A Beta's Haven

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  He took her lips, slow and easy, her taste mingling with his, igniting his wolf. “It’s never too early to cop a feel.”

  They both burst out in laughter, their bodies shaking together. “Oh my god, that’s got to be the worst line you’ve ever used on me.”

  He frowned. “I’m sure I’ve used worse. I’ll strive to do better with bringing you horrible pick-up lines.”

  “Oh Jeez. What have we started?” She smiled while her eyes danced.

  “Well, I know what I started, and it included getting you out of these shorts and having a breakfast of my own before we get out of bed.”

  Her eyes darkened. “Don’t let me be the one to stop you.”

  “Mommy! Daddy!” The sound of a little fist knocking on the door made both of them freeze.

  “Well, at least she’s knocking now,” Willow said deadpan, and Jasper chuckled.

  “There’s always that, I guess.” He moved off his mate and ran a hand through his hair. “Come in, Brie.”

  The door opened, and he saw the top of her head at the end of the bed as she padded in quickly. He reached down when she moved to the side of the bed and then pulled her to sit between him and Willow. She blinked up at him and squirmed, her body radiating more energy than usual.

  “Good morning, baby girl. What’s got you all fiery today?”

  His wolf rubbed up against his skin, and he held back a strained smile. He had a feeling he knew exactly what was going on with Brie, but he wanted to see what she thought of it first.

  She scrunched up her face and rubbed her arms. “I don’t know. It’s like my skin is itchy, but I don’t know why.” Her eyes filled with tears, and her lower lip wobbled. “What’s wrong with me, Daddy?”

  Sweet Jesus, he wanted to crawl in a hole and die or at least find a way to make everything in the world right again. While the change was brutal and painful with adults, the moon goddess was kind to children. Their shift would be painless and feel like a hug. It wouldn’t be until they hit puberty that it would really hurt.

  Thankfully.

  Most thought that the moon goddess spared the children from the pain but then couldn’t stop it from happening after a certain point. After all, the idea of becoming a werewolf had been a punishment for hunting long ago. Changing one’s shape into something completely different should hurt. It wasn’t magic and rainbows, but a body transforming cell by cell.

  He hugged her close, and Willow leaned into them both. He wrapped an arm around his girls and tried to be strong in accepting the realization that his little girl was growing up.

  “It’s your wolf, Brie. You’re almost ready to shift so your skin feels all itchy because your wolf wants to come out.”

  She blinked then smiled wide, her tears gone in a flash. “I get to be a wolf like Finn!”

  He snorted. “I take it you’re not scared.”

  “Nuh huh. I get to be a wolf like you and Mommy and Finn.” She scrambled off the bed and tugged at him. “Come on. Let’s go. Wolfie time!” She ran off at top speed, screaming and giggling.

  “You heard her. It’s wolfie time,” Willow said, the false cheer in her voice not hiding her worry from him.

  “She’ll be okay, Willow.”

  “You sure it doesn’t hurt for babies?”

  They both stood by the bed, and he kissed her softly. “I’m sure. She’ll love it. When she gets to be a little older, then we’ll deal with the shifts that hurt. Right now, we get to watch our daughter find her wolf.”

  Willow let out a breath and tugged on her jeans. “Well, come on then. Brie’s probably in the middle of our backyard naked as a jaybird.” She paused. “Will we have to shift with her?”

  Jasper shook his head. “Maybe. She might be able to get it on her own since she’s seen us shift before. If she needs us though, either one of us can.

  His mate snorted then strode toward the backyard where they indeed found a naked Brie running round making howling sounds.

  “Why can’t I be a wolf now?” she asked, her eyes wide.

  “Because you need to focus, baby girl.” Jasper went to the middle of the yard and sat cross-legged. “Kneel like a wolf and then focus on the part that itches under your skin. Do you want Mommy to show you how to shift?”

  She shook her head, her teeth biting into her lower lip as she concentrated. “I’ve seen it before. I can do it.”

