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Getting Down to Brass Tacks
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In the Chains of the Alpha Enter Lycan
Tara stood by the sight of where the mage portal would appear on the main floor of the club. It turned out that out-of-town supernatural clients could arrange to come and go from this portal area so they could avail themselves of the club. They verified all their credentials before they made the portal appointment with the mages. Today Tara watched the blue glow of the portal form. It was the first time she’d ever seen a portal in action. Now the Lycan would use the portal to arrive here. It was fascinating to see the blue glow open to swirling blobs of multi-coloured light. Tara now understood why Cal warned her of the feeling nauseous a little from the way the colours moved and shifted. Only moments later, several figures were seen making their way out of the portal. Each one carried a backpack or bag of some sort. Tara realized she could relate to these Lycan. Everything they owned was in those bags. Tara’s bag, she assumed, was still in the mote
In the Chains of the Alpha Old Habits Die Hard
Five Days LaterWith the Lycan settled into their homes. The scramble to get everything a wolf shifter needs to live comfortably for each one. Tara soon learned that the small she-lycan was still coming to grips with her ability to shift, her instincts and senses amplified as they were, and just the culture shock of how differently they live to humans. As she started life as a human before Hectric took her for their experiments. The files were correct. Each Lycan had unique experiences and needs. There was no way to create a blanket program to get them back to being a functional being.However, Eddie found that if he took her into the kitchens and gave her a little encouragement, she was an excellent baker, and he was an excellent assistant. The two began to haunt the kitchens to the point that Rachel assigned them both to work there. The little Lycan was educated as a baker in her human life and quite talented at it. Eddie seemed to have a natural talent for preparing foods and follo
In the Chains of the Alpha In Walked Grandma
“Tara, we held off on this to the point of being rude. We can’t back out again. It looks like we aren’t serious about opening the lines of communication with the Maple Grove Pack. We have to go. Now please get ready. It shouldn’t be a terrible drive if we leave soon.” Cal explained for the second time today. He’d lost count how many times he explained this to Tara. “You are strong enough to handle anything they might say or do. I’ll be right there, and I promise you I won’t accept them acting out against you in any way. If they try to do that, I’ll pull you out of there so fast everyone will have whiplash. Now go get ready.” Cal put some stress behind his last words, and he wasn’t surprised that he put a little of his presence behind it. He was frustrated and didn’t want to deal with her fears again.Tara had been running the gambit of those fears and now they were stuck on repeat. Cal was fairly certain he could now pick out a pattern on how they surfaced.“Fine, I’ll try to hurry.”
In the Chains of the Alpha It Takes Two
Tara hesitated for only a few breaths until her mind could catchup to what the old, she-wolf demanded and who she identified herself as. Her grandmother. This was someone that insisted Tara had roots and a family. Not just a male claiming her as one of his. She knew this she-wolf existed. Kole told her to expect to meet her. What she didn’t expect was the depth of surprise at there actually being a real person actually waiting to meet her. Really wanting to meet her, not just reluctantly there. “Go on Tara, she wants a hug. She really wants to know you’re real.” Cal whispered from behind her in encouragement. He probably was right. Touch and scent were so important to wolves. A scent could tell them so many things about the wolf. From their health, to pack, and even in some cases some wolves could recognize family by scent even if they were new to them. Which could cause all sorts of issues for others. Nothing like finding out that you’re a father by catchin
In the Chains of the Alpha Twenty Questions
Cal’s hand settled back on Tara’s shoulder, shocking her out of the daze she’d been in for several moments. “I’m sorry, this is something that took Tara completely by surprise. She’s going to need time to understand what it all means. What we’ve learned as we dealt this the scum who had her is that they taught her nothing about our world and what to expect. She’s been almost alone for most of her life. She raised a pup believing he was her younger brother. Before you ask, sadly he’s no blood relative, but we were able to save him as well. He’s finally able to settle within our pack. The wolf who claimed to be her father was murdered and the female, who is the male pup’s mother, is still missing. We gave Kole the information Tara could remember about her, and he’s given that to your investigator. But she has little understanding of what a pack or family.” Cal thought it best to get this out of the way so that Elaine and Elliott could understand why Tara isn’t jumping for joy a
In the Chains of the Alpha Age vs Thoughtless Don't Cancel Out
“So there’s nothing special about how you were raised, pup?” Cal wasn’t sure what Stone was trying to get Tara to say, but it was annoying him. “If you want me to tell you, it was all rainbows and sunshine. It wasn’t. I don’t talk about the rest. What’s the point of rehashing it?” He hated hearing the annoyed tone Tara had in her voice because he could hear and almost feel her pain. “So you don’t want to talk about it?” “Why would anyone want to talk about stuff like that? It’s not like I have anything to be proud of.” Stone’s eyes narrowed at these words. “No sob story about how badly you were treated. No seeking comfort?” Tara sat there and returned the old wolf’s stare for stare before she simply said. “What would be the point?” “The point is to get attention, pup. To gain something you want.” Stone’s temper was surfacing now. “But that means I would have to want something from you. I am curious, though. What s
