by R. E. Butler
Duke looked down at Ree. “What do you think, sweetheart? Do you want to be alpha female?”
“I don’t know how.”
“We’ll be there to help,” Davina said. “The only thing you need to do is stand by Duke. Everything else will come with time.”
“Then yes,” Ree said.
“The pride has been told to come here tonight for a meeting,” Byron said. “The elders and I will explain the new law. We need to set a date for you to take over.”
“I’d like to give Ree time to learn about our people,” Duke said. “She’s pretty clueless.”
“Hey!”
He chuckled. “Sorry, sweetheart. It’s true, though.”
She shook her head. “I’m a fast learner.”
“Good,” Davina said. “You’ll be great, I know it.”
“How do you know?” Ree asked.
“Because you and Duke are heart-matches. Nothing is more powerful than that.”
* * *
The afternoon passed quickly as Duke worked with his father and the elders on rewriting the pride laws. Ree and Mercy stayed with Davina in the kitchen and helped cook dinner. Ree took the opportunity to get to know her future mother-in-law, and learn about the pride. The more she learned, the happier she was to be part of it. They would have been fine on their own, but knowing that the pride was with them made it that much better.
After dinner, Ree and Duke joined Byron, Davina, and the elders on the large back porch. The forty-two-member pride was gathered in the yard, their gazes curious. Byron moved to the top step with Davina, and raised his hand for silence.
“As many of you know, our pride laws have remained original to my ancestors who settled in Kedrick over two hundred years ago. Although I appreciate the laws, I do know that a pride that doesn’t change with the times will be doomed to disappear. To this end, I have rewritten the mating rules for our pride. From this day forward, any male or female may remain within the pride regardless of their chosen mate, be they lion, human, or other supernatural creature. No longer will pride members face exile if their heart-match is not of our kind.”
He paused as the crowd surged with conversation. Ree could hear some angry tones, but most of the pride seemed happy.
He raised his hand for quiet and then gestured to Duke, who led Ree to join Byron. “My son, Duke, has mated and marked this human female, Ree. I welcome Ree to the pride. Duke and Ree will be taking over as alpha male and female in thirty days. During this time, any pride members who wish to leave may do so with our blessing, but I encourage you all to embrace the change and allow our people to move forward into a new dawn. Before you is my son, a male who chose honor over duty, knowing that he faced exile. That is exactly the sort of male who should lead the pride.”
There was a heartbeat of silence, and then one by one, the pride members lifted their heads in a roar. It wasn’t one of challenge or anger, but joy. Happy roars filled the air and Duke lifted his head and joined in, squeezing Ree’s hand tightly. He grabbed her around the waist and kissed her soundly, a purr rumbling in his chest.
“This is a good day, sweetheart,” he murmured against her lips. “I get to keep you forever, and we get to be alphas together. With you by my side, I already feel like I’m king of the world.”
She smiled, the clapping and roaring of the pride members making her eyes sting. She’d never felt so accepted in her life, and it was all thanks to one stubborn lion who refused to give up when she walked away.
“You’re my king,” she said. “My alpha and my mate.”
“For as long as there’s breath in my body.”
Byron said, “Let’s celebrate my son’s mating with a victory hunt! Our future alpha female has never tried venison.”
“You’re going to shift?” she asked in surprise.
“We love to hunt for celebrations,” Duke said, taking a step back and tugging off his shirt. “You can stay here with my mom.”
“I thought you wanted me to go hunting with you,” she said, wrinkling her nose. She wasn’t sure she wanted to see a pride take down some deer.
“Another time, you and I can go out together for fun. For now, though, I’m going to bag the biggest deer I can find for you.”
He shoved his pants down his legs and kicked his shoes off and then his jeans, and then he shifted. The change was so fast that she almost missed it, her sexy mate going from handsome, naked guy to lion in seconds. He shook out his big, chocolate mane and stretched, his claws digging into the deck as his tail swished behind him.
“Oh wow, you’re beautiful,” she said, rubbing her knuckle lightly on his nose. She ran her hands through his thick, soft mane and over his back, the muscles twitching as she touched him. “This is the freaking coolest thing I’ve ever seen.”
She looked up and saw that almost everyone had shifted, the backyard now filled with lions and lionesses, with fur of every shade from an almost-white to dark amber.
Pressing a kiss to his nose, she laughed when he licked her cheek. “Good luck, Duke. I’ll be here when you get back.”
The lions on the porch bounded off with a roar, and the pride followed as they headed into the woods that surrounded the house.
“Cool as hell,” Mercy said as she joined Ree. “I hadn’t seen Barron shift yet.”
“It is cool,” Ree said. “And neat that you and I both found our forever guys on the same night.”
“Well, you do always have to copy me.”
“Um, I’m older so you’re always copying me,” Ree pointed out.
