Briar After my impromptu day off, I spent the next day looking over what Lacy brought me from the South Sand Pack. I also spent the morning listening to her gush about her mate. She was absolutely smitten with the woman she was fated to be with. I was happy for her, but I was also getting a little jealous of all the love going around and skipping over me. I was ready to have someone at my side even if I was only nineteen. This morning I was in my office as usual as I looked at the sales numbers on my computer. I needed to drive sales a little more with the company and the best way to do that was with a good marketing team. Marketing was the only way to get anything out there to the masses, plus the right platform outlet would help tremendously. Social media seemed to be the only way to get people's attention anymore. I pulled up my emails, knowing that I had someone reach out to me about marketing about a month ago. I needed to really dive into their information and see w
Briar I made sure to call each pack in the area and tell them about the issue at hand. They were all taking the appropriate measures to make sure their livestock and pack members were protected as well. None of us were willing to go through the same thing twice. When we started to dive into research about Alpha Kevin, we learned that knowledge was limited because I had no idea what his last name was. We needed Uncle Easton and Lacy’s help to get into the database to pull up information on packs and their Alphas. Every five years, the pack information and Alpha information had to be updated from all over the world, so he had to be in there. When Uncle Easton and Lacy dove into the database, we finally got somewhere. All we learned was that Kevin Williams was an Alpha with no heir and he ran a small pack that had been dwindling over the years. That worried me on all accounts. What was going on there? Was he just a bad Alpha? Or were there other issues we needed to uncover?
Jasper I just got off the phone with Briar. He found his mate and that meant that mine was right around the corner. I had dreamed of this moment for the past year and that was the whole reason I was out here. No one knew that other than Thief. I wanted to keep it that way for a while. I had my reasons. I got back in my truck at the gas station that I pulled into so I could talk to Briar in private. Corbin was in the passenger seat texting on his phone, so he wasn’t paying too much attention to me. I knew that any conversation with my family right now needed to be private because of werewolf business. This would be our last rodeo together, and it was a little bittersweet. I liked the guy a lot. If only he were a wolf, then this friendship I had forged would last a lifetime. Corbin had a plan to catch a ride with the barrel racer he seemed to be in love with. They had been talking constantly since they hooked up and she was headed to meet with us at the next rodeo. I
Jasper After getting our money from the manager's office, we went back to the truck and loaded the horses. We got in the vehicle and I drove to a fast food place to get something to eat. All three of us sat in my truck in an empty grocery store parking lot to eat our burgers and fries while talking. “Why did your dad grab you like that?” I asked Lianna. “Because I didn't perform the way he wanted me to in order to get first place.” That's horrible. My dad never treated any of us like that. He was the most patient man I had ever been around. This was a reality check for me that not all parents were created equal and that I was lucky to have the ones that I did. “Has he always been like that?” I asked. “Ever since my mom died when I was about twelve.” “I’m so sorry,” I said with a heavy heart. “It’s ok,” she said with a comforting smile and kept eating. I looked in the middle of the back seat at Luis and asked, “What about you? Who are you
Sloan I never intended to break down in the middle of nowhere but I’m so thankful that I did. It put me right in my mate’s path. I was exactly where I needed to be at just the right time. I don’t think I would have met him otherwise. The fact that he was a cowboy astonished me yet enticed me. Mavis, my wolf, was so excited to meet him and practically melted in my head when he spoke. She was going to be pathetic when it came to him. I had never been on a horse before, but I loved them like most animals. Sitting on that large animal in my mate’s arms was nice yet terrifying. I didn’t want to fall off, but I also wanted to enjoy the moment. I was introduced to Briar’s brother, Jacob, and his sister, Ivy. He told me about his twin brother, Jasper, who was away at the moment. He had a big family compared to mine. We were seriously very different. When we reached our destination and he let me off his horse, I was even more amazed at everything around me. There was a co
Lianna I woke up slowly with the scent of spruce trees surrounding me. I smelled it back in Santa Fe and I knew it was my mate, but my dad kept a tight lock on my whereabouts at all times so I wasn't able to go find him. In Alamogordo, I was so happy to finally come face-to-face with the man that was mine. The man with kind deep blue eyes, a sexy smile surrounded by a thick brown beard. He was handsome and I loved the peak I got of his muscular body last night. Giving myself over to him would be easy. I was seriously attracted to the man and I could tell how attracted he was to me. With Jasper just coming into my life, it set me free and I was so happy that I could cry tears of joy. I was so happy to finally be taken away from my father and the life he pushed onto me. I could take the blinders off and finally live my life the way I wanted. I woke up fully in Jasper’s bed with a happy smile on my face and found that I was here alone. Where did Jasper run off to? I str
