Too Hot to Handle

by Fel Fern

  “Then let me in,” he said.

  Lenny swore. Leo grunted. “Lenny, open the gates.”

  “We’re letting this traitor inside?” Lenny asked

  “We’ve no choice. He’s right. He’s still the Alpha’s son.”

  “I’m just here to get my stuff. Don’t worry. After that, I’m gone.”

  “Fine, be quick about it, but your friends aren’t allowed in,” Leo said, nodding to the waiting car.

  “Got it.” They opened the gates for him and Chad ran inside. He quickly texted Max, updated him, and told them not to wait for him. Chad had a new task—try and convince his father not to start a war with his mate and the Goldcrest Pack.

  Chapter 11

  Chad found his belongings right outside his window. He balled his hands into fists by his sides. It wouldn’t surprise him if his father had tossed his stuff out the window to let off some steam. And the man had the guts to call him a brat?

  He shook his head. Chad ought to just grab his treasured items and leave, but what would that achieve? Chad stormed inside the house, ignored the whispering werewolves he passed by.

  Chad stopped Jasmine, one of his father’s trusted enforcers. “Where’s my father?”

  The enforcer gave him a considering look, gaze lingering on Daniel’s bite mark on his neck.

  “Look,” he began. “I don’t want to start anything.”

  “You should’ve thought of that before mating the Alpha’s best friend.”

  “I don’t regret mating Daniel,” Chad snapped. “He’s the one man I’ve been waiting for my entire life, but I will stop my dad from starting fires.”

  “Too late for that. He’s in his office on the second floor.”

  Chad stopped to look around him. Plenty of werewolves hurried back and forth, were in various states of motion. A few toted guns. He could sense their beasts were riled up, excited at the prospect of violence. His heart sank. Were they readying themselves for a fight? Were Leo and Lenny right?

  He left Jasmine and finally found his father in his office, rummaging through his desk.

  “I can’t talk to you right now,” Allan said. His father took out his favorite revolver from a drawer in his desk.

  “You can’t fight Daniel,” he blurted. “The Windshide and Goldcrest Packs have been allies for a long time. You’re going to drag other innocent shifters into a personal matter with your best friend?”

  Allan finally looked at him. “You misunderstand. I’m not going to war with Daniel. It’s clear to me earlier you’ve made your choice, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

  “What? Then why did you throw my things out the window?”

  “To de-stress,” Allan said simply. “If there’s nothing else, I’m busy.”

  “Who’s the pack going to war with?”

  “If you paid attention to pack affairs instead of getting wasted all the time, you’d know that the Ash Bears have stolen one of our territories.”

  “The Ash Bears? Aren’t they the largest bear shifter clan in the city? Don’t they outnumber the pack one to two?” he demanded.

  Just great. Chad’s relief about Allan not fighting Daniel’s pack turned out to be momentary. Allan was still looking for ways to cool off, even if that meant bringing the other werewolves in his pack to a dangerous mission. Daniel would never resort to such a decision, but bringing up his mate now might only make the situation worse.

  “Doesn’t matter. We’re stronger, more disciplined. Those werebears need to learn that we’re not pushovers. I’m going to re-establish my dominance of that area,” Allan said. “If you’re done sprouting useless nonsense and have no intentions of helping out, then get out of the way.”

  “Call Daniel for help,” he pleaded. Desperation sunk in. Chad might be annoyed at his father. They might not get along most of the time and didn’t understand each other well, but Allan was still his father. He didn’t want to lose his dad.

  Chad continued, “Don’t you rely on allies in situations like this? The Goldcrest Pack would back you up. They’ll even the numbers. With them by your side, you’ll make short work of the Ash Bears.”

  “Allies? Daniel betrayed my trust and went behind my back when he mated you without my permission.” Allan gave him a cold look, then walked past him. “This conversation is over. Head back to your mate with your tail tucked between your legs.”

  Seriously? They were throwing insults at each other now? He glared at his old man. Allan didn’t look affected.

  “Dad, come on. Be reasonable.” No response. Nothing Chad said now would help. His father was hell-bent on this crazy mission. Once Allan set his mind to a task, his dad always saw it through.

