Riley's Pride

by Sandra R Neeley

  Riley chuckled, “I’m not driving you out of town. Well, I am, but I’m actually taking you to my place. You’re welcome to stay or not.”

  “Why would you open your home to me?”

  Riley looked away from the road to look Lucas in the eye, “Because everybody needs a place to belong,” he said forcefully before looking back to the road.

  “And you think I belong with you?”

  “If you choose to. You’re welcome to stay, become a member of my Pride, or stay long enough to make a few bucks before moving on. It’s your choice. Long as you respect me and mine while you’re here, it won’t be a problem either way.”

  “I’m not requesting sanctuary. From you or any other Alpha. You want me to move out of your territory, I can do that. But swearing allegiance and giving up my freedom to come and go like I please is not for me.”

  “Didn’t ask you to, now, did I?” Riley snapped back. “I told you, stay or go, your choice. But respect me while you’re here.”

  Lucas didn’t say anything, but he was considering the Alpha’s offer. If he stayed for a bit, he’d have a roof over his head, food, and have earned a little money to take with him when he left. “What do you do? What do you need help with?”

  “We’re renovating an old store and diner. Getting it ready to reopen. Plus, I’m thinking of starting a construction business. I’ll need a few good hands — if you’re interested.”

  “How many you have now?”

  “Including me? Two.”

  “Two? There are two in your Pride?” Lucas asked, with a bit of attitude.

  “Yup. Gotta start somewhere,” Riley answered. Then thought better of it, “No, no, I got four.”

  “Yup. Four. And one’s me, the other is my three-year-old daughter. So, need I go further?”

  “No, man. No need. I fully understand.”

  Just as Riley started slowing to pull off the highway into the parking lot adjoining his house and the store, Lucas said, rather humbly, “Thank you. For trusting me enough to welcome me.”

  Riley looked at him, and Lucas shrugged, “What with your daughter and all. Not many Alphas would have welcomed me and invited me home with them with their little ones.”

  “I’m going with my gut here. Don’t make me regret it.”

  Lucas was looking at the house and the store as they pulled into the parking lot, and Riley drove them over toward the house. He nodded, but didn’t reply.

  The front door opened. Then, the screen door flew opened so hard it bounced off the wall, and Cristie burst out of it shouting, “Doddy!”

  Libby was right behind her, sweeping her off her feet, “Wait for him to park, baby. Don’t run out there!”

  Riley parked the truck and said, “Come on, I’ll introduce you. Show you where you’ll be sleeping while you’re here, unless you prefer to sleep elsewhere.”

  Lucas got out and reached over the side of the truck for his duffle, then followed Riley at a distance, while he watched the man greet his little girl.

  “Did you finish your decorations?”

  “Yes!” Cristie said.

  “We sure did, got everything ready for tonight,” Libby said, her eyes drifting to the new male Riley had brought home with him.

  Cristie noticed him at the same time, “Who dat?” she asked, pointing at him over her doddy’s shoulder.

  “That’s Lucas. He’s going to stay with us for a while. He’s gonna help us get the store ready. Is that okay?”

  Her delicate little nose wrinkled, “Him’s stinky.”

  Lucas laughed, so deep and resonant it carried over to where Richie was still inside the store and diner cleaning and organizing.

  Richie finished prying the last warped, wooden shelf from the wall and walked out the front door to drop it in the trash pile. He looked over, saw Riley was home, and there was another male with him — surely that male was the source of that laugh.

  “Ya’ll hungry?” he called, waving from across the parking lot.

  “Yup! You mean it ain’t ready yet?” Riley called back, teasing.

  “That’s Richie,” Riley said to Lucas. “He’s my second and will try to feed you constantly. He’s a born chef. And this is Libby,” Riley indicated with a wave of his hand, “and this little one is Cristie. She’s the real Alpha.”

  Cristie wriggled to get down. Riley let her on her feet and she walked over to Lucas, who was a big, big man. She held her hand up, and he reached down to hold her hand. She took hold of his finger and turned for the house, pulling him behind her. “Come on,” she said. “We gots a bafroom.”