Briar I was up early this morning to get the day started. I got dressed, then went to the kitchen to start the coffee before looking through the house for breakfast items. I needed to do better than I did last night. Sloan deserved better than what her parents gave her or what I did last night. “Why didn’t you just order dinner from the packhouse then?” Bandit asked. “Because I didn't want to be that guy, but I could have, considering she doesn’t know a damn thing about pack life. I could have shown off the fact that we could order food from the packhouse and have it delivered.” “I guess that’s fair. What’s the plan this morning then?” “I was thinking of making bacon, eggs, and biscuits but I don’t have biscuits.” “Stop making this complicated. What else do you have in the house?” Bandit asked. “There are a few waffles left. There’s also pasta.” “What about potatoes?” I was honestly stumped if I had any. I walked to the pantry and opened the do
Lacy I met with Briar early this morning to confirm my day off and got to meet his mate, Sloan. I was happy that he was going to spend today with her while working lightly. I hope that boy makes her part of the pack soon. So many members have complained about the smell already, and she was a beautiful thing that didn’t deserve to smell like that. On other bright notes, Jasper was on his way back home finally and that made me excited. He started his trip back yesterday and he should be home by tonight. I couldn’t wait to have us all together again. Let the mayhem begin! Over the past couple of days, Aspen and I have been texting and calling each other constantly. Her personality was addictive and I loved talking with her about everything. I think I shared every part of myself with her already. I talked about my family a lot, so she practically already knew them. I knew that she was an only child and that her parents owned the shop she worked at. I knew her favorite foods,
Jasper It’s been a few months since we took over the Winnipeg Pack. Things were moving along faster than I originally thought, and the people were flourishing. Most of the homes and buildings have been repaired with all of us working together to get this place back on track. The guards were in better shape thanks to Luis, but we still had a ways to go before they could really protect us. After we arrived here to stay, I started digging through Alpha Kevin’s office as Luis dug through Beta Gabriel’s. We wanted answers as to what was going on here and what went wrong. We all met in my new office and asked Nathan what he knew about all of this. He gave us a lot of disturbing information. ~Flashback “Has this always been the pack’s home?” I asked. “No, we moved out here a few years ago. Though we haven’t had enough food to sustain us in ten years.” “Damn. So, why didn’t Kevin have an heir?” I asked. “He died of malnutrition from not eating. Kevin’s mate died i
Lacy I arrived at the South Sand Pack in South Dakota to help Aspen pack up the last of her things to move her in with me. Both of us were so excited to finally be in the same place and call it home. Our adventure was about to begin. I drove from the gates up to Aspen’s parents’ house and parked my Jeep before getting out. I walked on the sidewalk through the yard toward the front door. I watched it as it was ripped open and Aspen came running out of the house toward me with a giant smile on her face. I smiled back and started walking faster to meet her. We both held our arms out to one another and collided in a happy hug. We held each other for a long time as we indulged in our bond and being close. “I’m so happy you're here. I can’t wait to start this life with you,” Aspen said. “Same!” I said happily. We slightly released each other from the hug before we kissed. The kiss was meaningful and deep but didn’t ignite any passion. When we pulled back from the kiss
Briar It was a few days since the attacks and when Jasper took over the Winnipeg Pack. Everything was back to a new normal as everyone was finding their footing. Jasper, Lianna, and Luis were already in Canada setting up a new life for the pack members they now had. I’d never seen people so happy to see food before and I knew that my brother was about to give them a better life. Yesterday morning, Sloan got one of the worst phone calls anyone could possibly get. It was from the police in Boulder, Colorado informing her that they did a wellness check on her parents after complaints by the neighbors. They found both of them dead in their home with gunshot wounds. Sloan cried for hours while blaming herself for what happened to them. All I could do was hold her in my arms and tell her that it wasn’t on her. She couldn’t control other people's actions. I felt horrible for her and I wished I knew how to help her better. Last night she got a second phone call from the poli
