Declan McIntire, alpha of the Stone Ridge pack, spent over a century rejecting the daughters paraded under his nose, hiding his preference for a male. Scenting Lark Trystan at a pack BBQ, he’s ecstatic to discover the cute, sexy human is his mate. He’s even more pleased that Lark knows about shifters and has been interacting with them for months. Declan quickly realizes that instead, the issue is his large size and dominant personality.
Since the pack alpha is straight, Lark can’t figure out why Declan’s suddenly taking an interest in him. He also doesn’t understand why he’s so drawn to the big man, especially considering his poor track record with relationships. Dominant men always seem to think he’d make the perfect punching bag, and Lark has the scars to prove it.
When Lark ends up in the hospital, Declan puts everything on hold, determined to take his mate home and prove that he’s nothing like Lark’s previous lovers. But not everyone in his pack is accepting of a gay alpha. Can Declan find a way to reconcile the two? Or will he have to choose between the pack he’s devoted his life to and the man who’s quickly coming to hold his heart?
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Alpha’s Prerogative
Copyright © 2011 Charlie Richards
ISBN: 978-1-55487-929-8
Cover art by Martine Jardin
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
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Smashwords Edition
Alpha’s Prerogative
Wolves of Stone Ridge Two
By
Charlie Richards
Dedication
Thanks to my father, for always being supportive and proud, even when he doesn’t understand. And thanks to my husband, for everything.
Chapter One
Lark grinned at the young werewolves’ antics. The older kids bounced between forms, first tumbling around as wolves, only to shift and chase each other around the clearing as humans. Those that hadn’t hit puberty yet yelled and screeched, cheering their brothers and sisters on. One teenage shifter settled next to Lark on the bench.
“They’ll learn to control it better as they mature,” he said with authority.
He smiled and turned to the child, Kenny, if he remembered correctly. “What does it feel like to shift? How do you do it?”
“Well, ya gotta think about it real hard and picture a wolf in your mind,” Kenny said, his forehead scrunching in thought. Then he grinned. “It feels like goose bumps all over your body while your fur grows, and then your butt kinda tingles when you get your tail.”
Lark saw the excitement in the boy’s eyes as he explained the process.
“When your muzzle forms, it feels like your face is being squished and then stretched. That’s my favorite part!”
On that cue, the screaming kids landed in a pile not far away. Lark glanced around and noticed a number of men and women eyeing them indulgently. Watching the kids tumble, he thought he felt someone’s gaze on him, but when he glanced around, he didn’t notice anyone focusing directly on him. He knew if someone had a problem with him playing with their kids, they’d have said so already. Werewolves weren’t shy.
“I’m hungry!”
The voice cut through his thoughts. Oh, well. It was probably his imagination anyway. Lark glanced around at the children. “Is everyone hungry?” At the affirmative cheers from the kids surrounding him, he laughed. “Then sit tight, y’all. I’ll bring back some food.”
Rising from the ground, Lark weaved through the crowds. It was tough, him being so small, but he managed since he could squeeze through gaps larger men had to go around. He spotted a couple of his friends, and the reason for the party, to his right and headed toward them. Rainy had found and claimed his mate, Travis, and this gathering was to introduce the human to the pack. It’d been a while since Lark had arrived at the BBQ, so he figured he should make an appearance. He almost faltered when he saw the sexy African American standing next to them.
Damn, the alpha was fine. Tall, like most shifters, Declan stood six foot three. Dark chocolate skin, bald scalp, and more toned muscles than Lark would know what to do with. The man was absolutely drool-worthy!
He’d only seen the man up close and in person once, and that had just been in passing. Lark had been hurrying back to the kitchen at Cliff’s house to clean, and he’d passed the alpha in the hall. Declan had been making his way to a bedroom to find out if Rainy’s mate, Travis, was freaking out after learning about shifters. Cliff and Rainy, brother werewolves, had been so kind, trying to include Lark in activities. He felt grateful they had found their mates and that Travis and Lisa had accepted the brothers’ wolf counterparts.
As he approached, he glanced surreptitiously at Declan. The alpha stared out over his pack, the Wolves of Stone Ridge, filling out his black t-shirt and blue jeans with well-defined lean muscle and looking sexy as fuck. His bald head made Lark want to run his palms over it. Would it be stubbly, because he shaved? Or was he naturally smooth? What would it be like to trace the contours of Declan’s muscled abs and thighs? Knowing he’d never get the chance, he tried to ignore his attraction and focused his attention on the guests of honor.
