Wet for the Alpha (The Ridge Brothers Bear Shifters Book 3) Read online

  As he grew older and crueler, my mother took me and moved to Seattle. She said that she fell out of love with my father, but I never believed that. She took it hard when she left. I was sure she left to protect me from Killian. Maybe even to protect herself.

  Some shifters are just too weak to control the apex predator living inside them and the animal side slowly takes over. It rots away their humanity until there’s nothing left but a cruel, callous person consumed by feral desire and savage instincts.

  Killian was born corrupted by his vicious lion. He thinks he’s the most powerful man on the planet, but he’s really the weakest. The truly strong men are the ones who can live in peace with their animals. Who can love and protect the innocent in spite of the vicious urges prowling through their veins.

  I glance back at the disaster of dishes in the kitchen and sigh. I can’t deal with that right now.

  I grab one of Killian’s beers from the fridge, crack it open, and step outside. The warm Montana sun is washing over my face and I close my eyes and breathe in the sweet fresh air. It fills my insides with happiness and I can’t help but smile as I hear the birds singing and the wind whistling through the high grass in the valley.

  A part of me always wonders how I would like Montana if I didn’t have my brother to ruin it for me. It would be fun to kayak down the rivers and hike to the top of the mountains. It would be nice not to have to worry about traffic or public transportation or the latest fashion trends and styles. It would be enjoyable to live in a quiet, peaceful part of the earth.

  Maybe I do have mountain blood in me…

  I take a big sip of the cold beer and come back to reality.

  I’ll never live here. This is Killian’s territory.

  Our father died three years ago, and although my father told me on his deathbed that he was leaving me half of the ranch, my brother never said a word about it after he was gone.

  He refused to show me the will. He told me that since he was the firstborn male, it all belonged to him.

  At the time, I didn’t care. I returned home and left this place in my past where it belongs, but now, well, now I need the money.

  I’d like to open up a birthing center in Seattle and I need my inheritance to bankroll it until it can stand on its own two legs.

  But as usual, my brother is being a selfish prick and is screwing me over.

  I hate him.

  I sigh as I sit down on the porch steps and take another long swig of beer. I feel so alone.

  Sometimes I wish that I had a big strong protector to watch out for me. Someone who has my back no matter what.

  I sigh as I finish the can of beer and go back inside to clean the kitchen.

  I’m shaking my head as I walk through the door.

  “Like that would ever happen.”

  Chapter Three

  Cash

  I stay low to the ground as I creep up to Killian’s ranch. The steady breeze is in my face and I keep shifting with it in order to stay downwind. If these lions catch my scent while I approach, I’ll be in a hell of a fight outnumbered five to one.

  But I’m not feeling any fear. It’s all excitement and adrenaline surging through my veins. I’m close to my mate and that’s all I can think about.

  The faint scent of her delicious body keeps hitting my nose, making my bear twist and howl within.

  Shut up. I’m getting to her.

  He’s beyond calming down. The only thing that will calm him now will be having my mate’s sweet pussy wrapped around my cock.

  I try to tune him out as I stalk closer, but it’s like trying to tune out the roaring of the jets on a 747 while you’re standing on the runway.

  The Copeland lion shifters live on a large ranch on the other side of town from us. It’s a gorgeous spot, surrounded by mountains, lush forests, and trout-packed rivers. Even the lions’ neglect and carelessness haven’t been able to dull its beauty.

  I’m stalking through the forested mountain on the east side of the ranch, trying to get as close as possible to her without getting caught.

  The buzzing of a thousand flies hits my ears at the same time as the horrible scent of rotting meat hits my nose. My stomach turns as I come across the source: a dead deer with its throat ripped out.

  Fuckers…

  I have no problem with hunting, but this isn’t hunting. This is killing for sport.

  A lion killed the deer and left its body to rot. I push back the anger pulsing through me and keep walking as I wonder how many innocent animals in this forest they’ve killed for fun.

