Alpha Unhinged

by Olivia T. Turner

  He drops to his knees, his hand on the ground. I stomp on it, pinning him in place.

  “Where’s Burton?”

  “Fuck you,” he hisses through bloody teeth.

  “Tell me and I’ll let you go.”

  He spits a string of curse words at me.

  My bear growls like spidey-sense and I turn around just in time to catch the wolf in the air. His jaws are wide open and frothing like a rabid dog. I grab the back of his head, using his momentum to slam him into Tats. His jaw closes on Tat’s shoulder and he lets out a scream.

  The wolf tries to open his jaw to release his friend, but I hold it closed, pressing his sharp teeth further in. Blood runs down Tats’ tattooed arm as he hollers in pain.

  “Where the fuck is Burton?” I hiss. “Last chance.”

  Tats winces in pain as I hold the wolf’s jaws in place. “He’s… on his way here.” He’s taking quick desperate breaths. Sweat pours down his pale face.

  “What?”

  “He’s coming here,” he says with a wince. “To find you. We’re the scouts. We were making sure you were here. The Dixon brothers, right? He’s bringing the whole pack.”

  My blood goes cold. He’s not lying. If Dylan Burton is coming for revenge, then he will be prepared. I don’t know how many wolf shifters he has in his employ. Twenty? Fifty? A hundred?

  I have to let my brothers know.

  “When is he arriving?”

  “Six days.”

  He’s lying. I press the wolf’s jaw harder. He screams.

  “Three days! It’s three days, I swear!”

  I stare at him in shock. In three days we could have a swarm of wolf shifters and a pissed-off polar bear shifter to deal with.

  My inner Kodiak growls, wanting a turn with these chumps.

  You’ll have your chance soon enough, I tell him. You’ll have as many wolves as you can handle. Maybe even more than that.

  A siren rips through the air and I get a bad feeling in my gut when I recognize the sound. It’s the firecunts. If their chief Quinton is there, I might have another shifter to fight.

  “I’ll let you go and you change back,” I tell the wolf. “Otherwise, I’ll grab your tail and throw you into the fire that you started.”

  The roof collapses in on the blazing bar behind us. It’s an inferno. Nothing is going to be salvaged from that mess.

  I release my pressure on the wolf’s jaw and Tats whimpers as he lets his shoulder go. His mouth is dripping with blood, making him look demonic, but he does as I commanded and phases back.

  The sirens are ear-piercing as the truck rumbles into the parking lot.

  A growl rumbles out of my throat as I watch the firefighting crew explode out of the truck, grabbing equipment as they hurry. What’s the point? It’s a total loss anyway. Let it all burn to the ground, so this poor lady will have less cleanup to deal with.

  A tingling smell hits my nose and then my throat burns like I’ve just taken a shot of gasoline and gotten too close to the flames. It tears through me, sparking my bear up and turning him frantic. I can’t breathe.

  I fall to my knees, grasping at my throat.

  The wolves know an opportunity when they see one and take off running. I swipe at Tat’s ankles, trying to trip him up, but I graze his charred jeans and they manage to escape. They jump on their bikes and take off in a slew of sparks. Their tires melted from the heat of the fire and they’re practically rolling on the metal frames now.

  I stand up to go after them when something stuns me to the core.

  Not something. Someone.

  She jumps out of the firetruck and looks up at the fire in awe. It must be her first day. She has that dumbstruck look in her beautiful hazel eyes. I must have the same look on my face as I stare at her.

  She’s dressed in full firefighting gear, that bulky suit hiding the beautiful curves I know are hiding underneath. Her hair is hidden under the big yellow helmet, but what I can see of her, I’ve already fallen in love with.

  She has a beautiful face that’s now twisted with determination as she grabs a hose from the truck and rushes over to the fire hydrant. Soft plump lips, a cute little button nose, warm hazel eyes. Fuck, I’m love.

  And so is my bear. He hasn’t moved or made a sound since we first laid eyes on her. I can’t remember the last time the impatient fucker lasted this long without making my life hell.