In the Chains of the Alpha Making Things Clear as Stone to Stone
“That’s my third pup there and his mate. Your uncle, Stephen, and his mate, Ariel. Their grown pups, Erin, and Eric. That about covers your living family here, dear. Everyone sit please. Stone has created enough excitement and drama for one day. She has a sweet soul. Stephen, treat her like you would your sister and don’t act like your father if you know what’s good for you. As for the doghouse, it’s an old guard shack that’s been turned into a bunkhouse for single wolves who, for one reason or another, don’t want to make the trip all the way back to their homes to sleep. It’s affectionately called the doghouse because often there’s trouble between the few mated wolves that stay there.” “Oh, good grief. That’s horrible.” “Oh, don’t think your grandfather hasn’t stayed there a time or two. Though these days he’s more likely to use a guest apartment.” Tara looked over the tissue at Elaine with a shocked expression. “You’re joking.” “No, I’m n
In the Chains of the Alpha Parting Words
Kole wanted to get back to the gathering as quickly as possible. He didn’t want any misunderstandings between anyone, let alone the two packs. There was no way he’d explain to the pack that their beloved elder and ex-alpha alienated his first born grand pup with blind stubbornness, hateful questions, and fear. That wouldn’t be happening today or any day. Kole wouldn’t risk fighting with Cal. How would it look when the Council of Alphas met? His father always forgot about that. Though the council of alphas didn’t exist during his time in control of the pack. He’d been a forward thinker of his time and moved his pack to a territory that was being noticed by the local humans. It meant he could settle their businesses in, and those humans would see those businesses as founding members of the business community. “Let’s go back down now and please be nice to her. She’s so much like Heather and you wouldn’t talk to Heather that way. Just apologize and let mother do
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In the Chains of the Alpha Conclusion
One Year Later —Tara sat out on the poach behind the packhouse with a laptop open to a spreadsheet. She and Emily were working out the next year’s budget and the projects they’d tackle.With Emily looking after the club while they were up here. It was interesting, to say the least.Tara gave birth on schedule. It was about the only thing that was on schedule these days, and Cal was sitting on a blanket on the grass with one-year-old Natalie Nichols. The apple of her daddy’s eye. She had him wrapped around her little finger and he’d have it no other way.Eddie and his Lycan girlfriend were now running the kitchens here for Rachel. They’d mated and, well… Tara expected to hear that they’d have pups soon enough.Jaxon, well, he was back in the city. Tara wasn’t sure what was happening with him. Cal wouldn’t speak of it. But Jaxon took a leave of absence from his position for a bit. Tara wasn’t receiving the full story. But as far as she could tell. Jaxon may have two mates. One wasn’t d
In the Chains of the Alpha New Territory New Commitment
Five Months Later —Tara felt like the size of a house. She propped her ankles up on her desk and she had to eat her fries with no salt. It wasn’t the same, nothing tasted the same. The poking from inside was regular now and she couldn’t wait for the last six weeks to go by. She’d been six weeks pregnant when her symptoms started and since then, if it wasn’t one symptom, it was another. Tara would be more than happy for these little monsters to enter the world.Cal was everywhere and nowhere, it seemed. He told her to clear her calendar today because he wanted to show her their new territory. The thought of trudging out there was exhausting to her. But she’d do it because he was just so insistent. He promised they’d stay the night out there and come back the next day at a leisurely pace.“You ready to go?”“Yes, I just don’t understand why we have to do this now. When all I want to do is take a nap.”“You can nap in the vehicle on the way. Don’t worry, I’ve packed everything we need a
In the Chains of the Alpha Telling Cal
Tara could feel the ball of conflicting emotions rolling about in her head and her belly. She had a new life inside her. No matter what, she’d never be alone again. But how did she explain all of this to them when the time came?How should she explain this to Cal? He had to be expecting this. Look at the second floor. She didn’t like it necessarily. Their pups living completely separately from us with someone else looking after them. Why hadn’t they spoken about this before?Tara’s eyes closed as the elevator dinged and opened. She’d not thought that it was important before this because she wasn’t pregnant, and they didn’t have any pups. Now she thought of it.This morning, Cal was gone before she got out of bed. This was a day she didn’t train, because there were other things she needed to get done. Which, of course, didn’t get done? A few steps brought her to Cal’s office over the club.She knocked and entered when she received the okay to enter. Tara lucked out because Cal was alon
In the Chains of the Alpha The Verdict is