  The mountain comes to an abrupt end when I’m standing on the edge of a craggy cliff looking down. The five slovenly cabins are barely standing up anymore after years of neglect and I grit my teeth when I picture my mate having to stay down there in that filth. There’s a pile of old tires in the back, garbage strewn about, and it looks like it rained empty beer cans all over the ranch.

  Six motorcycles are parked in a line by the old maple tree. My eyes narrow on the smallest one with the familiar-looking helmet resting on the handlebars. It’s hers.

  She’s down there. But so is her entourage of five vicious lion shifters.

  I don’t care if there’s five hundred down there, I’m going.

  With my heart pounding, I start to descend the craggy cliff.

  A ways back, I had to wrestle out from my bear form—he was content to charge into the ranch like a furry bowling ball, but I thought it might be a bit smarter to go the stealthy route—so I’m completely naked as I climb down the rock. Having no shoes makes the descent even easier since I can grip the jutting pieces of rock with my toes as well as my fingers.

  When I finally get to the bottom, I stalk through the trees, staying downwind the entire time.

  Shit!

  I hide behind a large maple tree as two of the lion shifters come walking by. Jace and Iker.

  They’re laughing and whispering as they approach the forested area I’m hiding in.

  “Last night, I wanted to introduce her kitty to my big cat,” Iker says with a nauseating laugh. “All ten inches of him.”

  “What is it about the alpha’s sister that’s always so damn appealing?” Jace asks.

  “It’s forbidden fruit,” Iker explains. “But with Zoe’s juicy pussy, you get two fruits. A peach and a cherry.”

  A guttural roar rips out of my throat as my whole body starts to shake. Hearing them talk about my mate like that turns everything to red. My grizzly is furious inside, snarling and thrashing to get out. He’s infuriated and desperate to spill some blood for those words.

  I don’t even try to hold him back. I want them dead for that too.

  He rips out of me in full attack mode and stomps on the ground as he faces the two dead men. Their faces drop and their skin goes pale when they see us barreling down on them.

  My bear slams into Iker with his giant shoulder and sends him flying backward. Jace turns to run, but my bear grabs his bicep in his fierce jaws and yanks him back. He tosses him to the ground and steps over him, roaring into his face with a bloodthirsty rage.

  It’s not long before there are lions everywhere. They attack from all angles, snapping and clawing my bear’s thick skin. He gives as good as he gets though, and after a few minutes of fierce fighting, a few of them are limping with their golden fur stained red.

  A lion jumps on our back and sinks his claws into our skin. My bear roars out in anger as the lion tries to bite the back of his neck. He shakes him off and turns to attack, but two more lions come charging in from the opposite direction.

  He catches one in his jaws, but the other slashes our front leg with his sharp claws. I can feel the pain searing through my grizzly—I can feel the warm blood pouring down his leg—but he doesn’t even seem to notice. He’s in mate-protection mode and nothing is going to stop him from getting to her.

  The largest lion shakes the blood from his golden mane and then begins to shake. The four other lions back off as Killian ph
ases back into his human form.

  “Enough!” he shouts as he locks eyes with me. “Put that bear away.”

  My bear is itching to rush over there and finish him off, but I want a piece of the action too. My protective instincts are just as strong as his.

  I pull my bear back in and he reluctantly lets go of control. A few seconds later, I emerge, squeezing my hands into fists as I stare the alpha down.

  Killian is shaking his head as he looks at me. “You fucking people again?” he spits out. “What the fuck is it with you Ridge brothers? You have a hard-on for us or something?”

  “Where is she?” I hiss. She’s all I care about.

  The circling lions start shaking before popping back into men. Soon, all five of them are standing in front of me in their human forms.

  I’m outnumbered but not outmatched. A bear shifter fighting for his mate is never truly outmatched.

  “That chick from the bar?” Killian says, looking confused. “The hell if I know. That little slut took off weeks ago.”

  “Not her. Zoe.”