  That’s our mate.

  That’s her.

  That’s the woman we’ve thought of, dreamed of, fantasized of, every minute of every day for the last thirty-four years.

  That’s the woman who’s going to change everything. She already has.

  Just one look and everything has shifted. My world is all about her now.

  I take a deep breath and walk over.

  It’s time to show her just what that means.

  Chapter Three

  Alyssa

  Five minutes earlier…

  I can’t believe this is happening. My first fire. I can’t freaking wait.

  I have a huge grin on my face as I look around at the other guys while we race down the road. They look bored. Bored! How could they possibly be bored!?

  My adrenaline is jacked through the roof as the siren rings in my ears. This is what I’ve been training for. This is what I’ve been waiting for since I first saw the movie Backdraft when I was nine years old. A fire. A real fire that I get to put out! I’m freaking out!

  Enzo spots my bouncing knee and then looks at me with a raised eyebrow.

  “Just excited,” I say, unable to hide my enormous smile. “It’s my first fire.”

  “Keep your head out there or it will be your last,” Quinton says from the passenger seat.

  “Yes, Chief!” I yell a little too enthusiastically.

  Grey looks at me with a scowl. I don’t think he appreciates my enthusiasm very much. I don’t think he appreciates anything very much. I haven’t seen the giant man smile once since I got assigned to this fire station.

  Brees is driving. He honks the horn and swears as he swerves around a car that’s not getting out of the way fast enough.

  I’ve been with these guys for ten days and this is the first fire we’ve gotten. I had a couple of false alarms and a broken fire hydrant (which left me soaked by the way), but nothing real until now.

  It’s been awkward living with them. I’m the only female and I don’t think they’ve been around too many girls. I don’t think they know what to do with me.

  Luckily, I’ve been around a lot of guys, so I know how to handle myself in a masculine arena. I had three brothers growing up, two older, one younger, and they always had friends over.

  But these guys are different than my brothers. I don’t remember Matthew being so moody, or Alex roaring in his sleep, or Thomas walking into the house naked with shredded clothes in his hands. I don’t remember hair in the shower drain too thick to be human or cracked tiles and scratch marks on the walls.

  I think these guys are shifters.

  I’m pretty sure of it, but I’m too new to ask. What’s the policy on asking about that in the workplace? I’m assuming it’s like asking about religious affiliations or sexual preference. You don’t.

  I sneak a peek at Grey as he stares out the window with a blank expression on his face. How can he not be a shifter? His arms are as thick as my thighs and my thighs are thick with muscle.

  His eyes dart over to mine and he frowns. I drop my eyes to the ground, staring at my shiny new boots as my face burns red.

  I have to fit in here.

  I don’t want to go back home. The small town in Kentucky that I grew up in has nothing waiting for me. All of my brothers have left, my mother died, I can handle talking to my father once a week on the phone, but more than that is too much.

  And there are no prospects in the men department. I’m a strong girl. Built tough. What I didn’t get from working on a farm all of my childhood, I got in the gym. It was important to me to be as strong as
any of the men on my team.

  In a normal firefighting unit, I would be, but with freaks like Grey and Brees beside me, I don’t stand a chance in meeting their strength.

  Anyway, I was too muscly for any of the men I dated. I could see it in their eyes when I walked into the restaurant or bar. Who wants a girlfriend who could kick their ass? I’m sure some don’t mind, but they weren’t living in my hometown.

  I hope Belgrade Springs is going to be different. I’m sick of being alone.

  “Frye!” Quinton bellows at me, calling me by my last name. “It’s your first rodeo, so you’re on the pipe.”

  My smile widens. I get to hold the hose and put out the flames? This is too good to be true. I’m so excited and grateful that I feel like I’m going to cry.

  “Just don’t get in the way,” Grey mutters in a low voice.

  I think it’s the first thing he’s said to me. I know all about alpha male bullshit and you can’t let them get away with it. That’s the first rule of living and working with a bunch of guys.

