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2024-10-29 19:42:56ASTRID
It’s after dark by the time I return to the packhouse that night. I stayed late working with the IT unit and Quinn was kind enough to give me a ride back here afterward. I was so busy all afternoon that I didn’t have much time to think about Brock or how dismissive he was on the practice field this morning, but it returns to the forefront of my mind as I make my way up the front walk and twist the knob on the front door to let myself in.
When I push the door open, my eyes immediately land on Brock. Damnit. He’s straight ahead in my field of vision, lounging on a couch in the great room in a t-shirt and a pair of grey sweats. And of course, as soon as my eyes land on him, he looks up and our gazes lock like magnets.
I quickly look away, stepping over the threshold and pushing the door closed behind me with a hip, toeing off my gym shoes and sweeping them aside under the bench. I can still feel Brock’s ey
C.J. PrimerHope you enjoyed this super-sized, super steamy chapter! Thanks for reading!
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Alpha Brock 18
BROCK“Damn, you’re up early,” Jared comments as I stroll into the kitchen on Saturday morning.“Don’t get used to it,” I groan, going straight for the coffee pot and pouring myself a cup. My nose twitches as a delicious scent wafts my way from the oven. “Damn, what’s that smell?”“Your mom brought a quiche over,” Jared says, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back against the kitchen counter. “I think it’s bacon and tomato this time.”“Nothing gets me out of bed faster than the smell of Mom’s quiche,” Brent laughs, sauntering in. He looks my way, narrowing his eyes. “Bacon and tomato again, really? Isn’t that your favorite?”“Sure is,” I smile smugly.When we were growing up, my mom would make a quiche every Saturday for breakfast, changing up the types of veggie
Alpha Brock 19
Astrid I blink as I look up at Brock, his words registering. He didn’t just call me ‘Anna’, did he? But the look of horror in his eyes tells me that he did. Behind me, I hear Jared choke and Brent snort. Yup, he just called me ‘Anna’. And from the things I’ve heard about his past and the vision I caught from him last week, I’ve already put two and two together as to who Anna is. The ex. My mouth drops open, but no sound comes out. I’m truly at a loss for words. “Shit, I didn’t…” Brock grumbles, shaking his head and scrubbing a hand over his face. “I meant…” He’s completely panicking. Thanks to my intuitive abilities, I can feel his panic register as if it’s my own, prickling my skin like icy shards. While I haven’t yet processed my own reaction, my immediate reaction to his panic is to calm it. I reach out, pressing my palm to his chest as I look up into his eyes. “I
Alpha Brock 20
Brock As soon as I turn the key in the ignition, I know that the drive back to Riverton is going to be tortuous with Astrid sitting beside me, looking and smelling like sin. The girl is hot as fuck; way too damn tempting for her own good. So fucking sweet, too, but with the heart of a warrior. I know I shouldn’t let her get too close, but how can I resist her? I pull out of Goldenleaf onto the main road, glancing sideways at the beauty seated next to me. I can’t help myself from reaching over to touch her exposed thigh, gliding my fingers all the way from her knee to the hem of her little black dress. It’s way too fucking short- every guy in the place was checking her out tonight. Probably why me and my wolf were both slowly driven into a frenzy watching her, and why I couldn’t waste another second before getting her out of there. Her eyes are alight with the golden shimmers of her wolf as I run my fingertips along the hem of her dre
Alpha Brock 21
ASTRID“Astrid!” Quinn calls from her desk in the back of the room when I walk into the IT hub on Monday, peering at me over her computer monitor and waving a hand to beckon me.I smile brightly, making my way down the aisle between the desks in the hub to her workstation. I really like Quinn- we’ve always been friendly over video chat, and since meeting her in person we’ve become fast friends.“Hey!” I chirp, rounding the corner of her desk. I set my butt on the edge beside her, leaning back on my palms. “What’s up?”I hear the whir of the wheels of Brooke’s desk chair against the floor as she slides over from her spot on the other side of the aisle, positioning herself in front of me with a look of determination on her face that rivals Quinn’s.I glance suspiciously from one girl to the other. “What?”“Are you gonna s
Alpha Brock 22
BROCK “You good to go?” I ask, twirling the keys to the Escalade on a finger. I had to come back to the complex this afternoon for a meeting with squad leadership, so I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone and hang around for a bit afterwards to give Astrid a ride home. She looks up at me as she walks out of the IT hub with Quinn and Brooke, surprise playing on her features when she sees me. “Oh, yeah!” she smiles cheerfully. “I didn’t know you’d be around today, I’d already talked Quinn into giving me a lift.” She turns to Quinn, nudging her with an elbow. “Guess you’re off the hook.” Quinn sweeps her long brown hair over a shoulder, eyeing me with interest. “Good thing you just happened to be here, huh?” she comments, her lips pulling into a smirk. I shrug. “Had a meeting.” “I’ll see you girls tomorrow,” Astrid says over her shoulder as she breaks off from the others and starts toward me.