  There was something so confident in her tone that Jasper had to blink. Brie seemed to be full of surprises. Gods, she was going to be a handful when she became a teenager.

  He shook his head so he could focus on Brie’s shift. Willow sat on the other side of her, and they both rubbed up and down Brie’s back. His wolf felt the stirrings of her little wolf, and he smiled.

  Any minute now.

  “Close your eyes and try to find that little ball of energy.”

  “Okay,” she said, her voice determined.

  “Now tug on that a bit. Think of it like tug of war and you’re trying to win against Finn.”

  “I can beat him. He’s a boy, but I’m tough too.”

  “Yes, you are honey. Now feel that energy and pull.”

  She nodded then gasped, as she found it. Jasper’s wolf howled, and he felt Willow’s do the same through the bond. Fur sprouted under his palm, and where once a little girl knelt, now stood a tiny pure white wolf pup with green eyes.

  “Oh, baby, you’re so adorable. You did it!” Tears streamed down Willow’s face, and he had a feeling he was crying too.

  Brie wiggled from between them and took a couple shaky steps before turning back and jumping on Willow. Willow laughed as Brie licked her face, and then Brie moved to do the same to Jasper.

  Right then and there, he fell in love with his daughter all over again.

  She had to be the cutest wolf in the history of wolf pups. She wagged her little tail then pranced away, dancing as much as a wolf could, and Jasper just shook his head.

  “She’s so good at that,” Willow said, awe in her voice.

  He stood, pulling his mate up with him, then wrapped an arm around her. “She was meant for it. She’s meant for so much.”

  Willow laid her head on his chest, and he tightened his hold. “We’re going to make sure she gets to do just that, find out what she’s meant for, and also have a chance to one day watch her own little pup run and play. We’re going to do that for her, Jasper.”

  He blinked away the tears and turned to face her. He cupped her face and nodded. “We’re going to win, Willow. We have more to fight for, and we won’t give up. That little girl is going to be happy, happier than she is now if that’s possible. You know why I know that?”

  “Why?”

  “Because I have you by my side. You’re my haven, my everything, Willow. You’re the one who will do whatever it takes to fight for what you love, and I can only do what I can to keep up. We’re going to win because we have each other and have a future worth fighting for.”

  “I love you, Jasper.”

  “I love you too, Willow, my haven.”

  They turned and watched their little wolf pup dance in the grass, and right then, Jasper knew that, no matter what happened, this moment, this scene, would be something he’d never forget. He had everything he needed, and now that he had a plan, he knew exactly how he was going to keep it that way.

  As long as he had Willow by his side, he could do anything.

  Coming Next in the Redwood Pack world:

  The Redwood Pack Princess and the wolf that just might save them all get their story in the final installment of the Redwood Pack:

  Fighting Fate, coming June 2014

  A Note from Carrie Ann

  Thank you so much for reading A Beta’s Haven. It was so nice to go back and visit Jasper and Willow after all this time. Things sure have changed in the Redwood Pack! I do hope if you liked this story, that you would please leave a review. Not only does a review spread the word to other readers, they let us authors know if you’d like to se
e more stories like this from us. I love hearing from readers and talking to them when I can. If you want to make sure you know what’s coming next from me, you can sign up for my newsletter at www.CarrieAnnRyan.com; follow me on twitter at @CarrieAnnRyan, or like my Facebook page. I also have a Facebook Fan Club where we have trivia, chats, and other goodies. You guys are the reason I get to do what I do and I thank you.

  What’s next in my Redwood Pack world? The next—and last—full length book in the Redwood Pack series is Fighting Fate. While it does come out in June, I’m writing it now and…well…Cailin and Logan’s journey is a tough one!

  You don’t have to worry though because this year I also have 2 more Redwood Pack novellas, and then in 2015, we will see the start of a brand new series, The Talon Pack. We’re going 30 years into the future and not letting go of the Redwoods. You’ll see them again, only this time, you get to meet a whole new batch of Alpha wolves.