David Monroe struggle with the enforcer training. His heart wasn’t in it and his skills lay in other places, but everyone lumped him in with the other male Lycans because he was a Lycan. He’d exhausted almost every avenue trying to explain to them he’d rather be patching people up and treating pups with fevers. While he was moping during a break, his phone rang, and it surprised him to see that Emily’s name came up on his phone. “Hello, Emily. What’s wrong? Why are you calling?” He couldn’t think of a reason she could be calling him for, but any chance he got to speak with her was better than nothing. “I’ll tell you, but you have to be very careful with what you say. No one can know why you’re about to be ordered to the Luna’s office. What we need you to do, is slip out of the packhouse. If anyone asks, you’re running an errand for the Luna. That’s it nothing more. What you need to do is go to the closest pharmacy and pick up a pregnancy kit. Come back here
In the Chains of the Alpha No One Prepared Her for a Morning Like This
Again, Tara was up late the next morning. Cal was determined he wouldn’t let her feel like he neglected anything about her. From sympathizing with her, to how her emotions were toward absolutely everything, and he didn’t forget to include planning their future together.Well, he talked, and she mostly listened. What he said wasn’t bad. Tara didn’t have a problem with any of his ideas. She didn’t have much to add or at this time have an emotional connection to any of it.Now, though, Tara needed to get her day going, and she felt like something that had been dredged from a swampy pond. It took only minutes for Emily, her newest staff member, to realize there was something wrong with Tara.“If we had a cat, I’d say you look like the latest thing it dragged home. When will we see you going to a healer?” Emily eagerly asked Tara as she returned from her latest flight to the bathroom. Tara looked at her with an expression of exhaustion.“I’m fine and I’m not planning ongoing to see one.” S
In the Chains of the Alpha A Clue to Follow
“Stone dear, you know I love you. I’m your mate and partner in life. I have always advised you about everything honestly and in your best interest.” Elaine still quietly sat in the sitting room and calmly spoke to Stone. The others had slowly filtered out to go on with their day or to watch their guests leave. “Of course you are, and you have.” Stone looked out the window and watched the vehicles leave. Elaine could see he was distracted by what was going on and his own thoughts. “Then why are you being an ass and not listening to anything I say now?” She let her irritation slip into her voice and she dryly responded to him. Her annoyance was obvious. Stone’s instincts instantly alerted him to the fact that not all was good between himself and his mate. Over the years, that instinct helped him avoid many different disasters from exploding in his face when it came to their relationship. “I’m listening Ellie. I’ve always listened.” “Then explain to me if you listened to me, then why
In the Chains of the Alpha The Trip Home
No one said much of anything on the way home. The privacy divider between the front of the vehicle and the back raised then never went down. Cal pulled Tara to him and sat her in his lap. He didn’t do anything more but let her soak up his warmth and strength. He buried his head into her neck and hair. The smell of the wool sweater mixed with the natural spice of her scent. He instantly felt his aggressive feelings smooth out and gentle. It’d been difficult watching her get so wound up from it all. Tara sat there, and all but purred. As their vehicle made slow progress through traffic, it’s darkened windows gave them the privacy that Cal didn’t care, Tara turned and straddled his lap instead. She didn’t do anything more than that. But his body felt her skirt hike up and he groaned, knowing how naughty she was instinctively gravitating to for comfort. That wasn’t what their mating would ever be based on. He’d never satisfy his needs while she was seek
In the Chains of the Alpha Parting Words
Kole wanted to get back to the gathering as quickly as possible. He didn’t want any misunderstandings between anyone, let alone the two packs. There was no way he’d explain to the pack that their beloved elder and ex-alpha alienated his first born grand pup with blind stubbornness, hateful questions, and fear. That wouldn’t be happening today or any day. Kole wouldn’t risk fighting with Cal. How would it look when the Council of Alphas met? His father always forgot about that. Though the council of alphas didn’t exist during his time in control of the pack. He’d been a forward thinker of his time and moved his pack to a territory that was being noticed by the local humans. It meant he could settle their businesses in, and those humans would see those businesses as founding members of the business community. “Let’s go back down now and please be nice to her. She’s so much like Heather and you wouldn’t talk to Heather that way. Just apologize and let mother do
In the Chains of the Alpha Making Things Clear as Stone to Stone
“That’s my third pup there and his mate. Your uncle, Stephen, and his mate, Ariel. Their grown pups, Erin, and Eric. That about covers your living family here, dear. Everyone sit please. Stone has created enough excitement and drama for one day. She has a sweet soul. Stephen, treat her like you would your sister and don’t act like your father if you know what’s good for you. As for the doghouse, it’s an old guard shack that’s been turned into a bunkhouse for single wolves who, for one reason or another, don’t want to make the trip all the way back to their homes to sleep. It’s affectionately called the doghouse because often there’s trouble between the few mated wolves that stay there.” “Oh, good grief. That’s horrible.” “Oh, don’t think your grandfather hasn’t stayed there a time or two. Though these days he’s more likely to use a guest apartment.” Tara looked over the tissue at Elaine with a shocked expression. “You’re joking.” “No, I’m n