  Lucas chuckled and raised his eyebrows at Riley.

  Riley, with a smile on his face said, “Looks like you’ve been approved. Go on in.”

  Cristie walked Lucas inside the house, with him hunching over so she could lead him by the finger, all the way to the downstairs bathroom. “In ‘dere,” she said, letting go of his finger.

  “What am I supposed to do?” he asked her, teasingly.

  “You stinky,” Cristie said, wrinkling her nose again. “Soap!” she said, shaking her finger at him.

  “Yes, ma’am. I can do that, Miss Cristie,” Lucas told her.

  “When you’re done, there’s a bedroom at the end of the hall to the right, at the back of the house. It’s yours if you want it as long as you want to stay.”

  “Thank you, Riley.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Libby said, “I’m going to take out another steak for dinner for Lucas,” and disappeared around the corner with Cristie running right behind her.

  Riley looked at Lucas, “My rules are simple, Lucas. This Pride is new, but first and foremost we are a family. Don’t do anything you wouldn’t do in any family. Be respectful. Be productive. You fuck with me or mine, and I will fuck you up. You are not expected to stay or go. Just a word of goodbye would be appreciated if you decide to move on. At the moment, it’s just room and board. If we start to get some construction jobs, and eventually when the store and diner are up and running, you’ll be paid a fair wage — if you choose to work with us. You can stick around and have your own job elsewhere; working with us is not a requirement.”

  “Fair enough,” Lucas said.

  “Good. Welcome. I’m glad you’re here.”

  Twenty minutes later Lucas walked into the kitchen dressed in a Marine’s platoon t-shirt and tan BDU’s to find Riley and the rest of his people sitting around the table having a late lunch.

  “It’s all I had that wasn’t stinky,” Lucas said, shooting a slight smile at Cristie.

  “Wear whatever you like. And we have a washer and dryer on the back porch if you want to use it. Detergent on the shelf above it.”

  “Thanks. I will. Oh, and I used a couple of the razors in the bathroom, I’ll replace them,” he said rubbing his now clean shaven chin.

  “Not a problem. Sit, have a chili dog. Ain’t exactly gourmet, but man, I love a good chili dog.”

  Richie stood to get him a plate, “Here you go. I’m Richie, by the way. Welcome to our Pride.”

  Lucas took the plate from Richie, “Thanks. I’m Lucas. Not sure how long I’ll be here, but thanks for the welcome.”

  Lucas made a chili dog and was ready to take a seat when Riley spoke up, “Do not even pretend you want only one. We made two dozen, and there’s only those of us you see sitting around the table.”

  One corner of Lucas’ mouth pulled up into a shy grin, and he turned back to the stove to make himself two more chili dogs.

  “You never have to go without here. You will always be warm, fed and safe. Otherwise I’m doing something wrong,” Riley said.

  “And successful. We should prosper, too,” Richie added.

  “Absolutely,” Riley said, taking a huge bite of his chili dog.

  Riley had a mouthful of food, but reached out and pushed the pitcher of iced tea closer to Lucas when he took a seat.

  Lucas poured himself a glass and started eating. He wasn’t sure
what to think. This was far too good to be true. And in his experience, if it seemed to good to be true, it usually was. A selfless Alpha, kind people who weren’t suspicious of him, food, shelter. Nope, had to be more to it. He’d just bide his time and wait for the other shoe to drop.

  Cristie finished eating and slid down from her chair. She walked around to where Lucas sat finishing his fifth chili dog. She lifted her arms up to him, “Up.”

  Lucas stuffed the last of his food into his mouth and looked to Riley. Riley nodded his approval, so Lucas lifted Cristie onto his lap.

  Riley watched, curious about what Cristie was doing, but pleased she took to the big shifter so quickly. It just reinforced what his gut told him — this was a good male that had fallen on bad times.

  Cristie sat on Lucas’ lap, and her little nostrils flared. Her eyes shone, and she squealed, “Doddy! Him like Unca Kaid!”