Lark stopped in front of Rainy and Travis and grinned up at them. “Hey, guys!” For some reason, nearly every werewolf Lark had seen stood almost six foot or more, which meant Lark had to tip his head way back to meet the eyes of his friend Rainy. What did they feed their cubs? At least Travis was only a few inches taller than him.
“Hey, Lark. Where have you been hiding? I haven’t seen you since you got here three hours ago!” Travis said, grinning at him.
Lark returned the hug Travis gave him. A growling cough caught his attention, and he glanced toward Declan. God, the man was absolutely breathtaking, which probably meant Lark shouldn’t be attracted to him. He had deplorable taste in men. They were either straight or liked to slap around their lovers.
Giving himself a mental shake, he refocused on Travis. “I’ve been hanging with the cubs. We’re playing near the picnic tables, and a couple of the youngsters are explaining shifting to me. It’s really cool. I just came up to get food for everyone.” He couldn’t hide the excitement. He loved kids. Lark felt comfortable with them. At least they answered questions without making him feel stupid.
He grinned again, knowing it wouldn’t be long before the children started wandering away from the play area, looking for their own food. “Well, congrats again. I’ll see you later!”
Lark grabbed several plates and filled them with hot dog buns. From past experience, he knew that shifters ate plenty, especially growing ones. Stopping at the grill, he grinned up at Carson. At a poker game several months ago, Cliff had introduced him to the wolf enforcer. The man was always polite, if a little formal. “Hey, Carson. Got stuck manning the grill, huh?”
The handsome Native American shifter smirked. “I volunteered,” he said in his deep bass. “It keeps me from having to mingle.”
Understanding, Lark nodded. Carson liked crowds even less than he did. “I know what you mean. I’d rather just hang with the kids. Trying to converse with a whole bunch of shifters can be intimidating for someone my size.” He grinned, softening his words, “What do you feed your kind?”
Carson smiled sympathetically as he filled the buns. “Looks like you’re on chow duty, huh?”
Lark shrugged. “I don’t mind.”
“Then you already know what we feed our young, meat, meat, and more meat.”
Lark threw back his head and laughed. It wasn’t often that the straight-laced Carson made a joke, but Lark enjoyed his sense of humor when he did. After saying goodbye to the pack enforcer, he headed back to the picnic tables laden with food. He started filling plates with chips, potato salad, cole slaw, and fruit. Staring down at all the food, he giggled. How was he supposed to get all this back to the kids?
* * * *
Declan stared after the small man. Fuck, he smelled good. “He’s not pack. Who is he?” Declan asked, still watching the man’s retreating, sexy ass. He couldn’t believe he’d actually growled at Travis when he’d hugged the man. What is wrong with me?
A memory niggled at him, taking him back to a Saturday night about a month ago. He’d been at home, trying to figure out how to get rid of another mother and her would-be-mate daughter when his phone rang. It had been Cliff, informing him of an uninitiated sighting. He’d thanked his guests, kindly excused himself, and hurried to his lead tracker’s son’s house.
He’d found the tiger shifter, Grady, guarding the wolf, Clyde. Cliff had explained that they’d been playing poker, Clyde had been making snide comments about Rainy’s sexuality, and Rainy had made an off-hand comment which essentially told Clyde to put his money where his mouth was. Clyde had snapped, turned wolf, and attacked Rainy. Cliff had intervened and pinned Clyde, then called for Declan.
A spicy cinnamon scent had drawn his attention, making his cock take notice, and he’d had to struggle to focus on Cliff’s words. He’d headed upstairs and walked past a slender, blond man. The spicy cinnamon smell hit him again, harder this time, and he’d realized the sexy little man was the source. His dick had hardened so quickly his eyes had almost crossed. When he’d started to turn toward the human, the man had cringed and ducked his head, murmuring, “Alpha,” as he slipped past.
He remembered the mixture of lust, confusion, and anger that had swamped him. Anger at whoever had hurt the man to make him cringe from Declan’s larger frame. Lust because he wanted to chase the cute, sexy blond man down, toss him on the nearest bed, and fuck him until they both passed out into sweet oblivion. He’d wanted to hear his name on that man’s lips, to wrap his arms around him, pull his body close, and hold him tight. And then reality had hit him, reminding him of the job he needed to do. Safety of the pack came first. Declan had had to stand in the hall for nearly ten minutes to get his raging hard-on under control before checking on Rainy and Travis.
As it had turned out, Travis had easily accepted Rainy’s wolf. They’d talked for a bit, and when Declan had gotten back downstairs, the sweet-smelling man had already left.
The guest of honor’s words brought him back to the present, forcing Declan to focus.
“I’m sorry, Alpha. I should have thought to introduce ye. That’s our friend, Lark Trystan. He’s known about shifters since our Fourth of July party several months ago. Our father and Shane initiated him.”
