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Alpha Picked 40
*** Manzitti *** As I wake up in a flooded warehouse, I struggle to remember where I am and why I am here. My whole body aches and I cannot feel Roman at all which can only mean one thing: those chains holding me down must be silver. I have no idea what time it is or how long I have been here. I am soaked to the bone and my face feels like an anvil has been dropped on it, while the silver prevents my werewolf's fast healing ability from kicking in. I had been driving home after spending the evening with Helen. I was elated at how well everything was going between us, and I had already started to formulate a plan for what would happen if Helen and Summer agreed to come and live with me. I admit I was distracted; happiness does that to a werewolf. One moment I was travelling along the mutual border between Onyx River and Silver Shore and then the next it felt like my car had exploded. I hit my head and then woke up here. “I’m awake and ready to talk. Who are you and what do you wan
Alpha Picked 41
*** Slayne *** I like my new sister-in-law a lot. She is short but feisty, firm but loving and she is going to make an amazing Luna. The strength of her bond with my brother has left me in awe. I believe she will love him and make him happy and content. I feel my brother and Ivan coming closer to us, but Helen doesn’t realise what the pull is yet. She stands agitated at the windows, peering out, trying to see something that isn’t apparent to the naked eye just yet. But when Ivan’s car comes into view, she runs to the front door which she swings open despite the rain outside. When my brother steps out of the car she runs to him, he catches her and lifts her to his chest as she winds her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck and they never break their kiss. Wow! They kiss like no one is watching as the rain drenches their bodies. Meanwhile, Ivan and I stand a short distance apart from each other. It feels so awkward between us. After looking at my brother and his mate f
Alpha Picked 42
*** Melanie *** I cry as I look at the latest test. Pregnant. That is four in a row now. I had finally plucked up the courage to take the test, but I was unbelieving when it came back positive. I tried a different brand; I tried the cheap one and the expensive one and this one is an early response super sensitive one. They all gave the same result. I am pregnant. The tears fall because I realise in this moment how much of a fool I have been. I honestly believed Alan when he told me that Helen had got pregnant on purpose to trap him. He never told me he didn’t want children, he said he didn’t want a child with her, but on hearing that I might be pregnant, he has hurt me, told me to get an abortion and basically said that he never wants children full stop. In those short minutes, I imagined a young, pregnant Helen and how scared she must have felt. How could I have believed him? Unfortunately, I know exactly why: the same reason I forgave him for taking Helen to the ball, for marr
Alpha Picked 43
*** Alan *** As I speak to Rose on the phone, I want to smash this hotel room up. Helen knows about the money, about the monthly allowance and about the second lump sum that is due soon. That lump sum was going to get me away from her, her brat and that easy, clingy slag Melanie and settled in Central America where I can have sun, sea, sand and sangria and completely reinvent myself. I have big plans to create a new and exciting life for myself; it is, after all, what I deserve. I had already started to book in for plastic surgery to subtly adjust my appearance so I will not be recognised. Hair plugs, nose job, new teeth, and abdominal and pectoral implants. With the tan I will surely get, the ladies will find me irresistible. I have my fake passport, I have my flights booked and I have accommodation set up in the several stop-offs I was going to make so that I became untraceable. All I needed now was that lump sum to set me up for the next few years with a business and a home and
Alpha Picked 44
*** Summer *** Mummy comes into her bedroom smelling like flowers and her hair is wet. “Bubble bath!” I shout to her. “No sweetie, Mummy had a shower, you can have a bubble bath later,” my mummy tells me, and I clap my hands. I love bubble bath. Mummy gets dressed and I get my baba and she holds my hand as we go downstairs. It smells delicious down here. I see the big guy who brought my mummy back for me and I am happy to see him. “Up!” I shout to him as I stretch my hands up in the air as far as they will go. He does loud laughs and picks me up. He only needs one arm to hold me, he must be strong like superman! “Good morning, Sunshine! Would you like some pancakes? Your mummy told me they are your favourite.” I clap hands again. I like this big guy. My mummy is extra smiley when he is about. The other guy made her sad and sometimes cry like a baby. But not this guy, this one is good. We all sit at the table with our pancakes. Mummy drinks coffee, big guy has bacon and I have s
Alpha Picked 45