  Riley chuckled, “Yep. He sure is.”

  “Is that a good thing?” Lucas asked.

  “Yep. She loves Bears,” Riley said, nonchalantly.

  Libby choked on her tea, and looked closer at the male sitting across from her.

  Lucas looked surprised, “He’s a Kodiak? I haven’t come across any in a long, long time.”

  “No, he’s Grizzly, but to Cristie a Bear’s a Bear,” Riley answered.

  “Now, what’s left to do, Richie?” Riley asked.

  “I’ve got most of the store ready to rebuild. Now it’s time to move into the diner side and throw out what can’t be reused, clean it up and get it ready for the new stuff.”

  “Then, let’s get to it,” Riley answered.

  Lucas stood, prepared to help.

  “You want to help?” Riley asked. “You just got here. If you’d rather rest, it’s completely understandable.”

  “Naw, I’m alright. I’d like to help.”

  “Good, we should have this done by dark.”

  “Which is good, because we have a tree decorating dinner planned tonight!” Libby added.

  “You like decorating trees?” Riley asked, as they left the house to go back over to the store.

  “Been years since it was even a thought,” Lucas confided.

  “Better get in the mood. Cristie will have you all Christmasy and sparkling with glitter before you know it,” Richie said, laughing.

  “Is that what’s all over you?” Lucas asked Riley.

  “What?” Riley asked, looking down at himself as they crossed the parking area to get to the store.

  “You’re all shiny and shit,” Lucas said.

  Riley looked down again and realized the sunshine was glinting off silver and red glitter on his arms. He snickered, “Naw, man. That’s just my sparkling personality.”

  Lucas laughed, that deep belly laugh that they’d come to realize was his normal laugh, “Well, then, your personality is sparkling on your chin as well.”

  Richie laughed.

  “I don’t know what you’re laughing at. You got just as much sparkling personality on you as well, Number 2.”

  “Number 2?” Richie asked.

  “Yeah,” Lucas said. He pointed at Riley, “Number 1,” then he pointed at Richie, “Number 2.”

  “Number 2, huh?” Richie asked.

  “That’s what the man told me,” Lucas said.

  Richie didn’t say anything, but his smile could have blinded any who looked right at it.

  Riley didn’t say anything either, but he saw the smile on Richie’s face and knew what the news that he’d told Lucas that Richie was his second was very important to him. He liked that it meant something to Richie — it wouldn’t be taken for granted.

  They entered the building, and Richie gave Lucas a brief description of what was planned. “I already pretty much cleaned out the store this morning. But now we need to do the diner.” Richie pointed toward the opposite side of the building. “Then we need to put in a new wall, maybe one with windows in it so the people in the store can see the people eating and maybe want to eat, too.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Riley said. “And we need to take out that back wall at some point, so we can extend the building to enlarge the dining area, too.”

  “Alright, I can help with all that, but you should build the new structure first, then take out the wall.” Lucas said.

  “Well, no time like now to get started. Let’s get everything, but the demolition, started and we’ll address that in a couple of days,” Riley said.

  “Let’s get to it,” Richie said.

  <<<<<<<>>>>>>>

  “I. Don’t. Care! Find him! Now!”

  “Sir, we are trying. There are just so many different directions he could have gone.”

  “You are all incompetent fools! Find him now! And just as an extra incentive, you will each pay double your regular dues until you do! Am I clear?” he shouted. “And do not forget that each of your families are here with me, should you decide to question your loyalty,” he sneered into the phone.

  “Of course not, Alpha. We know exactly where we are safest and most cared for. We will not fail.”

  Rather than acknowledge the comment, the Alpha simply ended the call. The male on the other end slipped his phone into his pocket and ran his fingers through his hair, “He’s losing it. He’s completely unstable. Now he’s doubling our dues until we locate his son, and he’s threatened our families just for good measure.”

  The male with him snarled. “When the fuck is this going to end? All he’s interested in is money — how can I make more money when he keeps such a stranglehold on us? And what he perceives as a damn insult… if I was that kid, I’d have run long ago.”

