The Mating Heat(2)

Believe he was a male of worth who deserved more than a dark, dank cell.
Then Alastair discovered them, locked Kara away and had Ryder’s legs broken.
Shaking free the memory, Ryder made a decision. Mating with Kara would unite pack members still loyal to the Mitchells. However, Aiden would never allow his sister to return home. Word was he’d bought a decrepit cattle ranch in Montana, started a new pack and was doing business with Skins, the Lupine term for humans.
Setting down the picture frame, Ryder leaned forward, choosing his words with care.
“David, in your travels, have you heard the rumor about a cache of gold Alastair owned?”
“I did hear something about gold. If there is such a treasure, Alastair would have hidden it well. Perhaps in the Shadow Forest.”
“That forest is filled with trolls, who love gold.” Ryder considered. “What about the status of Aiden Mitchell’s ranch?”
“The bank is about to foreclose. He is in great need of money.”
He’d suspected as much. Perfect timing. “Set up perimeter alarms every 100 yards along our boundaries in the Shadow Forest. I want to know if anything Lupine enters those woods. Increase the patrols on our territory to every hour.”
“Ah, Sir Ryder, please forgive my curiosity but why the increased patrols? Do you anticipate trouble?”
“You don’t have to call me sir.” Ryder drummed his fingers on the desk. “I’m sending a letter to Aiden Mitchell, telling him I have found the gold. I will send him half in exchange for one thing.”
At David’s puzzled expression, he smiled. “He sends his sister here to spend one night in my bed.”
To his credit, his lieutenant didn’t even blink in surprise. “The young alpha will not like it, sir…ah, Ryder. He will see it as a grave insult.”
“I don’t care what Aiden thinks. I’m after Kara. She’ll come here because she cares about her brother and will do anything to help him.”
“But you don’t have the gold.” David frowned. “How can you promise something you do not have? What if Kara knows where the gold is and sneaks onto the property to find it for herself?”
Waiting patiently, he watched his lieutenant puzzle it out. Then the Lupine’s expression smoothed. “Ah, that is why you want the perimeter alarms. To catch her.”
“Exactly. Get to work.”
“At once, sir…ah, Ryder.”
As the male started out the door, he called after him. “Oh and David? About those who accuse me of cheating in the challenge with Alastair?”
“Yes?”
Ryder flexed his sore knuckles. “They’re not lying.”
His lieutenant’s mouth gaped open. “But the ancient pack challenge is for honor!”
He gave a thin smile. “I don’t fight for honor, David. I fight for our people and to win. Always.”
    







 
    Dark and Deadly: Eight Bad Boys of Paranormal Romance by Jennifer Ashley, Alyssa Day, Felicity Heaton, Erin Kellison, Laurie London, Erin Quinn, Bonnie Vanak and Caris Roane
    
 


 
CHAPTER 2
The Shadow Forest, Colorado, one week later
Kara Mitchell pushed her way through a thick forest of evergreen trees. A cold wind whistled through the low-hanging limbs, sending showers of needles down like stringy raindrops. Branches overhead creaked and groaned like an old woman’s bones. The wind cut through her frayed leather jacket, licked her ankles through her jeans, the denim now grubby with dirt and stains.
Taking a short rest break, she leaned against the trunk of a pine tree, inhaling the sharp fragrance. She adored the scent of fresh evergreen. It reminded her of hot chocolate sipped before a roaring fire and a certain handsome Lupine sitting next to her, his wicked smile filled with promise.
Ryder Carrington.
The lands here now belonged to Ryder, the new alpha of her former pack. Her father, gods damn his evil soul, was dead. Ryder probably hated her family for the cruel abuse he’d suffered at her father’s hands.
And now he’d chosen to exact his revenge, demanding Kara as his virgin sacrifice.
“I want to finish what I started with your sister, Aiden. If she’s still untouched, send Kara to me and after one night in my bed, I’ll return her with half the gold,” he’d written.
Aiden had crushed the letter and cursed Ryder. Other males had sniggered as if they couldn’t believe anyone desired her. Darius, her brother’s beta, had shown them the business side of his fists and put them in their place. Darius was as protective of her as her own brother.#p#分页标题#e#
She closed her eyes, remembering Ryder’s quick, ready smile and bold attitude. Ryder walked alone, but with a confident air belying his status as omega.