*** Brad *** It was a huge relief that Sal didn’t even question my loyalty, or my family’s. Jose always said she was clever and astute. “Do not take her for a fool, Ale. My little Sal has the noggin of a man, she will rival the best of them. This has nothing to do with her ability and everything to do with the prejudice she will face because she is female.” Those were his words, and as I watched her from afar, I knew he had actually been conservative in his assessment of her abilities. The Mafia is not a lifestyle for the fainthearted. As a third and fourth generation family, both me and Sal have been raised with the customs and expectations. The difference is that my sister was raised to be a wife, mother, and a behind the scenes support network, whereas Sal has been prepped and preened to be those things as well as the female boss. Jose raised her like a Mafia father would raise both his son and daughter, and he and Maria had done a brilliant job. I know civilians would look at
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*** Ivan *** Slayne is busy moving her stuff into my apartment and I couldn’t be happier. We mated and marked each other last night and tomorrow we will have our official Mating Ceremony and then when we do the traditional shift into wolf forms, our wolves will complete the whole process by also mating and marking each other. I can hardly believe after all this time and turmoil, this is finally happening. I told her I still wanted to marry her but she explained that humans have more legal loopholes such as declaring our intention and giving others the chance to object. So, it will take longer to plan. I explained that I would wait forever and that I wanted to give her the world. When we came down to breakfast this morning holding hands and sporting our new marks, everyone gave us a rapturous applause. I knew Slayne was nervous and she hates showing vulnerability, but she did brilliantly, even kissing me in front of our appreciative audience. One of the women from her protest group
Alpha Picked 47
~*~ Flashback ~*~ ~~~ Seven Years Ago ~~~ “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Mrs Smith-Jones.” I hear my sickly-sweet tone as the words come out of my mouth and want to puke. I had asked Helen to marry me and move to Germany last night and I have to say I was a bit shocked when she agreed. So now, here I am, declaring my intentions to her mother and getting her to like me. “Oh, I’m actually Mrs Duvall now, but please call me Rose. It’s nice to finally meet the famous Alan who has swept my daughter off her feet.” She knows how to sweet talk too. I know from my conversations with Helen that this is her mother’s sixth husband, so she’s been around the block, unlike her daughter. “Mum!” Helen shouts, her face going bright red. I do my best Prince Charming act and kiss her hand as I gently laugh at her. “Oh, come on honey, it’s not so embarrassing anymore, I am crazy about you too and last night I asked you to be my wife.” I look at her with my best puppy dog eyes, I hope I am comi
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Alpha Picked 79
FANEI grabbed another crate of flowers and put them in the cooler. The door to the shop opened and Thorne walked in carrying two more.“Where do you want these?”“Are those the daffodils or the baby’s breath?” I asked.He glanced inside the crate and made a face. “This one is baby’s breath, and this one looks like curly twigs.”I laughed. “They’re curly willow tips.” I pointed to where Liv stood at another cooler. “Let Liv have them. They go in that one.”He walked her way, and I stared at him, still blown away that he was mine. It had only been two weeks since the night at my apartment when I asked him to stay after everything with Brooks happened, but it felt like we’d always been together. There was an ease with Thorne I had never felt with Brooks.Life was magical with him.Liv took the crates from Thorne, and then I noticed her checking her watch. That had to be the tenth time in the last few minutes. When she chewed the inside of her cheek—her telltale sign she was nervous—I kn
Alpha Picked 78
THORNE Nadine had asked me to stay the night, which was more confirmation she wasn’t freaked out by my wolf. This meant everything. My wolf vibrated with triumph. He’d expected things to go this smoothly, though.After all, he had already known she was his mate.He also had high hopes for what would happen between us tonight, and as I walked up the stairs to her apartment, I growled at him mentally. Nothing would happen tonight. Not unless Fane initiated it. She’d been through a lot and I would push for nothing.When we reached her front door, she glanced at me and smiled. I caught sight of the purple bruise shading her cheek and any sexual thoughts fled my mind and my wolf’s.My vision tunneled, and red rage flared through me instead.My teeth gritted together as I tried my damnedest to force my anger away, reminding myself she was safe, and that there was no way Brooks would ever hurt her again. It didn’t help.“What?” she asked, innocently.“You need ice,” I said. “Let’s head ins
Alpha Picked 77
FANE Either Brooks had passed out or he was being really quiet. Goose bumps prickled across my skin, but not in a good way. I gripped my cell tight and shifted my gaze from window to window. Thankfully, my apartment was above my sister’s garage and not at ground level, which meant there was no way for Brooks to climb through any of the back windows. If he got inside, it would be through either of the two windows alongside the front door or through the door itself.Even knowing this, my anxiety was still through the roof.I’d never seen Brooks like this before. Typically, he was controlled while in the public eye, and he rarely let himself get this drunk unless we were home. My heart beat triple time against my ribs, becoming the only thing I could hear. Until the sound of a motorcycle broke through everything.Thorne.Tension melted from my muscles, and my grip on my cell loosened. I pulled in a deep breath and exhaled it slowly, glad he was here. When it sounded as though he’d pulle
Alpha Picked 76