  I also have my Dante’s Circle and Montgomery Ink series going in full swing now so there’s always a Carrie Ann book on the horizon!

  Thank you so much for going on this journey with me and I do hope you enjoyed visiting Jasper and Willow. Without you readers, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

  Thank you again for reading and I do hope to see you again.

  Carrie Ann

  About this Author

  USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan never thought she’d be a writer. Not really. No, she loved math and science and even went on to graduate school in chemistry. Yes, she read as a kid and devoured teen fiction and Harry Potter, but it wasn’t until someone handed her a romance book in her late teens that she realized that there was something out there just for her. When another author suggested she use the voices in her head for good and not evil, The Redwood Pack and all her other stories were born.

  Carrie Ann is a bestselling author of over twenty novels and novellas and has so much more on her mind (and on her spreadsheets *grins*) that she isn’t planning on giving up her dream anytime soon.

  www.CarrieAnnRyan.com

  Also from this Author

  Now Available:

  Redwood Pack Series:

  An Alpha’s Path

  A Taste for a Mate

  Trinity Bound

  A Night Away

  Enforcer’s Redemption

  Blurred Expectations

  Forgiveness

  Shattered Emotions

  Hidden Destiny

  A Beta’s Haven

  Holiday, Montana Series:

  Charmed Spirits

  Santa’s Executive

  Finding Abigail

  Her Lucky Love

  Dreams of Ivory

  Dante’s Circle Series:

  Dust of My Wings

  Her Warriors’ Three Wishes

  An Unlucky Moon

  Ever After

  Montgomery Ink:

  Ink Inspired

  Ink Reunited

  Coming Soon:

  Redwood Pack

  Fighting Fate

  Loving the Omega

  Dark Fates

  Dante’s Circle:

  Tangled Innocence

  Fierce Enchantment

  Montgomery Ink:

  Delicate Ink

  Did you enjoy this selection? Why not try another romance from Fated Desires?

  From USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan’s Dante’s Circle Series

  An Unlucky Moon

  Chapter One

  The fiery depths of hell were a cool afterthought compared to the torment of what lay before him. Hunter Brooks ducked the punch aimed at his head and rolled to the ground, coming up on his feet a few yards away. He never let his gaze leave his opponent, even as he moved his arm to stop a kick to the neck.

  The low roll of thunder in the distance set his wolf on edge, but he tamped it down. The rain would come eventually, and Hunter wanted to make sure he was done with this before then. The circle was already a mud pit, the wet sludge clinging to his torn jeans—he didn’t want to deal with more of that.

  His wolf brushed along the inside of his skin, an animalistic presence that wanted revenge, blood, and death.

  The man within him wanted the same thing.

  The other wolf came at him at his fastest speed, but Hunter was faster. His hands shifted to claws, and he slashed out, catching the other wolf along the shoulder. His opponent screamed as blood seeped from the deep wound, but Hunter didn’t care. He squeezed his fingers together, cutting the other man deeper.

  His opponent met his gaze, the anger all but lashing out at him.

  Hunter had seen the depravity of a winged demon bent on quenching its thirst and lust on decaying corpses within the depths of the gladiator games.

  This wolf had nothing on that.

  His opponent slashed his claws down Hunter’s side, but Hunter moved too fast for the other wolf to break the skin.

  He’d spent enough time playing around with this wolf, allowing him to think he actually had a chance. Hunter lifted a lip and showed fang, growling deep within his chest. The air around him seemed to freeze, and time stood still.

  Hunter cocked his head to the side as fear seeped into the other wolf’s eyes. Finally, the other wolf knew its life relied on Hunter’s mercy.

  The others called Hunter an animal.

  They called him depraved.

  Soulless.

  Yes, this wolf had something to fear, but death would not be among them.

  Not today.

