The Reluctant Alpha (West Coast Wolves #1) - Susi Hawke Page 0,81
something wasn't wrong.
Snatching my phone off the nightstand, I barely had time to register Lucian’s name before tapping the screen and putting the phone to my ear as I stepped into my slippers. I was already leaving the room when I said, "Luci. What's up?"
I glanced back when Elisha rushed up behind me. Telling him to stay here was pointless; he wasn't exaggerating when he’d said earlier he would always be at my side. My little wolf meant his words from the bottom of his heart.
"Matty, thank fuck you're awake. Can you let me in the front door? I have a wolf in the sidecar who needs to see your healer." Without giving me a chance to respond, he ended the call—confident in the knowledge I had his back.
He needn't have asked. I ran down the stairs, only to find our mystical epsilon already opening the door. We nodded at each other, and he stepped aside to let me go first. When I got outside, Lucian had already parked and was lifting a small, toffee-colored wolf with matted fur and bloody paws into his arms.
At any other time, I would have joked about Lucian finally finding the perfect furbaby to ride in his sidecar. Except I could tell this wasn't a time for teasing by the amount of pain, fear, and worry I smelled from the two of them. I didn't have to see the way Lucian tenderly cradled the unconscious wolf or sense his possessive vibe to know this wolf was important to my friend.
Once I took a good look and a deeper sniff, I realized his companion was an omega. "Who is this, Luci? Do I need to call the rest of the guys?"
Lucian looked past me to Isaac, standing at the top of the porch and stroking a fist down the length of his long, gray beard. "We can call them later. Right now, I need an epsilon. And yours was the only one I knew of in the area."
Isaac motioned for us to hurry. "Bring him inside. Your young man might not be alert enough to know it, but his body is in a lot of pain."
The older wolf scurried ahead of us. Elisha already had the rarely used elevator open and waiting for us. I followed Lucian inside, making sure everyone was aboard before locking the outer safety gate and closing the doors. Elisha hit the button, and Lucian filled us in while we slowly ascended to the third floor. The elevator might have been convenient at times like this, but its usefulness didn't make the old thing move any faster.
When he caught Elisha's worried gaze on the omega's paws, Lucian explained. "I found him unconscious beside Highway 58, heading back from a moonlight ride. I thought he was an animal at first, since shifters usually revert when we're unconscious. But then I got up close, and I knew as soon as I scented him."
"You knew he was an omega? Or that he's a shifter?" I felt stupid for asking but needed to clarify for absolutely no relevant reason, other than making small talk in the elevator.
Lucian shook his head. "No, neither of those. I knew he was mine. My true mate. Mine to protect. My responsibility to save. Whatever it takes, I'll do it."
Looking more mystical than a man in corduroy pants and a flannel shirt had a right to, Isaac stroked his beard again. "Don't worry. Thirteen is stuck in this form because his wolf is the sole thing keeping him tethered to our world. Your presence will assist in bringing him back. But first, we must take care of his wounds and alleviate much of the pain. All will be well in the end. It's been foretold."
Looking down at the omega, then back at Isaac, Lucian frowned in confusion. "Why did you call him Thirteen? Do you number your monthly patients or something?"
"Why ever would I do such a thing? No. I called him Thirteen because it is his name. Or rather, the number assigned to this dear, unnamed soul."
Even Elisha did a double take, and he generally rolled with people saying crazy things. "Pardon me for asking, Isaac. But how do you know the details?"
Again with the beard stroking? Isaac rocked back on his heels, managing to look bored as he glanced at my little wolf. "The same way I know everything. My spirit guide told me."
Afterwards, the elevator fell silent because what was left to say? I studied Lucian, pleased to see he had finally found ‘the one’ but worried at the same time because losing Thirteen before really having him would be a devastating loss, one I wasn’t sure Lucian would recover from. My heart broke thinking about it.
A familiar hand slipped into mine, and a comforting wave of love and reassurance flooded our bond. Putting my arm around him, I closed my eyes, holding him against my chest. All I could think was, Here we go again. One of the West Coast Wolves had discovered his true mate while intending to save his life.
Hopefully, things would turn out as fantastically awesome for Lucian and Thirteen as they had for me and the precious little wolf I held in my arms. After a second, I decided to change ‘hopefully’ to the more positive ‘undoubtedly.’ My little wolf had taught me the importance of refusing to give up hope, and he'd also given me enough faith to believe fate wouldn’t be so cruel as to leave Lucian's true mate on his doorstep only to jerk him right back.
Time would tell. But in the meantime? I would hold onto faith and hope as tightly as I held on to Elisha. That was just how this West Coast Wolf rolled.
"Thirteen" and Lucian's story is coming soon. Watch my newsletter and Facebook reader's group to learn when The Defiant Alpha will be available.
About the Author
Thank you for reading this book. Every story I write has a piece of my heart attached. Here’s a little bit about me… I’m a happily married mom of one snarky teenage boy and three grown “kids of my heart.” As a reader and big romance fan myself, I love sharing the stories of the different people who live in my imagination. My stories are filled with humor, a few tears, and the underlying message to never give up hope, even in the darkest of times, because life can change on a dime when you least expect it. This theme comes from a lifetime of lessons learned on my own hard journey through the pains of poverty, the loss of more loved ones than I’d care to count, and the struggles of living through chronic illnesses. Life can be hard, but it can also be good! Through it all, I’ve found that love, laughter, and family can make all the difference, and that’s what I try to bring to every tale I tell.
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Also by Susi Hawke
Shifter Series
Northern Lodge Pack Series
Northern Pines Den Series
The Blood Legacy Chronicles
Legacy Warriors
Choose Your Fate
Assassin’s Claws
Desert Homesteaders
West Coast Wolves
Co-Written Shifter Series
Waking the Dragons (with Piper Scott)
Team A.L.P.H.A. (with Crista Crown)
Alphabits (with Crista Crown)
The Family Novak (with Crista Crown)
Non-Shifter Contemporary Mpreg Series
The Hollydale Omegas
MacIntosh Meadows
The Lone Star Brothers
Co-Written Omegaverse Series
Rent-a-Dom (with Piper Scott)
Three Hearts (with Harper B. Cole)
Contemporary MM Romance Series written as Susan Hawke
LOVESTRONG
Davey’s Rules
Realize (Men of Hidden Creek Season 4 Book 2)
Abandoning Ship
Dancing with Daddy
News Boy
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