“But, maybe?” She wouldn’t let the idea go. In her mind, the only thing that would assure her safety would be a claiming outside the pack. These guys thought a rough boyfriend was after her. They had no idea how powerful the pack leader was or what lengths he might go to in order to get her back. Fredrick Wells had been known in the past to send his thugs to retrieve wayward members. She wouldn’t put it past him this time.
The only thing that would save her would be if she’d managed to escape without a trace. If anyone had followed her, all bets were off.
* * * *
Michael Masters was sitting at the kitchen table eating his lunch when the screen door screeched open and banged against the wall.
“Hey, little bro.” Charles dropped his duffel right inside the door and kicked it out of the way.
On his heels was his best friend, Reese. That wasn’t a surprise. The two were inseparable and had been in Texas for the last six months following the rodeo circuit just for fun, though Michael suspected their reasons for getting out of Corvallis for a while had much more to do with their taste in women, specifically sharing women, than anything else.
He had no idea why Charles and his friend found it necessary to hide the fact they enjoyed threesomes. They weren’t the first in the family to lean that way. But he wasn’t about to question their reasoning.
With his sandwich midair, and his mouth open wide for the next bite, another person stepped through the door on Reese’s heels. Now this was a surprise. The petite blonde beauty took his breath away before she even fully entered the kitchen.
When she did finally step all the way in, Michael sucked in a deep breath and held it. He stared at her in disbelief. This woman, barely more than a girl, was his mate. Fuck. He froze in disbelief. Now? Michael himself was only twenty. She wasn’t close to being that old. In fact, he prayed she was at least legal. He had to force himself to keep from shaking his head in denial. He was too young. She was way too young. But there was no mistaking the impact her presence had on him. He finally exhaled, but it seemed the wind had been knocked out of him.
Long blonde hair hung down her back in soft waves. Her piercing blue eyes grazed over him only briefly. He could scent her as clearly as if she were in his embrace. A floral shampoo. The minty gum she casually chewed. Her own personal pheromones that tugged at his soul.
And then his gaze whipped to Charles. Oh God. Was she sleeping with his brother? And Reese?
Michael set his sandwich back down and narrowed his gaze at his brother. He stiffened, fisted his hands in his lap, and adjusted his cock.
Charles spoke, seemingly unfazed by Michael’s plight. “Michael, this is Alyssa. Alyssa, my brother, Michael. One of them anyway. The baby.”
Oh, thanks. Just what he needed. Make him out to be a child.
Alyssa nodded his direction but barely made eye contact. She didn’t know—had no idea she was his. Huh. Perhaps she couldn’t because she was too young.
Charles looked at Michael and then back to Alyssa. “Sorry about my brother. He’s usually the chatty one in the family. What’s up with you?” He glanced back at Michael.
Michael swallowed. “Nothing. How do you … know each other?” Please don’t tell me you intend to claim her, or I will seriously injure you without pausing to think.
“Oh, we met on the road,” Charles stated vaguely. “She’s gonna spend the holidays with us.”
What? This was seriously not happening. No way.
Michael stood and tried to get his legs to move forward. He needed to smell his mate up close. He ambled as casually as possible toward the fridge as though he needed a new drink.
As he brushed past Alyssa, he let his arm graze hers. He almost gasped. A tingly sensation ran up his arm and knocked him senseless. It didn’t happen for her though. She just stood there oblivious to the shock he’d gotten.
He breathed her essence in deep. Nope. She wasn’t sleeping with Charles. Not yet anyway. Not ever, if he had anything to say about it. And he fully intended to.
That information should have relaxed him, and it did, marginally. But still the questions hung in the air. What the hell was she doing here with Reese and Charles? What did “spend the holidays with us” mean? And, how was Michael going to survive having her in the house without taking her?
He was going to have to have words with Charles later. For now, he’d just keep an eye on the trio and make sure no one touched his mate. As long as everyone kept their hands to themselves, it was all good.
Neither Reese nor Charles seemed all that interested in her. He’d seen his brother, Justin, and his friend, Trevor, with their mate. From the moment they’d met, none of them could separate. If they weren’t touching each other, which was rare, they were at least following each other around the room with their gazes.