  Hunter kicked out then twisted, causing the other wolf to fall to his knees in pain. He gripped the bastard by the neck and squeezed.

  “Forfeit,” Hunter growled, his voice scraping against his throat from lack of use.

  The other wolf’s eyes rolled back, and then he slammed his hand to the ground twice.

  The murmurs and howls around them forced Hunter to look at the crowd. He and the other wolf stood in the center of the Nocturne Pack circle, blood and mud covering their bodies and worn jeans. Other members of his Pack growled around them. Some had looks of relief on their faces. Others held a bit of fear…or anger.

  The latter would have to be dealt with soon.

  “Matthew calls forfeit,” Liam Murray, council member and one-time friend, called out. “It is up to Hunter whether to call death, but the circle has chosen. Hunter is our Beta.”

  “As it should have been in the first place,” Josiah, their Alpha, spat. “I have spoken and the circle has agreed. My choice reigns.”

  “For now,” Dorian Masterson whispered, though Hunter wasn’t sure if anyone else had heard the bastard.

  Hunter had keener senses than most wolves due to his bloodline and destiny. His stint in the gladiator games of hell had only honed them stronger. He’d been back only a month, and he still didn’t feel as though he fit in his skin. Everything had changed in his absence.

  The council had grown with more power. His Alpha had grown weaker without Hunter there to protect him. Josiah’s last protector had perished

  Samuel…Samuel, Hunter’s brother, had died protecting the Alpha when the council had tried to take over.

  None of it made sense to Hunter. He’d fought for his life countless times and killed so many demons and other supernaturals that he wasn’t sure the blood would ever leave his hands, yet when he’d returned to the human realm, he’d faced another battle.

  His own Pack.

  Hunter rolled his shoulders then stalked toward his Alpha, who stood surrounded by the five council members. That alone pissed him off to no end. The council should have no place near the Alpha. There were only advisors on good days and whispers on bad ones.

  Yet they stood there and had demanded a fight to the death to secure the position of Beta.

  A position that Samuel had held.

  A position Hunter had held before he’d been taken by the demons and forced to serve.

  He knelt in front of his alpha, glaring at the others as he did so.

  “My Al
pha,” Hunter grumbled then turned his head to the side to bare his neck. Others gasped around him, but he ignored them. They should have been the ones to bare their necks, but they’d become lax in their duties and rituals.

  They’d thought the Pack was a democracy.

  They would soon be proven wrong.

  Josiah put his hand on Hunter’s shoulder and nodded. “You’re a fine Beta, Hunter. You will make me proud. You make me proud.”

  Something warm started to fill him, piercing through the ice at his Alpha’s words, then dissipated. His wolf howled within him and hardened against the intrusion. No, it wouldn’t do any good to warm at his Alpha’s words.

  Hunter wasn’t a warm man. He was a killer—his Alpha’s killer. He’d been raised to be that wolf, and he’d fulfilled that promise in hell. Now he was back within the confines of his Pack and ready to kill again.

  Or at least that’s what he told himself.

  “Hunter, good fight,” Alec Brennan, another of Hunter’s one-time friends and council member, said as he slapped his shoulder. “You almost killed that Lloyd wolf.” A vicious gleam entered Alec’s eyes, and Hunter grunted.

  “Let the wolf live in his memory of defeat,” Hunter growled. “I’m not in the mood to kill a useless slug who isn’t worthy of the title Beta.”

  “Watch what you say about my son,” Gregory Lloyd snarled. The older council member tried to come at him, his teeth bared, but Alistair Jacobs—the remaining council member—held him back.

  “It would do no good to fight like animals,” Alistair drawled. “We might have the wolves at our beck and call, but we will remain civilized.”

  Hunter snorted at that. There had to be over a hundred wolves surrounding them in human form, each shirtless, ready to shift if necessary. Each adult male—and some of the juveniles—were marred with scars and tattoos that celebrated their victories in battle.