Lark Trystan. Even the name aroused him. Mate. The realization hit Declan so suddenly that he let out a startled oh. After all this time, he’d finally met his mate! Excitement coursed through him, and he practically vibrated, the worry that followed immediately settled him. Since Lark knew of werewolves, enjoyed playing with the cubs, in fact, Declan didn’t think that his being a shifter would be the problem between them. But he couldn’t get the way the smaller man had cringed away from him that Saturday night out of his mind. Tearing his gaze away from Lark, Declan watched Rainy’s eyes widen.
“Oh, God, please tell me they informed you.”
Declan watched Lark laugh at something Carson said, who manned the grill. His eyes narrowed as jealousy ripped through him with the force of a tornado. Feeling his gums tingle, his canines threatening to descend, he took several deep breaths. He smelled Rainy’s near panic and turned to the newly mated wolf to reassure him. “Lark Trystan. Aye, I vaguely remember the name.” He forced a relaxed smirk and said, “Sorry to alarm ye. This is just the first I’ve met him.”
“Alpha, excuse the interruption.”
Declan turned to see Nick Greely, one of his best trackers, after Duncan and Cliff, standing near him. “Yes, what is it?” His gaze traveled back to the sexy little man filling a number of plates with food. Did Lark have a hollow leg? The word poachers caught his attention, and he realized he hadn’t heard a word Nick said.
“I’m sorry. Say that again?”
“Yes, I said we located the warehouse. We’ve left a message for Detective Stryker and are waiting for him to call us back.”
Declan nodded. That was great news. They’d been looking for where the poachers housed the animals for weeks, ever since Cliff had ended up caught by them. He’d been in wolf form at the time, and under heavy sedation, so hadn’t been able to remember the place’s location. “That’s great. Notify Duncan, Carson, and Vernon to be on standby. They’ll need to go in with Stryker. As soon as ye hear from him, notify me and have everyone meet at Duncan’s.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
Once Nick had left, he excused himself, stepped off the deck, and headed toward the food. He found Lark staring at almost a dozen plates laden with hot dogs, potato salad, and an assortment of other goods. He suddenly remembered Lark’s comment about feeding the kids and knew he planned to take the food back to the cubs. He couldn’t stop the grin. What a sweetheart! “Feeling a bit hungry, are you?” he teased.
Lark blushed prettily and ducked his head.
Damn, Lark’s a beautiful man.
“It’s not all for me. I told the kids I’d bring them something to eat, but I didn’t plan on how much…”
Chewing his lip, he didn’t meet Declan’s gaze.
“I mean, weres eat more than humans,” he rambled. “I’m just trying to figure out how to get all this food to the kids, Alpha.”
His dick twitched at the submissive move, his desire to dominate the man roaring to the forefront. Struggling to hide his lust, Declan smiled. “Then let’s not disappoint them. Let me give ye a hand.”
His blue eyes widened in surprise, and Lark backed a step. “Oh, no! You don’t have to do that. I can get—”
Declan grabbed Lark’s arm. “Don’t be silly, Lark. I’m here, offerin’ to help. Let me help, aye?” God, could his lilt get any thicker? Over a hundred years out of Ireland and he sounded like he’d just stepped off the damn boat.
Then Lark smiled and the whole world seemed to brighten. “Thanks,” the small man murmured. “That’s very nice of you.”
“It’s me pleasure,” Declan managed.
Lark smiled again before blushing.
What was that all about? Was Lark attracted to him as much as Declan was to him? Hope blossomed through Declan. Grabbing the rest of the plates, Declan followed his mate’s small, sexy body as it easily weaved through the crowds. The man’s slender five-foot-five-inch body moved like a dancer. He could imagine holding his mate as they moved to music. He was so lost in his fantasy that he stumbled over a kid’s toy, nearly spilling the food all over himself. Smooth, Declan!
“Sorry, Alpha,” a soft voice whispered.
He glanced down, happy for any distraction to his thoughts. A small girl stared up at him, her hand clutching the Barbie doll to her chest, as her big blue eyes stared wide-eyed at him. “It’s okay, sweetheart. Are ye ready for supper?” He dropped to one knee and lowered a plate in front of her.
She stared at the food for several seconds before her gaze darted around. “Is this for me?” she whispered again.
“Aye, if ye want it.” He kept the confusion from his face. Why was the girl worried about taking the food he offered? Finally, she nodded. Her hand snuck out and grabbed a hotdog. She managed to shove nearly the whole thing into her mouth, no mean feat for a ten-year-old. Or was she older? Unfamiliar with most of the cubs, he couldn’t be sure.