  “Why is that?” I snap back at him. “You afraid you’re going to be outshined by a girl?”

  Brees and Enzo burst out laughing. Even Quinton is chuckling as he shakes his head.

  “Yeah, Grey!” Enzo says with a chuckle. “You afraid of being—”

  Grey’s huge arm whips out and he grabs Enzo by the hair. His laughter is immediately replaced by a wince as he’s yanked forward.

  “You want to finish that thought?” Grey asks in his deep booming voice.

  “No, no!” Enzo quickly says, his demeanor and tone of voice doing a one-eighty. “I know you’re not afraid of anything! Can you let go of my hair please? Once you lose it at my age, it doesn’t come back. Every hair is precious.”

  Grey holds on for another few seconds and then lets go.

  Enzo sits back in his chair, smoothing out his messy hair with a red face.

  Grey stares me down and I stare him down right back. The tension grows until we pull into the parking lot and I turn to gawk at the burning building through the window.

  I forget all about Grey as the excitement and anticipation come roaring back. I can smell the smoke. I can feel the heat.

  The truck stops and the guys jump out so quickly it’s a blur. I don’t even have my safety belt off.

  “Shit,” I mutter as I fumble with it. My fingers are all shaky and my heart is pounding so hard that I can barely think.

  I’m the last one out by far. The others are already doing their job as I rush out of the truck and head for the hose. I grab it and easily pull it to the fire hydrant. All those intense workouts in the gym have paid off and I’m glad I’m not struggling.

  I hook it up in record time as I feel Quinton’s eyes on me, watching me and making sure I’m not screwing up.

  I feel other eyes on me as well. The feeling is intense, but I don’t dare look away and risk screwing up in front of my new crew. I unleash the water and it fills the hose up until it’s hard and ready to burst out of the nozzle.

  I rush over to grab the other end, but just as I arrive, Grey steps in and elbows me out of the way.

  “Back in the truck, rookie,” he mutters as he picks up the pipe and pulls back the lever. A heavy stream of water surges out and soars into the burning blaze.

  “Hey!” I shout at him over the roar of the flames and water. “That’s my position!”

  “What are you going to do about it?” he answers with a grin.

  I don’t know what comes over me, but I kick him as hard as I can in the dick and yank the hose out of his hands.

  He falls to a knee and the look of pure rage on his red face tells me that was a huge mistake. Probably a fatal mistake.

  He roars as he gets to his feet and lunges on me, but he never arrives. A huge blur flies between us, tackling him to the ground.

  I gasp as I watch two huge men separate as they stare each other down with furious eyes.

  Shit, I don’t have time for this. I’m trying to fulfill my life’s dream over here. I keep the stream of water pointed at the building (and not between Grey’s eyes like I want to).

  The other guys start hollering and yelling as Grey and the new man collide again. Enzo, Quinton, and Brees all run over.

  I want to help him since he did save my life, but the man is on top of Grey and landing hard punches, so he doesn’t need help from me. But that poor lady over there watching her business burn to the ground does.

  I step away from the brawl and try to detect the hot zones like I learned in training. Shit, the whole building is a hot zone.

  My heart is racing with excitement as I take on the flames, smothering them with the water from the hose. Thick black smoke billows into the air as the water does its job.

  The owner comes running over to me, waving her hands in the air. “Turn it off! Let it burn! I’m going to collect the insurance money and retire in Barbados!”

  She looks thrilled, which is a relief, but I’m not going to stop until every last flame is out.

  It’s not long before all that’s left is a creaking, soaked, blackened frame of a building.

  I turn off the nozzle, cutting the water as I grin. I did it. There’s not much left to the building, but I did what I could.

  It’s then that I remember the fight. I lower the pipe and turn around to look.

  I gasp when I see Grey holding the man’s arms behind his back as Quinton lands hard punches into his stomach.

  “Hey! Stop that!”