Alpha Brock 23
BROCK I hate the way that Astrid makes me feel out of control. I tell myself that I’m going to keep my distance, and then as soon as I see her, I’m instantly yanked to her like a magnet. I can’t resist her scent, her sexy little body. Her bright smile and that airy giggle. Her eternal optimism. Somehow all the things I used to find annoying about her are suddenly adorable, and it frustrates me to no end. Like my body and my instincts are betraying my rational mind. Practice with the squad on Tuesday morning isn’t enough to take the edge off, so I decide to extend my workout by hitting the weight room at the complex with Jax and Theo afterwards. It’s the best time to go because most of the squad is in the dining hall for lunch, and we walk in to find that we’ve basically got the place to ourselves. The three of us alternate spotting and lifting, and a half an hour in, my muscles are sufficiently burning. It’s a good burn. The k
Alpha Brock 24
ASTRID “No way, you’d love it here!” I laugh, looking at Sam’s smiling face on my computer screen. I’m so thankful for video chat- it’s tough being away from the people I love back in Denver and seeing their faces on a regular basis makes the distance easier to bear. “If you say so,” Sam chuckles, rolling his eyes. “We just miss you back at home, that’s all.” I heave a sigh, sliding off of my bed and picking up my laptop, holding it in front of me as I walk out of my room and head down the hallway. “I miss you guys too. You keeping Cole out of trouble?” “Always,” he laughs, running a hand through his golden hair. I pad into the kitchen on bare feet, rounding the island and sliding my laptop onto it, spinning around to pull the fridge open. “Good, you better,” I say as I take out a bowl of grapes, tearing one from the stem and popping it into my mouth as I spin back around. “The last group from h
Alpha Brock 25
BROCK “So we’re looking at a week to ten days,” Reid sighs, cracking his knuckles in front of him and leaning back in his chair. “Meaning we should’ve already sent the first half of the squad down there.” The five of us squad leaders are gathered in the conference room at the complex, and the tension in here is so thick that it’s almost suffocating. “So let’s send them in the morning,” Theo suggests. “We already split ‘em up, told them to be ready at a moment’s notice…” “We’re gonna have to,” Gray agrees. A grim silence settles over us, because this right here, this moment, is when it becomes real. We’re sending off our warriors, knowing full well the real cost of war. That some of them won’t be coming back. It’s a reality that, fortunately, our squad has never had to face until now. As the leaders, all five of us feel responsible for the squad members, so the thought of taking casualties is a h
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Alpha Brock 44
ASTRIDI have no business being this happy when there’s a war on its way, yet here I am, flitting around the ballroom of the lodge on Brock’s arm with a permanent smile etched on my face. I’m overwhelmed by the number of people that came out to celebrate with us tonight- not only from all six packs in the territory, but from Denver, too. Even my parents showed up, shockingly tearing themselves away from their vacation home in Arizona to make the trip here to meet Brock.Hundreds of people are here in the ballroom tonight, and once dinner is over, Brock and I are constantly being tugged in different directions to chat with our guests. Brock gets pulled away by the guys for a while and I get distracted with the girls, sipping on too many glasses of champagne. The bubbles tickle my throat and go to my head, and I’m even more giggly than usual, lost in laughter as Quinn tells the story of when she and Jax were
Alpha Brock 43
BROCK “Don’t be nervous,” my dad mumbles under his breath, setting a hand on my shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “Who says I’m nervous?” I grumble back to him. My old man’s right, though- I can’t stop fidgeting as I stand in front of him and my mother beneath the arbor behind the packhouse. It’s set atop the little hill by the treeline, and it’s dripping with greenery and florals, a perfect backdrop for Astrid to take her vows and seal herself to the pack. Being here right now feels a little fucking surreal, considering the messy path it took for me and Astrid to find each other and be together. Still, I wouldn’t trade a single day with her for anything. If these past weeks together have proven anything, it’s that fate doesn’t make mistakes- she’s truly my soulmate. Tonight, she becomes my pack’s official Luna, and I couldn’t be prouder. The whole pack is here for the ceremony, gathered on the lawn behind the
Alpha Brock 42
ASTRID Planning a Luna ceremony in the span of a few weeks is no easy feat. Well, I take that back- the ceremony itself is relatively simple; it’s just the pack gathering, me taking my vows, and performing the blood rites that bind me to the pack and their land. It’s an intimate event for pack members only. The celebration afterwards, however, takes a lot of planning and coordination, because it’s like a giant wedding reception complete with cocktails and dinner and dancing and a million little details. Invitations to the post-ceremony celebration are extended to other packs in the area, and my family and friends from Denver are traveling here to celebrate with us. Pulling together an event of this magnitude under a time crunch has been a challenge, to say the least. It’s not like our lives haven’t been crazy enough lately. Preparations for the war with the shadow pack have been nonstop at the squad complex, and it’s all hands