THORNE We walked to where we parked by the light of Fane’s flashlight on her phone. I didn’t need it, but I didn’t say so. Thanks to my wolf, I could see just fine in the dark.As soon as we reached her car, she spun around to face me and I knew what words were building on the tip of her tongue.“Nope,” I said with a shake of my head. “I don’t want to hear you say you’re sorry for the things that happened tonight or thank you to me again.”She smiled. Damn, she was pretty when she smiled.“Okay, so what do you want to hear me say, then?” she asked, and I swore she was flirting with me.I liked this side of her. This flirty, confident side that came out from time to time.It was sexy as hell.I took her hand and brought it to my lips, kissing along her knuckles while staring into her eyes. Her pupils dilated and my wolf picked up on a light scent of arousal. He released a howl and urged me to kiss her like before. I didn’t. A kiss on the hand was what she needed right now.Someone to b
Alpha Picked 75
FANE When Thorne pulled into a gas station, I assumed it was because he needed gas for his motorcycle, but when he parked in a space instead of at a pump, I realized that wasn’t the case. I pulled into the parking space beside him, wondering what we were doing here.“I’m heading inside for something. Be right back,” he said, sliding off his bike, looking sexy as hell.I leaned against my seat and exhaled a slow breath while watching him walk inside. This day had been a roller coaster. My teeth sank into my bottom lip as my thoughts drifted from one moment to another. I glanced at my wrist. It was still wrapped like Thorne suggested. While it was tender to the touch, I was glad I’d gone through with covering up Brooks’ name. I wanted nothing to do with him ever again.Thorne came back, his presence pulling me from my thoughts. There was a six-pack in his hand and a lopsided grin on his face. I smiled back, but narrowed my eyes.What did this guy have up his sleeve? He looked like he w
Alpha Picked 74
THORNE I hated Brooks. He was like a pimple that popped up at the most inconvenient time. Fane and I had been having a good time before he’d rudely interrupted us. Our thank-you drink was becoming a celebratory one. It was great she’d worked out a deal with May and was buying May’s Flowers. It was a beautiful thing when someone knew what they wanted to do with their life and made it happen.And then here was this douchebag tripping her up.Fane was moving forward, but he kept pulling her back.“Can we go?” she asked, looking directly at me. There was fear in her eyes. Clearly, she’d seen this side of him before.“Yeah, sure,” I said without hesitation. Bars weren’t really my scene, anyway.I tossed a twenty on the bar to pay for our drinks, even though she said she would buy, and gave Joe a nod before lacing my fingers through Fane’s and steering us toward the exit.“Holy shit!” Brooks shouted from behind us, causing my wolf to go on high alert. He’d picked up on Brooks’ anger escala
Alpha Picked 73
FANE I walked toward the doors of Last Drop, my mind racing. I couldn’t believe I’d asked Thorne Beckett out for a drink. It was a bold move, but after everything with Brooks and my tire, it felt right. Thorne had helped me more than he could ever know today.“Fane,” a familiar voice called from behind me while I walked through the parking lot.I spun around to see Thorne weaving his way toward me.“Hey, you came,” I said, unsure why.“Of course I did. You offered to buy me a drink.”“Right, that I did.” Ugh. I sounded like a complete idiot!“I’m kidding. I would have come even if you hadn’t offered to buy me a drink,” he said, still sauntering toward me. An adorable grin hung from his lips, one that sent butterflies through the pit of my stomach.Thorne was hot—smoking hot.I scolded myself for the thought. This wasn’t a date. It was me buying him a drink because he’d helped me with my shitty Brooks issues more than once today. I shouldn’t feel butterflies while in his presence.“Re
Alpha Picked 72
THORNE Nadine was scared. I could tell. And it was driving my wolf wild. He didn’t like smelling her fear saturating the air around us. All he wanted was for me to fix it. To comfort her and make her feel better.The problem was, I didn’t know how.Talking to her and getting her mind off her asshole ex seemed like the way to do it, but I didn’t know what to say. My mind was drawing a complete blank, and it didn’t help that my wolf was pulling me in multiple directions. While he wanted me to stay here with her, to protect her and make sure she was okay, he also wanted me to track Brooks down and make him bleed for hurting her.I had an internal battle waging inside me, tearing me in two.I outlined the last petal of her lotus and then cleaned her skin. The shop door opened as I covered her tattoo with plastic wrap and secured it. I didn’t have to look over my shoulder to know who had entered. I could tell from the way Fane’s fear intensified in the air and how her body tensed.Brooks
Alpha Picked 71
FANE I found a parking space on Main Street and cut the engine of my car. To say I was excited to get Brooks’ name covered with a lotus flower was an understatement.However, I was also excited to see Thorne.As I thought about the conversation we’d had on the phone the other night when I called to book my appointment, I wondered for the millionth time if he’d cared that I had shortened his name to Cal.I hoped not.I exhaled a slow breath as I slid out of my car and made my way down the sidewalk toward Inked Wolf. When I spotted Ms. Lynette on the bench beneath the clock tower in town square, I smiled and waved at her. She motioned for me to come over, so I headed in her direction. There was still ten or fifteen minutes before my appointment with Thorne. It was enough time to say a quick hello to her and then make my way back across the street.“Hello, Ms. Lynette,” I said when I reached her.She held up her index finger. “I have something for you,” she said, before rummaging throug