  “Unfortunately, we have to find that kid and bring him back. Or our own will suffer for it.”

  “I’ll kill him myself if he tries to touch my family.”

  “Watch your mouth. That kind of thing will end up with you and your family strung up as a warning.”

  Chapter 12

  Riley blew on the mug of hot chocolate in his hands, cooling it so Cristie could take a sip. All the ornaments were laid out, the lights had been unpackaged and were laying at the ready. They’d had a nice relaxed dinner of steaks and baked potatoes, and everyone was pleasantly full and enjoying each other’s company. The Grinch, the original animated one, not those imitation movies of it, was plugged into the DVD player and on repeat on the TV. They were about to start the tree when there was a knock on the door. Lucas, who was closest to it, got up to answer it.

  “Hey. Is Alpha Riley here?”

  “In here, Scotty!” Riley called.

  “Come on in,” Lucas said, standing back out of the way, so Scotty could enter.

  “Thanks,” Scotty said to Lucas, then, “Riley, I brought you a Christmas tree stand just in case you didn’t have one. Is it still okay if I stay and help decorate?”

  “Thanks, man. I appreciate it. We were just about to hammer it into a spare tire to keep it upright,” he said while he held out the cup for Cristie to sip from. “And ‘course it’s okay. We were hoping you’d make it.”

  Scotty smiled wide at the idea of being wanted to help with the tree.

  “Here, let me take that,” Richie said. “Can you help me put the tree in it, Scotty?”

  “Yes sir,” Scotty answered, happy to be of help.

  Out in the truck, Travis sat snarling. Full out snarling. He was fighting a losing battle with himself. He’d been fine with Scotty coming to spend time decorating the tree with Riley and his people. Was thankful they’d included him, until he’d seen Libby’s car parked in front of Riley’s house. Then he’d felt a little left out. But it was okay. He had no business being there, and he knew after last night that Libby didn’t want to be around him anyway. Then, he’d seen a male he didn’t expect open the door. It wasn’t Riley. It wasn’t even that Richie guy. It was someone else. A very big, very male, someone else. If he wasn’t mistaken, it was the Bear shifter that had been hanging around the last few months. Scotty had told him of how R
iley had stepped in when the officers were harassing him earlier today. He just never expected the male to be in Riley’s home.

  So now he sat snarling at the thought that the male was inside Riley’s home — with Libby. And Libby was available. Because he’d let her go. Fool! his Tiger snarled.

  No reason to saddle her with my crippled ass, he snarled back.

  Not crippled. Just a little slower. Heart still good, Tiger said, with attitude.

  Travis just sat there, watching their shadows on the curtains, a low snarl in his chest. He could tell someone was walking around and around the tree, and he could make out the irregular flicker of lights as they moved. They must have been putting lights on it. Ten minutes later they were taking turns approaching the tree — he figured they were putting the ornaments on now. He was just about to get himself completely under control when he saw a smaller figure go up on what must have been a step stool because all of a sudden the figure looked taller, then they fell. And a much larger figure caught that person, but the larger figure didn’t put the person that had fallen down.

  “Holds ours!” his Tiger roared in his head, and before he knew it, he was out of his truck and moving faster than he had in a long time. He pounded on the door, “Riley!”

  Riley started for the door, “You okay, Libby?” he asked.

  “Yes, I’m fine. Wow, that was close. Thank you for catching me, Lucas.”

  “Anytime, hon. You sure you good?”

  Riley pulled the door opened and faced a snarling Travis, who made to shove his way past Riley and enter his home uninvited.

  Riley reached out, stiff arming Travis and knocking him back a few steps. He grabbed Travis by the collar, slamming him into the wall beside the door.

  “I don’t know who the fuck you think you are, Travis, but nobody just barges into my home without my express permission,” Riley snarled.

  Travis growled at Riley, and Riley growled back, right up close and in his face, “Do not fuck with me, Travis. I have no problem teaching you a thing or two about respect.”

  Travis was livid this male dared to step between him and his female.

  “Let me go!” Travis demanded.