Alpha Brock 41
BROCK “Damn, we must be the first ones here,” I say as I pull up to the curb in front of the Stillwater packhouse and cut the engine. True to his word, Gray called a council meeting the day after I returned from Denver. This time, though, we’ve got a few others joining us in addition to the council- Brooke and Quinn, because they’re leading the charge with IT these days, Astrid, because she’s our connection to our Denver allies and has the most information about the shadow pack through her visions, and Fallon, because she wasn’t about to sit this one out while everyone else’s mates participated. Jared’s on the council as my beta, but he had some business to attend to, so he told Astrid and I to go ahead and that he’d meet us here. “Didn’t Gray say six?” Astrid asks, unbuckling her seatbelt. I glance down at the clock on the dashboard, which reads 5:45 p.m. “Yeah, which is more like six thirty in alpha time. Can
Alpha Brock 40
ASTRID Brock’s closet is definitely not big enough for the both of us. I started moving my things in today, and I’ve basically taken over most of the space already. I already knew I owned an exorbitant amount of clothing, but next to Brock’s minimalistic wardrobe, the sheer volume of what I have is a little embarrassing. He hasn’t teased me about it, but I caught a few raised eyebrows and sly glances pass between him and the guys as they lugged all my stuff upstairs. Something I didn’t expect upon returning to the Riverton packhouse is that it already kinda feels like home. I really settled in here over the past month; I’m comfortable in the space and I have a good groove going with all of the guys. That’s not to say I won’t get homesick for Denver at some point, but for now, it has definitely eased the transition. That, and being with Brock- because as long as I’m with him, I’m home. After unpacking, we have dinner wi
Alpha Brock 39
BROCK“You glad to be back?” Astrid asks from the passenger seat as we roll back into the six-pack territory a few days later.“Yeah,” I admit, blowing out a breath. ‘Glad’ is an understatement- I’m fucking ecstatic. Relieved. Eager to return to some semblance of normalcy after the roller coaster ride I’ve been strapped into since leaving this place over a week ago. After experiencing the highest highs and the lowest lows, I’ll happily settle into something more mundane.“How about you?” I ask, flicking her a sideways glance. She’s wearing black leggings and her white Estes Park sweatshirt, her hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun. As much as I love when she’s all dressed up, I swear she’s prettiest when she’s casual like this. Her natural beauty is beyond compare.Astrid turns to look at me, her face lighting up with her smile.
Alpha Brock 38
ASTRIDI’m sure Brock’s friends will be anxious to hear that he’s awake and well, but for right now, I want to keep him all to myself for a little while longer. I’ve been waiting all my life for my mate, so I feel like it’s okay to be a bit selfish… and besides, he isn’t exactly clamoring to leave this bed right now, either. Not when we’re both basking in the afterglow of our lovemaking and fresh markings. I can’t remember ever being this happy.Brock holds me close and we both doze off, and by the time I wake again the sun has gone down. I lift my head to see that he’s already awake, just watching me. It would be creepy if it wasn’t for the unbridled adoration in his eyes. Swoon. What is it about a tough guy softening for you that’s just so damn irresistible?When he sees that I’m awake, Brock angles his body toward me, running his han
Alpha Brock 37
BROCKDarkness. It’s all-consuming, and it keeps pulling me under. Every time I start to come back into myself, it sucks me into its depths again. Fuck, maybe I’m dying. Maybe this is it for me. Nothing has ever come easily to me, so it’d make sense that death wouldn’t, either. She’s the only thing keeping me anchored. Some part of me can sense that she’s near, and I keep reaching out to tug on the bond between us, trying to pull myself back to her somehow.Peaches. The scent tickles my nose, along with something else- strands of hair, as soft as spun silk. I bury my nose deeper, inhaling her into my lungs, into my soul. My eyes fight to adjust to the light as I blink them open. My limbs feel heavy. I wiggle my fingers and toes, testing their dexterity as my mind slowly clears out the fog, waking up.My left side is cloaked in warmth- Astrid is curled into my side tightly with her head r
Alpha Brock 36
BROCK The corners of the room are dark; only the floor in the center is bathed in moonlight. That’s where I find her, lying there in wolf form, honey brown fur soaked in blood. She raises her head weakly, her eyes colliding with mine, and I feel it- the mate bond snaps into place, the strength of it nearly knocking the wind out of me. My adrenaline surges, my hair stands on end- all of my endorphins seem to release at once, bathing me in a feeling of pure euphoria. I found her. My mate. Both of our wolves tuck away almost simultaneously, the air shimmering as we both shift to our human forms- me, still standing on top of the door I knocked down, and Astrid, lying on the concrete floor, struggling to push up on her arms. She’s bleeding, badly injured, but her lips draw into a weak smile as she gazes back at me. “You came,” she whispers hoarsely, and my heart swells in my chest, feeling like it coul