  “Stubborn bastard,” he muttered under his breath.

  Chad stood where he was until he heard the other shifters yipping and yelling at each other outside. Car engines rumbled. Chad peered out the nearest window to see the entire pack leaving. Chad tried contacting his father’s cell phone. When that didn’t work, he sent Allan more messages.

  Allan must be ignoring him.

  With a heavy sigh, he exited his dad’s office. The entire house was eerily silent. A pack house was always noisy, full of life, but the empty house reminded him of an abandoned haunted mansion. Chad made his way downstairs and back outside.

  He found Max and Grant waiting for him, right next to his stuff. Max was already placing some of his old books in a box. Allan had really taken everyone, he realized, because otherwise, guards would’ve prevented Max and Grant entry.

  “What’s the commotion?” Max asked, spotting him.

  “My dad’s an idiot. He’s going to war with the Ash Bears,” he grumbled. “I think after his fight with Daniel, he still wants to let some steam off.”

  “The Ash Bears? That’s the equivalent of suicide,” Grant commented unhelpfully.

  “Max, forget my stuff. We’re going back to the Goldcrest pack house. Do you think Daniel will help the Windshide Pack?” he asked Max. Max stood up, dusted off his hands, and grinned at him.

  “They might’ve fought each other bloody earlier this morning, but they’re still best friends.” Max reminded him. “And if you asked, of course he’ll mobilize the pack.”

  “Let’s hurry.” Back in Grant and Max’s ride, he fished out his phone and dialed Daniel’s number.

  * * * *

  “There’s no changing your mind?” Ben asked Daniel.

  Daniel had gathered Ben and all his enforcers in one of the pack house meeting rooms to announce his intentions. He nodded. “It wasn’t an easy decision to make, but the pack’s ready for change and new leadership.”

  He couldn’t read the expressions on Ben and the other enforcer’s faces.

  “If this is your final decision, then we’ll respect it,” Ben said. “Although I’m not a hundred percent certain the pack will accept me as their new Alpha, not after everything you’ve done.”

  “I’m not going to leave you in the dust. I’ll stick around a little longer if you and everyone else need me for advice,” he said.

  “Does finding your mate have anything to do with you stepping down?” Mandy, one of his senior enforcers, asked.

  “No, I was thinking about the months before I mated Chad,” he said. “If there’s no further objections, then we’ll move on to other pack matters.”

  Daniel’s phone rang, and he frowned, taking it out. Those who had his number knew not to disturb him during pack meetings unless it was important. Seeing Chad’s name flashing across the screen, he excused himself from the meeting room.

  “Chad? Did something go wrong?” he asked. Daniel had felt tension and apprehension through their mate bonds earlier, but it had subsided. He thought maybe Chad and Allan’s conversation had started out rocky, but if anything happened to his mate, he’d know.

  “Daniel, it’s bad. When I came here, I thought Dad was planning to mobilize the pack to fight the Goldcrest Pack. It’s worse. He’s going after the Ash Bears.”
/>   “The Ash Bears?” Daniel remembered Allan complaining to him a week before how a werebear clan had taken over one of the territories the Windshide Pack controlled. Allan and he had also spoken about taking them on. Together.

  Allan must be really pissed about him and Chad getting together. His best friend always had a tendency to go off the rails whenever he had trouble dealing with a change in his life.

  “Do you know where Allan and his pack are going?”

  “I called Jasmine, one of his enforcers. We never got along, but she seemed relieved when I told her I’d ask you for help. She told me everything. They’re on their way to Dubros Hills. The fight’s going down in that neighborhood.”

  “Understood. It will take me ten to fifteen minutes to gather my best warriors. Another thirty minutes to get there.”

  “I’ll meet you there. Max and Grant are with me.”

  “No,” Daniel said instantly. The image of him putting Teri’s coffin to the ground surfaced in his head, except this time, the coffin contained Chad’s body. Daniel had already lost one mate. He didn’t intend to lose another. “I want you to stay put. Head back here for safety.”