  Her name on my lips sends shivers racing down my body. It’s the first time I’ve said it and I just want to say it over and over and over again. Has a word ever sounded so sweet?

  Apparently, Killian doesn’t feel the same way. His golden eyes narrow on me as they fill with violence.

  “You’re here for my sister?”

  “I’m here for my mate.”

  My body tightens as I stare him down. He doesn’t look like he’s just going to hand her over. It looks like I’m going to have to fight through all five of them to get to her.

  I squeeze my hands into fists and flex my arms.

  That’s fine with me.

  “I’ll be dead before I let my only sister mate with a Ridge brother.” He spits on the ground after he says it.

  I shift my feet into a fighting stance and lift up my fists. “Then let’s get that over with.”

  Killian glances behind him at the pile of firewood. There’s an ax sunk into the chopping block. “Hold him,” he orders his crew.

  The four shifters jump on me at the same time. I crack two in the jaw as the third one grabs me from behind. He wraps his arms around my shoulders in a strong grip. I slam my head back, smashing it into his nose and he immediately lets go with a grunt. I turn and punch him in the face so hard that he stumbles back onto his ass.

  A hard fist comes out of nowhere and smacks me on the temple, stunning me. I dodge the follow-up punch, but suddenly, there are arms wrapping around my legs. Someone jumps on my back and soon, I’m being smothered by them as Killian approaches with the ax.

  The four shifters each hold a limb as their alpha approaches with deadly intent. I can’t shake them off no matter how hard I try.

  “It’s one thing to come for me,” Killian says as he tests the sharpness of the blade with his thumb. Bulbs of red blood bubble up from the cut, which quickly heals thanks to his enhanced shifter healing. “But it’s a whole other thing to come for my sister.”

  “Where is she?” I hiss.

  He laughs as he spins the ax in his hand. “You want to see your mate?”

  “Yes.” I’m desperate to see her. I don’t care if I die. I just want to see her.

  “Then I’ll cut your eyes out first,” he says with an evil grin. “You’ll never lay eyes on her. Never.”

  “Just kill him, boss,” the shifter holding my leg says. “Cut his fucking head off.”

  “I like that idea,” Killian says with a grin. “One less Ridge brother to worry about.”

  He steps within swiping distance and I shoot my left hand out. It breaks out of the shifter’s hold and my bear’s claw emerges just in time as I connect with Killian’s face. He stumbles back with a scream, clutching his eye that’s now gone.

  “You fuck!” he screams as blood pours through his fingers. “I’ll fucking kill you for that!”

  He raises the ax when the sound of a pumping shotgun stops him cold.

  “Drop the ax, Killian.”

  I turn and my whole body tenses when I see her. She’s spectacular. Beyond words.

  Her brown hair is flowing in the wind and she’s got a fierce look on her face as she points the shotgun at her brother’s chest.

  “Drop it,” she repeats. “You’re not killing him on my ranch.”

  “This is not your ranch,” Killian says as he turns back to me with the ax.

  She raises the shotgun and pulls the trigger, making all six of us jump. My ears are pounding as she cocks it again and points it back at her brother.

  “It will be my ranch if you’re dead,” she says with a serious look on her face. “You want to make this easy on me? Keep holding the ax.”

  Killian stares at her for a long moment with his one good eye. He sees something in her eyes that makes him believe her because he tosses the ax on the ground.

  Zoe turns the shotgun on the guys holding me. “Let him go.”

  I feel them release my arms and legs and I quickly grab the ax as I take my place beside her where I belong.

  “Stay right there,” she says as she begins to walk backward toward the motorcycles.

  Killian drops his hand from his eye as he stands up straight. He’ll be wearing an eye patch from now on. His eye is gone.

  Hopefully, he’s learned what will happen when he tries to keep my mate away from me or I might just have to take his other eye.

  She’s still pointing the shotgun at them when we arrive at the motorcycles.

  I slash the front tires of all five motorcycles and then throw the ax at Killian’s cabin. It sinks into the front door with a thud.

