Lonely Alpha (14 page)

He laughed. “No. We’ll have to expand one by
one.” He pulled her close against his chest again, putting his
smooth jaw against her cheek, his lips brushing her ear. “It’ll be
more fun that way, anyway.”

Her knees went a little weak with relief, and
she laughed breathily. One baby to start out with, a family… Well,
that didn’t sound so bad. She’d always envisioned a family in her
future, though it had seemed faraway, given her lackluster dating
experiences. But now she had Jack, and whatever else came her way,
he would always be a part of her life. “That’s a relief.” He’d
settled his hands on her bottom as he’d spoken, and now he
squeezed. “As eager as I’m sure you are to get started on that, I
think we’d better do a little cleaning,” she said, glancing at the
cabin, where the door hung crookedly on one hinge, and the inside
was littered with debris.

“Guess I’ll have to keep things neater around
here now that I’ve got you,” he said, and they set to work on
getting rid of the evidence of the previous night’s violence. Later
that afternoon, Ronnie stopped by, pulling up to the cabin in his
truck.

“Thought you two might need some help fixin’
up around here,” he said. “I tried to call after I got off work,
but it wouldn’t go through.”

“Hunter cut the phone line yesterday,” Jack
explained.

They swept up debris and tidied the property
as Ronnie filled them in on his day at work. The bodies of the two
hunters had been discovered on national park land, and no one had
suspected that werewolves or shape-shifting park rangers had had
anything to do with them – of course. Mandy shivered as the night
before came back to her in a rush, sparking a chill down her spine
and an ache in her chest. Jack warmed and steadied her with his
touch, pressing his hand against the small of her back. When the
memories faded a little, she thanked Ronnie. After all, if it
hadn’t been for him, the night might have proved fatal for her and
Jack.

He accepted her thanks stoically, his dark
eyes unreadable as he picked up the front door with one hand, as if
it weighed nothing at all. Jack repaired the hinges while Mandy
watched, a feeling of satisfaction welling up in her heart. The
danger that had brought her and Jack together had passed. A sense
of peace she’d never felt in the city settled over her.

By the time night fell, the cabin was looking
better than when Mandy had first arrived, save for the holes in one
wall and a busted window. They decided to tackle those the next
day, and dumped the gathered wooden debris into the little
stone-ringed fire pit in Jack’s backyard. Jack struck a match and
he, Mandy and Ronnie watched the stuff burn until it was reduced to
a bed of hot ash.

After Ronnie left, Jack and Mandy tumbled
eagerly into bed together. “You know,” Jack said, rolling on top of
Mandy and causing her to sink into the mattress as he met her eyes,
“I don’t think I’ve told you yet, but I love you.”

She smiled. “Of course you do – we’re mates.
And I love you too.” It was true; she loved him with a love deeper
than any she’d ever known before coming to the mountains.

About the Author

Ranae Rose lives on the US East Coast and is
an avid reader and writer who can’t resist a good love story, and
the hotter the better. You can learn more about Ranae and her books
at:
www.ranaerose.com

Ranae loves to hear from readers! She can be
reached at:
[email protected]

Connect with Ranae on Twitter: Ranae_Rose