  They don’t listen. Brees is watching impassively. Only Enzo seems to care. He’s shaking his head as he turns away, but he’s not doing anything to stop it.

  “Leave him alone!” I shout as I rush over, dragging the pipe with me.

  Each thunderous punch has me wincing. Each heavy grunt that leaves my savior breaks my heart. I can’t let them do this. He helped me and I have to return the favor.

  “Stop it!” I scream, giving them one last chance.

  Quinton not only doesn’t stop, but he switches to the man’s face, slamming hard punches into his cheeks and chin.

  That’s it! I’m putting a stop to this.

  I pull back the pipe and let them have it.

  A hard stream of water surges out and blasts Quinton in the chest just as he pulls back his fist to land another devastating blow. He’s caught off balance and flies backward, skidding across the pavement with a grunt.

  As he slides away from us, I arch the jet of water over my new friend’s head and blast it right into Grey’s face. If he didn’t want to kill me before, he surely does now. I’m as good as dead.

  He releases the guy and his arms fly up to cover his face as I fill it with ten thousand gallons of water. The guy elbows him in the stomach and then rushes over to my side.

  I get my first glimpse of his face and my core tightens. The way he’s looking at me…

  It sends shivers racing through my body. Those brown eyes… They’re so intense.

  There’s something different about this man. I can feel it all over. Physically, mentally, spiritually. I step closer to him as goosebumps tickle my skin.

  “We’re going,” he grunts as he grabs my wrist with an unbreakable grip.

  This is my job. I can’t leave. I worked so hard to get here and I refuse to quit.

  Quinton is soaked as he gets up, glaring at me with his furious blue eyes.

  I gulp. I guess I quit the second I decided to hit my boss in the chest with a water gun on steroids. I’ll be lucky if he only fires me. Both him and Grey look like they want my head on a pike.

  I nod my head at the guy clutching my wrist. “Great idea!”

  I pull the lever down, cutting the flow of water, but the hose is still primed and ready as we back toward what I’m hoping is his truck.

  My new crew (or my old crew is more like it) glare at us as we back away.

  “Traitor,” Brees says, spitting out the word like venom.

  Ouch. That hurts.

  The m
an’s hand is still wrapped around my wrist as he pulls me back. It should be sending warning bells off in my head, but it’s not. If anything, my body, soul, brain, and every other part of me is telling me to go with him.

  So I do.

  He hops in the driver’s seat and starts the truck.

  “Stay back,” I warn as I point the hose at the four men. They all start coming at the same time. “Shit!”

  I throw the hose down and leap into the truck. The man takes off, peeling out of the parking lot before I have a chance to close the door. I scream as I nearly roll out, but he catches me in time, holding me by the back of my suit.

  He pulls me in as we fly down the highway.

  Chapter Four

  Alyssa

  I reach over to close the open door and nearly have a heart attack when I see the concrete whizzing by me in a blur. With my pulse racing, I grab the handle and yank the door closed.

  What the hell did I just do?

  I kicked a member of my team in the balls and sprayed him in the face with the hose (which wasn’t in the manual, but I’m sure is a big industry-wide no-no). If that wasn’t enough, I blasted my boss in the chest and then fled an active fire with a strange man I’ve never met before.

  I want to cry. I worked so hard to get to this point and I messed it all up in a few crazed minutes.

  “Are you okay?” the man asks in his deep comforting voice.

  I turn and look at him, seeing him clearly for the first time. My stomach turns in on itself and my eyes widen as I take him in. His clothes are soaked and they’re clinging to his big thick muscles. This man is enormous. Not quite as big as Grey, but still huge.

  I swallow hard as he looks at me with an intense smoldering gaze. It sends a jolt of warmth straight between my legs and I shift in my seat when I feel the heat of desire pulsing down there.

  His dark beard matches his dark eyes. Tattoos peek out from under his shirt on his biceps and on his chest. He’s intimidating-looking. The kind of guy who’d make you cross the street if you passed him at night, but I don’t feel any intimidation. Attraction yes, but intimidation, no.