  “Where is the key?” I ask her.

  “In my pocket.”

  My pulse is racing as I reach into the pocket of Zoe’s jean shorts. I start to get all lightheaded when I feel her soft thigh against my hand. I want to keep my hand in there forever, but now is not exactly the time for that.

  I pull out the key and shove it into the ignition of her motorcycle.

  “Hold the gun,” she says. “I’m driving.”

  “Like hell you are,” I answer as I get on it. “Hop on back.”

  She looks like she’s about to argue, but then gets on with a huff. She’s still pointing the shotgun at the boys as I feel her thighs clench around me. It gets me so hard.

  I look down at my raging cock and grin. It looks like a stick shift or a parking break with the way it’s sticking straight up and demanding attention.

  With her delicious scent all around me and with her thighs hugging my sides, I can’t imagine it going down anytime soon.

  “Hold on, sweet cheeks,” I say as I crank the throttle. Her arm wraps around my body with a gasp as I take off.

  Grinning the entire time.

  Chapter Four

  Zoe

  My thighs are clenched around a naked man.

  I’m still trying to process that fact as we fly out of my father’s ranch on my motorcycle. Killian is giving me the most horrible stare out of his one good eye as I point his own shotgun at his chest.

  I’m not sure what’s going to happen when I see him again, if I see him again, but I couldn’t just let this man die.

  I was watching through the window as he bravely fought all five of them. Or, maybe it was as he stupidly fought all five of them. What else can you call it when someone attacks five lion shifters?

  I found myself mesmerized as I watched him holding his own against the five men, first in his bear form, then as his gorgeous human self.

  I didn’t know what was going on, but all I knew was that I had to do something. I couldn’t let Killian and his thugs kill him.

  So, I grabbed the shotgun hanging over the fireplace and stormed outside.

  “Hold on,” the man grunts as he cranks the throttle. A cloud of dust billows into the air, blocking the chilling view of my brother for a split second.

  I grab onto his hard stomach and swallow back a moan when my fingers dig into
hard muscular abs.

  Finally, we make it onto the main road and my brother is out of sight. I take a deep breath as I tuck the shotgun on my lap and hold onto my new muscular friend. I swallow hard as my eyes roam over his sexy tattoos. They cover his round shoulders and hard arms.

  The rumbling of the motorcycle is loud and with the sound and vibrations and feel of the large sexy frame between my legs, I start to get wet. Really wet.

  His masculine smell fills my nose and I find myself leaning closer to inhale more of it. My heart is pounding furiously in my chest as I admire the large rippling muscles that make up his back. He’s massive and I feel so tiny clinging onto him.

  The bike hits a bump in the road and I gasp as I hold him even tighter. His hard cock hits the back of my hand and my pussy starts to throb with deep hot pulses when his thick erection comes to a rest against it. He makes no effort to move his dick and I try to feign some indignation, but all I can think about is wrapping my hand around his thick shaft and jerking him off.

  I wonder what he would do. Would he like it? Would he stop the bike and bend me over it?

  My mind starts wandering to all the dirty areas of my brain and it takes every ounce of self-restraint I have to shake out of it.

  This isn’t the time for that. Killian will kill us both when he catches up to us.

  The reality hits me and my stomach drops. He won’t let me off the hook for this. Even if I leave Montana now, he’ll hunt me down in Seattle and get me when I least expect it.

  I’ve heard of him killing people for less.

  I’m scared. I remember how this man’s bear fought so ferociously and I groan, wishing I had someone to fight for me like that.

  I’m tired of being the fighter. I’m a strong independent woman, but sometimes I just want someone to take care of me. Is that so bad?

  We were on the outskirts of town, but now we’re turning onto a busy road. There are a lot more cars on this mountain road and the drivers keep honking and pointing at the huge naked man between my thighs as they pass. We’re far enough that Killian and his crew won’t catch up with us for a while. Especially without their bikes.