Davina laughed. “You both chose well, and so did the males. Now, there’s a bottle of blueberry champagne that I’ve been saving for a special occasion, and I think this is exactly the right time.”
“Now, that sounds divine,” Ree said.
As they walked into the house, Ree looked over her shoulder at the woods, and thought about her mate out hunting with his pride. The day had not gone at all like she’d planned, but she couldn’t be happier with the outcome. She had a sexy mate who was a beautiful lion, who’d been willing to fight for her and stand by her side no matter what, and in a month, she and Duke would be alphas together. It seemed surreal, but it also seemed very right. As if she really had been waiting her whole life to meet him in a bar on a random Friday night, thanks to her pushy sister.
“Did I ever thank you for making me go to the bar yesterday?”
“Nope,” Mercy said. “But you can start by getting me something sparkly.”
“You got it,” Ree said.
As the cork popped and the purple-tinted champagne was poured, the three women lifted their glasses in toast.
“To the females behind the males,” Davina said.
“To old family and new,” Mercy said.
“To us,” Ree said. “and our lion mates.”
Coming Next from R. E. Butler
Devlin (Were Zoo Book Five)
~*~ October 22, 2017 ~*~
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* * *
Also from R. E. Butler
Wiccan-Were-Bear Novella Series
A Curve of Claw
A Flash of Fang
A Price for a Princess
A Bond of Brothers
A Bead of Blood
A Twitch of Tail
A Promise on White Wings
A Slash of Savagery
Awaken a Wolf
Daeton’s Journey
A Dragon for December
A Muse for Mishka
The Wiccan-Were-Bear Series Volume One
The Wiccan-Were-Bear Series Volume Two
A Wish for Their Woman
T
he Wolf’s Mate Series
The Wolf’s Mate Book 1: Jason & Cadence
The Wolf’s Mate Book 2: Linus & The Angel
The Wolf’s Mate Book 3: Callie & The Cats
The Wolf’s Mate Book 4: Michael & Shyne
The Wolf’s Mate Book 5: Bo & Reika
The Wolf’s Mate Book 6: Logan & Jenna
The Wolf’s Mate Book 7: Lindy & The Wulfen
The Necklace Chronicles
The Tribe’s Bride
The Gigolo’s Bride
The Tiger’s Bride
Ashland Pride Series
Seducing Samantha
Loving Lachlyn
Marking Melody
Redeeming Rue
Saving Scarlett
Chasing Cristabel
Hyena Heat Series
Every Night Forever
Every Dawn Forever
Every Sunset Forever
Every Blissful Moment
Every Heavenly Moment
Every Miraculous Moment
Every Angelic Moment - Coming in 2017
Wilde Creek Series
Volume One (Books 1 and 2)
Volume Two (Books 3 and 4)
Volume Three (Books 5 and 6)
The Hunter’s Heart (Book Seven)
Saber Chronicles Series
Alaric’s Perfect Mate
Slade’s Feisty Mate
Caleb’s Tempting Mate
Galen’s Lovely Mate
Saber Chronicles Volume One (Books One - Four)
Norlanian Brides Series
Paoli’s Bride
Warrick’s Bride
Dex’s Bride
Norlanian Brides Volume One
Villi’s Bride
Dero’s Bride
Were Zoo Series
Zane
Jupiter
Win
Justus
Devlin - Coming in 2017
Arctic Shifters
Blitzen’s Fated Mate
Dasher’s Fated Mate
Prancer’s Fated Mate
Uncontrollable Shift
The Alpha’s Christmas Mate
Stand Alone Stories
The Alpha’s Honor (Howls Romance)
**Coming October 22, 2017**
Devlin (Were Zoo Book Five)
Lion shifter Jenni Brisban, is beginning to think that the VIP tours hosted by the Amazing Adventures Safari Park aren’t going to help her find her soulmate. Hardly any human males come on the tour, and she spends her weekends in her shift, feeling like her life is passing before her eyes. When she’s offered a job in the new sweets shop at the park, she decides taking a break from the tour isn’t a bad idea. Standing behind the counter, talking to customers, and sneaking candy made by the resident baker, Lexy, is just what Jenni needs to get her mind off her singleness.
Human Devlin Potter is poised to get a promotion at work that will change his life dramatically. Finally, all his hard work will be worth it. The job he wants is just within reach, and his five-year plan is right on track. But when he sees a beautiful blonde woman at his cousin’s sweets shop, everything he ever thought he wanted disappears in a hot flash. Now, he only wants Jenni.
Nothing is hotter to Devlin than being with Jenni, but he can tell she’s holding something back. When he comes to the zoo to see her, but finds himself at the lion paddock, staring into a lioness’s eyes that are the same pretty gold as Jenni’s, he knows exactly what her secret is, even though it seems impossible. Devlin has a choice to make: give up everything to live with Jenni at the zoo, or walk away forever. She can’t live in his world, but can he live in hers?
* * *