  Chad swore on the other end. “I’m not going to sit idly around while—”

  “I can’t lose you.” Daniel said simply.

  Silence on the other end. “Daniel, this is my dad we’re talking about. I promise I won’t get in the way of the fight. I know my limits, but I need to be there.”

  Daniel heard the plea in his mate’s voice. He still didn’t want Chad to be caught in the middle of a battlefield. Chad was a submissive werewolf, not a dominant werewolf fighter, but Daniel could sense Chad’s worry through their mate bonds. Whatever he said, would Chad simply disobey him? He knew how stubborn Chad could be. In that aspect, both Allan and his son were similar.

  “Fine, but stay with Grant and Max. Keep out of the fight,” he said. “I’ll see you soon.”

  Chapter 12

  “Daniel says it’ll take them half an hour to get to Dubros Hill,” Chad told Max and Grant. “Let’s head there.”

  “Are you crazy?” Max blurted. “I don’t believe Daniel would let you head into a territorial shifter war.”

  “We’ll watch from the sidelines. I need to look for my dad. Max, please. I could talk some sense into him, convince him to retreat until Daniel and the rest of the cavalry arrive.”

  Didn’t Max understand how important this was to him? What if something bad genuinely happened to Allan? Chad wouldn’t be able to live with himself if the last conversation they had—no. Chad refused to follow that line of thought.

  Max bit on his lower lip. “Damn it, Chad. Even if I say no and Grant drives us back, you’ll find a way to Dubros Hill yourself, won’t you?”

  “You know me well,” he said.

  Max let out a groan of what sounded like frustration. “Grant, Dubros Hill.”

  “Not a wise decision.” Grant steered the car towards the direction of that neighborhood. “But I’ll keep you both safe.”

  “Thanks, baby.” Max blew a kiss at his mate. Through the rear-view mirror, Chad saw Grant roll his eyes.

  “Thanks,” he told Max.

  “Don’t thank me yet. I’m still a hundred percent against this,” he muttered. “Just remember, Chad. My dad and you? You’re both mated now. His life force is fused with yours.”

  Chad let out a breath. He’d nearly forgotten how the mating bond could be a double-edge sword. Any harm that came to him rebounded back to Daniel. If he died—no, Chad refused to think about that.

  “We’ll be careful,” Chad promised. They entered Dubros Hill. This was a residential area for mid-income families, Chad remembered. His father had driven out the shifter gang that used to occupy this neighborhood only for the Ash Bears to move in.

  The streets were unsurprisingly empty of residents, but he spotted faces peering out from the windows of the apartment buildings. A growl sounded from somewhere close. Up ahead, he spotted one werewolf and one werebear clawing at each other. They passed by more shifters fighting each other.

  Both Max and he jumped in their seats after hearing a gunshot from the alleyway left of them. They finally entered what looked like the main area of the brawl. Growls and snarls erupted. Shifters in animal form or in half-shifted states came at each other in a violent, messy dance. Blood flew from two shifters fighting each other and left a smear on the car windows. Grant drove past them.

  Sweat dripped down his back. What the hell was Chad thinking, dragging his best friend and Grant into this mess?

  His phone pinged, and he opened the message from Daniel and relayed it to Max and Grant.

  “Daniel and his pack are ten minutes away,” he said.

  “Get down!” Grant yelled.

  Chad grabbed Max and tugged his best friend down just as a bullet shattered the front windows. Moments later, he heard the sound of air escaping. Had the shooter gotten their tires?

  “Out of the car. Now,” Grant ordered. Max’s mate left the car first. He heard a snarl later, then their shooter falling face-first into the ground. Grant took his gun for himself.

  Chad flung open the door, got out. He checked his surroundings. The other shifters were too busy fighting each other. One human and one submissive werewolf wouldn’t pose much of a threat.

  Grant guided them away from the fighting and into an empty alleyway. “Shouldn’t have agreed to this,” the dominant werewolf grumbled.

  Chad peered out the graffiti-sprayed wall. His heart caught in his throat. He’d recognize his father anywhere. Allan was the largest werewolf there, and right now, he was taking on two massive werebears. Allan threw off the first one, turned to face the second, but Chad spotted a third werebear in animal form coming at him.

