their marriage bed.

  Alice, still fully clothed, sank to her knees. Jonas warned her to not make eye contact unless he gave her permission. He removed a pillowcase and rolled it lengthwise and used it to bind her hands behind her back.

  He undressed, removing each piece of clothing casually, as if he had all the time in the world. He ignored her, neither looking at her nor coming near her. His blatant dismissal had been designed to thin her patience while it increased the desperate wanting that pulsed through her.

  By the time Jonas stood naked before Alice, she hungered for the slightest look of approval or the merest whisper of recognition. Aching need curled through her, conquering her despair.

  Jonas stepped so close his toes brushed the tips of her knees. Then he demanded, “Suck me. I want to feel your mouth on my cock.”

  Giving a blow job on her knees without the help of her hands was awkward at first. But she got him hard and made him tremble under the onslaught of her tongue, teeth, and lips.

  He pulled away from her, his thighs shaking. However, his expression was placid. He moved behind her and grasped the pillowcase binding her. He led her to their massive dresser and untied her. “Bend over and put your palms flat against the top.”

  Without question, she pressed her hands against the solid, beautifully carved wood. He pulled down her jeans and her silk panties. His fingers, slightly trembling as he controlled his lusts, grazed her hips.

  He rested the tip of his length at her slick opening for no more than a breath before he slid his thick shaft into her wet heat. She thought the rocketing sensation might kill her.

  He fucked her without mercy, telling her unequivocally that she was not allowed to come. Being told not to find pleasure had the opposite effect. Bliss coiled tight and hard, threatening to send her over the edge with every rough stroke of his cock.

  Jonas came, his fingertips biting into her hips as his cries of completion filled her ears. For a long moment, there was nothing but the harsh sounds of his panting and her own low, needy whimpers she couldn’t silence.

  “Stand up.”

  She did as he demanded. She was overwhelmed by the need he inspired. She loved him so much. So. Much. Her body was damp with sweat and quivering with desire. His hands coasted over her belly, down her thighs, and around her ass.

  But he denied his touch where she wanted it the most. Her swollen, drenched pussy.

  “You are so beautiful, so responsive,” he whispered. “You are my wife, Alice. I will not lose you.”

  His thumb brushed her clit and pleasure jackknifed. Two fingers danced along her tender folds then dipped inside her. She felt the erotic press of those digits on her G-spot.

  Jonas pushed her to the brink. He was ruthless. His thumb stroked her tortured sex while he worked two fingers inside her. She bit her lower lip, begging her own body not to give in. Not until he told her.

  “Come for me, Alice.”

  Her orgasm was instantaneous, the pleasure so intense she lost her ability to breathe, to think. Her legs collapsed. Only his arm wound around her waist kept her upright as her body convulsed. His lips pressed against her neck and his hard body cradled hers as she rode the wave to fulfillment.

  The whistle of the kettle startled Alice out of the memory. She got out a mug and a tea bag then turned off the burner and poured the hot water.

  Werewolves were not like humans. They didn’t just worry about themselves as individuals. She and Jonas were not an ordinary couple who, faced with infertility, might choose to adopt. Other packs had different methods for breeding, but in the Fire Pack, wolf bloodlines were important. For genetics, yes, but also to continue an alpha’s line, which was sacrosanct. For all her thumbing her nose at traditions and the archaic beliefs of her pack, especially in the modern world, she wanted the honor, the duty of carrying the alpha’s pups. But beyond that, she wanted to have Jonas’s baby.

  And she could not. So, she’d chosen to call on the fire spirit. The Kunda was a caretaker of the pack, a spiritual being born of fire. It was said the Kunda had been the first Fire Pack werewolf and had sacrificed himself to become the protector spirit. Her pack honored the spirit, but rarely did anyone call on him. Prayers were for the dying. The living were expected to handle their own problems.

  The shame of not being able to produce children would undermine Jonas as the alpha. Her barrenness would dishonor her family, too. At the very least, they would be ridiculed, and at the worst, they would endure abuse, maybe even expulsion. Not even Jonas would be able to shield her family. No one would listen to him if they found out he’d put his love for her over the needs of the pack. Her mate would lose everything, because he was too stubborn to do the right thing.

  The ache in her chest weighed so heavy on her that she slumped onto the couch. She had no destination when she left. She just drove—randomly taking roads without purpose or direction. She’d only stopped for gas when the tank was empty, for sleep when exhaustion overwhelmed her, and to eat when her stomach became so gnarled with hunger she felt lightheaded and nauseous. She had wandered a confusing path so that finding her would be difficult if not impossible for Jonas. But the Kunda would find her. Of that, Alice had no doubt.

  And tonight, she’d finally stopped running.

  The Kunda would come soon, and she almost preferred facing the spirit rather than her furious, worried spouse.

  Almost.

  JONAS RACED AGAINST time to find Alice. After she fled their home, he’d found the evidence that his mate had summoned Kunda. His wife was the most well-read werewolf in the pack and had studied every archaic text she could find. There was probably no one as versed in Fire Pack lore as Alice. So foolish, so idiotic, and so very brave. One of the many reasons he’d picked her to be his mate.

  He’d eschewed the long-held tradition of viewing single women—naked--in the tree-ringed clearing the pack used for rituals. He wanted to do things different than the alphas before him, but he knew bringing the pack into modern times would be a slow process. That’s why he’d chosen the town’s only judicial building, the courthouse, for the day of the choosing, and insisted the women remained dressed. The proceeding took place in the largest courtroom, the judge on standby to perform the human tradition of marriage.

  Jonas had noticed Alice first among all the eligible females filing into the room. She was smaller than the other potential candidates.
She had dressed well, but not provocatively. Her blouse revealed only the pale column of her throat and her black pants accentuated slim hips. She wore black shoes, flat and comfortable, rather than trying to totter on high heels. She wasn’t trying to be sexy, offering bedroom eyes or knowing smirks, or posturing with wiggling hips and thrust-out breasts. Her long, silky hair was worn straight, shoulder-length, in a very no-nonsense way. She had straight-cut bangs that touched her eyebrows, and she’d eschewed makeup. Later, when he introduced himself, he could smell the light floral scent of her perfume and the faint hint of strawberries of her lip balm.

  It was her lack of artifice that made him notice her.

  She looked around the room in open curiosity, her gaze cataloging the architecture and the furniture. She didn’t glance at the other women, who sized each other up while they tried to make goo-goo eyes at him.

  He worked his way down the line, not really listening to introductions, and ignored the bold touches on his arms and hips as the other females vied for his approval.

  When he finally reached her, she looked him in the eye, and held out her hand. She gave a firm handshake, answered his questions point-blank, and he knew, he just knew, that she was the one.

  Jonas’s phone beeped, turning his thoughts to the present. As part of the pack’s revamping of security, tracking devices had been placed on the alpha’s cars. He’d heard about the Shadow Pack’s mate being kidnapped, and he’d started taking measures against such a thing happening in his pack. Alice didn’t know about the trackers, or she would’ve never taken the SUV. Despite knowing where she was, he’d been unable to catch up to her. She’d been running non-stop and he couldn’t predict her moves. The red dot on his phone verified that she was only ten miles away. She hadn’t moved for about an hour, and he hoped it wasn’t because she ditched the car. He was so close now. His heart began to race with a mixture of anxiety and anticipation.