Jasper All of us went back to Briar’s house and walked inside with shorts on. Everyone looked up at us and sighed in relief. I grinned at Lianna and pulled her close for a hug and kiss. “Were you worried?” I asked in a teasing voice. “Yes. What happened out there?” “Rogues were trying to take the cattle and horses,” I told her. “They were paid by Alpha Kevin to do it,” Briar said. “With everything that he’s done to us today, what are we going to do?” mom asked Briar. “I’m going to go pay him a visit. I’m taking Briar and Luis with me and no one else," I said firmly. “Why can’t I go with you?” Lianna asked. “I want you to stay here where it’s safe and help my mom with the livestock.” She nodded her head and asked, “What are you going to do?” I looked her in the eyes and took a deep breath. Last night, as she slept next to me, I searched through companies that I could start and looked at the investments that I had. Mom and dad made sure
Briar I woke up in the comfortable darkness of my room with Sloan tucked up against me as she slept soundly. I could hear her soft breathing as I smelled her scent of yarrow in my face. Her back was tucked up against my front as she was curled into a ball like she needed to protect herself. Last night when we came to our room, Sloan told me about everything at the Winnipeg Pack, including what Lianna had said about taking it over. If Kevin went down for what he was doing to his members, which I’m pretty sure he would, that would leave the pack without leadership. Jasper was a leader with a Luna and a Beta. It seemed that he might be just the person to take over and help those wolves out of this mess. Though he didn’t say anything at dinner, I’m sure he is either trying to figure out how to help them or he’s worried about not being the right person to lead them. I’m sure he will figure it out. If he didn’t want to lead them, then I would move the members that Kevin had to M
Lianna We followed the guy from the restaurant for an hour until he turned off the highway onto a dusty dirt road. Jasper drove past the turn-off slowly so we could look down it. It was a very long dirt road with no buildings in sight, but we had no idea what this place was. There were thick woods of paper birch and sugar maple on both sides of the dirt road. There was a lot of thick cover for wolves and a community. “Where are we?” I asked. “An area called Notre Dame de Lourdes,” Jasper answered. “So we aren’t even close to Winnipeg?” I asked. “Nope. It’s possible that the pack moved or that this place is a hideout of some kind for this guy,” he said. “What do you want to do?” Luis asked. “I want to see what’s down that road.” “Why don’t you park off the road and the four of us can go for a walk? Your truck is loud, so if there are multiple wolves in the area, they will hear it turn onto the dirt road,” Sloan said. “That’s what I was thin
Jasper I had been horribly wrong about Sloan. I felt awful for her and the way her dad treated her during that phone call. All of this with her and Briar was a huge coincidence. We are really given the things that we need when we need them the most. Lianna and Sloan stayed up pretty late last night while drinking spiked hot chocolate and talking shit about their dads. I’m sure for them it was therapeutic, but for me and Briar it was horrifying to know the things they had to deal with. My heart was heavy for them. We had the best parents in the world compared to them. Briar and I were up early this morning while our mates slept in. Luis met us down in the kitchen and the three of us started making breakfast for the house. We had biscuits going in the oven, Briar was scrambling a bunch of eggs, I had coffee going, and Luis was prepping small steaks to fry. We had everything done before the she-wolves were even moving. I looked at Briar as he stared at his bedroom doo
Sloan When everyone was finished with dessert and several of us were still standing around talking, Jacob said, “Briar, I have a question for you.” “What’s up?” he asked from beside me. “Why haven’t you made this girl part of our pack yet?” “I offered…” Briar started to explain in an uncomfortable tone. I cut in to explain my reasoning and said, “And I’m thinking about it.” “What’s there to think about?” Jacob asked me in curiosity. I took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes before saying, “I’m not sure that I'm the right person to be the Luna. I don’t know the first thing about being part of a pack or really what it means to be a Luna. I just need to make sure I’m needed here.” “The fact that you're thinking of others and not yourself says you're the right person for the pack and your mate. Not a lot of she-wolves would do that,” Lianna told me. I took her words into account and nodded my head. Maybe she was right. Maybe I was the right
Sloan Meeting Jasper was different than what I figured it would be. For one, Briar never said that they were identical twins. If Jasper shaved his beard off, I wouldn’t be able to tell the two of them apart by looks, only by smell. I was stunned that he had such a full beard at his age, but he looked good with it. By no means is that me wanting Briar to grow a beard though. I liked his clean-shaven face. I desperately wanted that smooth face between my legs earlier, but that was interrupted for the second time today. Oh well, we will get there. After meeting Jasper, Lianna, and Luis, we ate lunch at the packhouse, then got them settled in the rooms upstairs in Briar’s home. We would have a full house for a while, which was different for me. From everything I was told, Jasper didn’t really have a home of his own. It was from the uncertainty of his destiny, but I’m sure he would figure it out. Jasper and Lianna got their horses out of the trailer and we set up a bigger