  Where were his father’s backup?

  Chad wrestled the rifle Grant had stolen. “I’m going out there.”

  “Chad!”

  Chad ran into the thick of the action. He lifted his gun. Chad knew how to fire one. Allan had taught him when he was a teenager. Chad might not be good at hand-to-hand combat, but he was a decent shot. He took aim and shot the werebear about to maul his father down.

  Allan spun to look at the dead werebear, then him.

  Tears hovered in Chad’s eyelids. He couldn’t help it. “Dad,” he whispered. “Let’s stop this. Let’s go home. Your wolves are being slaughtered. We’ll fight them again another time.”

  Were his words getting through his father’s thick skull? For a second, he thought he saw the bloodlust fade from Allan’s eyes. Then Allan let out a growl. Chad froze in place as Allan came at him. His old man wasn’t going for him. Allan used his body to shove him aside, only to collide with another big furry werebear.

  Chad landed on his ass, his gun clattering on the ground. A shot rang out. He let out a scream as the bullet found its way to Allan’s side. A roar came from the left of him, and he saw another werebear about to charge him.

  Beyond the shifter, he spotted Max and Grant heading for his direction, but they’d be too late. Chad fumbled for the gun again. Too slow. Chad cursed himself.

  “Come on,” he yelled at himself. The werebear was nearly upon him. The shifter flashed him sharp, yellow fangs only for an enormous muscled wolf to take him down. His heart leapt at the sight of Daniel’s chocolate-brown wolf. His mate made short work of the werebear.

  His father padded back to him. Seeing Allan leave splatters of blood on the concrete made him swear. How badly was Allan injured? Daniel padded to them, muzzle covered with blood. Daniel and Allan stared at each other. Both men must’ve come to a temporary agreement, because they didn’t fight each other.

  Three more werebears came at them, but up against two Alpha werewolves, they were easily dealt with. Hearing werewolves howling, Chad looked around him. Relief filled him, seeing more Goldcrest werewolves joining the fray.

  With the arrival of Daniel’s wolves, they evened the playing field. He even spotted some of the bears startin
g to flee. Max and Grant reached him. Seeing them, both Daniel and his father left his side to support the rest of their werewolves.

  “Chad, oh my God. My heart nearly stopped when that werebear went after you,” Max blurted, pulling him into a hug.

  “Daniel arrived in time though,” he said. “Plus, it’s good to see them both working together again, huh? I know it’s only for this battle, but it’s something.”

  “Yeah, but Chad? Promise me you won’t run off alone like that. You even caught Grant off-guard when you took his gun.”

  Grant grunted at that, looking unhappy.

  “Sorry, it won’t happen again. The moment I saw my dad was in trouble, I had to act.”

  “I get it, I think.”

  “Come on. This space is too open,” Grant said, spiriting Max and him away from the main fighting area.

  One Windshide werewolf spotted them and let them stay in his car for a bit. Waiting sucked, but Chad knew his limits. He still had his gun, and Grant was there to discourage any werebear from coming after them.

  He and Max leaned back in the back seat of the car.

  “What a day,” Chad muttered.

  “You bet. Feels too damn long. All I want to do now is head back to our apartment,” Max said.

  “I feel the same way, except it’ll be Daniel’s bed.”

  Max made gagging noises. “No more, please.”

  He grinned. “I’ll try to behave.”

  Chad must’ve dozed off because the next time he woke, he heard voices.

  “I’ll leave him in your care then,” Max was saying.

  He rubbed at his eyes to see Max and Daniel conversing outside the car. Chad opened the door, looked around. The streets were quiet. No more gunshots or sounds of fighting. Werewolves started to clear the corpses off the streets.

  “You’re awake,” Daniel said.

  Seeing his mate, his heart swelled. Daniel only had a pair of pants on. The Alpha must’ve put them on when he turned to human form. Max gave him a wave, before leaving with Grant. Chad walked up to his own mate, pleased when Daniel enclosed him into a hug.