Rose clutched Ty’s hand nervously as they entered the private restaurant. This place was for the elite of the shifter world, and it turned out to be run by Rose’s biologist father. This would be the first time they’d met. They talked on the phone, and that’s all. It had been hard for him. Because no one ever breathed the word about Lily, Rose’s mother’s death, or the fact that Rose existed. Lily was supposed to meet him once he got settled, but he couldn’t contact her after that. She wouldn’t or couldn’t take his calls. He couldn’t go back, not after what happened between Russell, Ethan, and himself. They’d gotten into a fight that now, years later, Alec suspected, was instigated by Russell. Lily had mated with Alec before Russell got his hands on her. But Alec insisted he knew nothing about Rose’s existence. He’d always held out hope that Lily lived and was happy. Now it saddened him to know how mistreated she’d been. Alec was the one that broke the
- 2 years later– “Hey that’s enough, you guys. If you don’t settle down, someone is going to get clawed and we’ll need to get Heather over here to patch you up. Then you won’t be able to go swimming until it heals. Do you want to sit in the bank while everyone else swims?” Frowned as she chastised several young pups and their poppas. The pack had grown in recent years, and they had a few pups to keep everyone on their toes. Gone were the days of beer on the patio and loud music at all hours of the night. They now had a second extension on the packhouse, and this included a large space to pack all the pups for naps and such. It wasn’t something that happened for humans, but in a pack; it was common for pups to bond with other pack close to their age. Growing up together, they either loved or hated each other. There wasn’t a third option, and sometimes the pups could vacillate between love and hate. But they were always pack. Rose’s boys were the eldest of th
“Okay, man. You got me here. What is this place? If I didn’t know better, I’d think it’s a grave.” The night was warm in the woods in the middle of nowhere. Not exactly anywhere. This was on the outskirts of a small town called Brixton Hill. Its secret claim to fame was being neutral territory for the three wolf shifter packs in the area. Jay stood by an old holy bush. The thing was large enough now to be a tree. He’d been called there by Tyler Randell, Alpha of some rogue wolves, the Shadow Pack. He’d been getting to know them, and they appeared legit. Though they were unknown in the area. Jay was looking for a place to belong and it wasn’t in the pack he’d grown up in. Over the last year, he’d made friends with these wolves and built-up trust. “It’s a grave. We brought you here, so you’ll understand what’s about to happen. We’ll tell you what happened and then you can decide to be a part of it, or you can walk away. If you stay, there’s no leaving.” It sounded ominous
Rose Angles found her way blocked from leaving the house by her father’s burly Beta, Jack Davidson. “Go see your father.” “What? Why?” “Go see him before you leave. Better yet, go now and get it over with before you interrupt something important.” Rose hated Jules’ father as much as Jules did. Jack disliked the fact his pup turned out to be a female and preferred to ignore Julia as much as possible. Rose, however, wished her father would ignore her and let her get on with her life. But he was sure that Rose’s behaviour reflected directly back to him, and it was never in a respectful way. She knew the only reason her father wanted to see her was to push his weight around and remind her she was an ungrateful, worthless pup. She wasn’t a pup anymore. She was a full-grown adult. He just failed to see it. “Fine, but it’s a waste of my time to do this. I have better things to do.” She did, but she’d not tell him any more than that. Jack
Rose was leaving the post office after sending off a few letters. She’d been making quiet inquiries about packs she could join. Rose used a PO Box to keep her father’s hands off the letters, and they weren’t allowed to have packages delivered to the packhouse. So, picking up packages was an excellent cover for checking her PO Box for letters. She noticed Jules flirting with a guy by the Jeep. Her attention was completely on him, as was her hand stroking up and down his arm. Well, that was something new for Jules and Rose didn’t recognize the sandy blonde head of a well-muscled man. She couldn’t call him a boy, not built like that. He was clearly a shifter and at least a gamma or enforcer type. Rose could tell just by the way he filled out the leather jacket and the way he stood. She’d have to ask who he was. “Need help to get those packages to your vehicle?” A deep voice off to her right scared the crap out of her. With a slight squeak, Rose had to
The girls met at the Watering Hole for wings and music for their weekly ritual of dancing to live music, eating spicy wings, loaded potato skins, and drinking beer. That was as rowdy as they got in rebellion into their restrictive lives. They were single and members of local packs. With their meal done, the dancing began. Jules asked Amber Mills, daughter of the Blue Dalia Pack Alpha. “Amber, what’s with your cousin Ty and his friend? Why haven’t we met them before?” Jules thought she kept things light. “You met them? Gods, you shouldn’t have. They’re trouble, especially for you both. Stay away from them. I can’t say more. They plan on messing with the status quo. Both your fathers and you are his target. I don’t want to see either of you hurt. Don’t get involved, please. If you value your lives as they are.” That’s where Amber went wrong. Neither woman was content with their life. Those men were a welcome and enticing distraction. Heather
They arrived home late that evening. Rose knew how to avoid her father in the morning. Sure enough, when she looked out of her window, she saw Anita leaving after a night of whatever she did with Russel. That Rose had no interest in knowing. A quick look at her email and texts. Jules wanted to go swimming. No, not necessarily the word swimming was in quotes. What was Jules up to? They commonly coded messages to each other, because they knew both of their fathers randomly looked at their messages. Even though she was twenty-one this past December. Her father treated her like a disobedient child. Rose felt stuck in that state. She needed to get out from under his claws. One of her requests to join a pack must be accepted soon. Or inquiries about where her mother went when she left her father after she was born. Rose wanted to know why her mother left her here with him. So, swimming it was. Their territory bordered a lake, and they swam there. Rose gat
Rose tore along the shoreline, following Jules’ scent. Where were they? Jules was in danger. These two weren’t what they seemed. If they were, then they still weren’t safe. If her father and Jack were out to get them. Where were they? She could hear Ty pursuing her. He’d shifted into the largest wolf she’d ever encountered, and her father was large. Ty, she was sure, was larger. He followed her and was gaining on her each time she looked back. Gods, what was she going to do? She rode her panic attack mostly and tried to think logically. It wasn’t working. Suddenly, Ty was running beside her. As his wolf, he wasn’t even out of breath, while she ran full out. He made contact with her side. Knocking her off her feet. He was on top of her in no time. His jaws on the back of her neck. Ty could snap her neck like this, but he just held her in place. Growling each time, she squirmed under him. Rose soon realized if he’d wanted her dead, she would be. Her resistance slowed, and he finall